CAPA WORLD

In this week's post, Connor highlights three great places to visit that are a easy train ride away from the CAPA Florence Center.

Ciao! Since being in Florence, I have been to so many historic sites and places within the city. However, one of the many great things about living in Florence is the accessibility to travel to different locations in Italy. It is easy to do day trips or weekend trips without spending too much money on transportation. Buying train tickets is simple and quick process. I have purchased tickets at the train station or bought them online beforehand. I would recommend buying tickets online beforehand just to look at different prices and train times, but either way is easy.

Since being in Florence, I have traveled to Venice, Lake Como, and Livorno Beach. All of these places are close to Florence, so the trips were not too expensive and we did not spend too much time on the train.

Martyn Megaloudis is an official CAPA blogger for fall 2018, sharing his story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing major at the University of Pittsburgh, he is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Martyn shares his first-time experience using public transportation in Sydney and what his commute to his internship placement is like.

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I want to officially start off this post by talking about Sydney’s transportation. I wanted to talk about something that at face value may seem “boring,” because something that I quickly realized this week is that studying abroad isn’t a total transitional state. I still have homework, I still have to take the train and the bus to my internship, and I still have to deal with monotony. Obviously, there’s quite a bit of shake-up living in an entirely new country but there’s also a strange sense of familiarity in my day-to-day life that I personally wasn’t expecting.

4The biggest difference that I’ve had to deal with so far is the way you’re charged. At Pitt, you pay once you hop on the bus and that’s all you have to worry about. In Sydney, you tap your Opal card (transportation card) once when you get on a bus/train/ferry, and then you have to tap once again when you get off—that’s how they calculate the fare. I’ve nearly jumped back into a bus at least twice because I forgot to tap off when I was leaving. It’s a bit easier with trains considering you can’t walk out of the station without doing it, but it’s still something to get used to.

Nora Callahan is an official CAPA blogger for summer 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. An International Affairs and Math major at Northeastern University, she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires this semester.

In this week's post, Nora talks about her enthusiasm for public transit and her overall commuting experience in Buenos Aires.

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I have done the daily commute in 4 different cities now and while it wasn’t always perfect, my favorite was probably Buenos Aires. Here’s the Subte Map:

I lived a few blocks beyond Juramento on the D line and Austral’s stop was Tribunales. This means I rode almost the entirety of the D line at least twice a day during the week. The commute took almost an hour. I didn’t mind though. A train ride gives you time to read or listen to podcasts and plan or reflect on your week and sometimes spontaneous things happen like a harpist might board your car. I enjoyed the music of your typical guitar-slung subway busker more times than I can count but the harpist was memorable.

Kelly is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Journalism major at University of Minnesota-Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in London this semester.

In this week's post, Kelly shares how she's conscious of her representation of the U.S. while abroad and how she blends in as a Londoner in all aspects, including riding the Tube.

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Loud, obnoxious, disrespectful—those are the stereotypes I assume most Europeans have of Americans. As a study abroad student, I’ve thought a lot about how I am representing Americans while abroad. Thinking about this has made me conscious of my behavior in relation to the stereotypes of Americans that exist.

At the Camden Tube station.

While navigating my way through the Tube, I try to look like I know what I’m doing (which I often did, but I didn’t in the beginning). I make sure to walk on the left side unless there are signs stating otherwise or most people are walking on the right, so as to blend in with the crowd. This is something that even in America I tend to get annoyed by when people don’t walk on the “right” side. While sitting on the Tube, I mind my own business as most do and don’t make a lot of noise or eye contact.

Andres is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing his story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance, Accounting, and Business Information Systems major at University of Pittsburgh, he is studying abroad in London this semester.

In his first post, Andres shows us how to navigate from the neighborhood of Kilburn to Gatwick Airport in London using the tube.

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Thanks Andres!

Andres's' journey continues every Monday so stay tuned.

Jolena is an official CAPA vlogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Finance and International Business major at University of Pittsburgh, she is studying abroad in Shanghai this semester.

In this week's post, Jolena talks about taking a sleeper train to Hangzhou, visiting West Lake, and getting a chance to experience Shanghai Fashion Week.

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In this blog post I’ll be describing our CAPA excursion to Hangzhou and attending a Fashion Weekend event in Shanghai!

Two weeks ago, our CAPA group set out on an adventure to Hangzhou. We took the sleeper train which was a really cool experience. The sleeper train is basically broken into sections with six bunks within them. It was something I’d never experienced before, and as cramped as it may sound, a lot of us agreed that we really enjoyed our naps on the train. While you’re on the train there are also snacks, such as fruit and different beverages, being wheeled on carts and sold for a small price. Before long we arrived at the Hangzhou Railway Station and our hotel was conveniently located right next to the station! It was an unfortunate first day due to rain, but we managed to walk to the West Lake and have a brief walk through before we all decided to return to the hotel and stay indoors.

Claire Shrader is an official CAPA blogger for spring 2018, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Pre-Occupational Therapy major at Mississippi College, she is studying abroad in Buenos Aires this semester.

In this week's post, Claire navigates Buenos Aires by getting used to the ins and outs of public transportation and dishes on what happened when she went to the local ice cream shop.

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Buenos Aires is a busy city. With 2,891,000 people, you can be almost certain you won't see the person you sit beside on the bus ever again. This leaves room for mistakes that in other settings we're used to, like our colleges or small towns, would embarrass us enough to never show our face again in public, to be pretty easy to laugh off. Classes and my internship still haven't started for me, so I've spent this week exploring the city and finding my own little spaces to call home.

Hi Eva! On a bus tour of the city.

I love walking through the streets alone or with a friend and feeling so small between the towering buildings around me. I love that I'm starting to get to a point where I don't have to stop every block or so to ask directions or to stare at my phone's map; I can recognize landmarks and streets and find my way from there. Buenos Aires is on a grid system just like Phoenix, my home for 10 years, and I find so much comfort in knowing I can explore for a few blocks or 10 and still find my way back to the street I want to be on.

Nicole is an official CAPA vlogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A Marketing & International Business major at Villanova University, she is studying abroad in Sydney this semester.

In this week's post, Nicole lists 10 places you can visit in Sydney using your Opal card and public transportation.

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Thanks Nicole!

Nicole's journey continues every Wednesday so stay tuned.

Maureen is an official CAPA vlogger for fall 2017, sharing her story in weekly posts on CAPA World. A BFA major at University of Minnesota - Twin Cities, she is studying abroad in London this semester.

In this week's post, Maureen brings us along on a London Underground tube ride.

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Thanks Maureen!

Maureen's journey continues every Monday so stay tuned.

Sometimes when you're headed to a new city, you're so excited to get there that you forget to figure how to get around town. It can be challenging to find the most time effective method of getting from one place to another without breaking your bank. We've compiled five tips that will  help you figure out the best way to use public transportation and discover your new city!

1. Do your research

Often times the internet is a great resource to figure out where you are going, and whether you’ll have to take a bus, train, subway, or taxi to get to your destination. Google Maps has recently added transit mode to their app, which makes it really easy to get around any major city. Try and do some research about bus and subway routes before arriving in your new city.