The language barrier, and subsequent misadventures, were exhausting, overwhelming, and seemingly impossible to overcome. In addition to my limited vocabulary and shaky sentence structure, I had a habit of mangling German words without repair. My attempts to make the harsh, hissing-cat voice in the back of my throat made everyone, including myself, wince, and I had never been so self-aware of my own American accent.
Since Steve Herrell first founded the flagship store in Northampton, Mass. in 1980, there has always been a crowd of people waiting to taste the shop's handmade ice cream. The store is known for its award-winning hot fudge, unique flavors, and "smoosh-ins," chunks of cookies and candies mixed in.
It's a beautiful, sunny March day at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. The air is fresh, the water is crystal clear, and the grass surrounding me is the the greenest I've ever seen. While walking along the edge, I find a sanctuary of land hidden from the other tourists, and I approach cautiously. I get closer until I find a rock to sit on as I dangle my legs off the side of the edge, the ocean hundreds of feet below. I avoid looking down and inhale the brisk, spring air. I think about how lucky I am to call Ireland, with its surreal, stunning beauty, my temporary home.
With two prestigious colleges and a flagship university, Amherst was once a town bustling with bookstores. Now, a particular technology giant may crush the last independent bookstore left standing.
Wrapped in a lavender scarf, Farhat, a Virginia native, matches the wisterias beside her. She is visiting the Bridge of Flowers in Shelburne Falls, Mass. for the first time, in the company of her son, Azhar. A resident of Beverly, Azhar has walked the bridge three times and wanted his mother to experience the magic.
Past the register, coolers packed with beer, milk, and a collection of wine and other beverages welcome customers to the market, filled with groceries and snacks. The North Amherst market and café offers residents a taste of New York’s famous “beatnik” neighborhood, the East Village.
The streets of Northampton resembled the set of Michael Jackson’s Thriller on Saturday, October 25th. The quirky western-mass city hosted the tenth annual Zombie Pub Crawl a week before Halloween.
When I signed up to study abroad in Germany, I pictured a city landscape of courtyards and cobblestones, half-timbered houses and dignified statues. Even when people warned me that Mannheim was not the most picturesque of places, I remained stubbornly hopeful. After all, I thought, how ugly could a European city actually be?
Since 1982, Cultural Survival has frequented the Northeast, congregating around Boston and the Pioneer Valley for multiple days enriched with cultural experience. The bazaar will exhibit the work of its indigenous artisans at the Prudential Center and Harvard University in Boston mid-December.
Have you ever woken up from a nightmare and then realized your imagination was playing tricks on you? This happened to me my first weekend of studying abroad in Barcelona, Spain. The only difference is that it wasn’t a bad dream and my imagination wasn’t running wild.
In the corner of a run-down strip of stores on College Street in Amherst, Mass., resides a small, casual breakfast and lunch spot for both locals and students. Check out Kelly's Restaurant, a hidden gem tucked away in South Amherst.
