Juliette Des Rosiers ’26, Frances Walton ’26, Elita Kutateli ’26,
Editors-In-Chief and Head Design Editor
Dear Frances and Elita,
Kia ora! I hope you are doing well! I loved hearing about all your weekend trips and can definitely relate to relishing in a good public transportation system.
The irony about my second week in New Zealand was that it was my turn to get sick! And unfortunately, this coincided with my first week of classes! I spent a day repeating mantras of “You can stay upright” or “Don’t you dare cough” before I accepted my presence was not benefitting anyone and decided to stay home to rest. In the midst of that rest I did have a complete meltdown about this maybe being the wrong place for me (or me being wrong for this place?) because transitions are hard! But I called my parents, cried, and eventually felt better.
I have since recovered and am now back to having fun. My birthday was this past week, and although celebrating it without my friends from Scripps felt strange, it was so exciting to be turning 21 in a new city! My flatmates surprised me with a cake and I joined my friends for a night on the town. We went to a food market for dinner followed by going to live band karaoke, which was so much fun.
This past weekend a Scripps friend studying abroad in a different Kiwi city came to visit me! I loved showing off my new home and we explored some hikes in the area. We cooled off afterward by going for a swim in the ocean, and I felt so appreciative of the beauty of island life.
I can’t wait to hear what the past few weeks had in store for you! What do you feel is the biggest difference between your life abroad and life at Scripps? What has brought you comfort when you were tired/sick/homesick? For me, it has been tea and chocolate 🙂
Miss you,
Juliette
Dear Elita and Juliette,
I miss you guys so much!! This might be a short correspondence because I have mainly spent these past two weeks recovering from my bronchitis(?!?!).
I started feeling better just in time for Carnaval season. I visited Lisbon with my Scripps friends, Hana and Audrey, this past weekend to visit a Fullerton College study abroad group. We got to spend time with my mom and some friends who participated in the program. A big highlight was the flea market we went to on Saturday, where I found spiral-y earrings for five euros. I’m still experiencing some college culture shock at Syracuse, so being around friends from Scripps and my hometown was refreshing. I am surprised with how much I miss Scripps and the comfort of our lives back home.
That being said, I absolutely love the city of Madrid, and I keep finding more things it has to offer, especially in the food department. Two highlights are TKO Tacos, which had a killer quesadilla de cochinita, and La Fresaría, where I had slightly overpriced strawberries and Nutella.
Returning to Madrid this week has been very stressful with how long I’ve been sick, but I just completed my first midterm in Spanish! Juliette, I hope your birthday was wonderful. Elita, I’m so curious to hear about DC.
Sending love,
Frances
Dear Juliette and Frances,
I am so happy to hear you both are admiring the beauty of your cities and finding your footing in a foreign place amidst homesickness. I am so sad to not have been able to celebrate Juliette’s 21st in-person, but I am sure our senior-year will make up for it.
Since coming to DC, I have experienced a steep learning curve — understanding the nitty gritty of US politics as a philosophy major has made my head turn. Luckily, the place I have been interning at, and my professors have helped greatly. Now, I watch C-SPAN everyday and regularly go to the Hill for briefings or hearings, I am officially acting like a typical CMCer on the Washington Program. Consider me influenced.
The thing I worried about the most has turned out to be great — my roommates (and sharing a fridge with three others). I was worried I would feel isolated and not find genuine connections, especially on such a small CMC program. Nevertheless, I have found myself laughing and hanging out with my roommates and other friends from the program every night, which is something I am very grateful for.
The city itself is quite beautiful and has a lot to offer, you just have to know where to look for it. The first few weeks I was here, I definitely had a hard time exploring outside of the Smithsonian Museums and nearby cafes. Now, I like to frequent a pho restaurant down the street from me on weeknights with friends, go to the MLK library for afternoon studying, and go out to a variety of EDM shows on the weekends.
For me, the biggest difference has definitely been how much alone time I feel like I have here. It feels like I have a legitimate separation between work, class, and friends. At Scripps, it is all melded together (which is not necessarily a bad thing) but definitely makes it harder to keep things organized. It has been nice to be away from Claremont for a little while even though I miss it everyday.
I would love to hear about the best live music you have heard while abroad and the best meal you have had! Do you feel like your guys’ self care routines have changed from Scripps to abroad? And if yes, how so?
Miss you dearly,
Elita
Photo Courtesy of Frances Walton ’26
