Kaitlin R. - Oxford - Spring 2010

After all the time spent preparing, I finally made it to Oxford, and what a cool city. There is so much history here, and it is probably one of the most beautiful places I have ever been. And being in Oxford, the academic environment is pretty intense. The classes have just started up, but they are tough, there’s a lot of reading and writing to do every week, it’s all very interesting though and I’m enjoying it a lot.

It has been really cool to see Oxford in the winter with snow everywhere. Apparently they never get snow that lasts very long here, and it is really rare to have as much snow as we’ve seen here this winter, but that has made it really pretty here as well (although I had thought I would be escaping winter not being in Chicago).

I know that being in England in an English speaking country, it can sometimes seem like it’s not as much of an international cultural experience, but there have definitely been instances where I was reminded that I am no longer in the United States. The interactions between people are similar, but there are differences. One that I have liked the best is the way that people introduce themselves here. If you meet a person somewhere, like a pub or in the dining hall, everyone always makes eye contact with you, shakes your hand, and introduces themselves. I really liked that, it was something that I don’t see a lot of back in the States, but would like to.

Also, in terms of outside travel, the CMRS schedule is pretty intense, but when there is time on the weekends for additional travel, the bus system here in the UK is fairly inexpensive, and easy to use. It is really pretty easy to get around if you use megabus.com, or a similar site. So, I’m looking forward to getting some good weekend trips in to see some more of England.

Matt F. - Dublin, Ireland - Spring 2010

The first voice I heard when I entered Dublin International Airport wasn’t an Irish flight attendant’s or even another passenger’s. It was a very familiar voice that was singing a very familiar song. Apparently Europe is in love with Lady Gaga….and that includes Ireland.

Anyone that has any desire to travel NEEDS to join couchsurfers.com. Before leaving America I contacted about 10 different people in Dublin that use this amazing website. More than one of them had room for me to stay with them for my first night in Ireland on a couch or inflatable mattress. Paddy O’tool and Monika let me sleep in their living room that night. It saved me money that I would have spent on a hostel night and was much more comfortable. They even cooked me a meal and took me out for another. We walked around the city center as Paddy gave me the guided tour. He has been living in Dublin his entire life so he “knows all the stories”. I’m still not sure if he was telling the truth about the Great Leprechaun Revolt of 1812 when the Guinness Factory was seized by the Leprechauns from the East. He says the Guinness never tasted the same after that….I’ll just have to believe him. He has been here his whole life so he probably knows better than me.

The transportation in Dublin is great and not so great at the same time. The busses are never on time but they can get you to just about anywhere in the city faster than you can walk there. Because everybody in the area knows that the busses are unreliable they tend to be more relaxed about arriving on time. A general rule to follow is that whenever an Irishman says he’ll meet you at a certain time….add 10-15 min to that time. They call that “Irish time”.

Two best pieces of advice….join couchsurfing.com and TRAVEL AS OFTEN AS POSSIBLE in and out of your country. The best thing about being in Europe is that so many different countries are just a short distance away. I’ll be in Nenagh this weekend, Cork on Tuesday, Milan in two weeks, Morocco, Spain and Portugal the week after and Venice, Paris and Scotland in May. Take every opportunity and meet everyone that you can!