Frank West
Provider: IES
Dublin, Ireland
2024 Summer

Greetings from Dublin, Ireland!

Since arriving I am most proud of representing H-SC while studying in Dublin. As Hampden-Sydney men we are to hold ourselves to high academic and social standards. This does not end when we leave campus. I spend a lot of my free time hunting for records and exploring the city. I also spend time on the weekends in pubs or in cafes doing interviews and chatting with
locals.

I have gone out of the city a couple of times because Greystones and Howth are only 40 minutes and a couple of euros away. I have been taking lots of pictures with my 35mm and cannot wait to have them developed. Hiking is one of my favorite activities and there is plenty of opportunities in the little towns outside Dublin. It is not so different than how I spend my time at home, just more exciting. I have given up on learning Gaelic due to time constraints, but I have picked up some phrases. A lot of the signs are in Gaelic but I just ask someone what It means, or use google translate. Béaláiste means to toast but does not have a direct English translation.


35mm negatives and prints of spots in Greystones and Howth

Music is one of most important things in my life, and Dublin has no shortage of It. There is a Rock n Roll bar called Fibbers down the street from my dorm that has metal and punk bands every night. There are a lot of buskers or street musicians that play Irish folk music that I enjoy listening to downtown. I also picked up a couple of CDs with folk music on them! I Got to see Rammstein live, and they were phenomenal. It was one of the most intense concerts I have been to in a while!


Metal Gig at Fibber’s

Rammstein Concert!

There is not much here that I do not do at home or cannot do at home, but If I had to come up with something, I would say that I do not have an easy and cheap way to frequent museums. Back home, they are either too far away or I have already been to the ones nearby. I primarily spend time with a small group of American students from up north. We have had several memorable adventures both inside and outside the classroom. I have met several international students along the way, but I have only spent time together with them a few times. Our classrooms are a bit claustrophobic, but I don’t really mind because we do not spend a lot of time in the classroom except for history.

4th Of July Party!

Leland Blanchard
Provider: Project GO
Kaohsiung, Taiwan
2024 Summer

Much of my time studying abroad is spent studying. Class, (mandatory) tutoring, and homework takes up about 7 hours of my day – all involving some aspect of Mandarin Chinese. Typically, each day’s work involves learning 50-100 new vocabulary terms and various grammatical patterns. The course itself emphasizes spoken Mandarin – so most of our in-class work is conversations between classmates. Even though we’re given a lot of work, my classmates and I still manage to find time for fun.

A picture of one of our lessons – we had to role play and read out this scenario. I had no idea what was going on here.

Our first few weekends have been filled up by program-organized trips. Typically, via tour bus, all students in my study abroad program will see various sites around Southern Taiwan. Our first few weekends took us to Tainan and the Taiwan Indigenous Peoples Cultural Park. Tainan, the oldest city on the island, was especially cool – one can see remnants of the Dutch and Japanese colonial periods.

An old Japanese building in Tainan. All of the plaques were in Chinese, so I had to Google Translate everything.

Evenings are left to us to do whatever we’d like. On an ordinary Friday, Saturday, or Sunday night, I accompany my roommate, Chris, and a few of our friends to get dinner and hang out somewhere around Kaohsiung, where our host university is located. Friday nights are reserved for Cijin Island, a few metro stops and a short ferry from our hotel. On Cijin Island, one can find fresh seafood, manicured beaches, and Cijin Sunset Bar – where foreigners outnumber locals.

Every week, my friends make a pilgrimage to Cijin Sunset Bar. After Cijin, we ride the ferry back to the mainland and take YouBike (Taiwan’s bicycle rental system) to Brickyard, a local hangout.

A picture of the beach at Cijin Island. My tutor tells me the sand isn’t naturally black, it is a result of the pollution from the factories around Kaohsiung.

Most of my time is spent with my American classmates. We come from a variety of schools and majors – from computer scientists at Purdue to Asian Studies majors at USC. However, we all are ROTC Cadets – from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and even the Space Force. Much of the time we are accompanied by our tutors at dinner – they’re undergraduate students at our host university. We usually speak in Chinese about our plans for that weekend or about our American universities.

In Taiwan, I’ve discovered a version of myself that is far less uptight. Taiwan Leland is a much easier Leland to be around. It’s probably because, while studying abroad, I have zero responsibility aside from doing well in class. When I’m not in class, I can just relax and have fun with my friends. I’m going to try and bring parts of this less-uptight version of myself back to America.

The view from the ferry to get to Cijin Island. There is a small population that lives on the island, but most passengers are tourists, from Taiwan and abroad.

Leland Blanchard
Provider: Project GO
Kaohsiung, Taiwan
2024 Summer

Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, the university administering my study abroad program, managed to find a hotel that was equally convenient to our host university, National Kaohsiung Normal University, and Kaohsiung’s MRT/subway system. In total, the walking commute is about half a mile – which can take up to 30 minutes due to the number of crosswalks and curving paths.

Leland and one of his tutors, Selena. His program requires daily 30-minute tutoring sessions with graduate students from National Kaohsiung Normal University’s Center for Teaching Chinese as a Second Language. During these sessions, they only communicate in Mandarin Chinese.

The streets of Kaohsiung are always packed. On the roads themselves, scooters are the main vehicular method of transportation — but walking is also common. Oftentimes, schoolchildren fill the sidewalks during their breaks. For the most part, elderly people are the most visible throughout the workday. On my way to class, I pass by 7/11s, four parks, two schools, and at least two dozen dogs. My tutor tells me the Taiwanese are cat people, but they sure seem to have a strong affection for dogs.

Kaohsiung can be smelly. Most cities don’t smell great, but Kaohsiung also suffers from terrible air pollution – in 2019 it was ranked as the “second most polluted city in Taiwan,” according to IQAir. The scent of Kaohsiung reminds of sulfur.

A picture from dinner at one of Kaohsiung’s many 夜市, night markets, in which Leland and his classmates (left to right: Leland, Chris (Leland’s roommate), Jared, Hannah, and Monty) were able to try many of Taiwan’s signature foods: 臭豆腐 (stinky tofu), 芒果冰 (mango ice), and 小笼包 (soup dumplings). Leland was not a fan of the stinky tofu.

The first regret I had was not packing a bag. By this, I don’t mean a backpack or a suitcase (those I did pack), but, rather, a going out bag – something capable of holding a passport, portable charger, and water bottle. Going out in Kaohsiung often entails dinner, multiple MRT rides, 10,000+ steps, and a U-Bike (Taiwan’s public bike rental system) back to the hotel. Therefore, a convenient way of storing the essentials for a long night out is necessary. I was able to pick up such a bag at Adidas, when our program took us to Taipei for the weekend.

芒果冰, mango ice, is a Taiwanese specialty food. Mango is topped with sweetened condensed milk and tapioca, served over shaved ice. 乐宁 (Leland’s Chinese name) 爱芒果冰！

Perhaps the second-best thing I’ve bought has been my “chag,” a portmanteau of chair and bag. I picked mine up at a Taiwanese military surplus store, about a 30-minute walk from my hotel. The store itself reminded me of an American military surplus/resale store, such as Ranger Joe’s in Columbus, GA, except this one was family run, open air, and had far more than just military surplus for sale. Taiwan has an abundance of everything stores – in which just about anything you can think of is for sale, such as chargers, snacks, clothes, and pet supplies.

The “chag.” At the military surplus store, Leland was also able to get workout shorts (that didn’t fit), a Taiwanese special forces coin, and a Diet Coke!

Overall, Taiwan has been an absolute blast so far. I’m looking forward to exploring more “off the beaten path” places, hopefully with some of my classmates.

Frank West
Provider: IES
Dublin, Ireland
2024 Summer

Greetings from Dublin, Ireland!

I’ve spent my time shooting black and white 35mm film of piers, cathedrals and state buildings, as well as doing some portraiture inside pubs. I was nervous about the locals not being so keen about my photography, but most are happy to oblige! I have already made a few pub friends!

The only thing that makes me nervous is not being able to take in all the sights and overlook some, as Dublin is quite overwhelming. Getting over to Ireland was a breeze, as my flight only had a 1-hour layover. The 15 hours went by quickly, as unbelievable as that sounds. For the most part the locals are friendly despite being a bit rough and tumble.

Outside of the Richmond Airport

I will definitely do myself a disservice if I come back with even one role of unused film. I’ve set a goal of soaking up as many of the sights and cultural experiences as possible! I have already visited Bram Stoker’s house, Parliament House the former home of the Irish Parliament which is now a bank, the Spire of Dublin and the Dublin Portal. Next Friday I will be taking a trip up north to Belfast and to Galway on the coast. I can’t emphasize how awesome Dublin is, as enough words cannot describe the environment here.

In front of Bram Stoker’s House

Parliament House