This is the first
boarding house Amy lived in. Travelers from all over the world find
their way to the Hospedaje. It was a great place to meet people, but
not very conducive to studying.
Steam
rises from volcanic vents near a medical facility at the base of the
mountains. Located about 200 kilometers southwest of Chillán,
this is a popular ski resort when there's enough snow.
Amy
on the road to Lago De Laja (located behind the dark hill), near the
town of Antuco, Chile. Mountain in background is Volcano Antuco, elevation
3,585 meters.
From
May to August of 1999, Amy traveled and studied in Chillán,
Chile. The previous summer, she had met two Chilean students from
the Universidad de Concepción, located in Chillán, who
had come to the Department of Biological Systems Engineering to finish
their undergraduate thesis. She was able to use her limited high school
Spanish in conversation and decided that Chile would be an interesting
place to study.
Amy
spoke with her advisor, Dr.
Derrel Martin, and with Dr. Darrell Watts about the feasibility
of an international study project through the department.
An
agreement wascompleted between Dr. Martin and Dr. Jose Luis Arumi
of the Universidad de Concepción about her area of study
prior to going. The UNL Office
of International Affairs helped her with a passport form and
information about shots. Amy received partial support with a grant
from the Kleis Foundation; the rest of the trip was self-funded.
While
studying with Dr. Arumi, Amy developed a program for the automatic
analysis of hydrologic data which gave her a real sense of how these
data should look The data were collected from several weather stations
and were used to build a model for predicting precipitation and
runoff from a steep watershed, a dramatic geographical change from
the plains of Nebraska. This special project earned 3 credit hours
in the Department of Biological Systems Engineering. She submitted
a final report to her advisor at the end of her trip.
Amy
will always remember this unique experience. "My international
experience improved my Spanish, and my communication skills in general.
I made friends at the Universidad de Concepción and got a
great feel for the culture. Every culture has a different way of
doing things; I think my experience in Chile has helped me appreciate
those differences. I urge anyone who has the the inclination and
opportunity to study abroad to do so—you'll never forget it."
Silent cannon
overlook the coastal entrance to Valdivia. This Spanish fort was built
during colonial times.
One of the sites
Amy visited was the harbor of the city Talcahuano. Sea lions frequent
the docks where fisherman toss leftovers from their catch.
A section of
the Salto de Laja waterfalls, located near Los Angeles, Chile.
With her friend
Nelly, from Santiago (who was attending a different university in
Chillán) acting as tour guide, they visited the shrine to the
Virgin Mary in Santiago.
