Brillant! Past Review

Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc.

I think the classes were structured well for this short summer program. I think that they had enough work and education information while still leaving some time to enjoy Greece and Thessaloniki. I personally took Art History: Early Christian and Byzantine period as well as Modern Greek: 101. I really enjoyed my art history course. We were able to visit various churches and monastaries around Thessaloniki. So, not only was I able to learn in the classroom we were given the chance to get more hands on experience by visiting the amazing history and cultural sites. I thought my Greek 101 class was too easy for me. I know some Greek already so I think that is why my expecations fell short for this class. However, my fellow classmates found it challenging. I think it helped me to read and write Greek better which I really liked and thought I was able to gain some skills from this class. I just wish we went over more vocabulary which I do need to be able to speak better. Although, I know this is difficult because this was a summer program so the classes were limited and not a lot of the students have ever encountered Greek before or been to Greece. So, I can see why an introductory course to Modern Greek was only offered instead of a higher level for the summer.

On-site administration of your program

Everyone was really nice. However, I wish things were a little more organized. A few times our RA would plan things but then people would get confused about times and locations. I also wish that the group online we were all supposed to added to when we were in Thessaloniki. There were a few instances where times when we would be doing activities were confusing. One instance was that I was left for a trip to a Jazz festival because the time to leave wasn't made clear. I had a different time to leave for the trip in an e-mail I recieved and then I didn't get and e-mail about the time change until the group of about 10 of us that were going left me. So, I think they could have just been better organized. Also, I think more focus was given to the Pella group that was also doing the summer program with us so I think that's why they weren't as organized or focused on our study abroad group.

How satisfied were you with your living arrangements?

I think the housing was quite a distance from downtown. It was fairly easy to get downtown by bus or taxi. Although, some nights if people wanted to stay out a little later we would have to take a taxi back and the buses stop running at a certain time. I also realized that the Pella group was housed downtown and I'm very sure that we could've been housed downtown as well. I just think it made it difficult for us not being downtown and I think a lot of the other people in my group had a hard time dealing with where we were being housed. It bothered me in that the other student group was housed downtown and we had to spend extra money and time just to get downtown.

The food in Greece is excellent and I really enjoyed it. It was nice to be able to get good "fast-food" as well instead of the food in the U.S.

How integrated did you feel with the local culture?

I felt very integrated in the culture because we had to live in apartments with locals as well as dealing with locals when going downtown or on the various trips we took. Everyone was really nice and I had a good time talking to the local Greeks in Thessaloniki. I also made a few Rembetiko musician friends, which I thoroughly had a great time conversing and getting to know them. Most of the local Greeks I talked to were very friendly and easy to talk to.

How well were health issues addressed during the program?

I think a lot of people were worried or maybe concerned about how the news portrays Greece. My family and other relatives live in Crete so I really wasn't all concerned about going. I was a little worried about going to a big city like Thessaloniki. But, I really didn't have any problems with money, my passport, purse, etc. I felt very safe in Thessaloniki. It is a good idea to make sure if you have a purse on you to make sure you do have a hold of it and to know where your money is. However, this is something one must do in any big city. Honestly, I didn't have any problems with carrying my purse around as long as I had it across my chest and made sure it was secure. I really didn't feel concerned walking around by myself either. Although, at night I would usually have one other person with me but it really wasn't a big deal. On night I went out and explored by myself. I really didn't feel that there were any problems with my safety. To be honest, I've felt more anxious walking around in big cities in the U.S. than I did in Thessaloniki. One still needs to be aware of their surrounds and careful just like any other city. But overall I felt safe and secure. There was one instance where we were told not to go downtown for two days because there were going to be protests but they really weren't bad and nothing serious happened. I think our ACT program coordinater just wanted to make sure that we weren't caught in a bad situation if something did possibly happen. But it really wasn't an issue that made me feel worried. Everything was fine after the protests and I didn't really hear about any incidents that occured on those two days.

(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost)

The only complaint I would have was that we were quite far from downtown so I would constantly have to pay for taxis (I was able to split this with others but it still would add up taking taxis all the time) and also buses to get downtown and back to my apartment.

0 = No encouragement, 5 = frequent encouragement to use the language

I really don't think they encouraged people to learn the language. There was a modern greek 101 which I took and a few others took. So, I think the people who really wanted to learn Greek took the class. However, I think a lot of the students didn't try to learn basic words and phrases in Greek. When we would go out I don't think many people tried to say basic things in Greek to the locals...they just sort of assumed everyone spoke English. I just don't really think the program encouraged people to learn even basic words in the language. The only time I was able to practice my language skills outside of class was when going out and talking to locals and when I talked to a few of the other students in my group who were Greek also and knew the language better than I did.

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• Apartment

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• Americans

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• Americans

• the location
• the people/culture
• the food

• the housing
• better organization
• more communication with students

The Nearly Native or Trail Blazer