Study Abroad Programs Blog

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A Weekend at the Theatre in Seoul

By Josephine K., guest blogger studying Korean in Seoul

After spending a week in your Korean class the weekend is the perfect opportunity to unwind and explore the city.  There are so many options but my favorite weekend evening has go to be going to a theatrical show.

The first show that I went to, which I highly recommend, is "Nanta." This is the longest running show in Seoul and perfect for any age.  It is a show that is best explained as a mix between "Stomp" and "Top Chef".  There is plenty of audience participation and the best thing is you don't have to know Korean to understand the show.

Movie Release: Mao's Last Dancer

A fascinating new movie, Mao's Last Dancer, is opening in Philadelphia on August 20, 2010. The movie tells the true story of Li Cunxin, a Chinese man with a poor upbringing in rural China, who rose to international stardom as a world-class dancer. Directed by Bruce Beresford (Tender Mercies, Driving Miss Daisy), written by Jan Sardi (The Notebook, Shine) and produced by Jane Scott (Shine), all of whom are previous Academy Award nominees.

The story of Li Cunxin tells about the strength and determination it takes to study dance as well as to pursue one's dreams. It also shows a glimpse of Chinese vs. American culture and the difficulties of adapting to living in a different country. 

Click to see the trailer for Mao's Last Dancer.

You can also check out Mao's Last Dancer on Facebook.

Go to AmeriSpan's Chinese programs.

Access to Taormina Film Festival for our "Italian in Taormina" Students!

Breaking news for our students planning on studying Italian in Taormina/Sicily through this Friday!

Our partner school in Taormina has just excitedly announced that all students enrolled in Italian language courses throughout the duration of the 56th Annual Taormina Film Fest will receive free admission!

This year, Robert DeNiro is in attendance and receiving honors at the event, and The Fondazione Roma Mediterraneo enters the festival this year with the Fondazione Roma Mediterraneo Award for Dialogue Between Cultures.

If you can't make it this year, it's not too early to sign up for next year!  Check out our Italian in Taormina/Sicily program!

French Songs & Bands

So with all the buzz regarding Phoenix, a French band, we decided it is a good time to list some of our favorite French Bands and songs. Feel free to send us your comments and suggestions. Some of these aren't available for MP3 download so if you like the song, you'll need to buy a CD or get creative. 

Celebrity Homes Abroad

Part 3 - By Alexa Boyce I can't seem to remember how many of these I've done now, but someone must be reading them as I've been asked to write another! So... Lake Como, Italy Well it was recently rumored that the new hot couple BRANGELINA (Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie) were going to hold their wedding at friend George Clooney's 25 room villa on Lake Como just outside of Milan, Italy. While this bit of juicy gossip may or may not be true, I can tell you that the ex-ER doc bought Villa Oleandra in 2001 when he was attracted to the outdoor theater, large swimming pool and garage to house a collection of motorcycles. Oddly enough, Lake Como was featured on a rerun of "America's Next Top Model" that I saw recently. The models had a photo shoot at designer Stephen Fairchild's Lake Como mansion. Switzerland Canadian country singer Shania Twain shares a house with her husband Mutt Lange near French-speaking Montreux, Switzerland. Their 19th century manor on the shores of Lake Geneva. While she likes it there, she recently made an offer on 16,000 hectare Motatapu Station in New Zealand. David Bowie also lives in French speaking Switzerland. He moved into the 20 room Chateau du Signal in Lausanne in 1981. The house was used in the filming of Claude Chabrol's film Merci Pour le Chocolat (Thank You for the Chocolate) in 2000. Since 1986, Tina Turner has lived in the fashionable Guldkuste district of Zurich in German-speaking Switzerland. Her lake view estate is shared with a mysterious Swiss businessman. Bahamas Johnny Depp famously purchased the ultimate luxury: his own private island in the West Indies. Little Hall's Pond Cay cost him $3.6 million (USD) and comes with six white beaches and a central lagoon surrounded by shady palm trees. Paparazzi not included. Fiji Controversial actor Mel Gibson followed suit with his own private island in Fiji in February 2005. Its 5,411 acres make Mago Island the largest privately owned island in the South Pacific (and its $15 million price tag makes it probably one of the most expensive). It is home to the largest sugar and cotton plantation in the region, and according to a lawsuit challenging his ownership, it was also once home to 500 tribespeople!

Kung Fu Hustle Movie

Bt Kayla Allen Is a hilarious Kung Fu movie, one that's actually trying to be funny. Trying and succeeding I might add. I doubt with all it's awesome martial arts action however that it would disappoint even the most die hard of Kung Fu fans. It will even please those who would rather watch anything other than "another boring foreign film" because chances are, they've never seen one this funny. Set in an indeterminate time in China when gangs rule everything and take anything they want; the only safe thing to be is poor. Until the day a small-time con artist turns the gang's sights onto an impoverished town called Pig Sty Alley. But Pig Sty Alley is not just any other destitute village; it happens to have a high concentration of Kung Fu masters. This where the fun starts. Well, maybe the fun started a little earlier when the Axe Gang, the antagonists are introduced in an unlikely and expertly executed dance sequence. Even with all the humor and Kung Fu the heart of this movie is never lost. The beauty of cinematography and framing is un-compromised and the music is as important in the film as any other one of its elements. To top it off, there is love, if just a little, but very sweet, ending the movie on a perfect note. Its main focus seems to be however that there is greatness in everyone it just sometime takes a little coaxing to bring to the surface and even the most unlikely candidates can be heroes. This movie might not tell you much about modern day China or even China at any specific time period but if you're learning Chinese and quick, it might teach you some pretty funny vocabulary, not to mention some pretty impressive fight moves. Well worth the watch. Related Movies: * Same action choreographer as Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon and The Matrix. * From the director of Shaolin Soccer - same kind of humor, same kind of heart. * Comedic if bloody Kung Fu: Kill Bill I & II Non-comedic, beautiful, recent Kung Fu movies: Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Hero, House of Falling Daggers.

9 Queens - Argentina

By Connie Marianacci I am the kind of person that watches a movie once and never again. As time goes by, I barely remember the plot, who the actors were let alone remembering any quotes from it like lots of people tend to do. 9 Queens, an Argentinean film directed by Fabian Bielinsky took my breath away when I first watched it. It has a clever plot that holds your attention every minute of the movie, giving you suspense and at the same time, it plays with the characters in a sensual way. You get a feeling of what Buenos Aires is about, what the city feels like, architecture in the city, the people and the political problems and how people react to them. Some of the typical themes found in Buenos Aires: - Going to the bank is always a chaotic experience. There is little customer service, there is always a line to wait on and it normally takes about 30 min. at least to do anything you need to do at any bank. - Enjoying a coffee in the middle of the day. Many of the main scenes of the movie show people enjoying their small cup of coffee while meeting with someone either for professional or personal reasons. - Populated 9 de Julio Street. This is probably the broadest street found in South America and beautiful indeed. Stores all around, buildings with big billboards, trees around the street and people walking. Just so you know, it is like crossing 2 streets in one and you better run when you have the right of way! http://www.amazon.com/Buenos-Aires-Panorama-Aldo-Sessa/dp/9509140368/sr=11-1/qid=1165510825/ref=sr_11_1/102-5192343-6103300 - Trust is always questionable. People have been known for not "keeping their word" so trust has diminished. This is an overall feeling of Latin Americans in general and not different for Argentineans. The movie has a great way of demonstrating this and build suspense around it. Aside from a great plot, Gaston Pauls(Juan) is one of the classic sex symbols in Argentina and high demand among young women. Ricardo Darin (Marcos) has received many prizes both nationally and internationally. To get a peak on Argentina, buy the film!

So you want an iPod...?

By Glenn Rigby I bought an iPod about 2 months ago, and it has completely changed my music-listening experience. Prior to this, I carried around a discman with three or four cd's in my pocket for a little variety. As a guy with 300+ cd's, and who constantly has music playing, this was very restricting. Now I carry 3,300+ songs in my iPod and can easily select between different play lists, albums, artists, or just shuffle through all the songs. I haven't even imported all of my cd's into digital tracks, yet! Soon enough, though, my entire collection will be ready to go. I chose to grab the player with 60 gigabytes of storage; that's a lot. My Macbook laptop has 60 gigs, and when you take into account all the software and programs taking up room on it, there's not much space left for music. That means that I will eventually have to take some songs off my computer to make room for new ones, but I would hate to just throw them away. This brings me to another fun feature of the iPod: Storage! This music player has a hard-drive – it doesn't operate on flash memory as some of the other mp3-players do (including the iPod Shuffle). That means that it not only plays iTunes-imported songs, but also acts as an external storage device that can hold, store and transport every type of digital media. No need to buy a flash drive when you have one of these guys. If you want to get fancy (as I did), you can get yourself the video version. This addition to the iPod family has the capability to playback videos; music videos, home movie clips - you name it. All you have to do is have the files in iTunes, go to preferences and "sync" the files or folders to your iPod. Photos can also be stored and attractively displayed on the 30 and 60 GB models. I'm trying not to get too carried away, but I do have a whole lot of pictures on mine. Everything from friends to failed Photoshop projects are easily at my disposal. There is a slideshow feature available with customizable settings, allowing you to automatically flip through selected folders of pictures in various styles. This feature is possibly only for the serious photo buff.

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart in Vienna

by Glenn Rigby After traveling Europe extensively as a boy, and then as a young adult, Mozart began making his return to his native land of Austria. On the way he stopped in Munich, where his opera Idomeneo premiered. The next year he returned to Vienna with his employer, prince-Archbishop Colloredo. Mozart grew more and more rebellious towards Collerdo, and admitted he was released from employment "with a kick in the seat of the pants." He then settled in Vienna to pursue an independent music career. In 1782 Mozart married a woman named Constanze Weber. This was also the year that he created the opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail ("The Abduction from the Seraglio"). This piece was widely successful. Not long after he performed piano concertos as director and soloist. The next year, Amadeus and Constanze visited his father in Salzburg with a cold reception. Leopold Mozart did not take to his son's wife. Though the visit was not a particularly pleasant one, it did inspire Mozart to write one of his best known works, the Mass in C Minor. This piece premiered in Salzburg with Constanze as lead female soloist. In 1782 Mozart became acquainted with the composer Joseph Haydn. The two quickly became friends. During Haydn's visits to Vienna, the two would play in quartets together. During the years of 1782-1785, Mozart dedicated six quartets to Haydn, and it is thought that these were in response to Haydn's Opus 33 from 1871. Between 1782 and 1785, Mozart also performed a series of solo concerts. These are considered to be his best pieces, and were financially rewarding. During the years 1784-1787 he lived in a lavish, seven-room apartment behind St Stephen's Cathedral; it was here, in 1786, that Mozart composed the opera Le nozze di Figaro. This apartment may be visited today at Domgasse 5.

Samba Dance & Music

By Alexa Boyce When one thinks about the "traditional" or cultural music of the world, you might imagine that it has been in development or a part of a certain country's culture for hundreds of years. Samba is relatively a baby compared to these. Surprisingly, it was born around the 19-"teens" and 1920's as a contemporary to Jazz but not a derivative. It began in the favelas, or Afro-Brazilian black Ghettos in the Bahian state and migrated to Rio with the recording of "Pelo Telephone" by Dongo and Mauro Almeida in 1917. This is generally referred to as the first recording of Samba music. People often refer to the escola de samba or samba school. This was originally to give the musicians a sense of legitimacy in the new genre. Samba music's popularity really took off in the 1930's when Ismael Silva opened the first Samba School, Deixa Falar, in the Estacio de Sa neighborhood. This coincided with the nationalistic dictatorship of Getulio Vargas and pushed samba to become Brazil's official music. Samba Music is divided into many sub-categories such as Bossa Nova, Partido Alto, Pagode, Samba de Breque, Samba-canssao and Samba-enredo. Samba can also refer to the rhythmic dance that is typically performed to Samba music, though as with the music, there are many different forms of the dance. Brazilian Samba partner dances such as Samba de Gafiera or Samba de Pagode differ greatly from Ballroom Samba. They are actually more closely related to the Argentinean Tango. Samba no pe and Samba Axe are different kinds of solo Samba dances often seen at Carnival. For Information about Samba groups near you, click here, & here.