A Weekend in Paris

One of the many pros to studying abroad in Europe is that you are so close to other European countries. My flight this past weekend to Paris took less time than it would take me to fly from Michigan to Florida. In my program, IES classes are 90 minutes Monday through Thursday which gives us …

A Stroll Through Sitges

Welcome back to another adventure in Spain! My program here in Barcelona offers weekend day trips for students. Just this past weekend I attended my first day trip to a town south of Barcelona called Sitges. This day trip consisted of a beautiful walking tour of the quiet city, a delightful lunch, and some free …

Tapas, Tapas, and More Tapas!

What is a Tapa? Spain is know for their food and wine culture. An instrumental part of that culture is “tapas”. Tapas are a traditionally Spanish way of eating. This way of eating consists of small plates of food made to share. At any given tapas restaurant, it is typical to order three or four …

Getting My Bearings

What a whirlwind my study abroad journey has been thus far. I am thankful I made it to Barcelona safely and in a timely manner. But, that was not the case for everyone. My flight to Barcelona left from JFK airport the day that Hurricane Ida was rolling through the East Coast. Luckily, my flight …

Beginning my Barcelona Journey

¡Hola! Everyone, my name is Ari Cinque and I’m spending this semester in Barcelona, Spain. I am entering my junior year at Hope College studying Communication and Business. I have always had a passion for traveling and am so thankful for the opportunity to not only travel, but study in Spain for the semester. As …

Central Park

One of my favorite places to go in New York was Central Park. One of the very few perks of COVID was that our program moved to different dorms located in the Upper East Side. This made Central Park only a short walk away from home, and I’m so grateful for that. Whenever I didn’t …

Food Glorious Food

Walking down the streets of New York City your nose is bound to pick up some of the delicious smells wafting out of the restaurants lining the streets. These smells are a lovely break from the often overpowering smell of the trash and sewers, but hey you win some you lose some. Having spent about two …

Rockin’ Around Rockefeller Center

I recently went on my first solo adventure in New York and thought I would share. For my adventure, I decided to go exploring around Rockefeller Center. This was partially because I had been desperately trying to figure out if Saturday Night Live was doing live audiences (30 Rock is where their studio is), but …

How a Small Town Girl Got to the Big Apple (Cliché I Know)

Deciding to spend a semester in New York was not an easy decision. I spent a lot of last semester stressing over it, in addition to all the regular stress of classes and homework. What I’m trying to say is, I spent a lot of time crying. I met with so many different people in …

Paris Reflections!

    Since I arrived back in Michigan, I have been thinking and reflecting on my summer semester in Paris. I kept a journal from the first day I arrived in Paris, and detailed every moment and funny memory. Looking back, I am so glad I did this because I was able to better understand …