#ipe summer19

[umichenginabroad]

By: Dustin Fletcher, Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering major, German minor

Program: Technische Universität Berlin (TUB)

Night has fallen on my second day in Germany, and I already have so many thoughts racing around my head.

First off: I have never flown before, so I got to experience my first flights and airport customs all by myself, which was a little scary and foreboding, but I was able to make it through. It’s kind of funny that I’ve never been on a plane before, considering that I’m planning on being an aero major specializing in planes! A couple things about the planes themselves actually really surprised me as well. I always thought that planes accelerated really slowly, and that when planes were driving around runways, they were building up speed to take off. I had absolutley NO idea just how fast planes were. It went from 5 mph to around 100 mph within seconds. Lastly, in my flight to Amsterdam, I felt like I was treated like a king with the way they were feeding us on the plane.

My German friend that I had in one my classes told me that there were a lot of wind farms all over Germany. I believed him, but didn’t quite understand just how many there were, so I thought it was hilarious that my very first sight of Germany was of a wind farm! (The white towers in the pic are the wind turbines)

Something else that I noticed immediately in Europe was the alcohol culture. On the plane ride from Amsterdam to Berlin, the air hostess set down a meal in front of me, and handed me a small bottle wine as part of. When I spent some time in Germany itself, some of the meals I bought had a beer included with it, as if a water replacement. And in some places, the beer is actually cheaper than the water! I was fairly surprised by this, as that would NEVER happen in the US, even if it was with people well over the age of 21. It seems to be a lot less taboo in Europe, since it’s such a large part of the culture.

I’ve noticed a ton of other differences from American life as well. One thing that’s very strange to me is the fact that water is not free. Anywhere you go, you need to purchase water. Vegetation here is also much different. Every road here seems to be grown over (but still well maintained) with sorts of vegetation, and it gives me the feeling that I want to explore. In stores, everything is so much cheaper than in America, and it’s all so much better! I am a huge fan of food, such as greek yogurt, bread, and strawberries. We went shopping at Aldi before we even checked into our housing, and all of the food was extremely cheap and tasty. There was an aisle for fresh bread, and I picked out a grainy sunflower encrusted bread, which is needless to say absolutely delicious, a section for “Obst und Gemüse, jeden Tag frisch” where I picked out a pallet of the best strawberries that I have ever seen and eaten, and I grabbed the best greek yogurt that I’ve ever had.

The fellow TUB participants living in Klüberstraße and I, hereby dubbed the Klüber Gübers, met up last night to hang out and meet each other. We then all met bright and early this morning to ride the trains into Berlin and do some sightseeing/eating. We visited many different places, I got to talk to a lot of German workers, and we ate a lot of food. Döner definitely lived up to the hype!

We all met up tonight as well, and we ordered food from a Chinese place. On the app that we order through, it said the delivery driver had arrived, and I went downstairs with one of the other TUB members to pick it up. We couldn’t find the delivery man, but there was a German lady that we had seen earlier. I asked her in German if she knew where delivery drivers dropped stuff off at. My friend then said something in English, so the lady tried to speak in English as well, but couldn’t really articulate what she was trying to say. She asked me how good my German was and I said that it was pretty good, so she talked to me in German. We ended up conversing for about 30 minutes, and at the end I asked her what she thought of my speaking, to which she said it was very good, although I do have a slight American accent. Since my goal is to be completely fluent by the end of this trip, I was very excited to hear that.

It’s now 2 am and I need to leave my apartment at 7:15 tomorrow to get to class on time, so I need to log off until later this week. Tschüß!

[umichenginabroad]

I’m Sorry, but I Can’t Leave Portugal Yet

Well, it’s official - this year’s European Innovation Academy, Portugal, has come to a close. I’m sitting here on the couch typing this blog post, and I can’t begin to even put into words how it feels to know that I may never again see many of the incredible friends I have made on this trip. I am hopeful, however, that we will stay in contact - after all, what else is the internet good for? It’ll be strange to adjust back to work and school, but I’m sure even years from now I will look back at these amazing memories and smile.

The last few days of the event passed in a blur, and ended in a truly spectacular manner on Friday with the Grand Pitch followed by the awards ceremony. My team, Aegis Systems, had the honor of being one of the five finalists for the Quinones Team Spark Award from Nixon Peabody. While we didn’t end up winning the award, being recognized at the award ceremony as a finalist was still a wonderful experience. 

To my teammates and my mentors, thank you for all of the help and patience you’ve exhibited in these past three weeks. Things got tense, plans fell through, tempers flared, but that’s to be expected when you spend 10+ hours each day working together. It’s the way that we never faltered in pursuing our goal, never gave up, never quit, and always forgave each other that leaves me with a sense of pride in our accomplishments. I have no regrets at all, and I would not choose anyone else to have shared this start-up experience with. I love you all so so much.

A few pictures with my amazing Design Mentor, Zara, my team member Sara, and my wonderful IP mentor, On.

A few friends and I after the awards ceremony. Pictured: Calvin, Oskar, Emily, myself, and Darel.

The last weekend was a whirlwind of activity, with goodbyes and adventures still to be had. On Saturday, a few of the University of Michigan students and I traveled to Evora, Portugal to wander and take in some of their famous sites (mentioned in literature like Percy Jackson, Dan Brown books, and even the 39 Clues, if I’m not mistaken). We visited the Temple of Diana, the Chapel of Bones, museums, Roman era aqueducts, and so much more.

Pictures of the beautiful sights in Evora, Portugal.

On Sunday, we roamed through Lisbon, bought pineapple pina coladas, flower shaped ice cream, and souvenirs to remember our time here. Then we traveled to Belém to eat lunch and visit the famed Banksy exhibit, which boasted many Banksy originals. We also visited the monument to Columbus, and even the Christ the King statue (from a distance)! Finally, we traveled back to Lisbon to eat dinner and walk around one last time with a couple of our phenomenal and cool and amazing friends from the program. It was an emotional and raw night, without a doubt.

A few famous Belém monuments, alongside the entrance to the Banksy exhibit.

A final dinner, with friends I will never forget.

I’ll leave you all with some takeaways and tips that I wish I had known before I left for the program. Take what you will from them, but I hope they are helpful. To those enrolling in this program next year, good luck and don’t forget to enjoy yourself.

1. Choose a team based on the people. Your idea WILL change, you will pivot so many times that your final idea may have absolutely nothing even remotely resembling your original idea. The people on your team won’t change - the smallest things that you notice on that first day? The littlest things at annoy you? After three weeks of 10 hour days, you will hate those little things with a burning passion. But also know that everyone has quirks, and no matter who your team is, you will argue, and disagree, and fight, but the hallmark of a truly great team is one that always makes up and never puts each other down.

2. If your team does have conflict (and it will), trust me and talk it out right away. Don’t leave your problems to fester, and if need be, they have life coaches for a reason. It will be uncomfortable to the extreme, and every fiber of your being may wish not to bring your conflicts out in the open, but it will make your team stronger (and you happier) if you do it. Tears may be shed, voices may be raised, but the outcome is worth it.

3. Be willing to bend and to compromise. Know that your teammates are intelligent and will approach problems differently than you do. Don’t discount anyone’s ideas and just keep an open mind.

4. Try to be outgoing and to meet lots of new people. It can be really daunting, but the friendships you forge are, in my opinion, worth it a million times over.

5. Don’t discount your own skills. Be confident in yourself and what you can accomplish, but also don’t ignore your weaknesses. An amazing mentor once mentioned that the people around us are our mirrors - look to them and you might just see parts of yourself, good and bad, that you didn’t see before.

6. Cherish your friends while you can. You may never see many of these people again, so make the most of your time with them. Of course, don’t lose touch afterwards! Friendships will endure if they are truly strong, and I believe many of yours will be, as mine became, are.

A few more housekeeping things:

1. Bring at least two electrical adapters. Don’t forget! Europe does not use the same plugs as the US, and you will need to charge many things.

2. Water is a precious commodity in Portugal, and drinking fountains are a rarity. At the supermarket (I would recommend any Pingo Dolce), buy water in bulk (a one or two gallon bottle). It is cheaper by far and you will need it to fill your water bottles for the weekends and at night. However, do know that at least this year, the Congress Center did have a drinking fountain.

3. Water costs money at restaurants, and quite a bit at that. Don’t go into any restaurant and expect to get water for free when you ask for “water”. Ask for tap water specifically, or bring your own water. However, there is also nothing wrong with just buying water from restaurants either!

4. Go out on the weekends to see the sights! I would recommend a day trip to Lagos, and a weekend for Porto. Cascais, Lisbon, and Belém are beautiful. And Sintra is a stunning place, and my #1 recommendation. At least two full days can be spent there to see all the sights.

5. Good luck and have fun! If you have questions, don’t hesitate to reach out to me :)

Onwards and upwards! But of course, I will never forget this experience or the amazing friends that I have made.

Kevin Wang

Computer Engineering

European Innovation Academy in Cascais, Portugal

[umichenginabroad]

Weekend Vibes

Back to my studies tomorrow, but for now I’m soaking in the last few hours of my brief break. Inevitably the weekend comes to an end, and I’m steeling myself for the coming week of the European Innovation Academy. Last week saw my chief mentor (the wonderful Alina Adams) and marketing mentor (the incredible Kerstin Raitl) heading home. While I’m saddened that they are leaving, I’m incredibly grateful for the mentorship, friendship, and life advice that they shared with me these past weeks. Kerstin and Alina, thank you :). Next week comes the final sprint for the finish line, beginning with IP protection and ending in the grand pitch. Naturally, I’ve hoping beyond hope that my team becomes one of the ten finalists that have the opportunity to participate in the Grand Pitch Finale on Friday. Knock on wood.

My mentor Kerstin and I, and my mentor Alina and I, respectively.

I’m going to take this opportunity to shamelessly plug my start-up, Aegis Systems. We are designing wearable IoT vital sensors to provide protection to police, firefighters, and workers by monitoring vital signs and alerting supervisors and the authorities to any signs of duress or harm. In order to progress to the investor pitches, we need 500 people to show interest in our start-up, so if this sounds like something that is interesting or cool, please visit our website, scroll to the bottom, and sign your name and email! Website: https://katshuadventures.github.io/AegisSystems/.

The notion of being in Portugal is sometimes incredibly hard to grasp, and then other times the differences hit like a truck barreling down the freeway. Tasks like waking up in my dorm room, eating a hasty breakfast, and walking to class all seem so mundane. Interspersed within my daily routine, however, I’ll see an intricate trellised garden, or a beautiful fountain, sometimes even flocks of seagulls swooping through the morning sky and it’ll strike me that I’m standing in a foreign country, among history thousands of years old. This entire weekend has felt that way, almost like wandering through a dreamscape.

Visiting Lagos, in particular, this past weekend was an experience unlike any other I’d had before. After waking up in the wee hours of the morning, navigating the labyrinth of the train station, and napping through a four hour train ride, we finally reached Lagos. First impression? Very underwhelming - the buildings were small, the streets cobbled, all in all, just a miniature Lisboa. Frankly, I was wrong. The train station, nestled in the center of the city, hid the ocean from view, which is what makes Lagos a true beauty. We took a two and a half hour guided kayak tour along the coastline, traveling through stunning arches of sandstone and secret caves. Then, stopping at a beach accessible only by kayak, we went snorkeling alongside the other groups of kayakers. After spending the rest of the day perusing through tented souvenir shops, visiting churches and monuments, we departed by bus back to Lisboa. 

The famed sandstone arches of Lagos, Portugal.

Pictures from the kayakers beach.

The Lagos Crest, located along the beachside.

Sunset on the bus ride (only ten people booked the bus!) back to Lisboa.

A short aside dedicated a prominent feature I’ve noticed throughout Portugal: graffiti. From crude drawings (of the sort I’m sure you can imagine), to intricate works of art, every bit of concrete in Portugal seems to be tagged with graffiti. How important this is, I am unsure, but I thought it was worth noting.

A few of the many graffiti artworks in Lagos.

Sunday (today for me!), was a day chock full of activity and wonder. The Palácio de Monserrate in Sintra was our first stop, and we set off in an Uber ready to tackle the day. Thirty minutes into what should have been a twenty minute ride, we were on edge. Forty minutes in, and we began to ply our Uber with questions as to the problem. Fifty minutes in, and we were officially lost. Luckily, Google Maps came to the rescue, and by the end of the hour, we finally pulled out in front of the lawns of the Palácio de Monserrate. For almost two hours, we wandered through the vast gardens planted centuries ago, moving from the Mexican Garden to the Rose Garden to hidden waterfalls, to a ruined chapel. The grounds of the estate were immense, and every inch was filled with flora bewilderingly beautiful, with bees, butterflies, and lizards aplenty. Choosing, of the two thousand photos I took, which to post here may have been the hardest decision I’ve made on this trip.

The gardens of the Palácio de Monserrate in Sintra, Portugal.

The University of Michigan students conquering the ruined chapel.

Then, after hours of wandering, the Palace came into view beyond rolling green fields. It was magnificent. The outside influences on the palace were obvious, from Roman busts to tiled walls. In words, I’ve no clue how to convey the sense of glory of the palace, so I hope that pictures are sufficient. Also, to the couple whose wedding was taking place in the palace - congratulations! I cannot imagine a more magically location to tie the knot.

Photos of the Palácio de Monserrate.

Next, to finish off the day our group split, and two friends and I traveled to Quinta da Regaleira (a UNESCO World Heritage Site!!). The estate is settled right alongside Sintra, bordered by busy streets and cars. However, the minute we stepped through the gates, the sounds of the city faded, hidden by the towering walls surrounding the property. We first made a beeline for the Inverted Well, one of the gems of the property- a “well” that snaked floors under the ground that was used by the Knights Templar as the location for their initiation rituals. Then, we explored the grottoes, fountains, exquisite constructions, towering spires, teeming vegetation, and, of course, the palace and chapel. In my opinion I loved the gothic towers, mysterious green moats, and crumbling dark wells and tunnels a bit more than the beautiful and graceful Palácio de Monserrate. While the Palácio de Monserrate estates could have been a fairy castle, the Quinta da Regaleira estates stepped straight out of a fantasy book - a dark villain’s haunting grounds and looming towers. My favorite place on the estate? The path of the gods - the path leading to the palace lined with marble busts of the Roman gods. 10000/10 would recommend.

The Initiation Well of the Knights Templar at the Quinta da Regaleira.

The Palace at the Quinta da Regaleira.

More from the Quinta da Regaleira.

Onwards and upwards, as they say! 

Kevin Wang

Computer Engineering

European Innovation Academy in Cascais, Portugal

[umichenginabroad]

The Days (and the Nights)

Since my last post, there hasn’t been too much time to go exploring out in Portugal. It’s been work, work, and (surprise) more work. It’s only Wednesday, but already the week feels as though it’s dragging by painfully slow. Much of my time is spent with my team, and I’m incredibly glad that even while we are tired, cranky, sipping espresso shots, and working at 4am, our friendship has hardly frayed. That’s not to say there isn’t conflict- there is plenty as five college students butt heads regarding ideas, strategies, and networking. Sometimes just taking a breath and stepping away for a minute can do wonders for productivity; just a pro-tip from a student half-way through this program.

As I promised when I started this blog, this will be the good. This will be the bad. This will be the ugly. Not an important moment sugar-coated over. A great place to start would be Monday, a.k.a the ugly. One day before the design expo, where preliminary ideas are pitched to investors, mentors, fellow students, and reporters, each team was determined to step forward into the spotlight. Of course, this entailed a full workday - 10am to 9pm, lunch eaten over prototype layouts. Then, after a quick break for dinner, my team retired to the dorms to continue work at 10pm. From 10pm until 4am we toiled in a dorm room, sprawled over the furniture feverishly coding and eating carbs. 

The hours of sleepless work bore some pretty beautiful fruits, however, and our hardware prototype and UX/UI design for our start-up was truly eye-catching even among the other 99 start-up exhibits. In fact, one of the reporters roaming the venue for a stunning group interviewed and then published an article about my team. Interested? Find it here.

My team’s poster board at the expo.

On Wednesday night, we carved out a few hours to visit Belém during the night-time, which is famously beautiful. Twinkling lights illuminated the many sights we visited, from the Jerónimos Monastery to the Presidential Estates. Last week, I visited Belém during the day, and the difference between the two experiences where, well, night and day. Night time Belém practically sparkles with stars, while spotlights in shades of gold illuminate the buildings. Truly a sight to see.

The Jerónimos Monastery glowing during the night in Belém, Portugal.

The planetarium welcome sign adjacent to the monastery in Belém Portugal.

A relatively short blog post for a lengthy few days, quite the juxtaposition if I do say so myself. We’re halfway through already, and the end is looming in the distance, approaching ever faster. I can’t tell whether I’m disappointed or excited- perhaps both.

Kevin Wang

Computer Engineering

European Innovation Academy in Cascais, Portugal 

[umichenginabroad]

Home in the Mitten

Ana Warner

Computer Science ‘22

Spanish Language, Culture, & Industry in San Sebastián, Spain

I’ve been back in Michigan for a little over a week now and have had some time to absorb the impact of our whole trip and all its adventures and lessons.

Other than a big shock at getting passed a handful of silver coins as change (Spain’s are all coppery or silver + gold), it hasn’t been hard to “adjust back to life at home.” Outside of my work in a lab on campus, I’ve spent a lot of time cooking, visiting friends, and hanging out with my siblings.

I’ve still been pretty tired since I’ve been home, but I’ve tried to keep myself busy. The day after I returned, I went kayaking with my dad at a nearby nature reserve.

Back home, it’s so much easier to converse and ask questions without rehearsing the entire conversation in my head in advance. But I do miss the multilingual environment, which I was reflecting on during my flight home. It was so fun to be surrounded by two or three or four languages all at once, which reminded me of the huge world I’m in. Although being in Spain was humbling and made me feel tiny, I was never scared; instead, I felt even more energetic and motivated to explore.

I’m so grateful for this experience, which was even better and more life-changing than I imagined it could be. I learned so much about myself and about Spain, was able to meet fantastically interesting new people, both from UMich and from Europe, and do countless things I never would be able to at home. I’ve grown so much in just six weeks, and while I can already see the effects of several changes and lessons, I know that more will manifest over time, making me more confident and capable of managing the challenges of school and life in general.

I wanted to thank you all for reading this blog and joining me on my adventures. It’s been an honor to be able to share this experience with you.

Con cariño,

Ana

[umichenginabroad]

Ore monogatari wa Owarimasu

If you're reading this, I suspect you're a prospective student to IPE Study Abroads in general or interested in the NUSIP program. My tl;dr for you is to apply as earnestly as you can. The experience is one-of-a-kind and I'm certain it'll be something you'll fondly look at for the rest of your life, just like I will. Because tumblr is weird, you'll have to go to the last page to see my first post.

This is my last blog post, T-minus 0. I meant to post yesterday, but my flight was so chaotic it wasn't fair; my landing was delayed by 6 hours. As of writing this, I haven't slept properly in almost 40 hours, but I'll persevere. First I'll talk about how classes went and then give my overall thoughts on my journey and its end.

The classes taken were beginners Japanese language and a 300-level automotive engineering class which should count towards tech elective credit. Both classes were fun and unique in their own way; it is perhaps better to compare classes to high school rather than college: daily homework, people you see everyday, projects you work on together, etc. Japanese language class was pretty standard, it was the Automotive lectures that were the meat of work. 

Automotive lectures required a short report per presentation, your own presentation at the end of the program, and a final report due in August. The topics were interesting and things that I wouldn't have thought about on my own. As an aerospace major, I also feel like I could apply what I've learned here to what I could end up doing as a job. The final presentations were really fun. Coming from someone who hates giving presentations, I felt that mine went well and enjoyed everyone else's as well. You shouldn't think of these presentations as something very formal, definitely not like ENGR100 presentations; you're in a room of people you've gotten to know over five weeks, you're all friends and that brings the presentations to a more personal level. 

I didn't cover the factory visits of the program very much. Mostly due to the request of no photos, I felt that just talking about them would've been boring every week. It was cool to see the inside of factories and visit the museums that cover the history of companies. Seeing the progression of where a company started to where they are now brings the realization that the future truly is limitless; you can't tell what'll happen next. And although some factories are loud, I also believe that seeing the different processes of manufacturing will aide in engineering in the future. 

With that out of the way, I can talk about the journey's end. The farewell party was really nice. It terms of format, it was very similar to our welcome party with spreads of foods and speeches. 

However, the feel of it was vastly different. I didn't convey it well in the previous post about the welcome party, but I barely talked to anyone; a shy boy with not only anxiety but an ankle in pain which made me leave early. This farewell party truly showed how far forward I've moved: I could name everyone, could make conversation with anyone, and my ankle felt great. And as unsentimental as I am, I must admit it was sad to see this time end. 

Although this journey is ending, it doesn't mean it is the end. I'm sure I'll have opportunities to see everyone again. The friends made, the experiences gained, and this journey traveled has made this an experience to treasure. I wrote in my application about wanting something to take my first step forward and with this program I’m sure I’ve done more than just one. I thank IPE for making this possible and strongly encourage any prospective students that have read this far to apply. Japan is a fantastic country to visit and I'm sure you'll learn and experience even more than me. 

My name is Jesse Yang and this marks the end of my Japan experience.

Lajlim Jesse Yang

Aerospace Engineering

Nagoya University Automotive Summer Program (NUSIP), Nagoya, Japan

[umichenginabroad]

Tokyo Day 2 and Beginning of the End

T-minus one day and second-to-last post.

I purposely waited until now because the last post will be a kind of wrap-up post summarizing the times in Japan and reviewing the bingo score. Since the previous post, quite a bit has happened actually. I didn't mean to jumble all the events at the end, it just sort of ended up that way. I mostly blame bad internet and tumblr. Kept on getting upload errors. 

To finish off Tokyo, we went to a limestone cave and ate at yet another buffet, specializing in meats. The cave was quite something to behold.

Even though one wouldn't think much of it initially, I certainly wasn't, it turned out to be a better experience that I thought. There weren't many tourists, so I could look around for a while. I'm not exactly tall, so the cave height didn't bother me (if you're taller than 5' 10", I'm so sorry). It was a pleasant experience. The name of this cave is Ryugashido Cavern.

As for the buffet, I've noticed quite a contrast between the ones here and back home in the US. The range of selection is generally smaller than buffets in America, but the food looks very appetizing. Get hungry. Location is known as Jaws Kitchen in S-Pulse Dream Plaza.

The different cuts of beef, pork, karaage, and other was oishii desu (very good). There was even a spot to make your own ramen. It seems like rather than quantity, they focus on quality which came through because even I with a palette that's easy to satisfy could tell a difference. Would recommend 10/10; good food, good view, good atmosphere.

Then we headed straight home for Nagoya. So, really only one afternoon in Tokyo which is definitely not enough time. Not sure why I thought I'd have more content concerning it, but aw well. I have plenty more to talk about before the wrap up post.

I'll briefly touch on the highlights these past couple of days. First of all, MAID CAFE HYPE. Blurred her face though because of privacy reasons. She is of college age though, no worries there. Everyone else consented.

It was a very casual and pleasant experience, much more so than I was expecting. A bit too casual actually. I wanted the full on weeb experience with “goshujin-sama's” and everything, but me and the group I was with just made light conversation. I wanted my moe fix. But, it still counts. The food was food, nothing super incredible; honestly, you go to a maid cafe for the experience, not for great food. 

I just wanted to briefly brag about Yakiniku (grilling food in front of you or korean barbeque). 

It was really good. All-you-can-eat unlimited orders for 90 minutes for only 2000 yen (barely $18) per person. The quality of meat was pretty good and very satisfying. Moving on...

A couple days after that, was the Nagoya Port Festival. Gotta say, it was really something. Everyone should experience something like that at least once to learn to not go again. It was SO crowded it was unbelievable. Like, if you think Festifall is crowded, it's NOTHING compared to Japan festivals. I don't have a good picture of the walking crowd, but even for those sitting to view fireworks, there is no walking space.

Speaking of fireworks, it was really pretty. I find them more impressive than the fireworks I see in America. If you go to a festival, go for the fireworks, at least once. It's done in a show fashion with themed fireworks one after another. When I'd go view fireworks on the 4th of July, it's maybe a firework every 10 seconds except the finale. Here, it's fireworks every second with spectacular effects.  

I wasn't there for the finale, I tried to run away before the trains got crowded but failed miserably. Hopefully, it won't rain for you when you go.

That's enough of that. These events were truly the last of the 'fun trips' before the conclusion of the program. As of the time of writing this, I am actually done with all the work required of me and will give my final thoughts in a post hopefully tomorrow as well as how our final presentations went.

And with that said, here is the final bingo card.

Gotta say, I'm really proud of myself. I gave myself the chopstick one because I feel very comfortable using them now; not awkward = pro to me. I didn't think I'd get a bingo or even achieve half the board. So according to my rule in the first post, I can say that I achieved the experience I set out to get times 3. 

T-minus one day.

Lajlim Jesse Yang

Aerospace Engineering

Nagoya University Automotive Summer Program (NUSIP), Nagoya, Japan

[umichenginabroad]

Final Days

Ana Warner

Computer Science ‘22

Spanish Language, Culture, & Industry in San Sebastián, Spain

As I write this, I’m sitting cross-legged on my bed at Olarain, surrounded by clothes, travel bags, souvenirs, and various strewn euro coins, all awaiting being packed. It’s our last day here, and there is so much running through my mind as I prepare to head home tomorrow morning. I’m listening to Spanish pop, the same playlist that I’ve been listening to for five weeks; the songs we’ve heard have become a comfort and a reminder of all the insanely fun experiences here.

Our classes concluded today with the Engineering Across Cultures students’ presentations of products they conceived to be used in Spain, taking into account cultural differences and regional demand. In our robotics class, we drove around a small mobile robot, running software to see its surroundings, detect obstacles, and plan its path. Later, the conversation slipped to a discussion of the ethics of artificial intelligence and algorithms with our professor, who is visiting from Denmark, before a final lunch in Tecnun’s txoko, a community kitchen and dining space.

Everything in the last couple days bears the weight of the word final. Our final pintxopote – I already know I’ll be at restaurants at home looking around for the pintxos and finding none – our final walk to class or group picture. A tinto de verano, a spontaneous ice cream run. My final trip to the beach to put my feet in the blue saltwater, or our final half-hour long hike back along the serene, sweeping bay after an evening in town.

I thought it would be sadder, but for some reason it’s not. Although I know I’ll miss Spain terribly, the predominant feelings in the past couple days have been satisfaction, accomplishment, peace. I’ve done everything here that I hoped, and so much more.

Here are a couple snapshots from our last adventures in Spain:

 We finally managed to take the obligatory M photo with our whole group, on a boat tour of the bay.

Examples of traditional Basque architecture in the tiny town of Hondarriba.

The day we went surfing, we had perfect sunny and windy weather, so the waves were great! Everyone managed to at least stand up on their board (albeit barely, like me) and quite a few seemed to be born surfers. Surfing is super popular in San Sebastián, so a lot of us bought Basque Country Surfing shirts and sweatshirts to remember it by.

I’m going to miss these evening views so much. The long walk back from town to the hotel was always gorgeous.

Next time you hear from me, I’ll be home, a bit more well-rested (hopefully), and probably scrolling on my phone through the thousands of photos from our trip, reliving some of the best experiences I’ve ever had.

Abrazos,

Ana