Semana Santa

Last week Christians celebrated Holy Week and no country celebrates this event quite like Spain. In particular, Sevilla is known for its Holy Week events that draw around 100,000 visitors during the week. Starting the Sunday before Easter many processions pass through the streets of Sevilla, each devoted to a scene in the life of either Jesus or his mother, Mary. This float, or paso, is carried by costaleros, who use their lower neck and back to withstand the heavy weight and usher the float through the tiny, zigzagging streets. Two of my friends in Sevilla were costaleros and their preparation for the processions was rigorous. Their necks were red for months! Accompanying the float are penitents wearing long robes and tall, narrow, cone-shaped hoods to mask their identity. The image is very moving and they symbolize the act of penitence for sins committed. The processions occur across the city, night and day, all week long and throughout the country, but with the largest and most elaborate celebration in Sevilla. Holy Week is a time for Sevillanos to be with their families, in the streets of their beloved city. Even those not particularly religious take part in the action of Holy Week, or Semana Santa, because it is as much of a tradition and community event as religious act.

It's a pretty complicated scene to explain and it's something that's very different in person but hopefully this youtube clip helps give you an idea: Semana Santa, Sevila


Posted by: Clare, Seville, Spain, Spring 2007

Amazing Pictures Follow....

It seems that a lot of the peer advisers have recently gone on spring break. Their stories and pictures are amazing. I wish I could have gone with them! However, not to toot my own horn, but, I must say that no one had a more outrageously awesome spring break than I did. Did I go to the pyramids of Egypt?


Did I see the Statue of Liberty in New York City?


Did I see the Eiffel Tower in Paris?


Yes. Yes. Yes. Now, before you start thinking I have my own plane that takes me around the world, let me tell you where I actually went. Las Vegas. Even though "technically" the pyramid is fake, the Statue of Liberty is fake, and the Eiffel Tower is a fake 1/2 size model of the original, they are all surprisingly realistic. I went to Las Vegas as a little kid with my family when I was only seven years old, and after turning 21 this year, I knew what my spring break destination would be. I was lucky enough to travel with my older sister, which made my experience even more unforgettable. Vegas is the ultimate playground for adults. The energy was so high, the lights were so shiny, some of the hotels were so... tacky, but that is what gives Las Vegas its charm. The weather was wonderful, it was in the high 70s every day, the food was great, I wish I had stayed there longer! On our last night, we saw "Mystere" a Cirque du Soleil show at Treasure Island and that was amazing too. All in all, I even won $100 playing blackjack, so I probably did better than most people when it comes time to leave Vegas. I had a 5-Star time and I can't wait to go back sometime in the near future. So... if you want to see Egypt, Paris, and New York all in one trip, the choice is easy. (They also have indoor and outdoor gondola canals at the Venetian if anyone wants to get a little Italian culture as well.) You know what they say, "What goes on in Vegas, stays in Vegas."

Posted by Matt: University of New South Wales: Sydney, Australia Fall 2007

Honduras: Spring Break 08

This time last week I was in a pickup truck traveling through beautiful Honduras during a 6 hour ride to the airport for my departing flight. Penn State's first trip to Honduras with Global Medical Brigade was incredibly successful: we treated approximately 1300 villagers, who would otherwise have no access to basic health care. I'm so proud of my group for all their hard work! We performed 3 different "brigades" in 3 different rural locations outside the capital of Tegucigalpa. We set up these makeshift clinics in schools, using the different classrooms for the examination rooms, pharmacy, etc. Each morning when our bus arrived at the site there would be a huge line of people already waiting, many having walked hours for this opportunity to receive medical attention.

These rural villagers are basically untouched by the modern world - living in small shacks, on dirt roads, and forced to consume water riddled with parasites. Living in unthinkable conditions, these people maintained an incredibly happiness. Their spirit and gratefulness was truly inspiring. Beyond some additional Spanish vocab and conversation practice, I learned alot on this Spring Break trip. By interacting with the villagers and our Honduran trip leaders I was able to have an inside view of the country. For example, I learned about "Honduras time", in which everything usually runs 20 mins late and strict schedule, like those in the U.S., don't exist.

Penn State's Global Medical Brigade club hopes to continue trips to Honduras in subsequent years so to get involved look for information at activity fairs and around campus!

Posted By: Clare, Seville, Spain, Spring 2007

Spring Breakin' it on the West Coast

I will admit that coming back home after being abroad for a year was a tough transition for me, as it might be for anyone who has spent a significant time away from things that are so near and dear to them. I think that one reason why my transition was so difficult was because my life in Japan was so interesting. There was always something new happening; something unfamiliar, extraordinary, to learn more about. Returning to, what some may call a "super-normal" life really did have its challenges, such as facing boredom.
This year's spring break was spent at home, in Pittsburgh. Little to no use of an automobile, and little contact with friends from home, since their spring breaks unfortunately did not happen to coincide with Penn State's. In the midst of my complete and utter boredom, I could not help but recall the fantastic adventure that my friend and I embarked upon this time last year.
Many students at Gaidai were planning trips to Tokyo via night bus, booking hostels in Hokkaido, and even buying Shinkansen (bullet train) tickets to go to Kyushu. A friend and I decided to instead, head toward the West Coast. Why? Because nobody was going there for Spring Break.
We booked our bus tickets for a small town called Amanohashidate (the bridge to heaven), named for the sandbar that divides Miyazu bay from the Sea of Japan. The bridge to heaven is traditionally viewed upside-down, so there are viewing platforms that are frequented by tourists bending over backwards to get their glimpse of the road to paradise.
Our second stop was a small fishing village on the coast called Moroyose. A sleepy little town, Moroyose had a fish market, great seafood, and not much else. It was very refreshing to see small town life after being in the big city of Osaka for 6 months. People in Moroyose were really curious as to why two foreign visitors would be in their hamlet on the Sea of Japan, and they approached us with just as much curiosity as we approached their town.
Our final destination before returning to Amanohashidate for another night was the small city of Tottori. Tottori is famous for its massive sand dunes, the result of winds of dust storms on the Gobi desert. My companion and I decided to only spend the day on the dunes before boarding the Kita-Kinki-Tango railway to head back toward Amanohashidate.
The West coast of Japan was a joy to visit. Its beautiful scenery is some of Japan that most foreign tourists will never see. I will always remember my incredibly unconventional spring break on the West Coast.

State Pattys Day

This past weekend was Penn State's newest official holiday... State Patty's Day. Studying abroad in London last semester I missed the first annual holiday. I definitely made up for it this year, green beer and all. Nevertheless, the whole day I could not stop feeling somewhat nostalgic and even made a few phone calls to friends I met while abroad.

Last March I was lucky enough to spend St. Patrick's Day in Dublin, Ireland. I took the Sail-Rail from London to Wolverhampton to Dublin. The day long, freezing journey was well worth the experience. I definitely recommend everyone who studies in the UK use the National Rail and have the opportunity travel on Titanic like ferries.

We stayed in a hostel right in downtown Dublin and spent the whole weekend exploring the city. We went to Dublin Castle, Dublin University, the oldest pub in Dublin, St. Patrick's Cathedral, and got lost down every street we could. As well, we hit up the Guinness Factory. We sampled as much Guinness as we could, learned about the process of making Guinness, and finally learned the science of pouring the perfect pint!

On March 17th, we woke up and went to the famous St. Patrick's Day Parade. Standing in a crowd of thousands we found the only bar serving pints of Guinness. It was a breakfast for champions!! We spent the day traveling to and from bars and meeting as many local Irish people as we could. Of course we had a pint at the famous Temple Bar (I even bought a shirt). Those two days in Dublin were some of the best times I had while abroad!!


Dublin, Ireland 2007


State College, Pa 2008


Much like my Saturday in State College, Dublin is filled with amazing memories and drunken moments with my best friends. I tell everyone I know to try to make it to Dublin, especially for St Patrick's Day!!! Just don't forget to book your hostel well ahead of time.

Posted by Alison M., London, Spring 2007

Volunteering Abroad

A great way to go abroad is through volunteering: its provides an opportunity to see the world and help out at the same time. When I received an email earlier this academic year about an Alternative Spring Break trip to Honduras I was immediately interested. The organization is called Global Medical Brigade for Honduras and this is the first year for the club at Penn State. Groups from universities across the U.S. organize student groups to spend a week in Honduras operating a free clinic under the supervision of medical professionals. The different areas the Penn State volunteers could work in are: in-take, triage, medical consultation, the pharmacy, the dental station, or data input. While I have no medical practice I'm looking forward to practicing my Spanish!

My group leaves Friday and we are all extremely excited. We have spent the past months working hard in preparation to make our brigade as successful as possible. Fundraising events have helped us raise money for the trip costs and through donations we have gathered medical supplies and medicine to bring to Honduras. As I prepare for my trip I expect to see much poverty and a completely different way of living than I am used to, but I am also confident in the progress of such grassroots organizations, such as Global Medical Brigade for Honduras. As a doctor's visit is as convenient as a trip to Ritenour, it is hard to imagine living without access to medical care.

Here some statistics about Honduras:
-80% of the population lives in poverty
-35% unemployment
-22% of the population is undernourished
-GMB provides health care to more than 70 villages
-30,00 patients were treated in 2006

Posted by: Clare, Seville, Spain, Spring 2007

Freiburg Dancing

After viewing Brad's post of the "Where is Matt?" video, I knew I had seen something similar somewhere before. As it turns out, the employees of a magazine local to Freiburg im Breisgau made a tribute video with scenes from around Freiburg, instead of scenes from around the world. We were shown this video clip at our first orientation meeting.

Around 1:53, you'll see a guy dancing in a little steam called "Bächle." These are Freiburg's medieval drainage system, and the local legend is that if you ever step in one, you'll marry a Freiburger. Apparently this guy is either already married to one, or really, really wants to!


Now, where can I learn them dance moves?

-- Posted by Dave, IES EU Program, Fall 2007

For all the Beer Connoisseurs

While I was out to dinner with my friends this weekend, I looked down at my icy cold glass of Miller Lite. I do enjoy Miller Lite, "old faithful" as I like to call it, however I couldn't help but miss the wide variety of great Belgian beers I sampled while living in Brussels. Since Belgium is known for its beer, and the locals take the subject very seriously, one of the first things I learned when I arrived is that every Belgian beer is served in its own special glass.

My personal favorite of all the Belgian beers was the golden ale Duvel:



A close second was Leffe Blonde:



Followed by Chimay:



During my first week in Brussels, our group was taken on a tour of the last operating brewery in Brussels, the Cantillon Brasserie. It is a family-owned brewery, opened in 1900, that brews lambic beers such as kriek (cherry-flavored beer) and gueuze (a more acidic beer). We got to see the entire brewing process, from the storage of wheat, barley, and hops, to the brew kettle, to the cooling tun, to the barrels used for aging, and finally to the store shelf. My tour guide at the Cantillon Brasserie described the process as if it were an art form. During my five month stay in Brussels, I learned that beer is an integral part of Belgian culture, and it was also an important part of my experience in Belgium.

Posted by: Jen, Brussels , Spring 2007