alicante
“The most amazing [thing] was not touring the monuments,
taking classes with Spanish students at the university, or even
becoming more fluent in Spanish, but learning to live as an almost-native
in a place entirely unlike my home. I took a dance class, went to
the theater, walked around the city, and traveled around the country.
I became more adventurous, more confident, more mature...I guarantee
you won ’t go back the same.”
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rennes
“Living in Rennes has taught me to be more self-reflective
and open towards a different culture: whether it be the simple cheek-kiss
or the repeated tendency of French transportation to go on strike. ”
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czech republic
“Volunteering at a musicology institute gave me invaluable
work experience, contacts for future research, and insight into
one aspect of Czech life. In my research on contemporary Czech music,
I have been introduced to libraries, facilities, and several wonderful
composers, one of whom has become a good friend. ”
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sydney
“I learned so much in Sydney that I would not have learned
if I stayed at my tiny upstate New York conservative college...about
Australian, Asian, and European cultures...It forced me to trust
people...and realize that depending on another person didn’t
mean I wasn ’t being independent.”
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melbourne
“I have tested and broken my limits. If someone asked me
a year ago if I could bungee jump 150 feet above a rainforest in
Cairns, climb a mountain by moonlight, or dive near the Great Barrier
Reef in a country known for its sharks, I would have laughed in
their face, but I did that and more...[Australia] gives you every
opportunity to challenge yourself. ”
“I feel stronger and more confident—that will stay
with me for the rest of my life. Suddenly, calculus doesn’t
seem so daunting...if I can swim with sharks, I can do anything. ”
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turkey
“Knowledge is to understand / To understand who you are.
/ If you know not who you
are / What's the use of learning? / The aim in learning
is / To understand God's Truth. /
Because without knowledge / It is wasted hard labour. /
...the best possible thing /
Is to find perfect peace.” – 13th century Turkish poet
Yunus Emre