Author: agliwa

Submitted by Nicole Anacay on the 2018 spring semester program in Athens, Greece sponsored by the College of Education & Human Development…

This week, myself and another ECE student decided to check out the Acropolis. There is a large and high platform that is near the Acropolis which gives a view over most of Athens. While we had both been to the platform and thought the view could not get better than that, we realized that the Acropolis view from the very top was significantly higher. On the Acropolis, you can see from every side, a different view from each direction which shows signification points in Athens. One part shows the water, another the city cemetery, the Agora and even our apartment! The hike up was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be as we stopped to walk the trails that span the hill sides. We were able to see from three of the hill slopes and different temples.

Submitted by Natalie Kaucic on the 2018 spring semester program in Rome, Italy…

How-To Guide: Making the Best of a Rainy Weekend

First of all, you’re in luck if your rainy weekend happens to fall on the first Sunday of the month because then all of your museum visits are FREE!

And if that little tip didn’t give it away, the answer to making the best of a rainy day in Rome are museums! Rome does not lack history and certainly does not lack the museums that tell the story of Rome’s over 2,000 year old history. Seeing that the last weekend in February was going to have a constant downpour, I decided to make a game plan on how I would make the best of my weekend here in Rome. Since I plan, usually to a fault, I got my notepad out and started my gameplan.

Goal: 4 museums in 3 days

Micro-Goals: Drink hot chocolate, consume copious amounts of coffee and pile on the paninis

The Game Plan for a Delightful Cultural Experience:

Friday: Monet Exhibit

Saturday: Villa Farnesina and The Jewish Museum of Rome

Sunday: Use the 5 hours of sunshine in the morning to see the Villa Borghese Gardens, then visit the Borghese Museum.

THE RESULT:

Pure magic. If anyone tells me they are bored in this eternal city, I might implode.

FRIDAY:

The Monet Exhibit (a temporary exhibit in the Wedding Cake building) was exceptionally well done. They really captured the essence of the artist. This was the first time that I saw a Monet in person and I can attest to the wonder and excitement that the paintings cause when you see them in person. It was a such a special experience that his waterlilies are still dancing in my mind. Truly exceptional.

SATURDAY:

Visiting Villa Farnesina was likely the most serendipitous moment that I have had in Rome. I’m following Google Maps and all of a sudden I am right next to the John Cabot Guarini Campus… It turns out that my school is right next to Villa Farnesina and I had no idea that one of the most stunning fresco works of Rafael was in the villa right next to my school. A whopping 3 euros got me into one of the most beautiful villas I have ever laid eyes on. The colors, the detail and the stunning expressions of the people painted in the Renaissance works was absolutely breathtaking. I walked through the house twice because it was just so spectacular.

The Jewish Museum was really educational. They provided a free audio tour which was really helpful. They did a great job of really introducing Judaism and Jewish culture so that even someone not Jewish, like myself, could appreciate the art in the museum. I was also able to go into the Jewish synagogue which was truly extraordinary.  The difference between a Catholic church and a Jewish synagogue was staggering and I found it interesting to compare and contrast the two. The biggest difference I found was that Jewish people don’t idealize their religious figures so their places of worship are free from any images of these persons.

SUNDAY:

The Borghese Gardens are the Roman version of NYC’s Central Park. This extraordinary park is filled with dog walkers, playgrounds and lush trees. The crowning jewel of the grounds is Villa Borghese which is home to the Borghese Gallery. This gallery is so popular and spectacular that it is necessary to purchase your tickets at least a week in advance. Inside this villa is something truly spectacular. Well, if I am to be honest, there are many spectacular things in this villa. This Renaissance gem has artwork from Bernini (Sculptures: Apollo and Daphne and The Rape of Proserpina), paintings by Carrivagio, DaVinci, Raphael, Titian and more. The difference between Villa Farnesina and Villa Borghese is that I knew the Borghese Gallery woudl not disappoint and I was correct.

Moral of the story is notto let a little reain ruin your cultural experience of a city, especially if that city is Rome.  So get that magical cup of hot chocolate, put your rain boots on, stomp in a couple puddles and find your rainy day paradise.

 

Submitted by Shannon Wade on the 2018 spring semester program in Barcelona, Spain…

Not too long ago, I attended a cooking class in Barcelona to learn how to cook traditional Catalan food. I was a bit intimidated at first since I am not the best chef, but I was very eager to learn how to make some of my favorite dishes that I have enjoyed while being in Barcelona. Our chef Marco showed us step by step how to make romesco sauce which is usually served with vegetables, tortilla de patata, paella con pollo. He also taught us how to make crema Catalan for dessert which is similar to crème brulee, but made with cream instead of milk. There were a total of 12 of us in attendance at the cooking class. It took us almost 2 1/2 hours to prepare all the food which is the longest I have ever spent making food especially with so many people. This made me realize how particular and precise Catalan food needs to be in order for it to taste the way it does. Catalans hardly use any spices in their foods, so vegetables are a main component to flavor every dish. I was amazed to learn how vegetables can add so much flavor to food, especially since I come from a Jamaican heritage where we use countless spices in all our main dishes. After the 2 ½ hours when the food was finally cooked, it tasted amazing. I saved all the recipes and can’t wait to make it for all my family and friends when I return home.

Submitted by Nicole Anacay on the 2018 spring semester program in Athens, Greece sponsored by the College of Education & Human Development…

70 degree weather and winter jackets! This past weekend, the temperature here got up to 70 degrees and the majority of the people we saw were wearing heavy winter coats! We went to the water dressed in short sleeves and people looked at us as if we had three heads. The water was a bright blue, unlike the water in Delaware, and the tiny alcove we visited was full of boats. Seeing the high buildings with the water and boats in front is the Greece that I had pictured in my mind. The Greece that you see on those dreamy postcards! Around the shore line, there is everything from glass cafes to soccer fields. On the higher shores are outdoor cafes that are made out of glass windows and walls that allow the patrons to see out from every angle. The beach portion of the water has sports fields and vendors lined up selling street food. There were people swimming in the ocean while others walked the shore line with winter jackets and scarfs. I am curious to see how people will be dressed when it reaches the high 80’s in a month!

Submitted by Samantha Hoag on the 2018 spring semester program in Barcelona, Spain…

This weekend, we went to the Basque Country and it was amazing. We had a bunch of Pintxos, which are similar to Tapas, but it is food on top of a piece of bread with a toothpick. We also walked the path of the running of the bulls which was so cool. It was really interesting to learn about this part of Spain because I have always been fascinated by the different cuisine so I was so happy to be able to try it with the people in my program as well as with locals.

 

 

 

 

Submitted by Nicole Anacay on the 2018 spring semester program in Athens, Greece sponsored by the College of Education & Human Development…

The view from our apartment lets us see all of Athens including the Acropolis, Parthenon, First State Cemetery and even the water! All of the sites are lit up at night on either hills or mountain sides. There was a storm a few days ago that had hail raining from the sky while it poured. It went on for about an hour then abruptly stopped and the sky ended up being clear and warm outside. The weather here changes as quickly as it did back in Delaware; warm one day and rainy and cold the next. I do know that this past week Delaware reached the 70’s for temperature. but here in Athens it was cool 50’s and rain everyday. So far, it was one of the only times I have been jealous of back home!

Submitted by Collin Sutrick on the 2018 spring semester program in Limerick, Ireland…

This week, I had a nice conversation. In my class, Government and Politics of Ireland, we were split into groups in which we would come up with some part of the Irish government to reform. This project is something that we will be working on all semester, and we will be making a presentation for it to present in front of the class. While talking about what area of the Irish government we were going to create a reform plan for, we started talking about a comparison with the United States. We talked about Ireland’s direct provision program (the program set up for asylum seekers/immigrants while their application is being processed) and whether the United States makes asylum seekers and immigrants wait 6-10 years to have their applications processed. We also talked about the differences in the American and Irish education systems, as well as the standardized testing required. All in all, it was great to learn more about Ireland and it felt great to teach the Irish about America.

I didn’t realize it until after this conversation, but I do miss the United States a little bit. Talking about the United States felt great and made me remember what home is like. It will be nice to get a visit from family in early April.

This week the temperatures in Limerick dropped (it even snowed!!!), so I didn’t spend as much time outside in the beauty of nature. Which also means that nothing too exciting happened. However, I was chosen by the International Education Division to be an International Student Ambassador for the Spring semester! I will be able to participate in Instagram and Snapchat takeovers; talk to prospective international, Erasmus, and study abroad students; and write blogs to help out current and future international students at the University of Limerick. I’m excited that I can help out and give back to the school and the community.

I can’t believe what a special and amazing time it is to be in Ireland. The UN and UK have currently begun the second phase of Brexit negotiations. With Ireland being the only part of the UN that has a land border with the UK (Ireland and Northern Ireland), the negotiators for the UN are arguing for Ireland’s best interests. Studying Irish and UN politics here, I have heard quite a lot of the questions that people have about the whole Brexit situation. It’s interesting to hear the view of Brexit from a European. The main questions that the Irish have about Brexit include what to do about the Ireland-Northern Ireland border and how to deal with Irish-UK trade.

 

 

Submitted by Kaitlyn McConeghy on the 2018 spring semester program in Rome, Italy…

Some of my favorite weekends so far have been the ones spent exploring Rome. My friends and I like to call them “stay-cations” and we try to take the weekend to check out a new neighborhood,  restaurant or café.  On the weekends when we stay local, it’s hard not to get wrapped up in catching up on to-do list stuff: the homework, laundry and uploading pictures that we sometimes fall behind on when we have a crazy travel weekend.  But, one thing that we all talked about was that we don’t want to leave this semester feeling like we missed out on Rome amidst all the travel and schoolwork and craziness so we try to make it a priority to try something new each weekend.

One of the coolest parts about being here for a whole semester is that we get to really feel like residents and explore at a totally different pace than we would on a weekend-trip or even a winter session.  This weekend, we found a new favorite pizza place and finally figured out the difference between Napoletana and Roman style pizza (Napoletana=thick crust=YUM).  I love our “stay-cations” in Rome, and can’t wait for what we’ll discover next.

Submitted by Julia Ewing on the 2018 spring semester program in Athens, Greece sponsored by the College of Education & Human Development…

We’ve made it through week three!  We were all sick, so that’s disgusting.  “Welcome to being a teacher!” is the phrase I keep hearing.  Despite being sick, life goes on. At the beginning of the week, we all submitted PPAT part 2, which probably means nothing to you.  To put the PPAT in layman’s terms it is a practical assessment that we have to take for teacher certification in the State of Delaware.  It is a lot of work, so submitting part 2 is an accomplishment!

Last weekend, I found an authentic street food place that serves gyros.  It has shredded meat, tomatoes, onions, french fries and tatziki on a warm pita.  Delicious! On Wednesday, I stopped there on my way home from school and got it again because it is so good!

It’s crazy to think that this program is already 1/4 of the way over!  I’m certainly counting the days until spring break!