Hello Everyone, I hope you all had a great week! This week was full of birthday celebrations for me. On Monday and Tuesday night my friends and I from the international school went to the German Colony in Haifa to have dinner. During this time of the year, the German Colony is decorated with many lights and is a beautiful sight to see. I plan on traveling back to Nazareth this Wednesday for Christmas in order to see the Christmas tree and lights they set up. As the year is coming to an end, I have been doing a lot of reflecting on my semester abroad. I feel that I have truly been accomplishing my goals during my time here. I am much more confident in my intellectual capabilities and my Arabic Language skills. I still have a lot to learn but I believe that I am on the right path. Before I left for Israel, I had to take an oral language proficiency exam over the phone for the Boren Scholarship, and I will have to take another one upon my return to the United States. I am confident that my score will be much higher when I take the test for the second time. Next semester I would like to sign up for local Krav Maga classes. This was one of my goals for coming to Israel and I want to be sure that I follow through with it. I found a place that offers classes in the city and I can’t wait to start taking them next semester. I think it is very important to keep myself in good shape no matter where I am. I have a gym membership at my University’s gym, and I try to go at least four times a week. One of my other goals for the upcoming new year is to read more especially on topics that concern international relations and conflict in the Middle East. After my semester ends in January, I plan on reading a book called “Orientalism” by Edward Said. This book relates to the issues I talked about above and will help me with the essay that I need to write for my application to graduate school. Upon my return to the United States, I plan on applying for several graduate school programs. My top choices are Columbia, Georgetown, and Harvard. I believe that I will be a competitive applicant for these programs because of what I have accomplished during my undergraduate career. Thank you for reading and I look forward to sharing my experiences with you all next week.
Brendan's Study Abroad Blog 