Studying Agriculture while sightseeing and going to the beach Past Review
By A student (Child and Family Studies, Berea College) - abroad from 06/13/2012 to 07/08/2012 with
Berea College: Thessaloniki - Agriculture and Food of Greece: Local to Global
During my experience abroad, I gained lots of friendships from the locals as well as the other Americans from different schools who were also studying at the American Farm School. I also learned quite a bit about Greek culture and agriculture in Greece. I definitely believe that this trip was worthwhile!
Review Photos
Personal Information
| How much international exposure did you have prior to this program? | None |
Review Your Program
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* Overall educational experience
Academic rigor, intensity, resources, etc. |
During this trip, I learned a good amount of information. Whether it would be considered academic or not, I do not know. However, it was nice to experience a different culture and to learn how people live on different parts of the planet. |
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* Host Country Program Administration
On-site administration of your program |
Everyone at the American Farm School was very kind and helpful during the time that I was there. Without them, it would have been much more difficult to find my way around. |
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* Housing:
How satisfied were you with your living arrangements? |
I was very pleased with the quality of the dorms that we stayed in. I would have given 5 stars if the air conditioner was working the entire time. |
| * Food: |
The food in the cafeteria tasted good, but there weren't as many options as I would have liked. The food was delicious every time we went out to eat somewhere. |
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* Social & Cultural Integration:
How integrated did you feel with the local culture? |
I did not feel very integrated with the local culture. I felt that most people we met were warm and accepting of us, but I did not really interact with the locals (unless they were students at the American Farm School). A lot of that was due to the language barrier and the fact that we did not really visit the places where the locals live. However, there was one time where we went to a Greek family's home to celebrate the 4th of July, and that was a good experience. |
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* Health Care:
How well were health issues addressed during the program? |
I didn't have any health issues during the trip, so thankfully I didn't have to test this out. |
| * Safety: |
Even when we were in what I would consider an unsafe part of town, I did not feel threatened or like my safety was at risk during any part of this trip. |
| If you could do it all over again would you choose the same program? |
Yes
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Finances
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* Money: How easily were you able to live on a student's budget?
(1 = not very easy/$200+ on food & personal expenses/week, 2.5 = $100/week, 5 = very easily/minimal cost) |
Food and housing was included in the program cost, so there weren't that many additional costs that we had to pay for. Bus tickets were inexpensive as well. |
| * Was housing included in your program cost? | Yes |
| * Was food included in your program cost? | Yes |
| Not including program expenses, about how much money did you spend on food and other expenses each week? | I spent quite a bit on gifts for my family, along with a few items for myself. (I can't remember how much I spent). |
| Do you have any general money-saving tips for future study abroad participants? | If you have quite a few people that you would like to purchase gifts for while you are abroad, I would consider just sending them a postcard. Postcards are fairly inexpensive, and they let someone know that you care about them, without having to squish something into your suitcase. |
Language
| * Did your program have a foreign language component? | No |
Other Program Information
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* Where did you live?
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* Who did you live with?
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* Who did you take classes with?
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| About how many local friends did you make that you will likely keep in touch with? |
A Look Back
| * What did you like most about the program? |
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| * What could be improved? |
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| * What do you know now that you wish you knew before going on this program? | the Greek language, even though most of the people I interacted with were able to speak it very well. |
