Oh the places you'll go!

If humans were supposed to stay in one place we would have roots instead of feet.

Over the past year of studying abroad my feet have walked through 35 airplanes and even more airports. Ten countries with numerous cities and sites viewed in each; the soles of my wandering feet have stepped through the same walking paths as the Incas that designed the mysterious Machu Picchu

and the same cobbled walkways as those taken by the Gladiators that fought in the Colosseum of Rome. 

The same marbled walkway that Pericles and other Athenians took to leave offerings and prayers at the Parthenon in Athens, Greece. The path that the infamous Berlin Wall once stood as a mocking threat to any that dared try and pass it. 

The streets of Venice, Prague, Barcelona, Reykjavik, and Quito all so drastically different and yet somehow connected by the humbled footprints left by my feet. The Ancient site of the Oracle of Delphi where Alexander the Great ventured to in order to obtain a positive prophecy for his conquests of the then known world.

 The battleground where 300 Spartans and numerous other Greeks fought the Persian invasion of their country at Thermopylae.

The ground where the first Parliament took place in Iceland and the same narrow streets in Quito that are now an UNESCO World Heritage site. 

The romantic and tiny city of Verona where Rome fell in love with Juliet. So many awe-inspiring cities, ancient sites, and wonders of the world. Places that in a normal university year one would never be able to experience.  

May all students have the opportunity to study abroad at least once. Whether it is to discover a country they have always wanted to go to, to learn a new language or improve on one they have learned for years, or even to go someplace they never thought they would want to go.

May all students have the opportunity to live, learn, and love in a new culture. May more students go abroad then those that do not. May the fear of the unknown become extinct and xenophobia be another Greek word that no one understands.

May all university students have the drive to push themselves outside of their comfort zones. May we all go to at least one place we have never been to once a year. May our feet step in the same footprints as the greats, while simultaneously creating a path that someday another person will want to follow.  May we all encompass the brave desire to discover new lands and new people. And more than anything may wanderlust be something that everyone experiences.

8.3 Magnitude Earthquake

Terremoto

On the evening of September 16th, a large 8.3 magnitude earthquake struck the coast of Chile, 225 Km North of the capital Santiago.  

There were also other earthquakes that struck in North America around Oklahoma and southern California around 4.0 magnitudes and in the West Pacific in the Philippines and Taiwan at 6.0 magnitude. 

http://www.adventuretravelnews.com/update-from-chile-operator-after-september-16-earthquake

I am sure if you were on Oahu, you were also aware of this earthquake as they issued tsunami warnings in Hawaii as well. 

Being born and raised in South West Colorado, I never experienced natural disasters and this was my first natural disaster, besides the hurricane warning from my freshman year on Oahu. (which luckily never struck the island).  

I was conveniently taking a nap in my home stay at the time the earthquake struck.

Although, I was supposed to meet a friend at the mall an hour before, but I somehow slept through my plans. It is a weird coincidence as I usually would never sleep through plans, but I did not have much sleep the night before. I will always be very grateful I was in bed when the earthquake struck and not out in the huge three story mall that makes the Ala Moana mall seem small.

When the earthquake struck, I also realized that I had no idea what to do in an earthquake. Do I run to the door? Outside? Was a larger earthquake going to strike next? The only thing I could think of was movie scenes where the ground splits open in the midst of the quake.

So, there I was waiting for the ground to split open underneath me. Luckily, it never did. Our house rocked back and forth for a minute and then it appeared to be over. Suddenly, it started shaking again and I was able to capture a quick video.

When the earthquake ended, I immediately got out of bed. I spoke with Victoria right away and asked her when the next earthquake was going to strike? She smiled and thought I was joking because the largest earthquake had already struck. We then went downstairs to meet with my host father and Paula. My host father and Paula were both extremely calm and I could tell that experiencing earthquakes was a normal experience for them. I was told to leave with Victoria and Paula to the restaurant as it was farther away from the ocean. (There were immediate tsunami warnings following the earthquake) My host father was going to wait at the house for my host mother as she was out at the gym and swimming pool.

We then began walking to the restaurant. Some people on the streets appeared to be calm and patient, while others were pushing and running to get to their homes. Paula and Victoria kept me calm as they explained there should not be a large earthquake after, as the first quake is the largest. They also told me about their experience in 2010 when a larger earthquake struck Chile and was a magnitude of 8.8, which was the fifth largest earthquake recorded by a seismograph. (At this time, we did not know how the magnitude of the current earthquake) so, they reassured me that this earthquake was not as strong and if we were at the restaurant we could easily evacuate to higher ground if a tsunami were to strike. They started laughing and told me that was the earthquake and it eased the tension.

Once we were at the restaurant, we waited for my host mother and father. We also pulled out a radio and listened to the news broadcasts regarding the earthquake. That is when we discovered the earthquake was an 8.3, but in Viña it was around a 7.9. My host mother then showed up at the restaurant and was very excited to see me as she thought I would have been at the mall when the earthquake struck.

When the warnings ended, we walked back home. There had been quite a few aftershocks from the earthquake, especially a large one in the middle of the night.

The aftershocks continued throughout the next months of my stay within Chile and they soon became normal to me as well.

Although, the city where I was in Viña did not experience bad damage, other areas and cities in Chile were not so luckily. Below are a few pictures from Coastal Cities in Chile that were not left unscathed. Especially, the areas that are impoverished and do not have well built structures to protect them such as the larger cities. 

 http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/sep/17/earthquake-in-chile-rocks-capital-santiago

https://zachnews.wordpress.com/2015/09/16/news-update-illapel-chile-latest-information-regarding-magnitude-8-3-earthquake-and-tsunami-alert/

The pictures above are not my own, as the area where I lived did not become destroyed badly. Although, the large cities did not experience bad damage, but 1 million people needed to evacuated and everything they owned was lost. (The pictures are from news websites and google).

I was also surprised at how calm all of the Chilean students and professors at the University were. As International Students were making remarks on how the earthquake was one of the most fun, craziest, Adeline rushes of our lives, people who were born and raised in this part of the world, were used to this experience.

When the aftershocks would strike at the University, the building would shake and the professors would not stop class or hardly even react to the earthquake. One professor would say ¨C´mon people it´s Chile¨ as many of the International students including me would always react.

After my experience with the large earthquake I truly understand how valuable life is and how we as human beings truly never know the moment life could end. I also have a large respect for people who live in the ring of fire and experience earthquakes normally as they are extremely brave human beings.

Mi Vida en Chile

The beginning of my travel.

July 30th, 2015.

At the end of July, I packed all of my belongings into a suitcase and caught a plane to South America. I truly had no idea what I was getting myself into. 

It was my very first time traveling out of the United States and I was going to travel all alone.

I planned to fly out of the Denver International Airport to the capital of Santiago, Chile before travelling to Viña del Mar, Chile. I booked my flight through my program AIFS and it was scheduled to depart on July 30th (AIFS does not offer flights to Chile out of Hawaii unfortunately). My first appearance  in the airport however, did not go smoothly.

When I arrived and began the check in process on July 30th, I was told that I was not allowed to fly out of the United States due to not have obtaining my student visa. Although, I was told by my program director at AIFS that I would obtain the student visa upon my arrival in Chile and I would only need to show the airport and immigration my acceptance letter into the University. However, for DIA this was not sufficient. After countless phone calls back and forth from the immigration in Chile, the University, and AIFS. I was rescheduled a flight for the next morning.

(However, every other student who participated in the AIFS program, flew out of the U.S. with no problems at all. None of them had student visas issued before their departure out of the U.S. and half of them did not even have to show their University acceptance letters. So for this one, I am not sure.)

My program AIFS helped me immensely throughout the entire process at the airport and re-booked me a flight through a different airline the next day at no cost. Therefore, I do not blame the program at all for this happening to me and I feel that AIFS is a good program to study abroad with.

We also did get our student visas in Chile with the assistance of the University and the AIFS program with no difficulties and barely any cost later on in the semester.

So, Advice.

1. Make sure you obtain the necessary travel documents before studying abroad, such as your student visa. (So, you don’t miss your first flight!)
2. Travel Insurance is always a good idea.
3. Arrive to the airport early.
4. Always stay positive. Things will work out in the end!
5. An extra day to spend with your family is always a good thing.

July 31st.

Adiós USA! Today, I was able to leave the Denver International Airport without any problems. Although, my new flight itinerary was very lame.

My first flight was Denver to Toronto, Canada, a seven hour layover, and then Toronto to Santiago, Chile.

After flying in the opposite direction to Canada and then back down South, I finally landed in Santiago, Chile.

Once, I arrived in the Santiago airport, I felt a wave of excitement wash over me. I found my way to the baggage claim and retrieved my guitar and large suitcase. After I made it through customs, I began to realize I could not understand a single word of Spanish from anyone.No one spoke English around me.

The Chileans also spoke Spanish rapidly and the words often times did not have endings but rather merged together. So, if your main goal is to become fluent in Spanish in Chile, you will not become fluent in the grammatically correct Spanish, but instead with Chilean Spanish!

If you do book a flight through AIFS, they also provide you with transportation from the Santiago Airport to your home stay family in Viña del Mar.  Even though, I was a day late the University still sent a nice professor to pick me up from the airport.

The professor was Manuel Casanueva, a Spanish, Politics, and Culture professor for international students. He turned out to be a professor for two of my classes. (Capitalism, Communism, and Socialism in Latin America and Culture and Identity in Latin America) He was very friendly and eased my nervousness the entire drive to Viña del Mar. He also became one of my favorite professors as he was easy to talk with, adventurous, extremely intelligent, and not the typical college professor.

After about an hour and half of driving, we reached my home stay family in Viña!

Profe. Casanueva helped me grab my luggage out of the taxi and rang the doorbell for my host mother.

She was not at all what expected.

She was short, extremely tan, and very beautiful. (keep in mind she's 66 years old). She was wearing larger heels than I have ever worn and was dressed extremely well. She then gave me a huge hug and kiss on the cheek. Below is a picture of my host mother and I.

My home stay was a cute, cozy home. There was a living room, dining table, kitchen, and bathroom on the bottom floor. The upstairs was also very nice with four bedrooms and two bathrooms. 

I lived only four blocks from the beach, two from the shopping mall, and one block from the main street Libertad. (A perfect location within the city.)

As soon as I set my things down in my new bedroom, my host mother came up to get me. If I’m honest, I could not understand a single word she said, but she understood my confusion and remained very sweet to me. She said we would be going to eat lunch at her daughters restaurant and I would meet my host father there. 

We then walked down side streets that were filled with graffiti. Some of the graffiti was beautiful and was more of a street art and others were different. This was the first significant difference I noticed between the U.S. and Chile. The city was filled with graffiti and it was rather normal for them. On the way, there were many small shops, restaurants, and parks along our walk. My host mother continued to talk to me, even though I'm positive she knew I understood nothing. I kept saying si and nodding and it seemed to get me by.

Eventually, we ended up in front of a restaurant called Aji Color.  Once inside, I was introduced to my host father, Manuel, the daughter, Veronica, and the granddaughter, Victoria. I was hoping the granddaughter would speak English….but not really. She could understand what I was saying and helped me with the menu but she did not speak to me in English. This made understanding and holding a conversation with my host family extremely challenging in my first few days.

At the restaurant I tried my best and communicated as much as I could with my new family. We had an amazing lunch filled with three courses. I also later discovered, my host sister Paula was well known in Viña del Mar for traditional Chilean food.

Although, I could not understand much of what my host family said. They were all very sweet to me and I already felt very welcomed and at home. My inability to understand them often brought us to laughing and the food was better than I ever imagined before. 

Gracias Familia. 

My next few days in Viña del Mar included getting to know the other AIFS students and having a walking tour of Viña where we saw the famous "flower clock", German castle, casino, and many other places. We walked along the coast and through the city. My host mother also took me shopping in the mall and to the beach. (Although, the beach was freezing in this time of year.) 

Unfortunately, within my first weekend, there was a terrible storm that destroyed a restaurant and many vehicles along the coast. I did not go out, but instead stayed home with my host parents and attempted to communicate with them more. 

A truck damaged from the storm

A nice restaurant that was destroyed 

The aftermath of the storm

There are more posts to come! 

More from the United Kingdom, and A Trip to Paris!

With my good friend Jess in the Catacombs of Paris

 Studying in England! And a quick Trip to Paris!

Since the end of the semester was near, and a friend was a in town we decided to take the Eurostar train from London to Paris. My friend Jess was here in England for a week, and she actually did a semester at HPU. Coincidentally that was were me met, so her visiting during my study abroad was really amazing. We visited various popular tourist sites in England, and Paris. These photos capture that week, as well as other amazing moments during the semester. The photos in my first post captured my first few weeks, this post is more post culture shock. In these, I think I have adapted fully to my surroundings, really enjoying my time here in England, and with my new friends!
-Sophia Suarez-

Teaching my friend Sam how to carve a pumpkin in time for Halloween. I realized during this time, that Halloween in England isn't as big as it is in the U.S. or let alone in Waikiki. Also costumes here are known as "fancy dress".

Another photo from a night out on campus. This occasion was a friend's birthday.

I had never seen blue Fanta before! Or known what "shotaka" flavor

was supposed to be, it tasted like grapefruit. One thing I've adjusted to 

is using the term "fizzy" for soda or pop, as well as the numerous 

flavors of Fanta available that are not in the U.S. 

After a day of shopping on the busy Oxford street. The streets were decorated for the holiday season.

An over the shoulder shot of the view from the iconic London Eye!

Standing in front of some of the amazing art in the Louvre.

Selfie in front of the famous Notre Dame Cathedral!

Another shot from inside the Catacombs

All laughs with some of my new "mates"! 

The Eiffel Tower lit up at night our first day in Paris!
Pictures don't do it justice!

Winter wonderland is a popular attraction in London. It is
filled with carnival rides, fair games, food booths as an ice
skating rink!

Overall, studying abroad not only has exposed me to a new culture but given me the opportunity to travel and make some really amazing friends. I know that I won't forget my time in England. One thing I really have appreciated was how welcoming everybody has been. It took time to really adapt to a different routine, but I think it has been well worth it! My next and final post will be the very end of my semester since I don't leave England until January 16th. So, the post will all about spending my holidays abroad.  The semester at University of Hertfordshire operates differently than at HPU, with a two week break for the holidays, and then a return for one week of classes and then another for final exams. It is definitely different than what I am used to, but it is all part of the experience!

United Kingdom- University of Hertfordshire

STUDYING IN ENGLAND

Hello all!

  My name is Sophia Suarez! I'm a senior at HPU majoring in Business Management. I chose to study at the University of Hertfordshire in Hatfield, England for my Fall 2015 semester. The university has a wide variety of resources available to their students, including their exchange students. Despite still speaking english, I experienced some culture shock. Some things are just different than mainland U.S. and Hawaii. For instance somethings I would look for in the grocery stores that I was used to buying, such as gatorade or lucky charms etc just were not there. Its not a bad thing, but its just something to adjust to. Their methods of teaching and timetable for classes also took some adjusting to as it was very different from HPU.  Getting used to a different currency, and assimilating to English slang and language took time. But the entire time was part of a bigger and wider learning experience. 

These photos are from my first few weeks in England!

En Route to London Heathrow Airport!

The Church of St. Peter in St. Albans. My first look at the intricate architecture in England. 

My flat mate Mercedes  (left from New Mexico) and Menni (from Finland on my right) taking a break in St. Albans

The Forum at University of Hertfordshire. A fun night out on Campus, also the location of Ed Sheeran's video "Lego House" 

Another Church in St. Albans

Taking a lunch break at a farmers market a short walk from King's Cross Station

Making friends with the neighbor flat!

Had to get a typical shot with a phone booth at least once!

Mi Vida en Chile.

Viva Chile. Mi Vida en Viña del Mar.

Hola. My name is Shalynn Marissa Murphy (most of you may know me by my preferred middle name Marissa) and for the Fall semester of 2015, I studied abroad in Viña del Mar, Chile. This blog will follow me on my four and a half month journey of studying abroad. I will write about the people I encountered, the culture of the Chileans, and my new perceptions of the world we all live in. I hope you enjoy!

Firstly, Why Chile?

Chile is an incredible and absolutely stunning country. Chile possesses the Andes Mountains to the East, The Pacific Coast to the West, the Atacama Desert to the North, and Patagonia to the South. This country basically has it all.

The two greatest reasons I wanted to study abroad were

1. I wanted to meet new people who were different from me.
2. I wanted to experience a new country and lifestyle that was foreign to my own.

Although, Spain would have been amazing I decided I wanted to experience a country that was still developing and under discovered in some ways. So, I chose South America, a continent filled with beauty and excitement that I do not believe everyone has the chance to experience.

There are more posts to come soon.

Also, if you are considering studying abroad in Chile and have any questions for me about the country, my experience, and so on feel free to email me at smurph15@my.hpu.edu and I would love to share more with you!

One of the keys of success is persistence. Persistence is definitely one of the things that has gotten me here today.

Studying abroad is something that I have longed to do since hearing about it. Then again, I have always enjoyed traveling. Just thinking about the sheer number of places I have been would make me something of a more than casual traveler. The preparation it took to get here in Australia started with a desire. Even so, Australia was not my first choice. At the time when I first started looking into the study abroad program, I began researching the various programs that offered packages and such, and along with those packages I researched various countries of interest. At the time, I was interested in studying abroad in France, Spain, Germany, Japan, or China perhaps. As time went on, my options narrowed. When I say narrow, I’m referring to my options as a student with Veteran’s Affairs benefits utilizing the GI Bill that is granted to those who have served a full or partial active duty term within the military. For me, it was the navy, and I desired to use those benefits in the best way I could. I thought why not study abroad? What better way to utilize the benefits granted to me than to study else where? The only thing was I could not use the various programs with my benefits. I had to basically go to the host country university as if I was applying directly. The main difference is I would work with my home university under their program to study abroad. That was and is the only way I can use my VA benefits to do so. There are pros and cons to using the various packaged programs or not, but in the long run it is a matter of what one does and what one would like to do while studying abroad in my opinion.

Once the parameters were set, I began to research what countries under my home university I could actually venture to. There was a list and I researched and formed my own list, and basically created a matrix of both countries and universities, their semester schedules and various little notes about either the country or university that was important to me. As I stated before, I desired to go to Germany or somewhere in Europe such as Denmark. After the minor research, I found out Germany was out of the question. For some reason their semesters start off at a significantly odd time during our academic year. This left me with Denmark, England perhaps, Australia and a few others. I also found out one needs up to at least a few semesters of respective languages to study in say Taiwan, China, or Japan. So, those were out of the question.
With all these things in mind, I actually started off fairly early in my journey to study abroad. I was told most wait until the last minute and use up all their electives. So, I held on to some of mine, which came in handy being that I had to change up my classes several times for approval.

Anyway, it wasn’t until two semesters before when I really had to start making this happen. Originally, I had wanted to do it 3 semesters out, and you can do it when you are ready. However, my plans changed, life happened and financially, I just wasn’t ready. So, I waited until I could live two to three months without any employment, which I will need to maintain until my VA benefits kick in later in October (more details on that later). I started setting many of the significant things in motion one year before I needed to travel. That was the most important part. Everything else came in steps, which greatly helped. Those steps, which are apart of my home university’s programs did not begin until my Spring semester (less than half a year prior to flying out). Once I narrowed down to the country, I had to narrow down to which university. For Australia, there were a total of 3. I originally chose Bond, a private university. It was full. That left me with Griffith University. I only knew once acquaintance that went there for her study abroad option. I suppose that also influenced my decision to pick Australia. Next, was picking the classes and getting approval for a letter to eventually get the student visa. That part as well as getting the visa turned out a lot easier than I thought. Not only that, but I had the visa within a week of requesting it. Depending on where you’re from and what channels you take, it may take longer.
After getting my visa, I was set to book the flight. I had already been looking online nearly two months before classes started. I desired to be there at least a week prior. However, looking back on it now, I should have allowed myself two weeks prior to classes. Not only did I have to book a flight, I also had to find accommodation (or a place to stay) during my time there. With the abroad university, there were three options; stay on campus, stay off campus, or participate in a homestay program. I opted to just stay off campus and eventually found a nice place with two other students as well as two others that are working. Normally, I would not pick a place prior to visiting or seeing it, but I didn’t have much time. So, I “bit the bullet” and don’t regret it in the least. My roommates including the “main mate” are all very nice and hospitable people with various background and ethnicities.

I suppose the most difficult or most time-consuming part was renewing my passport. That is something I did during winter break prior to the spring semester. That can take weeks. So, I am glad I got that out the way by the time I needed my passport for everything else. Second, was my classes. To get credit, one needs class approval from both the home university and host university. This is something I took very serious. Literally, the day before flying out, I had to make one final change with both the VA and home university in regards to classes.

Even so, it wasn’t all challenging and it wasn’t all easy. Either way, it was worth all the hard work to get here. That also gives one more incentive to maintain their GPA. I would definitely do some things differently but only the small things for improved efficiency in the process. Everyone including the staff at my home university and host university here in Australia were all extremely helpful in the process.

23 July 2015
Michaux

Stay tuned for more to come.