I went to Cuba?

 The semester is nearing the end and things are getting pretty busy here in Nicaragua. I've been living in the city of Matagalpa for the past two-to-three weeks, and I have about a week left here. I've been working hard on a my research project about the life of street art and graffiti in the country. I'll be making a short film to present my work that I can hopefully share with you all in the future. Since that is still a work in progress, I would like to take you guys back to March for an early #ThrowbackThursday.

I could never be disappointed with the view of the street from my house. 

I had the privilege to travel to Cuba for an educational excursion, and I can't express enough how amazing it was. It felt so good to be back on an island again, and a beautiful, colorful island at that. The people were always kind and interesting, always wanting to talk and share with you. The architecture was a Spanish-Colonial style, adding so much character to the city and your surroundings. The cars were old-school cruisers, wagons, and muscle cars - and I have a soft spot for older cars so sometimes I felt like I was melting from the joyous visual beauty of them. Sometimes, it was hard to think about why things in Cuba were so beautiful (to us) and rustic. The reality was that things were old, and often broken, because there was no money to fix things, and the blockade prevented the country from importing a lot of the new things they need or want, like new cars.

We were fortunate enough to hear from many guest speakers about the history, educational systems, economy, current world-standing, and future of Cuba. 

Did you know that Cuba has two monetary systems? Well, they do. That was an interesting subject to hear and talk about. Cuba is working to put the two together and once again, have only one form of payment. Though times can be hard for a lot of people in Cuba, I saw so much giving between the people. Over and over again, the citizens were helping each other with odd tasks or favors. Sharing cars is common, as is trading. We witnessed the trading of a refrigerator and a couch between two houses. When you can't afford what you need (or it isn't being imported), you work with your neighbors, and that was a pretty beautiful thing to see. 

We were lucky enough to make friends and learn from this band of amazingly talented people, "Los Francos."

Student work from the Institute. 

The most thriving and vibrant part of Cuba had to be the culture of the arts. Music, dance, sculpture, painting, printing, photography, cinematography, design, and so many other things were thriving arts in Cuba - it was truly a beautiful thing to see. The young generations were really good at embracing their artistic and creative talents as a means to express themselves, their thoughts, and their lives as Cubans.

It was such a special time for us to be in Cuba - when normalizing relations between them and the United States is such a hot topic, and hopefully continues to be. It will be exciting to see how the future plays out for Cuba and their people.

Hasta luego, Cuba.

London to Barcelona

London to Barcelona 

Hi everyone, let me tell you something about my favorite city in Europe! (And since I haven't been to Rome or Venice yet...Barcelona will do). *If you want to know why you should go to Barcelona just scroll down to the bottom :) 

Fortunately I had about three weeks of spring / easter break. Regent's psychology program gives students one extra week off called Reading Week. It's an opportunity to catch up on reading or studying but most students use it to go visit their family or have an extra week of holiday like me. 

So I planned to stay in Barcelona for a week. I used AirB&B and booked a private room for one of my flat mates and I. It cost me $122 for four nights which is great. The room was situated in the neighborhood called El Poblo Sec. 5 minutes from Port Vell, the water and 15-20 minutes from the beach, La Barceloneta. 

Port Vell at sunset. 

The first day in Barcelona was a nice sunny one, however the temperature was still in the 50's. My flat mate and I opted to do a city bus tour which cost about 24.30 euros. For this price, the tour was well worth it. It took us to the old and new part of Barcelona. The bus has an open sun roof where people can take good photos. The tour is also a hop on and hop off tour. We saw La Sagrada Familia, La Barceloneta, Park Guell, and various beautiful buildings and sculptures. I highly recommend this tour because it gives you a perspective of what you really want to do and see. Also you are given a little bit of history on each location and building, which was quite nice. 

We chose to stop at Park Guell to admire the art and park and have some lunch. Park Guell is a wonderful work of art by Gaudi, who created piece that wove together modernism/contemporary art with the beautiful natural landscapes and scenery. I believe we had to pay 8 euros to get in. Park Guell holds Gaudi's house, the famous dragon, and the world's longest and most beautiful bench covered in mosaic.

After Park Guell we tried Paella which is a popular Spanish dish. It includes sea food or sometimes meat with olive oil, saffron, and rice. That and a sangria, sitting out on the terrace enjoying the warm sun made for a lovely day in Barcelona. The rest of the days I spent lounging around at the beach, visiting La Rablas, Placa Catalunya, and walking around through beautiful parks and streets. If traveling through different countries in Europe I recommend just walking and skipping taxis or metros. Everything is usually really close anyways and walking with good company makes the time pass faster. Also walking allows you to explore gelato cafes, coffee shops, gift shops, and various tapas places. 

Casa Batllo 

I can't remember quite well but this was part of a State Building 

A beautiful building in Park Guell 

Colorful street art 

Candy in Mercat market 

Yummy yummy paella pronounced: Pie-ay-ah 

Spanish Arc de Triomph 

*Why Barcelona is my favorite city in Europe. Well...if you are someone who really enjoys art, sun, the ocean and city life then Barcelona is the place for you. This city is the epitome of modernism and contemporary art. I mean this is the place of Gaudi and Salvador Dali!!!!! For all you art lovers, I plead you to visit Barcelona. People love their city and are very proud of Barcelona. For that matter they want guests to have a nice time. I have been greeted in shops and streets and in my flat countless times with a friendly "Hola." Reminds me of the Aloha Spirit. In some ways, Barcelona reminded me of Hawaii so that might be another reason why I enjoy it so much. Another reason of course is the culture. I read somewhere that the Spaniards are a lazy but passionate bunch. Time to them is a luxury. They lounge at various tapas bars in the middle of the day and drink wine or smoke a cigarette. I see a lot of smiling faces. Maybe because it is the good weather, good food, or just the great atmosphere. They are proud of their history and their art and architecture. Barcelona is colorful and vibrant and bursting full of life. There is much to do and much to see but you don't feel the pressure of rushing around at all. I love that feeling and atmosphere of just being able to enjoy a place quietly. But on another aspect Barcelona and Catalonians love to party! Shops and restaurants close at midnight! The clubs open even later! There is a vibrant night life that slowly unfolds before your eyes with dancing and good music. It's quite infectious. Barcelona is a must. Sorry London but I secretly wish I had studied in Spain now... 

A visit to Barefoot College

Of all our visits to different NGO's and schools, I picked to share my experience at Barefoot Collage.

Before I even decided to come to India I watched a TED talk by the founder Bunker Roy. To come and see the place in real life was so surreal. If you haven't seen this TED talk yet you can watch it underneath:

We spent one and a half day here and got to see all the different departments. To my surprise, Barefoot is more then just a place for women to become solar engineers- it has great diversity of work.

For example, they have people from Barefoot who do Puppet Shows in the villages, where they use this form of medium, which is an ancient Indian tradition, to tell stories. However, it is not random what these stories are about. They use the stories to make people think about deeper questions and make people talk about different social issues. One man explained, "I can tell these stories to all. To literate people and to non-literate people. This is what I do."

They also had a night school for children, a center for frugal innovation (to make use of all the things we usually throw away), toy making unit, a mosquito net and sanitation napkins making units and a water testing unit (they work in 200 villages). 

Their biggest success have been changing the mindset of people. Changing the mindset of the government and showing people that if you can work- you can make a change. It was also pointed out that education does not have to happen in a classroom but can be done outside in a variety of ways as well. 

Barefoot Collage does not go into areas and give the communities things. They work with the communities to show them how they themselves can manage. One man explained, "we might argue and disagree with community members but we still support them. It is through this continued work with the communities that long lasting change will happen."

On campus

World Map of Hope- Loved this!

Barefoot Collage Campus

These women know how to make and operate these solar cookers. They are a total of 13 women working on this. It is not normal for the women here to work outside the home but they have personally deconstructed the typical gender stereo types that are engraved in society. They wish to popularize this technology and have more women step forward and to the same work they do.

The women sharing their ideas, thoughts and future hopes for their kids.

They have a radio shack where people can call in and talk about social issues and it is broad casted on the radio. Topics that are usually brought up is community rights, employment, compensation, minimum wages, sexual violence etc.

This is the women's training workshop. By the end they will be solar engineers and will go back to their home country and continue their work there. They just arrived a couple of days ago and are in this picture learning the names of the different parts. They don't speak English and don't have any common language but are still able to learn. Incredibly inspiring and amazing to see.

Night time activities in our room at Barefoot.

London to France part 2: PARIS

Viva La France!

Aloha all! I had to do a separate post for Paris because I think this is the most well-known travel destination. And there are a lot of things I have to say about Paris.

I made a huge mistake about Paris before arriving - please don't do these things that I did.
1. Think you can see Paris in one day.
2. Think that everyone in Paris is rude or mean.
3. Think Paris is a dirty city - they have made lots of changes to care for their city but still watch out for the dog poop.

The reason why I chose to visit Paris in a day is because I had a misconception that Paris could be viewed in a day. NO! There is so many amazing things to see and do. Paris is not just the Eiffel Tower. Also I chose to take the Eurostar with my room mate because it is THE THING TO DO if going from London to Paris. First of all, it is a high technology and high speed train that goes underwater from the United Kingdom to Paris in just under two hours. I have never been on a train that goes under water before. Also it is so much more comfortable compared to the plane and a train station (King's Cross & St. Pancras) is 15 minutes walking distance from my flat in North Gower. I think the train tickets amounted to nearly $230-$250 round trip. A bit expensive and if you have a budget I suggest you take a plane for 30 pounds which might end up nearly being $50+expenses getting to the airport maybe 60$?

After the two hours train ride you arrive in Gare du Nord which is the main train station in Paris. All their major stations are known as Gare, I think. From then on you can take a metro to museums or other places. We chose to go to the Louvre museum to see the Mona Lisa because we thought it would have the longest line. Yep, we waited for 40 minutes. If you don't want to wait you can buy online tickets to avoid the line or enter through a shopping mall. This museum is massive and I could have spent all day viewing the art gallery. Of course since we had little time so we ended up walking to the Champ Elysees which is a street like Times Square - very touristy - BUT they have the famous macaroon bakery called Lauduree where one simply must get macaroons. Because they are so famous and well known it is quite expensive. I recommend just having high tea and a macaroon (coffee or tea with a macaroon). Next we went to the Eiffel Tower. I also recommend getting no line tickets. We waited too long to get tickets and didn't have time to go on top of the Eiffel tower (because you have to pay for the elevator) or walk the stairs which takes time...that we didn't have. There are champagne places and restaurants on the top of the eiffel tower. Also another extremely romantic thing to do.

About Paris: I did not think the people were rude at all. Every one was so helpful and nice. I found that if you said Bonjour and showed that you were trying to understand even just the tiniest amount of French they were way nicer than if you approached them saying, "Hi do you speak english?" My room mate kept doing this and their reaction to her was different from me speaking French. In other words they were more hesitant to help us when we approached them speaking English. Not because we were Americans but because English is there second language! *Tip: Words to know in French, "Bonjour" , "Pardon" (Excuse me), "Ou est? / Ou se trouve?" (Where is the..? Directions). "Je ne pas parles Francais/Francaise" (I do not speak french).

The reason why we travel is to break stereotypes. Traveling is not just for personal enjoyment or vacation but it is also another way to learn. Especially to learn about other people and cultures.  If you think what people say about Americans being rude is hurtful or mean or silly or stupid than what do you think about the stereotypes about French being rude? Anyways... I cannot speak for all French people. This is my experience alone but since I have travelled to France four times and have not had a rude experience...that is all I can say right?

Enjoy France and Au revior!

London to France

Viva La France! 

 Aloha, Nicole here! I was fortunate enough to travel all over France during my study abroad in London and I would like to share with you my traveling experience.

First of all,  traveling in London is very easy. There are about five airports...the  main one being Heathrow. Then there is Luton, Gatwick, and Stansted, and also London City (which is actually the main one for London). Each are about an hour away from central London and there are tube (under ground train), coach (bus), or trains that will take you directly and at cheaper options than taxis. Coaches are the best option because they are most comfortable and range from 10 pounds to 12. Trains are great too if you have a one that goes directly to the airport, which most do.

Second of all, there are various of airlines offering cheap tickets...most of my tickets were round trips and cost $200 or less. You can look at skyscanner for the cheapest flights or Easyjet. *Let me warn you that sometimes flying with the cheapest airline isn't always the best. Also because these are small airlines you have to pay for extra baggage or if you prefer to sit next to someone. If you don't want to pay for that no problem!* Easyjet is my favorite because it is easy and comes with an efficient Iphone app where you can save your boarding pass and put in information of your passport for easy check in. Easyjet also has great offers on tickets for certain times of the month. An airline to avoid: Ryanair. Ryanair is quite cheap and also allows two carry on bags while Easyjet only allows one carry on. The thing about Ryanair is that you must always arrive early and remember to get your boarding pass signed from passport control. If you arrive late then they will charge you 50 euros and tell you that there is no room for your baggage in the airplane because the people in the front has taken up all the space with their two bags. This happens a lot and it's a thing they will do on purpose.

Third of all, you can find cheap hostels or use an efficient website called AirB&B. AirB&B is a bed and breakfast sort of thing. People, yes regular people, can list their houses or flats for a low cost. It is cheaper and more cosy than staying at a hostel or hotel because you have a private room and a kitchen and t.v. It may seem sketchy but its best to find listings that has a lot of pleasant reviews. Also make sure if you want to be staying a couple nights with the owners who actually live there. There are options for the whole flat or just a private room.  Most people are extremely friendly and give lots of privacy. I've stayed at two AirB&B places because I preferred privacy and local advice and it was great!

Places I traveled to:
Lyon 
Nice 
Cannes
Monaco 
Paris 

Yes, I am a little bit in love with France. Particularly the south of France which is on the Mediterranean waters...also known as the French Riveria. And of course there is no place more romantic than Paris.

There is something about France that is just a beautiful mystery! At first I was absolutely terrified because of all the horrible stereotypes about French people being rude or mean blah blah blah. I took french for four years when I was in 6-7th grade and 10-11th grade. So it's been a while. I found that the French do not care if you are American or French or Spanish, they treat everyone the same way. I also found that the French do not judge. They spoke to me in French and they were patient with me even though I could tell they struggled understanding my pronunciations. Here is a tip!!!! ALWAYS greet people and say Bonjour. It is like how you say hello or smile to strangers in Hawaii. Learn about their culture and participate with them and don't get mad when they can speak English but refuse to do it. You are traveling to their country to learn about their lives and history!

Staring with the South of France: Lyon, Nice, Cannes, Monaco. 

1. Lyon was a spontaneous trip. It isn't a well known tourist destination but I had to go with my flat mates because The Kooks (a band from England) were playing in that area and we are both really big fans, obviously. Took Easy Jet to Lyon and stayed at a hotel known as Hotel Camponile, this is a chain hotel in the best locations because they are always situated near train stations or airports! Stayed for three days and two nights. There are beautiful museums of film and photography and lots of art museums.

Le River Seine 

A roman arena...or what's left of it 

Me with my two Argentinean girls. 

The Kooks!!!!!

2. Nice, the French Riviera. There are no words for me to explain how much I love the French Riviera. If you like luxury and the ocean and yachts and sun...well this is the place for you! I chose to visit Nice with a high school friend because it was perfect Easter/Spring break location. There is 71 miles of beach. One downside is that there is no sand it is all pebbles or stones known as gallets. So you have to bring a beach blanket and beach shoes to walk on the beach. The thing about Nice is that people go here to relax. There isn't much to do besides enjoy the great food, crepes, the beautiful parks and the ocean. Life is very relaxing here and I felt like I was in Hawaii - if I closed my eyes. (At this point I was extremely homesick and I told my friend that if I didn't see the ocean soon I would be so depressed.) *Note: However Nice is really close to Monaco and Cannes...two other great beach locations which you can explore in a day. 

Nice, the Cote d'Azure beach promenade. This view is from a famous Chateau on a mountain that is an easy climb with a bunch of look out points.

During April 1st, Europe is still a bit cold. I think the weather was about high 60's. But the sun never felt any better. 

 I mean look at the color of the water! It's beautiful.

 This is one marina behind the Cote d'Azure. Look at those boats? I am in love with boats because my Grandpa had a boat and it reminded me so much of my childhood memories. The atmosphere of Nice is one of my favorite types: relaxed, chill, happy people, and beautiful scenery.

3. Cannes (pronounced Kan),  my friend wanted to meet her room mate here so we used an app called Blahblah car which is like Uber, kind of. It's for people who just want to make a little bit of extra cash. They post their trip, for example, Nice - Cannes at 9:00 to 5:00 round trip. My friend and I did this and met a really nice guy who was working there for the tourist seasons. Our trip cost 8 euros for both of us. Great fast ride and cheap as well. Cannes was an interested place after Nice. I didn't find it as exciting because there are high end shops like Prada and Dolce & Gabana right across from the beach promenade. In other words, Cannes is for rich old people who can bask in luxury. After eating crepes and gelato, my friend and I took a trip to a small island known as Saint Honorat where monks have lived for 160 years tending a vineyard and holding church seminars(?) I am not religious so I don't know anything about this. The trip cost 16 euros round trip! Now this little island changed my mind completely about Cannes. It is magical and private. I suggest going here with your boy friend or girlfriend. You can walk the whole island in an hour and sit at various benches with a view of the ocean - cozy and private. There is also a beautiful abandon monastery that reminded me of a castle and upon entering it I felt like I was in the video game Skyrim.

The church where monks hold sermons and the public is allowed and take their boat to have mass. 

The castle on the reef. Tres magnifique! 

Cannes actually has sand. The water was still freezing cold but it was lovely to sit and relax on the sand. There are also many expensive beach restaurants. I suggest only having drinks there. 

 This is a view of the church on island Saint Honorat from the top of the abandon monastery which you can explore freely.

4. Monaco is known for their Monte Carlo casino. Another high luxury place. It seems like Lambourghini's, Mercedes, BMW, and Mercedes allowed only. Also they hold the grand prix here. Monaco is the most beautiful place I have ever been to in France because not only is it by the ocean but it is also very well kept. There are tropical plants every where and people are constantly keeping the parks and roads clean. Everyone is well dressed and looks effortlessly cool. The yachts are absolutely beautiful. We also stopped for some gelato here. We took a bus from Nice it was 14 stops.

Me tanning them legs!

Although Monaco is its own country, this marina resembles the one in Nice. The Grand Prix course wraps around here this marina. 

This is an ocean observatory on top of a mountain where a most beautiful Aquarium sits. I recommend this Aquarium because they have student discount and help pass the time. There are four floors and two areas where you can touch sharks and turtles. 

This is a beautiful street on top of a mountain. The buildings in France are all beautiful, colorful, and quaint. If you love architecture like me then you will go crazy. 

 This is another photo from the Aquarium in Monaco. You can see all the airplane marks in the sky.