Katie Rice - Summer in Minnesota

"My American Dream!"

Memorable Moments

Park Point Beach was a host place to many fun afternoons and evenings, playing beach volleyball, sunbathing, and swimming in Lake Superior is definitely a highlight of my time in Duluth. Our canoeing trip to Namekagon River in Wisconsin was incredible, stopping to swim and spotting all the different wildlife throughout our journey was unforgettable.

It is hard to compare the countless memories made from my time in Duluth, but the most significant memories were made with the others in the evening when we would congregate in the common room and share foods, stories, and lots of craic!

Culture

During our morning and evening classes we would share stories about growing up and discuss differences in how we were raised, education, religious beliefs, and the many stereotypes for each represented culture. Although we were discussing differences between our cultures, we always found more similarities between us.

We bonded with each other during class time, and the required "play dates" which always turned into an adventure! As friendships and connections formed over the course of the summer, everyone ended up doing more than the required amount of play dates, they allowed for us to learn about each other on a one-to-one basis, and I have learned so much about American, Korean and Russian culture because of it!

Challenges

I was one of the last to join the programme and because of this I missed out on the pre-departure events, I thought that I would be going into this programme with a disadvantage however I was proven wrong at the airport, although it was an early morning and most of us hadn't slept, the group of us from Ulster had quickly bonded over a game of cards at the gate waiting to board our flight- although we were all nervous, I felt comfort in knowing I wasn't alone.

Many 'what ifs' and things that could go wrong filled my head before arriving to Duluth, however, if I'd have known what was in store for me, I would've been all excitement and 0 stress.

Making Friends

Making friends on this programme was a lot easier than I expected, I think it's rare to find a group like mine on a mobility programme, there was 50 of us in total and I couldn't have wished for a better group.

The mix of Americans, Russians, Koreans, and Irish allowed for exciting adventures around the entire state of Minnesota, but also wholesome moments like movies in the park at sunset. Having an open mind and accepting that there will be challenges such as language barriers and differences in opinions, will allow for enlightenment and an opportunity to learn.

It's impossible to not make friends on these global opportunities, everyone will be going into it alone and unsure of what to expect, sharing your thoughts with others and having an open mind will create special bonds, and lifelong friendships!

Seeing the Sights

We had an itinerary full of adventures around Minnesota, the day trip to the Mall of America in the twin cities was an insane experience! As well as our trip to North Shore, with glorious weather and the most beautiful scenery.

During our first few days, we visited the Glensheen Mansion summer concert which was a perfect evening. All of us from the programme enjoyed local music and foods, we had the chance to meet some of the Americans friends and families which were all so welcoming! Also having lots of fun around Duluth working on our films, grouping up and exploring our huge campus and figuring out the buses to Downtown all led to adventures that I'll never forget!

After learning about the plans students from Russia and Korea had for after our programme in Duluth, a group of us from Ulster decided to stay in the U.S. and join one of our friends from Russia on a trip to NYC, so with a change in our return flight home, we were off to New York! We managed to meet a couple of our Korean friends whilst we were there too and soon proved the bonds made were strong. We had a ball!