Bulldogs Abroad Blog

Written by: Cassidy Davis  |  Spring 2023
IFSA Barcelona: UPF (Universitat Pompeu Fabra)

Ever since I was young, I knew I was going to study abroad. In high school, I had the opportunity to study in Mexico for 5 weeks between my junior and senior year. I lived with a host family, went to school, and committed to speaking Spanish the entire time. After this experience, I wanted to study abroad again in college. I chose to go to Butler University because almost half of the students study abroad while at Butler. I sought a program that would complement all three of my majors. As a Spanish major, I wanted to study at a university in a Spanish-speaking country. To fit my other majors in political science and international studies, I also needed to find a university that specialized in these degrees. I decided to study for a semester in Barcelona, Spain through the IFSA Barcelona program where I could take classes at the local university Universitat Pompeu Fabra. I specifically chose this program so I could continue taking Spanish classes as well as participate in an international internship. This program places students with a local organization based on our individual majors and interests. I was placed at a local non-profit organization called Homeless Entrepreneur, whose mission is to promote economic empowerment and poverty reduction via work and active citizenship. I am working as a social-policy intern and researching for a report that will be presented to the European Parliament in 2024. This is my first internship and there are a few things I wish I would have known prior to starting my position. Here are some tips for future students participating in an international internship:

1. Be patient.

I assumed I would arrive in Barcelona with an internship position ready for me when classes started. After seeing classmate after classmate being placed in their internships, I became worried that I wouldn’t be placed in an internship that fit my needs. It wasn’t until a few weeks after classes started that I was placed in my internship with another student in my program. The first few weeks were hard to get into the swing of things but as the semester went on I became more comfortable and confident with my work.

2. Don’t be scared to ask for help.

You will not be able to do your job well if you don’t understand what is expected of you. There is no shame in asking your supervisors or fellow interns for help because everyone at your internship wants to see you succeed.

3. Research the cultural differences before you start.

In the United States, the work mentality is completely different from most areas of the world. If you text or email your supervisor, you can expect a response relatively soon. Spain has a much more relaxed work environment, and my supervisors have even told me that they do not want me to work on the weekends because this is time that I should reserve for myself.

4. Have a positive attitude.

It is extremely important to show your supervisors and peers that you are enthusiastic about working with them. Even if you aren’t placed at an internship that you think fits your interests, you can still make an effort to make the best of the situation. The semester is not going to be easy if you don’t show up to work with a positive attitude. Use this time as a learning experience!

5. Stay organized.

This is especially important if you are working remotely like I was for the majority of the time. It can be very easy to not do work throughout the week because you get caught up with other classes and being abroad in general. You are ultimately interning to work and to advance your skills for future opportunities and will only be hurting yourself and your team by not contributing.

Written by: Enali Rogers  |  Spring 2023
BU Exchange at Flinders University

Every stop on my way to Australia, I told time by how many layers I had on. At first, I had a whole winter ensemble: two sweaters, a coat, beanie and scarf. Then a sweater and a beanie. Hours later, just a sweater. When all the layers had melted off leaving t-shirt and pants, I knew had arrived. Waves of heat reflecting off of the airport tarmac made it pretty evident that I made it to the opposite hemisphere.

My name is Enali Rogers, and I am doing an exchange in Adelaide, South Australia. A little over a month into my stay here, I have seen one koala, unfortunately no kangaroos [yet], tons of colorful birds, and an echidna (which I didn’t expect, but hey, I’ll take it.) As far as I am concerned, I wouldn’t mind staying here for longer than a semester. But alas, I have a semester… *sigh*

One thing that I am definitely going to miss about this place  
is how easy it is to go to the beach just to watch the sunset. It’s such a common thing to do here. Friends will just text and say, “Hey, I feel like going to watch the sunset. Wanna come?” And within the next 15 minutes you’re on a tram to the beach to end your day with some ice cream, the sounds of water ebbing and flowing, the soft sand under your toes and a beautiful sunset. It’s been about 5 years since I’ve been to the beach, but now I’ve been going at least twice a week.

Another thing I’ll miss is the opportunity to take classes and join clubs that I never would’ve been able to experience at my much smaller home university. Along with two classes that go towards my bachelors in physics, I decided to take two fun classes. The first class is a class where I learn to draw from life. The second fun class is titled “Zombie Apocalypse: Microbes and Toxins” and the topic overview says the following:

“Adelaide has been invaded by Zombies, and most of the population is now living in hiding in the buildings at Flinders University. It is your responsibility to provide safe drinking water and safe foraged and preserved food.”

So far, I have fished out dirty water from the campus lake and “cleaned” it using a filter made from sand, gravel, cotton balls, and a coffee filter and then boiling out the rest of the bad stuff, hopefully making it drinkable for the hypothetical apocalypse civilians. (Don’t worry no one actually drank the dirty filtered lake water. That would be a hazard). I have found this class to be a fun, hands-on opportunity to learn about microbes and the prevention of such, something I never would have been able to do had I not studied abroad.

Experiencing the city part of Australia is only part of the visit. “You have to visit rural Australia too! It’s a different type of life and you’ll love it.” Something along these lines has been told to me multiple times, with some who have extended invitations to their hometown just so that I don’t miss out on that experience. I want more than ever to see the night sky without any light pollution. So, what better way to do so than by signing up for a speleology club (study of caves). This club does an outing every month to explore a different cave while occasionally staying overnight at different sites away from the city. Although the first outing hasn’t happened yet, I look forward to being immersed in a different side of Australia (maybe I’ll even see a kangaroo!).

I’ve had the wonderful opportunity to meet people from around the world (as nearly half of Australians have a parent that was born overseas), and had plenty of fish and chips, picked the sweetest strawberries in a little German town, and felt the cool ocean breeze and warm sunshine on my face. I am happy that I picked Australia to study abroad in and can’t wait to see what awaits in the remaining months. Six months seems like a long time, but time flies when you’re having fun!

Written by: Taylor George  |  Spring 2023
ISEP Exchange in Southern Spain – Universidad de Almeria

With “identity,” I wear many different hats. My parents’ place of birth are the islands of Jamaica and St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. I am cared for, encouraged, and loved by my family as a daughter, granddaughter, niece, and cousin. I have visited my parents’ birth places, and I’m introduced to cultures that I hold dear to my heart.

I have lived in three different states. I was born in Jacksonville, Florida and grew up in Tampa, Florida. My home base is now Memphis, Tennessee. I am a friend, mentor, co-worker for many in my home states. As a student, I live in Indianapolis, Indiana. At Butler, I’m many things. I’m a bible study leader, discipler, student, and intern. On top of that, since I was adopted, my identity has always been a struggle for me sense I always felt like I didn’t fit into just one.

I wonder about what will change as I study abroad. I will be in a new country, and not around the familiar. I have previously traveled to another part of Spain, so I’m curious to learn about Almeria, Spain. One thing I know won’t change, is my identity as someone who values self-improvement. I’ll continue to grow and work to achieve my personal and professional goals. I will likely gain a new identity as a “study abroad” student, and I will have learned how to relate with others who have different identities, learning from them by creating deep and rich relationships.

Fast forward to me landing in Almeria, Spain. Almeria is a very interesting city, because not only does it border the coast line, but it also is next to other popular cities, such as Granada, Malaga, Murcia, and those other little cities in between. Regarding culture and identity, to me, my world flipped  practically upside down. There’s a lot of things that surprised me because of my assumptions early on.

For example, I know that Spain in general is a homogenous country, so I wasn’t really expecting anything new from Almeria, since it is not a big city like Madrid or Barcelona. I was shocked to find out through operating in daily life and practically becoming like one of the locals that a lot of people here have immigrated from South America and Africa.

Also, my interactions with other people, the same race as me, have been eye-opening in regards to how our identities are different, even though we are the same race. For example, I made a friend at church, and she was a black woman. She spoke little to no English, but she offered to invite me to her house. I practically knowing no one, obliged happily, and she took me over to her house to have a meal and talk a little until the afternoon. She talked about the things that she loved, and where she’s from, Columbia. It was so interesting to hear her story, and how she of all people would come to Almería. It seems like with all the people I’ve talked to whether they are local or have for some reason or another end up here. It seems like people don’t choose Almeria, but Almeria chooses them.

The final part of identity in Spain is taking into account that I am an international student. This has been the first time that I’ve met so many different people and every person is diverse. It’s one thing to be part of a small group that is diverse on your college campus, it’s another thing to be part of hundreds of students that are extremely diverse. Being in the group this big, where diversity is common instead of uncommon, really makes me question a lot of things. I, myself, am a diversity leader at Butler and a Morton Finney scholar. Obviously because of that, my main goal is to make Butler‘s campus a more diverse place. Now I’m in a place that has accomplished that goal that I’m striving for in my college in the US. And as I’ve had time to think about it, not a lot of things are different really. Of course, you have different points of view on things as well as different experiences in different cultures that you can learn from or talk about, but I think it’s much more interesting to talk about everything we have in common instead of everything that is different about us. I don’t know, it’s just some food for thought, but I think it’s good to think about these things. You know, university in Spain is so different because they don’t have a lot of homework unlike the US so I’ve had some more time to think about these bigger questions which has really blessed me in a way.

Written by: Diana Fernandez Caumol  |  Spring 2023
BU Exchange at University College Cork

The day I left the United States I was carrying two brand suitcases and a HUGE backpack
that I had never picked up before. It was raining, Los Angeles traffic was heavy, and we got to the wrong gate…twice. Little did I know that was only the beginning.

Let me paint you a picture. You are naturally bad at escalators, having to count three lines
before daring to set foot. You are carrying a 40-pound backpack that you can barely hold, a
carry-on that keeps tipping off, and a pillow that has touched the ground so many times you are ready to leave it in a seat and wave it goodbye. To make matters worse, you are overheating because you ran out of space with three jackets still unpacked. How does it go?

As expected, horribly wrong.

I remember thinking that maybe once I got to my gate the bad luck would end, but then the flight was delayed three hours because the plane got hit by lightning. And when I finally boarded, the real fun began.

In all my years flying, I have NEVER heard classical music as the boarding choice of an
airline, but right there and then Lakmé’s, Duo Des Fleurs started playing.
I looked inside and realized just how small the hallway was, to the point I could not physically fit in it. And so in a sea of annoyed glances, accidental bumps, things falling over, and fancy music, I made my way to my seat in row 77. There I encountered the next problem: all the over-the-head cabin spaces near me were full and the backpack could not fit under the seat.

And so in a second round of annoyed glances, accidental bumps, and my muscles failing to
carry the backpack, I made my way to row 50.

“Diana, sit down”, I told myself, and then the tears began. Sticky substances, dinners I could not eat and nausea all made a memorable flight. To close it off, my luggage got damaged and all my belongings got wet. Now hear me out, I am not intending to spike your fears. But in case you have a rocky start, I am here to tell you and reassure you that it gets better!

So here is my short guide to surviving a rocky start:

1. Pack travel adaptors. Fun fact: The UK and Ireland use different plugins than the
   rest of Europe and Europe uses different ones than the US!
2. Check the voltage of any electronics you have before plugging them in
3. Make sure you have some essentials in your carry-on in case anything happens to
   your luggage (including a change of clothes!)
4. Do not underestimate the power of sleep. Jet lag is not the nicest experience, so
   please make sure you are sleeping well.
5. Try to stick to the schedules you had at home! It is very easy to get lost amidst the
   chaos and some sense of familiarity can definitely help. Do you have a specific
   skin-care routine? Do you have comfort meals? Stick to those while you adjust to a
   new place.
6. Don’t feel like you have to do it all your first week! There will be plenty of time to socialize and explore. Make sure you can still focus on yourself : )
7. Ask questions. Even if it feels weird or self-explanatory. Here’s a little secret, I got
   late to orientation because I did not know how to open the main door of my housing.
8. Make sure to reach out! Whether that is your family or friends at home, people at
   your university, or licensed professionals, having a support system makes everything
   easier. Side note: even if you are having a great time, it is good to keep your loved
   ones updated on your well-being!
9. Allow yourself to feel and be gentle with yourself. Sometimes we forget we are
   humans with needs and desires. Your study abroad experience is not meant to be
   utopic, but it is meant to be a new adventure where you find out more about yourself
   and the world. Allow yourself to reflect on anything that comes up and allow yourself
   to go through the motions. And please remember to breathe! You got this.

I am pleased to announce that despite one of the worst flights of my life, I enjoy Cork every day. From some of the kindest people to some really good triangle hash browns, this place has brought many wonderful memories in the first month.

Written by: Tessa Fackrell  |  Summer 2022
French Language and Culture in Quebec

Learning a second language in a class setting, and speaking said language to a native speaker are completely different experiences. In class, mistakes are common and forgettable. You’re in class to learn, so why would you stress about using la instead of le.

In theory, that principle should work when speaking abroad; it’s easy to tell you’re a foreigner because of anything from your accent to your clothes, most people can guess that you’re learning. So why is it that speaking the language you’re practicing is such a scary hurdle? Simple tasks like ordering coffee, or checking out at the grocery store seem daunting. Walking back and forth in front of a market for half an hour trying to find the nerve to potentially butcher the employee’s language is a struggle all on it’s own.

This was on of my biggest anxieties when I was abroad and practicing French in Québec city this summer. Instead of letting you wander back and forth in front of the market trying to memorize a script of exactly what to say, below are five ways I eventually made myself more comfortable speaking in French.

How to Speak a Language Abroad:

1. Acceptance – Were skipping to the last step of the grieving process for our opening tip because the first thing that helped me was understanding that I was going to mess up the article, or the tense, or the pronunciation of whatever I was trying to say. Instead of being embarrassed about this, I took on the mindset that I would probably never see this waiter again, so the fact that I asked for grilled leaves wasn’t such a big problem for me in the long run, and he’ll leave with a funny story so both of us come away winners.
2. Practice – I was lucky enough to stay with a host family who let me stumble through sentences and would graciously help me sort out the more blaring errors. If you don’t have a host family, find a bilingual friend who’s willing to sit through some incoherent sentences for the sake of learning.
3. Patience – Being frustrated at yourself for not learning fast enough simply will not help you, unfortunately. You are learning a new language with intricacies that take native speakers years to learn, be patient with yourself.
4. Laugh at your mess ups – When you do make a mistake, it will probably be small. But if you’re like me and you use the word that you think means silly but it actually means ugly, and you use it in a classroom setting (confidently), you’re going to either dwell on it for your trip, or laugh about it and move on. If the worst thing that happens on your trip is a miscommunication, it’s been an incredible trip.
5. Enjoy the moment – Trying to soak up all that you can about a new language and culture while worrying about not embarrassing yourself is impossible. We’re humans and our brains only have so much room, don’t waste it on trying to be perfect. The other side to that is don’t waste your time learning the language worrying about what’s going to happen when you get home. If you spend more time worrying about how much you’re learning, you won’t have anything to practice and build on when you get back.

All of this is to say that you can walk into that store and order that croissant, I believe in you! Even if you mess up you can just explore a different bakery next time! Be a sponge, soak up everything you can with your experience, and take it with you as you continue to learn and grow.

Written by: Samantha Mauter  |  Summer 2022
Butler in Asia Summer Internship: Singapore

One of the first things I did when I found out that I was accepted in the Butler in Asia program and it would be in Singapore (not Tokyo, which I applied for) was look up the LGBTQ+ rights there. During the information session, the words “homosexuality is illegal in Singapore” were said but never further explained. My  friends told me that I should “just be careful there” in fear that something might happen to me. I tried to find more information on what it’s like to live in Singapore as a member of the LGBTQ+ community, but the information was scarce. All this to say, I did not really know what to expect.

Although my experience with the queer community in  Singapore was limited, I did have a few interactions that have shaped my view of what it’s like compared to France since I studied abroad there for a year.

I came out as gay in France, so before this trip, I haven’t really experienced being “out” to people from the US. In spite of someone outing me during this trip without my consent, I was received with acceptance and a sense of normalcy within the Butler group. That is to say that I wasn’t treated as the odd one out.

One of the big changes in Singapore was that casually talked about the men they were seeing. Although they might have been I was working there, not studying like I was in France, which was a very different dynamic. Many people believe that our personal lives, specifically who we date or marry, have no place in the workplace, and that simply isn’t true. In my experience, coworkers talk to each other about their personal lives, which includes who they’re dating or who their partner is. This happened to me when I went out to dinner with some of my coworkers in Singapore, and they accepting, I couldn’t risk ruining our dynamic in the workplace, so I stayed quiet.

In France I discovered my love of going to one bar and becoming a regular there, and this was no different in Singapore. One night, I was walking down this street filled with bars and stopped dead in my tracks when I saw a pride flag hanging inside this one bar. After talking to the owner, it turned out that he hung it up so that everyone would feel accepted there, which was so heartwarming since I hadn’t really found a place like that in Singapore yet. In the many times that I went to that bar, it felt like a cozy little place that I could sneak off to where I wasn’t afraid to be myself.

The one time when I truly feel like I experienced the queer community in Singapore was when I went to a queer party a local who I met on Tinder and became friends with told me about at the Hard Rock Cafe of all places. I was lucky enough to be invited by her and sit at her table, so I was able to get to know her friends who were all queer women. It was there that for the first time on my trip, I felt at home there. The drag shows, the dancing, the music – it was all incredible and I’ll never forget that night. I was able to really be my most authentic self while I was abroad in France and Singapore for the first time in my whole life. While I don’t think my short two-month stay in Singapore is a full reflection of the LGBTQ+ experience in the country, the little slice I did experience gave me hope for the future there.

Written by: Sara Wilson  |  Summer 2022
History and Culture of the Mediterranean Diet and Healthcare Delivery in the United Kingdom: Lessons From the Past, Preparing for the Future

I had the privilege of studying abroad this summer in London, England on the Healthcare Delivery in the United Kingdom program and in Florence, Italy on the History and Culture of the Mediterranean Diet program. By completing these two study abroad programs, I was able to gain six credit hours that go towards pharmacy school electives. Earning credit hours will help me immediately by having to take less hours down the road, but these experiences granted me so much more.

Studying abroad is all about gaining new perspectives and soaking in as much culture and knowledge you can. I went into this experience with an open mind and eager attitude, and yet, I still learned so much more than I thought I would. The biggest thing that I took away from these two trips was how much of an impact a global perspective can have on my future career. Since these trips are tailored towards students going into the healthcare field, a majority of our trip was learning about the healthcare and wellness in other countries. Being able to immerse myself in the healthcare of another country, I can now carry that knowledge and perspective with me for the rest of my life.

For example, in London, we learned all about how the healthcare system works in England, so we were able to compare their system with how the United States’ system works. Now, I will be able to bring my knowledge with me to wherever I may end up in my future career and focus on the things that worked well in the United Kingdom and what already works well here in the United States. In Florence, we learned all about the Mediterranean Diet and healthy living. Not only will I be able to apply these healthy living habits to my own life, but also into my future patient’s lives as well. Not very many people have the opportunity to gain a global perspective for their future career, so it is a very appealing quality when searching for a future job.

Written by: Clare Hooper  |  Summer 2022
History and Culture of the Mediterranean Diet

During my time in Florence, I was exposed to food and a culture that I truly fell in love with. My dad’s side is from Sicily, and I was raised with some Italian traditions. Meals together with family were always special.

In my time at Butler, I have learned more about myself than I would have ever imagined. In the past two years, my love for health and food has drastically increased. Two years ago, I discovered that I had to go gluten free for medical reasons. If I ate anything containing gluten, I would fall asleep almost instantly. For years, I have been trying to eliminate foods that would make my body worse. This trip gave me the ability to find foods that could fuel my body to make it stronger. I learned all about the Mediterranean Diet, and I believe it is a diet that many people could easily follow and stick with. When I thought about what a healthy dinner should consist of, I always pictured some form of meat as the main dish with a side of vegetables. Now after studying abroad, I learned that meat does not have to be the main source of nutrients.

In America, vegetarians and vegans have substitutes for protein, but what I liked about Italy was that there were no substitutes. They used other foods as a source of protein, instead of having a veggie burger or another form of substitute. Another fun fact that I learned is that balsamic vinegar has plenty of antioxidant properties. This means that balsamic vinegar is one of the many foods that can be used to protect people from inflammation, heart disease, and even cancer. It can be used to make a salad healthier instead of using another dressing.

I liked the lifestyle involving food in Florence. There were set times for meals, and employers were allowed to close their place of business for meals. If an employee wanted to go take a walk, they could. If the store had been slow all day and they wanted to close early, they could. I have always wanted to be in a position where I live to work not work to live. I understand that not everyone has that ability, but my goal for my future was always to be able to save enough money up so if I am sick, or want to take some time off, I could. In Italy, they also thought the same way.

I remember I went to a leather store, and it was owned by a friend of my professor. He and his friend were going to go to the beach the following day. They were going to close the shop during the middle of the week just to have a nice relaxing day at the beach. I am not sure if anyone in America could or would do something like that; I am not familiar with that situation in Indiana. However, I thought it was so interesting that people can just take off to go eat, go to the beach, or go wherever they wanted. Money was not everything to them, and I think that is one of the biggest differences between America and Italy.

The other difference I saw is the overall state of health of the citizens in both countries. I was very fortunate enough to learn about health and food from the Italians. I am still trying to find ways to incorporate balsamic vinegar and other antioxidant foods into my diet little by little each day.

Written by: Aidan Gregg  |  Summer 2022
Nemea Center for Classical Archaeology Field School

It’s 95 degrees there are no clouds in the sky to protect you from the sun. You’ve been working deep in a trench with a pickaxe for four hours and there’s no end in sight. Whenever the wind blows over the dig site, you’re blinded by dirt and dust. Did I mention how hot it is?

Before I came to Greece, I had no idea what archaeology would be like. To say the very least, I’m not built for physical activity. My idea of a good time is sitting in the library, reading the same translation of the Illiad for the fifth time. Demanding manual labor for hours in the hot sun? Absolutely not. But something about archaeology was different.

The temple of Nemean Zeus

My study abroad journey took me to Nemea, the mythological home of the Nemean Lion, which the hero Heracles slew as the first of his 12 labors. Surrounded on all sides by ancient history, twelve students, including myself, participated in an archaeological dig. To the East is the ancient stadium where the Nemean games took place, one of the four Panhellenic Games. To the West is the shrine of Opheltes, an ancient structure dedicated to the cult worship of the hero. And to the North is the Temple of Nemean Zeus, where athletes once honored the king of the gods.

Our excavation took place in the remains of an early Christian basilica, built atop an ancient xenon, a hotel where visitors to the sanctuary would stay in ancient times. The purpose of our excavation was to uncover the walls of this site that were previously excavated and backfilled so they could be preserved for future viewing. Slowly but surely, over the span of four weeks, we revealed more and more of the structure, including the remains of an ancient aqueduct, and had made our way over a meter below the surface. As we were digging, we were also taking pictures of the site, creating scale drawings of the trenches and the walls, and recording everything for future generations of scholars to look back on and learn from.

I can’t stress enough how brutal the work is. You’re hot, sweaty, sunburned, and every inch of your body is covered in dust. But after a long day, nothing beats the feeling of satisfaction as you look at all the things you’ve found and all the dirt you’ve moved. The only thing that compares is the delight of feasting on homemade Greek food after work.

Of course, the fun doesn’t stop in the field. Every few days, we got the chance to work in the back rooms of the on-site museum and escape the heat. I spent most of my time in the museum piecing through pottery sherds (as opposed to “shards,” which refer to glass fragments) in order to identify what kinds of vessels they came from and when they were made. This involved searching through massive, dilapidated catalogs of pottery found during previous excavations to find comparanda, other objects that were similarly made and produced at the same time. I was shocked by how much one could learn about a pot with only a small piece of it.

But why is it important to know what kind of pot a silly little sherd came from and when it was made? I asked the same question. We had thousands of pieces of pottery whose pots had been lost to time, how could they be that important?

The answer is context. Each type of pot we can identify provides us with more context about how the archaeological site was used. For example, if we found a lot of sherds with a texture like sandpaper, a few inclusions like small stones, and evidence of burning, we would know that these pots were used as cookware. Therefore, we could determine that there was a lot of cooking going on at that site. Thus, we can learn more about the activities of ancient humans at that place, at that time.

Or, if we found a large portion of decorated fine ware sherds from closed vessels, like a lekythos, a pot used for storing oil for religious ceremonies, we would be able to learn more about a site’s use in a religious context. But what if we were to find out that many of those sherds were severely burned? In that case, we would have cause to believe that there was a fire at that site thousands of years ago.

A mischievous kitten, Fluff

The hardest part of working in the museum wasn’t looking through volumes of comparanda or handling delicate thousand-year-old objects. It was watching the kittens.

Our museum had three kittens, Peanut butter, Marshmallow Fluff, and Nutella, born a few weeks before the start of the field school season. These adorable balls of fluff were absolute menaces to the order of the museum. We had to be in a state of constant vigilance around the kittens to ensure they weren’t trying to jump onto a table to play with bones, trying to knock down the racks of drying pottery or engaging in other shenanigans. The stress of keeping the kittens out of trouble paled in comparison to the joy of getting to play with them every day. Of all the things I miss about my time in Greece, those kittens are at the top of the list.

This is only a tiny glimpse into the world of archaeology. Over a dozen specialized fields like paleoethnobotany, bioarchaeology, landscape archaeology, and underwater archaeology, provide even more insight into the ancient world. If you want to learn more about the field of archaeology, check in with the Department of History, Anthropology, and Classics, or Butler’s resident archaeologist, Dr. Kvapil. You could even get involved with Butler’s Ancient Mediterannean Cultures and Archaeology lab. And if you’re ready for it, go out in the field and get dirty!

Written by: Peer Advocate, Jacqueline Bickhaus

A letter to a future study abroad student: a melting pot of advice, suggestions, and other random things

Dear future study abroad student,
I am so jealous of you. Your upcoming endeavor may potentially be the best experience of your life. The idea of going to another country to study for a semester, year, or even just a week seems extremely daunting. It can be, but through your upcoming experience, you will learn a whole lot about yourself, discover just how much you are capable of, and launch yourself into the very real world far beyond the Butler Bubble. You may even try to talk yourself out of fulfilling this abroad experience in order to minimize those fears and doubts that may creep into your head, but I am here to remind you that you originally gained an interest for a reason, completed an application and had it accepted, and have taken all necessary steps to bring this dream of yours to fruition.

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