Quito

I have finally arrived to Quito, Ecuador. Traveling to Ecuador was not as easy as I thought it would be. Prior to my trip to Ecuador, I was a bit worried due to a hurricane that was near the coast of Miami where my connecting flight to Ecuador was. I was very nervous because there were speculations of the hurricane hitting the Miami area and that would mean that my flight would be cancelled; thankfully my flight was good to go. On the day of my trip it was very crazy day due to bad inclement weather in Miami. My plane from NY couldn’t land in the Miami airport because the airport was closed. Then once we finally got to Miami, the people from the airport had me running around like crazy. I had to jump from the plane and find my terminal. One thing I learned from this experience is to always keep your cool and ask questions—to several people just to make sure. After all the hassle in the Miami airport, I was finally able to find my terminal and relax till my plane arrived. Once in the plane, I was able to sit back and relax. Sitting next to me was a woman who is a Guayaquil native and she was telling me all the things I needed to know about the city of Guayaquil. I was very lucky to have met this lady because she made me feel more confident and comfortable with the idea of living in Guayaquil.
Once arriving to the Quito airport, I was able to quickly get out of my plane, go through customs, and pick up my luggage to head outside and find a representative from the university whom was waiting for me. Once I met up with him, I was able to chat with him and meet the other students that were already waiting for me as well. We headed back to the hotel and I made it to my room. It was a pleasant surprise to know that my roommate was a student from SUNY Newpaltz. Once I got into the room, my roommate was already asleep and had left me a really nice note on my bed introducing herself and giving me a warm welcome. After making a little bit of noise she wakes up and we soon clicked and became great friends.
The following day was amazing. I was able to meet the rest of the international students, whom are amazing people from all over the USA, France, Canada, Australia, Belgium, Taiwan, and Japan. Everyone is very fun to be around and very friendly. I immediately connected with almost everyone.
Today was the beginning of our week tour of Ecuador. We were able to visit the “Capilla del Hombre” which is a place where Guayasamin, a famous Ecuadorian put to display a lot of hit art work. His art works were really about the different races and the inequality that were found in the country. Through his work we were able to learn a lot more about the history of Ecuador.
Soon after the museum trip, we were able to hit the mall and grab some lunch. There, I was able to converse with the other international students and getting to know them better. After lunch we were able to visit historical landmark of Quito, Ecuador. We went to an amazing cathedral that is the biggest cathedral in all of Latin America. We then tour the city of Quito, visiting the Presidents palace, along with many other historical centers. Soon after our tour we went out to dinner and then hit the dance floor at a salsa club where we all were able to let loose and dance to Latin rhythms.
For the rest of the week we are heading out to different cities and towns of Ecuador to learn more about the country and its culture. We will be visiting the equator, indigenous weavers, Folk musicians, craft markets, and much more.

Less than One Week!

I know I’m super late on this, but I have been really busy with work, babysitting and getting ready to leave. Anyway, I leave for Limerick, Ireland, next Tuesday afternoon. All summer I was nothing but excited but now that it is so close I am beyond nervous. It’s not really the flight that I am nervous about, I’ve flown close to 20 times since I was 4, but the entire trip in general. The whole idea of leaving leaves me with anxiety.

Now, I know I am lucky to be studying aboard with a close friend, and thinking about that does calm my nerves a bit. One of suite-mates from last school year is accompanying me to Limerick and we have been preparing all summer. Michelle and I get along really well, so I know she will be able to bring me back to reality whenever I freak out. Unfortunately,I will be staying in Plassey Village and she is in Kilmurry Village, which are on opposites sides of a rather large campus. Although we won’t be together, I know that we will still see each other often. Knowing I have someone that I am so close with there with me is simply a great feeling.

Honestly, the only think that upsets me about leaving is leaving my family. Because I go to New Paltz, I am already used to leaving, seeing as New Paltz is over six hours by car, from my hometown of Buffalo. And leaving last year actually brought my friends and I closer, so I am not too worried about leaving my friends, it’s just my family that bothers me. Two weeks ago my whole life came to immediate stop when I was told that my Grandpa, “Pa”, had cancer. My Pa’s cancer came out of nowhere and has devastated my entire family. My entire life I have been very close to my Grandparents. Whenever I had trouble at home I went over to my Grandparent’s house, practically living there in 8th and 9th grade. So to find out such news really crushed me. I am nervous that someone will happen to my Pa while I am in Ireland, and I will not be able to come home. The thought that I could be missing his last months, terrifies me. I’m trying to stay positive though, because he has already started Chemotherapy, and his chances of beating this are high.

Anyway, I have finished packing for the most part. I still have to pack my carry on and make sure I have all my papers together, but overall I’m set. I’m kind of confused on how picking classes works, but I’m sure I will figure it out. I know this is going to be a once in a lifetime experience so I need to push my nerves aside and focus on how amazing this will be!

–Allie 🙂

Hello Cairo

As I looked out the window of the car while the taxi driver brought us to the edge of the city, the pyramids towered over the ramshackle dusty buildings like mountains overlooking a village. On our first day in Cairo we rode horses through the rundown city of Giza, on the outskirts of Cairo, and then into the desert towards the pyramids. After about twenty minutes, of sometimes chaotic galloping, we arrived at the base of the first pyramid on our trip. The structure and magnificence of all the three great pyramids at Giza is unbelievable and breathtaking. Not only were we able to freely move about the desert as we journeyed from pyramid to pyramid but we also entered and traveled beneath the pyramid through a narrow staircase to view the underground world.
When viewing such amazing wonders the dry heat of Egypt becomes somewhat of an afterthought. However, by mid afternoon the heat catches up with you but for some reason hot coffee still seems attractive as you sip it out of a small cup in the air conditioning. With all the marvel of the pyramids and rich history, the city streets of Cairo in and of itself has a lot to offer. The city and people alone are a wonder of culture. This city with such a huge population, does not disappoint in excitement and chaos
Now that I have been here for four days I am about to move into my room at the American University in Cairo and begin school, or at least the study abroad orientation. However, I am glad my dad and I made the decision to travel together to Cairo and spend a short while to explore the city before I go to school and he goes on to travel to Beirut. Even though I have only been here for a short while, it feels as though I have been walking around the streets for a couple of weeks. For the moment though, this part of the journey is over and the next step is about to begin and I sure unimaginable surprises, excitement and adventures await.

Home !

The much anticipated final blog has arrived, although it does not excite me to say I have been away from Buenos Aires for about 3 weeks now I must admit it is nice to finally be home with the people I love. It should be said that when arriving back to your home country you will feel various emotions coming at you at once and having do deal with these emotions requires patience. Having to say goodbye to new friends, taking your last pictures of all the places you once couldn’t imagine falling in love with and taking your last steps in a country you made your home will not be easy but it will be lovely. Having been home for about 2 weeks and having to travel to another country once again, made my coming home much easier but now that the traveling has ended I find myself melancholy about my past semester and how having to go back to New Paltz will be more difficult than I had anticipated. Reality strikes that I have been away for sometime and I will have to re adjust to the small town of New Paltz, although I am nervous my excitement to go back is not far behind.  So here is to my Senior year as a college Undergrad and thanking you all for following me on this wonderful, amazing, life changing journey.

Also, always remember to be patient – academically things may not always be on your side but do not panic if you are placed in Academic Probation after coming back from a semester abroad, you are one of several students and sometimes the system does not see that. So if things go wrong when you get back just remember to remain patient and work things out slowly and they will get better before you know it.

Thank You all,

Your settled traveler Vera

All Ready(I Hope)

 

            Well here we go, the time has actually come. All summer I have been waiting somewhat anxiously to finally get on the plane and go. Finally now the time has come. Everything seems to be all packed up and all the paperwork is hopefully done, all that needs to happen is the actual flight and before I know it I’ll be halfway across the world immersed in another culture.
           For those of you who are reading this and don’t know me, here is a quick  glimpse of who I am. I am currently a junior at SUNY New Paltz and I am double majoring in International Relations and Sociology. I Live in upstate NY and have always enjoyed traveling abroad. I think that may be one of the reasons why when people ask me if it will be safe in Cairo, I kind of shrug and smile at them. Having traveled to Beirut Lebanon and other places such as Costa Rica and throughout Europe, I feel I am truly ready to Live abroad for four months, and study in the part of the world I am most interested in. I am enjoying the comfort of my room at home and the next time I post here, I Will hopefully have some great pictures and better stories to tell. But for now, I still have one more night in my bed. As for tomorrow though, the travels begin!

Dreams Do Come True

Since I started my freshmen year of college I knew I wanted to study abroad. Just the thoughts of getting on a plane to another country to live, learn the language and culture, and travel within the country and other surrounding countries has been something that I have been looking forward to doing for a long time. Here I am one week before my departure to Ecuador, and I can’t even believe this is actually going to happen. I am very pleased to embark on a life changing journey that will be filled with a lot of positive opportunities.

Planning this academic year trip to Ecuador has definitely been an experience of its own. After doing extensive research on all the different study abroad programs that are out there within the SUNY system, I realized that going to Guayaquil, Ecuador through SUNY New Paltz (NP) was going to be the best fit for me. I research the city of Guayaquil along with the university that I will be attending in Ecuador called La Universidad de Especialidades Espíritue Santos (UEES). I went on the university website to check out what kind of programs they offer such as classes, extracurricular programs, seminars, etc. I went on to youtube to see a virtual tour of the campus and the city of Guayaquil.

After getting accepted into the program, the process of doing all the necessary paper works has been a roller coaster ride. I had to speak with my advisors for class selections, making several visits to my home financial aid office, make several calls to my study abroad advisor from NP, and so on. The real challenge of making this trip a reality were all the ups and downs that I had encountered while attempting to get my student visa in the NYC consulate and all of the visits to the doctor’s office to get all of my vaccinations.

This summer was a summer like no other. I definitely had a lot going on.  Even though I had a lot of frustrating moments I knew that there was going to be a positive end result. I definitely learned a lot to make me a more successful, independent and responsible person. I must also say that both my study abroad advisors in NP and in Ecuador were important element in making this dream come true. They were able to get me through the few bumps that I had encountered and were always quick to answer me back with any question I had through email. It couldn’t have been easier without them.

There is one week left before my trip, and during this week I will begin packing, spending quality time with friends and family and prepare myself physically and mentally for what is about come.  I am very excited for the next couple of days to go on by.