Story Location: Costa Rica
-
Staying Culturally Connected During Study Abroad
posted on
It鈥檚 so exciting to get to know the culture of another country when you鈥檙e studying abroad鈥攏ew food, new music, new people, new landscapes, new everything! But sometimes a wave of homesickness can hit you unexpectedly hard. Here are a few things I鈥檝e been doing over the past year to feel more connected to home and…
-
How to Navigate Study Abroad When You’re Completely Lost in Class
posted on
When you go abroad and take classes with local students, you’ll encounter many things that make absolutely no sense. It’s already challenging to study Spanish, but on top of that, you’re expected to learn about other topics like economics, the environment, psychology, and philosophy鈥攁ll in Spanish! It鈥檚 tough, to say the least. When I studied…
-
How Study Abroad in Costa Rica Helped Me Rediscover My True Self
posted on
These past weeks feel like a dream. It鈥檚 as if I鈥檝e been transported to another world鈥攁 completely different country, immersed in an unfamiliar family, experiencing things I had never imagined. For me, this journey has been filled with so many “firsts,” and that is exactly what I was seeking: to continually create and embrace these…
-
Rugby Offers Opportunity to Improve Spanish Skills
posted on
Ella Gianino discusses how practicing with the local White Wolves ruby team helped her overcome language barriers and experience an additional facet of the Heredia community. How did you get involved in rugby in Costa Rica?My host family and I usually go to the neighborhood park to play soccer in the evenings. It was at…
-
Expectations of Studying Abroad
posted on
Expectations studying abroad were always one of the aspects of college I was looking forward to most. Although my major, second language, and goals may have changed, my desire to spend time outside of the United States remained constant. It鈥檚 quite a clich茅 to hear, 鈥淢y semester abroad changed my life!鈥 so I had a…
-
How Studying Abroad in Costa Rica Defined My Future in International Relations
posted on
For some students, studying abroad is the opportunity to experience a new culture and expand your understanding of the world. For other students, there is a requirement for study abroad to help improve language skills or intercultural communication skills to graduate with their specific major. For me, it was both. I wanted to study abroad…
-
Do’s and Don鈥檛s of Study Abroad in Costa Rica
posted on
As I finish up my semester here in Costa Rica, I鈥檝e been taking more and more time to reflect upon the culture that I鈥檝e integrated myself in through the IFSA Universidad Nacional Partnership. Costa Rica and studying abroad have their quirks, but you stop noticing them after a while. These differences became starker to me…
-
What Studying Abroad Taught Me About Learning a New Language
posted on
Doubt 鈥淪铆, se puedes.鈥 These are the words that hung on a poster on the back wall of Rodney鈥檚 (my IFSA Resident Director) office. The phrase means 鈥淵es, you can鈥 in Spanish. However, as I sat in front of Rodney, nearly in tears, I could not bring myself to believe these words. I had been abroad in…
-
Saving Money in Costa Rica
posted on
Managing money abroad is always a topic of stress, regardless of one鈥檚 financial status. No matter how much leeway you have with your budget, it鈥檚 always best to err on the side of saving money. Here are some tips I鈥檝e found helpful in saving money in Costa Rica: Before you go The first step to…
-
How to Break Your Ankle Abroad
posted on
There is no 鈥榞ood time鈥 to break a bone. Breaking one鈥檚 ankle abroad might be the most inopportune timing. Unfortunately, it happened to me! I don鈥檛 get to have the fun story of saying I was zip lining or cliff rappelling, because I broke my ankle while walking down a hill during a school field…
Blog Categories
- Uncategorized (65)