Asia Exchange Programs Semester Programs Spring Semester

Singapore: Merlion Statute

Submitted by Audrey Cicerchia on the 2022 spring semester exchange program with the National University of Singapore…

It has been exactly two weeks since I touched down at Changi Airport to begin my semester long study abroad program at the National University of Singapore. While now it all seems like a blur, traveling here was no easy feat. Since the beginning of the pandemic, Singapore has put in place many restrictions in order to stop the spread of COVID-19, including on travel both in and out of the country. To be exempt from serving a 10 day stay-at-home notice, we had to fill out heaps of paperwork, obtain a special Vaccinated Travel Pass (VTP) and arrive on a specific pre-approved Vaccinated Travel Lane (VTL) flight.

Within the first several outings visiting Singapore’s most iconic sites, I began to notice how quiet they all were. We visited the famous Merlion Statue at Marina Bay, but it was not flocked with tourists taking silly photos as I had seen in all my guidebooks. Instead, we were actually the only people there on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. After speaking to several locals, I learned that the extensive and expensive requirements to enter the country deterred most short-term visitors who might have come on vacation. This has not only allowed me to see all the famous sites with ease, but I also now always know where the best hidden local spots are by just following the crowds!

Singapore: Days of Discovery & Public Transportation

Submitted by Rebecca Beswick on the 2022 spring semester exchange program with the National University of Singapore…

Since I arrived in Singapore about four days before the class semester was to begin, I and the students I traveled with decided to take the time to explore our new location, and in the process got a crash course in the culture and logistics of our new home. The best part was we were able to simultaneously see the classic sites of the city while getting much-needed experience with public transportation.

Day 1: Taxi. Getting out of the airport, we had to take a private car to our residence halls, due to the COVID requirements. We hopped in a taxi from the airport, and quickly found we had no idea where we were going. We had an address, but the driver was used to verbal directions, so we typed addresses into his mobile phone and gave directions that way. The driver was incredibly kind, and we got the first glimpse of Singapore through the car windows, including the fact that cars drive on the left.

Day 2: University Shuttle. On the first day, we stayed on the university campus and worked to get our bearings. We wandered throughout the campus on sidewalks and through buildings, finding the nearest canteens (lines of food stalls) to our classes, but after a while we got hot and decided to stare at a campus shuttle map. The campus shuttle was the easiest way to get around for students, and was free to use. Riding from stop to stop on the different lines was helpful for when classes began and we had to go from one lecture hall to the next.

Day 3: Singapore Bus. This day we went to a mall and Hawker Center for supplies and food, and we had to figure out the bus system. Some locals were kind enough to take me the day before to get an ezlink card, a card which can be loaded with money to pay for both the bus and train. The buses are good for short distances and are quite clean, but we found they were a bit confusing to navigate with around the city.

Day 4: MRT. By far my favorite day using my favorite mode of transportation, we used the Singapore mass rail transit system (MRT) to go to the more touristy places in the city. The MRT is clean, quick, and the most technical train system I have seen in any city. It is also very clear where each train is going and each station has plenty of signage which makes it easy to change trains and choose the correct exit. There is also a cultural convention of not talking on the train, as it is seen as rude. We used the MRT to visit Marina Bay Sands and the famous Merlion Statue, some of the most iconic places in the country.

Singapore: Different Weather & Different Architecture

Submitted by Rebecca Beswick on the 2022 spring semester exchange program with the National University of Singapore…

The first thing I noticed when arriving in Singapore in early January was the weather. It is hot. Hot and humid. Of course we were expecting the weather change, with the country being so close to the equator with a tropical climate, but it was still a physical shock compared to Delaware, where there was snow on the ground when we left. We also experienced our very first Singapore downpour of rain, which usually occurs every afternoon for a very short period of time.

Because of these differences in weather, I’ve noticed some architectural choices in the buildings which would not be done in places of cooler climates. First, the hallways of the dorms are open: there is no glass on the windows overlooking the city because it is warm all year round and there is no need for protection from a cold wind. Secondly, most of the university is designed in a way where there is a cover or awning above you, so that there is a good amount of protection from sudden rain showers. Because of all the rain, there is year-round greenery and impressively tall tropical trees.

Coursework in Copenhagen

Submitted by Mallory Smith on the 2014 fall semester DIS (Denmark’s International Study Program) program in Copenhagen, Denmark…

The past few weeks have been incredibly hectic! They consisted of a long and hard mid-terms week, followed by ten days of exploring Italy and Greece with my brother!This past week has been spent working on different class projects-all of which are incredibly interesting.

For my Scandinavian Classical Music Class, we were taken to a symphony at a beautiful concert hall and had to write an essay relating the intention of the composer and the different musical intonations used in the pieces. It was very cool being able to hear live the works of composers whom we had been learning about for the last two months.

In my Women Art and Identity class, we had a video/film artist come and present some of her work and explain her thoughts behind their creation. The ideas, motivations, and inspirations associated with her work were both interesting and thought provoking which led to a great discussion with the artist and the class at the end of the presentation.

For my public Health class, I am working on a project where we have to interview a Danish health organization and create a research paper regarding the organization and the services they provide. I am working with an organization, when translated, called The Healthy Cities Network. This Network has many subnetworks that work towards creating the healthiest version of Denmark possible! The project the organization is currently most passionate about happens to be Health in All Policies, a topic I helped a professor research this past summer. It was amazing see it applied and implemented so well!

Christmas Market in Stuttgart

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

It is hard to believe, but I think this will be my last blog post while in Switzerland. Our final weekend was spent at the Christmas Market in Stuttgart. As sad as I am to leave, experiencing the Christmas festivities made me excited to be home for the holidays. The weekend began with a 6:00 am start Saturday morning. However, it was made bearable by sparkling snowflakes that coated our eyelashes and blanketed the sleepy streets of Chur. It felt like Christmas had already begun.

After a long train ride, we finally arrived in Stuttgart. We left our bags at the hostel and made our way to the Christmas Market which was thankfully as easy to find as we had hoped. As we approached the entrance, there was no escaping the merry and cheerful atmosphere of the holiday season. We made our way through hundreds of stands selling everything from ornaments, to pottery, to mittens, and food. It produced an overwhelming sense of joy, and my friends and I walked through taking in the sweet scents of glühwein, candied almonds, and grilled sausages. On top of this, there is a competition between the vendors for the best and most elaborately decorated roof stand. Every vendor had a different theme, and I must say that every Christmas story from every children’s book ever made must have been represented. There were also Ferris wheels made to look like Christmas ornaments and train villages that children could ride and play on. It was the perfect place to spend a final weekend getaway with my friends. All of us finally put a dent into the souvenir shopping that we have been struggling with all semester. I would list some of my purchases, but I would not want to spoil anyone’s Christmas gift. I will say though, that my favorite stands were the ones that included anything warm and fuzzy, sparkly, and of course, the food stands.

We were exhausted from a long day, so we headed back to the hostel early to get some sleep. It ended up being our best decision because we were up early the next morning and found one of the best cappuccinos I have ever had. We enjoyed them in a cute café overlooking the market. We did not stay too long because we were anxious to find the fondue stand that we had seen the day before. Five euro later we each had individual bowls of melted cheese fondue and an entire baguette to dunk into it. It might possibly have been my best food purchase of the semester. We continued shopping the rest of the day while being sure to try any food or drink item that caught our attention. By the time we were headed for home, I had two over- sized bags of gifts. I am also proud to say that we all tried to speak as much German as possible, and most of it was completely successful. It was a wonderful trip, and I really cannot believe that we have begun our final week of the semester here. It has been more than anything that I could have imagined.

Finals and Final Days

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

It is official, the culmination of our semester has taken place, and we are finally done with the gala dinner. Although it is sad to be done, the feeling of relief was overwhelming when we sent our last plates out to the guests on Friday. It was a long evening with over 9 hours spent in the kitchen. Our class performed better than any of us expected, and we received positive reviews from the guests. My friend Stef and I are baking perfectionists, so we left feeling happy and proud of our desserts, but probably would have made a few more small touches if we had the chance.

After so much build up, we are all in somewhat of a gray area now that the dinner is over. Connie and I succeeded in our goal of watching all seven Harry Potter movies which was a much needed break. This morning marked the beginning of final exam week, but with two gala dinners crossed off our list, our only exams left are German, Beverages, and a presentation for our Theory class. I officially started packing because I needed to know if I would have enough room to fit everything in my one suitcase. It is definitely going to be a close call, but thus far I am refusing to buy a second one. I may have to wear all of my clothes to the airport, but one way or another I am going to make it work. I do not think any of us can believe we are leaving in 11 days…I feel like the time went by so quickly, but I have had enough time to develop a new kind of life here. It will be weird to leave it and return home, but I am so excited to see my friends and family. Before I let myself get sentimental though, I need to go to a Christmas market. We are so excited for one last celebration.

Gala Dinner in Chur

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

After almost 17 hours on our feet, we finally did it…at least half of it. Wednesday was jam packed with a full day of service and an afternoon dedicated to setting up for the gala dinner that evening. The room turned out to be even more beautiful than any of us could have imagined, and our 10 kilograms of dry ice seemed to wow our guests. The dinner started early for me because I was in charge of running the apéro which included setting up a table of perfectly polished glasses set in a diamond shape and trying to pop numerous bottles of Prosecco without taking out the eyes of the guests. When the apéro was finished and cleaned, the guests made their way to the dining room, and the evening that our entire semester had been built around began. I would be lying if I said the first 20 minutes were not completely nerve racking. The service experts (a.k.a. the strangers in charge of determining 30 percent of our grade) paced the dining room eying us and jotting down our fate on their clipboards. My hands were shaking during my water and wine service, but after the first course, it seemed that we all started to relax. I happened to have my German and cooking teachers at my table and still have yet to determine if that was comforting or completely traumatizing…especially when my scrambled thoughts about the menu and wine list were interrupted with trying to translate my brain into German to answer my teacher. Even so, they were wonderful guests. The night continued with the soup and hot appetizer service. My classmates and I finally got into our groove at this point in the night, and we started to enjoy meeting in the kitchen which was pleasantly humorous thanks to our friendly dishwashers. Eventually, the infamous red wine decanting took place which I am relieved to say was anticlimactic for most of us. One of my friends actually spilt wine onto her candle and sizzled out the flame, but she still ended up getting one of the best grades in the class. (We now have official permission to laugh about the incident.) The rest of the evening was wonderful, and by the end we were exhausted. When the guests finally left, I think all of us had to take a moment to realize that all of the preparation and build up was over. It was a relief, but also very sad to know that our incredible semester is ending. Per usual, we did not have much time to sit and reflect because as always there was work to be done! After a 4 hour dinner, we had to find the energy to clean up and put the dining room back in order. By the end, we were grouped around what has become the “debriefing table” with our service teachers and learned that all of us passed. The other students also threw the traditional party for us downstairs, complete with the what was left with our dry ice. This is the first time I am really taking a moment to sit down and reflect on our evening because round two is tonight! This time we are in the kitchen, so in several hours I will be frying beignets, making sauces, and cutting and piping 150, 3cm squares of cake. It seems we have another long and exciting night ahead of us.

As a side note, it started snowing in the middle of the gala dinner which made the night even more special. The snow did not stick, but I woke up this morning to find a blanket of perfectly white snow over Chur. It is breathtaking.

Switzerland

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

Although I have yet to experience a real snowfall in Switzerland, the mountain tops have become snow capped from the colder days these past few weeks. We saw a few light flakes fall the other afternoon, but they only stuck on the trees that are higher up the mountains. We are hoping to see it on our level before our departure date arrives, but viewing it from afar is still breathtaking. It is almost as if the elevation creates different climates on the mountains, so it is not only beautiful, but also fascinating to see how different villages, only a few miles apart, experience different weather. My friends and I have been paying more attention to the now familiar scenery because we know we will be leaving it soon. I wish I could take mental images of everything that I have seen here because I know viewing it in photos will not be the same. The changing beauty of the landscape has also inspired very reflective conversations amongst my friends; although we are becoming excited to return home, it is hard to believe our time here will be ending so soon.

The emotions have been mixed this week because before we can be sad about leaving, we first have to get through exams and the gala dinner. It is organized chaos this week because the dinner will be taking place next Wednesday and Friday. We will be serving on Wednesday and cooking Friday. Although it is nerve-racking, I am so excited to show the guests everything that we have learned this semester.

Despite the growing pressure, we managed to fit in an excursion this weekend with a trip to Lucerne. It was immaculately clean and beautiful like the rest of Switzerland, so we spent the day enjoying the views and sampling sweets from various chocolate shops. It was relaxing and a nice getaway before this week. We also went on a field trip to a 5 star hotel in Flims. We toured the outrageously beautiful property and oohed and aahed at the numerous restaurants and banquet rooms.

Exploring Paris

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

It is no wonder why Paris is the city of love…after being there for less than two hours, I was completely captured by the beautiful cobblestone streets, iron gates, and the dainty cafés with their sweet and sugary aromas. It has always been a distant dream of mine to graduate college and continue my education at cooking school in Paris, but it is safe to say that after this weekend my dream has been set in stone. We arrived in the early afternoon on Thursday and met up with two girls studying in London who know my friend Giuliana. We quickly felt like we had known each other forever and bonded over our mutual desire to see as much of Paris as possible. We spent our first lunch at the café next to our hostel, where I had my first croque monsieur and espresso. Both were to die for. Our hostel ended up being clean and impeccably decorated, so we spent the next hour finding out the best places to go and how to get to as many Parisian destinations as possible. The rest of our evening was spent getting to know the area, and eventually we ventured up to Sacré Coeur which was only ten minutes away. I was completely taken by the architecture, but most of all by the steep steps that overlooked all of Paris. The city was lit up by the sparkling Eiffel Tour and by the local musicians singing and dancing to the most lighthearted tunes. We sat and enjoyed the beauty around us, trying as hard as possible to take all of it in. We continued roaming the streets, shopping and picking up macaroons and souvenirs along the way. Eventually we made it back to the hostel and went to sleep dreaming of french onion soup and fresh pastries.

Our next day was dedicated to the Champs Élysées and the Arc de Triomphe. We pleasantly surprised ourselves by successfully navigating the métro and walked along browsing through shops and unsuccessfully trying to be very French. After spending some time taking pictures and embarrassingly trying to figure out the historical significance of the Arc, we headed back down to the métro and made our way to Nôtre Dame. I was able to cross off another religious check mark at Nôtre Dame because Stef and I repeated our now two-time tradition of lighting a candle in a famous church. It was actually very fulfilling and even more beautiful than I could have imagined. We left Nôtre Dame and made our way to the Eiffel Tour, but not before stopping for a much needed nutella crêpe.

I truthfully do not know how to describe seeing the Eiffel Tour because it was too incredible to put into words. We took enough photos to fill an entire album, but none of them fully capture the magic of the Eiffel Tour in person. We were even there on the hour to watch it sparkle, and all we could do was stop and awe at how beautiful it was.

We had another great meal that evening at a deceivingly delicious organic restaurant, and the next morning we had an itinerary dedicated to Versailles and a return trip to the Eiffel Tour to make the infamous climb to the top. As it turns out, there are two locations in Paris with the name “Versailles,” and unfortunately we made it the the one that was not the Château de Versailles. We eventually made it to the correct Versailles and did not feel too bad because it was our first métro mix-up of the trip. The Château de Versailles is one of the most luxurious and opulent places I have ever visited. The castle alone is enormous with artfully carved stone and walls filled with over-sized paintings and furniture. The gardens however, are what I found to be especially amazing. They seem to stretch endlessly and are landscaped to perfection. That afternoon I also tried my first savory crêpe which consisted of bacon and cheese with a fried egg on top…it was as divine as it sounds. Afterwards, we headed back to the Eiffel Tour and after waiting in line for only an hour, we made it to the top. I had imagined it to be beautiful and peaceful, but what entailed was completely unexpected. We hurried out of the elevator (after deciding the stairs were a poor choice) and learned that the top of the Eiffel Tour is as thrilling as riding a roller coaster. The wind was so strong I felt like I would be blown off without the barriers surrounding me. The best part however, was being above what I had found to be the most amazing city in the world. It was beautiful and exciting, but above all, it was magical. I could have stayed up there forever…but it started raining – a true downpour. It was honestly one of the funniest and best moments of our trip, and I am sure it is one I will never forget. I loved every second of it. We eventually returned back down to reality, but not before catching the tail end of a proposal on the top of the Eiffel Tour.

Flambe Class in Chur

Submitted by Carolyn Jones on the 2013 fall semester exchange program with the Swiss School of Tourism and Hospitality…

After a special class yesterday, I went into school this morning exhausted and not anticipating anything else to look forward to. As usual, I was quickly proven wrong again when I went into my service class greeted by an array of colorful vegetables and herbs next to a flambé lamp. It was our best class yet. We spent 2 hours with our eyes glued to beef stroganoff, shrimp scampi, veal escalope, and crêpes suzette in magnificent flambées. The scents were just as amazing as the flames themselves, and the final products were delicious. My class only consists of 8 people, so there was something special about all of us being gathered around our teacher while eating and trying new flavors and cooking techniques together. The only experience I had with flambé was at home in Boston at an annual chocolate buffet during the holiday season. It has become one of my favorite holiday traditions, so I left class completely happy and nostalgic.