“The longer you wait, the harder it’s going to be,” repeated the instructors as they held Lucy’s arms and nudged her toward the edge.
“Put your arms out. We are going to count to three, and when we say three, you jump, arms out, head back, swan dive. If you don’t jump, we will help you jump.”
One. She held her breath.
Two. She curled her toes over the edge of the platform.
Three. She opened her eyes and stared at the crease of the gorge and the abysmal emptiness below her.
Then she was floating down into complete solitude.
When she was pulled back onto the platform, a man with a camera took her photo and said, “You just jumped off Bloukrans Bridge in South Africa, the Guinness Book of Record’s highest commercial bungee jump in the world. How do you feel?”
Liberated. This is the word that Lucy Brittin uses to describe how she felt after having spent a semester abroad, studying at the University of Cape Town and exploring South Africa.
Brittin is one of the 69 percent of University of Denver students who study abroad for a quarter, a semester or a year while undergraduates, according to the Study Abroad Office. In the fall of 2007, 612 students will leave campus for a foreign country. According to Ellen Strickland of the Study Abroad Office, the most popular countries are Italy, Australia, Spain and the United Kingdom, but students are always encouraged to apply to nontraditional locations. With over 150 study abroad programs to choose from worldwide, students have the unique opportunity to see the world while accumulating credits toward their degree.
Junior Mikiah Malerba, who spent her fall semester in Budapest, Hungary, described her experience as “an eye-opening” experience and spent weekends on the road, exploring Eastern Europe.
“I had always wanted to go to Oktoberfest. We had no plans and the trip was very last minute. But we managed to hop in a car with this guy from Austria, and three other people. We were all from different places all over the world, smashed into this little car. And that’s what abroad was all about for me,” said Malerba.
Christy Piscitelli, also a junior, spent her fall semester in Christchurch, New Zealand.
“Living by another country’s clock was one of the best parts about study abroad,” said Piscitelli. “Everything was so casual in New Zealand, and it was reflected in the people as well. Like if you looked like you needed directions, someone would actually come and help you out, which is rare here because everything always seems so busy and fast-paced.”
Other students are looking forward to their adventure abroad.
Ian Bingham, a sophomore, plans to study in Maastricht, Netherlands, this coming fall.
“I am looking forward to having the opportunity to share a classroom with people from different countries and cultures and being able to travel to other countries and really expose myself to all that I can while I’m out there,” Bingham said.
Students getting ready to leave are encourage to “keep a journal” by study-abroad advisors.
“I’ve always been mortified of keeping a journal and I never do, but I did there and I’m really glad I did,” said Piscitelli.
Malerba advises, “Travel. See as many things as you can. It’s always tempting to stay where you are and be close to what you know, but get out and explore because you’ll probably never have the same opportunities again. Take risks!”
The staff at the Study Abroad Office defines the experience of studying abroad as giving students a “global perspectives and cross-cultural understandings,” in order to diversify and internationalize the curriculum at DU.
