First Day of Classes

My shower won't stop dripping, no matter how hard I try to turn the faucets all the way to the right. It is slowly driving me insane. I really enjoyed my first Aussie class today. I think Travel, Tourism and Cultural Production definitely has the potential to be my favorite. Even the readings fascinate me, which I learned when I bought the course reader (put together by the professor instead of having students buy a textbook). I'm taking four classes but amazingly I only needed books for two of them and together it cost me $78. I've been complaining for almost a week about how expensive things are in Sydney, but books for class definitely do not make the list of expensive things. After class, I was so excited to see the school store had gotten more sweatshirts in stock. Paired with the scarf I bought yesterday while shopping with Sarah, I will no longer be cold in Sydney! And I have an automatic souvenir from Macquarie this way too.

The Perfect Career

I believe I've stumbled upon the perfect career opportunity for me, simply by searching through my school's alumni database for contacts in travel. I want to be a tour director! The position sounds perfect for me. You get to carry out tours to the specifications of the company who hires you. This requires organization and leadership. You also have to be social with the tour group and keep them entertained, so my extensive customer service experience will come in handy.

I had no idea that the people in the travel industry went to specific schools and took courses in their areas though. I found a tour director school in San Francisco that is supposed to be the best in the business: ITMI. My new goal is to enroll and then start networking with companies so I can find some jobs leading international tours.

Travelling = love.

Summer Plans and a Book Review

While contemplating the merits of option A and B of summer plans, I decided that option C was really the best, smartest choice. Presuming that I am officially accepted by AIFS to study abroad at Macquarie University on the outskirts of Sydney this fall, I will be staying home and working (if I can find a job this year).

I'm already working up a list of must-see places if I end up in Sydney. I know I definitely want to make the trip to Melbourne, Brisbane, Queensland, Canberra, and, hopefully, Perth, too. I'd like to see both the North and South islands of New Zealand and make a short visit to Tasmania as well.

Lest you think I want to study in Sydney simply so I can travel, I must say I've very excited about Macquarie's course offerings as well. I'm hoping to enroll in courses on Australian culture and food as well as creative and travel writing courses. Looking at the course listings, I realized how much I would have benefited from going to a large school. I get so excited about sifting through all of the interesting course titles and descriptions. OWU just hasn't cut it for me in that aspect; the most interesting courses are always of the travel-learning variety (of course) and those aren't guaranteed. I'm still disappointed about the castles and cathedrals course.

In lesser news, I was reading a travel book this morning entitled Your Gap Year by Susan Griffith. I thought the book was kind of funny from the get-go because I enjoy reading Briticisms and it was published through a British press. The humor sort of dropped off though when I got to the country-by-country information section. Griffith informed readers that while North America can be rather expensive and difficult to travel around due to our fallible public transport, it is also important to keep cash on you so that you can ward off muggers with between $50-100 and avoid physical harm. Not only that, but she also said to be very aware of racial prejudices because it is quite easy to say the wrong thing and start a race war with even the seemingly most understanding individual. I didn't realize America was so awful. She topped off the discussion by warning readers that Americans would likely ask British travelers to remind them again what the capital of London is.

I understand the whole stupid American schtick, but really?!?

Griffith went on to explain that if travelers make their way north to Canada, they will find the country very hospitable. She described Canadians as absolutely, positively "nice," but encouraged readers not to forget they are different people than Americans. Apparently, it's quite possible the only time a British traveler will upset a Canadian will be if they accidentally confuse them with an American and point out the similarities among the two cultures. 

Needless to say, the book was a little prejudiced and lacked credibility because of these outbursts. Funny to think it was published only a few years ago. If you're looking for a laugh or some lightly helpful information for your expensive, parentally-funded gap year abroad, I recommend it though. Griffith certainly has a way of convincing even the most wary of travelers that everything will turn out okay. After all, if you run out of money, you can always call up your parents and have them top off your account like she suggests, right?

Gaggle Splat

The trip to Europe this August is pretty much all set, thank god. I think this is the first trip that I've planned completely on my own and, while I love planning and think I would make a terrific travel agent, I can definitely see why people pay extra so someone else will do all the work. This trip has been like my full-time job the past couple of weeks.

A couple of recommendations for other travellers:

• Don't work with Susan at Breakaway Travel in Ypsilanti, MI. She's annoying, very slow, and adds hidden surcharges to your total for all of her "hard work". On second thought, I guess if you're rich and have all the time in the world, you could work with her, but still...
• Buy stuff through STA travel! They're super nice!
• Allow three hours every time you call Rail Europe (and trust me, to get your seat reservations right, you'll have to call multiple times). You will be on hold for AT LEAST an hour, unless you manage to time your call just right smack in the middle of the day.
• And that reminds me... make sure to allow room in your budget for seat reservations in addition to your EuroRail passes. Someone got smart and decided to charge the tourists for both their discounted passes and an additional price for their actual seat, lucky us.
• Remember to breathe... just because the one perfect hostel is booked doesn't mean there isn't a cheaper, nicer hotel available that happens to be closer to the train station.

The Proposal

As part of Ohio Wesleyan University's curriculum, students are encouraged to participate in travel-learning opportunities or, through a grant program called TIPIT (Theory-into-Practice-into-Theory), they may create their own project. During the Spring 2011 grant cycle, I submitted the following proposal for a trip to Europe. The proposal was accepted and I will be embarking on a journey with three classmates this August.

Here's a copy of the main proposal:

An Examination and Analysis of the Holocaust

Introduction

German high school students are required to visit a former concentration camp as part of their education, according to the The Times Online. However, due to the distance between the United States and many of the concentration camp sites, U.S. students lack this hands-on experience with the Holocaust. The following proposed trip would allow four Ohio Wesleyan students the opportunity to deal with the emotions and prejudice behind the Holocaust first hand, providing them with the opportunity to reflect upon the tragedy and accurately inform others of the suffering endured under Nazi reign.

Itinerary

Tuesday, August 2nd:
• Travel to LaGuardia from hometowns.
• Board plane to Amsterdam.

Wednesday, August 3rd:
• Early morning, arrive in Amsterdam.
• Visit Anne Frank’s “Secret Annex”.
• Visit the Waterlooplein flea market.
• Go on the Highlights of Amsterdam Sightseeing Cruise.
• Check-in to Inner Amsterdam hostel.
• Sample local music at the free evening concert in Vondelpark.
• Go on the Red Light District Walking Tour.

In Amsterdam, students with begin to understand the kind of suffering Jews were forced to endure during World War II if they choose to go into hiding to escape the Nazis. Viewing Anne Frank’s “Secret Annex”, where she hid with her family and friends for numerous years, along with the rest of the old-world city will allow students to take a step back in time and imagine they too are fleeing the Nazi rule. By venturing on a sightseeing cruise, students will be able to see what Frank may have seen every day of her life. As the day wears on, students will enjoy a free outdoor concert of local music near their hostel before venturing outside the tourist region of the city to where the locals spend their time.

Thursday, August 4th:
• Depart Amsterdam and arrive in Hamburg.
• Check-in to A&O Hamburg Hauptbahnhof.

Friday, August 5th:
• Visit Neuengamme Concentration Camp.

In Hamburg, students will learn to navigate the public transportation system in German while traveling to Neuengamme Concentration Camp, a labor camp. At the camp, they will learn about the facilities and the labor performed by the marginalized peoples via an audio-guided tour. On-site exhibitions will also allow students to expand their knowledge of the inner-workings of a concentration camp.

Saturday, August 6th:
• Depart Hamburg and arrive in Berlin.
• Visit Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp.
• Check-in to Grand Hostel Berlin.

Sunday, August 7th:
• Visit Humbolt University grounds.
• Visit Bebelplatz, the site of the first Nazi book burning.
• Visit Brandenburg Gate.
• Visit Holocaust Memorial.
• Dine in the Reichstag, home of the German Parliament.
• Go on Berlin Flak Towers Walking Tour.

Monday, August 8th:
• Go on Jewish Life Walking Tour.
• Visit Neue Synagogue.
• Visit the Jewish Museum.
• Depart Berlin.

Berlin, the center of much of the persecution that occurred during World War II, will allow students to delve into the Jewish culture. After visiting the labor concentration camp nearest to Berlin, students will visit various sites relevant to the Nazi reign, such as Bebelplatz and Humbolt University. Students will participate in a Jewish Life walking tour and visit various museums and synagogues to gage how wide spread the Jewish population of Berlin was prior to World War II. While dining at Reichstag, students will be able to look over the city and connect all the places they have visited. Finally, students will venture on an underground tour of the bunkers used during the war.

Tuesday, August 9th:
• Arrive in Warsaw.
• Visit the Jewish Historical Institute.
• Visit Mila 18, the Ghetto Uprising monument.
• Visit Umschlagplatz, the Treblinka monument.
• Visit the Jewish Cemetery.
• Visit remains of Warsaw ghetto.
• Depart Warsaw and arrive in Oswiecim.
• Check-in to Hotel Olecki.

A day-trip to Warsaw will allow students to explore the Jewish presence in Poland’s capital. After viewing the various monuments around the city, students will follow the “ghetto trail”, which outlines the former Warsaw Ghetto boundaries and form mental pictures of the corral Jews and supporters were forced to live in.

Wednesday, August 10th:
• Visit Auschwitz-Birkenau Concentration Camp.
• Depart Oswiecim.

A guided tour through Auschwitz-Birkenau will allow students to explore the powerhouse concentration camps located is Oswiecim. Whereas other camps are broken down based on what occurs behind their gates, Auschwitz-Birkenau and their satellite camps serve as labor, collection, and extermination sites.

Thursday, August 11th:
• Arrive in Prague.
• Sunrise at Charles Bridge.
• Visit Wenceslas Square.
• Go on the Terezin Memorial Sightseeing Tour.
• Visit Old Town Square.
• Visit Old-New Synagogue.
• Check-in to Hostel ELF.

Friday, August 12th:
• Visit the Dancing House.
• Visit Petrin Hill.
• Visit Prague Castle.

In Prague, students will have the opportunity to see not only Terezin Concentration Camp, a transit and ghetto camp, but also to see pieces of history. Students will visit the Prague Castle and Petrin Hill, some of the oldest sites in Europe, to aid in their understanding of the town’s foundation and culture. Visiting the Old-New Synagogue, a place destroyed by the Nazis and then rebuilt, will also give students an understanding of the city’s Jewish past.

Saturday, August 13th:
• Depart Prague and arrive in Munich.
• Check-in to Jaeger’s Hostel.

Sunday, August 14th:
• Go on the Dachau Concentration Camp tour.

Monday, August 15th:
• Go on the Munich City Hop-On Hop-Off Express Tour.
• Depart Munich and arrive in Weimar.
• Check-in to Labyrinth Hostel Weimar.

Students will have the opportunity to tour the Dachau Labor Camp with a knowledgeable English guide during their stay in Munich. The guide will be able to answer any questions the students have from this and previous camp visits. Following the camp, students will explore Munich through a tour bus company who allows them to leave the bus at interesting sites and spend time engaging with the town’s culture.

Tuesday, August 16th:
• Visit Buchenwald Concentration Camp.
• Depart Weimar and arrive in Amsterdam.
• Check-in to Ibis Amsterdam Airport.

As the journey comes to a close students will visit Buchenwald, a labor camp referenced to in Elie Wiesel’s Night. This visit will allow students to compare the real remnants of the concentration camp to the mental image they created while reading the real-life account.

Wednesday, August 17th:
• Depart Amsterdam and return to LaGuardia.
• Board planes to hometowns.

Conclusion

The proposed trip will allow students to examine the Holocaust’s affects on both the Jewish people and those who lived in Europe during the time of World War II. It will allow students to explore the aspects of prosecution and determine how the Nazi’s were able to gain and stay in power. Through these hands-on experiences in the camps and the cities they reside in, students will build a cultural background that allows them to analyze the use of concentration camps during World War II and other remnants of the Holocaust. This experience will allow students to bring their developed analytical reflections back to the Ohio Wesleyan community to further student body open-mindedness, cultural acceptance, and knowledge of the Holocaust.

Goal Costs

TOTAL: $14,561.66
TOTAL PER PERSON: $3,640.42
TOTAL PER PERSON PER DAY: $242.69