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Pre-Departure Orientation

"If ye are prepared ye shall not fear." - Doctrine & Covenants 38:30

Guess what?! An admissions officer from JCU came to visit us today and gave us some tips for our upcoming trip. It was actually a helpful (and brief) orientation. A few things that he told us really shocked me and are going to be difficult to adjust to:

• No hoodies allowed! So in the evenings when it gets chilly, we have to still look fancy!
  
• No blue jeans...black jeans are okay!
• No flip flops
  
• You drink water straight from local fountains that are around because the water in all of Rome is perfect...if you know me well, I am very picky when it comes to water! But apparently Romans have always been geniuses and they figured out a way to engineer their watering system perfectly.
  

But he told us some things that I'm SUPER excited about:

• Our campus is a 20-minute walk away from The Vatican.
• Our campus is located on the river, kind of like Rutgers but even closer! And the river is not smelly, like the Raritan.
• There are gelaterias on the corner of every campus!! Yummy!
  
• Romans love Americans so you can meet random people in cafes and have wonderful conversations :) 
• He showed us what our apartments look like (and they seem gorgeous, look)!
• 
  

Overall, this orientation got me psyched for this upcoming summer. I also met a girl that will be in Italy when I'm going, and we're hoping to plan some trips together! She seems really nice and easygoing! All of the faculty members at JCU seem extremely helpful. The Rutgers Study Abroad Office is also amazing with keeping us on top of things. I'll be registering for classes soon! I was thinking about taking Adolescent Psychology to finish up my minor, but here are some other options if any of you want to let me know what you think!

• Ancient Rome and Its Monuments (On-site class!)*
• Midieval Rome and Its Monuments (On-site class!)
• Baroque Rome and Its Monuments (On-site class!)
• Business Communications
• Intro to Italian
• Digital Photography*

*These seem to be the easiest according to the syllabi...but who knows!

Hope you are all enjoying the end of this semester (if you're in college, that is). Good luck on finals!
So long.

--
Dhara R. Patel

Rutgers University
New Brunswick, New Jersey
Class of 2013

John Cabot University

"John Cabot University is an American institution of higher education in Rome, Italy. The mission of the University is to provide an educational experience firmly rooted in the American tradition of the liberal arts and solidly international in orientation. The academic programs are designed to use to the fullest extent the special resources of a multicultural faculty, an international student body and the extraordinarily rich culture and history of Rome and the surrounding region." - JCU Website

Look at how gorgeous my host school is!



No offense Rutgers, it looks a lot more welcoming than our school, despite the clouds and all! I know I just blogged less than an hour ago, but I'm testing a few things out to make sure that there are absolutely no glitches when I'm there!

So here's what I've done so far:

• Finished my JCU application (to be officially accepted by the school)
• Filled out my housing application! Hopefully I'll find out who my roommates are soon
• I officially am insured through RU and JCU for the five weeks that I'll be there, yay for safety!
• I researched other countries that I want to go to...seems that a four day weekend trip will cost about $200 with traveling, housing and meals. That doesn't seem so terrible! I'm not made up of money, but hey if I'm going to Europe, I'm living it up!
• I looked into an amazing volunteer opportunity in Rome where I'll be able to help local high school students practice speaking in English. Once I get more details, I will share!
• I also made a list of things to do in the near future...and the list is too long and boring to share.
  

Once I know more, I'll let you know!

So long.
P.S. If you are thinking about visiting Europe, you should think about coming for the Tomatino Festival that takes place in Spain!

Excited!

“Never forget that anticipation is an important part of life. Work's important, family's important, but without excitement, you have nothing. You're cheating yourself if you refuse to enjoy what's coming." - Nicholas Sparks

As I repeatedly visit my Study Abroad Home Page to look at the checklist provided and research my host country, I keep getting more and more excited! I honestly feel like I am going to burst with excitement soon. ...but that's not stopping me from working on my night off! Right now, I'm trying to set up this blog so that I can easily access it when I'm away but am having issues. But since I'm here already, I might as well leave some food for thought!

Have you ever thought about traveling to explore other lands, learn about different cultures, volunteer in other communities or for any other reasons? Have you gone yet? If yes, that's wonderful! I'd love to hear about your travels! If not, why not?! What's stopping you? Honestly, the only reason I'm actually studying abroad this summer is because I was so angry at myself for not going earlier. I have the resources (a partnership between my host school and Rutgers University) and I have the support from my family. The only thing getting in the way is me. But not anymore!

I'm ready to study at John Cabot University and live in Rome, Italy for five weeks. I cannot wait to travel to other countries in Europe while I'm there, because there's so much to learn in this world. I'm excited to leave my comfort zone and explore. Honestly, if you've always wanted to go to Europe, then come! Pick a country and we'll explore together!

Alrighty, time to figure out how to link this to the Rutgers Science Summer Abroad Web Page. Wish me luck!

So long.