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Books

Alexander Pushkin is your new favorite author

Elizabeth Dausch

19 Aug 2009

Russia

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Ever heard of "Eugene Onegin"? "Queen of Spades" perhaps? If not, it's time to brush up on your Pushkin before going to Russia. You'll see statues of him everywhere because the novels and poetry of Alexander Sergeevich Pushkin (1799-1837) are not only loved by Russian people, but are also sacred pieces of national identity. As many Russians love talking literature, one should be prepared to address the issue of Pushkin. If you've read him and hate him, or have never read a single page of his work, it's better to err on the side of praising the man. Saying you're not that big into Pushkin is the the rough equivalent of your Russian friends telling you they don't think Benjamin Franklin was that great.

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Getting Around

In congested cities, take a motorbike taxi (and wear a helmet!)

Anna Schwaber

27 Jul 2009

Thailand

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Bangkok is a booming city whose traffic congestion can mean hours of wasted time in a hot and stuffy taxi. To get around more easily, take the SkyTrain for long distances or a motorbike taxi for shorter distances. If you are going solo, you can sit on back while someone else whips through the lanes of traffic for you. Make sure to wear a helmet!

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Festivals & Events

You can't exonerate without breaking some eggs

Pete Muller

10 Feb 2009

Uganda

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In September 2008, I photographed a traditional Acholi reconciliation ceremony for six senior commanders of the Lord’s Resistance Army. The ceremony focused on Opio Makasi, the Senior Operations Commander and close confidant of LRA leader Joseph Kony. The ceremony requires that the men walk barefoot over an egg, an act which symbolizes exoneration for past wrongdoing. The ceremony is part of Mato Oput, an age-old, traditional process that aims to repair communal relationships after serious transgression.

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Culture Shock

Touchy-feely in Turkey

Jessica Cross

16 Sep 2009

Turkey

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Turks tend to express their friendliness in a physical manner. Both women AND men link arms while walking as a sign of close friendship. Both women and men kiss each other on each cheek when saying "hello" or "goodbye." Also, it is perfectly acceptable for you to approach someone else's children, play with their hair, squeeze their cheeks, and talk to them. The owner of a restaurant my friends and I visited let us play with his child and hold him while he was cooking our food.

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Must Do

Take refuge in a Sikh temple

Emily Strasser

26 Jun 2009

India

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If you arrive in Delhi, or any other Indian city in the wee hours of the morning after an overnight bus or train, head straight to the nearest Sikh Temple, or Gudwara. There you will find a safe, clean, bustling place where you can stay until the rest of the city wakes up. With their strong emphasis on service, the Sikhs offer resting places to travelers, free hostels, and free communal meals to anyone who comes. Do not be frightened by the long spears some Sikh men carry--I was so grateful for their friendly welcome when my friends and I arrived at the Gudwara in Old Delhi at 5:30 am. After checking our bags and removing our shoes, we went inside the temple and just sat, listening to the singing and watching the people.

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Etiquette

Okinawa Time

Michael Lynch

23 May 2009

Japan

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While Americans and Japanese try to keep appointments and be prompt and on time, in Okinawa, things are done a little differently. We have what's known as Okinawan time. If you plan a house party or just make plans to meet someone at a coffee shop, don't be surprised if they don't show-up at the scheduled time and are an hour or two late. After two hours goes by you can consider a guest to be late, but anything up to two hours is simply Okinawan time!

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Food

Managing the mayonnaise

Heather Kirkwood

05 Mar 2009

Cuba

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I was not a huge fan of a dish called arroz imperial, which a friend's mother prepared for me. It's a white rice and seafood loaf, held together by mayonnaise and topped off with more mayonnaise. Knowing that the seafood was especially hard to come by, and not wanting to offend my host, I slurped it down with gusto!

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Film

Go to the movies to watch the flirting (and maybe the movie)

Mimi Hanaoka

11 May 2009

Iran

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Instead of watching films about Iran while at home, try going to a cinema in Tehran. The films they show are hit or miss, but you’ll be able to watch something far more interesting: flirting. There are few social spaces in the Islamic Republic of Iran where the youth can mingle and chat far from prying eyes, and so cinemas are a convenient place to flirt – while queuing in separate, gender-segregated lines, of course.

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Packing

Bring a Russian phrase book

Anya Mihailova

29 May 2009

Ukraine

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When you come to Ukraine, you might be surprised to find out that here we speak Russian (70% of population) and Ukrainian (30% of population). At school, children typically study English, German, Spanish, French, and Chinese. There are not many people who speak English, so I would recommend bringing a Russian phrase book!

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Religion

Prepare for bible quotes, missionaries, and mega churches

Mallory Primm

17 Jun 2009

Swaziland

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Christianity is definitely the biggest (and practically the only) religion in Swaziland. On Sundays you’ll see baakies (pick-up trucks) full of worshipers dressed in their church uniform, which varies by denomination. Usually the uniform is a long colored robe for men and a dress for women, with a corresponding hat. There are plenty of evangelical “mega churches” whose extravagance stands in odd juxtaposition to the cement block dwellers who frequent the church. American and other Western missionaries abound and bible verses are oft quoted. That said, Swazis are not intolerant of other religions and there is no animosity toward non-Christians. Regardless of which religion you do or do not follow, you will get invited to church.

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Politics

Learn three languages at once

danielle hayes

06 Nov 2009

Bosnia and Herzegovina

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Language, like many things in the former Yugoslavia, is a matter of politics. What was once Serbo-Croatian is now arguably three new languages--Serbian, Bosnian, Croatian. But the division is mostly political, and a matter of pronunciation and vocabulary. Grammatically and structurally, the languages are still vastly the same and can be understood by speakers from any of the former republics. When trying to guess what a Serb living in the Croatian and Muslim dominated part of Bosnia speaks, it's often best to refer to "naš jezik" meaning "your language," as locals do. A PRACTICAL TIP: To order a coffee in Croatia ask for kava, in Serbia for kafa, and in Bosnia for kahva. But in all three places be sure to say Molim vas, meaning "please".

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Music

Cubans don't share American pop idol craze

Sarah Martin

05 Mar 2009

Cuba

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Believe it or not, Cubans just aren't interested in Britney Spears. Their musical interests revolve around their own national treasures -- Polo Montanez, Celia Cruz, Buena Vista Social Club and others. There is, however, a strong interest in American hip-hop.

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Sports

Wrestle for a Cow

Chantal Panozzo

02 Apr 2009

Switzerland

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Don't miss a Schwingen match. Schwingen is a popular form of Swiss Wrestling. While hiking the Alps, you just might come upon a couple of men wearing burlap diapers and grabbing at each other on a mound of sawdust. Forget the WWF; entertainment just doesn't get much better than this. Especially when the prize is a cow. For a list of upcoming Schwingen events, visit http://www.schwingerverband.ch/index.asp?menuid=1&sid=15

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TV

Satellite TV is officially illegal, but...

Mimi Hanaoka

11 May 2009

Iran

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It’s an open secret that many hotels and private homes all harbor illegal satellite dishes that transmit various foreign channels, including the BBC, CNN, al-Jazeera, and many others. If you don’t have access to one of the millions of illegal satellite dishes, use the opportunity to practice your Persian and watch propaganda in action on the state-run Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) channel.

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Fashion

Hide your curves

Amy Adoyzie Lam

22 Apr 2009

Bangladesh

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Ornas are the lightweight scarves that women wear to conceal their breasts (Allah forbid that a man should get a glimpse of our womanly form and have unpure thoughts about us!). Sometimes they’re handwoven with thick vibrant thread, or embroidered with gold sequins and mirror discs, or block-printed with swirly paisleys. Upon arriving in Bangladesh, we (a group of female volunteers) were told that we were responsible for covering up, less we incite men with our various curves. So we decided to wear ornas, and we left our low-ride jeans in the closet.

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Dating

Beware of women, and women beware

Mallory Primm

17 Jun 2009

Swaziland

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As a foreign male, you will be approached by many local women who are looking for a Sugar Daddy. Even if you are sincerely courting a Swazi woman, expect to pay for everything, including her airtime for her cell phone. For foreign woman in Swaziland, prepare for a daily barrage of cat calls and “proposals” of love and marriage. One older Swazi man explained that it is considered rude not to pass a woman without making a comment about her appearance.

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Health

Choosing between public and private care

Mike Mian

21 Jun 2009

Spain

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While on study abroad, a friend of mine had an unfortunate skiing accident. He called in sick to school to go skiing with his host brother, but on his first run down the mountain he hit a patch of ice and made a hard landing on his left shoulder. He was taken to the hospital (the school's director met him there). The first diagnosis was that he broke his collar bone and the second that he tore a ligament in his shoulder. The second proved true, and he had to decide to pursue his surgeries and treatment through either the public or private medical systems. While the public system is nearly free, the waits for treatment can be long. If insured, one can go through the private system with greater speed. The caliber of treatment is equivalent.

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Slang

A crash course in Verlan

Emily Monaco

23 Mar 2009

France

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"Mais c'est reloud! La meuf a annulé la teuf. Je suis trop vénère." Even if you've taken French before, this sentence may be incomprehensible. Don't worry, you haven't forgotten everything: it's in "verlan," a form of French slang which itself is verlan for "envers:" inverted or backwards. The hardest part about verlan for a foreigner is that the words are inverted based upon how they sound, not how they're written. There is no real code for figuring out how to make a verlan word: all you can do is listen and hope to pick up on new vocabulary words. For example, in the above sentence: reloud- lourd (boring, annoying); meuf- femme (girl, woman); teuf- fête (party); vénère- énervé (annoyed).

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Nightlife

Granada: Free tapas with your drink!

Mike Mian

23 Jun 2009

Spain

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If visiting Granada, a night hitting up the tapas bars is a must. Granada is rumored to be the only city in Spain that offers free "tapas" with every drink ordered. You'll be offered them nearly everywhere any time you order a drink (except in some upper-end scenic tourist bars, and sometimes excluding non-alcoholic drinks). Historically, tapas were rumored to have been used to prevent the King's soldiers from becoming too drunk, but, in a modern context, they're a great economic deal and a student's dream! With a few drinks, your dinner is served. Drinks cost the same without tapas, so there's no reason not to go for it! In Granada, I recommend Plaza del Toro for the best tapas deals. The bar "Nido de Buho" is also a favorite.

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Being an American

Being an Asian-American in Bangladesh

Amy Adoyzie Lam

05 Mar 2009

Bangladesh

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Bangladesh, as a relatively young country, is receptive to the notion of immigration. They can accept the fact that I can look the way I do (east Asian and all) and still call myself an American. I've never encountered hostility based on my nationality. There seems to be an understanding that I'm lucky, because my parents are immigrants and are part of the fortunate diaspora of refugees who were able to live in the land of opportunity as opposed to their native developing nation. There are stereotypes that we're all rich and absent of morals. But generally people are quick to forget the stereotypes once they get to know you.

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