May 31, 2006
Two girls shop for ripe melons, sniffing for a sweet fragrance, at Marché Mouffetard, one of my favorite places and recommendations for visitors to Paris to go
You can’t do Paris without a museum, or two, or ten — it’s unthinkable. If you're visiting the City of Light for the first time, by all means, flit from the Louvre to D’Orsay; climb la Tour Eiffel and l’Arc de Triomphe; visit Notre Dame and Sacré Coeur. After that, here’s my pearl of wisdom learned from experience: you’ll have more fun and better memories of Paris, or wherever you go, if you dig deep into the culture.
My adventure in Paris was four months of uncharted exploration. I didn’t have guidebooks or tour guides. Every day that I could, I ventured out with only my camera to take pictures, and my map and métro ticket to get me back at the end of the day. I discovered the most charming and pittoresque places by taking “wrong” turns. There’s more to Paris than the puddle iron tower. There’s an incredible culture, and even during a short vacation, it’s easy to discover. Here are my tested suggestions of things to do in Paris:
Continue reading "Recommendation: a Parisien pique-nique"
Posted by 
at 6:08 PM | Permalink
May 24, 2006
If you are ever going to travel to Madrid, you will want to see the usual sites that guidebooks mention: the Prado, the painting "Guernica" at the Reina Sofia, the Thyssen-Bornemisza art museum, and other monuments in the center of the city.
But here are some other places you might be interested in (Be warned, Madrid is a walking city. You can take the Metro to places, but then you will have to exit the station and walk at least a half-mile to your destination.):
Continue reading "Advice for the Spanish Traveler"
Posted by at 5:44 PM | Permalink
Are you thinking about traveling to Spain and, more specifically, to Zaragoza? I hope you are because if you do you will find a wonderful country (and city) that you will absolutely love! Anyway, as I spend my last days here I wanted to give you a heads-up on some small places that you should definitely go give a look if you are ever in Zaragoza.
1. Mezcalito: A small Mexican cafe/restaurant located very close to the center of town. The Mexican food, while nothing compared to the United States, is one of the better Mexican places you will find in Zaragoza. If you are in the Plaza de Aragon, go down Calle Canfranc, take a right onto Calle Ponzano and then turn right at the first street, it will be right there on the right.
Continue reading "Little Places in Zaragoza"
Posted by at 12:26 PM | Permalink
It’s over. My time in Cuenca, Ecuador has finished. Now I’m here in Rhode Island, and I feel what people warned me about: culture shock.
I have been here for a week now, and every morning I still wake up confused from my night’s dream in Spanish. I wake up and think I am going to hear my host mom open my door saying “ Jennnnnaaa, desayunoooo (Jenna, breakfast).” Instead I find myself waking up to no one, and a room filled with all my unpacked things. I have no interest in unpacking, I think once I am unpacked and organized I will know that I am definitely not returning. Right now, I have left one bag packed, just in case...
Unfortunately it’s impossible to return until I make some money and finish my schooling, so I will have to get used to this culture shock feeling. I need to stop saying “permiso” when walking through a crowd, or in a restaurant, “ tiene salsa de tomate (do you have any ketchup?),” or carrying a role of toilet paper around in my purse (bathrooms never had toilet paper) or saying “gracias (thank you)” and “buenas dias/buenas tardes or buenas noches (good morning, good afternoon and good evening).”
I need especially to stop speaking Spanish when I am drunk. I went to visit my college and after a couple drinks at the bar, I was on the hunt for anyone that looked even slightly Latino that I could speak with. When I went to the bathroom there was a woman who looked to be of Latino descent cleaning the restroom, and upon seeing her I proceeded to give her the traditional kiss greeting and start talking to her in Spanish. Bad idea. She definitely did not speak Spanish, and was in fact rather offended. This did not stop me though. I continued my hunt and I found a Portugese boy and started going off in excitement thinking he could understand me, then found out Portugese and Spanish really are not that similar. So I then decided it was a great idea to speak Spanish to my Croatian boyfriend, so we continued the rest of the night speaking two very distinct languages and not understanding each other at all, but somehow I felt a lot better, even though I knew he couldn’t understand me.
I know I will continue to have a lot of adjustment problems, especially with the prices of food and the rules and regulations here in the U.S., but I am happy to be home. Things in Ecuador and in the U.S. are certainly different, especially for me and the rest of abroad students. Abroad is not reality, we have to remember this. Studying abroad is the dream life, most of us did not work, we just traveled, learned, and enjoyed life in another culture. I know the hardest part for me is coming back to obligations; I have to train for soccer, I have bills to pay, gas to pay for, and actually study when school begins.
Our lives abroad were without obligations and worries, and now we are here with them, which rightfully make us resent the U.S. Remember, this is our home county until we become citizens of another, so love and respect the things that we take for granted here. Also, it helps me to think that working and getting through school makes me one step closer to returning to South America. All those planning on returning to your host country, just work hard for now, then play time comes later. All those returning for another semester or to live, you are lucky, just don’t forget us!:)
Some quick words of advice for the next group of bloggers. Listen to Sheila, write often but small. I did the complete opposite and hardly ever wrote. Maybe keep a journal outside of the blogs where you can write down activities and emotions when they happen. I kept a journal and wrote everyday in the beginning, but then towards the end I hardly ever wrote. Try to keep it up, you will thank yourselves later. Also, remember that people really want to feel and be able to envision where you are and what your life is like, so try to think of the small details and daily events that make your country so unique.
Good luck to all those planning on studying abroad, it really is the experience of a lifetime and WELCOME HOME to all those who have returned!
Posted by at 10:49 AM | Permalink
I head home to America tomorrow morning, and I really can't wait. I've grown fond of St. Andrews, and I'll miss it, but it just can't compare to Rhode Island. Before I leave, though, I have some recommendations for the visitors that are flowing into the "Home of Golf."
Continue reading "St. A's in a Nutshell"
Posted by at 8:31 AM | Permalink
May 16, 2006
Sorry about the lapse in blogging, but the last few weeks have been so busy that I literally have not had time to think. First, my parents visited for Easter. Then, our group traveled to Northern Spain and Portgual. Afterwards, I spent a weekend in Dublin, Ireland and came back just in time for exam week!
When my parents came to visit, I wanted to show them around the city, so I took them to art museums and we went on a bus tour of the city. But one day, we wanted to do something new and unusual. So, we went to the Madrid Zoo and Aquarium at Batan, in the middle of the Casa de Campo.
Continue reading "A Day at the Zoo"
Posted by at 3:14 PM | Permalink
May 9, 2006
My semester is winding down...16 days left until I'm back to Rhode Island! But while all of us students are taking exams and getting ready to go home, golfers around the world are getting ready to start their season.
Continue reading "Golf"
Posted by at 5:39 AM | Permalink
