Students will explore two contemporary global issues: increasing human mobility across national borders, and the urgency for learning intercultural skills in a global context. One of the most heated issues in the U.S. 鈥� and the Shenandoah Valley 鈥� is the debate surrounding policies and attitudes towards immigrants, undocumented workers, and the crossing of national....
Final reports from Spain
For the past three days, our group has been on a trip to Toledo.聽 In Toledo, we were able to see remnants of its Roman, Visigothic, and Moorish past.聽 Toledo was a city of immense intellectual knowledge when it was a part of the Islamic empire and continued to be when the Christians reconquered the....
Reflections on life in Morocco
I am thankful for opportunity鈥攁 nicer way of saying I am thankful for wealth. I guess it is not such a bad thing. Without it, this cross-cultural experience would not happen. Morocco is 126th out of 177 countries on the list of the Human Development Index which is based on life expectancy, literacy, and income.....
Festival of Sheep
Like every other weekend we went on a trip to somewhere in Morocco. On this trip we went to Meknes and Volubilis. We stopped first at Volubilis which is the site of the largest Roman ruins in Morocco. An earthquake destroyed many of the walls but the arches and floor mosaics still remain. The Romans....
Meeting the host families in Fez
On Saturday we met out host families here in Fez. I didn’t realize how nervous I was until our names were being called and the group was dissipating quickly. Carrie Schlabach and I met our host brother, who miraculously spoke some English, and headed off to hail a taxi. Our bags were put on the....
Reports from Fez, Morocco
Overwhelmed. If you asked me a few days ago when we first arrived in Fez how I was feeling, that would have been my answer. Morocco is unlike anything I have ever experienced, and Fez is a mass whirlpool of activity. In the stream of constant vendors and narrow streets, you can find anything from....
Reports from Chefchaouen, Morocco
Our introduction to Morocco, while fascinating in itself, unfortunately felt very tailored to Western tastes. The ferry ride at sunset across the strait of Gibraltar was beautiful though–the shadow of Europe fading into an ever-darker distance, etc., but probably everyone in the group would agree it felt like we were only viewing a tourist-approved part....
European travel reports
This past week, we all had an incredible opportunity to travel wherever we wanted! I went with a group of three other people to Paris, Athens, and Rome. It was a crazy trip with a time limit of only nine days. We had one full day in Paris, so we hit all the major sights....
Report from Sara Derstine
Over the past four weeks I have been so blessed to be submerged once again in the Spanish language. Unlike many of my fellow travelers, I am quite fluent in Spanish, and have been looking forward to once again using my diminishing vocabulary on a daily basis. I have not been let down. It seems....
Life in Granada
After almost 3 weeks in Granada, this city is starting to feel like home (at least as “homey” as a foreign city can feel…). I鈥檓 not used to (though don鈥檛 necessarily always enjoy) being woken up at 8 a.m by children arriving at the school across the street, yelling things in Spanish that my brain....