Foreign Correspondent in Germany, Emma Wallace, explores in detail how you can deal with loneliness on your year abroad and gives examples of her and her friends’ strategies to overcome these “study abroad blues”.
How you can dive into language: the experiences of an English student in Germany
Back in October, I attended my first class on Chaucer’s Troilus and Criseyde. It was a first for many reasons: mainly due to how the lesson was conducted – much to my surprise, in both English and German. I knew that German would be spoken to some extent, I am in Munich after all, but […]
Japan’s Crown Princess set to take a new role as the Reiwa era begins
A new era is about to dawn in Japan. Suffering from ill health, the elderly Emperor Akihito will abdicate the Chrysanthemum Throne in favour of his son, Crown Prince Naruhito, on the thirtieth of April this year. His reign, alongside Crown Princess Masako, will mark the beginning of the ‘Reiwa’ era, as announced on the […]
Japan and ‘Kintsugi’: an art form threading not just through pottery, but society?
The craftsman washes the clay from his hands. He boils some water for tea, and reaching for a teacup knocks it off the shelf. It smashes on the floor. He cradles the broken pieces, and carefully puts them back together again with gold lacquer. He holds it up to the sun. Where there were once […]
The Dakar Rally 2019: Is it being left in the dust?
Under the radar of many, from the 6th to the 17th of January, more than 500 participants from 61 countries endured the 41st edition of the largest rally in the world, the Dakar (formerly the Paris-Dakar Rally). Despite being named after the capital of Senegal, the Dakar has taken place in South America since 2009 […]
I bought a car on my year abroad so you don’t have to: a cautionary motoring tale
From what I can tell, it is almost inevitable that almost every keen student makes a few mistakes in the first couple of weeks of their year abroad. Whether that be in the form of paying a deposit on an unseen flat in their chosen city- just to have it end in disaster- or realising […]
Christmas, the Danish way: what it’s like to be in the capital of ‘hygge’ at the cosiest time of the year
Cycling through Copenhagen on my route home from classes, I have keenly observed the progression of Christmas-market-construction and the steady putting-up of the Christmas lights around the city as we entered the festive season. On my way home, as the daylight ebbs away, I see the comforting amber glow of filament light bulbs and candles […]
Trump’s victory – the world responds
Australia The reaction to Trump’s victory has been mixed within Australian politics. Just under half of the population believe that the country should distance itself from the USA, so it appears the majority of Australians agree with Labor leader Bill Shorten. While he respects the will of the American people, Shorten stands by calling Trump […]
Trump’s victory – the domestic reaction
Texas Texas’ polls saw a ten-point margin afforded to President-Elect Trump this past Tuesday, when he won 53% of the conservative state’s votes, compared to Clinton’s 43%. Although Texas’ Republican-leaning reputation comes as no surprise, the result of the election did. The shock of Trump’s unprecedented success was – and continues to be – felt […]
After Paris, the world responds.
Italy – Emily Henderson A sadness looms over Italy, as it does in most European countries this week. People are struggling to believe the brutality of Friday night’s events and fear similar attacks will happen here. The nation mourns for Valeria Solesin – the twenty-eight year old Italian researcher studying in Paris, who lost her […]