Michal is a woman; yes a woman. A 20-year-old (almost 21) woman from Mount Vernon, Indiana who attends college at Purdue University in West Lafayette and is studying abroad at Paul Valery in Montpellier, France

She is a senior dual majoring in English literature and French language and literature and who had this to say about studying abroad: "The aspect that makes me most excited about my upcoming semester is that I am going to be totally immersed in another culture. Every preconceived notion I've ever had is going to be tossed out the window, and everything is going to be a new experience. I am determined to be completely open-minded when I arrive in France, try every new thing I come across, and meet every new person I can. I think it is going to be one of the most enriching and rewarding experiences of my life.

But I am really nervous that I might look stupid in certain situations due to language barriers or lack of knowledge. I was warned that it might be common for French people to ask me my opinion on current US political decisions or governmental policies, so I have been listening to plenty of NPR and reading the news to try and keep myself informed. I realize that there will be many instances in which I will not know certain things about French culture or language, but I would like to know everything about my own culture so I can answer their questions."

We sat down with her to ask her questions about herself, and this is what we learned:

What made you want to study abroad?

I became interested in Study Abroad when I picked up French as my minor. I thought it would be the ultimate experience to learn as much as I can about French and get to meet other students who share my same interests. I have also been approached to teach English in France after I graduate, so I decided that I had better go there to see how much I like it. That way, I will know upon graduation if I would be interested in moving there for a few years to teach.

Why did you choose this destination/program?

I chose the program in Montpellier at the very last minute. Originally I had been looking into a program in Paris, but after meeting with my Foreign Language advisor, my decision became very clear. The Montpellier program will allow me to be in a real French University and take classes with real French professors as opposed to the Paris program which has courses specially designed for American students. It was important for me to choose a program that would allow my language to improve drastically during the course of the semester. With my program, I will live with a French host family and have classes where French will be the only language spoken. Plus, it's in the Riviera near the beach and the mountains...there's really no downside.

What are your hobbies and interests?

I love to read, which I suppose is a good thing since I am a literature major. I also really love to write poetry, although it has not been determined if I am actually any good at doing so. I really like finding new music, so I read a lot of music magazines and check out a lot of concerts. My dad and I are really into the same type of music, and we went to the Siren Music Festival in New York last year. I really love meeting new people, so I try and go to some parties and coffee shops to hang out with different crowds. And also--I hate to admit this--I like to do crossword puzzles. I'm a dork at heart.

What are your favorite books and magazines?

I like a lot of classic literature. My favorites are The Sun Also Rises by Hemingway and The Great Gatsby by Fitzgerald. The best book I've read recently is Everything Is Illuminated by Foer. I like books that talk about the meaning of life, and I especially like it when the end is left really open, so I can decide what happens next. I like to read music magazines like Spin, Magnet, and Filter. I think most women's magazines are crap, but I really enjoy Nylon. Last, I like to read Esquire when my dad gets it in the mail. It has really good articles!

What type of music do you listen to, and what are you favorite TV shows and movies?

Oh gosh. I love to listen to music all the time. I listen to mostly Alternative and Indie music. I don't listen to the radio very much (unless I'm listening to NPR.) I like to watch Project Runway every week and make bets with my mom on who will get kicked off next. Obviously Alison is going to win. I also like watching Grey's Anatomy and Desperate Housewives along with the rest of the free world. I like a lot of different movies, but I hate horror movies. I have a nine-year-old brother, so I do end up catching most of the kiddie movies, and they're not so bad. My favorite movie is Amelie, which is fabulously French and very uplifting. I'll watch just about any film.

If you could have dinner with one famous person - alive or dead, historical or celebrity - who would it be and why?

If I could eat with anyone, wow. It is going to become apparent that I am a huge nerd after answering this question, but there's no turning back now. I would eat dinner with Alice Paul. She was a huge women's rights activist who devoted her whole life to making the future better for women. I would love to meet her and ask her about all of the things she put into her campaigns, her personal life that isn't included in much of the history, and also what she thinks of women's rights today. I wonder if she would think that women have come a long way since her time or if she would think that we have ruined some of the things she worked so hard to achieve. Interested yet? Good, then read her blog.

Judd Hower
Studying in Germany

Tammy is a 21-year-old junior environmental science major at University of Maryland, Baltimore Country. Hailing from Baltimore, Maryland but studying in Costa Rica for a home-stay with School for Field Studies (accredited by Boston University) and then Nicaragua, Tammy is participating in two very different aspects of studying abroad. She is spending one portion as a typical college student on a campus overlooking San Jose, and the second half immersed in a new culture, living with a foreign family.

When asked what she was most looking forward to about her time abroad, she answered like one would expect from a political and environmental activist:

"For me, the rainforest has always been a distant fantasy. Something mysterious filled with wonderful endangered species, vast canopies with insects that have yet to be classified, and plants that can be used to cure disease. I am a little bit afraid that I was born too late and it will already be like a mini United States; my study abroad advisor told me he was very disappointed to see a Taco Bell the last time he went to Costa Rica. But maybe through being kind and humble, I will have the chance to learn about Costa Rican customs so that I can share them with others via BlogAbroad.

"Globalization is a powerful agent of spreading knowledge, ideas, medicine, and technology. However, it can also wipe out indigenous cultures and customs when they are exposed to the western way of life. Without globalization I would not have this opportunity to study with Boston University's School for Field Studies. Yet without it, deforestation and other pressures would not be threatening the Costa Rican rainforests.

"It's one thing to theorize about a place and another to know, understand, and love it. It would be easy to say that I am looking forward to photographing the beauty of Morpho butterflies, poison dart frogs, and cascading waterfalls. It sounds strange but I am most looking forward to the unknown. What is it going to be like to use a cold, outdoor shower everyday, hike and camp in Costa Rican National Parks, confront issues like the illegal extraction of heart of palm, and connect with people who may only see an American as a dollar sign and hopefully let them see that we are real people too? I'm somewhat overwhelmed by the opportunity and the unknown of the months ahead in Costa Rica."

We asked Tammy for a few insights into her general interests in this Q & A:

What type of music do you listen to?

A truthful answer would be whatever my friends pick. As a result, I now enjoy Queen, Bob Marley, the Beatles, Incubus, Jeff Buckley, OutKast, the Beach Boys, Shania Twain, Alanis Morrisette, and oh yeah, Celtic Bagpipes. Weird, huh? Generally, I like to listen to music that makes me happy and is fun to dance to. (I'm a lefty so I'm not exceptionally coordinated, but I have a lot of fun and smile a lot so most people don't seem to care). I'll admit to knowing the lyrics to practically every Disney song, and I adore musicals. My favorites are Chicago, Rent, and anything by Andrew Lloyd Webber. As far as specific songs go, my favorite is Pachelbel's Canon. I love it performed either with a full classical orchestra or when a group of my high school friends play it with electric guitars.

What are your hobbies?

I believe that to live well one must nurture a healthy mind, body, and soul. To develop a sharp intellect I study hard, read a variety of books, and try to keep up to date on current events so that I can debate with my friends. I also enjoy the occasional logic problem or old school Nintendo video game.

To maintain a strong body I used to row for UMBC's crew team but now I enjoy taking studio yoga, kickboxing, and core-ab classes. I'm antsy and I don't sleep as well if I don't exercise so I also like to lift weights, swim laps, run outside, take dance classes, and boulder. And I'm really excited about going Scuba Diving in Costa Rica as I haven't dove anywhere besides dark, cold quarries in West Virginia and Pennsylvania.

Another less intense physical activity that I love is gardening! At home during the summer I grow an awesome garden full of tomatoes, cucumbers, broccoli, peppers, zucchini, and other yummy veggies (I can whip up one mean zucchini bread and a really tasty spaghetti sauce from fresh tomatoes). I'm looking forward to working in the School for Field Studies on-site organic garden.

To fulfill my soul I enjoy volunteering with a plethora of organizations. My favorite charity would have to be Habitat for Humanity. I really like that they require their homeowners complete sweat equitya required number of hours spent renovating the houses. This gets the community involved and helps them develop a sense of ownership. I'm a committed advocate of urban renovation. If cities are strong and attractive then people will want to live in them instead of contributing to suburban sprawl and paving over more paradise. Other organizations I volunteer with are the Baltimore Believe campaign, Parks and People, the Timberland Community Builders Tour, and the Chesapeake Bay Foundation.

Favorite books/magazines/TV/movies?

Books: My three favorites would have to be Erich Maria Remarque's All Quiet on the Western Front, James Herriot's All Creatures Great and Small, and Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart. Goodies that I have read in the past six months include Aldo Leopold's absolutely beautiful Sand County Almanac, Greg Critser's Fatland, Sue Monk Kidd's The Secret Life of Bees, Rachel Carson's classic Silent Spring, Edward Abbey's Desert Solitaire, Ann Brashares' Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, John Grisham's The Street Lawyer, Pete Fromm's Indian Creek Chronicles, Dan Brown's Da Vinci Code and Angels and Demons, and Dr. Ben Carson's inspiring autobiography, Gifted Hands. Next up on my list are Arthur Golden's Memoirs of a Geisha, Vaitheeswaran's Power to the People, and Jared Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel. Let me know if you have any other good recommendations. One of my favorite things about school breaks is being able to read whatever I want. I love disappearing into a good book and being able to travel vicariously to other times and places. I am so excited to be actually going to Costa Rica instead of just reading about it in a book!

Magazines: I like Time Magazine, Newsweek, Vegetarian Times, and I occasionally read CosmoIt's junk food for the brain.

Movies/TV: If you haven't guessed yet, I'm a big geek so I love Whedon's Firefly Series and movie Serenity. Other movies I like are Supersize Me, Office Space, Erin Brockovich, and anything that isn't too scary or gory.

And, just to prove that she wasn't lying about all of her charity work, we'd like to point out that the picture on her blog is part of a larger photo from, "when I organized the club I lead, Students for Environmental Awareness, to teach paper making to the kids at College Gardens. College Gardens is an after school program for underprivileged children from Baltimore City Public Schools. I was extremely impressed with the enthusiasm and creativity that the 5-12 year-olds displayed. To make paper to give to their parents as holiday gifts, they experimented with using different colors and adding leaves, herbs, and glitter. They were very well behaved; when I taught the lesson at the beginning, they did not speak unless I called on them when they raised their hands. The purpose of my lesson plan was to share with them their impact on the planet and how they can help limit pollution by following the 3 R's: Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle. My favorite response was when I asked them how they could minimize waste, a shy, little guy with short, curly hair answered, You should always clean your plate because when you eat meat animals give their lives to make you strong and healthy and it's not very nice to throw part of them away.'

"Why do some adults lack the simple logic that children pick up so easily? Anyone who believes that Baltimore City and its public schools are hopeless would change their mind if given the opportunity to work with these bright, inquisitive pupils."

See this good-natured humanist in action at her blog.

Taylor Benjamin-Britton
Studying in Tokyo, Japan

If you agree with her, check out her fascinating blog now.