Studying overseas is a time of growing Koalas and kangaroos became the latest addition to Harding's international campuses this year as the first group ofstudents spent the fallsemesternearBrisbane,Australia. Thenew programformed a sharp contrast to the campus establishedjustthreeyears agoinAthens, Greece, focusing primarilyon the biblical and classical historyofEurope. The 24 students who went to Harding UniversityinAustralia(HUA) found themselves exploringanewandfascinatingrealmofnature everywheretheywent. ''Wesaweverythingfrom beaches and tropical islands to rainforests inthe mountains to deserts and the outback bush,' ' PhilOgrensaid. "Andeachhaditsownbeauty." As the group spent a night under the stars in the outback, swamin crocodile-infestedwaters andworkedon a cattle ranch, theyhadplentyof time to become acquainted with Australian wildlife. Meanwhile, on the other side ofthe planet, HardingUniversityinGreece(HUG)wasspending much ofthe time outside Greece. A trip to the seven churches ofAsia inTurkey brought the NewTestamenttolifeand"helpedmeseewhat the pioneers of Christianity went though," Jeremy Luallen said. The cityofEphesus made a great impact on the group. "One thing that impressedmemost was the theater at Ephesus," Ron Sisson said. ''We sat there singingsongs toGodwhile people stood aroundclapping, in the same placewhere the apostlePaulwas persecutedfor his beliefs. I reallycan'tdescribe thefeeling I got as thatwent through my mind." The HUG group filled the rest ofthe three-month semester with a cruise to the Greek islands, a trip to Northern Greece and a tour to the Holy Land. Somehow, the students in both programs managed to squeeze some studying into their schedule. "Classes were a lot more intense,' ' Luallen said. "Butwe traveled somuch thatwe got enoughbreaks." According toHeatherGantt, HU Astudents had free time togo shoppinginBrisbane, watch movies, go to the beach andmeet with friends fromchurch. ''Without a student center and the SA committee, we had to come up with our own activities," Daniel Kuhn said. "So we learned how to play 'footie,' an Australian version of football. Studying overseas seemed to be a time for growthandspiritualrenewalformanystudents. "Nothingchangedmyviewon life andpeople as much as clear skies andwarm sunnyweather did," Ogren said. "The continuous beautiful weather and relaxed lifestyle scoredbigpoints forme."LauraCunyinHUGagreed. ''Myspiritual lifewas liftedto ahigher level," she said. "Oneof the reasons maybe that you're so far away from all the stresses and responsibilities ofhome." Curry thoughtthatthosewhoparticipatedin the program "were pushed to their limits, emotionally, spiritually, intellectually, and physically." She thoughtfully added, "But it is at that point that God can do some of His best work." _..-~~------~-Karin Springer HUG students visit Thyatira. Harding University in Greece takes trips to many of the biblical cities each year. Photo by Darsey Smith. HUG&HUA 37
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