Semester in Finland

Kylie Klenke has been in Jyvaskyla, Finland this semester.
She has her own blog - www.finnishkylie.blogspot.com. Here is an excerpt.

Remember, PSU has exchanges in Finland, where you can pay PSU tuition and study abroad - many classes are taught in English.

Friendship Family Fun

Today, October 10, I went to visit my Friendship family again. It was a very nice meeting and I got to eat a meal with them. This is the first time I think they realized I wasn’t from a big city, and they asked me to bring pictures of where I’m from the next time I see them, so I’m very excited about that. I need to ask my Dad to send me pictures of my home! While I was there I learned quite a bit about hunting and gun laws here. It is much stricter here than in the States, yet Finland has the largest gun to person ration in the world. I find that interesting. Quail season is just ending, so I finally got to meet Matti (the father) today. He was really nice and showed me pictures of the birds he killed. Also, they told me about elk season. It’s very normal to have elks run out in the road during the hunting season. I told them about how that happens with deer in my country. Then they started talking about how 15 people go out at once with dogs to hunt deer. That made me wonder what kind of super-elk they have here in Finland. Then they started describing the ‘elk’ and I realized that they were really talking about MOOSE! THEY HUNT AND EAT MOOSE HERE!!!! I was so shocked upon hearing it. It’s amazing and I can’t wait to try it, but I was not expecting it. And it made me realize why they said that ‘elk’ running out in the road is so bad. Think about your car running into a moose. I wonder which object will win. :S

*Let It snow, Let It Snow*

Today, October 12, we got our first snowfall here. The teachers all say it was abnormally early for snow, so I’m now starting to believe that it might actually be a colder winter than ever before, like all the experts are apparently saying. It was so beautiful though, because all the fall yellows, oranges, and reds were still on the trees and bushes, so you could see the colours showing through under the white, especially when it began melting.

PSU pre-med Study Abroad

Every summer PSU pre-med students volunteer in clinics abroad.
Read about Belize, 2010, here.

Myika Williams wins Gilman Scholarship

Congratulation to freshman Myika Williams who won a prestigious Gilman Scholarship from the US State Department to study abroad.

Myika will spend fall 2010 in Guatemala, Costa Rica and Peru, and will spend the spring at PSU in Paraguay.

Read her story here.

Learn how you can apply for a Gilman scholarship here.

Business in France

Twelve students from the Kelce College of Business spent 3 weeks in June studying Management and Marketing in La Rochelle, France. One of them was Alysha White. Read her story.

Report from PSU group program to Oaxaca Mexico

Went to Benito Juarez today, a small Zapotec village about 65 km from
Oaxaca and it was cool. We left Oaxaca about 7:30 am and got there a little after 9. They have a new road. Not the old winding, gravel road from Teotitlan del Valle but another one from Tlacalula. This one is sort of paved. We kept seeing signs that said, Caution this road has lots of potholes. Pay attention to those signs. But it wasn't all bad. At times there were stretches as much as 100 yards long with good pavement.

The area is now an ecotourism preserve and costs 50 pesos to get in (about $4). Well worth it. We took about an hour long hike high up a very steep hill to the top of the mountain. We took many, many & few more many's of pictures so we didn't kill ourselves getting up there. Great views, wildflowers, interesting stuff all the way. Take lots of water though.

Got to the top to the 'mirador' or viewpoint. Incredible vistas of Oaxaca valley. Also a suspended footbridge about 200 yards long across a canyon. We walked across it, the 5 of us. I made a movie of the students going across and then one of me going across. It was a little scary trying to hold the camera, talk, look down at my feet, shoot occasional still shots with my other hand, etc. The camera was a little shaky when I reached the other side. And what was on the other side? More vistas and the other side of the mountain of course. Nothing else. So we did the only logical thing. After resting and looking several minutes, we walked back across the bridge.

Rachel was first to go back and she found the zip lines we were looking for. There were two guys there with equipment waiting for us. They have 3 zip lines and the cost is 100 pesos for all three or about $7. The first line was longest and spanned the same canyon as the bridge. The cable looked in good condition but I wasn't sure I really wanted to do it. Well, Angela had to try it first. First one of the guys who met us had to go across to the other side as the 'catcher' to stop you on the other side. We watched him as he hung upside down like a monkey all the way across. Next Angela went with no problems. I thought 'that doesn´t look so bad´. I could maybe do that.

Quinn went next. Then the second helper guy went. Then we saw them go on the second line and then the third. It looked pretty easy. So when the helper guys came back the other 3 of us decided to go. I have to admit, I would have been just as happy not going, but when 4 girls do it with no problem I don't want them to think I am just a big fraidy cat. So I put on the harness and went last. It wasn't near as scary as I thought it would be, accept for getting turned around backwards in the middle of the canyon so I can't see where I am supposed to end up. But at the last minute I turned around, the helper guy caught me and I scampered up on top of the
big anchor rock.