A Day in Chester

The more time I spend in Liverpool, the more I realize how much there is to see and discover right here! Fellow classmates, local Liverpudlians, and other Brits are happy to suggest the best pubs, museums, parks, and must-see streets to explore in Liverpool and around the UK. I’ve started a bucket list. It expands …

Sefton Park

Happy Monday! I’m thankful to have one week of classes under my belt! With each passing day I feel a little bit more settled. Daily I learn something new, like the fact that there are no drinking fountains on LHU’s campus or that nobody closes the refrigerator doors in the grocers or that it costs …

Exploring Liverpool’s City Centre

Greetings from Liverpool!  It’s been a week since my parents and little sister dropped me off at the Grand Rapids airport. After two connecting flights, a bleary trek through the Frankfurt airport, and over 30 hours without sleep, I’ve spent the last seven days trying to settle into Aigburth Park, where I will be living …

Swingin’ by the Carnaval de Nantes

A few weeks ago the wide gravel path beside the Cathédral Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul de Nantes was filled with colorful swings and churros smothered in whipped cream for the Carnaval de Nantes, one of the oldest and largest festivals in France.  Carnival lights outline the sharp edges of the cathedral in blues, reds, and greens every night …

A Winter Wonderland & Other Final Moments

I spent my last week in Freiburg hiking, studying, and enjoying final special moments with friends. One hike I went on was in Triberg, to see one of the highest waterfalls in Germany. The town was dusted in snow and surrounded by snow-capped hills and pine trees. The waterfall is about a twenty-minute walk from …

Transportation in a Green City

Freiburg prides itself on being a “Green City,” and the common methods of transportation look very different than in US cities. The most popular methods of transportation are biking, riding the Straßenbahn (tram/street train), or walking. Other transportation methods in the Freiburg area include bus, train, and car. Bike At the beginning of the semester …

Feeling at Home

On the Friday after Thanksgiving, I headed out on the train to go visit some friends in Bayern, the neighboring German state to Baden-Württemberg. The travel time was about six hours, and I had three transfers. I was heading to Neuenmarkt, Germany, a city in the Oberfranken region of Bayern, to see my host family …

Up and Around the Region

On some Fridays my study abroad program does excursions, and I wanted to highlight some of the day excursions I’ve been on this semester. Because of COVID, my study abroad program wasn’t able to take us on trips across country borders, so all of our sightseeing has been in the state of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Heidelberg …

Reasons to be Thankful

It seems strange to miss Thanksgiving this year. I love the traditions of family and friends getting together to share a delicious meal and reflect on what makes them grateful. My family even takes a collective nap after the feast. That is a relaxing and necessary communal experience after the indulgences. Being in a foreign …

A German Christmas Tradition

Since the end of October, Freiburg has been busy setting up Christmas decorations in the town and setting up the booths for the Freiburg Weihnachtsmarkt (Christmas market). On November 18, the market opened to visitors. Christmas markets are the key feature of the German Christmas season, and every major town has an impressive offering of …