DU Abroad

It’s my one month anniversary with study abroad and I must say, I think I am falling in love with her.

I have currently been living in Port Elizabeth, South Africa for a month and a day now and I can rest assured that I made the correct choice for study abroad. Choosing was not easy however. I’ve travelled Europe with my mom and visited my grandparents in Australia so I did not want to go back to either. Unfortunately my Spanish is not at the level I would like to visit a Spanish speaking country. I was torn between Thailand and South Africa, both of which have such densely beautiful cultures and landscapes but I ultimately decided upon South Africa. I was delighted when South Africa chose me too!

Over the past month and a day I have done some crazy amazing things here! I hiked Sacramento Trail along the coast and got this amazing photo!

I have gone to a game reserve and got to see the most amazingly beautiful animals in the world. The week prior to visiting them, they had poachers come in and kill one of their rhinos so it was sad except that they believed the poachers that entered their reserve were the same ones that were eaten by lions a coupe days later. Karma?

I GOT TO RIDE A HELICOPTER! CRAZIEST EXPEREINCE EVER!! Having never rode a helicopter before in my life, this was definitely a highlight, if not the coolest thing I have done this whole month.

Besides my crazy adventures, I have been able to visit the townships, which are the poor areas of PE, and see how life is there. We were able to get a braai (barbecue) in one of the townships and it was the best meal I have had so far. I have been able to meet locals as well as so many internationals from places like Germany, France, Mexico, Norway and others.

A couple of things that I have noticed within this month abroad:

Knowing foreign languages is so cool and so important. GET THAT MINOR IN SPANISH! I have met people who speak 4 different languages while I can speak English and just a touch of Spanish. It is so important so speak other languages so do it!!!
Never judge a book by its cover. Or the stories you hear about it. I remember telling people that I was going to live in South Africa for 6 months and anticipated their horrified faces shortly after the scream that sometimes escaped their lips. Every single person that I told reminded me to “be safe” as if I had not heard that 100 times before. While South Africa does have crime and protests, I have felt so safe this first month and almost everything that I was advised about has not been true. It’s important to have caution, but don’t let it ruin your time abroad.
Port Elizabeth and all South African people are so incredibly friendly and I wish that my world back home was the same. People greet you no matter where you are. They are always willing to help you if you need it. I feel so at home here in PE.

I have made sweet friendships in the past month and sweet memories as well. South Africa has my heart.

Corrina Teague

SOUTH AFRICA– NELSON MANDELA UNIVERSITY, 2018 FALL

Corrina Teague is a Hospitality Management major. She is attending the ISA: Nelson Mandela University program in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, during the Fall 2018 term. She is hoping to have local experiences and see the natural beauties of South Africa while abroad.

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Tasmania always seemed so far away. I remember procrastinating during my research class and customizing my Google Calendar instead of focusing. I had kept a countdown to how many days left till my departure. It started off with 100 days. Then 50, then 40, and by Father’s Day there was only 20 days left. Before I knew it, I snapped back into reality as I boarded my first flight to LAX.

I will be studying at the University of Tasmania for 130 days total. That’s over 4 months of my life spent in a place that I didn’t even know existed just last year. I soon realized that Tassie is Australia’s secret gem. You’ll later learn why.

I visit my grandma quiet frequently, so flying in an airplane is no problem for me. The longest plane ride I’ve ever been on was when I was 5 years old when my Mom would take me to El Salvador. I don’t remember any of it, so I don’t count it. The 3 flights ahead of me was what made me nervous prior to leaving. I was flying from Denver to LAX, then to Melbourne, then to Hobart.

I traveled for a grand total of 22 hours. It wasn’t as bad as I expected it to be.

The funniest thing that happened during the trip was when I was waiting to board my plane to Melbourne from LAX. I had read my boarding pass and it said that we could start boarding at 8:30pm. I was riding in the Economic class so I knew I wouldn’t be among the first to board, so I took my time to pack up my belongings from a spot I had picked to wait for the plane. I couldn’t see the gate from where I was so I never saw when people began to board as early as 8pm.

It turns out that the flight crew was waiting for me and one other person! The flight attendant looked at me as I walked in and said, “you must be Chelsea.” I thought it was weird but I still continued to take my seat. Once I was settled in, the pilot made an announcement and says, “Good news, now we are waiting for just one other person. We should take off once they have made their way in.” Oops, I guess boarding for international flights works a little differently. PSA: You can probably board sooner than the time on your boarding pass

Arriving to Hobart International Airport was one of the best feelings I have had in a very long time. Before I knew it, we were flying over a beach, and the view was simply breathtaking. I had never landed in an airport

that was practically right next to the ocean and I felt so giddy inside. For so long I wondered what this moment would be like. I was very tired, but I was excited.

As soon as I stepped out of the airplane, I took a whiff of that world-renowned Tasmanian air. According to studies, Tasmania has one of the cleanest airs on the planet. Being from the Mile High City, I felt like I was breathing for the very first time in my life.

I met the airport pick-up service man and he drove me all the way to my accommodations. It wasn’t very far, about 20 minutes away. I was able to carry both my 50 pound bags and carry-on up 3 flights of stairs. I was very groggy at first but once I saw the view from my room, I knew I wouldn’t have wanted to live on the first floor. It looked like a painting. Maybe it was because I didn’t have my glasses on and everything seemed a little blurry. But still, I couldn’t help but to gaze in awe for the 10th time since I had arrived to Australia.

The view the next morning was amazing. The jet lag payed off because I was welcomed with the most beautiful sunrise I had ever seen. I wanted to capture an image that really showed exactly what I was seeing but it was impossible. I’ve been having many of those moments here.

I’ve met a lot of really great people here! I’m so glad to be living with my flat mates because they are absolutely the nicest girls I have ever met. Teah, Niki, Niki’s boyfriend Ciarán, Jerylyn, and Lily are all University of Tasmania students so they aren’t here for exchange. My other flat mate, Flavia is from Switzerland and she’s hilarious, even when she doesn’t try to be.

Our flat mates have all been helping Flavia and I navigate through the Tasmanian lifestyle and honestly, I’ve learned so much in the last few weeks already. I’m really grateful to have them. It’s almost as if I’ve known them my whole life. Each week I can see our friendships progressing more and more and we can be sitting around just watching Netflix and it’s a really good time. It hurts to think that I’m going to have to leave them at the end of the semester.

First family dinner of the Semester. Pictured (from left to right): Jerylyn, Teah, Ciarán, Niki, Me, Flavia

My classes have been going well so far. More details is for a different blog post. Needless to say, I’ve been settling really well here in Tassie and I can’t believe I was nervous to be here. Australia is very different from the United States. It’s a good different. Everyone here is very laid back and they have so many different norms from us. I love learning new things every day and slowly assimilating to their lifestyle. I’m starting to call people “mate” now instead of “friend” and it’s going to be interesting to use that back home.

Tasmania is starting to become a home away from home. That’s all I had asked God for.

Chelsea Hernandez

AUSTRALIA– UNIVERSITY OF TASMANIA, 2018 FALL

Chelsea Hernandez is currently a Senior studying Journalism and Criminology. She is studying abroad in Tasmania, Australia for the Fall Quarter of 2018. Chelsea is hoping learn about a variety of cultures, not just the Tasmanian one, as many of her peers abroad are from different countries all over the world. After graduation this upcoming Spring, she hopes to gain more experience in Journalism and land an internship somewhere in Denver.

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A month and a day

Corrina Teague

SOUTH AFRICA– NELSON MANDELA UNIVERSITY, 2018 FALL

Arriving to Tasmania

Chelsea Hernandez

AUSTRALIA– UNIVERSITY OF TASMANIA, 2018 FALL