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A major difference between Spain and the U.S. (outside of the language, of course) is the structure of meals here. Breakfast is usually very light- fruit, yogurt, toast, and tea or coffee. Lunch isn’t usually eaten until around 2 and it is a much heavier meal, similar to what we would do in the U.S. for dinner. People often return home for lunch from school or work to eat with their families. Around this time you’ll see lots of people walking the streets, but right after, there will be no one out for several hours. While in the U.S. dinner is the most important meal eaten with family, in Spain, it’s lunch. My host mom typically cooks lunch for my roommate and I. So far, we’ve had chorizo with lentils, pasta with salmon, a roast with pork, potatoes, and other vegetables, bocadillo, and paella. After lunch, my host mom has given us a variety of desserts to try as well. One of my favorites that I’d never heard of or seen before was mandarin orange slices with honey and cinnamon. 

Dinner is eaten around 8:30 and is generally lighter than what we have in the U.S as well. In Spanish culture, it’s not traditional to host people inside your house, like it is in the U.S. Typically, people meet out on the streets to talk and hang out or go out to restaurants or cafes. A common thing to do for dinner is to go and get tapas with friends. Tapas are small bites that come in a variety of forms. Some of my favorites have been “tostada con carne,” or bread with meat, “croquetas,” little fried balls of meat, cheese, and a mashed potato type of mixture, and “patatas bravas,” fried potato slices with a sauce on top. With these tapas, you can get a drink, like a beer or glass of wine for around 3 euros. Getting tapas for dinner has been one of my favorite things- it’s such a great way to meet other people in my program, explore the city, practice the language, and immerse ourselves into the culture.

It’s only been a few days in Granada and I’ve already been having an amazing time. While waiting in the airport for one of my flights, I met a girl who was from the same program as me, which helped ease a lot of my stress about arriving in a new country, in an airport I’d never been in before. Navigating the airport in Madrid proved a bit difficult, so I was especially grateful to have her there to go through it with me. In line to go through Customs, we ran into two other girls- one from our program and one from another. The four of us were able to hang out and get to know each other before our next flight, making the transition into a new country a lot smoother. While waiting at our gate to board, more than ten other IES students showed up. It was great to finally meet other students face to face and get to know some of the people I’d be spending the next few months with. It was also nice to hear that we shared a lot of the same fears and reservations about adjusting to the language and our new environment. Upon arriving in Granada, I took a taxi to my homestay, which is located on a gorgeous street near the center of the city. I even have a little balcony in my room that overlooks the street. 

Shortly after arriving, my homestay “mom” and several IES “orientadores,” students from University of Granada working with IES to help welcome and immerse us into the city, organized a little visit for other nearby homestay students and I to a local cafe. The orientadores took us on a walk nearby and we met up with other students staying in one of the residence halls. It was so fun finally getting to hang out with fellow students in Granada and explore the city together. It also helped me manage the jet-lag that I had been fighting since landing. Although it’s only been a short amount of time, my transition into this city and this culture has been made easy by the support of IES and the orientadores, my homestay “mom,” and all of the fellow students.

Before we get started, I wanted to introduce myself real quick! My name is Mariella Stine and I am a sophomore. I am from Atlanta, GA and I am double majoring in Spanish and Studio Art, with a minor in Creative Writing. This semester, I will be studying abroad in Granada, Spain from January through May through IES. 

If there’s one thing you should know about me, it’s that I’ve always loved to travel. There’s just something so special about going somewhere you’ve never been, seeing things you’ve never seen, and experiencing an entirely different culture than your own. That being said, I’ve never traveled alone before. I’ve always had my family to fall back on when things get difficult or problems arise that I don’t necessarily see a clear solution to. Then, add in another language entirely and things get just a little bit more complicated. While I have been studying Spanish since sixth grade, going to Spain, where I know I will be fully surrounded by the language, unable to fall back on my English, is definitely nerve-wracking, especially when I am participating in a program where I know no one. But ultimately, one of the reasons why I am able to be here, sitting in the airport waiting for my first of many flights, is because of the support I’ve had along the way from both the staff at IES Granada and Wofford’s International Programs Office. Being able to ask all of my questions and schedule as many appointments as I needed to answer those questions and work through any concerns was extremely helpful and reduced my stress greatly throughout the whole process. Resources like Orientation with IES and the Study Abroad Alumni Dinner put me in direct contact with students who have participated in the same program as me. Hearing all about their incredible experiences while abroad made me feel more excited than anything. Even hearing about the not-so-incredible experiences was reassuring, knowing that I would be able to get through those if they arise because someone else before me has too. 

It’s all of these experiences that I will inevitably have that I am most looking forward to while abroad. I want to grow as a person and push myself outside of my comfort zone. I want to be more independent and confident. And of course, I want to make the most of each and every opportunity I have. Wish me luck!

During this block I have had the opportunity to pursue an internship while studying in Rome. For the past 4 weeks I have been working alongside of Dr. Mattia Della Rocca who is a professor of communications at University of Rome Tor Vergata. The project that we are working on is focused on the environmental humanities and aims to develop a conference in which promotes the study of such subjects. Furthermore, I have also been working with a graduate student named Illaria on this project. She is studying the psychology of digital environments and how those environments can be utilized to educate people around the world about climate change. My job is to contribute information about the environmental humanities field in the United States and also contribute knowledge surrounding ecocriticism and environmental writing. 

Currently my main focus is developing content that promotes these ideas through an instagram profile (@environmentalhumanities.tv) which will later also serve the purpose of promoting the conference planned. I have really enjoyed having the opportunity to develop creative ways to share information that I am passionate about and look forward to the remaining weeks of content that I will publish. 

In addition to learning so much from Mattia and Illaria I have learned a lot about Italian working culture and how it differs from American working culture. The first big difference that I have noticed is the interpersonal relationships expected between boss and employee and between employee and employee. The promotion of these relationship can look a lot of different ways but in my experience it has been getting a coffee after our work is done, getting gelato, taking public transportation together, and accompanying my boss to events that he has coordinated in order to network. The working culture here is also much more flexible than in America and Italians very much value work and life balance. It isn’t unordinary to have to wait several days to hear from someone and it is not expected of you to put your work before all else like I have experienced in some instances in the American working culture. 

Due to the nature of my internship being based in academia I have also had the opportunity to observed Italian university culture which is also very different. During my second week I was able to visit the University Tor Vergata and attend a digital environments class taught by Mattia. Upon speaking to some of the students I was shocked to hear that they all had different concentrations, or what we would call majors. In Italy it is expected that students take an interdisciplinary approach to their studies. Additionally it is never required for students in Italy to attend class. As long as you pass the course you get the credit regardless of your in class participation which is very different than America. 

Overall I think that this internship program has been easy to balance as I travel and do my own personal extracurriculars and I have enjoyed working on our project. Mattia has been super supportive of my ideas and I truly believe that this will offer me benefits in the future. I am very glad I took the professional leap instead of taking a second course here in Rome. 

I am in Rome!! Two weeks ago I flew out of South Africa and touched down in Italy. Studying in two locations presents such an amazing opportunity to grow in different ways but it has been a challenge to adjust to a new culture after finally settling into another one.

View From My Room in Rome

One major struggle that I have had in the past couple of weeks is the language barrier I experience in Italy. In Cape Town everyone I met spoke English at a level where I could have a conversation with them. The signs were in English and I did not have to be conscious of how I am speaking to people. In Italy everything is in Italian (duh) and everyone speaks Italian as their first language. This makes little things like going to the grocery store, trying to get around the city, and ordering things at a restaurant more difficult.

In addition to cultural changes I also have experienced a shift in CIEE culture. While policies are the same Rome’s CIEE program is much more popular, therefore much larger. I have not even met half the people who are sharing this experience with me, this makes it feel less intimate and more like an individual experience. The Rome staff expects a lot more independence from us. We live about 40 minutes (walking) away from campus and live separately from other CIEE students. Excursions are facilitated by the staff but there is no group transportation, provided lunches, etc. In this sense the CIEE group here feels less like a family than CIEE Cape Town did and has taken some getting used to.

A personal challenge I have been having is adjusting to city life. I am not a city person and although Cape Town could be qualified as a big city there is nature surrounding it to enjoy when you need an escape and it is very accessible. Rome is big in a different way and beautiful in a different way. You can get lost walking the streets and pass ancient buildings and inspiring cathedrals but there isn’t much nature in and surrounding these streets to retreat to when I feel like releasing some stress. I feel myself having to sightly adjust how I react to stress and what I seek when stressed because I can’t find it here.

From the Best Garden/Green Space in Rome- Villa Borghese

Street Where CIEE is Located

Even with these challenges in mind my experience in Rome has been lovely so far. The food is fantastic and my roommates Sienna, Chloe, and Haley, are awesome. We have had a great time navigating this adjustment together and I look forward to experiencing Rome further!

Favorite Meal so far! A Nice Big Bowl of Carbonara

Nightly Gelato Run!

My new friends Haley, Sienna, and Chloe 🙂

Before actually travelling, it’s always a great idea to accumulate a good list of tips in order to assure that you will encounter the least amount of problems during your time abroad. Of course, it’s important to use all of Wofford’s International Programs resources and the resources of the program you apply to, but it pays to do outside research. Searching up videos and news articles of the country you’re going to visit is an excellent way to get real time information on how your life will look for the next couple of months.

One tip that I believe is extremely important for living in Taiwan is about money. This society relies heavily on cash. Credit cards and Apple Pay obviously can be used in more commercialized settings, however, if you plan on getting a more authentic experience of the culture and eat out at more family owned restaurants, cash is usually the only way to pay. I was aware of this before leaving, but I did not know to what extent I would have to actually rely on cash. For those who accidentally miss this memo could find themselves in a troublesome spot if their cards don’t tend to work overseas. Therefore, tip #1 is to always check which form of pay is widely used in the country you plan to go to.

Tip #2 pertains to language. Most who travel abroad tend to know or are studying the language of the country they are visiting, however, if that is not the case, it is highly recommended to download the google translate app. Especially for languages that don’t have Romanized letters, the google translate app can easily translate words you can not understand, simply by taking a picture of the words. This came in handy at restaurants when the menu was completely in Mandarin Chinese.

Tip #3; really pay attention to the type of weather your chosen country experiences each month. This can really affect how you pack and how much you pack. I typically wear hoodies and pants back home, however, Taiwan is still currently in the 80s in the middle of November. This was another tip I was aware of, but still did not pack accordingly. Not only are most of clothes not suitable for the hot, rainy and humid weather, but I also overpacked because of them. So, remember that your everyday clothing could change drastically while abroad due to the weather.

Despite much of my time being spent outside of the classroom in Cape Town I have found that my time in the classrooms have been integral in shaping my understanding of my experience here and of South Africa as a whole. 

I am currently taking two courses, South African Literature and Film and Photojournalism. Both are classes that I would take within my English major yet there are significant differences between the South African and American classroom structure. I have found that for the most part my courses in South Africa are much more hands on then the traditional American courses I have taken are. Discussion and experience are highly valued.

During my time here in Cape Town I have attended multiple class excursions that complement in class lessons. For example in my South African Literature class we visited the Slave Lodge in the city center where we learned about the history of slavery in South Africa and how even today people of South Africa are recovering from such systems. This was a very emotional experience and captured a particular essence that class readings or discussions could never have the power to do. The second excursion done in this course was a trip to the theatre! I loved this trip. The production we saw was titled “The Unlikely Secret Agent” and featured 5 actors who played numerous roles. I never thought I was someone who enjoyed plays but after this experience I learned the importance of theatre in understanding particular subjects, especially when speaking in the context of South African history and culture. Overall, my South African Literature and Film class was crucial to developing my understanding of South Africa and ultimately led me to have a much more meaningful experience with the community around me. 

Photojournalism was much less focused on the history of South Africa and allowed me to explore my creative side. This class was also very experiential and we traveled to two off site locations for class as well. The first was to Lwandle which used to be a migrant labor camp and today is a developing township. This excursion was my favorite out of the four I got to experience. It was a perfect way to interact with community members that I would not have had the opportunity to interact with otherwise. It provided insight into the history of migrant labor and how people today struggle under the same systems in which essentially enslaved their family members for generations through apartheid. Members of this community were so welcoming and what was once uncertainty was replaced with gratitude for their warm welcome. The second excursion for this course was a visit to a local sustainable dark room where plants are used to develop photographs. At the time of our visit their was an exhibit opening and we got to have the first look. This exhibit was a series of photographs taken only with plants, light, and sustainable chemicals, or developers… no cameras. The artist was brilliantly talented and taught us about the process and her inspiration. She even let us create our own plant photographs!! Very much like my South African Literature class, Photojournalism provided me with opportunities that helped shaped my perception of South Africa.

In summary there are differences between American and South African class structures but I have found them to be quite a mind expanding change. I had thought coming into my study abroad experience that my classes would be more of an inconvenience to me than anything else but upon leaving South Africa I can’t imagine not have them to ground me in this new space! 

As an African American woman, one must factor in the knowledge of which places to travel to and which ones will be more difficult to navigate, especially if you are more or less travelling alone. Luckily, here in Taiwan, I feel that my identity is accepted and welcomed without second thoughts. Within Taiwan, western foreigners in general are small in numbers, and an even smaller section of that are African American. Despite western media having control of how the rest of the world views us, I believe that tolerance and acceptance of the unknown in Taiwan is very high. To many Taiwanese people, I am most likely one of the first African Americans they have seen in real life, therefore I have the ability to leave a wonderful first impression with them, regardless if it is my responsibility to do so or not. Many of my new Taiwanese friends are curious about my culture just as much as I am about theirs, so it is a wonderful opportunity for them to ask me about mine while I experience theirs. Because of this new environment, it is quite obvious to me the differences between how the US interacts with my culture and how Taiwan interprets it.

Speaking specifically to being American, I believe that it has come with its own unpredictable perks. Some locals love the idea of America and being able to make friends that are from there because they would love to visit one day or just want to learn American English and slang to seem cooler to their friends here. It also gives us some points that we can speak mandarin very well, often leading to local Taiwanese becoming very happy and excited when we study and appreciate their language.

As the first person of my immediate family to travel this far, regardless of academics, I was prepared to deal with more stress and unforeseen challenges related to my identity than I’ve actually faced in the three months that I’ve been in Taiwan. Despite being this outlier in the majority, I believe that this experience has led me to embrace my culture even more and understand who I am as a person while giving me a sense of home away from home.