So, one of the things that I've been curious about how this semester will turn out is meeting locals, having spontaneous plans, making friends and merging with the culture. The only hitch is that I'm fairly introverted.
Not that anything's wrong with it, but I just have a harder time meeting strangers and spontaneously interacting. I can do it when I need to, but I'm much more relaxed when I know it's going to happen, almost as if it's like I've got to plan for it. Even around the pledge class in my frat (my 15 closest friends with the exception of my girlfriend), I get really quiet, but I still love hanging out with them. I'm still adjusting to the idea of blogging consistently too, but it's getting easier.
So I've understandably gotten a little excited when I found this blog. Digging through a few links also found these two articles. Reading these really let me relax some. I was a little anxious about feeling pressure to bond with locals every weekend when I was abroad, as my mother would do. And while I admire Mom's ability to do that so quickly, I just didn't feel like I'd be comfortable doing that.
As much as I can, I'm still going to try making friends and being open to everything, but I'm going to be doing it in my own style a little bit more. As silly as it sounds, this is the first time I thought of doing that, but I'm really looking forward to it now :D
BTW, I leave in nineteen days...
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Sauted Chicken!!
One of the big things that's new for me is that I'm going to be feeding myself for really the first time. I've been working my tail off this summer, as well as tons of fencing. It's after Fencing Nationals now, so I'm taking a little time of and letting my ruined knees heal some. That means I have Monday, Wednesday and Friday nights off to learn to cook! Based on what I did tonight, I'm really looking forward to it. Thanks to my amazing mother, I got a solid lesson on how to sauté. She planned the meal and got the ingredients for me, but dinner was sauteed chicken with an orange dijon rosemary pan sauce over a bed of couscous and a small spinach, arugula, walnuts, pears and bleu cheese with a champagne vinaigrette. Magnifique!
I'm looking forward to French food :)
I'm looking forward to French food :)
Monday, July 19, 2010
Visa!
Alright, it's less than a month until I leave! I'm flying to Frankfurt via Dulles International and JFK. I'm getting more and more excited :)
I picked up my visa about a week ago. It's essentially a big stamp pasted into my passport. It's got the typical information about me, and then some security printing on it. Overall, it's not that fancy, just mainly the basic passport information in French, and the fact that I'm a student.
The process, however, is ridiculously complex compared to the product. First off, for France, you need to apply in person. I know that this isn't the case for all countries. Anna, my girlfriend, is going to New Zealand and she gets to mail hers in. Each French consulate around the country (there are 10) has a visa department, and (here's the catch) each consulate has their own list of required documents!. Make sure you figure out your consulate's information.
The documents are all fairly basic, but I've heard varying stories. One of the girls going to GTL had her initial application rejected even through she had above the minimum amount of money in her bank account. I got my first whiff of the patented French bureaucracy when the lady helping me made me get a different receipt than what I had. The only difference was that I didn't have the CampusFrance logo on mine.
Then just make sure you're on time for your appointment, even a little early if possible. And expect stereotypical French attitudes, especially if your appointment is the day the French team gets knocked out of the World Cup, like mine. My best advice, just like my mother said, is to take care of this early. You might need to contact your school and get a proof of enrollment and the like.
I picked up my visa about a week ago. It's essentially a big stamp pasted into my passport. It's got the typical information about me, and then some security printing on it. Overall, it's not that fancy, just mainly the basic passport information in French, and the fact that I'm a student.
The process, however, is ridiculously complex compared to the product. First off, for France, you need to apply in person. I know that this isn't the case for all countries. Anna, my girlfriend, is going to New Zealand and she gets to mail hers in. Each French consulate around the country (there are 10) has a visa department, and (here's the catch) each consulate has their own list of required documents!. Make sure you figure out your consulate's information.
The documents are all fairly basic, but I've heard varying stories. One of the girls going to GTL had her initial application rejected even through she had above the minimum amount of money in her bank account. I got my first whiff of the patented French bureaucracy when the lady helping me made me get a different receipt than what I had. The only difference was that I didn't have the CampusFrance logo on mine.
Then just make sure you're on time for your appointment, even a little early if possible. And expect stereotypical French attitudes, especially if your appointment is the day the French team gets knocked out of the World Cup, like mine. My best advice, just like my mother said, is to take care of this early. You might need to contact your school and get a proof of enrollment and the like.
GTL General Info
First off, this is a really cool post on Come and See the Universe. It's a travel blog done by two 19 year old girls. One, Wordy, is a writer and the other, Dreamsweat, is a photographer. I'm not sure what I think of Wordy's writing yet, but I really like the photos.
So, I've decided that instead of posting stuff on obtaining student visas for France (sorry Thorn Tree visitors), I'd talk a little bit more about Georgia Tech Lorraine. There's all the basic stuff I said yesterday: It's a GT campus, where I'm taking 2 computer science and 2 humanities courses. It's a pretty unusual place, as far as I can tell, because it's a fully operational Georgia Tech campus. They're always very consistent to mention that it's not a different school than Georgia Tech Atlanta. Effectively, the difference is that there are GT-Atlanta faculty on rotation in Metz, so all the courses are compliant with all the Engineering school's requirements, and most importantly, taught in English.
It's in Metz, in the Lorraine region of France. It borders Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany. Being stuck in the middle, it became a really important region, and Metz is the capital of it. Apparently, the languages in the area became so muddled that it was "sometimes not even mutually intelligible with either French or German", says Wikipedia. The official French dialect is lorrain and the Germanic dialect that still exists in the remote parts is francique. Apparently it's also a region of lots of breweries!
View Larger Map
There's definitely all the typical college campus stuff. There's a 24/7 computer lab, mini technical library, and an all hours building. The dorm that we're all staying at is within 20 minutes by walking. Around town is CORA, which is essentially a Super Walmart. Around the corner is a little cafeteria for our lunches.
So I know that this is a really half baked post, but it's late for me and I've got to get up early. I promise I'll edit this one tomorrow.
So, I've decided that instead of posting stuff on obtaining student visas for France (sorry Thorn Tree visitors), I'd talk a little bit more about Georgia Tech Lorraine. There's all the basic stuff I said yesterday: It's a GT campus, where I'm taking 2 computer science and 2 humanities courses. It's a pretty unusual place, as far as I can tell, because it's a fully operational Georgia Tech campus. They're always very consistent to mention that it's not a different school than Georgia Tech Atlanta. Effectively, the difference is that there are GT-Atlanta faculty on rotation in Metz, so all the courses are compliant with all the Engineering school's requirements, and most importantly, taught in English.
It's in Metz, in the Lorraine region of France. It borders Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany. Being stuck in the middle, it became a really important region, and Metz is the capital of it. Apparently, the languages in the area became so muddled that it was "sometimes not even mutually intelligible with either French or German", says Wikipedia. The official French dialect is lorrain and the Germanic dialect that still exists in the remote parts is francique. Apparently it's also a region of lots of breweries!
View Larger Map
There's definitely all the typical college campus stuff. There's a 24/7 computer lab, mini technical library, and an all hours building. The dorm that we're all staying at is within 20 minutes by walking. Around town is CORA, which is essentially a Super Walmart. Around the corner is a little cafeteria for our lunches.
So I know that this is a really half baked post, but it's late for me and I've got to get up early. I promise I'll edit this one tomorrow.
First!
For those of you that don't know me, I'm Ryan.
Occupation: Rising 3rd year Computer Science student at UVA
Current Destination: Metz, France :)
Fall 2010 Campus: Georgia Tech Lorraine
Bad Habits: Fencing, Whitewater Kayaking, Computers, Toys...err...Gadgets, coding, nice clothes
The general stuff: Here's where I'm going: Georgia Tech Lorraine. It's a Georgia Tech campus in Metz, France. What really convince me to go here was that I can take engineering courses that will count for credit at UVA and classes are scheduled 4 days a week so that students there can travel for three day weekends. I'm going to be studying Computer Networking, User Interface Design, Technology and Soceity, and Special Topics: Ideas of Europe.
I'm going to be staying essentially in dorms with the other students. I just tried to google where I'm staying and a hotel website came up, so I think I got the wrong place...
I'll try and be kind to everyone and not drop EVERYTHING on you in one post so I'll post a little bit on each topic every day. :D Please, give me any advice you've got and if you want to hear about any of my preparation, drop a comment and I'll look into it.
Occupation: Rising 3rd year Computer Science student at UVA
Current Destination: Metz, France :)
Fall 2010 Campus: Georgia Tech Lorraine
Bad Habits: Fencing, Whitewater Kayaking, Computers, Toys...err...Gadgets, coding, nice clothes
The general stuff: Here's where I'm going: Georgia Tech Lorraine. It's a Georgia Tech campus in Metz, France. What really convince me to go here was that I can take engineering courses that will count for credit at UVA and classes are scheduled 4 days a week so that students there can travel for three day weekends. I'm going to be studying Computer Networking, User Interface Design, Technology and Soceity, and Special Topics: Ideas of Europe.
I'm going to be staying essentially in dorms with the other students. I just tried to google where I'm staying and a hotel website came up, so I think I got the wrong place...
I'll try and be kind to everyone and not drop EVERYTHING on you in one post so I'll post a little bit on each topic every day. :D Please, give me any advice you've got and if you want to hear about any of my preparation, drop a comment and I'll look into it.
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