Erik - This trip has made me want to focus my goals. I was able to open my eyes so much about what OPEC and the UN does. With Vienna, it was amazingly eye opening how everything works together, and how many different international organizations operate there. It was a clean and beautiful city. Comparing it to some cities at home, it was much nicer. It almost makes other places back in Canada seem lacking and dumpy.
Seeing how much rich history has allowed people to really have a solid identity is amazing. People here, compared to home, seem to have so much more of a solidified identity. They want to share this culture with others and are really connected to the world around them.
Jenna - The tour of the winery really stood out to me. The amount of passion Fritz had for his company was truly inspirational. The expression of 'find something you love, and you'll never work a day in your life' truly resonates with me. I aspire to find something that I love that much.
The trade commissioner presentation was also eye opening for me. There is so much opportunity around the world. Coming in to this, I wasn't sure what to expect with each activity. After each, I was able to stand back and appreciate the passion and deep history that made each place truly striking.
The way this group has been able to really get along with each other. With a group this large, there is always risk that things will not go well, especially when we are forced to spend so much time with each other for so long, away from home. We both feel that we were able to have a real conversation with everyone in the group at some point.
Overall, this experience has been the bees knees! We both feel wonderful that we got to share so many great memories with such fantastic people!
What has been your favorite part of this trip? Was there anything that you did not enjoy? What was your favorite place we have visited and why?
XOXO
EJ
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| Date Night in Budapest <3 |
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| Schonbrunn Palace |
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| Day one - Besties |
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| Poppin' a squat in Budapeset |
Erik and Jenna,
ReplyDeleteGreat post team! I will echo your thoughts and appreciation towards the content of the tour, the passion of the presenters and the eye-opening effect it had on us as well. In response to your question, what we enjoyed – I will agree that the passion of Mr. Fritz was compelling and inspirational to say the least. It is my belief the class left feeling an urge to seek deeper satisfaction in their future career goals, finally seeing that is possible to match career with passion in a real-life example.
Additional key learnings included the deep-rooted history in each country in comparison to Canada. The identity and citizenship of each individual city we have visited was noted and comparable to the last. I would have a difficult time picking which city visited being the best, as each had their own wonderful features. For example, in Vienna, the public transportation system being unmatched to anything we had experienced before, and the architectural and historical significance of each building we have seen in Prague. We cannot forget to mention the prestige details of luxury in the Budapest parliament as well.
We are grateful for the opportunity to attend this study tour, all it has had to offer, and the relationships it has helped us generate. We look forward to taking what we have learned back to Canada in terms of etiquette, international trade law, globalization influences from several organizations and collaborating with strangers to integrate into a new environment.
- Shafina & Kendra
Erik and Jenna, we really enjoyed your post. This trip was able to expand our horizons and gave us a new perspective. I’m sure all of us on this study tour have had our perspective enhanced in some way. Your insight into OPEC and the Canadian embassy was interesting to hear. What stood out to us is the people we met. Conversing with people from a wide range of backgrounds has given us a new perspective on business and more importantly life in general. Fritz's passion about wine inspired us to follow my own Passions. Mag. Kopeck’s quick wit and extensive knowledge on alternative dispute resolution showed us that it is good to speak what is on our mind. These we just some of the fascinating people we met during our travels. we, like most of us on this trip feel felt truly fortunate to have met these individuals and hear their experiences. We truly enjoyed each city we went to and it is difficult to choose our favorite city because they were each unique and fascinating in their own way. We felt that we understood Vienna and appreciated it more because we had more time to explore and absorb the culture. We definitely plan on revisiting Budapest and Prague whenever the opportunity presents itself.
ReplyDelete- Ashton and James
EJ,
ReplyDeleteFirstly, thank you for the excellent title. If only the study tour was in New York City *sighs in Gossip Girl*. Your blogs have been constantly enlightening and exciting to read!
For us, our favourite part of the trip was meeting all of these wonderful peers. At first, we did not know what to expect, but it has been nothing but an amazing experience. The way that we have been able to work through personal and group challenges is a testament to the kind of leaders we will all be in the professional world.
Aside from the rain, there was nothing that we did not enjoy. Every single stop on this journey has been full of learning opportunities and new sights. From the cobblestone to the glass buildings, we have been immersed in such growth of humanity. Every person on this trip was able to see how different each personality is, from handling food preferences and allergies, to not getting enough sleep, to feeling like they liked one city more than another. The tools that we have picked up on this study tour are vital to our performance and success in the workforce, as these are common issues that we will have to handle in the future.
The group is almost unanimous in saying that Prague is the favourite destination. Although there was architectural prestige in Vienna, a cozy and relaxing atmosphere in Bratislava, and very eventful nights out in Budapest, Prague takes the cake for combining the three. The history in this part of Europe is absolutely breathtaking and gives us hope for future generations.
From an academic perspective, it feels like all three of the core concepts of INTB255 have hit home. Every business visit reinforced how fundamental the concept of globalization is, especially in our ever-changing world. The lecture with Dr. Hafner and Mag. Kopecky discussed many interesting legal concepts. Every single business was able to discuss their challenges and opportunities; we were able to get an inside look between small and large entities.
This tour has been a highlight in many of our undergraduate programs so far, and we were so lucky to have Professor Iskra and Dr. Jindal at the helm. It has been wonderful. Thank you for the laughs, memories, and beers.
All love & #TrevorForever,
Ash & David