Furman
Study
Away
Furman's Study Away office, formally known as the Rinker Center for Study Away and International Education, allows students to travel and earn academic credit both domestically and internationally (hence the name study away rather than study abroad) through a variety of awesome programs! Throughout my four years at Furman, I studied away four times - three times with Furman and a fourth through Semester at Sea during my "leave of absence." Learn more about my extraordinary trips to Cuba, Washington DC, and Spain below!!
Cuba: The History and Politics of the Relationship between the USA and Cuba
Part of the May Experience Program that offers students the opportunity to travel for a month while simultaneously taking a two credit class, my trip to Cuba was my first FU study away. Throughout three weeks, I traveled with two professors and approximately 15 other students across Cuba, beginning in Santiago and ending in Havana. Each day we toured museums, had class discussions, and met locals in the cities we visited. This trip has become especially memorable since we returned because diplomatic relations with our two countries have changed. Our departure flight carried some of the last US vacationers welcomed into Cuba without specific reasons like Education or humanitarian aid because President Trump re-severed ties soon after.
Traveling by bus, our group stayed in hotels and home-stays in Manzanillo, Santa Clara, and Playa Giron. We visited the mountains and the beaches as we read the works of Jose Marti and Che Guevara. Despite the copious amount of work we had and the numerous museums we found ourselves in, I did have free time to explore the nightlife, take a ride in an old, bright convertible, barter in the market, and make some new friends. Some highlights included the Bacardi family home, which we saw from beyond the black iron gate, a Cuban cigar factory, and the rooftop of Hotel Ambos Mundos in Havana, where it is rumored Hemingway spent many nights writing.
Fidel Castro's grave
Moncada Barracks
Bay of Pigs Museum
US Embassy in Havana
Fort in Santiago
Washington DC: The Washington Summer Experience with TWC
Despite the fact that this program never left mainland USA, it was one of the most impactful experiences I have had. Furman partners with the Washington Center (TWC), an academic institute that provides immersive internships, scholarly seminars, and networking experiences to students living in Washington DC for a semester. Every other Spring and Summer, Furman sends 10 - 15 students and a professor to participate in the program and live at TWC. While there, I took two Furman classes in the evenings, a professional development seminar with TWC instructors on Fridays, and completed a full-time internship Monday through Thursday.
Each week, I traveled to work via the metro along with hundreds of other DC workers, spent hours upon hours studying in coffee shops and museums, and somehow still found time to explore the different areas of my favorite city. The TWC apartments are located in NoMa, a few blocks from Union Station in the North East of the city. This location allowed for easy access to Capitol Hill, H Street NE, and China Town / Gallery Place. With the ability to access most of the museums and government buildings for free, my friends and I found ourselves constantly exploring new places when we had a few minutes. From the Summer Solstice Night Party at the National Portrait Gallery to Senate hearings in Dirksen and birthday brunch gatherings at Dirty Habit, my summer was jam-packed. I even saw the Caps win the Stanley Cup!
Spain: Travel Writing Through Spain
In May of my Junior year, just after returning from Semester at Sea, I traveled through Spain with 17 students, one of my favorite professors, and the Assistant Director of the Study Away office at Furman. During the trip, we spent time in Madrid (Hotel Persal), Toledo, Granada (homestay through IES Abroad), Seville (Hostel), Nerja, and Cordoba (Hotel). Our assignments for class mainly focused on our experiences. We toured museums and markets, wandered the streets of historic cities, and sat in a few lectures, all of which contributed to our four travel essays, which were turned in just after returning to the USA. We learned about the architecture of al Andalus (known today as Southern Spain) at the Alhambra and attempted to learn Flamenco dancing.
In Granada, we saw caves that have been converted into restaurants and homes before exploring the nightlife with our Spanish friends studying in the city. The two day-trips we took, to Toledo and Nerja respectively, proved to be some of the best days on the trip. In Toledo, we learned about the intermingling of Jews, Muslims, and Christians hundreds of years ago; while, in Nerja, we spent the day writing our essays by the beach and wandering the shops and boutiques along the coast. Most of our trip centered around our time in Madrid and Granada, during which we had a lot of free time to find hole-in-the-wall restaurants, ride the metro, and shop the department stores on Gran Via. Having traveled through Madrid before, I tried to hit different spots this time. Some favorites were the Museo Reina Sofia, El Rastro, and Chocolateria San Gines (they have the best churros and chocolate).
Check out our class blog HERE!
Top left: me in Toledo; Bottom left: class in Granada below the Alhambra; Middle: Streets of Seville; Top right: Cybele Palace in Madrid; Bottom right: grafitti on the streets of Cordoba "Imagine there's no countries!"