Europe

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From Nervous Sips to Confident Pours: My Summer with Port Wine in Portugal

GRIP: Wine, Heritage, and Hospitality in Porto, Portugal Never in my life did I imagine spending a summer in Portugal learning about wine, the tourism industry, and immersing myself in Portuguese culture. But here I am! All thanks to GRIP. A few days before my departure, I felt very nervous. While I had some experience…

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AI, Anxiety, and Irish Hospitality

GRIP: Nursing Research in Dublin, Ireland Nervously before my first day of work, I preplanned my attire as if it were the night before a school field trip and anxiously lied down as I played out every scenario in my head. Most notably, the one where I was imagining myself pulling all-nighters because of how…

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Exploring the Heart of Ireland

GRIP: Nursing Research in Dublin, Ireland Over the past two weeks, I’ve had the opportunity to explore Dublin and other parts of Ireland, and it’s been such an eye-opening experience. I didn’t realize how rich in history Ireland is, and it feels like every part of the city has a story to tell. Learning about…

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Exploring Porto by Train, Foot, and Fork

GRIP: Legal Research at University of Minho Law School in Braga, Portugal On Saturday, May 30th, we all took a much-anticipated day trip from Braga to Porto. It was early when we left, probably earlier than most of us wanted to be awake on a weekend, but the excitement of exploring a new city definitely…

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Learning How to Cook While Abroad

GRIP: Eurolife FHH in Athens, Greece Yasu! It is hard to believe that my time at Eurolife FFH is coming to an end, and I am extremely grateful for the support everyone on the Strategy Team at Eurolife has provided me. Every morning, my coworkers and I greet each other with a lively “Kalimera!” and…

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Porto: A Place I Called Home

GRIP: Wine, Heritage, and Hospitality in Porto, Portugal On my last day in Porto, Portugal I looked out towards the Dom Luís I Bridge stretching over the Douro River and tears poured down my face. I wasn’t prepared to leave the incredible people I had met during my GRIP experience and had been dreading my…

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Why Everyone Should Go Abroad (At Least Once) in their Life

GRIP: Engineering Research in Aachen, Germany Global experiences are extremely important because they force people outside of their comfort zone. Aside from the expected differences such as language, food, and culture, having an experience in a global setting transforms one’s views in a multitude of ways. For me, my global experience meant trying as many…

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Dienstag Ist Schnitzeltag (Tuesday Is Schnitzel Day)

GRIP: Engineering Research in Aachen, Germany I arrived in sunny and lush Aachen 12 days ago, and have since developed some semblance of routine. On most weekdays, I utilize the city’s excellent public transit system to bus from my dorm, close to the border of the Netherlands, over to campus research and learning facilities. I…

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Finding Out What Really Interests Me

GRIP: Eurolife FHH in Athens, Greece A key skill that I developed was the process of making a decision on an investment opportunity. Coming in, I thought it was mainly about the technical aspect and numbers that drive a decision to invest in a company, bond, or option, but that there is so much more…

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Broadened Horizons

GRIP: Nursing Research in Dublin, Ireland I have nothing but gratitude for the GRIP experience still, looking back. There was nothing to be wasted out of all that I was able to engage in, from the work and research-related aspects, to the life skills fully realized and gained. To expand on the first aspect: this…