Leigh Iler
LONDON — Travel opportunities are limitless in London, and England has so much to offer. I have been here for merely three weeks and have already gone to Stonehenge, Oxford, Bath, Canterbury and Dover. These places are within close proximity to the city, so day trips are quite manageable for students.
From London, one can also travel through the United Kingdom. Wales, Ireland and Scotland all boast beautiful countrysides and gorgeous coastlines. Countries in continental Europe are also easily accessible. I am looking forward to venturing to Paris, Rome and Venice later in the semester. The beauty of it all is that if I decide to make last minute arrangements to travel for the weekend, I will have no problem at all.
DAKAR, SENEGAL — One of my absolute favorite traditions in Senegal is drinking Attaya. It’s a sweet, strong tea, but it is so much more than that —it’s a social event. Friends and family come together to enjoy each other’s company as the Attaya is made. The drink is heated, often using coal. The tea is added directly to the water and boiled with the water because there are no tea bags. It takes a while, but that’s part of the fun. Let go, relax and enjoy the company of others around a pot of Attaya. It’s a nice change to the coffee-on-the-go way of life. Traditionally, three “shots” or cups of Attaya are served in one gathering or event, and each cup gets sweeter, which represents friendships becoming sweeter with time.
Evan Studenmund
SANTIAGO, CHILE — I never knew that Santiago was the world’s largest dog park. Vagrant dogs roam the streets at will, looking for a shady spot to rest or a spilled platter of food to eat. The locals seem to rarely acknowledge their presence, but I cannot take my eyes off them.
Labradors, Collies, Great Danes and a host of other breeds regularly join their human counterparts for a stroll down the sidewalk. The most fascinating part about this phenomenon is the level of good behavior that these forgotten dogs display. They rarely beg for food, and I have yet to see one foaming at the mouth. I heard that a few years ago, a referendum was cast in Santiago to determine if the dogs should be removed from the streets, and the people, both rich and poor, overwhelmingly voted to keep them. The only downside is that you must be careful where you step, for caca (poo-poo) lurks around every corner.