Monthly Reports
Holly O'Mahony: Novembre à Genève – November 2020
Le mois dernier a été marqué par la réintroduction de fortes restrictions COVID à Genève. Fin octobre, tous les restaurants, bars et magasins non essentiels ont fermé leurs portes. Les rassemblements étaient limités à un maximum de 5 personnes. Toutes les classes universitaires ont été transférées en ligne et les employés ont été invités à…
Read MoreOlivia Sayers: Costa Rica: un paraíso salvaje – Noviembre 2020
Hace ya un par de semanas que he estado viviendo aquí en Costa Rica, y me sigue impresionando la gran variedad de sonidos que suelo oír a lo largo de un día aquí. Me despierto con los aullidos de los monos congos, como si estuviera en una película de Indiana Jones, o como a mí…
Read MoreCase Study: Lorenzo Webster, Sevilla – 2019 to 2020
Now back in London, I am able to fully reflect upon my time abroad in Sevilla. Over the 9 months, I grew a great deal both as a person as well as academically. I found myself in so many new situations and even lived through the global pandemic from a Spanish perspective. But above all,…
Read MoreAbigail Pidgeon: Ein ereignisreicher Monat // An eventful month – November 2020
Deutsch: Ein ereignisreicher Monat Willkommen zu meinem November Bericht. Diesen Monat ist viel passiert! Zuerst begannen die Vorlesungen an der Universität, was für mich sehr überwältigend war. Wegen der Lehrerstreiks und des ersten Lockdown im März in Großbritannien habe ich viel Unterrichtszeit verpasst, also hatte ich viel Angst, dass ich alles Deutsch vergessen hatte! Natürlich…
Read MoreUn weekend à Zurich: Holly O'Mahony – October 2020
Le weekend dernier j’avais l’opportunité a visiter Zurich, Suisse pour deux nuits. Connu ‘Züri’’ par les locaux, Zurich est la ville plus grande en Suisse et elle se trouve à l’est de Genève, dans le centre du pays. Le trajet entre les deux villes seulement passé environ trois heures, et presenté une première opportunité géniale…
Read MoreMia Marchant: Goals and aspirations, July 2020
I’ve been concentrating on making sure I do all the things I wanted to do this year. I made goals of things I wanted to achieve. It’s so easy to get lost with what’s going on and forget to concentrate on the things important to you. My main goal was to learn Spanish and Portuguese…
Read MoreMia Marchant: Staying in Brazil, August 2020
My last month in Brazil. That was the plan anyway but things change. I’ve decided to continue on in Brazil due to coronavirus as the laws on tourist visas have been relaxed and also I wanted to stay and do all of the things I’d originally planned to do. My dance classes have been going…
Read MoreHolly O'Mahony: Le début du semestre à Genève – September 2020
Il y a une semaine je suis arrivée à Genève, signifiant le début de mes études à l’ Institut de Hautes Études Internationales et du Développement, où je suis une maîtrise. Presque immédiatement, c’était le début du semestre, et j’ai du m’inquiéter du choix de mes cours et m’adapter à mes nouveaux horaires chargés. Les…
Read MoreOlivia Pettitt – Salva el Rastro – Save el Rastro, September 2020
El Rastro es el mercadillo al aire libre más popular (y caótico) de España, que acoge a miles de personas cada semana y reúne a gente de todas las culturas, barrios y niveles de ingresos. Se celebra todos los domingos y días festivos y está situado entre la calle Embajadores y la Ronda de Toledo…
Read MoreCase Study: Sandy Perkins – Beijing, China, 2019-2020
In September 2019 I landed in Beijing to begin 11 months of living in China. I had been awarded two Scholarships, a John Speak scholarship and a Confucius scholarship, and as part of the Confucius scholarship was enrolled in the Chinese Language Program at Beihang University in Beijing. While I had visited Beijing before for…
Read MoreAbigail Pidgeon: Willkommen in Wien // Welcome to Vienna – October 2020
Deutsch: Willkommen in Wien Obwohl Österreich zum Zeitpunkt der Pandemie weniger Fälle als die meisten anderen Länder hatte, war ich immer noch besorgt, ob ich mein Auslandsjahr beginnen könnte oder nicht. Es gab mehr Vorsichtsmaßnahmen als je zuvor, ganz zu schweigen von der offensichtlichen Frage: wird es wieder passieren? Nach dem Lockdown und dem längsten…
Read MoreSandy Perkins – 在内蒙古旅游 Travelling in Inner Mongolia, August 2020
七月是我在中国的最后一个月，趁离开中国之前，我有机会在内蒙古跟一些朋友们去旅游了一趟。内蒙古是一个很大的自治区，而且因为人口比较少，交通系统不是特别发达，我的朋友们只有周末有空，因此我们只能去呼和浩特附近的一些地方。我们去的地方是鄂尔多斯市，那边最有名的景区是成吉思汗陵。成吉思汗陵很有意思，是一个去谒陵成吉思汗的地方，而且那边有些元代的东西。 当天晚上我们去了东胜区的一家烧烤店，那个饭馆的烧烤是我人生中吃到的最好吃的烧烤，尤其是他们那边的羊肉串儿。我们吃完晚饭以后去了一个很潮的小酒吧。这个酒吧的老板们都是嘻哈人，他们的风格跟美国的嘻哈文化很类似，我感觉在这么偏僻的地方能找到嘻哈文化是件很酷的事情。 第二天我们在回呼和浩特之前，去了一个地方叫响沙湾。响沙湾是个沙漠休闲景区。响沙湾景区很好玩儿，在那里可以体验到美丽广阔的沙漠。响沙湾也有很多不同的活动可以参加，比如说，骑骆驼、看民族艺术表演、坐过山车等等。内蒙古的骆驼很可爱，它们是双峰骆驼，骑这种骆驼很舒服。我们在响沙湾玩儿了一整天，直到响沙湾景区下班的时候我们才离开，然后我们回了呼和浩特。这次旅行虽然很短暂，但是我们玩儿的很好。希望未来有机会能去中国的更多地方旅游。 As August was my last month in China, I took advantage of my free time to go travelling for a few friends in Inner Mongolia. Inner Mongolia is a huge region and its population is relatively small. The transport network there isn’t particularly developed, so as we only had a weekend to…
Read MoreLorenzo Webster: Stepping out of quarantine – Sevilla, May 2020
Coming out of quarantine The first stage towards ‘normality’ was achieved on the 2nd may, when we were finally aloud out for walks or runs, between 6 am – 10 am or 8 pm – 11 pm. Previously our only permitted outings were to the supermarkets or to the pharmacies and thus this felt like…
Read MoreSandy Perkins: Graduation and travelling, Beijing, China – July 2020
At the end of June my Chinese course concluded and two weeks later I officially graduated from Beihang University. In addition to passing my university exams, I also recently passed the HSK 6 exam, which is the most advanced level of official Chinese exams for foreigners (comparable to the IELTS exam for english learners). Although…
Read MoreLorenzo Webster: Summer in Sevilla – My final month
In Sevilla the month of June is when it begins to get really get hot. While it usually only gets above 40 in July, June is still incredibly warm with constant temperatures of over 35 degrees Celsius. While getting a haircut I quizzed my barber on how he puts up with this every year, to…
Read MoreOlivia Pettitt: Excursion a Gibraltar / Day Trip to Gibraltar,
Este mes, durante mis viajes al sur de espana, alquilamos un coche y fuimos a Gibraltar. Hay que admitir, no sabia mucho de Gibraltar antes de mi visita, a pesar de ser un territorio británico de ultramar. Es una zona pequeña de 6.7km2, el paisaje se domina por el Peñón de Gibraltar y a sus…
Read More玉流馆饭馆: Sandy Perkins – Beijing, China, June 2020
我上个月去了北京的一家朝鲜饭馆。这家饭馆在望京，叫玉流馆。因为欧洲没有朝鲜饭馆，所以我去玉流馆之前没吃过朝鲜料理，因此我听说北京有一家朝鲜饭馆以后就决定一定要去那儿尝一尝炒咸菜。其实，我想去玉流馆不只是因为想尝尝朝鲜料理，而是因为我对朝鲜这个国家很好奇。朝鲜是个很神秘的国家，平时只能靠看新闻报道的猜测来了解这个国家的情况，连一个朝鲜人我都没遇到过，所以我以为去一个朝鲜饭馆是个很好的机会来了解一下朝鲜的文化。 周六晚上我跟一些朋友到了玉流馆。玉流馆是一个比较大的餐厅，里面的装饰比较豪华，在那儿吃饭让我感到一种仪式感。我的朋友说玉流馆有点像一家中国八九十年代的人民饭店这样的地方。所有的服务员都是朝鲜人，但是他们的中文说得相当流利，水平比我好多了。我们吃得料理跟韩国料理很类似，有很多海鲜和各种各样的泡菜。说实话我也不太了解韩国菜，所以不好说朝鲜和韩国菜的区别。不过顾名思义，平壤冷面肯定是朝鲜的一道地道菜，而且平壤冷面很好吃。 在玉流馆的一边有一个舞台。我听说在玉流馆平常可以看一些传统的朝鲜舞蹈或者表演。可惜的是，因为疫情的缘故，玉流馆暂时停止了演出，所以我们没有看到一场演出。话又说回来，我们在玉流馆里吃得很满足，而且体验了一下朝鲜的气氛，所以是个很好的经历。 A North Korean Experience in Beijing Last month I visited a North Korean Restaurant in Beijing. The restaurant is located in Beijing’s Wangjing district, its called Yuliuguan. As far as I know the UK doesn’t have a North Korean restaurant, so I had never had the chance to eat North Korean cuisine…
Read MoreReasons to stay in Rio: Mia Marchant, July 2020
I have been feeling as though my Portuguese is improving all of the time and I am still learning new words every day. I do not feel the need to take up additional Portuguese classes as I am impressed with how fluent I am becoming and people comment on this fact all the time. This…
Read MoreUpping my level of productivity in Rio: Mia Marchant, June 2020
It’s difficult to feel as though I am being productive when all of the things I came to Rio to do are not options for me right now. For my placement I should be teaching English to children from difficult backgrounds. I have managed to gain experience in teaching as I have been giving classes…
Read MoreJonathan Ferguson, China – Reflections on this year – July 2020
毫無疑問，今年的一個極大亮點是去旅行的機會。從摩登，國際化的上海和有豐富歷史的洛陽到得天獨厚的雲南和以西湖著稱於世的杭州，我去了很多難忘的地方。讓我印象最深刻的地方是舉世聞名的張家界。看見在張家界取景的《阿凡達》之後，決定想去親眼觀賞那裡獨一無二的風景。在我看來，張家界猶如夢中仙境，真是人間天堂。 A big highlight of this year has undoubtedly been the chances to go traveling. From modern, international shanghai to Luoyang with its rich history, from Yunnan which has been blessed by nature to Hangzhou which has been made so famous due to its West Lake, I have been to lots of unforgettable places. The…
Read MoreOlivia Pettitt: La pena de ser una madre en espana / The Child Penalty in Spain – July 2020
Como casi todos los países del mundo, las mujeres en España no están libres de la desigualdad de género, especialmente en el mundo laboral. Esta semana, el Banco de España ha publicado un informe sobre la pena infantil en España, que revela los efectos económicos que tiene tener hijos en las mujeres y el papel…
Read MoreLorenzo Webster: My Sevillian quarantine – April 2020
My Sevillian quarantine At first, we were told it would only be 2 weeks, and even that felt like an insufferable time frame. In the end, extension after extension was passed and I racked up a total of 49 days under a complete lockdown and a further 10 days of highly controlled movement. The first…
Read MoreThings are getting back on track for me in Rio : Mia Marchant – May 2020
Last month I decided that I would start being more productive with my time and make more efforts to spend time doing the things I love. I have been contacting my friends and family in England more frequently. I made a calling schedule so that I speak to at least two people every day. So far…
Read More五一假期: Sandy Perkins – China, May 2020
因为五月一号是劳动节，在中国五月一号到五号是个公共假期。在这个月的博客我来写一写我五一假期过得怎么样。 我本来打算跟女朋到友去承德旅游。为了离开北京我先向我的大学北航申请了离京批准，结果我的学院院长说为了安全起见还是不要离京，所以我没法去，只能待在北京。虽然我有点儿失望还离不开北京，但是五一假期还是过得挺愉快。 假期第一天下午我和我女朋友到一个啤酒酒吧去了。这个酒吧挺有意思叫大跃，位于南锣鼓巷附近的豆角胡同。我很喜欢这个酒吧因为可以坐在外面，享受胡同的老北京氛围。我们约了另外一对儿跨国情侣一起去了酒吧，所以我们有很多共鸣的话题。那天我们聊的很开心，大跃的啤酒也很好喝。 第二天我待在了家里，因为那天特别热，一整天都不想出门。那天我为了练习中餐厨艺第一次试着做了红烧肉，而且做成功了，味道很地道，这让我感到很满足。第三天我继续在家里待着放松，那天我看了我的中文小说，晚上去了一个石板烤肉饭馆吃晚饭，是一家南城老字号，这家饭馆曾经上过北京电视台的美食频道，烤肉特别好吃。 第四天我跟一大批中国朋友们相约到香山爬山去了。跟我上次去香山不同，这次我们没有在香山公园里玩儿，而是通过香山的野路爬了山。在野路里，人很少，风景很美，而且感到很自由。我们在香山爬上爬下大概5个小时，和中国朋友们出去玩儿对我提高口语有很大的帮助，我们玩儿得很开心。那时在香山开满了槐花，闻起来很香，一些朋友在山上摘了槐花回去做饭，听说槐花炒鸡蛋和槐花面都很好吃。那天晚上回来后我又在家里做了中餐，做的是麻婆豆腐和黑椒牛柳，也都比较成功，我觉得我的中餐厨艺水平又提高了很多。 第五天是假期最后的一天，因为前一天爬山很累，那天没精力出去玩儿，又在家里休息了，同时写了 我的中文课作业。在学习一段时间以后有五天的假期，实在是太棒了。我期待可以利用我在中国的剩下的时间进一步提高我的中文水平，同时可以感受更多中国文化。 Labour Day Holiday, China May 1st is international Labour Day and in China there is a public holiday from May 1st to May 5th to celebrate it. For this month’s blog I’ll outline how I spent the holiday. I had originally planned to travel to a nearby city…
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