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Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Want to Learn More About Studying Abroad in Paris, France?
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Learn about Fulfilling Degree Requirements Abroad!
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Monday, February 27, 2012
The Adventure Continues
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| Me in front of Buckingham Palace |
The last couple of weeks have once again been amazing! London is such a fantastic and exciting place to be. I am always finding new parts of the city to explore and there are so many markets and shops that have anything you could possibly dream of. I am finally feeling comfortable with my sense of direction within the city. It is starting to get a bit warmer here as well so that makes it even more fun to go to different areas of the city!
We (GSE) went to Windsor Castle this Saturday and it was absolutely beautiful! I can’t even explain how amazing it was. First of all, it was huge. I mean, I knew that it was big before I visited and obviously I had seen pictures, but that’s nothing compared to what it’s like when you actually experience the size of it in person.
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| Windsor Castle |
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| This was my favorite part of the castle! |
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| Changing of the guards |
I have started booking trips around Europe which I am very exciting about! I am going to Barcelona and Ireland in March and working on Italy and a couple of other places over Spring break. I cannot wait to start traveling and seeing all of the places that I have only seen in pictures! It is still so surreal to me that I am here right now. It feels like a dream and I never want to wake up! I have only been here 3 weeks and I already feel like I have made the best friends of my life. I wouldn’t trade this experience for anything in the world!
Mary Evans
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GSE Spring 2012 - London, England
London Metropolitan University
Learn about Getting Started on Planning Your Study Abroad Program
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Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Learn the Basics of Study Abroad
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Snow Covered Labyrinths and Plastic Eggplants
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| The Chateau de Chenonceau. So gorgeous! |
This being my third time to France, I feel that I’ve driven through my fair share of French country sides. Since the other two times were in the summer, however, I had never seen France so completely blanketed in snow the way it was on Saturday when we went to the Loire Valley. The bus ride was a little long, but since we all had to get up so early it made for a good chance to grab a petit dodo (little nap) on the way! But, we all woke up in time to see the beautiful snowy Loire River, which by the way was partially frozen. A large body of water being frozen is pretty unbelievable for me, since I live in Georgia where it barely gets cold enough for snow flurries!
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| Gary and Kevin getting warm by a fire in Chenonceau |
After we walked around the castle for a good hour and a half, we headed out to the grounds and found a small hedge maze that we enjoyed playing around in for a little while, despite the chill. There was a large wooden gazebo in the middle, and the whole thing just felt like it was out of a different time.
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| Our snowy hedge maze! We had so much fun just playing in the snow. |
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| A very impressive French snowman! |
All in all it was a fantastic, albeit tiring day. And even amongst some of the most glorious architecture and fascinating history I've ever seen, my favorite part was actually getting to know the students from the American Business School better, because before the Loire Valley excursion the only time we’d really been able to interact with them was the welcome dinner earlier that week. As a group I really feel like we've clicked, which makes me really excited to see what kinds of fun we’ll have for the rest of the semester!
Anna Simmons
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GSE Spring 2012 - Paris, France
University of Paris Sorbonne
Tuesday, February 21, 2012
Loire Valley Trip
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| Chateau de Chenonceau. |
I did not have many expectations going into the Loire Valley excursion as I knew little about the region prior to our departure. I expected to see some historic houses and large castles but knew little about the history of each residence and the people who lived there.
The GSE Sorbonne and ABS students met up early in the morning, hopped into two buses and made the two-hour trek to the Loire Valley. The bus ride provided an excellent opportunity for us students to have great conversations and get to know each other better. It also allowed us to see another side of France- the countryside.
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| Me in front of Chateau de Chenonceau |
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| A ceiling in Chateau de Chenonceau |
After touring the house we piled back into the two buses and drove to our second location. Before visiting the second chateau we stopped for lunch at an Italian restaurant in the village near the castle.
After filling up on pizza and pasta we made our way to our second stop- the Chateau d’Ambroise. This castle is located right on the river Loire and offers great views of the village and the river. The Chateau d’Ambroise appeared to be the highest point of elevation in the village and us students took advantage of the photo opportunities the location provided. We had less time at the second chateau so we spent less time touring the grounds and more time taking photos of the magnificent views.
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| Chateau d'Ambroise |
I was also very surprised and excited to find out that the remains of Leonardo de Vinci were located in the chapel of the Chateau d’Ambrois. This was one of the biggest highlights of the trip for me.
The excursion was an excellent way to see a different side of France. It allowed me to become closer friends with my classmates, learn more about French history, and take some awesome pictures. I wish I would have had more time to spend in the Loire Valley and perhaps even see some more of the amazing chateaus. I hope I will have the chance to come back before my time in France comes to an end so that I may do some more exploring.
Jeff
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GSE Spring 2012 - Paris, France
American Business School Paris
A Week of Love
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| My roommates trying to warm up during our Prague tour |
It’s official: I’m in love…with Prague that is. Not that I’ve traveled extensively or anything, but I can confidently say that Prague is my favorite European city. My roommates and I went last weekend through Bus2Alps and had a blast. There was snow on the ground so my little Southern-California self was ecstatic (and also dressed like an Eskimo)! We went on a walking tour of the city which was so interesting to see how different the architecture is from that of Florence – the house colors are really vivid candy colors and there’s lots of pointed roofs throughout.
Our guide, through Sandemann’s New Europe (a program that has free tours in various European cities, I highly recommend it, did I mention free?!) was also very entertaining so it made me forget that I couldn’t feel my toes…at least for a while. My favorite part of Prague was the food, surprise, surprise, the foodie’s going to talk about food again. Anyway, I got goulash and potato dumplings both nights we were there, obviously I liked this dish, and then had really hearty, warming soups for lunch. You do not fully comprehend the phrase “stick-to-your-ribs food” until you’ve eaten in Prague, it’s like they specifically make their food extra filling to provide a little extra insulation against the cold.
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| Lots of love for (and written on) the Lennon wall! |
The second day, we went on another walking tour, this time by our Bus2Alps guide, the highlight of which was the Lennon wall – a huge wall of anti-war/Beatles-inspired graffiti that began in the 1980s by young people in Prague protesting against the communist regime. Following this, we went on yet another tour of the Prague Castle, a huge span of land and buildings that encompassed several churches, government buildings and even a monastery. The views of the city were breathtaking from up there.
To round out our Prague trip we went to this 80s-90s club that I had really high hopes for, but it was rather disappointing – as a child of the 90s I was jones-ing for some Backstreet Boys/Britney Spears flashbacks, but alas the only song of the 90s played that night was the Macarena…not exactly the best gem from the decade. But the night ended on a high note because we got the most amazing street-vendor sausages ever around 2am, so it wasn’t all bad.
The best part of Prague though was that feeling of coming “home” to Florence. Everyone told me, it wouldn’t feel like home until you leave and come back, and it’s true – we rounded the corner with our bags in tow to see the Duomo and we all were filled with an immense sense of pride and privilege to call this beautiful city home.
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| I think I may have found my new favorite spot in Florence thanks to GSE's trip to the Boboli Gardens |
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| Valentines Day at the Chocolate Festival! |
After class, I introduced two of my classmates to my favorite local bakery, Scudierie, and got some chocolate as a Valentines Day treat to myself. Then, that night, as I was getting ready to go to dinner, I got a phone call for a flower delivery, but the delivery guy was lost and needed directions…in Italian, and lord knows my rudimentary Italian plus lack of directional sense could help the poor guy out, so I met him on the steps of the Duomo to pick up roses sent from home – it was like a movie moment! Then we went out to a place across the river called 4 Leoni for dinner and we all got pear and gorgonzola pasta that my roommates’ friends who studied abroad last year said we must try – and I pass that recommendation on to anyone who will be in Florence, it was heaven!
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| Some of our GSE group enjoying the best gelato ever at Gelateria Santa Trinita (I recomend Panna Cotta and Tiramisu!) |
Ciao!Delaney Kennedy
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GSE Spring 2012 - Florence, Italy
Lorenzo de' Medici - Florence
Learn about our London, England Program & Summer Olympics!
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Friday, February 17, 2012
Paris, Granada and the Alhambra
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| My girlfriend and me overlooking Paris |
Hey guys! Since my last blog I have been a busy kid – I’ve spent the previous two weekends in Paris, France, and Granada, Spain, respectively, and I absolutely loved each city. They’re completely different: Paris is a huge metropolitan city with a population in the millions (as you probably already know), and Granada is on the opposite end of the spectrum with a population of 400,000. The weather was also completely opposite: Paris well below freezing and Granada in the high 40’s during the day in the sun. Despite the polar opposite characteristics of the cities, I liked them equally and would absolutely recommend both of them to any prospective study abroad students (although if you come in Spring you’ll definitely go to Granada because it’s included in the price of the program which is SO nice because I spent way too much money in Paris!).
I’ll begin with Paris but will keep it brief because I’d like to talk principally about Granada. I arrived Thursday evening and even though I had to pay an extra 30 euro for the extra night, it was worth every cent because being able to wake up Friday and hit the ground running was really nice. It was incredibly cold – probably the coldest place I have ever been – so I would recommend buying gloves, a scarf, and shoes suitable for the snow (not Vans! I learned that the hard way) because in all likely hood if you’re in Europe in winter you’ll need them. I saw the Eiffel tower, Notre Dame, and the other main attractions but what I really enjoyed were the off the beaten path areas. I’m not much of an art lover so I instead try to do other things that interest me – like going to a Mercedes-Benz museum. In any event, go to Paris!
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| View of Alhambra from near our hotel |
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| View from the top of the Alhambra |
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| The Alhambra |
We finished the night with dinner and a Flamenco show which was very well done. It was the first time I had seen Flamenco so I didn’t quite know what to expect, but ended up enjoying the show quite a bit. Not only were there women and men dancing, but a guitarist, flautist, and singers accompanied them. The show was fun and the whole program went to a bar after and had a great time.
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| Sunset in Granada |
Take Care,Luke
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GSE Spring 2012 - Barcelona, Spain
Autonomous University of Barcelona
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Is that the Eiffel Tower?
by Anna Simmons
After a semi rocky start to the voyage (snow in Chicago meant a totally different flight schedule than I was expecting!), I’ve finally made it to Paris! As a side note, despite the travel day being a little hectic and tiring, I was so happy to make a great new friend on the flight over and got to visit London Heathrow airport for the first time, neither of which would have happened on my original flight. One of my absolute favorite things about traveling is the opportunity to meet new people and experience new places that are off my beaten path, so to speak.
I took a taxi by myself for the first time ever to my apartment, which I’m sharing with two other girls, Kharissa and Megan, both of whom go to school in California. We cannot get over how much we love living here! The apartment is so much bigger than I expected it to be, with two bedrooms, a decent sized kitchen (good for someone like me who likes to cook!), bathroom, and a lovely little living room. It’s already starting to feel like our home. After we unpacked we went to a little café on the corner a couple blocks away and had our first interactions with Parisian waiters. We also learned that in Europe, you typically seat yourself in a restaurant, and that you look really awkward if you stand in the doorway looking for the hostess stand! But it was actually just funny, we got to practice our French and everyone was very friendly and we had a great first meal in our new city!
On Wednesday Kharissa, Megan and I found our way to the Sorbonne and met Aliya, GSE Onsite Program Director, and the other girls to take our French placement test that determined which level we’ll be enrolled in for the Cours de Civilisation Francais. After lunch we walked to the Ile de la Cite to see the Notre Dame (one of my favorite places in Paris). I loved the beautiful Gothic architecture of the cathedral, almost as much as I loved the respite from the cold! Then came our boat tour of the Seine, during which we saw sights like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and heard some of Aliya’s crazy and interesting stories from working in tourism!
After the boat tour Aliya bought us all Starbucks, and we sat in an underground mall people watching and enjoying taking note of Parisian fashion trends. We really have a fantastic group of girls here, we’re all becoming friends so quickly, and it’s making the transition to a new city so much easier. For our Welcome Dinner that night we went to a Moroccan restaurant and met all the students at the American Business School in Paris. Another great group of people! We’ve all had a lot of fun together so far!
We’ve only had two days of class at the Sorbonne so far, but I’d like to rave for a minute on how much I love it already. People come to the Sorbonne to learn French from literally all over the world, from Columbia to Sweden to Japan. We have so many different nationalities in our class, and the only real common language is French, so we’re basically forced to speak French the whole time not only by our teacher, but also out of necessity to communicate. The varied cultures everyone comes from and objectives they have for learning French are fascinating to me, and I feel so privileged to have this opportunity to interact with people from all different places and all walks of life.
After our classes Kharissa, Sarah and I explored the city with new friends we met in class from South Africa and Denmark. We wandered around for a while, got a little lost, bought our textbooks, visited Shakespeare & Co. bookstore (a must go to place for anyone even the least bit literature minded), and saw a very cool comic store that had all the Harry Potters in French. My goal is to read through at least one of them while I’m here, as my professor relentlessly stresses to us how important it is to read in French!
In short, I couldn’t imagine a better way to be spending a semester than here in Paris. I can’t wait to see what else the city has in store for me!
A bientôt!
Anna Simmons
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GSE Spring 2012 - Paris, France
University of Paris Sorbonne
After a semi rocky start to the voyage (snow in Chicago meant a totally different flight schedule than I was expecting!), I’ve finally made it to Paris! As a side note, despite the travel day being a little hectic and tiring, I was so happy to make a great new friend on the flight over and got to visit London Heathrow airport for the first time, neither of which would have happened on my original flight. One of my absolute favorite things about traveling is the opportunity to meet new people and experience new places that are off my beaten path, so to speak.
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| Megan and Kharissa in front of our apartment |
On Wednesday Kharissa, Megan and I found our way to the Sorbonne and met Aliya, GSE Onsite Program Director, and the other girls to take our French placement test that determined which level we’ll be enrolled in for the Cours de Civilisation Francais. After lunch we walked to the Ile de la Cite to see the Notre Dame (one of my favorite places in Paris). I loved the beautiful Gothic architecture of the cathedral, almost as much as I loved the respite from the cold! Then came our boat tour of the Seine, during which we saw sights like the Louvre and the Eiffel Tower and heard some of Aliya’s crazy and interesting stories from working in tourism!
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| The Eiffel Tower from our boat tour. This is hands down my favorite Parisian structure, so I apologize if there's at least one picture of it in every single blog |
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| Me in front of the Sorbonne on the first day of school! |
After our classes Kharissa, Sarah and I explored the city with new friends we met in class from South Africa and Denmark. We wandered around for a while, got a little lost, bought our textbooks, visited Shakespeare & Co. bookstore (a must go to place for anyone even the least bit literature minded), and saw a very cool comic store that had all the Harry Potters in French. My goal is to read through at least one of them while I’m here, as my professor relentlessly stresses to us how important it is to read in French!
In short, I couldn’t imagine a better way to be spending a semester than here in Paris. I can’t wait to see what else the city has in store for me!
Anna Simmons
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GSE Spring 2012 - Paris, France
University of Paris Sorbonne
Learn About Studying Abroad in Buenos Aires!
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Wednesday, February 15, 2012
Arriving and Adjusting to life in Paris…
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| The Eiffel Tower at Sunset |
Well, it has happened… I have finally arrived in Paris. Thus far, I am in love. France is cold, more like freezing actually, but that has not stopped me from roaming around the city to get acclimated, snap some photos and stop at almost every crepe stand in sight.
My arrival in Paris was quite an ordeal. I had already planned to arrive later than everyone else due to obligations in California, and it was expected that I would arrive just three hours before my first class meeting. This, however, is not what ended up happening. My departure from San Francisco was changed, causing me to miss my layover at JFK in New York and ultimately my flight to Paris. Immediately, I emailed my wonderful onsite-coordinator Aliya to let her know that my flight would be late and that I would miss my first day of class. I arranged to take the first flight out of San Francisco the following morning with a different layover in New York and arrived in Paris at 9am Tuesday morning. By the time of my arrival I had already been up for nearly 24 hours, however, I was determined to stay awake through the first day in an effort to quickly adjust to the time change.
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| The view from my apartment in Paris |
Since my arrival, the two biggest adjustments I have had to make is getting used to the new time zone and trying to adapt to temperatures that are below freezing. The time change has been much easier to adapt to than the cold!
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| Visiting Montmarte before walking up to Sacré Coeur |
My apartment is small but great! It is a private studio on the 4th floor in the tenth arrondissement. My favorite thing about the place is that it is near multiple cafes and markets and is, at most, a ten minute walk from school.
After I unpacked, I went for a walk around my district, went shopping for groceries and essentials and finally grabbed some dinner. It was a long arrival day but I could not be happier to finally be here in Paris.
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| Visiting Sacré Coeur with fellow GSE Paris students |
In my first week I have purchased many crepes, visited many cafes, made new friends, and went to some amazing places such as the Musée de l'Orangerie, the Moulin Rouge, and Sacré Coeur. I’ve had such a great time and the fun is only beginning. I look forward to all the great people here that I will continue to meet and I am excited to share all of my adventures with you in the coming weeks.
Jeff
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GSE Spring 2012 - Paris, France
American Business School Paris
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