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Spanish Style
Students abroad discover there is not just one Spain but many
F rom large modem cities such as Madrid and
Barcelona to small historical ones surround
ed by medieval walls, Spain is a country
rich in culture and history, scenic landscapes and
enchanting people.
Texas A&M students interested in studying in
Spain have many choices: international communi
cation in Madrid, agricultural economics, archi
tecture and business in Barcelona and a language
program in Salamanca.
Robert Wegener, Student Media general man
ager, has led the international communication
program in Madrid for the past two summers.
“Markets have become truly global,” he said.
“So I believe it is important that students add an
international dimension to their degrees. For stu
dents, a transformation occurs not through just
teaching itself, but through the experience of liv
ing in a different country. They have the chance to
leam about another country from the best source
- its people.”
Senior speech communication major Laura
Hopkins said she thinks studying abroad is one of
the most amazing things someone in college can
do. She recommends a foreign experience for all
students.
“I hear a lot of my friends say that money is an
issue, as it was for me too,” Hopkins said. “But
what a lot of people don’t realize is the financial
aid office has loans and scholarships that can help
you. I took out about $3,000 to go on the trip, and
it was worth every penny.”
While students study and take classes during
the week, plenty of time remains to explore all
Spain has to offer during the rest of the day and
on weekends.
Madrid is a buzzing business hub full of beau
tiful parks, buildings and museums. Madrilehos
are just as beautiful, and the nightlife is just as
exciting, students report.
“The people of Madrid wel
comed us with open arms and
were eager to influence us into
falling as madly in love with
their city as they were,” said
senior international studies
Pictured below:
Study abroad stu
dents gather out
side a bullfighting
ring in Madrid
during the summer
of 2003.
4
Pictured left:
Madrid's
Plaza Mayor
is a center for
trade, conver
sation and
community
celebration.
major Jenna Jones.
The Mediterranean trading and manufacturing
center of Barcelona is also the capital of the proud
region of Catalunya. Although Spanish is under
stood, Barcelona speaks Catalan.
“My favorite city that we visited was definite
ly Barcelona,” said Kelly Alfaro, a senior market
ing major who traveled to Spain in the summer of
2003 as part of the international communication
program. “It is one of the most beautiful cities I
have ever been to. It’s not only cosmopolitan, but
it’s right on the sea.”
Barcelona’s answer to art nouveau was mod-
emisme, and its genius was Antonio Gaudi. His
most famous work is the unfinished Sagrada
Familia (Holy Family) cathedral. From 1883 until
his death in 1926, he worked on this monumental
church.
Mark Szafran was part of the summer 2002
international communication group.
“My group made a promise that we would all
go back to see the Sagrada Familia when it is fin
ished in 40 years,” he said.
The sunny sandstone city of Salamanca boasts
Spain’s grandest plaza, its oldest university and a
college-town ambience.
The entrance portal of the university is a great
example of Spain’s Plateresque style, Spain’s ver
sion of Flamboyant Gothic. Visitors take a
moment to find a tiny frog on a skull that students
looked to for good luck before exams.
“It is unthinkable that I walked around in,
touched and saw buildings and monuments that
were thousands of years old,” Szafran said. “The
United States is only 327 years old, but I saw a
bridge in Salamanca that was built by the Romans
to cross the Tormes River.”
The Andalucfan city of Sevilla boasts culture
in its buildings and rich folkloric traditions,
including Flamenco music and dance.
Sevilla’s cathedral is the third largest in the
Christian world, after St. Peter’s in Vatican City
and St. Paul’s in London. Visitors climb a 34-
flight spiralling ramp to the bell chamber of the
Giralda Tower for a panoramic view of the city.
Across the square from Sevilla’s cathedral is the
Alcazar - a palace built in the Moorish style,
topped only by Granada’s Alhambra.
A bright spot for Texans lies in the Texas Lone
Star Saloon. The restaurant is a friendly reminder
of home, decorated in Texas memorabilia -
including T-shirts from Texas universities. So
Aggies should bring something they don’t mind
leaving behind.
“Granada and Sevilla were enchanting cities. I
felt like I was living in a movie as we walked
down the narrow golden-lit streets at night,” said
Ashley Ingels, a senior journalism major.
Each region of Spain has its own dialect and
traditions, offering students many arenas through
which to experience the country’s rich culture and
history.
“A&M students and Spanish students and fac
ulty talk families together, talk values together,
talk history together, talk politics together, talk
business together, talk sports together,” Wegener
said, “and talk and talk together.”
Holly Murdoch, class of 2002, advises others to
stay extra weeks to see the things you didn’t get to.
“Eat the food even if you don’t like it, just to
say you’ve tried it. It makes for good conversa
tions later,” Murdoch said. “Take lots of pictures
- who cares if you look like a tourist? You are.”
Liz Cantu, a class of 2003 political science
graduate who headed to Spain in 2002, agreed.
“Going abroad was probably one of the best
things that I could have ever done because it
forced me to step out of my comfort zone,” she
said. “In my experience, the world turned into a
giant textbook.” Story by Amy Rodgers
More Than a Safari
Studying abroad in South Africa provides students with an adventure
H ow do adventures such as
canyon tours, visiting White
Rhino conservations and a
five-million acre national park and
earning six credit hours in three
weeks sound?
Urs Kreuter, an assistant professor
in the Department of Rangeland
Ecology and Management at Texas
A&M, sponsors a Study Abroad pro
gram to inform students about biodi
versity in South Africa and involve
them in the learning process about the
effects of nature-based tourism on
South Africa.
A graduate of the University of
Natal in South Africa, Kreuter relies
heavily on his contacts through the
University of Natal to plan and organ
ize speakers and events for the stu
dents.
Kreuter’s main objective for the
South Africa study abroad trip is to
“provide an opportunity for junior-
and senior-level undergraduate stu
dents’ first-hand experience of some
factors that affect nature-based
tourism.”
The trip to South Africa is not
unlike other study abroad trips.
Students are immersed into different
cultures and, because of this, there are
inevitable culture shock issues to
address.
Kreuter said students on the South
Africa study abroad trip could have a
different experience in terms of cul
ture shock because the adjustment
time is shorter compared to other
study abroad trips.
“I believe three weeks is an optimal
time period for this trip,” Kreuter said.
“It is interesting to see how different
people relate to the
experience.”
Last summer Kreuter
took 12 students on the
Pictured below:
Students pet an
African elephant
during a 2002
study abroad tour.
South Africa study abroad trip. Three
students also attended from the
University of Natal.
“This is one of the first inter-uni
versity initiatives taken by study
abroad,” Kreuter said.
The first half of the trip is spent in
the Mpumalanga province of South
Africa, where Kruger National Park
is located. During this time, students
travel through Kruger National Park
to leam how South African commu
nities are being integrated with
tourism.
The second half is spent in
KwaZulu-Natal, one of the 11
provinces in South Africa. During
this time, students visit public parks,
the Hluhluwe Game Reserve, private
land holdings, Lake St. Lucia and
Sodwana Bay and other communi
ties in the area.
“Of my 18 students from last
(2002) summer, two have returned to
South Africa to study, and one plans
to return in December,” Kreuter said.
The South Africa study abroad trip
costs about $4,500, but this price
includes airfare, which is not includ
ed in some other study abroad pro
gram fees.
Kreuter highly recommends stu
dents study abroad before graduat
ing. He wants students to experience
cultural diversity and at the same
time come to understand that “there
are people out there that live com
pletely different lives.”
Experiencing a different culture
can be beneficial to anyone willing to
embrace the experience.
Geoff Keogh, a senior management
major, studied abroad last summer in
Spain and met hi: family in
South Africa on his way back
to the United States. Keogh’s
family is originally from
South Africa, and
he said a study
abroad trip to
South Africa
would be educa
tional and exciting.
“South Africa’s wildlife splendors
and diverse cultures are definitely
worth experiencing,” Keogh said.
Keogh had many interesting expe
riences during his time in South
Africa. He went on a wildlife retreat
for six days and saw many of the
same animals that the South Africa
study abroad students did.
Along with adventures such as vis
iting the Greater St. Lucia Wetland
Park, going on a Game drive and
walking around various markets, the
South Africa study abroad trip is filled
with educational speakers who
expand students’ knowledge of South
African culture.
“On the day of our arrival, we saw
the big five animals of South Africa,”
Kreuter said, “the African elephant,
buffalo, lion, leopard and rhinoceros.”
Keogh remembers one of the rea
sons he chose to study abroad.
“Twenty years from now, I knew I
wouldn’t have remembered an extra
semester I graduated early,“ he said.
“But I would remember a semester
that I studied abroad.”
— Story by Sarah Sarkees
CPoUb&rf- 5
AFRICA