Tag: How To’s

Staying Healthy While Abroad

Published on by DU Abroad3 Comments

Worried about maintaining your healthy lifestyle when you’re abroad? The Western ideas of ‘eating healthy’ and ‘working out’ may not be applicable in the country you’re studying in, so you may need to be flexible. This new rich culture that you are experiencing has lots to offer you in regards to your health, you just have to have the right lens with which through to view it!

First, realize that eating healthy can simply be thought of “everything in moderation.” The food you’re eating is typically less processed and fresher than the food you regularly eat here in the US. When I was in Russia, I noticed that the labels on food packages were the dates of production not of expiration. This especially speaks to the new culture you’ve found yourself in—the system is based on what they have there and now, not how long it will last, because of an excess of products! So, don’t try and keep to the foods you eat here in the US, branch out and try the local eats. There are lots of interesting flavors and nutrients that you typically don’t ingest here! You may even find a new favorite!

Second, your usual work-out regiment may not be possible in this new environment. It could be that gyms don’t exist for you to use or that outdoor running or exercising is culturally frowned upon, thus you have to be more creative! Oh and don’t underestimate the power of walking. Since you probably won’t be driving yourself around in your host country, try commuting on foot! Walking substantial amounts each day will keep you active, but also allows you to explore the city firsthand, finding all the little nooks and crannies that will make you feel like a local!

Staying in shape and eating right are very important and completely doable abroad—you just have to be flexible and get a little creative! So get to it!

Kelsey Guyette, OIE Peer Advisor

Kissing Cheeks or Shaking Hands? Greetings Etiquette in Latin America and Beyond

Published on by DU Abroad6 Comments

I guess as a kid I took for granted the fact that you kissed cheeks to say hello.  My mom is Bolivian and I’m from Brazil, so kissing cheeks was the most natural thing in the world for me.  When we moved to the US, I remember the shock on my first-grade teacher’s face when I leaned in to kiss her on the first day of class.  That was when I realized that in the U.S., kissing strangers is just not ok!

When I studied abroad in Chile my junior year, it was fascinating to watch the Americans on my program have the opposite problem.  Suddenly, they were being kissed by everyone and anyone they met!  Men still preserve their macho reserve and only shake hands with other men (or they may give you a hug), but man-woman and woman-woman interactions ALWAYS start with a kiss (or maybe two, or even three!)

The “rules” for kissing will vary depending on which country you’re going to.  Europe and the Middle East are famous for this too, and while rules in Europe may be similar to those in Latin America, in the the Middle East, men generally should NOT try to kiss any women, and any cheek kissing they participate in will likely be with other men.  I can only really speak for Latin America and “Latin” Europe (France, Spain, Italy), so I thought I’d lay out some general ground rules for those regions:

Guys—be prepared to shake hands with other men and possibly a quick half-hug too, and make sure you look up the etiquette on how many kisses you should give women when you meet them (depending on if they’re single or married, this can change).

Girls—be prepared to be kissed by everyone!  Men, women, children…they will all kiss you hello and goodbye.

While is some countries you don’t exchange kisses on the first meeting, in others you kiss once you’ve been introduced.  Typically in a professional setting you won’t kiss your colleagues he first time you meet, but may be expected to kiss after that.  In some countries people will actually kiss your cheeks, in others, it’s more of cheeks touching and “air kisses.” Just follow the lead of whoever you’re with!

One last pointer—I can’t speak for other regions, but at least in Latin America make sure you individually greet everyone in a room, and do the same when you leave.  Waving hello or goodbye to the whole room is considered very rude.

Good luck, and enjoy all the smooching!

Stephanie Roberts, OIE Peer Advisor