Third Space Community – Third Space

Experiencing AFL

Australian’s love their sport and I experienced this first hand during my first footy match at Melbourne Cricket Ground. Initially I was rather confused with the many variations of “footy”, “soccer” and “rugby” but I soon learned that when Australian’s talk about the “footy” they are referring to AFL- Australian Football League.

My first game was between Collingwood and West Coast Eagles and the atmosphere was electric. The venue – Melbourne Cricket Ground is huge and we were sat right at the top so the players on the pitch were so tiny we had to watch the big screen. You could immediately tell that the home team was Collingwood as fans were all dressed up in their team colours- black and white while chanting “Good old Collingwood forever” throughout the game. Luckily for them Collingwood thrashed West Coast Eagles 91-72 after a long match.

AFL has completely different rules to football as I know it, or “soccer”. The main difference I noticed during the game is that players can use any part of their body to move the ball up the pitch which is shaped like an oval. There were also many umpires on the pitch at once which became confusing since there were already 36 players to keep track of. Another difference is the length of the match. As it was still the middle of Melbourne’s winter we were not prepared for how long we would be sat in the cold and the 20 minute quarters turned into half hour quarters once extra time had been taken into account – making it a longer evening than anticipated. Nevertheless it wouldn’t be a proper footy match without a trip to the hot dog stand and this kept us going until the end of the game!

Katy, Melbourne

Filed under: 21 - Local Games

About Winning and Losing (Coming to terms with being a Loser)

For Exercise 18: Local Expressions, I decided to do my favourite slang so far: winner/loser. My Taiwanese friend Eunice, who has been an incredible guide, introduced me to it.

What it means: if you’re in a relationship, you’re known as a “winner” here. Following that idea, singles are called “losers”. According to Eunice, we shouldn’t be too offended if we’re asked whether we’re ‘losers’, as it’s just another way of asking whether someone is single here. However, it’s much more commonly used jokingly between friends.

I have to say it has become a bit of a running joke between my friends.

She explained this when we were walking back from dinner one evening, enjoying NTU’s green and not very well-lit campus, and saw a lot of couples. Some were walking, a few were involved in some heavy PDA, but at least half were on a bike. Seeing as I’m Dutch, and have grown up taking and being taken by friends on the back of a bike, this is not an unusual sight. What I had been wondering about earlier was why Taiwanese have made the back seat so comfortable: a good amount of bikes has actual pillows on the back seat, and the majority has at least BMX pegs to stand on. Turns out, it’s very romantic to cycle with your girlfriend/boyfriend on the back of your bike here. The winners like to make their bike a bit more comfortable, seeing as they spend a lot of time on them.

Most likely a winner.

Eunice also told Alba and me that the NTU campus is considered a very romantic spot for couples. I’d agree, if it were not for the huge snails, massive spiders and cockroaches, which are also at least 3 times bigger than I’m comfortable with. And that’s just the wild life I’ve been able to spot: no saying what else is more comfortable staying in the shadows…

who knows what those palm trees are hiding

In Europe, you might also call an unsuccessful single a ‘loser’. But if you’re enjoying your single life to the fullest, you’d be considered more of a winner than the friend who’s always cancelling to Skype their long distance significant other. I think the difference here in Taiwan is that young people want to be in love, in a relationship, rather than just in another person. This also means that when they can consider themselves winners, they’re very keen to show the world. This leads to a lot of PDA: on campus, in the MRT, on bikes… You’d want to tell them to get a room, however this is problematic. A lot of people have roommates and/or strict visiting hours. And that’s if they live in dorms.

I might have integrated a bit too well in Great Britain, but I feel very awkward seeing it. Or as a friend said: “I get that you are happy, but constant physical contact just gets uncomfortable. They are in such weird positions too, to keep their touching to a max. It makes me feel uncomfortable for them.”

I think I’ll stick to losing: although not having to cycle on the tiny bike would be nice, I’m not sure if I could survive the PDA or constant skin contact…

Blue bike here is probably a fellow loser (no pegs, no seat)

Ella, Taipei

Filed under: 18 - Local Expressions

Working at a French Market: watching people come & go

During my exchange I worked part-time at a French restaurant/cafe/market. During the weekends I worked at the market selling delicious French pastries. The place was extremely popular! There was a continuous queue of people starting at 8.30 am trying to get some tasty croissants.

After a few weeks of standing behind the counter and serving the customers I realized that most of them were regulars, coming back to the French market every single weekend! I started chatting to some of them more and tried to figure out what attracted them to the market so much. Most of them lived nearby and enjoyed starting their weekend with a cup of good coffee and a French pastry. Others enjoyed the busy French-like atmosphere a lot and would come from further away just for that. I enjoyed watching them getting really excited about the pastries and not being able to choose between them.

Through my job in the market I got to see and experience the market environment from a completely different perspective and got to know the different side of the city that I now called home.

Filed under: 19 - Watch People Come & Go

The most random and memorable birthday

What do you do when all your new friends are travelling abroad and you are on your own a few days before your birthday feeling lonely and a bit lost? You celebrate your birthday with Maoris!

It was just after the end of my cycling trip that I was sitting at home in Auckland and contemplating what to do with my life. I had a few days left until my birthday and it seemed that it was going to be the first birthday that I don’t have who to celebrate it with. I was not too sad or worried. I did not mind having a completely different experience this year. The only thing I knew was that I did not want to stay in the big city… So I called my Maori friend, who I met a few weeks beforehand and asked whether I could come up and visit him again. I mentioned that it was going to be my birthday around that time but did not ask for anything special and did not have any specific plans in mind.

In the afternoon a day before my birthday I went up north to visit Tone (my Maori friend). To my biggest surprise, as soon as I got there he took me out for a birthday dinner! It was not just a casual dinner. It was a pretty fancy restaurant with some of the most delicious food I have ever eaten. And this surprise was from a guy that I met just a couple weeks ago! I thought that some of my friends who I knew for years would not have done that for me. I felt really happy:).

The fancy dinner was not the only surprise. My birthday morning Tone organized a camping trip with a group of his friends and a few other travelers. The funny thing was that when I was coming up to visit him he ensured me that this time there is no need for me to bring a tent as he had a room for me to stay in. So I didn’t; I only had a sleeping bag with me. Tone did not have one either….

When it got late we put a massive tarp down on the grass in the middle of the field and laid on it with our sleeping bags. The night was not too cold, so I did not mind. At around 2 am, however, it started raining! We thought of going and hiding in the car, but the whole situations already seemed quite funny and we decided to make it even more ridiculous by just pulling one side of the tarp over us and continuing to sleep.

The same thing happened the second night, too! This time, however, it was even more funny. I woke up in the middle of the night (while still laying in the middle of the field) and felt something wet sliding down my hair… For a second I freaked out and did not know what to think, but my reflex was to quickly grab that thing and throw it as far away as possible. I grabbed it and it appeared to be a snail, sliding down my hair! I instantly started laughing to myself. What a random birthday! What a full of contrasts birthday! From having a delicious meal at the fancy restaurant to sleeping on a tarp in the middle of the fields with snails sliding down my hair.

This is one of the funniest stories from my year abroad that I have been telling my friends and family. It perfectly reflects my adventurous, funny and random experiences in New Zealand.

Filed under: 15 - Create a Story

To the class through the jungle

Although it has been some time since I got back from New Zealand writing the blog seems to be a good way to reflect upon the international experience and remind myself of the amazing time I had abroad.

Every place / every city I move to I always find a “secret” favorite place. It is a place where I can run away from all the stress, worries and the daily routine. It is a place where I find at least a slight connection with nature, can watch the wildlife and listen to the birds and wind. My favorite place in New Zealand was one of the “secret” paths on the way to university. The path was hidden in the middle of the Auckland Domain and went through a dense forest that looked a lot like a jungle. There was a little stream crossing the path that created a calming atmosphere. A couple of times on my way to the class I saw three colorful parrots playing around the trees. I loved watching them! Unlike the main path through the Domain, I rarely saw any people going “my way”.

Every day that I took this path I pumped myself up with positive energy and got ready for a new challenging day. I hope hope hope that I will get a chance to go back there one day and see those three parrots playing around the “secret” jungle path.

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place

A month on the road without a map

When I left for my cycling trip around the North Island I did not have a map. OK, maybe it was not as dramatic… I had my smartphone with google maps. The only problem was that I could only have internet in bigger towns and because of the nature of the journey my phone was more often dead than it was functional and useful. That more or less meant that I was up for an adventure!

I vaguely knew the direction that I was supposed to go on a certain day, but in terms of the actual road that I was supposed to take, I had often no idea. I would stop in tiny towns and ask the locals for directions or would stop on the road, and with a confused expression on my face would be hoping to get some help.

I did all happen better than I expected! I cycled around and eventually managed to get back to Auckland (my temporary home). I saw a lot of the places that I wouldn’t have visited if I knew where I was going. I met a lot more people on my way and had some really nice conversations. As crazy as it was in the first place to not have a proper map, I was extremely happy about my decision at the end of my adventure:)

Filed under: 4 - Ask for Directions

The mighty Kauri tree

Kauri trees are the largest and the most protected plant species in New Zealand. Besides being unique plants only found in the North Island of New Zealand, they are sacred to the indigenous Maori people. Maoris thought of Kauri trees as the kings of the forest and believed that “the ancestor of the Kauri tree created life”.

My Maori friend, named Tone, once took me to a Kauri forest. He talked about Kauri trees in a very special way, always emphasizing the strong Maori connection with nature. Apparently, some of the Kauri forests are now considered as part of the Maori nature reserve and can only be accessed by Maori people.

When I first saw the Kauri tree I was stunned by its massive naked trunk going all the way and passing the tops of other trees in the forest. Its branches did not start until the very top and they were as thick as the lower parts of the trunks of other trees. Once I got to a more open space I got to finally see the whole mighty Kauri tree. A powerful feeling went through my skin. I suddenly realized what my Maori friend meant when talking about the “Kings of the forest”.

Filed under: 30 - Wildlife

A taste of Maori Hangi

Not very often European people get to try traditional Maori foods. There are no Maori restaurants in the cities and the traditional dishes are only made for special celebrations.

Waitangi day (a day to celebrate the signing of the treaty between Maoris and Europeans) was the special day when I got to taste Hangi. Hangi is a traditional Maori method of cooking food that involves digging a pit in the ground, heating the stones in the pit, placing baskets of food wrapped in foil on top of the stones and covering everything with soil. The food is left in the pit for several hours before it is served. A portion of Hangi usually includes some pork, potatoes, cauliflower and other vegetables.

The photo above was taken at the time when Maoris were digging out the baskets of food.

Hangi tasted great! The smoky smell of the Hangi reminded me of home. Back at home we wrap potatoes in the foil and place them in the fire for around half an hour and so get baked potatoes that do have that nice smoky smell.

Tasting traditional Maori foods was a novel and a very interesting experience that allowed me to learn more about the lifestyle of indigenous people of New Zealand.

Filed under: 5 - Local Food

Inspiration to walk el Camino de Santiago

Have you ever heard about the St. James Walk?
It’s a pilgrimage route across Spain that has different routes, all of them having as destination the city of Santiago the Compostela, in the north-west of Spain. Legend holds that St. James’s remains were carried by boat from Jerusalem to northern Spain, where he was buried on what is now Santiago de Compostela. The Way of St. James has been one the most important Christian pilgrimage since the Middle Ages, and for centuries people have walked it for spiritual reasons, but in recent years the Camino (which means “path” in Spanish) has been (unfortunately) over-commercialized. There are thousands of things that could be said about the Camino, but I won’t bore you and will give you the essentials: you can either walk or cycle (or even ride a horse!), you can decide the starting point of the journey, but to obtain the certificate recognizing that you walked the Camino, you must at least walk the last 100 km.
One of the most feared questions was why I was walking the Camino. I perfectly knew the ultimate reason, but it felt very personal, so probably not the first thing you would like to share with a complete stranger after 5 minutes meeting them. I’m not going to reveal that ultimate reason, but during the year abroad I encountered many signs that made me think that undertaking this incredibly tough journey was the answer to my doubts. Apart from the many posters advertising the Camino that I found on the streets in Granada, a photography exhibition about the Camino I found after having randomly entered a building and many of my friends telling me that one day they would like to do this journey, in the second semester I found myself in an incredibly negative and stressed state of mind: I needed to get away from the hectic life of the city, disconnect from the technology and all the social media and finally immerse myself in the nature to find myself and reflect upon what has been a very intense year. So I took the decision to walk the Camino and started training when, funnily enough, I found out that one of my best friends wanted to do the same. My initial decision was to walk alone because I needed time for myself, but the idea of having her company was more exciting because I knew we were going to experience some crazy adventures and having someone to share them with is always great. When I then shared my plans for the summer with another friend of mine encountered in Granada, she decided to join in as well, and there we were: three fearless girls who had absolutely no idea of what was expecting them.
So, we managed to walk for 12 days for 300 km approximately, from Oporto (in Portugal) until Santiago de Compostela. It definitely had been an adventure and we learnt a lot from it, both about ourselves and… let’s say, the “human nature”. In the end, what really counts is not the destination, but the journey, the people, the place and experiences you live.
I’ll leave you with a video made about our journey, hope you enjoy it!

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: Uncategorized

Italian family life.

I wanted to write a little about the experiences I had observing Italian family life during the time I spent as an English teacher to the children of two different families. I talked to the mothers about some of the stereotypes surrounding the Italian family life so let’s establish whether or not any of them are actually true.

The old movies present Italian families as huge, often with more than six children but in more recent times Italian families have become much smaller, often with two to three children. The structure of the Italian family has changed a lot since the traditional model depicted in films. In the past Italian families, especially those of the South, were made up of a lot of children and often the women did not work. The two mums that I worked with assured me that this was no longer true! They had taken some time off work to be at home during the early years of their children’s lives but said they couldn’t wait to get back to work after their children were old enough. The social revolution has also changed the concept of the family unit itself resulting in new types of families made up of single parents, unmarried couples, divorced parents, couples without children and same-sex couples. All these models are very far away from the stereotypes we see in films and read about in books!

One thing however that I think is quite true and will not change any time soon, is the close-knit ethos of the Italian family. They still spend a lot of time together and typically try to gather to eat in the evening and share the days events (without the television on!). Not only this but there are still strong family ties between members even when they create new family units. For example, the children’s grandparents would visit often, especially in the evenings and would stay for dinner, would help to look after the children whilst the parents cooked. I really liked this element of family life, the families were so close and it was nice to see such a huge influence from an older generation on the lives of the younger ones. Heirlooms of the traditional family can still be found in the modern day model but all in all I think the image below of 20 dark-haired, olive-skinned members of the same family sat around the table eating pasta on an evening is long gone!

Filed under: 26 - Create and give an activity

One year, a lifetime (so cheesy, I know).

This video will not make much sense to you, but it is probably the most emotional one for me. It shows many (unfortunately not all, as I thought I was filming them while I was actually taking pictures…) of the lovely people I’ve met during my year abroad, people who became my closest friends, my confidants, my family and with whom I know we’ll share lifetime friendships. It was so much fun filming them, and even more fun editing this video. I really miss them, and wish I had a time-machine.

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 27 - Everyone You Meet

Luminous Lantern Parade

brisbane light festival When walking through the streets of Southbank Parklands one evening, there were hundreds of people walking towards and away from a certain direction. That night was the night of lights, the Luminous Lantern Parade. Every year in June, there are thousands of people who gather together with lanterns of all shapes and sizes, lighting up the sky. People walk from one part of Brisbane and finish at the South Bank’s Piazza. brisbane light festival (Above are photographs of very large puppet lanterns that were part of the parade).Many people throughout the night were holding signs such as the one in the photograph above:
‘Westpac welcomes Refugees’
The parade collaborates with the Multicultural Development Association’s (MDA), to let all new Queenslander’s feel welcome and accepted in the country. It was so nice to see that a charity made sure of this and surely made me feel part of the community.

After the parade there was lots of entertainment in the Piazza, with an audience ranging from young children to the elderly. Everyone was happy and enjoying themselves, talking with strangers around them, dancing and looking at the set inside. It was a great fun night, full of music, dancing and singing from all over the world, including a xylophone band, and African drums playing the ‘chicken dance’.

(https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KQleoBvWYr0)
This is the closest version of the song I could find on YouTube. I do have videos of the ‘chicken dance’ song, and will find a way to put it online.

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 15 - Create a Story, 19 - Watch People Come & Go, 28 - Festival Fun

Where to live on exchange…

When it comes to looking for somewhere to live, it can be one of the most important things when going away because it will be your space, your home, your place to sleep most nights.

A week before leaving to Australia, I booked my new home in an amazing location, at a student accommodation – Urbanest. It was a few minutes walk from the art college, 5-15 minutes from local shops and supermarkets, and a two minute walk from my ‘favourite place’ Southbank Parklands. I really enjoyed living at Urbanest, the building and facilities were great; BBQ’s every Friday night, a gym, amazing views of the city, computer area, and games room. My flatmates were great and I became good friends with one named Delphine from Mauritius. We enjoyed cooking together, going to the gym, and also went to Zumba every week, which was outside on the grass in Southbank.
brisbane urbanest
(Above is my accommodation I lived in for 5 months)
southbank brisbane brisbane south bank
(Above left: Southbank street market every weekend. Above right: Southbank Parkland beach)
I loved coming to this area every single day, so much to see, it was extremely beautiful. In the photograph on the right, I took this at 7 o’clock in the morning when there was hardly anyone around. It was wonderful!

Some other places where you could consider living include;
– Living with an Australian family. This is good because you get to see the ‘ins and outs’ of Australian homes and lifestyle. Living in a student accommodation doesn’t give you this. If you want to live within the real culture, I think this would be a great idea!
– Living with other people on exchange. This is great because you are all in the same situation, new to the country, from different parts of the world with different backgrounds. It could make you feel more at ease if your with people in the same situation.
– Someone in your class from your new country. I had this offered to me by my friend, but unfortunately I was already living in the student accommodation. This would definitely be my first choice if I was going to go back because we got on so well. The good thing about living with someone from the same class or college as you, is that you get to see the real life of Australian living, and also make great friends.
– Student accommodation is really good fun because there are many people you meet in similar situations, from all over the world. I met people who were studying the three years in Brisbane, and also on a semester/year exchange. The diversity of people was great, and it wasn’t just young students, there were also older students too. But you had to be a student to live at Urbanest.

These are a few good examples to find somewhere to live in Brisbane:
– http://www.flatmates.com/au
– http://www.overseasstudentliving.com
– http://www.thepad.com.au
– brisbanestudenthousing.com.au
– urbanest.com.au/locations/brisbane

(Above left: View from Urbanest where I was living. Above right: Friends Australian natural garden.)

(Above: Photograph from Brisbane River, showing beautiful flowers and also amazing houses on the river side)

There are so many options on where you can live, and they are all good options, it just depends on what you are looking for and what you want out of your trip.

Thanks for reading!

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings, 17 - Travel Manifesto, 25 - Create your own activity

The magic has to stay in Granada

30th October 2014, Granada (Spain)
It had been a very busy day at university and the idea of going back home and disappearing under a duvet was really tempting, but still I decided to accept an invitation for dinner at a friend’s place. We ended up cooking spaghetti with crab meat (and this plate made the history, as it was the first bonding moment of a wonderful friendship we share today), and having a really nice conversation about ourselves and our expectations for that year. Later on, I still wanted to go back home, but my friend somehow convinced me to go to a club just to say hi to some friends. I was about to go in, when I met some other people I talked to a few weeks before. We hadn’t exchanged numbers, and I wasn’t expecting to see them again thinking that there were far too many international students in Granada, but I was so wrong. After a while, I let them convinced me to go inside for a drink and a dance, and we had an incredible fun time together! And still the night wasn’t over. I went outside just to catch some air, and there she was: one of my best friends in Granada with some other girls celebrating a birthday, I joined them and we ended up on a bench at 4am talking about life and philosophy. An absolutely random night that became one of the moments I cherish the most: those people I was with became some of my closest friends during the year abroad. I still remember the wonderful feeling when I got back home at 6 am thinking: “I’m so glad I went out today. I would’ve missed too much if I hadn’t.” I felt there was something magical about Granada: being open to new opportunities and to new people came so natural and at that time I thought this was something I would certainly take back with me to Edinburgh. Again, I was so wrong.

13th September 2015, Edinburgh (UK)
I had just got back to Edinburgh the day before and you cannot imagine how excited I was to be back in this lovely city (maybe not to this not-so-lovely weather) and have a night out with my friends. We met at the PearTree, and as the weather was still (surprisingly) mild, we sat outside on one of the benches. The pub was full of Freshers as the Welcome Week had just started, so in an attempt to avoid their annoying excitement we sat the most far away possible from the crowd. The girls were updating me about everything that had happened in the last year while I was away, when we got interrupted by a group of guys who asked us if they could join us. As we were occupying only half of the bench, we agreed and they sat down. In a clumsy attempt to break the ice, they asked us if we were Freshers too, and one of us said we were not. The reply to that was:”Oh, then you must be second years!” “Ehm, actually we are fourth years.” To that answer, you could see all the excitement die in their eyes. They asked us a few other questions (the usual questions everyone asks during the Freshers’ Week: “Where are you from?”, “What are you studying?”, “Where do you live?”), and we limited ourselves to a straight answer to those. Then in the rudest way possible, we just got back to our own business speaking in Italian. In the meanwhile, the guys were thinking of a way of getting out of that awkward situation (they were not so quiet about it, probably thinking we couldn’t understand English so well): the plan was for one of them to stand up in a very theatrical way and say: “Guys, it’s cold out here, I’m gonna go inside!”, so that the others could follow him. And that was exactly what happened. But one of them did bother telling us: “We’ll see you girls inside?” YEAH, SURE, ADIOS. We initially laughed at it, but then I couldn’t help thinking of how rude we were. Of how rude I was. This is something that would have never happened in Spain: you would take all the opportunities you get to meet and talk to people, you would even talk to the most random people you would probably ignore in another situation. I felt so disappointed with myself for being back to be the old, sad, reserved version of Tharusha in cold Edinburgh (and surely the weather is not helping).
I don’t think there’s any need to dwell on the conclusions that come out of the comparison between these two scenes. I’m feeling very disappointed with myself for not being able to transfer that magic I encountered in Granada, but I then do realize that it’s not just me, but it’s also about the people surrounding me and the context we find ourselves in. And unfortunately my power to change these are very limited.

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 7 - Share a Story

The Last Chapter

Yesterday all the Third Spacers got together for a Welcome home event – after a year of following each others stories and adventures online it was really lovely to share an afternoon of story-telling and wine(of course!). Having bored our friends and families to death with lines such as, “Oooh this one time in Paris” or “On my year abroad.. bla bla bla”, there was something refreshing and almost concluding about reflecting on our times abroad with others that had shared a similar experience.

What really resonated with me during the event was that despite the fact we all went to different countries and were doing different things there were noticeable similarities in all our stories – it was hilarious to share our unforgettable experiences of trekking around cities looking for accommodation; our “lost in translation” moments in the local supermarket or our “cheesy” moments where we found ourselves capturing incredible sunsets surrounded by our new group of international friends!

One of the Third Spacers I was chatting to reminded me that the time we have left at Edinburgh university is the same amount of time we spent abroad. Knowing how quickly last year went by I certainly want to make the most of this year and so she cleverly suggested trying some of the Third Space activities here in Edinburgh …. I’m not one to say no to a challenge!

Good luck with your final year guys!

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories

Third Space 2015-10-08 11:52:20

I think my favourite thing about Third Space is the pretty little “tool kit” given to us all before we went away. Not only was it a lovely physical reminder of what we’re all a part of, but, living in such a small apartment in Paris, the box also became a very useful storage space! My box came my “go to” for storing those things that I didn’t necessarily want to throw away but had no use for any more – all of which became an appropriate construction of my year abroad.

Filed under: 14 - Personalise Your Box

Meert

I visited this cake shop more than I visited anywhere else in Lille I think… Yes, I am major cake fan. No clue how I didn’t come back the size of a house… But even if I had, Meert would have been worth it.

I took so many visitors here: my friends in Lille and visiting friends and family members. The cakes can simply not be beaten. By anywhere. Anytime you approached the shop, you knew where it was just by the crowds of people surrounding its window. The cakes changed regularly so every time you had a look in their window, you got a different taste of what they had to offer.

Although I was a regular, both at their take-away cake counter, and in their tea-room, I just couldn’t bring myself to have the same cake twice. There was so much to offer, they could never have guessed what my order would be. Sometimes, I would recommend to my guests what they should try (based on the fact I’d loved the cake before), but I can pride myself on never having had the same cake twice.

I loved most of all that it full of French people. Not tourists, although Lille isn’t a major tourist town anyway. It was both being immersed in French culture and having the best cakes I’ve ever tasted all in one…

Now back in Scotland, I wish nothing more than to have another taste of their take on the Religieuse..

20150428_130455910_iOS

Filed under: 9 - Local Traditions

One of my life goals finally has been accomplished…

So, one of my life goals (and this is a clear example of the depth of my life goals) has always been to go to Spain and take a SALSA class. When I saw the Twinkle Toes flashcard for the first time, my thought was: “THIS IS MEANT FOR ME.”
In the first semester I went to some salsa classes organized by the Erasmus Student Network, but we were repeating the same steps over and over again, and at some point I started losing interest. So, I’ve decided to take it seriously in the second semester and I actually registered for a salsa class organized by the University.

Before getting to the actual business, let me just give you some “fun facts” about this dance:
1) I’ve heard many people in the UK say that they wanted to go to Italy to dance salsa. Being Italian, my thoughts were: “AARGH! These stupid tourists believing stupid stereotypes! Salsa is not part of our culture!” In the same way, when I was telling Spanish friends that I really want to start a salsa course since I was in Spain, I must say I’ve been frowned upon a couple of times. For some reason, salsa is associated with the Mediterranean countries (maybe because Spanish and Italian are hot and sexy? Weeell… no.), but here is the truth: it actually originated in Cuba and has been then influenced by dances of other Latin and Afro-Caribbean countries.
2) It is usually a partner dance, where the male leads and the woman follows and believe me girls, that is GREAT because if the man doesn’t know how to lead, this will be immediately noticed, while if a girl doesn’t really know how to move, she will still look awesome.
3) Apparently it is excellent for improving your sex appeal. Salsa is known for being a very rhythmic, passionate and sexy and it does help people to get over their insecurities. I still remember how some guys in my class were so shy and moving like robots at the very beginning; after 4 months, I was amazed to see how they were at ease and feeling so confident about themselves.

Well, enough with the fun facts. At our last class in June, I thought it’d have been nice to place a camera in the room and film us, not only for the Twinkle Toes activity, but also to have a memory of these lovely people and all the fun we had! I then somehow managed to squeeze 2 hours of video into a 4 minutes one. Hope you enjoy it!

Oh, and I’m the one wearing the green top…

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 1 - Twinkle Toes

Leiden’s library cat

Unbeknownst to the majority of Edinburgh students, the George Square library is not the only university library to have it’s very own cat! Leiden’s library also has a cat who wonders round the shelves, perching on desks, and annoying hardworking students. His name is Jelmer (a traditional Dutch name), and I have to admit he made me feel quite at home. I asked some fellow students in one of my classes about him and they said he really likes it if you feed him chocomel (a kind of hot chocolate) and if you do, then he can sit on your lap for hours!

Filed under: 23 - Pets

Early mornings

Leiden’s quite a small city so early in the morning there is really not much going on. This is when I liked to get up and go on runs through the city, when there was no one around, and it was always so peaceful and beautiful. Here are some photos of the canals around the city, the Leiden observatory, and the empty streets. (sorry for the poor quality iPhone photos!) Having lived in Edinburgh for 2 years by the time I went to Leiden, I felt at home in Edinburgh. I always thought Edinburgh was the most beautiful city but coming to Leiden and exploring other Dutch cities, I started to appreciate the beauty of the Netherlands in a similar way. Apart from the many cobbled streets in both cities, the landscape and buildings are very different in Leiden than in Edinburgh. But as each month passed my feelings for the country, the landscape and the people grew stronger. I feel like I now have a real relationship with the country which will stay with me my whole life (forgive me for the cheesiness but it’s true!!). These photos hardly do it justice and also don’t capture the friendliness of the country and the welcoming nature of the people which I think makes it even more beautiful. I feel proud to say I lived there and would recommend it highly to anyone who was thinking of making the short trip over to The Netherlands.

Filed under: 19 - Watch People Come & Go

The day I ate a horse…

Just a quick post about a fairly unusual local dish of Verona which is the use of horse and donkey meat in several dishes, (although donkey meat is less common). I read that it’s actually a tradition which dates back to barbaric invasions. At the end of the Roman Empire, northern European tribes settled in Verona and used to eat horse meat and it is a custom which has continued to the present day. (I don’t know how true this is but I haven’t heard any other explanations so I’ll have to go with this…)

It is not unusual to find horse meat on the menu in a restaurant and is actually used in several dishes. It is used in a stew called pastissada, served as horse or colt steaks, as carpaccio, or made into bresaola (air-dried and salted meat). Horse fat is used in recipes such as “pezzetti di cavallo” (pieces of horsemeat) and another favourite dish is horse on a bed of rocket, dressed with olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

Eating horse meat has always been quite a touchy subject and there have apparently been several campaigns in Italy to ban its consumption. However many argue that it is a part of the culinary tradition of Italy, especially in the Northern Veneto region. When I was in Verona I got the chance to try a pasta dish which contained a horse meat ragù and I have to admit it was incredibly tasty.

Filed under: 5 - Local Food

Living in a hotel isn’t as good as it sounds…

Having to find a new home is always a daunting prospect, even in the UK where you actually kind of know what is going on, never mind in a huge capital city! Because of an overlap with my semesters between France and Italy, I had to get a flight straight from Verona to Paris…knowing that I had nowhere to live! I’d already messaged a lot of people who were advertising their apartments on Facebook pages and on the French equivalent of Gumtree but with no success.

I decided to book into a hotel for three days, being very optimistic that within those three days, I would’ve found some dream-like Parisian apartment with beautiful shutters on the windows, with a balcony located right in the centre of Paris, overlooking the Eiffel Tower of course. Safe to say, this wasn’t the case. My friend from Paris warned me of the difficulty in finding an apartment in Paris but for some reason I thought I would be the exception. I didn’t get one single reply from all the messages I had sent out to French people searching for a ‘coloc’ so begrudgingly booked a further four days in the hotel. Everything got so much harder when I started university because I was not able to spend all day glued to my laptop looking at advertisements.

Finally, on day six of living in a hotel, one girl replied to my message and I was able to go view her apartment. It was not in a great area of Paris, it was really far away from my university and I’d also be living alone for the next five months which was not something I had hoped to have to do, but I was so desperate I had no other choice! I handed over my deposit and got ready to move out of my hotel on day seven, not totally happy with my new home but thought it was better than paying for another three nights in a hotel. And then I get the phone call telling me that the girl has decided to give the apartment to another girl and that I could go pick up my deposit cheque the following day… Fabulous.

So I go on to book a further three days, this time in a different hotel on the opposite side of Paris (after a week of living in a hotel, you have to downgrade!). I went to see a few more apartments but none of them really appealed to me. One of them was just a mattress on a floor, the other one was so far out of the centre I’d have had to travel about an hour and a half every day to get to university. I really did think all hope was lost until I came across an apartment on a website called ‘Autroisieme’ recommended to me by a friend.

The apartment was with an Italian lady and her daughter. I hadn’t really anticipated living with someone a lot older than me but I didn’t think it would be so bad seen as she had a daughter who was the same age as me. When I went to visit the apartment, it was a lovely surprise to see how beautiful it was. It was located in the 3rd arrondissement, in Le Marais which is a gorgeous area full of lovely bars, amazing boutique shops and hosts loads of cultural events. The lady and her daughter were so welcoming and I instantly felt at home. She told me that there was someone else who was interested in the apartment and that she would ring me back the day after to see if they had chosen me. I was really worried that they wouldn’t choose me but I got a phone call from her the next day telling me that they were more than happy to live with me.

I was over the moon that I had finally found a great apartment, in a great location with two amazing people. The fact that they were Italian but spoke fluent French and not much English was great for my learning because I was forced to speak to them in at least one of the two languages I study every day. I had a really great experience in my new home and I was so sad to leave at the end of my semester but they assured me that I was welcome back at any point and even got an invite to their home in Catania.

So after 2 weeks of living in a hotel, my Parisian adventure began and I could finally settle into my lovely new home.

Ps they also had an adorable puppy which made living there a lot easier!

My apartment was on the third floor of this beautiful building.

The kitchen was cosy and perfect for eating dinner together.

My bedroom. There was another part to my room but was difficult to fit into the picture!

This was the living room. There was a long table in here where the lady hosted lots of dinner parties.

Filed under: 25 - Create your own activity

Home Thoughts From Abroad

“Dear me,

Greetings from the future and the past. Before you left you were feeling stressed, excited and a tad terrified! OH MY SQUASH (yes you do that, let’s hope that got lost in translation). Please see below meaningful & life enriching targets which you better have completed! Guuuuuurl.

1 – Make at least one bosom friend and kindred spirit.

2 – Become a regular in a shop or cafe so that your presence is acknowledged with that solemn acknowledging nod.

3 – Do something that’s just really cool.

Good luck chum,

Love from me, xxx”

This gem arrived arrived about half way through my year abroad. By that point I had finished my time in Grenoble and had moved to fair Verona, so it was a pleasant reminder of home sweet home. I had not long moved into my Veronese apartment, which was no where near as glamorous as it sounds. My neighbours were nuns and we had 3 cockroaches. Please note that hoovering them up is not a long term solution, they come back. Air con hadn’t reached us yet and sleeping in 40 degree heat was a nightmare. However, I was happy, I mean how could I complain when we had a tv with the MTV channel, a veg shop across the street, a perfect cafe on the corner and a flat that was a 5 minute walk from university. I think I was so happy because life was so simple, ‘should I get two flavours of gelato today, or just one? Though I always get chocolate, I should I go for crema della nonna today or stracciatella again… why is life so hard???!?!?!’.

Back to my goals… I did indeed make several bosom and lifelong friends during my time away, despite thinking upon arrival in France ‘I don’t need anymore friends, grumble grumble, I already have some.’ Some of them even came to Italy to visit, and one of them I met up with in Lithuania. (Remind me to mention that in the ‘did a cool thing’ section.)

As you may have noticed from previous blog posts, I tried with earnest to find a local cafe, where my presence with noted with recognition. I tried, but you can’t always be a winner. Italy was better, they definitely knew my face in the veg shop and the cafe, but sadly first name status was never achieved. Though, once, the guy in the pizzeria gave me an extra slice because I was so loyal, so that almost counts.

Finally, did I do something ‘really cool’? That’s a tough question, personally the coolest thing that I think I did was spending a week living on a farm in the middle of nowhere, digging up onions and running away from snails. That counts. I think when I wrote the postcard I had in mind bungee jumps and deep sea dives, but being abroad really changes your perspective. Yes the Erasmus life (#lovelovelove) was about as dramatic as that, but I just wasn’t interested in the thrills of the European ESN (Erasmus Student Network, probably) party scene. I wanted, and hope that I achieved, something more authentic and genuine, an experience that could only be achieved in France and then Italy, not a generic Erasmus pool party kind of scene. Don’t get me wrong, it sounded fun, I just felt, well, over that I suppose.

Ah yes, I went to Lithuania, the coolest thing about that was probably the spontaneity of it, the thrill of popping to Eastern Europe to meet a friend, “See you in Vilnius, darling!”. The reality was nowhere near as pretentious but the excitement was real. At midnight on a chilly March evening I rolled up to the adorable airbnb apartment to be greeted by my long lost bosom pal. The next few days of gorging on Lithuanian cuisine and walks through the chilly and richly cultural Lithuanian capital were sheer bliss.

And so, even though I didn’t necessarily complete every objective written on my postcard I hope that I managed to transcend checklists and must-see-must-do experiences to have a fulfilling year abroad.

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 13 - Write a Postcard

Com’è triste Venezia

Italy is a very traditional country, where festivals and special occasions are celebrated with vigor. You may have heard of the Venice Carnival, a vibrant affair and famous throughout the world. You have however, probably not heard of the Verona equivalent, a much less formal event mainly aimed at entertaining children. When asked about the reason for this carnival, my airbnb host simply replied “perché carnevale” (“because carnival”). With that meaty explanation I was inspired to experience the festival first hand. I must admit that I was slightly puzzled by the enormous and completely garish carnival procession but I went home covered in confetti and filled with joy.

The Colomba di Pasqua is a traditional Italian Easter cake, made into the shape of a dove and is fairly similar to the christmas variety calle panettone. I mean, it tastes ok, I wouldn’t rush out to buy one and would definitely prefer a nice hot cross bun! This is perhaps the only Italian food that I didn’t particularly warm to.

Regional food is one Italy’s greatest defining features and I have to say that ragu with muso was my favourite Veronese dish. This brings me to Italian dialects; muso in the Veneto means asino, which in english is, you guessed it, donkey! Who knew, donkey is delicious.

Now by far one my favourite traditions comes from the Marche region. The name of it escapes me but I will do my best to explain. First of all when a child is born ribbons and bunting and bows and more ribbons cover the house in honour of the birth, pink for a girl, blue for a boy. They then stay there for what appears to be months. This may seem a little unnecessary to most people but that’s really only the beginning. A tradition less popular today for obvious reasons involves chopping down a huge tree, propping it in the garden and putting a bike on top of it, at least so I’m told.

And finally in Naples, if you give someone a chili, real or made of terracotta it brings them good luck. I bought ten to give to friends and family so I’m hoping I get some off shoot luck.

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories, 18 - Local Expressions, 19 - Watch People Come & Go

That’s Amore

Dean Martin had it right when it came to ‘old Napoli’. In order to express my adoration for this vibrant gem of southern Italy I, alongside my trusty Erasmus companion Paola, have collated some data on a subject very close to my heart. Prepare yourselves for the pizza challenge, 2 days and 6 pizzerias, this blog post aims to provide a comprehensive list of some of the best pizzerias in Naples.

The best street to sample Naples’ finest pizza joints is Via dei Tribunali, and that is where we began.

1 – Name: Unfortunately I forgot to note down the name of this one, but after some google street view searching I think it’s ‘Buongusta’.

Taste: Good of course, a perfectly acceptable introduction to Neapolitan pizza though not the best we tasted.

Dough: Not bad, a bit heavy. Sauce: Good, the fresh tomatoes on Paola’s were particularly good.

Price: 3 euros 50

Ranking: 4

A note of advice at this point, despite the sheer exquisiteness of the pizza before you, do not feel obliged to eat the whole thing, in fact please don’t, there is a long way to go and the road is uphill, save yourself for doughy gold.

2 – Name: Pizzeria di Matteo.

Taste: Authentic and satisfying. I gather that di Matteo is noted as one of best pizzerias in the city, there is no indoor seating, a queue spills onto the street and customers take their margheritas away with them.

Sauce: Not terribly well spread and a little more bitter than some of the others, but still delicious.

Price: 1 euro for a cheeky (and enormous) slice.

Ranking: 2

3 – Name: Pizzeria dal Presidente

Taste: “Absolutely Banging”

Sauce: Delicious and quite sweet, reminded me of Heinz tinned spaghetti hoops (and not in a bad way).

Ranking: 3

4 – Name: Pizzeria Gino Sorbillo

Taste – Can only be described as the most delicious pizza that I have eaten in my entire life.

Dough: So thin, subtle and delicious and yet not at all soggy. Sauce: Sweet, full of flavour but not heavy, the mozzarella cheese was also particular tasty. Mozzarella can often be stringy and milky without much taste, depending on whether it is buffalo or not. This was perfection.

If I could recommend one pizzeria, in let’s say, THE WHOLE WORLD, it would be this one. The chief pizzaiolo was even on Master Chef.

Ranking: 1!

There were two or three other pizzerias along the way as the photos will prove, the last one was even at the train station. However the ones listed above really make the cut, and to be honest after half a dozen pizzerias things start to get a little hazy. This challenge really made me appreciate the margherita pizza. Previously I thought of it as the pizza for people who are fussy eaters, it was the ‘boring one’. Now, when I think of ham and pineapple toppings, I shudder. Pizza lovers out there, we must teach the world of Dominoes eaters to appreciate the simplicity and perfection of a well made margherita.

Naples is fantastic city in its own right, full of culture and character, but if all you do is eat pizza you’ve still experienced a slice of authentic Neapolitan Italy.

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 12 - Favourite Foods, 5 - Local Food

Rambling Man

After 6 months of hoarding maps, postcards, business cards, photos and tickets I have finally put together an experience map. It is a completely geographically incorrect map of my time in Italy from February to July 2015.

The left hand side encompasses Verona, the place I called home for 6 months of my life.

Towards the bottom the map turns into the rest of the Veneto including Venice and Lake Garda, where many lazy lake side afternoons were spent. Around the edges I have added Bologna and the Color Run in Trento.

Moving up the wall my trip to Lithuania is to be found, a few magical days where I met a friend from Grenoble – aka the new bosom friend in reference to other blog post about postcards and year abroad goals. After our rendezvous at midnight in an adorable airbnb apartment, we spent a blissful few days pottering around Vilnius, piling on the pounds with every zeppelin consumed and getting the obligatory year abroad piercing.

Moving, hmm well eastward across the wall anyway, we arrive at Naples, land of pizza, the city with the small town vibe, home of the good luck terracotta chili, known to some as ‘a dump’, bursting with life and energy, and one of my favourite places in Italy.

Below Naples meets the Amalfi coast, almost geographically correct that time, the place that sun kissed lemony dreams are made of. I feel that no further explanation is required here. Finally in the bottom corner I dedicated a space to my precious wwoofing adventure, an experience that I would recommend to everyone. I have also written another post about wwoofing.

I would encourage anyone to spend some time living abroad and these photos below show just some of the reasons. A year abroad is whatever you make it, and when you take the opportunities available to you the experiences can be fantastic.

2015-10-01 09.46.24 2015-10-01 09.46.37 2015-10-01 09.45.45

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 6 - Experience Map

It’s your turn!

Tocatì festival in Verona normally takes place every year at the end of September and I arrived just in time to catch all four days of the festival. In Italian ‘tocca a te’ means ‘your turn’ and is used particularly when playing games with family and friends (you know the kind- Monopoly, Trivial Pursuit etc.) which is why this festival is aptly named ‘Tocatì’ and celebrates traditional games, which are played in the streets of Verona. Some of the games include draughts, chess, backgammon, tug of war, ultimate frisbee, trisella, table football, boules…the list goes on. The festival is not just for adults though, there are some simpler games for children such as hopscotch, board games, musical chairs and more. The streets are quite literally transformed into one giant playground with certain roads closed for the four days to ensure the safety of everyone. The festival seeks to illustrate that roads and streets are not just places of transit but are also places for meetings and exchanges with others. There was a real sense of community during the festival with all generations and kinds of people taking to the streets of Verona to take part in the festivities. (Some took the games a little more seriously than others- I watched a game of draughts for 5 minutes in which time neither player made a move!)

This game is called Trisella. Small wooden balls are thrown into the corresponding coloured holes.

Ok07_Backgammon_Andrea-Lonardi-3-640x350

Backgammon- I’ve never really understood the rules of backgammon, so can’t help with this one!

But the festival is not only about games. There are also many food stalls and tents selling food and drink from all around Italy. A great way for everyone to relax after a strenuous day of playing games all day! Below is a one of the very first pictures of me in Verona with some friends on the second day of Tocatì.

In the evening the fun continues with bands and musicians playing all around the city. We stumbled upon two incredible beat boxers and then an amazing tribute band who got everybody up on their feet and dancing in the middle of the street. I really enjoyed Tocatì and it was great timing that the festival began on the day I arrived in Verona, it brought the city to life. Seeing what a sense of togetherness the festival brought about in the people of Verona made it so easy to settle in here. If only we didn’t have such poor weather here in the UK. I don’t imagine it would have the same success as it did in Verona if we all had to stand outside at the end of September playing games on the street!

Here is a link to this years Tocatì festival if you’re interested in finding out a little bit more about the festival.

Filed under: 28 - Festival Fun

Who needs a bag of crisps when you have these as a snack?

I say “Italian food”, you immediately think of pasta and pizza. The stereotype is (kind of) true, Italians LOVE their pasta and tend to eat it nearly everyday, but that’s not all they eat. Living in Verona, I have sampled many different varieties of food and drink, not all necessarily Veronese but things from all different regions of Italy. One that stood out to me is arancini, which are stuffed risotto balls coated in breadcrumbs and then fried, popular in Sicily but available throughout all of Italy. They are normally filled with mince, mozzarella or tomato and taste really amazing. The name ‘arancini’ derives from the Italian word for orange (arancia) due to their shape and colour which resemble an orange. You could describe them as a “snack food” and are easy to find on most street vendors. They also serve as a great way to use up left over risotto (I imagine left over risotto is more of a problem in Italy than here in the UK!).

I decided to have a go at making some of my own, but decided to add a slightly different filling of sautéed mushrooms in the centre of the risotto. I used the recipe from this link “How to make the perfect arancini” as getting a recipe as such off someone in Verona was a lot harder than expected!

Here are some pictures of the process and then the finished arancini. It was quite hard to make them without a fryer so I would say their colour was not quite as orange as I would’ve hoped but they still tasted really good!

The cooled risotto mixed with parmigiano cheese and mozzarella.

My attempt at rolling the risotto into balls. It does get quite sticky so make sure to keep your hands wet with a little water. Remember to put your chosen filling in and then plug the hole with a little more rice.

Coat the risotto balls in breadcrumbs.

Fry them for the required amount of time and hey presto, the perfect Italian snack.

Filed under: 12 - Favourite Foods

On My Way Back Home

I’m discovering that writing blog posts isn’t the easiest thing in the whole wide world ever. I have been advised to write down whatever comes to mind to get started, but I think I’m developing writers block, though perhaps I never had ‘writers flow’ or whatever, in the first place. It’s a challenge because I see this post going one of two ways; in option one I prattle on about the amazing experience that I had and the amazing things I did and the amazing food I ate (all true by the way) which I imagine isn’t particularly fun to read about. You’ll be left thinking, well, she had fun, lucky her, because nobody wants to read about how perfect someone else’s weekend was. On the other hand I could turn it into a lavish description full of poetic phrasing and delish descriptions, but I’m not sure I’m up to that. So what am I left with, I’m not sure, I had originally entered four categories for this post, so I ought to be able to come up with something. I’ve just remembered that it has to be understandable and interesting from the perspective of someone who doesn’t know anything about Third Space. Oh dear. Perhaps I should start again.

I have been feeling recently an increasing desire to fully understand what third space might actually mean. I may have just lived in Italy for 6 months, but did I really ‘live’ there? Was I a tourist on an extended holiday? Or did I live a slice of the real Italian life for a few short months? I went to University, I rented a flat, I caught the bus, I hired a bike, I babysat for a wonderful family, I went to the dentist, I almost had my own radio show, I went to the veg shop across the street, and I borrowed an iron from the nun across the hall! But my flatmate still as good as called me a tourist at the end of my stay. But the Erasmus student is superior to the tourist, we speak the lingo, we have semi permanent residences, maybe even native friends! I even had a loyalty card. However, my only post was postcards, my wizened cranky nonna didn’t live around the corner and I went out for pizza far too much.

There was a pretty lively Erasmus scene in Verona, but I never really got too involved. I would like to point out that I did however have friends, thank you. It was very partehpartehpartehbeerponglet’sgothebeacccccch #erasmus and my favourite #lovelovelove. They all had a good time but it wasn’t for me, it might sound dull, but I just wanted to do normal things, to escape that third space void and experience a lifestyle that is so different to my own. So I went to the cinema, I wandered around, I even went to Catholic mass a couple of times, trying to capture those quintessentially Italian vibes. But you always have too much fun to really live there, there’s far too much living life to the full for any normal person. That many life changing experiences is simply not sustainable! It must take years to full integrate yourself into a new culture, to adopt it as your own. However I do believe that after a few months you can gain an understanding and an appreciation of a place and its cultural differences, and I hope that that is what I achieved.

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories

Big Cheese

Tartiflette, the most glorious potatoe based dish on the planet.

Ingredients:

1kg potatoes, 200g smoked lardons, 200g onions thinly sliced, 30cl crème fraîche, 1 Reblechon cheese, salt and pepper, butter. (The ingredients do vary but these are your staples)

Recipe:

I’ve been trolling the internet for the perfect tartiflette recipe, and have decided to provide you with my own ‘rustic’ and improvised version, with advice from french flatmates and first hand tasting experience. You can do it almost anyway you want but the the reblechon cheese is essential.

1 – Boil all the potatoes, you can leave the skin on if you so wish and even slice them once boiled.

2 – Fry onions (and a bit of garlic if you fancy) in a SMALL amount of olive oil.

3 – Once the onions are turning soft, add the lardons/pancetta/tiny bits ‘o’ bacon and fry until the lardons are cooked and the onions are caramelized. Now add the crème fraîche, stirrrrrrr.

4 – At this point, turn on the oven to er quite hot, but not extremely so. In an over proof dish add a thin layer of sliced potatoes, then spoon on some of the lardons/crème fraîche. Potatoes, lardons, repeat. Season at will, though go easy on the salt.

5 – When your dish is full, slice your reblechon in half like you would a sponge cake, then place your two halves crust up on the mixture in the dish. Put in the oven until the cheese is melting and bubbling.

6 – Serve and eat with crusty french bread, or whatever you fancy. Bon appetit.

Grenoble is in the Rhone-Alpes region, famous for its fromagey specialities, including the delicious tartiflette which uses Reblechon, a creamy cheese produced in the Savoie so not only was it delicious but it was a local speciality! Regional cuisine is a strong concept in France, which greatly adds to the sense of identity. The regional food around Grenoble tended to be rich and creamy, with lots of potatoes and meat. This may sound heavy but it is perfectly in tune with the harsher winter climates of the mountainous region. Whilst a delicious seafood platter is perfect for a town on the Mediterranean it is back to the cheese board in Grenoble. I certainly wasn’t complaining.

One of the first times that I tasted this dish of potatoe perfection was from a street vendor at the Lyon ‘Fête des Lumières’. The festival is a yearly spectacle where walls are transformed with light displays and windows are lined with candles. The streets are filled with brass bands, food vendors, lights and colour all celebrating the originally religious festival. Thus inspired I hosted a festive gathering, suitably entitled ‘Tartifête’, with tartiflette as the special guest. Expecting leftovers I made enough to feed an army but by the end of the evening there wasn’t a crumb left. Hence why I couldn’t resist sharing a recipe that I associate with so many fond memories of France.

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 12 - Favourite Foods, 5 - Local Food

Travelling home – Advice

flying to hong kong So it was time to say goodbye for now to Brisbane. The plane journey was very different on the way back. I felt like a more mature person, independent, who had experienced a whole lot within a few months. I was saddened to leave this new place I called ‘home’, but equally excited to fly back to England to re-unite with my family, boyfriend and friends.

This post is about advice for flying….

1) Problem: Make sure you weigh your baggage before you plan to put your luggage through at customs. In your time travelling, wherever you may go and however long you will be there, you will most likely accumulate an item or two, or three, or more! This I did do, and weighing I did not. When I got to the desk and they weighed my baggage, the not so friendly desk hostess told me I was 10kg over and it would cost me 750 dollars (equal to around 375 pounds!). She wasn’t very helpful, caring or understanding in the slightest bit. So I think at that particular moment, it was the worst part of my five month trip. With this overload, I therefore had to throw 10kg of clothing, a bag full of products, and paper and small pieces of paper that I kept for memories. This is what I had to throw away in the photograph above. I wouldn’t have minded if the items I had to throw away was going to a good cause, such as a charity or funding. But it didn’t, the lady told me to put my things in the bin!

Point 1: If you do have luggage that weighs more – checking the weight a week before you leave – and know you want to keep some or all of the items, you can send your things overseas through a box storage company that ship your items home. I would 100% recommend this.

brisbane from the sky
It was pretty amazing to see Brisbane from above, to look out for all of the different areas I had visited and where I lived. I’m very glad I got this photograph, so I can do the same over and over again when looking at it.

Point 2: Jet Lag… For me I didn’t seem to get effected by it too much. I was told many different things when to sleep and when not to sleep. When flying to Australia, I was told to try sleep when it was the sleeping hours in the country. My flight was between 24 and 30 hours long, stopping off at Hong Kong on both ways which was very nice. In the end, I just slept when I felt tired.

Advice: When booking a flight, I would advise to get to your destination in the evening or late afternoon so you can have a few hours getting yourself sorted before going to sleep. On the next day, put your alarm to wake you up at a normal waking hour such as 9am, and get up.

Hong kong to England
Point 3: Noise and movement. Now and then on a plane you are going to get the odd noisy baby (if your travelling long distance, you don’t tend to get them). People are constantly wanting to go to the bathroom, especially after they have eaten food, so do not get a seat near to a bathroom unless you don’t mind the queue of people standing next to you to use the bathroom. The flight assistants are great, on point and very helpful from Cathay Pacific, they hand you eye masks, headphones, a pillow and blanket, which was very helpful.

Advice: On a long journey, you may get bored. Try to bring things that will entertain you. There is usually a small screen in front of you – in the photograph above – and it has a variety of entertainment from t.v shows, to world music, to newly released films. As a film enthusiast, I found this great and watched about 8 films one way flying! Also bring an eye mask and good earplugs to keep out the light and sound. There is no form of nose plugs, so you can’t keep the smell of plane food drifting up your nose…

One last piece of advice is to keep a Vick nose inhaler as the air condition seems to enjoy spreading any germs. If you find it difficult to sleep, take a sleeping tablet and that will help a lot. Every now and then, get up from your seat and move your legs and feet. You need to keep your blood circulating as your body is not used to sitting down for such a length of time.

plane from brisbane

Enjoy the flight!

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 17 - Travel Manifesto, 25 - Create your own activity

Map of Experience

experience hand map

This is a map of my hand, it was quite difficult to put all of my memories onto one hand but most managed to squeeze on! I loved Brisbane and being on an exchange, and these images represent why;

The flags are to represent the friends I met from all over the world; Australia, Germany, Canada, Mauritius, Mexico, and more. We had many memories together, including watching fireworks compete over the sea, going to the zoo and petting animals such as kangaroos. Currently I am writing letters to my friend in Australia, it is so nice to write in hand again. I made great friends out there and plan to meet them again.
The scenery was amazing in so many places, I had many areas where I would like to visit every day, every week, and some which have stayed in my memory. The bridges in Brisbane were lovely to walk across, to see the city from different points of views, especially in the evening. South Bank – where I lived – was the most warming to me. I felt very lucky that I was living there and getting to experience life in such a beautiful place.
The food in Brisbane was very diverse, because it has a large Asian population. Therefore, there are plenty of restaraunts from all over the world. It was the first time I had tried San Curros curros, the first time I tried sushi, the first time I tried Malay food, and the first time I tried Bubble Tea.
Travelling. Visiting Byron Bay on the first week was the best thing I could have done to start my trip, sea kayaking and seeing a penguin, surfing, burning from the sun, beaches, walks, and incredible views. Morton Island and Frazer Island with my parents was incredible, learning about a part of Australian history and seeing the wildlife too… dingos. I would have loved to have done a lot more travelling, however it means that I can always go back!
My 21st was one of the best birthdays I will remember. Being in Australia for a start, having my friends to celebrate it, having my parents from England there for two weeks was amazing and perfect, surprises from overseas from my family, boyfriend, and friends through Skype. Couldn’t have asked for any different.
Animation. I really enjoyed my course at Griffith University. It is very different from ECA, but I found that ECA is more my style and way of working. I met many lovely people who I instantly made friends with, the tutors were great, and I learnt things which I was hoping to get from the exchange. In my own time I also managed to work on a film as production design assistant which was amazing experience and I learnt plenty from it, about the 1800’s Australian history.

(The weather also was very nice! When I arrived in Brisbane, for a few months it was around 38°C. The humidity made it worse, bringing out any moisture in your body. I soon got used to it, but I definitely remember the first night I arrived and walked through the airport doors into the open – my new home! Winter in Brisbane can get a bit chilly, the bit that makes it cold is the amount of rain that comes. The Australians were all so excited for it to rain. It made myself and a friend laugh that I was cold in Brisbane on some days, as I live in Scotland… where anything over double digest is considered hot!)

Brisbane was a once in a lifetime opportunity to go there. It was a perfect time to go and would definitely recommend anyone to go on an exchange. However, it does depend on the person, what they are looking for, what they will find and what they want to take from it.

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings, 17 - Travel Manifesto, 27 - Everyone You Meet, 6 - Experience Map

“Your back! How was your year abroad?”

This seems to have been the most overused phrase in my fresher’s week back in Edinburgh. Not wanting to overwhelm friends, family and teachers with a long list of adjectives and anecdotes, this question tended to get the understated answer of “it was great, thanks”.

I have now been back for a few weeks, and I figured it is time to award this question with a well deserved answer.

“My year abroad has been the best experience”

I realise it may sound cliche, or perhaps hyperbolic – but my time in Geneva truly was incredible!

Ok there were definite moments where I asked myself “what am I doing here?”…

For example;

When the supermarkets closed at 18:30pm
When EVERYTHING is closed on a Sunday
When every song in a club was a salsa one – I cannot salsa dance
When I was charged 25 CHF for a cocktail

Despite these little frustrations, I have come away with a new confidence and many funny stories…

“Illegally” adopting two pet goldfish in my halls and naming each one after the horrid woman in charge. Geraldine and Mattieu, may they RIP, were great friends.
Being told off by my neighbour for “illegally” bringing a group of friends back to my room post 11pm
Having a power cut within the first few days of moving in
Living with a Genevan cult

I cannot believe how fast this year has gone by! I am now so excited to enjoy my last year of Edinburgh, how hectic it may be, and make the most of my experience here before venturing off on a new adventure :)

Here’s to a great year!

xxxxxxx

Filed under: 25 - Create your own activity

Help: I think I’m living with a Genevan cult!

Ok so I feel like the title of this blog merits a little explaining…

When I moved to Geneva last September, my halls organised a welcome drinks for all the newbies. Obviously as a Brit, any occasion involving free food and alcohol was definitely worthy of my presence.

Naturally I ended up being late, and arrived to our basement common room about 30 mins late (I didn’t think this would be a problem as it was a chill get together). Clearly I was wrong.

I arrived, sweaty and flustered from cooking, in my slippers and baggy jumper, to witness what I can only describe as a speech being given to a group of fearful looking students seated in a circle. Somehow I managed to find myself a chair through the cloud of smoke (everyone was smoking cigars), but my tardiness meant that i ended up seated right at the front of the room and literally outside the circle of people!

The elderly man in a suit looked at me and my slippers in disgust (the French do not think that casual attire is “chic”) proceeded with his speech and began singing/ chanting to which our RA’s responded with more chanting and table banging to which we were all bemused.

— oh, I may have forgotten to mention this was all going on in French! —

More and more people in suits, berets, waistcoats and saches began to turn up mid speech (clearly there was a uniform to this event)

After 20 minutes of feeling insanely uncomfortable in my slippers I got up and escaped.

The singing and chanting continued through the early hours of the morning and was clearly audible from the basement to my bedroom on the fourth floor.

For the rest of the year, these meetings became a monthly occurrence and almost seemed normal.

I even asked my french friends about this during the year to which they all laughed and thought I was exaggerating!

It is only since returning to Edinburgh that I realise quite how odd these rendez-vous were.

To this day, I still have no idea what this brotherhood/ fraternity/ cult was for/is!!!

Truth be told, a year abroad will bring with it unique experiences that you will not forget!

Filed under: 29 - Local Songs

Yet Another Graffiti Post

I realise people have already done posts on the graffiti in their host cities but it’s something I couldn’t help but repeat. I think living in such beautiful cities as Edinburgh and Salamanca has made me slightly numb to the beauty of their architecture. For me it was the street art in Salamanca and Valencia (and the rest of Spain for that matter) that really reflected the magic of these places. I could be in the plainest barrio (neighbourhood) and come across the most astonishing piece of graffiti which never failed to disappoint. Here is a taster of what spanish street artists have to offer:

Lucy, Salamanca & Valencia

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

I have a Golden Ticket!

In June I had the great fortune of going to visit a chocolate factory !!!

Switzerland is notorious for its chocolate and oh my the experience did not disappoint! We went to visit Cailler’s chocolate factory near Gruyeres.

Unfortunately upon arrival I was not greeted by little orange oompa loompa men, but rather a multitude of chocolates for me to taste!

(Fun fact – did you know the Swiss’ favourite chocolate is milk chocolate?)

The factory was laid out like a museum, but each room appealed to your every sense. In each room you would see, touch, feel, and taste how chocolate was made. It was a very informative journey that ended in a feast of chocolate!

My favourite part was seeing the bionic robot that is used to make and wrap the chocolates. (unfortunately we weren’t allowed to take pictures at this point)

Since they say a picture can speak a thousand works, let these images speak to you…

Filed under: 12 - Favourite Foods

Hands down the best experience I’ve had :)

Hands down the best experience I have had!

My year abroad in Geneva has been hands down the best experience I have had! I have met some amazing people, explored beautiful places, tried new foods and found another home in a new city.

I have drawn an outline of both my hands on which I have mapped out the various places I have explored during my time in Geneva. My left hand shows places and people I met during the first semester while my right hand shows the same for the second semester.

Both semesters have been incredible and as you can see I still did lots of exploring this semester too. I have definitely got the travel bug!

I cannot believe that almost a year has gone by since I first arrived in Geneva! I remember feeling so lost and confused around the city when I first arrived which is hilarious now as I know the city like the back of my hand.

Switzerland is a beautiful country and I can guarantee that if you come visit (which you all should!) then you will have an amazing time.

Tara for now friends. See you soon in Scottish land xxx

Filed under: 6 - Experience Map

Tourist Tuesday: Botanical Gardens

This week’s Tourist Tuesday activity led me to Geneva’s Botanical Gardens…

The gardens are so beautiful and despite lacking gardening capabilities I really enjoyed going around reading about all the various plants. Each plant had a short description about how and whereabouts it grows, what medicinal properties it has (if any), and then beside it were a collection of objects/ foods that were cultivated from that particular plant.

I have never been so excited looking at plants! As a keen foodie, I loved going around reading about the different ingredients and foods you could acquire from various plants.

The botanical gardens’ greenhouses were home to the largest banana trees I have ever seen! In my garden in London we have a banana tree but the size was nothing compared to the one I saw this week!

Now, the best part of the botanical gardens was probably the wildlife centre where I saw flamingos, peacocks, ducks, wild goats and sheep!

Geneva is very green as a city and everyone has a huge respect for the outdoors and wildlife. The city is full of parks, huge potted plants and grass benches. This respect for the outdoors also transcends into everyday life as you will NEVER see a local litter! As one of my Genevan friends aptly told me, why would you litter as it not only is destroying your own habitat but that of local wildlife too!

Unfortunately, not everyone in London has the same ethos and I know that once I return home I will be greeted by littered streets and parks. However, this will not stop me from being a keen green recycling machine!!!

Filed under: 30 - Wildlife

Drop-Bears

Drop-bears (also known as Thylarctos plummets) are found in Australia. They are species similar to koalas, but dangerous. They look cute and fluffy, but are larger, have sharper claws and big teeth. Drop-bears can be found high up in the trees. Do not walk alone in a forest or jungle as there have been stories where the animals have ‘dropped and attacked’.

‘Drop Bears hunt by ambushing ground dwelling animals from above, waiting up to as much as four hours to make a surprise kill. Once prey is within view, the Drop Bear will drop as much as eight metres to pounce on top of the unsuspecting victim. The initial impact often stuns the prey, allowing it to be bitten on the neck and quickly subdued’. – http://australianmuseum.net.au/drop-bear
In my first few weeks, one of my new flatmates told me about this dangerous animal (another to add to the ‘most dangerous animals in Australia’…) He told me different stories where people had been attacked and bitten in the forests, especially in North-eastern Australia.

A busy week later passed by and I was on a trip to Noosa. Driving there, I was called upon by the call of nature. Stopping by a roadside, there were plenty of large trees and bushes to hide my modesty. Crunching beneath my feet as I walked off the pavement was lots of yellow coloured twigs. A few metres in and I slowed my pace. I was looking down for any snakes, looking up for any drop-bears, and looking ahead for any big spiders. My ears were sensitive to any small noises, my sight reflexing to any movement. It was like ‘The Wizard of Oz’ tune running through my head over and over again, not ‘lions and tigers and bears, but ‘spiders and snakes and drop-bears’!
As I moved a little closer to the tree and looking to my left side, I saw a great big spider web, the size of my body (5ft3). When I saw the spindly web there was no more walking forwards, but running carefully away back to the car. This was as close as I got to a drop-bear… in my head.
(This was a Golden Orb spider that caught my eye whilst walking through a forest. The size of a hand, black coloured with yellow legs. They eat insects, but sometimes their webs manage to trap small birds or bats, and the spider will wrap them and feed upon them.)

So if you are travelling, I would recommend to be prepared for the animals and insects that you may or may not come across.
‘LOOK UP AND STAY ALIVE’.
One more thing to say, is that drop-bears are not real. I did believe that they were real, until I researched them… They are actually based on an Australian myth, told to tourists from around the world. The Golden Orb spider however, is real.

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 15 - Create a Story, 18 - Local Expressions

Magpie Season

Every year, between June and December, magpie birds can become dangerous. Also known as ‘Magpie Season’. In this time, it is Magpie mating season, so there are plenty of birds securing their nests. The first sign of Magpie Season are the warning signs the Council puts up at bus stops in a known magpie areas.

When in Australia, people used to wear helmets with tall wires placed on top. This is a safety helmet to scare Magpies and hope that they won’t swoop down and attack. Below is an example:

In the picture above, it shows the amount of magpie attacks in Brisbane from http://www.magpiealert.com
This year there have been 4310 attacks and 608 injuries.

Whilst living in Brisbane I didn’t witness any attacks as I left before the season began. However I have heard of many stories. For example, last year my friend was cycling to college. As she cycled nearby the trees and came to a sharp corner of the pathway, a large magpi flew down at her head which made her loose balance and fall. The bird didn’t attack again.
Apparently Magpi’s can attack you in many ways, including putting their claws into your eyes.

Another friend told me of stories that she heard…
‘Don’t look at Magpis in the eyes,
Don’t turn your back to them, otherwise they will attack,
Don’t run away from them,
Don’t try to fight a Magpi’

So if you are in Brisbane between the months of June to December and don’t want an experience like the men above, remember to protect your head and eyes, and try to avoid the ‘defence zone’. Or, if you do want to experience this… enjoy!

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories

Reflections on my year abroad

As my final post, and a few months after returning to the UK from Singapore, I feel like I had to make a post regarding how I feel now about my time away.

Through my previous posts I have probably alluded to the fact that my time away was not all that it is hyped up to be. I figured, after moving from Aberdeen to Edinburgh and not missing anything about Aberdeen, I would be able to cope fine with moving a little further (or the other side of the world). I was wrong. It was not plane-sailing, not the ‘I don’t miss home’ I thought it would be.

Singapore and I just don’t fit together; we were never meant to be. In fact, if you aren’t rich, then as a Westerner you will not enjoy your time. There were a few main things that grated with me while I was there:
1) 35 degrees. All year round. Without air con.

Unless you can afford the ridiculous price, nearly all the University rooms are without air con. I never thought I would miss the Scottish weather, but when I couldn’t sleep properly the entire time I spent there, I did.

2) Food

Singapore is supposed to be a food-lovers haven, however when your Uni supplies you with no kitchen to speak of and you are forced to eat at the horrendous food court because you can’t afford to eat at reasonably nice places, you only experience the worst of its food culture.

3) The teaching style at the University

This was probably my most important reason for choosing NUS for my exchange, however, I’ve come to realise that the Uni league tables are not to be trusted. NUS might be great for subjects like Engineering or Business, but for Biology it just didn’t seem like it was anywhere near Edinburgh. The teaching style was very much: do not understand it, just learn it. I felt that each 3^rd year lecture was equivalent to the previous year’s lectures at Edinburgh. They also barely looked at research papers and an essay to them was ‘800 words between 4 students’.

Now you might suggest I just not live in Uni accommodation and these problems would be solved, but as one of the most expensive cities in the world (http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/property/pictures/11450782/The-worlds-10-most-expensive-cities-2015.html?frame=3220492) that is simply impossible. Alongside these main issues there were a few unfortunate events that probably didn’t help, the ridiculous laws, the fact that my boyfriend lives in Scotland, and a few personal crises.

HOWEVER

Despite these daily annoyances I do not regret going abroad. I am quite a pessimist (if you hadn’t already realised) but once back in Scotland there were things I began to miss.

1) travelling and the food there

I was never big on the travelling thing, not like my friends. I was determined to get good grades so only traveled occasionally – but when I did it was amazing. The food in every country I went to (except maybe Cambodia, minor food poisoning) was AMAZING, and so so cheap!

2) University

Although I had completely slated this previously there are a few things that NUS offered that I’m sure will shape my future career. As I mentioned earlier, the 3^rd year lectures were very basic, so I took a few 4^th year lectures to compensate for this.These were extremely different; they were led by experts in their fields and really focused on specific topics (e.g. only two microbes instead of an overall knowledge of many like in Edinburgh).
Furthermore, after being rejected for many courses I was forced to take mainly immunology courses. The lecturers for these were so inspirational that I changed my degree to Immunology once back in Edinburgh.

3) The people

The most significant thing that makes me think maybe it wasn’t so bad was the people I met there. I made friends much easier than in Edinburgh, and became closer with them after only one year, or even one semester, than I have with many of my friends in Edinburgh after two years. I don’t know if this is because I am older, so making friends is easier as I’ve been through this before in Edinburgh, or perhaps it’s because I made friends with exchange students, and freshers, that are in a similar position as me and haven’t met anyone yet either. Nevertheless, I will not forget the people I met in Singapore.

Overall there are many things I didn’t like about Singapore, and I wouldn’t want to live there permanently, but it’s impossible to say it hasn’t changed me. I am grateful I had the opportunity to experience another culture so different from my own; in many ways I feel I fit in better in Singapore than at home. And I encourage everyone else who has been on exchange to also reflect on the ‘bigger picture’ from their experiences. But until I become rich (which will obviously happen in my future), I think I’ll stick to home.

Filed under: 26 - Create and give an activity

Experience Map

The top two scenarios in which a girl realizes how small her hands are 1) a boy pressing his palm against hers in order to compare their size and 2) trying to reduce the most amazing year of her life to a few (miserable, in this case) drawings and words scribbled on the outline of her hand.

Here is my attempt at point 2.

I believe that because of my childish drawings and the phone camera I took the picture with, a few clarifying sentences might come in handy (starting from the pinky and moving to the right).

Anna: My favourite flatmate who made Madrid unforgettable. She was the closest friend I had there, and that is why she deserves a whole finger!

Triskel Tavern: The place where I felt welcome during the first months abroad and where I felt at home during the last. This is the bar where I would go every Thursday night with my favourite people to listen to my favourite songs and drink a glass of my favourite wine. This is also the place where I met the Malasana crew or, in other words, the circle of artistic and inspiring people I had always dreamed of being part of.

Spanish language: During my exchange I realized that Spanish is actually not that daunting and I grew to love it.

Malasana: The neighbourhood where I would most often hang out with friends or go for a walk. Beautiful, alternative, artistic, with the revolutionary spirit of the early ages of democracy still lingering in its streets, full of bookshops and charming cafes, full of life.

Spanish diversity: breath-taking mountains, gorgeous beaches and spectacular cities. Spain has it all.

Travelling: Probably the best and most rewarding part of my experience abroad.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 6 - Experience Map

Cathedral de Lille

Sitting on the steps outside Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-la-Treille de Lille on early Sunday mornings was lovely to just watch the world go by. Quite often I’d head there before exploring the streets in Lille and admiring the designer shop windows on my way back to the center (everything is closed on Sundays so no temptations to spend my entire Erasmus grant on a handbag)!

I’d take my Thermos full of tea to the cathedral steps and just people-watch; see what the Lillois people were up to! Normally, there were rollerbladers, weaving in and out of obstacles- seriously, how do their legs move so fast?! Even on early mornings, people would be bustling about and cutting through the cobbled lanes to get to the part of the city called Vieux Lille- literally “Beautiful Lille”. The outdoor seating for the surrounding cafés was vital in the buzz of this part of town. Even on the chilly mornings people would sit with their espressos, all bundled up and have a chat. The sun would come out every so often and I would bask in my little sun spot before it went away and I had to rely on my tea for warmth.

I took so many of my visitors to the cathedral because its architecture was so cool- modern and traditional at the same time- but what I enjoyed most was sitting on the steps, enjoying the peace, with my tea. Paul, the boulangerie, was also very close to my spot so I would quite often get a few begnets (mini doughnuts covered in sugar with various fillings) as I regularly saw the locals walking around with them as a little treat!

Filed under: 19 - Watch People Come & Go

An Unexpected Source of Wisdom

Sometimes I truly believe that before befriending one another or starting a relationship, people should take informal tests of compatibility. This theory would be also known to the crazy How I Met Your Mother fans out there as something along the lines of The Olives Variable. In other words, as an olives lover, you should, for your own good, befriend only these people who loathe olives so much that they would always kindly give them to you. Or vice versa, if you happen to have an irrational fear of olives, the other person should be able to enthusiastically and fearlessly devour them to save you.
Life, however, works in mysterious ways: I befriended that one person who is, no doubt here, as clueless and disoriented as I am. Funny enough, we would always decide to go on spontaneous trips together with no maps or plans whatsoever, which, as you could imagine, would always put us in interesting or even life-endangering situations.
If I had to rate my favorite stories about getting lost (and actually loving it!), this is how the unofficial chart would look like:
1) Desperately trying to get something to eat in Valencia.
Siestas are a well-known trademark of Spain. Yet, as a capital with booming social and economic life, Madrid has somehow managed to escape this cultural peculiarity. Therefore, before setting foot in Valencia we could not have imagined that one could be starving to death and there would not be a single restaurant to save them. This is how the otherwise gorgeous city turned into a test of our survival skills – we would be roaming its streets for hours (which at this moment looked to us as if they were taken out of a zombie apocalypse movie) and ask strangers if they knew of a place that was opened. Most of them would just shrug shoulders with sympathy and leave. But there was this amazing couple, probably in their fifties or so, who offered to walk with us until we found something. Well, we did not, but the conversation we had, be it in broken Spanish, was like a chicken soup for the soul.
2) Desperately trying to find a place to stay in Valencia.
Reading this, one would think that Valencia can be pretty horrible to its visitors. It was in fact a beautiful place, but, as I mentioned, I had crossed paths with the only human being as unlucky as I am: without knowing that a popular rally was to be held in Valencia this exact weekend, we decided to go there without having booked a hostel in advance. Because of the event, however, all beds were already taken. We needed to stop tens of people on the street and ask them for the closest hostel or hotel in the area. After many unsuccessful attempts, we were finally directed to a hostel that magically had two free beds. Maybe we are not that unlucky after all.
3) Getting lost in the wild nature.
It was my last day in Spain and I wanted to spend it hiking. So far, so good. We got on a train that took us to a little town close to Madrid from where we were supposed to start the hike. When we stopped a fellow mountaineer and asked her how to get to the most beautiful peak in the area, it turned out that we had it all wrong – the wrong train, the wrong stop, the wrong side of the mountain… However, the woman was very helpful and assured us that the place we had ended up in was just as beautiful as our original destination. With the initial panic gone, we started a friendly conversation that lasted for a good quarter of an hour (by far the longest and most relaxed conversation in Spanish I have had).

After all, the Olives Variable might be just a scam, a conspiracy to keep people from experiencing the most amazing and educational moments life can offer? And not that I find it very practical to form your philosophy of life based on television, but How I Met Your Mother seems to suggest the same. Take it or leave it.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 4 - Ask for Directions

Re-defining Salsa

I bet every girl who has seen Dirty Dancing: Havana Nights has indulged in hours-long fantasies about passionate salsa dancing and, of course, finding true love, as these two always seem to go together. This would apply to me as well; learning how to dance salsa has been a dream of mine since I was 12 (and, as a matter of fact, so has been finding true love).
In Spain I finally gained the courage to go to actual salsa classes. “Actual”, as I had already had some informal ‘training’ kindly provided by my lovely, obsessed with salsa ex-flatmates. And while the well-equipped dance room was certainly an upgrade to our cozy, yet too tiny for the purposes of dancing kitchen, the experience did not come any closer to the fantasies that had been occupying my imagination for years. Where were the smoke of Cuban cigars and the almost palpable smell of sugar plantations and sweet memories? Sure, having a professional teacher and actual boys to dance with was definitely an advantage, but neither of them was Javier. Ah, the wrongs that Hollywood has done to girls…
Although salsa has been heavily influenced by the rhythms of many Latin and Afro-Caribbean countries, Cuba is widely regarded as the birthplace of the dance, which provides another explanation for my incapability to picture salsa in the embrace of any other place but its home. To my surprise, however, by the end of my exchange I had done so.
The turning point was witnessing tens of couples dancing salsa in the open air. Of course, I had already heard that Plaza de Dos de Mayo in the heart of Malasana would often ‘host’ Madrid’s swing enthusiasts, but actually seeing such a thing was truly powerful. Simply thinking about the lovely scene brings me tons of joy; had I actually dared dance instead of only observing shyly, I would be probably exploding with happiness at the moment. You are welcome, heart.
Lesson learned: Salsa was never meant to be danced in the fog of cigars’ smoke, nor with Javier per se.

New prefered setting: the warmth and comfort of a sunny Sunday afternoon.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 1 - Twinkle Toes

Life Lessons From an Ecuadorian Handyman

I’m generally too unorganised to get my own chores done so this one wasn’t exactly done voluntarily. I was working in a hostel in Valencia over the summer and found myself with a few cleaning shifts working alongside Luis, the Ecuadorian handyman.

Luis was pretty much the father figure in the hostel. He was the one who kept the younger staff in check and made sure we all ate breakfast in the morning, he is also probably the biggest optimist I have ever come across. I don’t think I ever saw him without a smile on his face. His reaction to the extra list of chores to do each day brought out merely a chuckle rather than anything resembling a complaint. He moved to Spain 15 years ago based on the recommendation of a friend that Spain was a place of opportunity. Said friend then ran off back to Ecuador just weeks after he arrived and left him to it – turns out he’d exaggerated to Luis a little. In fact the only negative thing I ever heard from Luis was regarding this guy who he jokes he’ll kill when he eventually visits home. Luis hasn’t in fact seen his parents in the 15 years since he moved to Spain and he is finally planning to go back and visit this year – I’m excited on his behalf.

Working with Luis made my shift fly by. He is the only person I have ever met who can make scrubbing toilets in 33 degree heat a, dare I say it, fun experience. I think his positivity was contagious and has definitely taught me to approach already challenges with a can-do attitude. It makes even the most boring of days that little bit more exciting.

Lucy, Valencia

Filed under: 16 - Do the Chores

The ‘bise’-arre way the French like to say hello.

I knew well before I arrived in France that there was one thing I would seriously struggle with when living in the country: les bises. Les bises are the well known art of greeting each other with a kiss on the cheek. And as pretty much any of my friends can tell you I do not like human contact. My dislike of hugs is in fact a running joke in various friendship groups; it’s one of the first things people learn about me. So understandably the thought of cheek kissing every time I meet up with someone was a little daunting.

I did of course adopt les bises, it would have been rude not to, but it was never quite something I could get the hang of in France. There were almost too many rules to follow and I very much learnt these as I went along. It turns out leaving a small social gathering without repeating les bises with everyone on your way out is pretty rude and that handshake that I unintentionally go for is unnecessary and plain awkward when you ultimately have to follow it up with les bises. All in all France was quite a learning curve in terms of adopting local “body language” and a good job too considering what awaited me in Spain.

In Spain pretty much all rules seemed to go out the window. One thing that did remain was that handshakes are still not on the cards (except with the dutch who were more than happy to avoid face on face contact). I soon realised that when in doubt les bises are pretty much the go to greeting and eventually grew to tolerate them. They are easier than hugs and acceptable in most social situations. In fact I think I can go as far to say that I am well and truly converted, especially seeing as I even did them with my mum when I first got back to the UK. I think she probably thought I was trying to be all cosmopolitan when really I had just got too used to them.

Lucy, Tours & Salamanca

Filed under: 24 - Body Language

“Yes, I do”

(A tribute to the city equally artistic in its well-lit galleries and on its darkest streets)

Sometimes I like to think of Madrid as a broke bohemian. A self-taught musician possessing nothing but a second-hand guitar and an endless love for singing in the streets. A colorblind painter and a bold thief who would rob a gallery and spill its contents right in the heart of the city. A forgetful poet who never brings a notebook along and rather scribbles down his thoughts on the pages of the city – on its pavements, on its buildings, even on its skies…

Rumor has it Madrid is generous with his words. A friend of Orwell, Hemingway and Lorca, he would feed his guests with the sweetest sentences ever written, the kind that melts in your mouth, and would not let them leave until they are so full that they can barely move. So full that they almost feel pregnant with beauty.

Sometimes I like to think of Madrid as the city I am destined to marry… Yes, I do.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

What I miss the most about Granada

Anyone who has ever visited Granada can only be full of praise for this magical city and I will be no less. Granada has it all: a rich history, a sunny weather, a great nightlife, fantastic food, tropical beaches on one side and the Sierra Nevada (one of the most famous winter resort in southern Europe) on the other. But I’ve personally come to love Granada for a whole different reason: its sky.

During my first semester, I lived on the 5^th floor of a flat which was quite far away from the city center. This meant that from my room I had a great view of the sky, not covered by tall, ugly buildings (what unfortunately happened in the second semester, when I moved towards the center). After a week admiring these incredible views at sunset, I decided to start taking pictures. I took a picture (sometimes even 5 in an hour because of how incredibly quickly the sky changes) every day for four months, and you can believe that I don’t have one single picture that looks the same to another?

Now that I’m in Edinburgh, you cannot imagine how depressed I feel when I look up the sky and what I see are only grey clouds covering the sun. It’s incredible the power such spectacular sunsets have on your brain and you must try to live in a sunny place to fully realize that.

I wish I could upload all the beautiful pictures I’ve taken in those months, but I will limit myself to direct you to the album I created on Facebook if you are interested in seeing more pictures.

Thank you Granada for teaching me to always look up the sky and making me feel incredibly grateful for being able to enjoy such divine sight.

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: Uncategorized

A self-analysis during the time abroad

14^th MAY 2014

That was my last day in Edinburgh for almost a year and a half. An exciting summer, firstly in south-east Asia, then in south of Italy and then in Spain, was awaiting and I could not possibly imagine all the adventures and experiences I was going to face. But I knew I had to show the most optimistic attitude in front of any challenge, so I wrote a Christmas and Happy New Year card (guessing I would receive the card at that time of the year) telling myself to always take risks, to always try to improve myself every day, to give the best of myself, to see novelty and changes as opportunities, to never have regrets, to try out new things, to get to know new people, to ask lots of questions, to be optimist and make the most of this unique opportunity in life.
If the truth should be told, I was not expecting any major changes during this year abroad: I have lived in many different countries in my life, and only in the last 4 years I’ve changed home three times because apparently I’m unable to stay in one place for too long as I get bored easily. So, I wasn’t scared of the new nor I had any particular expectation: I was just going to throw myself into this without thinking it twice and deal with the consequences on the way.

15^th MARCH 2015

If you asked me back in September 2014 what my life plan was, the answer would have been: “Oh, just chill out! Take the life as it comes! YOOOLOOOOO!” Yes, that YOLO part is embarrassing, and I actually think I’ve made an over-use of that word. Now, this YOLOing Tharusha came as a big surprise for friends who have known me for years: I’ve always been the most organized person in the world who had a life plan within 5 years.
Back at the beginning of my year abroad, I decided that my new motto was going to be “carpe diem”. I would just go with the flow (which is something I’ve never done in my life), and surprisingly enough, I discovered myself to be happy. I was happy to live in such a lovely city, to (finally!) enjoy the sun every day, to eat great (and very cheap) food, to meet new people I would feel connect to, and not to worry about the future. Sometimes, the gloomy thought that I could be spending my time in a more productive way would cloud that happiness, but I was in a care-free mood no one could save me from. At that time I fulfilled some of the things I’ve promised to myself: I did take risks, I tried to give the best of myself at all time and took all the opportunities I could, even when I did not have the physical energy to do that. That is because being an Erasmus student in Granada meant that you had to go out and party every night. Even when you have run out of all your energy for not having slept properly for a week, you still had to go out. Why would you do that? Because there was something magical to Granada: it was precisely in those days, when all I wanted to do was to cuddle up under the duvet and watch my favourite tv-serie while eating tons of chocolate ice cream, that I met the most incredible people during that year. In such a context, it was definitely easier to be friends with one another and you would even talk to people you would probably ignore in “real life”. Being a student abroad makes you feel part of a big family, as you know the other person is living the same situation as you and you understand each other better.

Of course, as you can imagine, that cannot continue for long neither physically nor psychologically (I’ve seen more hospitals and doctors in 9 months in Spain than in 22 years of my life), especially if that lifestyle doesn’t really suit you. So when I actually received the postcard I wrote to myself, my first thought was:”Oh NO! I DID NOT write this to myself.” I must admit I was going through a pessimistic stage in my year abroad, when I was just sick of everything surrounding me and was just so eager to come back to Edinburgh and “return to reality”. I needed to go on rehab, which meant disappearing from the Granadian social scene and spend an insane amount of time (for an Exchange student) at the library or locked up in my room catching up with all the tv series in this world. Some of my friends were quite concerned about my sudden disappearance, but I was honestly sick to try to explain to people that I simply needed a break from such a hectic life. And in a sense, I went back to be myself, thinking about my academic future and realizing, thanks to the courses I was taking in Spain, what kind of studies I would like to do after the degree. So, in the second semester, I think I took the opportunities to better myself in an academic sense, while in the first semester I was more focused on my social life.

28^th SEPTEMBER 2015

Re-reading this postcard today, after more than a year, I ask myself: “Would I choose to go on a year abroad if I went back”?
Even though a part of me is convinced that I would have had many more opportunities for my studies and career if I had stayed in Edinburgh, I do not regret having decided to go abroad. I had the chance to live in a wonderful city, to speak and become fluent in another language, to meet some incredible people that I know will be my friends for a lifetime, to discover a fascinating culture, to travel around the Iberian peninsula and live adventure that I will never forget.
I might not be a big fan of the Erasmus life in Spain, but one thing is certain: studying, working and living abroad does change you for ever in ways you cannot even imagine until you try.

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 13 - Write a Postcard

Santa Claus is out of a job in Verona…

Christmas is a wonderful time of year wherever you are but spending the run up to Christmas in Verona was a particularly magical experience, after all where better to spend it than the city of love? The city was dressed up with beautifully elegant street lights, an overwhelming amount of trees (nearly every shop had its own Christmas tree outside), a huge shooting star appeared out of the top of the arena and not to mention every piazza was transformed into a winter wonderland with markets selling mulled wine and traditional christmas panettone.

But Verona and a few other cities in Northern Italy have a tradition which is very specific only to them. If you’re waiting for your presents to be delivered by Santa Claus on the night of the 24th December, you’ll be waiting a very long time as it’s someone else who delivers the presents and surprisingly on the 12th December! Santa Lucia is one of the oldest traditions of Verona and whilst it is principally for children, everyone in the province gets involved.

The legend has it that in the 13th century there was a terrible case of “eye ache” especially amongst children and so people decided to ask Santa Lucia for relief from the symptoms by setting off on a barefoot pilgrimage to what is now the town hall, then known as Saint Agnese Church. Children were obviously very reluctant to do this so parents promised them that they would receive many presents if they did and so when the children accepted, the epidemic ended.

On the night of the 12th December, children eagerly await Santa Lucia who delivers their presents riding a flying donkey. I was lucky enough to take part in the tradition due to the fact that I was an English tutor to two different families who had very young children. You could tell how excited the children were in the run up to the evening of the 12th, with all members of the family getting involved. I bought the children presents to add to their piles from Santa Lucia which they seemed very happy with. (The tradition also served as a great way to get them to try very hard with their English when their mothers told them that Santa Lucia would not visit if they didn’t do their work)! It is normal then for families to get together at lunchtime or in the evening of the 13th to have a meal and give the children chance to show off their new toys delivered by Santa Lucia.

(Unfortunately the phone I took all my photos on at Christmas time in Verona has broken so I’ve included a picture that I found on the internet of beautiful Piazza Bra and the star shooting out of the arena.)

Filed under: 9 - Local Traditions

Festival Fun

Everybody loves a day off, but Spaniards do so with incomparable ferocity. The Spanish calendar is so condensed with festivals one can almost feel it physically heavy, and when there is a celebration, the festive spirit is so palpable one can see it lurking behind every corner and escaping hot paellas in the form of steam.

Las Fallas, for example, is held annually in the streets of gorgeous Valencia. Delicious food, intense dancing and the general hustle and bustle of any celebration are the defining features of this festival as well. Or so I have heard, as I was too busy with essays and exams to actually make it to Valencia on this occasion (the upside is that I have a good excuse to come back one day). What distinguishes the festival is the collection of large paper-mache constructions and ninots (dolls) that are set on fire as the highlight of the celebration. The history of the ritual goes centuries back, but, as a lover of contemporary history, I found more interesting the origins of its transformations during the 20^th century. During the Spanish Civil War the dolls would often be very anti-clerical or charged with strong political sentiments, but the Franco era would put this to an end and silence the discontent of their creators for more than 35 years. With the restoration of democracy, however, the dolls could once again be as satirical and loud as the political circumstances at home and around the world called for.

Now let me get to a festival I actually went to – Las Fiestas del Pillar, held in the beautiful city of Zaragoza. I cannot remember the last time I have seen so many people gathered in one place! The main street was buzzing with music and laughter; street musicians from all over the world were performing on every corner and street vendors were summoning the party-goers to try the various beauties and yummies they were offering.

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Flamenco

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The main street of Zaragoza buzzing with chatter

I still find it difficult to pinpoint the highlight of the night. Would that be the concert in front of the cathedral (how often do you get to party with thousands of people in the embrace of a centuries-old gorgeous building?) or the first time I ever saw a live performance of flamenco?

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The concert in front of the cathedral

Going to the festival was also an amazing experience for me because, maybe for the first time in Spain, I truly felt at home. Long story short: I randomly ran into a group of people I knew (the feeling of which is always awesome), went to explore the city with them and got lost on the way back to my original group of friends without getting scared. Just me, a tiny human among thousands of other people I might or might not have known who, at this moment of exhilaration, felt like nothing but close friends.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 28 - Festival Fun

4 Minutes and 7 Seconds *

I feel like a bit of a cheater while completing this post, but I simply could not imagine writing the piece on any other song. While most probably it would not be considered local in the traditional sense (being deeply rooted in the local culture and history), to me it feels as Spanish as a song can be because, apart from its obvious characteristics such as lyrics in Spanish and Madrid-bred performers, every time I reminisce about my experience abroad, I find myself stupidly replaying the song in my head, as the musical background to my memories.

I heard it for the first time at an open mic show in the artistic district of Malasana. It would not be an overstretch to say that this first encounter was worthy of the attention of any cheesy Hollywood director or hopeless romantic. It was love at first sight. My flat mate (and best friend) seemed to be experiencing the same overwhelming emotions, as she would stare at the performers with an O-shaped mouth and teary eyes.

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A visual interpretation of the song, Barcelona. * “la vida sin zapatos” literally means “life without shoes”

Do you remember the typical 90s feeling of turning on the radio and waiting for your favorite song to start? The patience and overwhelming anticipation? The few blissful seconds during which the first tunes of another song would resemble yours? The disappointment that follows? The sweet moment when they actually play it?

My friend and I would go to every single open mic show and gig the bar hosted in the hope that the duet would show up. And, oh, when they would…

Should you want to give the duet a listen, find them on YouTube, SoundCloud or Spotify (where they have released their entire album).

* 4 minutes and 7 seconds is the duration of the version of the song on Spotify.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 29 - Local Songs

A Handful of Memories

Summing up an entire years worth of experience on one handprint isn’t exactly easy so I decided not to try and fit in individual experiences or places but rather give a general gist of my experiences abroad.

Languages – the whole reason I went abroad this year was to improve on my French and Spanish skills. Not only have I done this (at least I hope I have) but I have also been able to make some incredible friends from all over the world; Croatia through to Venezuela, each with their own cultures, dialects and languages. In my last month in Valencia my best friend (Croatian) had us learning how to say cheers in the languages of whoever we were drinking with.

Travel – With so much free time on Erasmus it would have been foolish to not make the most of it and explore some of the most beautiful cities in France and Spain. I got to experience the culture and dialects of different regions and see some world renowned architecture.

The Food – One of my lasting memories of my year abroad will be the food. It was so delicious and so varied that the prospect of a 4th year diet of beans on toast and jacket potatoes seems even less bearable than the workload. Pretty much all social events with my friends abroad involved food to the point where I even associate certain dishes with particular friends.

Rivers – An unusual choice I’ll admit but it wasn’t until I started making this map that I realised how much rivers feature in my memories of last year. In Tours most summer evenings were spent socialising by the river, many days paddling in it and too many hours studying in the university on its banks. In Salamanca it was pretty much the hub of all daytime socialising and in Valencia it was where we’d sit and eat or read when the journey to the beach seemed too strenuous.

Boats – Not exactly a central feature of my life abroad but one that has clearly made its mark. Two of my favourite memories from my year abroad took place in boats. The first being the day my friends and I canoed along a river in the Loire region of France and went right under Le chateau de Chenonceau. The second being the day I forgot to steer our rowing boat away from the fountain in Retiro Park and got the boat so full of water we thought we might sink.

Filed under: Uncategorized

Making Hemingway Proud

Los madrileños are very proud that beautiful words have come to life while their talented owner Hemingway wandered the streets of Madrid. Not one and two bars would try to attract customers by claiming that the famous writer once had his beer there.

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A bar with the ‘rebellious’ sign “Hemingway never ate here”

Hemingway loved Madrid not any less and would write about it with affection and warmth: “No one goes to bed in Madrid until they have killed the night.” Anyone who has ever set their foot on the soil of the Spanish capital seems to have adopted this very sentence as their life motto. After all, how can anyone question Hemingway’s brilliance and sharp eye?

Years later, going to bed in Madrid before dawn is still borderline offensive. And while it is true that its bars and clubs are among Europe’s best, Madrid’s streets are just as welcoming to the night owls.

Therefore, especially on an early Saturday morning, these same streets would be flooded with young people going back home. While many shops would be still closed, clubs would be sending off their last visitors and different food stalls and fast-food chains would be welcoming them with open arms. An obligatory stop on the way home would be, for example, the most famous churreria in Madrid, San Gines, where one could grab a few greasy, yet delicious churros and dip them in steamy chocolate.

https://dueedue.wordpress.com/2012/12/20/una-taza-de-chocolate-un-crepe-y-una-cupcake/

Of course, going to bed in the early hours of the morning would inevitably make you stumble upon curiosities and charmingly weird people. Any aspiring writer, if observant enough, could write an entire book based solely on an early Saturday morning in Madrid: loud arguments, musicians playing the guitar while surrounded by dancing people, couples singing…

How can anyone ever question the brilliance of Hemingway?

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 19 - Watch People Come & Go

Balconies, Sunsets and Stars

Most of the tasks in my Third Space box I did not even consider as such. They would find their way in my everyday life and would almost complete themselves for me. This one, however, I approached with the enthusiasm and diligence of a first grader who has just been given their first school assignment.

A few days after my adventure abroad had started, two friendly Spanish people (like there’s a different kind) offered me to join them at a botellón (social drinking in public areas, usually parks). From the very moment they invited me, I started plotting how to utilize the ‘potential of the situation’ and their localness. As the girl was an architect, however, the answer was pretty clear.

When asked what building she considered to be the most beautiful one in Madrid, she named, without a hint of hesitation, the Palace of Communications, known since 2011 as the Cybele Palace (Palacio de Cibeles). The place is definitely among the most attractive spots in the city, to tourists and locals alike, because of its central location and undisputed architectural merits.

El Palacio de Comunicaciones

However, I found the answer of the boy more charming, as it resonated more with the purely emotional reaction I have to buildings (and places in general). According to him, the most beautiful one in Madrid was the Bank of Spain (just across el Palacio de Comunicaciones, as a matter of fact) because of its… magic. He even tried to convince me that a magical river was running beneath the solid construction (Harry Potter much?), and I almost believed him. A few drinks later he admitted that he felt attached to the building because he had run twice into the girl he loved just in front of the main entrance (huge and quite impressive) of the bank.

As time passed by, I found myself able to comprise a list of my own favorite buildings in Madrid. I would start bringing the friends who were visiting me there and would show the places off with pride, as if they were tiny continents and I was their discoverer.

An incomplete list of the buildings that charmed their way into my heart:

The Metropolis and El Palacio de Comunicaciones as seen from a rooftop terrace at sunset. Especially beautiful when contemplated in the company of loved ones and falling stars.
The Building of the Writers, a beautiful sand-colored construction with floral, Gaudi-like elements. The first time I ever saw it, it was covered in purple blossoms.
Each and every building in the district of Malasana, especially the ones on whose balconies time flies by faster, and it’s always 6 am before you even know it.

Nadezhda, Madrid

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings

South Korea (and a little bit of the North!)

While not exactly in my country of exchange, if you ask anyone that met me during my time in Singapore they would be able to tell you my favourite place during my time away. I was lucky enough to visit this place just before I returned home; South Korea.

I had heard so much about it during my time in Singapore (and have shared those experiences with you on here!), I had been introduced to parts of Korean culture, as mentioned in my previous posts, had made Korean friends and had even learnt a little bit of it (only, like, two words, but it’s something!).

Now this was my chance to see if all this hype was really worth it…

To put simply, it was. I felt it had all the great aspects of Singapore: the cute culture, commitment to their studies, welcoming and friendly, but with even better food, low cost alcohol and (finally) some lower temperatures.

I travelled throughout the country over two weeks, visiting the holiday destination: Jeju Island, the coastal and second largest city: Busan and, of course, Seoul. When I look at the photos posted from other people’s travels I find them so interesting, without needing any descriptive text alongside them. I have described briefly why Korea was my favourite place during my time away and want to present it through the photos I took there, and for these to be interpreted without description.

So here is my favourite place over the last year!

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place

Fields of Gold

In July I was fortunate to spend a week wwoofing on the farm ‘l’albero che cammina’ in the Marche region of central Italy; it was one of the best weeks of my year abroad. In my mind it is a tranquil place where only the simplest of things mattered and whenever I feel stressed it is the perfect mental escape. The farm is organic and run wholly by the couple who own it, Doretta and Nello. Their two youngest daughters still live at home and the family is almost completely self-sufficient; olive oil comes from their very own olive groves and the flour for their organic bread comes from their own wheat. The plums are from the orchard and the beans from the field. The concept of wwoofing is simple, you work on a farm in exchange for food, lodging and a cultural exchange. Living with the family really opened up my eyes to not only the diversity of the traditional Italian family but also the simple pleasures of growing your own produce. My main task was harvesting that year’s onion and garlic crop – the ground was so hard that I broke the pitch fork – and I clearly remember the stab of pain that I felt when Doretta gave away to the neighbours an onion and a clove of garlic that was received with a simple ‘thanks very much’. Where was the gushing praise? The pat on the back for my hard labour? It is extremely easy to forget and not appreciate the origins of the food we consume daily.

It wasn’t just edible delicacies that the farm produced, within the garden surrounding the hill top farmhouse a variety of plants and herbs flourished. Together we picked and packed lavender into jars filled with olive oil to be left in the sun for the rest of the summer to finally become aromatic lavender oil. ‘Iperico’ (hypericum or Saint John’s wort) was picked and hung from the wooden beams to dry, the bright yellow flowers turned into an oil have soothing medicinal properties. With the help of beeswax it can also be turned into a cream (see photo above) which is excellent for damaged or dry skin. I have to say however, that my favourite task was making honey. Obviously I didn’t actually make the honey, and I wouldn’t say that blood sweat and tears went into it, but some sweat and a couple of nasty bee stings certainly did. Once the trays containing the honey had been removed from the boxes in the garden, using smoke to make the bees drowsy, and the honey comb has been gently scraped away, they are added to a large container with a handle that makes the inside spin. This motion draws the honey from the trays where it gathers at the bottom. Pop it in a jar and voila, delicious! Every time that I taste it I am taken straight back to the garden nestled below the hilltop town of Arcevia.

I made a real connection with the family and I can’t wait to go back. Let’s be honest, the scorpions in my bedroom and the toad on my front step, all of the snails, and the snakes, the wild boar roaming the woods, and those giant black things that fly at you I could probably take or leave, however, the kindness and peacefulness that I experienced there will stay with me always.

Bethan.

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place, 3 - Volunteer, 30 - Wildlife

La Lonja de la Seda

So I cheated a little on this one, in that I accidentally asked a Mexican guy rather than a local what his favourite building in the city was. I’m letting it count because I liked his reasons for choosing this building.

Juame told me that his favourite building in Valencia is the silk exchange (la lonja de la seda). His reason being that it has served so many different purposes throughout its lifetime. It was initially built to replace the old exchange due to the increasing prosperity in Valencia around the 13^th century. It was not only used as a form of stock exchange where gold and (as the name suggests) silk were traded, but also for administrative purposes. It also contained a chapel, a prison and an orange grove. It still has a close connection with trade due to its proximity to the central market (another contender for “beautiful buildings” in Valencia). Juame is my source for all this information, which made me realise just how much he admires it – perhaps he’s been asked this question before!

Juame felt that having witnessed so much within its walls it was so much more representative of Valencian history and culture than many of the other buildings for which Valencia is famous. It was still a pretty tough decision to have made considering the mass of beautiful architecture in Valencia, as he pointed out tour guides run a whole separate tour just to see the modern architecture on offer.

Lucy, Valencia

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings

Collecting Memories

It’s been a couple of months since I came back from Sydney, a couple of weeks since I’ve returned back to Edinburgh and it’s been lovely seeing friends and family from both home and university. Understandably people have been asking, “How was your year abroad?” “What was Sydney like?” and I’ve found it difficult to come up with a decent response. “It was excellent” “It’s been a brilliant year”, doesn’t seem to do it justice. But, how do you summarise an entire year?

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I’ve been attempting to collect my memories by making an album, framing postcards, adding to my planner which I filled with all the things I’d been doing day to day, but it’s strange how quickly time has past. It’s been a busy year.

Filed under: 25 - Create your own activity

Fraser Island

The land of 100+ freshwater lakes, originally created by sand and environment crashing together to establish a beautiful, green island. It was Captain Cook who discovered the island in 1770 and he would meet aboriginal locals and named them the ‘Indians’ and give the much enjoyed spot ‘Indian Head’.
fraser island from above OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA
One of the worlds largest sand island in the world, showing its growing nature in the land and sea, in animals and vegetation. There is plenty to see, from the ground and a plane from Fraser Island.

In the mid 1800s people found the great trees and decided to begin logging. They were used in the construction to rebuild the London Docks after World War II. Logging remained on Fraser until 1991 when the island was nominated for World Heritage listing.
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Around the island lingers packs of Dingoes. Dingoes are not a type of food, or tree, or flower. They are a type of wild dog, golden and fox-like. However, we were warned not to feed or even look at a dingo as they are very dangerous. They like to pick on any living ‘animal’, and have previously attacked children and small teens. Above is a photograph I took of a dingo stalking a calm fisherman – knowing he has food attracts the dingo, striding with careful confidence towards the car.
shipwreck     fraser island This fisherman stayed on the sand to not collect fish, but collect very long worms – they can grow up to 2.5m long! To catch the worms there is equipment such as; beach worming pliers, a stocking and some pilchards. This video shows you what they look like and how to catch beach worms: http://getfishing.com.au/how-to-catch-beach-worms/
Man 'chilling' (This is not how to catch beach worms, but to catch the sun in the most relaxing way)

If anyone is planning on going to Fraser Island in the future, this is a great blog to give you advice and tips on where to go and what to do on the island: http://lifeonfraserisland.blogspot.co.uk

India, Brisbane

Filed under: 30 - Wildlife

Bulls, Religion and Prostitutes – How the Spanish party.

Knowing where to start with Spanish festivals is far from easy. They are everywhere for everything and varied doesn’t quite cover it. I have been to 3 major festivals in Spain this year and I’m not including the days when the city was inexplicably overrun by people in fancy dress.
The first festival I went to was el carnaval del toro in Ciudad Rodrigo. Ciudad Rodrigo is just an hour or so from Salamanca and is known for its bull festival. I am not a fan of bull fighting and personally see bull running as plain idiocy. The day I was there three men were injured, one very seriously. Although I can understand that historically these were in some ways a necessary part of Spanish culture, nowadays for the most part they are festivals for tourists.
But aside from the very questionable ethics of bull fighting the atmosphere at this festival was still pretty incredible. A lot of the people in town, including myself, were not there for the bull fighting or running. They were there for a party and to show off some of the most creative fancy dress costumes I’ve ever seen. There were spaghetti and meatballs, lego men, snails, beer bottles and me; a giraffe in a tutu. I had seriously underestimated the scale of Spanish fancy dress.

The slow realisation that I was taking a photo.

The next festival on my list is Semana Santa. Again there was dressing up involved (this time not me) although on a far more religious scale. This is because Semana Santa is the week leading up to Easter Sunday. It involves religious processions through the town or city centre and takes place all around Spain. Each church has its own procession and each of these processions has at least two large floats (pasos); one of Jesus on the cross and one of the Virgin Mary in mourning. Some of these floats, which are created by artists, are hundreds of years old and are displayed within their “home” church in the lead up to their procession.

The processions are a pretty odd sight to see, particularly at night when it all starts to seem slightly ominous (take a look at the costumes and you’ll soon realise why). The robes worn are penitential robes or nazarenos and those walking are penitents. Some walk barefoot, with shackles or even carry a wooden cross, although in most cases they simply have a candle.

Some children walk through the processions collecting as much candle wax as they can to make a ball of wax.

Being such a historical town, Salamanca has one of the oldest celebrations in Spain with processions traced back to the 13th century. Salamanca is also original in that it follows up Semana Santa with Lunes de Agua – the final major festival I attended.
Lunes de Agua also has religious links. It dates back to the 16th century when Prince Felipe II decided that that during lent and semana santa it was important that Salamanca set a good moral example. This meant that all the prostitutes were sent from the city to live on the other side of the river under the watchful eye of a priest. Lunes de Agua is the day that the people of Salamanca traditionally welcomed the prostitutes back into the city. How moral. Nowadays the festival is celebrated with a picnic (and alcohol) down at the riverbank.

Filed under: 28 - Festival Fun

4’33”

By far one of my most precious days in France was a visit to the Chartreuse Monastery. Nestled within the Chartreuse Mountains it was breathtakingly peaceful.

The visit was led and organised by our ‘Dear Guichard’, a professor at the university who had returned from retirement to share his wisdom and sarcastic humour with the Erasmus students. Monsieur Guichard is one of those gems of higher education who really enjoys sharing knowledge and appreciates the interest of his pupils.

The original monastery was founded in 1084 by the hermit Saint Bruno and was subject to countless wars, revolution and restorations to become the Carthusian establishment that it is today. The monastery is the first ever Carthusian monastery, or ‘Charterhouse’ as they are known in the UK and its structure and organisation is quite particular. The monastery is headed by a prior and contains choir monks, also known as hermits, and lay brothers. Various rules are the same to other orders but they lead slightly different lifestyles within the monastery. Because access to the walled monastery itself is forbidden, a museum was built 2km below in 1957 inviting visitors to learn about the living quarters and lifestyle of the monks of the 900 year old ‘Order of Chartreuse’. The life of the hermit is very isolated; they live in private quarters which consist of an upstairs room where the hermits eat, sleep, meditate, pray and write, and a room downstairs with a small workshop where firewood is also kept. On this level there is a door to a small walled garden where monks may grow flowers and vegetables. They lead lives of near complete isolation and are vowed to silence. I have written this off as a future career path (I gather the life of the Carthusian nun is quite similar). The lay brothers have more practical duties and are responsible for cooking, laundry and monastery repairs, among other pious duties. Once a week, all the inhabitants take a walk in the surrounding mountains, and they share a meal in silence on Sundays.

It was humbling to see the simplicity and strictness of the lifestyle; it was serene and idyllic to look at, but as our group picnicked and chatted at the foot of the mountain as they sun beamed trough the trees I must admit I did not envy them. After a visit to the museum, there is a short walk up to the monastery itself where silence must be respected. We could only walk around the perimeter wall and up the hill above the monastery as the monks have no contact with the outside world whatsoever except for two days a year when immediate family is allowed to visit.

Standing at the top of the hill over the looking the monastery as the bells chimed, it felt good to be alive.

http://www.musee-grande-chartreuse.fr/en

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grande_Chartreuse

Bethan Evans

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings, 22 - My Favourite Place

INDAGINE SU UN CITTADINO AL DI SOPRA DI OGNI SOSPETTO – Soundtrack

A place is often so much more interesting when seen through the eyes of a local. I April I traveled to Bologna to visit a fellow Erasmus friend, and although not strictly a local he proved to be the perfect tour guide.

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In vague order of appearance:

The Sanctuary of the Madonna di San Luca, reached by the Portico di San Luca which consists of 666 arches, built to protect religious icons as they paraded up the hill.

The Palazzo dei Notai.

Basilico di San Petronio, in Piazza Maggiore.

A clock marked Banca di Roma, hanging in one of Bologna’s many porticoes, that stretch for 40km. They are now an UNESCO World Heritage Site.

The Statue of Neptune, in Piazza San Maggiore.

And finally one of the two remaining Towers of Bologna.

You may be wondering what the meaning of the post title is; it is the name of a film that I went to see on my first day in Bologna, it’s a fascinating satirical Italian crime drama with an even more fascinating sound track.

Other interesting and delicious places visited were Osteria dell’Orsa where I sampled some of Bologna finest Tortellini, and Bar Senza Nome, Italy’s first and only bar that is owned and managed by deaf people.

Had I visited Bologna without the wisdom of a local resident, I would never have discovered many of the little quirks and the true character of this historic and lively city.

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings, 12 - Favourite Foods, 19 - Watch People Come & Go, 22 - My Favourite Place

Feety Meat, Salt and Grated Tomatoes

My first impression of Spanish food was not ideal. I was at a University meet and greet evening and picked up what I thought was Serrano ham. It was in fact Iberico ham AKA feety meat. Its scent is one that has haunted me throughout my time in Salamanca and one that I made sure to enforce upon all my visitors as a “cultural experience”. Having said that Spanish food quickly became one of my favourite aspects of Spanish culture and most of my time was therefore spent eating.
An obvious choice for recreating Spanish food would be paella. However I was taught how to make this by a man who thought A HANDFUL of salt was “about right” so I’m going to leave this one until my more culinary friend (Luis) has taught me what to do.
One dish that Luis has already taught me is pan con tomate. It’s not a dish so much as a breakfast and has done what no other toast topping has ever managed to achieve; it has beaten both nutella and speculoos to the post of favourite toast topping. It is also incredibly easy to make as it is quite literally bread (usually toasted) topped with (seasoned) grated tomato. The seasoned part is important. It was in fact when Luis spotted me making unseasoned pan con tomate at work that I was swiftly given my first Spanish cookery class.
All you need for this Spanish classic is:
• A large tomato or two
• Oregano
• Olive oil
• Black pepper
• A garlic clove (for rubbing on your toast if you want to – I usually don’t bother)
• Bread for toasting
All you need to do with these ingredients is:
• Grate the tomatoes into a bowl (discard the skin)
• Add a bit of oregano, pepper and a (large in my opinion) splash of olive oil
• Put the tomato onto the toast
Apparently I made it well once I remembered to season it. I’m now a little bit ashamed that I ever got it wrong in the first place!

Filed under: Uncategorized

When the reward is worth the effort

If there is something I’ve always loved about cities is their viewpoints: that feeling of making the effort of going uphill and then being rewarded by an absolutely breath-taking view cannot be compared to anything else in the world. And luckily for me, Granada has plenty of “miradores” (viewpoints). The most popular one is the Mirador de San Nicolas, where every tourist would firstly head to, thus it is very often busy and to get a space on the wall to take a picture can really be a challenge.

The one more off the beaten-path and my favourite is the Mirador de San Miguel Alto, the highest viewpoint located on a hill. You get there after a long, steep walk, and that is probably why you will not find here such a crowd of noisy tourists trying to get their pictures.

From this mirador, you can enjoy some amazing panoramic views of the city, of the Albaicin district and its walls, the Alhambra palace, all surrounded by the Sierra Nevada mountains.

The views are spectacular all throughout the day, but especially at sunset.

On Sunday’s afternoons this place get filled with “perroflautas” (the hippie crowd) walking with their dogs looking for a quiet place to smoke a joint, and international students.

This is why I like this place: even though I had walked up there alone, I had always found friends at the top to enjoy the sunset with, and the thoughts in our minds were all the same: “What a lucky person I am to spend my year abroad in such a lovely city!”

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: Uncategorized

Dancing like a true Brit

My first go at a dance class in Spain was almost enough to put me off dancing for good. Long story short zumba is not for me. It was with great scepticism then that the following night I ventured back to the same club with the same teacher, this time for a salsa class. 6 Months on and I still think this was the best decision of my year abroad.

Salsa originally comes from Cuba and incorporates various music and latin dance styles of which I can remember 3; el basico (salsa), merengue and bachata. I should most definitely know more than this (and my definition of salsa may be a little off) but I was always too busy keeping up with my partner and trying not to fall to pay attention to all the words Julian (my teacher) was saying.

The first one is your basic salsa step (as I understand it) and this one I can actually do with the slightest amount of skill and that’s including the spins, something I’m rather proud of I must admit.

Then there is merengue. I don’t truly know how to describe (or do) this one and my general solution is to kind of jog on the spot slowly (or quickly if the music is fast) and hope I blend in sufficiently with the people who actually know what they’re doing. You may then wonder why I would actually enjoy merengue but it is in fact one of my favourite salsa steps, perhaps it’s because this dance always made the foreign lot stand out quite distinctly from the locals.

Last and most definitely my least favourite comes bachata. All I have to say for this one is that it hurts my legs, hips and ankles and I have definitely given up trying. My first experience of this one was when my Chilean dance partner, Adrián, thrust his knee between my legs and started dancing with his knees very, very bent between mine so that he could bring his 6’ 4” height down to my level. This brought out the awkward Brit in me and without me even realising I apparently stood up straight and stepped back looking horrified. Once Adrián had reassured me that it was “easy” and that I just needed to practise I gave it another go and learnt that the dance also requires my knee to be between his legs and so I developed a (slightly irrational) fear of kneeing him in the balls. Fortunately bachata does not come into my favourite dance of them all, la rueda de casino, and so hasn’t totally ruined the salsa experience for me.

Now onto la rueda. This one is a sort of dance sequence incorporating both la rumba and merengue (along with all the others that I can’t remember the names for). It translates as wheel or circle and is danced in a circle with multiple partners. It is absolute chaos, especially for those of us with no natural dancing ability, and is the perfect dance in which to mask my merengue jog. The best thing about it though is that you can escape the really bad dance partners with great ease and zero awkwardness.

However, salsa is not without its faults as it does in fact come with a side helping of sexism. For example el principe malo, a move in which the female partner essentially gets slapped (albeit lightly) for “bad behaviour”. There was no reciprocal move for the girls to slap the guys and all us girls in the class were a little sour about this. There was also the guy who felt the need to shake and laugh at my bingo wings, I hadn’t even realised I have bingo wings! Needless to say that from then on I had issues avoiding his toes.

Despite the downsides though I was still sad to part from my twice-weekly class at the end of four months. I haven’t totally stopped salsa though and have since braved many a salsa night and survived! One partner (rather dishonestly) went so far as to say that I actually dance quite well!

Lucy Hibbitt, Salamanca.

Filed under: 1 - Twinkle Toes

La Vieille Bourse

A spot just off the main square- the Grand Place- in Lille was one of the places I’d always want to have a wander if I was anywhere near the vicinity.

Grand Place 14-09-2014 2

La Vieille Bourse is the old stock exchange, turned marketplace set up in a square, surrounded by beautiful buildings. What I loved most about it was that it was almost secret. Tucked away from the busiest square in Lille, I stumbled upon it one day. You enter through an unmarked door in one of the buildings off the Grand Place (shown below) and get to enjoy what I imagine France was like back in the day.

Thousands of old books, magazines, comic books, posters, paintings and bric-a-brac all within the small square. But my favourite pieces on sale were the old, used postcards. Organised in the stall by the place they were sent from, I love how they tell a tiny little bit about the life of the person who wrote them. I probably spent far too long immersed in the little stories- most of them talked about the weather and sent their kisses to their families and loved ones.

Grand Place 14-09-2014 3 Grand Place 14-09-2014 4

In the middle of the square, there was often a group of men playing chess with their obligatory coffee accompaniments. It was a nice atmosphere. You could join in to watch, secretly bet on the team you wanted to win and easily make a friend for a couple of minutes by cheering when someone made a successful move, and then wander back out into the hustle and bustle of the Grand Place. 20150521_160251354_iOS 1

Now that I’m back in Scotland, I wish we places like that. But maybe it would take away from the magic if they could be found everywhere…

– Gina, Lille

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place

Listening to Stories

Volunteering at the museum I frequently met new people and listened to their stories, but one gentleman in particular stands out. He brought the ‘Toys Through Time’ exhibition to life through his own experiences and memories. We walked through the whole gallery together and he told me about the toys he recognised and what he remembered of them in his own childhood or, as the exhibition went on, in that of his children’s. His name was Paul and while I never asked his age, he had been happily retired for several years.

One of the first doll’s he remembered was given to him and his sister by their grandmother. He was always warned to be very careful with it as it was a traditional porcelain figure. He said this doll stood for years on the top of their wardrobe and was not to be touched. I’m not sure how much he personally liked the doll but it reminded him of an old expression they used to say at the dinner table. When they had finished their dinner they would often say that they were “full up to dolly’s wax”- the wax used at the point where the neck joined to the body. While now we would say something like “I’m full to the brim”, it was funny to see how such expressions have changed with the trends of the time.

Another toy he remembered fondly, like I’m sure many of us would, was the Monopoly set. Interestingly, he learnt about the city of London through this game and many years later, when he had the chance to visit, made it part of his plan to visit all the places he recalled from the board. He only failed to make it to one of the tube stations.

From his children’s childhood he looked towards the old soap box cart which was suspended from the ceiling. Every year he and his son used to build a car for the race, most years they painted the car a royal blue colour but he admitted, they never really came close to winning the race.

I really enjoyed walking around the exhibition with Paul as most of the toys brought up a little anecdote or story. It was lovely because these toys often had a generational character or meaning, like the toy passed down from their grandmother, or even the act of soap box racing which isn’t as popular any more. As much as they were individual stories, many other people had similar memories. These toys showed a commonality between different families and provided a sense of sentimentality for the visitors to the museum.

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories

A Year On: A Magical Portrait of Montreal

It is exactly one year to this day that I left for Montreal.

Before I left the grey skies of Edinburgh and flew into Canada, I had an imaginery picture of what I thought Montreal would look like.

After spending a year in that fantastic city, I am still in awe at its magical aura. For me, at that time, it was the place of dreams.

I wish to describe my Montreal – this fantastical place which seems to me, upon reflection, a truly magical and imaginary place, but which is infact a truly real city. The memories of it will live on in me, forever coming to fruitition when I least expect them to.

The steps to Mont-Royal and wooden beams,

The crevice where you place your foot

The view of the skyscrapers; glinting silver, gold, aluminium, crystal

The chateau at the top, where fictional princesses lay their heads

The green trees around, the squirrels, acorns and leaves

The depanneurs, corner shops and bakeries

Each with their own stash of French news papers and croissants.

The Tim Hortons cups,

Which lay crumpled in the snow,

The coffee stains a pleasant reminder of warmth.

The sound of Tam Tam drums,

The boom boom beat in your chest

The boom boom of pulses.

The “ouis”, “nons” and the occasional “trop nice!”

The flutter of tourists on Saint Catz

The clip clop of feet and hooves at Old Port.

The swish of ice skatings on lakes,

The squelch of mud between toes

The crumple of girls’ hair, frozen and stiff.

The many seasons that permeated the year

Filling my calendar with colours, smells and temperates

From minus twenty five, to plus thirty —

I loved it all.

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

Embracing my creativity

One of my aims for Third Space, and the Edinburgh award, was to be more creative, and personalising my box was a great opportunity for me to put this into action!

Normally, I don’t think of myself as creative at all. I was always rubbish arty things and stayed safely in my science background. During my decorations, I realised that I actually really enjoy decorating and embracing the creativity I never thought I had. And after seeing the end result, I’m really impressed with myself that I managed to think up the ideas and then display th em on my box!

So I’ll talk you through how I’ve chosen to personalise my box…

At the top is a logo which represents the university I studied with, Chimie Lille. It was more than just studying chemistry abroad though! About 80 % of my friends were from the school and I enjoyed so many memories with them that it had to be included!

The small circular sticker beside Chimie Lille is from a tour company, Cice Voyages, who specialises in short day or weekend trips to nearby places- primarily for people studying at my campus. It was ideal for me and the people I went with- all we needed to explore was the transport! I went to so many cool places with Cice Voyages- Luxembourg, Amsterdam, Mont Saint Michel and Cologne just to name a few! I also wrote all the places I’d visited on my year abroad around the sides of the box, so I’ll be able to just look at my box and all the memories will come flooding back!

Frogs and snails are also featured on my box to show how proud I am to have eaten them both! Before leaving for France, I set myself a goal that I would try them both and I’m so glad I did! The frog’s legs were like chicken like everybody says and the snails weren’t bad at all! I preferred them to the mussels I also tried in Lille! Although their texture was a bit funny, the snails were cooked in a garlic sauce and were pretty tasty! J

Most of the nights out me and my friends had in Lille revolved around the Latina Café, a Latin-American Club, so that also had to be included! Shakira and Enrique Iglesias playing all night- what more could you ask for?!

The little Scotland flag on the map of France on the left hand side of my box indicates where Lille is in the country, and how I didn’t just experience French culture- I also brought my culture to them!

In the bottom left-hand corner was one of my favourite places in Lille- Méert. It is honestly the best cake shop ever. It was such a big part of my time in Lille (because cake always should be). I took my mum when she visited, met my boyfriend’s parents there and I had a nice farewell with some of the girls before I left. I’ve written about it in my Local Traditions blog, so if you want to see some of the fab cakes, had a read. Seriously. Go and look- they’re amazing.

And finally, the tiny little sticker above the Méert logo. It says “Enjoy every moment”. That was one of the things I tried to do all the time when I was there and because of that I had the best time!

Filed under: 14 - Personalise Your Box

Waitangi Day

Waitangi Day is a public holiday in New Zealand held to celebrate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi between the native Maori and European people. Every year on the 6th of February a huge celebration takes place and the main spot is on Waitangi grounds, a few kilometers away from the Bay of Islands, where I was celebrating my birthday a few days beforehand.

I ended up joining the local Maoris for the Waitangi day dawn ceremony at 6 am(!!). Around mid-day different Maori tribes paddled their Waka boats around the peninsula and later came out of the water to dance their traditional Haka.

Massive number of Maoris dancing looked incredible!

There was also a fair held in a park in Waitangi with different Maori crafts and foods present. Interestingly, the whole town felt different that day. It was full of compassionate and strong cultural background-having Maoris.

Waitangi day was quite an experience! If I did not end up joining my Maori friends, I would have not learned all about the strong Maori culture hidden somewhere in the developed and westernized New Zealand.

Filed under: 28 - Festival Fun

Becoming a “regular”

All sorts of interesting things happen when one travels alone. While touring around New Zealand I got a chance to meet a native Maori guy, named Tone, who kindly offered me a place to stay when I was in trouble. I stayed with him and kept him company for around a week. He’d take me wherever he went: to the shop, restaurants, the beach, etc. I got a chance to meet all of his friends and in a week all of them already knew me.

Every Thursday and Sunday nights Tone and his friend played guitars and sang in the local bar. I was there, too, enjoying the music and hanging out with new friends. It was so strange but nice to start feeling local in a place that I first came to a week ago.

Tone and Rei Rei playing at the bar:

Filed under: 9 - Local Traditions

Dogs and Ponies in Germany

I imagine it would be very difficult, if not impossible, to travel anywhere in Europe, or the world, and not find a love of animals in some form. German pubs, cafes and even shops are extremely accommodating when it comes to dogs and, thanks to that, they are everywhere on a sunny day in Heidelberg – dozing in the shade, swimming in the Neckar, speeding past in bike baskets if they’re too small to make it up the Haupstraße in the heat.

During my time on a farm in Lower Saxony taking care of the four dogs was one of my main responsibilities. The most memorable were a lurcher rescued from Nottingham, named Duke after the ‘famous Duke of Nottingham’ (I think they meant Sheriff but I didn’t have the heart to tell them!), and Semmel, a diabetic dachshund/terrier who wasn’t much use around the farm but who was spoilt rotten and is an indispensable member of the family. The countryside surrounding the farm is perfect for long walks or bike rides with the dogs, if shockingly flat compared to what I’m used to in the north of England!

The farm was primarily a horse ranch, which are extremely popular in northern Germany. With seventeen horses and two donkeys there was never a shortage of things to be done, but the work was never tedious and it always felt worth doing. Bringing the horses in to a nice clean stable in the evening became a very satisfying feeling! There were also plenty of opportunities to go out riding, and this fellow quickly became a favourite:

Amy Ainsworth – Heidelberg, Germany

Filed under: 23 - Pets

Major feels

“Before you go, write a postcard to yourself describing your thoughts/feelings about your upcoming trip. When you receive it, think about how it makes you feel.”

This seemingly simple task caused me to experience three stages of major feels… One the day before I left. One when I read the postcard back to myself in my little room in the halls in Lille. And one right now, exactly one year to the day (crazy right?!) after arriving in Lille.

Before I left

Typically people say they were terrified before leaving to embark on their year abroad. I wasn’t when I wrote the postcard the day before I left. That terror came later when I actually arrived in Lille and I realised how helpless I was in a country where I barely spoke the language. But the day before leaving, I was more devastated to be honest. I had just had the “best” summer, working the Fringe, meeting loads of people and partying until 9am every morning. Moving to Lille meant I was leaving all the fun and all my friends, new and old, behind.

During the Fringe, YOFO was the work motto: “You only Fringe once… unless you did it last year”. Naturally, that made it into the postcard I wrote to Future Gina, only changed to YOLO: “You only Lille once!” (awards on originality welcome).

In Lille

Reading the postcard in Lille set off a whole different set of emotions. Pride was the main one I experienced. I was living in a different country, having explored so much already (only half way into the year) and was having the time of my life! I’d gone there totally by myself, left everyone I knew behind (although I didn’t want to) and made an amazing new bunch of friends. I’d done my Lille-YOLO proud.

It also made me realise how much more amazing Lille had been than the Fringe! It was tougher, for sure, particularly with my still-terrible French, but it was so much more rewarding. I’d made friends with some majorly cool people all by myself (no other native English speakers to help me along) and I’d already visited so many new places by the time I’d received the postcard, and had so many more adventures planned for the coming months!

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Those adventures were to keep me going though; mainly to avoid homesickness and experiencing any FOMO (fear of missing out) from all the Edinburgh events I would have been attending if I’d still been living there. I did have a little cry about missing my hometown- the beaut picture on my postcard didn’t help- but I knew how much I loved Lille and all the people in it. I didn’t even want to think that soon my time in Lille would be just like the Fringe- just a memory.

Today

Very sentimental. A couple tears. But so many smiles. I didn’t want to acknowledge that my year abroad would, at some point, be just a memory. But seriously, what a fantastic one it is.

Thank you Lille, you were amazing. 20150826_140353000_iOS

Filed under: 13 - Write a Postcard

Husky Lady

Once on a bus I met a lady who was in love with dogs, especially huskies. She was telling me about how she rescues huskies that people throw away (as huskies have a bit of a wild temperament), takes care of them and finds new homes, and how she works as a dog-nanny taking care of people’s dogs when they go away for holidays. At the end of our bus ride husky lady invited me to visit her at her home.

While cycling around New Zealand I was just riding not too far from her house so I called and went to visit her. And that’s what I found:

The house of huskies! All the furniture in the house, maybe except from the dining table, was occupied by dogs. At that point there were 8 dogs staying with her, some of which were her’s and some were just rescued. All dogs got along pretty well so could hang out together.

Lady was telling me that she spends more money to take care of the dogs than she actually earns from rescuing them. However, she loves to live surrounded by huskies thus she would never give up on the job. She’d rather have a couple of small jobs on the side to earn money for living and still have a group of huskies waiting for her at home. I found the husky lady very inspiring in how she finds the joy in small things of life.

Filed under: 23 - Pets

Volunteering at the Elizabeth Knox care home & hospital

After spending the whole first semester and New Zealand summer travelling, meeting new people and enjoying myself I felt a need to devote some of my free time during the second semester for giving back to the community which so kindly welcomed me in the first place. After a bit of research I e-mailed a couple of volunteering organisations asking whether they would like an extra pair of hands.

Elizabeth Knox care home & hospital caught my attention instantly and were also the first ones to answer my inquiry. Knox is well-known for their alternative way of running the care home. Their principles involve but are not limited to the companionship to combat the loneliness, opportunities to give and receive care which fight the feeling of helplessness, and an environment providing a regular contact with animals, plants and children. The first time I entered the building I saw a cat passing me by, a group of elders playing Bingo and another group of them solving a crossword on a massive board in front of them. A number of young volunteers were wondering around the building, chatting to the residents or going with them for a walk. I liked what I saw.

After an informal interview I was welcomed to the volunteer team. Every other week I spent a couple of hours helping out in the Physio room which was always full of residents ready to start their day with some exercise. Other weeks I would come to the volunteer training sessions which focused on communication, story-telling and other social skills needed in a volunteer role. Besides meeting a lot of volunteers I got a chance to build stronger relationships with a few elder residents who I came back to and spent an hour chatting every time I went to Knox.

At the end of my stay in New Zealand and Knox I got a chance to volunteer and contribute to a ‘Gardens of Knowledge’ project at Knox. Together with other volunteers, City of Auckland Council members, young scouts and a group of girls from a nearby school we created a vegetable garden for the elderly residents in Knox care home.

It was such a great feeling working together with a group of very diverse people I just met and implementing such a wonderful idea. The residents (even those in wheelchairs) will be able to pick and taste whatever vegetables, herbs or berries they like from the garden and will still feel connected to the nature even while living at Knox.

So here it is, my short volunteering experience in New Zealand:).

Filed under: 3 - Volunteer

Tongan rhythms

During the mid-semester break a group of us decided to leave New Zealand and visit one of the Pacific Islands, the Kingdom of Tonga. Besides its exotic nature I got really interested in the lifestyle of native Tongan people, especially their taste for music.

Each of the locals who was driving us around the island had a CD of ‘Tongan Remixes’ in his car. Remixes made up of 2 or 3 other well-know and popular (mainly American) songs were apparently the top choice for local Tongans. Indeed, the rhythms played by DJ Noiz, DJ Sake and Dj Eddie were easy to listen and would instantly set you up for a good start of the day. We could hear DJ Noiz in the shops, restaurants or in the backyards and every morning would sit in the local’s car and sing together the local tunes.

Here is a link to a sample remix created by DJ Noiz:

Filed under: 2 - Top of the Pops!

Getting to know the regulars

During my second semester in Adelaide I worked as a waitress in a small cafe called Oreo Cafe. My shift was every Thursday and Friday. After few weeks I noticed I was recognising the majority of our customers. Usually they were people living or working close by and coming to the cafe every week at the same time. Before I left Adelaide I felt like I got to know quite a few of them.

The old man and his granddaughter:

They are coming every Thursday morning. The old man always orders two slices of banana bread with strawberry jam and a cappuccino and his granddaughter a hot chocolate. The grandpa lives just 5 minutes walk from our cafe. His granddaughter stays with her boyfriend in a different suburb but comes for a visit every week. He is retired now for quite a few years and is enjoying his rest. She is working in an office and thinking about settling down, getting married and having kids. They look really happy to meet once a week and talk about everything and nothing.

The cute old lady and her handmade toys:

This lady is probably our oldest regular customer. She is on a wheelchair and we always have to help her to get in and sit by the same table. Despite her age and limited mobility she is also one of our most smiling and active customers. She is not coming every week but at least once in a fortnight. She is coming alone but never staying alone for too long. Usually she sits by her favourite table, orders a coffee and a ball of chips or soup and starts talking to everyone around. The most excited she gets when she can start talking about her passion – producing homemade toys. They are made of wood, colourful beads, cotton etc. Probably her favourites are teddy bears. She always has a few with her to show them to anyone interested and explain how to make them.

The business man:

His name is John and he comes every single day for lunch. In contrast with the majority of regulars, he does not order the same thing every time. He likes to try everything we can offer and cook for him. He used to be a manager of Coles (Australian supermarket) 20 minutes far away until few months ago. Now, however, he is a manager for a Coles just one minute away from our cafe. He is slowly getting used to the new place and people. He also started making friends with other regulars of Oreo Cafe he meets every day during his lunch break

The group of old friends:

These four come almost every Thursday and Friday. Red head woman, her silent husband, chatty big man and blond skinny woman seem to be friends since forever. I have never asked how they met but sometimes they mention memories from childhood so they must know each other for ages. They drink a tea, big cappuccino, small cappuccino and late. I never have to ask who wants which one because it is always the same. I also bring two extra sugars as they always want. They have so much to tell each other each time despite they meet so often. Also there is a gossip going around that the red head is in love with the big man and that is why her husband always looks so grumpy. Who knows whether it is true or not. I will definitely never ask about this!

It has been really interesting to get to know all these people and others that were coming to the cafe. Until my waitress job I was mainly talking to people of my age at the university, few professors and the family I lived with. Now I have met the true locals of all kind. I know exactly what they drink and eat. I have listened to stories about their families, jobs and holidays. Although I have not met the majority of them outside of the Oreo Cafe it really feels like that we are friends.

Filed under: 9 - Local Traditions

Magic Portrait

I was thinking about what makes living abroad different from just visiting, and personally a big part of that is celebrating different occasions, and more importantly having people to celebrate these events with. I have therefore attached photos from Christmas, New Years’, Birthdays’ and Easter, exaggerated because they condense a year of living in Sydney and show the people I have met and how we translated our own traditions or altered them in a new place.

New Years

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

Go Team!

Bulldogs

Like at home, sport is a big part of Australian culture. AFL, Cricket and Rugby League are some of the most popular games to support. Origin games between New South Wales and Queensland are big events in the sporting calendar, and AFL games frequently take over the Eastern Suburbs in Sydney, which is coincidentally where my university is.

At home, I have no real affiliation to any team, however this year I have followed a local Sydney team called the Blacktown Bulldogs. I started watching their Rugby League matches because a close friend and her family support this team religiously. After watching a game at their house, I was invited to watch a game at the Olympic Stadium. Interestingly, one side of her family, her dad’s side, supports the Bulldogs, while her mum supports the Penrith Panthers, and it was these two teams that were playing. Both local Sydney teams, it made for a really interesting night. It was particularly rowdy in the stadium because these were the two top rivalling home teams. The stadium was full of families and some extremely dedicated fans with every piece of merchandise.

The game itself was incredibly close but the Panthers won in the end. I really enjoyed the evening and seeing the local rather than regional teams compete was quite different. Though I have to admit the NRL rules had to be explained to me more than once.

Filed under: 20 - Go Team!

Magic Portrait – Fairy tale Germany

Amy Ainsworth – Heidelberg, Germany

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

The Palace of the Arabian Nights

If you asked any local person what they think it is the most beautiful building in Granada, you would get one reply only, and that is the “Alhambra”.

Built in the mid-14th century, the Alhambra is the red fortress which sits on the hill overlooking Granada and consists of gardens, fortifications and sumptuous palaces. The name comes from the Arabic words “qa’lat al-Hamra”, meaning “red castle”, referring to the dusty red stone that was used to build the thick walls around the castle.

Once the residence of the Muslim rulers and their court, the Alhambra is now one of Spain’s major tourist attractions and a prime example of the country’s Moorish heritage. Now we’ll skip the rest of the boring historical part (which you can find on Wikipedia if interested), and go directly to a short description of the palace.

First of all, just to make things clear, have a look at this map that shows the layout of the entire site.

There are mainly three parts to the Alhambra:

The ornate Nazrid Palace, with the Palacio de los Leones being its most striking feature. This is a beautiful courtyard where water trickles from the mouths of 12 marble lions. The Quran depicts the idea of Heaven being a marvelous garden with running water and, from this perspective, we could say the Alhambra is the attempt of the Moors to recreate that Heaven on earth.
The Alcazaba (the battlement): this is truest “castle part” of the Alhambra which dominates the city from the top of the hill. Many of the buildings have been destroyed, but there are two towers to climb and from there you can view a panorama of all Granada and its surroundings, including amazing views of Sierra Nevada.
The Generalife (“the garden of the architect”): originally it was an architect’s house that later passed to the Kings and was remodeled as a location that served as a retreat for the sultans when they were off-duty. To escape the heat of Andalucian summers, the sultans and their wives would flock to the shady patios and lush gardens surrounding the villa.

As you can see from the pictures, ceilings, walls, floors and every tiny bit of the Alhambra is covered with beautiful carvings, rich plasterwork, wooden frames and marvelous tiles.

Unfortunately pictures are not enough to recreate that feeling, but believe me when I say that this is the most evocative palace I’ve ever visited in my life so far. The entire building has a magical feeling to it and feels like a creation from an Arabic fairytale brought to life.

These certainly are the moments that make you think that you were born in the wrong historic period…

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings

Research institute, the beautiful building in Adelaide

Adelaide does not have any major beautiful building that everyone would know and tourists would come to take a picture of it. In my opinion, the beauty of Adelaide consists of all the buildings and landscape interacting together and creating the overall picture. Therefore, if you ask locals what the most beautiful building in Adelaide is, the answers are not straight forward like in some other cities. Everyone has different favourite places and favourite buildings usually based on their memories and experiences. I asked a friend from my genetics class, Anne, what her favourite building in Adelaide is. Her answer was South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute (SAHMRI). After listening to her, doing a bit of reading and looking at the institute from closer, I understand why she chose SAHMRI as her beautiful building.

“As a scientist I might be slightly biased choosing research institute. However, I will try to persuade you that SAHMRI really is a beautiful building”, Anne started her explanation. SAHMRI is a publicly funded, independent science facility in Adelaide. It was founded in 2008, when the government of South Australia, of which Adelaide is the capital, committed $200 million Australian to developing a world-class health and medical laboratory that will attract scientists from all over the world. Nowadays, the institute houses nine research modules and up to 700 scientists searching for ways to innovate and improve health services. Furthermore, it was designed by Woods Bagot with the aim to become an architectural icon of Adelaide.

The institute is located in the centre of the city on the west side of North Terrace. Therefore, it creates important part of the picture of Adelaide as seen by tourists as well as locals. “The two of us see it every week day on the way to uni and everyone else coming to the centre will pass around it,” added Anne. It is a high building that with the rest of the centre overlooks the rest of the city that usually consists of one or two storey houses. At the same time it neighbours Adelaide’s river Torrens and parklands. The architects, therefore, tried to design the building so that it connects the natural part of the city with busy centre. As a result, its overall appearance differs from any other construction in the city and makes it unique.

The whole building has diamond shape and is lifted up the ground. This provides shaded space underneath for public and creates a gateway between downtown and the river. Probably the most interesting feature of the building is partially transparent grid facade that unifies the whole object. “According to locals it looks like a shiny pine cone which also became SAHMRI’s nickname.” From some angles the colourful interior can be seen through the facade. Other windows are, however, shaded. This looks interesting from outside but there is also a very good practical reason for that. Every window is shaded exactly in a way to maintain the best possible light and temperature in the whole building.

Another environmentally friendly aspect of SAHMRI is its air conditioning system: It takes advantage of the open space under the building and pulls in cool air from below and vents warmer air out the top. The whole building is thus saving energy and is more sustainable. “I heard that the architects said the building is a research experiment itself,” notes Anne.

“The interior is very modern and also beautiful and interesting. Unfortunately, many places are not open to public. I am lucky to work on a research project there as a part of my degree so I could see these parts as well,” says Anne.

“There is one more thing I find worth mentioning. You can make a donation by buying one of the SAHMRI’s windows!”, noted Anne. By buying a window you can give money on research and help scientists with their effort. The motto of the campaign is: “Together, we can – and will – make a difference. One window at a time!“

In summary, Anne definitely showed me that SAHMRI is a beautiful building. It might be a bit unusual and it took me a while to get used to it standing at the border of parklands and the city. Nevertheless, after learning a bit more about it I really started liking it. So what do you think? Is SAHMRI a beautiful building?

(Due to inaccessibility of many part of the building I decided to use photos from The Journal of the American Institute of Architects. Thank you for the beautiful pictures!)

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings

The People I’ve Met

Rather than listing the people I’ve met this year, I thought I’d choose to write about one person who was particularly memorable. Her name is Casey and while I only lived with her for a couple of weeks, she was an incredible person to get to know. Unbelievably confident and kind, she had this ability to engage a room full of people without even trying. But as well as being a lovely person, she also has a particularly interesting job. She works for the Aurora Project; an international scholarship programme which supports indigenous education.

Through her position, she organises international tours of the top universities around the world indigenous students and is heavily involved in the selection process for the scholarships. Speaking to her about this six week trip highlighted the discrepancies in the Australian education system that I hadn’t fully realised. It also showed how important recognition for these students still remains.

These social differences have also been pointed out by other people writing in this blog, but meeting Casey was a moment which contextualised them more clearly for me. It also changed and reinforced ideas that I have come to understand from visiting the Cultural Centre in the Uluru National Park, and learning about the treatment of Indigenous People at university. There still remains a divide and that’s something I have definitely learnt during my time away.

A shocking statistic that I discovered when visiting Uluru- Kata Tjuta National Park is that the only 3% of the National Park entrance fee goes back into the conservation of the park and the surrounding communities, the rest is taken by the Australian Government. In many respects this is reflective of the wider issues in contemporary Australia.

To read further about the project: http://www.auroraproject.com.au/

Filed under: 27 - Everyone You Meet

Gotham City

For my final Third Space post, I asked my friend Sultan what he thinks is the most beautiful building in Singapore. His favourite building is Parkview Square, or as locals like to call it, “Gotham City”, because its architectural style resembles that of Gotham City in Batman.

Parkview Square is located close to Arab street, Sultan Mosque and Kampong Glam, and is one of the most expensive office buildings in Singapore. Sultan likes it because it stands out from the surroundings due to its elaborate and flamboyant design. The building captures the essence of Singapore as a Chinese-oriented trading port. It is tiled with modern-art-Chinese “mandala” as its building design, and a big golden crane sits in the center of the courtyard leading to the entrance of the building.

The golden crane is said to point towards mainland China and is accompanied by an engraved Chinese poem, describing the crane’s long journey back to its temple.

The sides of the courtyard feature bronze statues of renowned thinkers, politicians and artists, such as Newton, Dali and Churchill among others. Characters from Greek mythology, notably the Titan Atlas carrying the world on his shoulders, are also displayed. It is this fusion of Eastern and Western elements that appeals the most to Sultan.

Statues of Sun Yat-Sen, Churchill, Lincoln and Plato.

The interior of “Gotham” is even more impressive because of the elaborate ornamentation of the ceiling, the art deco bronze balconies and the classy atmosphere. Situated in the lobby of the building is a café and wine bar that has a “Gatsby” flair to it, as Sultan describes it.

The breathtaking lobby.

For Sultan, this is the perfect place to dress vintage, sink into deep leather armchairs and sip away a drink (or two) all whilst absorbing the grandeur of the space. Entering Parkview Square is like an escape into a different world, a mythical paradise even, amidst the bustling town area.

East meets West: Orchids, the national flower of Singapore, in a European Art Deco setting. The wine bottles are taken from the 3-storey-high cellar by a female bartender in a fairy costume lifted up by a flying wire apparatus.

Nora, Singapore

Filed under: 11 - Beautiful Buildings

Ned Kelly – a criminal or hero? Meet the Australian Robin Hood!

Every country has its legends and stories. People enjoy telling them and listening to them because they explain what they otherwise cannot understand, give them hope, educate them, entertain them. Some of them are purely fictional, others are based on a true story but might more or less change after being transmitted through too many story tellers. I have heard one such Australian legend when I was visiting Melbourne. As some of you might have already guessed it is about the most famous Australian bushranger and bandit Ned Kelly.

Edward ‘Ned’ Kelly was born in June 1855 as the first-born son of an Irish Catholic couple. His father, John ‘Red’ Kelly, was an ex-convict (transported from Ireland for the theft of two pigs). After his sentence expired he married eighteen years old Ellen Quinn. The Kellys settled in the Victorian ranges north of Melbourne and had five daughters and three sons.

Ned’s father died when Ned was only nine years old and since then Ned had to stop studying, was often in conflicts with police and was arrested many times. He was mainly accused from stealing cattle and horses. People still debate about which of the crimes he really committed and which he was just accused from because his family was not favoured by police officers. This probably never has been and never will be known with certainty. The real troubles started after so called Fitzpatrick incident. Although Constable Fitzpatrick was warned to stay away from Kellys, he decided to arrest Ned’s brother Dan that had just returned home from prison. It is said that he was quite drunk when he came to Kellys’ hut and assaulted Kate, Ned’s older sister. Ellen Kelly shot Fitzpatrick in the wrist to protect Kate but because she wanted to avoid any repercussions, tended Fitzpatrick’s wounds, fed him, gave him something to drink and sent him on his way, with an understanding that no more would be said. Nevertheless, Fitzpatrick testified he was attacked by Kellys and their sympathisers and shot at three times by Ned (who was probably not even present during the whole incident). After that Ned’s mother was sentenced to prison for three years with a breast feeding baby. Ned and Dan went into hiding in the Wombat Ranges and were soon joined by their mates Joe Byrne and Steve Hart. The foursome became known as the Kelly Gang. The gang did not try to break into the jail to rescue Ned’s mother as expected, instead they offered an ultimatum to the government which started a real war:

“…to give those people who are suffering innocence, justice and liberty. if not I will be compelled to show some colonial stratagems which will open the eyes of not only the Victoria Police and inhabitants but also the whole British Army…”

Consequently, the Kelly Gang committed two large-scale bank robberies to support themselves and to help their supporters and the poor. Therefore, many say Ned was an Australian Robin Hood. The police were determined to hunt down the Kelly Gang. In October 1878 a party of four fully armed police were sent out to find them. The Gang, however, surprised them at Stringybark Creek and three policemen were killed which even increased the price set on Ned’s head.

After more bank robberies, in 1880 the Gang took 60 hostages in the Glenrowan Inn and planned to negotiate the release of Ned’s mother Ellen and others jailed after the Fitzpatrick incident. 46 policemen arrived, surrounded the Glenrowan Inn and fired at the Kelly Gang for seven hours. Although all four were wearing homemade metal armour; Dan, Joe and Steve were killed. Ned was shot into both unprotected legs and arrested.

Ned was imprisoned in the Melbourne Gaol in order to recover. There he wrote a long letter to the authorities demonstrating the discrimination against poor Irish settlers. Then he was trialled and despite public protests sentenced to death. On his sentencing Ned reacted with famous words: “The day will come when we will all have to go to a bigger court than this.”

Ned Kelly died by hanging on 11th November 1880 at Melbourne Gaol. His last words “Such is life” as well as legends about his life became immortal.

Many years have passed but people did not forget Ned Kelly and his Gang. The criminal hated by police and authorities became one of Australia’s greatest folk heroes. His story inspired painters, writers, musicians and filmmakers. Therefore, for those interested in Ned Kelly’s Gang, or better say more or less real stories about it, there are plenty of resources to follow!

Photo of Ned Kelly taken the day before his execution

Filed under: 10 - Listen to Stories

The street art scene in Granada

First of all, I must thank Vida for inspiring me with her entry about street art in her host city. While reading it, I realized that Granada too has a hidden street art scene.

The most famous street artist is definitely Raúl Ruiz, better known as “El Niño de las Pinturas”. His works are recognizable for having bright colours and highly stylized lettering that spells out witty aphorisms: examples are “Cansado de no encontrar respuestas, decidí cambiar mis preguntas.” (Tired of not finding answers, I decided to change my questions), or “¿Cuánta agua tiene que caer para admitir que está lloviendo?” (How much water should fall to admit that it is raining?)

The biggest concentration of these murals are found in the Realejo, the Jewish neighbourhood of the city, especially on the way down from Calle Molinos to Calle Vistillas de los Angeles.

I must say that Spain seems to have a vibrant street art reputation: almost every city, in particular Barcelona, Sevilla and Granada, has its fair share of graffiti. This might make you think that authorities turn a blind eye to it, but actually it is illegal and they can impose fines up to €3,000 if the street artist is caught.

Like in many other countries, the city council has created spaces (an underground car park) where artists can paint legally, but this doesn’t seem to be an attractive solution for the street artists who say the subversive quality of their art is ruined when put in a “legal spot”.

I honestly think we must differentiate between the so called “street art” and what instead is meaningless vandalism: we can certainly do without the latter, while many of the graffitis around cities are worth of being exposed at an exhibition. I love how they brightens up places which would otherwise be grey and dreary.

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 25 - Create your own activity

The city in a crystal ball

If you are not posting 10 pictures a day of your host city on Facebook, you haven’t probably read the list of “things to do to be a true Exchange student and annoy the rest of the world”. At some point, the culprit starts realizing how monotonous this is, but probably by then half of his friends have already hidden his updates.

Anyway, one day while browsing through the daily dose of the same pictures of the same spot of Granada, I came across one that gave me the idea for the “Magic Portrait” task: it was a picture of the beautiful Alhambra reflected in a glass of wine. Basically the glass inverts the scenery, so that everything inside looks upside-down. Pretty cool, isn’t it? Unfortunately I did not save that picture, but if you scroll down the page you’ll get what I mean.

We all agree on the fact that a glass of wine is certainly not the most practical prop to carry around, so I’ve bought a crystal ball instead. Now, that wasn’t the smartest alternative either, seeing that it weighs 2 kilos AND it is easily breakable as much as the glass, but I’ve heard you have to suffer in order to take beautiful pictures…(By the way, for anyone who is interested in this technique, a crystal ball is much cheaper than what you think: I got mine from Ebay for less than 7 pounds!)

Then, one afternoon I asked some friends to join me in a tour around the city, especially because focusing with a DSLR camera with one hand while holding the ball with the other isn’t such an easy task, so I needed a little help. Plus, I wanted to avoid being taken for a weirdo while walking around alone with a crystal ball in my hand. It’s more fun to be weirdos in company than alone, right?

Here below you can find the results: some of them are rotated, so what is reflected looks right side up, while others have been left as they’d been shot. I must say I’m quite satisfied with these pictures, and cannot wait to be back in Edinburgh to see also this amazing city from a different perspective!

Tharusha, from Granada (Spain)

Filed under: 8 - Magic Portrait

Amazing Australian wildlife

One of the most impressive things about Australia is its nature and wildlife. Since I was a kid I loved exploring everything natural and observing animals in wild. Australia has been a perfect place for this hobby. I have collected quiet a few experiences with typical Australian animals encounters!

Number one typical Australian animal is a kangaroo. There are several species of kangaroos and wallabies and you can find them almost everywhere outside city. Usually they are not very scared of people so you can observe them from really close. They are super cute and my favourite!

Emus are also really common in some parts of Australia. They are quite impressive and unusual huge birds. The shot below was taken in Flinders Ranges where this female was casually walking with its chicks just in front of our tent.

Dolphins are really amazing animals. The one below is a member of Adelaide Port River family. This small group of dolphins found their home on the border of Port River and sea. This part of Adelaide is very industrial and many factories are causing the river water to be warmed than the sea water which is what the dolphins like so much. I was lucky to do some canoeing on the river and get so close to them I could have touched them.

Koalas are very typical Aussie animals. Very cute and cuddly. Nevertheless, it is very difficult to find one in wild that is moving around because these animals are active only about four hours a day (predominantly at night). I found this one with its baby climbing down a tree on the Great Ocean Road.

Crocodiles are found on north of Australia where you have to be really careful not to enter their territory. They can be encountered in both, fresh water rivers and lakes and in salt water of the sea. Nevertheless, if you respect certain rules and keep distance from them you can observe how amazing animals they are. I took this picture in Daintree Rainforest on a river boat tour. The crocodile on the photo is a three meters long female.

Rainbow lorikeets are my favourite Australian birds. As you can see they are beautifully colourful parrots. They are very common and thus easy to spot even in the centre of the city. I remember how excited I was when I saw them first time the day after coming to Adelaide. A year later I am still always happy to watch them flying around and playing in tree branches.

Dingo is a species of Australian wild dog. After being extensively hunted by people and after mixing with domestic dogs dingos are close to extinction. Furthermore, because of rare attacks on humans, especially children, and more common attacks on cattle a dingos fence across Australia was build to keep dingoes out of the south-east part of the continent. I was lucky to see the one below on Fraser Island that has the poorest dingo breed in the world.

Filed under: 30 - Wildlife

Experience map of Singapore

For my experience map I chose a map of the MRT (Mass Rapid Transit) network, because this was the most common way for me to get around Singapore. The background is made up of a map of South East Asia and the Singapore flag. I illustrated the stations I went to regularly with some memories, activities and landmarks:

Dover: the station closest to my home at uni, where I walked to several times a week
East West Line: the main line going from my home to the city centre
Harbourfront: a shopping centre not too far from my home, and the gateway to Sentosa island
Chinatown: an area that I visited for the night market, the hawker centre and the gay bars
Clarke Quay: the main area for partying with many bars and clubs, although we often just drank outside on the bridge
Botanic Gardens: one of my favourite places in Singapore where I used to go for walks
Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay: my favourite place in Singapore, which I wrote a separate article about
Bayfront: the famous Marina Bay Sands hotel and mall
Bugis: the “Arab quarter” with a beautiful mosque and many nice cafés and restaurants
Little India: a laid-back area with cheap shops and the best food
On the right: the way pointing to the airport, with flags of the countries I traveled to (Malaysia, Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam)

Nora, Singapore

Filed under: 6 - Experience Map

Theatres on the Bay

Between the Botanic Gardens, Kampong Glam and the city centre, it was not easy to decide on a favourite place. However, in the end I chose Esplanade, even though it is very touristy, because it is a place where I made many fond memories throughout the whole year.

The Esplanade at night.

Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay is a performing arts centre housing a concert hall, a theatre, an outdoor theatre and several smaller venues. Aside from sentimental value, I have also always been fascinated by its architecture. It is often called “the Durian” by Singaporeans because it is shaped like two of those fruits. However, as I found out later, this was not intentional. The unique cladding structures were only mounted later to shield the glass from the sun, and the building was supposed to look like two Chinese lanterns initially.

As a theatre enthusiast, the Esplanade appeals to me not only for its interesting architecture but also for its function. The arts scene in Singapore is quite limited (not only due to the lack of freedom of speech), so the Esplanade plays a big role in the local performing arts industry. They offer a wide range of programmes including music, theatre, dance, visual arts and film. Unfortunately, the plays in this theatre were always too expensive for me, but I went to see a great dance performance by Japanese visual performance troupe enra in one of the studios. Since I really wanted to see the theatre and concert hall from the inside, I went on a tour of the Esplanade where I found out a lot more about its history and architecture. Most fascinating to me was the size, the detailed planning that went into the construction of this centre, and the acoustics of the concert hall. In comparison to the cozy theatres I usually go to in Europe, the Esplanade is very modern and has world-class facilities that are highly thought-through.

Weekly free concerts by local and international artists at the outdoor theatre.

Another special aspect about the Esplanade is its location. The centre lies at the iconic Marina Bay, and one of my favourite things to do was to admire the view of Marina Bay Sands Hotel and the Central Business District from the outdoor theatre and the rooftop terrace.
On my first night in Singapore, a Singaporean friend I know from Edinburgh took me here to meet her friends and drink at the bay. Throughout the year, I often came back to the outdoor theatre for pre-drinks or to watch the free concerts on weekends. I met many interesting people and made a lot of great memories at the Esplanade. It was therefore obvious to me that I would have to spend my last night in Singapore here as well, this time with my closest friends. The rooftop terrace I only discovered when a local who works at the theatre took me there, even though it is easily accessible. From then on, this became my go-to place to take my visitors, mostly for the great view.

As such, the Esplanade not only reminds me of all my local friends who took me here and introduced me to Singapore, but also of my family and friends from home that I got to show my exchange destination to.

On the rooftop terrace with my sister during her visit, and my last night in Singapore with a close friend, looking out on Marina Bay and the CBD.

Nora, Singapore

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place

Babysitting

I started babysitting two (very cute) young Dutch boys not long after I moved to The Netherlands. Their parents wanted me to help with their English and they knew I would be grateful of the money so we came to an arrangement that I would babysit every couple of weeks. This was my first visit into a traditional Dutch household, which was really exciting! They had a beautiful, old house on one of the nicest canals in Leiden, with all the traditional features – high ceilings, thin rooms, horrendously steep staircases. It was also interesting to look at the clever and impressive design features which they had developed to maximise space in their house. Most traditional Dutch houses are tall and thin due to the high price of land in the middle ages, this meant that people built up instead of out. So in this family’s house, the two boys bedrooms were on the same floor, side by side. Both pretty small, and so to maximise the amount of floor space in both, the beds were build into the wall, and slotted together, one of top of the other but still in separate rooms. Does that make sense? It’s so clever I can’t even describe it! I also loved engaging with the children, but discovering the sense of Dutch design was really interesting to me.

Filed under: 16 - Do the Chores

Making roti prata

Roti prata is a very popular food in Singapore and Malaysia, mostly sold at hawker stalls by Indian Muslims. It is a fried pancake/bread and can be eaten plain or with different fillings such as egg, mushroom, cheese or even banana and chocolate. It is served with a curry and since it is very oily, I find that it also serves as a great hangover food.

Prata is linked to Singapore’s history as a former nation of immigrants, as it originally comes from South India and Sri Lanka where it is called “parotta”, or “paratha” in Northern India. It was introduced to Singapore by Indian immigrants, who moved there with the founding of modern Singapore by the British in 1819. Nowadays, Indian Singaporeans are the third largest ethnic group in Singapore and make up 9% of the country’s residents. One of the main ethnic groups among Singapore Indians are Tamils, which is why Tamil is also an official language of Singapore.

The ingredients: flour, salt, water, sugar, an egg, oil (or ghee) and mushrooms as filling.

The ingredients for roti prata are quite basic, although it is important that the flour has an appropriate protein content. This has to do with the special technique that is necessary to make prata: the flipping/stretching. In Singapore, I was often fascinated by how the prata makers expertly stretch the dough into a very thin layer by flipping, before folding it. This flattening and folding gives the prata its crispy yet soft texture.

On a dinner night for exchange students, I got to try this out under the supervision of a prata maker. Unfortunately, I quickly noticed that flipping the dough without tearing it is just as hard as it looks, and I failed miserably. However, now that I have returned home and finally have a kitchen again, I decided I couldn’t give up that easily and wanted to give it another try.

My first ever attempt at making prata – a fail.

This time, I was much more successful. After making the dough and letting it rest overnight, the flipping was much easier. Even though it teared a few times, I eventually managed to make a nice thin layer and fold it properly, using mushrooms and cheese as filling. Texture-wise I was quite impressed with the result after frying, but unfortunately the taste didn’t quite live up to the prata I had in Singapore. There is definitely room for improvement here.

The dough balls ready to flatten, my attempts at flipping the dough and the end result.

Usually when ordering cheese prata in Singapore, it is filled with processed cheese. As a twist from my own cuisine, I decided to use a typically Luxembourgish runny cheese instead. That’s one thing that I like better about my prata in comparison to the original!

Nora, Singapore

Filed under: 5 - Local Food

Too much information?

Never before can I say that I’ve given much thought to toilet design. Until I moved to The Netherlands, that is. Dutch toilets (and most throughout Germanic Europe I later found out) are among the scariest. You see, on first sight, they masquerade as normal toilets. This creates a false sense of security in the unsuspecting foreign user, who then lifts the lid and finds…. the inspection shelf.

Dutch toilets are modelled back-to-front. The shelf, I am informed, plays a key role in the health of the nation. The user, on rising from the throne, will inspect (I’m not sure whether with satisfaction, disgust or curiosity) what lies beneath and make a note of the consistency, shape, colour and any abnormalities. Once the inspection is over, the toilet will be flushed… and the bowl cleaned as necessary using the brush provided.

This I can assure you is one aspect of Dutch culture I will never get used to, no matter how long I live in The Netherlands.

Filed under: 26 - Create and give an activity

My Australian Third Space travel box

Among the most amazing experiences of my exchange were all my travels around Australia. These also inspired the personalisation of my Third Space box.

I have included two major symbols of Australia. The first one is a kangaroo which is one of the most common and most typical Aussie animals. The second symbol is the Southern Cross, a constellation of stars visible in the Southern Hemisphere. It used to be essential for navigation of ships heading south and searching for Australia. Nowadays, it appears on Australian flag. I also drew on my box a silhouette of a map of Australia. The red dots are major or for me the most important cities that I have visited. The blue line shows the journey that I travelled around this beautiful country. Finally, I wrote down some of the most significant places that I have visited.

Although the travels of my exchange year reached their end now, I truly hope that I will come back to Australia and will be able to add more blue and red on my travel map. Australia is a huge wonderful country and there is so much to see!

Filed under: 14 - Personalise Your Box

My favourite place in Adelaide

Adelaide is a great city to live in. I have been enjoying my time there to the fullest and there are quite a few places that I loved and that I will never forget. Here I would like to write about one such place that was really special to me. It is a beautiful city beach that I only discovered in my second semester but could not stop visiting ever since.

During my first semester in Adelaide I stayed in the student accommodation in the city centre. While this was really convenient in terms of transport to the university, work, shops and anything else I needed on a daily bases; I did not get to explore suburban areas, natural parks and coast very often. In contrast, in my second semester I lived with a host family in a lovely house in western suburbs. Hence, I got to stay outside of the rush of the city centre and could easily walk to the nearby sea coast. After not a long time I discovered a lovely beach just 4 km away from my house which immediately became one of my favourite places in Adelaide. As I come from a country with no sea; ocean and beaches were always very special for me. While living in Adelaide’s suburb Seaton I could easily cycle to my favourite beach in 10-15 minutes. I was walking along the water edge many times to relax. I was coming to read while sitting on the sand and listening to waves. I was coming for a swim or to exercise. I also liked watching people around enjoying this special place. Compared to European beaches the Australian ones are not very busy; small population is much more spread even in big cities. Usually I could see just few people relaxing, walking dogs or exercising. After coming more often I realized I am meeting the same people over and over again. It felt like if this beautiful little spot was private for just a few of us with occasional visitors. I started talking to some of the people that I was meeting more regularly. The most interesting was a group of kite boarders practicing on the beach every windy day possible. Before meeting them I knew literally nothing about their favourite sport. It was amazing to listen to kite boarding stories and watch these passionate and talented people. I learnt how exciting, fulfilling, difficult, expensive and sometimes dangerous this sport can be. I even got to try controlling the kite and learn some basic skills during a lesson they gave me. After having my own experience with this sport I have to even more admire anyone that is able to ride the board as they do.

Filed under: 22 - My Favourite Place

Getting Naked

Strictly speaking what I am writing about here is not related to non-verbal communication as such; nevertheless it is an interaction with the German culture which I feel is necessary to share.

Over the past year I have tried my best to fit in and adapt to the cultural differences that exist between Germany and England, and for the most part I would say I have been successful in achieving this. This weekend, however, I experienced something which made me feel more British than ever – the Freikörperkultur (nudist culture).

Given the warm weather here, I often go with friends to a lake just outside of the city to relax and sunbathe but this weekend instead of going to our usual place, we decided to visit a different, much smaller lake. After we arrived, we picked an area where there weren’t many other people and we set up camp for the afternoon.

After a while, my friend turned to me and pointed out that a man about 100 metres away from us was laying there reading a book and he was doing so completely naked. This did not come as a complete shock to the system as I know full well that unlike the UK, much of Europe has a very laid-back attitude towards nudity.

That being said, nothing could have prepared me for what I witnessed next:

There were two young girls playing in the lake and they started to call for their grandma to come and play with them in the water. Suddenly an old lady, naked as the day she was born, sprang up from behind a rock and headed over to the girls. My friend and I both exchanged bemused glances and as we looked around we quickly realised that not only had the area filled up with lots of other people, but that the grandma and the man reading the book were not the only naked ones.

Being English I have mastered the art of ‘looking but not making it obvious that I am looking’ and therefore, through use of my excellent peripheral vision I was able to spot some naked ladies laying down reading magazines, as well as a naked man and woman standing up having an intense discussion about a boat out on the water. Having observed this I thought I had seen it all, until I heard a girl say to her boyfriend “oh look my parents are here.” I turned around to see the girl, her boyfriend and the girl’s parents all exchanging pleasantries whilst completely nude.

At this point my inner British prude was having a meltdown. I suddenly became very aware of my eyes and started panicking as I couldn’t remember where I would normally direct my gaze. All around me I could hear the normal conversations people were having and part of me just wanted to shout “yes, that is all well and good but by the way you have no clothes on.” Part of me also wanted to get up and use my towel as a means to shield the eyes of the children. Needless to say I did not do either of those things.

Once I had gotten over the initial shock of all the full frontal nudity, I noticed that people clearly did not care that others were naked. In fact the ratio of naked people to not naked people was so high that by wearing a bikini I was drawing more attention to myself. After about two hours of sitting there I eventually gave in and decided to go half naked (after all, when in Rome – or in this case, when in Leipzig…). I did not go fully naked as I still found uncomfortable the thought of sitting there talking to my friends with absolutely nothing on at all.

I would like to return to this lake at some point before I leave. I think that my first experience of nudist culture caught me off guard but now that I know what to expect, it will be easier for me to embrace it like everyone else does. Having said this, I still think I would find it too weird being fully naked in front of my friends so when I return I will probably go alone. If this year has taught me anything, it is that stepping out of your comfort zone is a prerequisite for fully understanding and appreciating a different culture, and for me, this experience definitely encapsulates that.

Vida, Germany

Filed under: 24 - Body Language

Bon Appetit!

Having previously lived in Italy, the most recognised country in the world for its cuisine and food culture, I never thought any other country could challenge for this title… that was until I exchanged the cosmopolitan city life in Paris for a week for a culinary pilgrimage to the Pyreenees Atlantiques.

My parents and I decided to stay with some friends we hadn’t seen for over 14 years and as a result we had 14 years of catching up to do which required lots of wine and multiple courses.

The star of the show was the local proprieter who joined us for lunch and had the most in depth knowledge of food that I have every met – which is impressive considering that I have worked in catering for the past 6 years! Before even introducing ourselves to one another he had given me a 20 minute lecture on how to sautee potatoes and had made me try all sorts of homemade delights he had brought with him including an orange confiture and some different cheeses. He introduced me to Gizzards (an organ from the digestive track of a duck) which doesn’t sound particularly appetising when you descirbe them but are actually suprisingly delicious. He then spent the whole meal time describing to us in detail how to prepare every part of a pig to eat. Along with gaining a few kilograms listening and eating with this man he taught me some important things. The one that I will remmeber is that French people think they know a lot about wine but in reality as long as the wine has come no further than the region you are in then you’re guaranteed to have good wine. And if it has come form across the national borders… ooh la la!

Filed under: Uncategorized

Third Space 2015-07-24 13:30:25

Filed under: 6 - Experience Map