CISabroad

So it's been about 2 weeks since being home and I must say everything they say about reverse culture shock is true! I think I had a mild case of depression last week thinking about how much fun I had overseas. Don't get me wrong, I love being home, but being over there was a breath of fresh air. When I first left I was worried about not making friends, which is funny because I made too many friends lol. I had so many friends that it was hard to split my time evenly between them all. Great problem to have! My number one goal I wanted to acheive while abroad was discovering more about myself, which ...

I officially applied to go to Scotland next summer. I don't know if technically I should be posting journal entries before I even get accepted (IF I get accepted), but I really can't contain it anymore. I'm going to Scotland. Whether it's through this program or another program - I just know I'm going, and nothing's going to stop me this time. A decade. Can you imagine? Waiting a whole decade just to go to ONE place. I never had the oppurtunity before, and honestly, I never thought I'd have the courage to step a foot outside of the US without my family. But I'm going to do it. And it'...

This past weekend marked my last weekend in Costa Rica. How could this be?! Just when I'm starting to feel comfortable in this place and growing accustomed to my daily routine and new language, my calendar tells me that I'm to pack up my bags and leave this place this Saturday at 7am. Don't get me wrong, I cannot wait to see my friends, family, boyfriend and cat again and to enjoy some American food (oh and to watch the Olympics!) But I still have so much I want to see, to taste, to do. So because I cannot cast a spell and stop time, I am just trying to squeeze in as much fun during these last few days he...

I just got back last night around 9:00 pm from a very long weekend in Ireland. I can say that I love Ireland, but the most interesting part of my trip was Friday, when I went with my International Relations class to Belfast. I blogged last week about how excited I was to go to Ireland and that Belfast was going to be interesting. Interesting is really the most accurate way I can describe what I felt as I stepped off the plane into Belfast. It didn't look much different than Scotland, but it felt much different. It was...less geared towards tourists and more like a traditional town. The city centre...

After the painfully slow progression of the days before my plane to Australia, the levee broke into an absolute whirlwind of a month! While I've been trying to write my daily musings and experiences to myself, it was only until just now that I felt ready to compile my thoughts into something to be shared. Experiences have to be understood in order to share them, and it is only just now that I actually feel some semblance of normalcy and an ability to digest it all. Once I landed in Sydney, my CIS Abroad tour was absolutely incredible! I completely fell in love with Sydney, and ...

Pre-Departure thoughts: I am absolutely terrified. And anxious. And nauseous. And thrilled. I cannot express the emotions that I am feeling because it's honestly a mix of everything you can imagine. In one month I will begin a brand new chapter of my life. And I’ll be living in this new chapter for 10 months! I have never gone more than 3 weeks without seeing my family. Prepping myself for that transition is so sad for a few reasons; the first being that my little sister (Jaci) is 14...which ...

My last week in ROME was one the of the best times of my life. I met some great people that I will hopefully keep in touch with. My last week was a sad one but a really fun one as well. My friends and I went out and just explored Rome one last time. CIS Study Abroad in Rome was such a great experience and I will never forget everything I did there. Here are some more pictures throughout the month and my last week in Rome!

Well, I’ve been back in the States for exactly a week. I don’t feel like re-entry is as weird as I thought it would be, but it’s definitely different. Things didn’t stop when I got off the plane. Really, things didn’t stop when I got on the plane to go to Barcelona, so I just had to dive right back in when I returned. I had Monday to do my own thing and ease in to being home. I didn’t sleep, of course. Who sleeps during jet lag? It always takes me a few days to get back in to being able to sleep through the night. It’s quiet here. That...

I've been here for 10 weeks now.  It doesn't seem like it's been this long!  I go home a week from Saturday and I'm a little nervous.  However, I'm excited to see family and friends when I go home - I'm just not ready for the school and work that come along with it! Yesterday I went to a theatre production with my host family called Chico Loco.  It was a small theatre located inside a coffee shop with all the attendees sitting in chairs so close to the actor - it was like we were in his scene!  It was really funny and fun to see a different kind of humor from a different c...

I can tell I have been working hard, cause I am closing in on my internship hours quickly with almost 2 months yet to go.  I am excited that I am going to have a lot of extra time in September to enjoy Costa Rica on my own time with my own experiences.  But I do have some work left to do, and I'm excited that part of it this upcoming week should be taking a group to Panama.  The office of Tico Viajero gets quiet after semesters are done, which is the case this week here at Veritas.  We did have quite a few students trying to get in a final trip or adventurous experience before they wen...