Weekend wanderlust From assignments to airplanes, FSU Valencia students use their weekends to venture to other European locales By Mia Dennery
By Mia Dennery
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onsidering that your post-college years will probably be devoted to building a career and beginning adulthood, studying abroad in college is the perfect time to see as much of the world as you can. Florida State University’s International Programs offers students interested in studying abroad several locations to choose from. While the summer sessions are more compact, your schedule will leave plenty of free weekends perfect for outside travel. Although there are only a few days permitted for each weekend trip, many students in Valencia, Spain proved to be quite effective at making the most of their time in a new city or country. With the right attitude and planning, you too can explore a Photo courtesy of Kayla Azoy whole city in as little as two days. For example, Lauren Martin and Audrey Caraher studied in Kayla Azoy takes the the Editing, Writing, and Media (EWM) in Valencia Program during the second plunge as she paraglides 2018 summer session, and they visited Paris during their stay in Valencia. By in Interlaken, Switzerland scheduling their days in advance and taking advantage of the city’s metro syson her weekend off. tem, Martin and Caraher saw several of Paris’s most iconic landmarks in one day, including the Eiffel Tower, the Palace of Versailles, and the Louvre. “It was exhausting but totally worth it because we managed to get so much done,” Caraher says. Other FSU students interviewed for this article have plenty of tips on how to A group of FSU students stop in maximize a mini vacation when planning weekend adventures. Amsterdam for the weekend. Begin by picking a destination that meets your budget and time restrictions. For example, cities such as Copenhagen, Denmark and Stockholm are known to be expensive in terms of food and lodging. But, cities such as Prague and Budapest are more budget friendly. Because many popular European cities have dozens of wellknown tourist attractions, decide early on which attractions to prioritize. “If there is a site far away and expensive, it is not worth your time,” says FSU student and mechanical engineering major Jordan Noyes. One mistake to avoid is booking a place to stay outside of the city you plan to visit because it is Photo courtesy of Emily Rini cheaper. Instead, make sure you
14 Nomadic Noles // Summer 2018
