9 Countries & 9 stamps in the Passport later...

For other videos on study abroad travels visit the Center for Global Initiatives blog here!

-Katie

Shorts are a must no matter the season!

As our group ventured abroad, since it was in the middle of fall which equals cold, none of us packed shorts or more "summer wear" clothing. But were we ever in for it. Our group had some of the best weather for fall that Europe has ever seen. The first two weeks were 70's or 80's and we were all dying of heat and sweating through our scarves and jeans.  So, we recommend that no matter the season you are traveling abroad, that you be sure to pack at least 1 pair of reasonable length shorts or for girls a skirt.  You really never know when it's going to be hot hot hot. I (Ali) ended up borrowing my skirts off and buying a pair of shorts in Paris, didn't really mind that one so much...shorts from PARIS?! :) It still would have been better to have been prepared.

                                                                                               

For more great study abroad/travel tips be sure to visit this link!

And "like" CGI on facebook here

-Lee

Pack Jewelry Yes or No?

2 pounds of jewelry i thought was a great idea to bring along...NOT

Jewelry is always a tough one to decide on when vacationing especially for the fashionistas out there. I thought that I would for surely wear all of the jewels in the picture above because i'm big on my accessories back home, but i was wrong-o. I think i wore maybe 2 of the 7 necklaces i packed and zero of the bracelets and rings...yikes that equals lots of wasted space and weight.

We would suggest to you to bring with 2 necklaces that are versatile and maybe a bracelet and a ring if you have to. For our trip especially (being 5 weeks in length) we were moving all the time and getting up very early to fit everything in, therefore jewelry wasn't really on our minds. Instead of bringing all the jewels you have, we suggest a variety of scarves and jackets. After all, that's what shows in most of your pictures anyways!

If you do decide to bring a bundle of jewels for trips longer in length a small clear tackle box shown in the picture is a great investment. They maybe cost a whole 3 dollars at Walmart and pack things in very neatly for you. Even though we love em', we say to say bye bye to the jewels!

Plus, we ended up buying European jewels while overseas to add to our collections anyways! That means more weight to carry around.

For more tips on travel and study abroad visit the link here!
-Ali

Umm excuse me, how do I get it all to fit??

While studying abroad, you only get to bring so much with you, so how do you know what and how much to pack??

Now if you don't plan on wearing it more than three times, you probably shouldn't pack it. It's a good idea that everything you bring should complement almost every other item in your suitcase. Durable, light-weight clothes aren't a bad idea either and can be found at TravelSmith, REI, and ExOfficio. Remember, black is easy to pair anything with, but you also don't want to be in black your whole trip :)

You know to bring a variety of tops and bottoms to anticipate different weather conditions, and a scarf can complete any outfit. Make sure to be careful with jewelry, as people in other countries can take a lot more value to it and personal theft on a study abroad trip is something you more than likely want to avoid. Overall, if its of high value to you, try to leave it at home so as to not have to worry about losing it or worse like I mentioned earlier, it being stolen.

Shoes are veeeeery important! If you don't have proper shoes, you are going to be in a LOT of pain! Perhaps you read our earlier blog about Scholl's inserts?? If not be sure to look at that. You want to look nice obviously, but when it comes to days when you're on foot all day exploring, trust me, you're going to appreciate those proper shoes.

If you haven't invested in it now, also think about a hidden money belt, because you just never know where those pick-pocketers are and so far away from home, with any forms of ID or money you have, taken, makes for a terrible rest of your trip!

And remember, It doesn't hurt to wear many layers traveling to your initial destination to save space in your suitcase!

Want to know more about traveling abroad? Or Europe, check out the Center for Global Initiatives page here

And be sure to like us on Facebook!

~ Jami ~

Dr. Dr. please help my feets!

Tips for travelers doing lots of touring/exploring/adventuring by foot:

1) Pack Dr. Scholl's Foot Inserts.

You can try and find the comfiest shoes ever to bring with on your trip, but more than likely (especially for the girls) you will pack more than one pair of shoes for different outfits. That is why Dr. Scholl's inserts come in very handy. For the less comfortable shoes throw an insert in and voila the shoe becomes a much smoother ride. Buy more than one pack too. After viewing the picture below you'll see why. 

[Ali's Dr. Scholl's inserts at the end of the 3rd week!]

2) Bring comfortable shoes.

Think comfort NOT fashion. Seriously. Your feet will ache after a full day of activities even while wearing comfier shoes. Find a nice pair of tennies or some sort of hiking shoe, you won't regret it. But like we said, if you have a pair of shoes or boots that you would really like to pack that aren't the most comfortable be sure you have inserts along. 

3) Limit your shoes to 4 or less.

You have to carry and keep track of everything you bring with on your trip, so the 8 extra pairs of shoes you thought would look good with certain outfits probably aren't the best idea after all. We suggest that you pack a nice tennis shoe (maybe even 2 pairs of tennies to switch it up a bit), if you're going in the fall/winter maybe an Ugg like boot, a dress shoe for nicer occasions, & a fun pair. On top of this a pair of shower flip flops may come in handy if you plan to stay in hostels. Keep in mind that you will want to buy shoes once you get there, trust us.

 4) Leave the heels home!

If you're traveling throughout Europe, we experienced first hand the uneven bumps of the cobblestone. For this reason, we suggest not packing high heels. It is all the more easy to trip and brake or sprain an ankle & no one wants to be hurting on their vacation.

[We wore through the whole insert]

For more great tips on studying abroad visit the CGI blog here!

-Lee

a WICKED good time

A group of 9 of us chose to visit London during our "fall break" from the trip (we had 3 days off to travel wherever our hearts desired). The others ventured to Amsterdam and Germany, they sure missed out! We crossed the English Channel via the "chunnel" (a channel and tunnel) while onboard the Eurostar. Yes, we were underwater this whole time. We were all anxious to see what this would look like. 

 Here she is-->

Basically, you felt like you were in a normal tunnel above ground, it was by no means a glass wall/giant aquarium view which was a relief. I didn't want to see any sharks coming at us. Our ears popped a lot. It took roughly 2 and a half hours to get from Brussels to London. And was much roomier than a plane. We grew to really enjoy the comfiness of train seats throughout Europe - especially the curved head rests for sleeping!

London was one of our favorites or at least mine! Maybe because of their language...we could finally understand someone and read menus yay or maybe because they drive on the opposite side of the road...so fun or maybe just maybe because we got to see the play Wicked and all of it's greenness!

We laughed, we sang along, & even cried at this beautifully written/acted out play! Gosh can some people belt it out! For those of you unfamiliar with Wicked it's the story of the witches from the Wizard of Oz back when they were in college and sort of kind of friends. If ever you have the chance to see this musical please do it. It will "melt" your heart. You will not want it to end.

Right now Wicked is actually touring across the US, so be sure to check out the link above to see if they're coming to a theater near you.

& click the link to view a trailer

http://youtu.be/_jGuJE9SkhA

*Also check out the Center for Global Initiatives blog here to find more exciting places to be and see while abroad!

There's a good chance that beer was brewed up in Belgium

Have we already mentioned that studying abroad is a GREAT experience?! Well, thanks to NDSU's Center for Global Initiatives we were able to travel and experience some pretty great things, and you too could take a life changing trip! Not only did we have some pretty amazing city tours, but we were able to tour some breweries as well.  

Dublin, Ireland

  

Anybody ever heard of Guinness? How bout Anheuser Busch InBev? (Come on people I know you have!) As a part of our cultural touring we were given the opportunity to visit these factories and learn a thing or two about brewing beer, AND even learned how to draught the perfect Stella Artois from a Stella brewer himself. 

Leuven, Belgium

Anheuser Busch InBev (AB Inbev for short) is the largest global brewer brewing many brands we see everywhere here in the US:

• Budweiser
• Stella Artois
• Leffe
• Bud Light
• Michelob
• Jupiler

       Do some of these sound familiar?! 

We visited both the largest (AB InBev) and one of the most well known (Guinness) breweries in the world while on our trip. It's pretty cool now to see the products each of these factories export to us here in the US and say hey, I saw the place where this was created! A long long ways away!  

& thanks to CGI, we were able to see the process through from start to finish- let me tell you there's a lot of thinkin' that goes into that brew you're drinkin! 

[Guinness Factory]

 

[Bottles, Cans, & Kegs in Leuven AB InBev]

Don't forget to check out the Center for Global Initiatives blog here!

"Like" CGI on facebook here!

-Katie

Eiffel Tower anyone??

     

Did you know that the Eiffel Tower is 1050 feet high and that you can see almost 45 miles out from it?! Wow! It was built from 1887 to 1889 and was named after Gustave Eiffel, one of the most influential people in its construction and design. It was built as the entrance arc for the 1889 World's Fair.

The Eiffel Tower, as you can see, has three floors for you to observe from, from the first at 187 feet, the second at 337 feet, and finally the third floor at 899 feet! Can you imagine the workout getting up there if you take the stairs, especially if its 300 steps to the first floor as well as to the second?! Now you can take either the stairs or a lift to the first and second floors, but the third floor is only accessible by an elevator.

It's nickname is La dame de fer, which means "the iron lady" as it is made of  tough iron lattice, is projected to weight around 7,300 tonnes, and was made by 300 workers from 18,038 pieces of puddled iron.

It's owned by the City of Paris, France

Today the Eiffel Tower is still one of the most recognized structures in the world and is the most paid-visited monument! Over 200,000,000 people have visited it already!

If you visit this structural masterpeice be sure to look for the 72 names of the scientists, engineers, and other notable people that were engraved on the tower by Gustave as well.



The ladies on this fall's Europe trip!



 On the trip to Europe we got up close and personal with the Eiffel Tower and you can too!

Be sure to check out the CGI homepage here for the next available trip you can fit in your schedule

And like it on Facebook here too!

~ Jami ~



Canyoning Interlaken, Switzerland

While studying abroad in Europe I had the chance to visit many different countries. Among these countries was my favorite stop: Switzerland, which is an amazing country to visit, with so many things to do and see. While there, I had the opportunity to check out some of the outdoor activities they had to offer. Some of these include skydiving, paragliding, bungee jumping, canyon jumping, and last but not least, canyoning.  At first I thought to myself how on earth am I going to fit in ALL these activities? Since I knew there was not enough time to experience everything in one trip I finally decided on canyoning. Now if you are like me, canyoning might be a fairly unfamiliar thing. I had only heard of such a thing 2 days before my arrival in Switzerland. So, of course I went to YouTube and typed in “Canyoning Interlaken, Switzerland” and I was amazed by what I saw! I thought to myself what a rush, I NEED to do this! It was by far the most thrilling thing I have done, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who seeks adventure. Check out the YouTube video below and find out for yourself how truly amazing canyoning is!

**I want to thank NDSU Center for Global Initiatives for giving me the opportunity to be able to experience Switzerland and all of its greatness. If you love to travel check out CGI’s blog here and find a trip that fits you.  

Don’t forget to like CGI on Facebook here!

-Katie

It's not free to pee?

 

[A video of Madame Pipi in Scotland]

Most public restrooms in Europe are not free. It's not free to pee! What?! That's right. Madame Pipi aka "the potty guard" (in the picture below) will stop you at the door no matter how bad you have to go and charge you to use the facilities. So our recommendation to you is that you don't drink anything while you are in Europe... just kidding.  Keep hydrated, try your best to use the restrooms in your hotel/residence before you leave for the day & hold it in as long as you can. If ya gotta go, ya gotta go just be sure to have some spare change in case of emergencies! It happens to the best of us. 

["Pay or no pee for you"]

 

For more tips on studying abroad visit the link here

"like" CGI on Facebook here

-Lee

Download Skype before you Depart

 Many of us, as college students, became familiar with this video calling program when we moved away to college.

But, if you are new to this word skype, it's a program downloaded from the web that allows one to video chat with friends and loved ones from afar.

Skype comes in very handy on study abroad adventures for a number of reasons:

1) it's FREE!
-visit here to download your free version of skype
compatible with your computer (there are separate

Mac & PC options, so be sure to choose the one
right for your computer)

2) Being in a whole new world, you will be busy, but
during your down time you will want to remember
what home is like. Skype allows you to visualize and
will minimize the homesickness feeling many will experience.

3) Phone calls add up $$$$$, again skype
won't cost you a dime...... UNLESS----->

4) You can purchase a subscription to call
landlines and mobile phones from skype. 

The exact cost depends upon the country you're
studying in. You can go with a monthly or by-minute fee. The prices are very reasonable & it makes the time difference a whole lot easier to deal with (you don't have to worry about missing them at their computer, they can be anywhere!)

                                                            ------------->

5) It's so simple!

[the skype icon]

it's time to skype it up! for FREE!

*also, be sure to check out this site 
for more study abroad 
tips & tricks: NDSU Center for Global Initiatives

And "like" CGI on the FB here

-Ali

Why would you ever want to explore the world?!

Why do you ask???

Because the experience is one you'll never forget! There are so many benefits that you get out of studying abroad, like experiencing different types of transportation such as riding on trains, taking a cruise, flying, among the different types of vehicles you'll see there. You get to see new cultures and celebrations, WIDE varieties of food and shopping, and so many diverse buildings and artifacts of history and art that can be truly breathtaking! 

New experiences that you only get out of traveling abroad in turn develops a better sense of leadership and just knowing your true self. Why not study in a whole other world where it is not only a luxury, but an opportunity to learn new things in a classroom so far from your everyday one on campus?

Studying abroad is also an extroardinary time for you to create close friendships with your peers, perhaps even someone that you wouldn't have imagined knowing outside of the classroom, whom now after being in a whole other different world with for only a month, has become one of your closest friends.

 If this is something you can see yourself totally doing, or want more information on the different trips NDSU has to offer

Be sure to visit the Center for Global Initiatives blog here!

~ Jami ~

Fitting it all in with your Major of Choice

[Bike ride along the Canals in Damme, Belgium]

Fitting in a study abroad experience can be a somewhat challenging task, depending on the major you are in.  For some majors the curriculum is very rigorous and stringent upon the United States' standards, but in other cases your advisor may say anytime after sophomore year to go for it. It really all depends. If you know studying abroad is something that you would like to work into your 4 years here at NDSU, I suggest planning it all out ASAP.

If you are a business major (or in some cases even a minor) there are some really great trips of a variety of lengths offered to you.
For example:
Spring Break in Eastern EU
Summer in Europe
Summer in China
European Fall Semster* --> this is the trip our group embarked on

**to find out more information about these great trips visit the Center for Global Initiatives blog here!


~Engineering, Architecture, Interior Design, or really any Arts, Humanities, or Social Sciences major all will have an easier time studying abroad and sometimes a study abroad trip is even required as part of the curriculum for these majors.

~As you might of guessed, anything in the medical field is a much trickier task to work into your years at NDSU: Pre-Med/Vet, Pharmacy, Nursing, etc. Most of these majors will go abroad in the summer some way or another, since going during the academic year is nearly impossible to do.

ALL MAJORS ARE ABLE TO STUDY ABROAD!
You can too!

[Somewhere between heaven & earth, the Alps]

-"Like" CGI on Facebook right here!

-Lee

Choose Your Length of Study

Ever considered studying abroad, but didn't want to devote an entire semester or even a year of your life to it? NDSU's Center for Global Initiatives has taken this into consideration and has created many study abroad opportunities for students to get the experience without spending all the time.

If you are like me and only want to spend a few weeks out of the semester abroad then CGI is the place for you to look! My experience was that of a lifetime and it didn't involve me studying in Europe, or anywhere for that matter, for more than 5 weeks. This was a huge part in the decision I made to study abroad with NDSU. 

Some programs available through Center for Global Initiatives include:

• Spring Break in Eastern EU 

• Summer in Europe 

• Summer in China

• European Fall Semester

*Also be sure to check out the Center for Global Initiatives blog here!

-Katie

Study Abroad 101's

The Cliffs of Moher, Clare County, Ireland

If you even have just the slightest itch to study abroad I would encourage you to attend a Study Abroad 101 info Session.
These sessions are a quick, easy, and oh so helpful way to get started on your path abroad.
Sessions are offered every Monday through Thursday at 4pm throughout the whole academic year in the Memorial Union room 116.
At the session you will meet with a study abroad advisor to learn the basics of studying abroad at NDSU.
101's include info about NDSU's exchange partners and programs offered, registration, financial aid, traveling, and any other questions you may have about studying abroad.

From here, the world awaits you!

*This is not a class, nor do you have to register in order to attend!
 & you only need to attend one session, but are welcome to attend more.

Study Abroad 101 info Sessions
Every Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday
from 4:00 - 5:00 p.m.
MU 116

Also, be sure to visit the Center for Global Initiatives blog here! 
Warning!!! If you visit this blog you will want to explore the world and all of its beauty!
-Ali