68International TO TRAVEL Students have the opportunity to plan their own trips while studying abroad at Harding University in Florence. HUF students were allowed up to four weeks of independent travel during their time abroad—two weeks were built into the semester, and two weeks at the end of the semester were optional. The first week of independent travel was from March 4-11. Students traveled to a variety of countries both near and far from Italy. HUF director Robbie Shackelford loved the opportunities that free travel gave to students. Many students spent months planning their travel time while others planned it while they traveled. “[Independent travel] is a learning experience that teaches independence,” Shackelford said. “[Students] decide what to see and do…where and what to eat, how to travel from country to country, how to use the public transportation, where to sleep, as well as choosing which museums, religious centers, palaces, or other sites to visit.” Many students traveled in groups, making the experience something they all shared. Sophomore Abby Fulmer shared her plans for free travel with five other students. “We all got together as a group [to plan] because all six of us want to hit as much as we can,” Fulmer said before the trip. The group went to cities such as Venice, Salzburg, Vienna, Budapest, Interlaken and Munich. While planning her week of independent travel, Fulmer said the group was hoping to ride gondolas, go on “The Sound of Music” tour and visit a concentration camp. “This is such a unique opportunity that not a lot of people have, especially as a college student,” Fulmer said. “My philosophy is ‘How many places can you go in as little time as possible?’” Sophomore Gray Arnett traveled with five other students as well to Tromsø, Norway, to see the Northern Lights. “Our friend told us that he had a really good view of the Northern Lights there, and it was a really cool town,” Arnett said. “We took his advice and booked a flight there.” After Tromsø, Arnett’s group went to Oslo, Norway, where a friend showed them around the town. They also traveled to London to see a soccer game. Sophomore George Garner said he and a friend plan to visit northern Italy for half of their first week of independent travel and snowboard in the Alps for the second half of the week. “We love to hike, so we’re gonna think about going hiking up around Lake Como,” Garner said. Sophomore Becca Dugger said her group of six planned to go to Switzerland and Greece for their second week of independent travel. “We’re skydiving, and we might try to ski if it’s easy and cheap,” Dugger said while planning her travels. Each student had a different opportunity to travel where they wanted. The option of independent travel allowed students to do either as much as possible or allowed them to focus on specific places. The students of the HUF trip had an amazing time studying in Florence, but also each had unique experiences. With free travel, no student experienced the same HUF trip. Written by Helen Strickland
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