An Ode to Shiru Cafe
Amherst and Doshisha are eerily similar in a lot of ways. The founder of Doshisha, Joe Nishijima, built it after being inspired by Amherst, after all, so it makes sense. But some of the similarities hit a little too close to home. For example, there is an alumni building on campus called “Amherst House” that looks identical to Garman
Read moreFinding Institutional Support Systems Abroad
Within these past few weeks, I have gotten some emails from my Amherst peers about QMUL and study abroad generally. For this post, I wanted to depart from looking at educational equality explicitly and provide some perspective on what studying abroad at QMUL has been like for me in terms of institutional support. Within the first week of my arrival
Read moreWaterways in Paris, the Loire Valley, and Biarritz
Climate Conversations: An interview with my host sister
Salut tout le monde ! It feels like forever since I last sat down and wrote a blog post for you, because this semester in Paris is really flying by – however, as what feels like a decidedly long summer has snapped into a frosty fall, we can’t forget about the climate crisis just because we’re starting to wrap
Read moreAdaptation out of Necessity: Grocery Shopping
Adaptation. A fantastic characteristic to have, as well as an esoteric, indie Nicolas Cage movie. The former being a necessary skill to have when abroad, and the latter being a nice thing to have while abroad. This skill becomes especially important while transitioning between cultures, and particularly between America and Japan. I don’t think that many people expect for grocery
Read moreShopping without money, fashion without waste – exploring alternatives to consumer fashion in Paris
Salut tout le monde! Welcome to Paris, where as I write, Fashion Week is dominating headlines with its twice-yearly, seven-day celebration of brand-new clothes as designers display their new collections for the next two seasons. It’s no exaggeration to say that this week in Paris sets the tone for the whole world for the next six months in fashion! Further,
Read morePlastic Waste in Paris
Hello again everyone! As the semester has gone on, I moved from my orientation in Biarritz to Paris where I will spend the academic semester. While there are many differences between the small city of Biarritz and the capital city of Paris, one commonality I am struck by is the environmental conscientiousness and culture of resource conservation. As I
Read moreFrom Regret to Optimism: Finding Common Ground in a Foreign Institution
The overarching feeling I’ve had since my journey to London has been one of regret. Leading up to my departure, I was on campus working and observing the start of the Fall semester at Amherst as an outsider. I didn’t get to share my excitement or disdain for my upcoming classes with my peers or forge any relationships with the
Read moreПривет, et salut tout le monde!
My name’s Alice and I’m a French and Russian major in the class of 2021. I’m an international student at Amherst, and I come from the lovely North-East of England where you can always find a welcome lot warmer than our very changeable weather! In fact, as the stereotype goes, we hardy northerners love to dress up, and are so
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