Christian Bopp is a junior at UW who travelled to Costa Rica
in the spring of his sophomore year. Christian was a study abroad student at
Veritas University in San Jose, Costa Rica. Christian loved Veritas and said
that, “the faculty and students were awesome.” He was also very impressed with
the University’s extracurricular activities and academically-oriented outdoor
excursions.
To set-up his study abroad experience, Christian worked with
a program provider called International Studies Abroad (ISA). ISA has a
partnership with UW and regularly serves UW students in planning their study
abroad trips. ISA helped Christian set-up his studies and also matched him with
his Costa-Rican host family. ISA also coordinates local weekend trips for study
abroad students.
Christian took part in many short trips around Costa Rica
and thinks that this travel is an important part of any study abroad
experience. About this he says, “I would advise students to make traveling and
experiencing the local culture a priority (in addition to classes).” Christian traveled frequently, including many surfing expeditions and a trip to LasIslas de Ometepe in Nicaragua to hike Volcanoes. His favorite memory from his
travels is “body surfing in the waves with my family at the Parque Nacional deManuel Antonio.”
However, Christian did encounter some challenges during this
semester abroad. In fact, he experienced some safety concerns during his time
in Costa Rica. He recounts the experience as follows, “I was robbed along with
some other gringos in a park at night near where I lived… I would advise people in this situation to
remain calm and do whatever necessary to make sure you and your friends are
safe. I remained calm and no one was
hurt.”
Despite this frightening situation, Christian recommends that
all students travel. He says, “Traveling is one of the most eye opening things
a person can do and is most beneficial when young! GO TRAVEL!”
If you’re interested in travelling to Costa Rica, or working
with a program provider to set up a study abroad, feel free to contact
Christian at cbopp@uwyo.edu!
