Study Abroad and Domestic Study Away

Hello everyone!  

My name is Sara Martinez, and I am currently a Junior at Lake Forest College pursuing a double major in Business Marketing and Psychology. I am currently studying abroad in Linz, Austria and I’ve had an incredible experience so far! Linz is extremely central in Austria and in Europe! And because of how developed the public transportation is, it’s such a great traveling opportunity! So far, I’ve done a lot of exploring within Austria and I am amazed at how beautiful it is everywhere I go! I’ve been to Zell Am See, Vienna, Hallstatt, and Steyr. This weekend I’m going to Salzburg and who knows where I will go after that! The destinations seem endless  

I had a two-week orientation program in which I received an intense German course and a cultural sensitivity training course. This semester I am taking some classes in my program and some small elective classes like German and Technology and Society. My school is a modern techy school, and it is much larger than Lake Forest, so I mostly have lecture style classes.  

At first, I was a bit shocked by the language barriers and their cold approach to speaking to foreigners in English. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve met very nice people, but sometimes it can be frustrating to not be able to express myself! Nevertheless, I am making good progress in my German language learning, and it is getting easier to communicate every day!  

I am still in the beginning of my semester, and I have a lot more to experience. I am looking forward to the rest of my time in Linz and I can’t believe I will have to say goodbye to the wonderful people I have met from all around the globe. I’m currently in the library and I have a couple of assignments to finish tonight so I will get going.  

Tschüss!  

Sara 

Sara (left) on a ski trip in Zell am See with  friends:

An Austrian dish called 'Tiroler Gröstl':