Blogs from Valparaiso, Indiana, United States, North America

Professor Jordan Kerr here and it's T-minus 24 hours till we take off for Dublin! This is the first time I'm packing my riding boots and helmet for a 3-week equestrian adventure and cannot be more excited! Our first week will be spent in Dublin, exploring, going to equine research farms, national stud farms, the Cliffs of Moher and the Dartfield Horse Museum. And yes, we'll be doing some riding and jumping while we're there.... Next up, a ferry to Holyhead and a coach ride to Aintree where we will tour the Grand National Race Course, ala National Velvet. We will have to dub someone our official Elizabeth Taylor for the day :) While in Bath, we won't miss historic Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral. Wondering if we eat and drink? Oh yes, we'll be doing lots ... read more

With less than two weeks left (!!!!) tomorrow I am heading into Chicago to get my VISA. Hopefully everything will go smoothly. However we're talking about international travel here so my expectations aren't that high especially after my friend Liz's experience. Though thanks to her advice I believe my trip to the French consulate should run pretty smoothly despite the fact that I have to wake up at the awful hour of 6 AM. As anybody who knows me can tell you I am not a morning person and punctuality, especially in the morning, is not my strong suit. That and the fact that I will be sitting around for two hours due to the train schedule...eh c'est la vie. Just one more painful thing to do to experience what j'espère will be the experience of ... read more

Alright so I am extremely excited as I have only three weeks left until I leave for la belle France! However I do have a little confession to make. For those of you who don't know in order to study abroad in France you have to apply to CampusFrance in order to obtain your visa, and their response takes at least three weeks. Well....I just sent that off yesterday...by express mail though so that will help a little bit and even though I've heard of some people having problems with CampusFrance for the most part I think my friends this year have had a rather easy time of it. So I am not too worried about that. Anyway done with confession and back to the excitement! I actually just had a friend return from going to ... read more

So, if you couldn’t tell by the headline, I’m going to France...in less than a month and a half! My name is Ashley and I have been dreaming of this moment since as long as I can remember (and if you don’t believe me ask my parents). I credit my favorite childhood movie Beauty and the Beast for turning me into a Francophile with its beginning lines of “Bonjour! Bonjour! Bonjour!” Today while Beauty and the Beast may not be my favorite movie anymore, I am still madly in love with all things French! I even decided to somehow make it my profession, choosing to major in French at Valparaiso University (located in the middle of nowhere). I’m a junior and while I still don’t know exactly I want to do with my French major I ... read more

Oh my goodness I just bought my tickets to France! I got a really good deal, but wow...I haven't spent such a large amount of money in a long time. So it's really happening. Not that I thought it wasn't, but it just seems so real now! I only have one more exam and I'm officially done with this semester. These are my last 2 days living in the dorms. So much is ending! And beginning...how dramatic! ... read more

How much paperwork does it take to send a girl to France? Apparently the answer is "enough to make her not even want to go at all!!" Well ok that's not quite true...but really. I have never had to fill out and make copies of more forms than I have this month. Fortunately I'm coming up to the end of all of it. Which is scary in itself...I leave February 1st. That's just over a month away. Pooja (who leaves for Montpellier on January 1st) and I are thinking about traveling and other details. I'm pretty sure all I'll be getting for Christmas is stuff for France. But that's ok, it's what I need, after all. I have an appointment to get my visa in Chicago on January 2nd. I hope I get my information from ... read more

Well I guess I should introduce myself. I'm just testing everything out so I'll know how to use things when I really want to talk about France, but really I'm just putting off my homework. So anyway, my name is Liz and I'm a double major in International Economics and Cultural Affairs and French at Valparaiso University. I am currently finishing up my application process to go next semester to the Universite de Cergy-Pontoise, just outside of Paris. (I have to figure out how to do accents on here. I'm SO bad at html, so this might be a challenge.) My mind is so full of Cergy stuff that I'm beginning to neglect my other responsibilities...sorry professors... My emotions have been a little crazy since I've begun the preparations. I am at once thrilled and terrified. ... read more