Today’s Video: Simpson Students in France

We regularly post video from other students and universities on the site, so I’ll post this slideshow of our just-completed tour of Paris, Bordeaux and Nice. Much of what I’ll be talking about over the next couple of weeks will be drawn from lessons learned during this experience. But, first, take a look at things we saw.

Back from France, Back Online

After a 2 1/2 week hiatus while I led a group of Simpson College students on a study tour comparing American and French cultures, Smart Study Abroad is back online. Give us a couple of days to get caught up on what’s been happening the larger world of study abroad, and we’ll be posting regularly again next week.

The plan had been for posting regularly from France. But Internet access in our hotels was spotty. Our Paris hotel had no access because the owner hadn’t paid his Internet bill, while our Bordeaux hotel would support only low-bandwidth email applications. A hotel in Nice provided reliable, high-bandwidth support (and at no charge to hotel guests!), but by then the 16-hour days were taking a toll on my ability to do anything other than shower and sleep.

As I tell my students, the key to success when studying abroad is in being flexible!