On this page you can find highlights of my written work, primarily from The NewSLU.
Salamanca: The Land of ancient architecture and a hidden frog
It’s a late October morning in Salamanca, Spain, as rain pelts the asphalt and cobblestone streets of the city. It’s hard to keep balance on the wet roads scattered with crumpled leaves but the storm brings a crisp newness in the air, yet another sign of the changing seasons. On one corner, a Baroque and…
Carnival Paints the night sky in las palmas de gran canaria
By day, the island of Gran Canaria in February is the picture-perfect beach destination: summer-like temperatures even in the winter months and oceanside seafood restaurants overflowing with the flavors of freshly caught calamari and oysters, to name a few. By night? An explosion of colors, dancing, and a community that comes together to celebrate Carnival. Carnival…
Mission Impossible: Skating in September
I chose to upend my entire life as I knew it the day I flew into Madrid to attend school abroad for four years. Everything was new to me: the city, the country, the school, the people. However, there was one thing I was not ready to let go of: figure skating. For 11 years,…
The Saturday Scaries: Yoga and Self reflection
I’ve never considered myself a fan of yoga. Or constructively self reflective. It’s probably pretty easy to imagine my reaction upon learning that I would need to participate in the Looking Inward Retreat in order to fulfill my Cura Personalis 2 requirement. Sure, there were other options such as the book club (which would span across the…
Pierogies or Bust: 12 hours in the amber capital
The writer takes a short side quest to Gdansk with only one goal in mind: to eat pierogies. “It costs 23 euros round trip, is that ok?” One minute, I was plan-less for the February long weekend break. Next, I was booked to go to Sweden with a quick jaunt over to Gdansk, Poland. With…
Students Face Modern Day Apocalypse with Nationwide Power Outage
For approximately 12 hours, students and residents were left with no electricity, phone service, or transportation with no warning At approximately 12:37 PM, Spain was running as normal. Office and store employees were mid-way through the work day, students zoning out in class, and people taking trains on Madrid’s robust metro system. At about 12:38…
Amelie A. Van Hess 