A Trek to Remember

Posted on January 4, 2016 by jehollow
Arnauld Irakoze

A Trek to Remember

Camel trekking through the Sahara Desert was an amazing and fulfilling experience. My friends and I were excited to begin this journey. We each had the choice to select a camel for the trip. After we made ourselves as comfortable as we could be on the camels, we began our journey straight to the dunes. Within 15 minutes, the view of the city was replaced with endless sights of the dunes. That was the moment I realized we were officially in the middle of “nowhere” and we had to truly rely on each other.

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Morocco: Sustainable vs. Unsustainable

Posted on November 9, 2015 by jehollow
Arnauld Irakoze

Morocco: Sustainable vs. Unsustainable

Sustainable
A positive image of sustainable development was captured on May 26 on our Rabat tramway excursion. The tram is a great public transportation option for Moroccans and tourists to get around the city. Most importantly, the tram has social and environmental benefits. Based off the picture, the tram is heavily utilized by people. There was not one time we entered the tram and it was empty. On the social aspect, people are able to strike up conversations with familiar friends and create new friends. As Moroccans are fairly warm people, they interact with each other a whole lot more. Conversations can be heard on various parts of the tram. As the tram is a non-polluting transport system, it has an environmental benefit. Overall, the tram was easy to use. We were able to purchase our tickets and insert it in the machine to validate it. With the validation, you are good to go on your trip. However, a mistake of not validating the ticket will cost approximately 50 Dirhams on the spot. This is a decent fine when compared to the fine of $50 – $500 on the Phoenix light rail. Overall, the tram seems to promote sustainable development in the public transportation sector.

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A life-changing trip abroad

Posted on November 9, 2015 by jehollow
Austin Olaiz

A life-changing trip abroad

There hasn’t been a day since boarding the international flight back to the states from Barcelona that stories from my trip haven’t been brought up in conversation. From talking about food and culture with friends, to discussing engineering topics in my classes, I always find myself relating everything I do to the experiences I obtained in Morocco and Spain. I am pretty sure all friends, family and colleagues around me know exactly what I did this summer since they’ve been hearing about it since I got back.

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Sustainable or not?

Posted on November 4, 2015 by jehollow
Zachary Koehler

Sustainable or not?

Not Sustainable
This photo best represents not sustainable because of its poor planning. The building seemed to be constructed out of nowhere and not even finished. What really perplexed me was that the building not only looked unfinished but that it was hollowed. There was nothing but about ten feet deep all the way around. It was almost like it was a facade and it wasn’t even meant to have any purpose but to look big. It seemed unsustainable because the materials used to make this building not only must have taken money but just a waste of resources. Not only resources in terms of materials but labor of the workers, the wasting of useful time and the wasting of space. This building is unsustainable because it does not sustain its role as a building unless it contributes to bettering the community around it.

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Tangier, Tempe, and Takeaways

Posted on November 2, 2015 by jehollow
Ashley Zafaranlou

Tangier, Tempe, and Takeaways

It has almost been four months since I returned from traveling and not a day goes by that I do not miss my study abroad experience. Reminders of the trip pop up in the most random places. I was walking out of Hayden Library the other day and Charlie’s Cafe was featuring a “Seville Panini” which hilariously featured almost zero traditional Spanish ingredients. While wandering through a cosmetic store, I saw a 4oz bottle of “pure” argon oil selling for $100, which is approximately 984.9 dirhams worth of misinformation. The women who work at the argon oil cooperative in the High Atlas Mountains told us most mainstream name-brand argon oils are not actually pure.

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Flashbacks and Dreams

Posted on November 2, 2015 by jehollow
Siddhanth Paralkar

Flashbacks and Dreams

Don’t blink, you’ll miss it. A mantra of living in the moment. I certainly tried to live in every minute of my trip to Morocco and Spain. However, almost five months after returning, living in the moment has distracted me from really reflecting. It feels like a dream. Did I really ride a camel? Did I really drink the best mint tea from tiny glasses? How is it that I could have just gone back to normal so easily?

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Toto, I have a feeling we’re not abroad anymore

Posted on October 23, 2015 by jehollow
Breeonna Combs

Toto, I have a feeling we’re not abroad anymore

My first morning (late afternoon) that I woke up in my own bed in Arizona was so strange. I didn’t hear horns blaring nonstop. People shouting to one another from across the way. I didn’t eat hardboiled eggs, bread, and black coffee for breakfast. I didn’t spend the whole day exploring places so unfamiliar to me. What I did do was lay on the couch all day, binge-watching Netflix in my pajamas.

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Public Space and Community, Filling the Void in the United States

Posted on October 23, 2015 by jehollow
Callie Rose Alden

Public Space and Community, Filling the Void in the United States

While abroad in Morocco I was in awe over the sense of community that was facilitated through the utilization of public spaces. Growing up in the suburbs of the United States most of my experiences were fairly isolated. These feelings of individualism and isolation are even more prominent after returning from Morocco. In America we don’t hang out in public without a goal or activity, we don’t really talk to our neighbors, and we certainly don’t touch people we just met.

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Returning to Reality: Absorbing Incredible Experiences of Morocco, Spain and Beyond

Posted on October 23, 2015 by jehollow
Ashley Ann Knudsen

Returning to Reality

No matter how long the journey, there is nothing quite right about saying goodbye to the exploration you’ve come to know on a daily basis over an entire summer…yet life moves on.

Upon returning to the States, I prepared myself to combat reverse culture shock and depression. After over a month of endless adventure, I knew it would be difficult to resume a normal schedule. Consequently, while gliding through the sky on my plane ride home, I adamantly scribbled inspirational moments, goals for the rest of the year (academic, social, etc.), and edited photos from each destination. I was determined to ensure closure of my experience in an uplifting fashion. Although I still felt the sting of familiarity upon landing at Sky Harbor, the process allowed my gratitude for the trip to fuel my ambitions rather than inhibit them, especially for the upcoming semester.

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Real Life

Posted on October 23, 2015 by jehollow
Hailey Baker

Real Life

Man, I thought freshman year was a busy one, but sophomore year is giving it a run for its money. Between work, classes, homework, TA office hours, and friends, it’s sometimes hard to believe that I ever left at all, or that there is a whole world out there beyond the sphere of my day-to-day life. Since I’ve come back to school, nothing has come close to the experiences I had while across the sea.

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