Calling all Grand Trunk fans! Our favorite holiday, National Hammock Day is quickly approaching and what better way to celebrate than a photo contest filled with $3000 worth of prizes!

How can you win? Upload a photo of your Grand Trunk gear and get your friends to vote. The 31 photos with the most votes will win! Don’t have Grand Trunk gear? Show us a picture of where you would travel with your gear if you had some!

How do you enter? There are three different ways you can enter to win the contest:

1. Facebook Tab

2. Use the hashtag #GrandTrunkNHD and tweet us a picture @grandtrunkgoods.

3. Use the hashtag #GrandTrunkNHD and tag us on Instagram @grandtrunkgoods.

 What are the prizes?

Winners will be announced on July 20th… Just in time to celebrate National Hammock Day!

Grab your camera, your favorite gear and get ready to win!

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One Saturday, on Saint Patrick’s Day, we went to La Sierra de Bèrnia that extends to the Mediterranean coast in the province of Alicante, and also includes ruins of Felipe II. The highest peak in the Sierra de Bèrnia is located in the district of Jalón, and
measures 1,128 meters above sea level. During the hike we started at one side of the range and hiked all the way around, passing through ruins and vineyards with some stunning almonds trees. Once we arrived at the other side of the mountain the hike was more strenuous, had many more rocks and climbs, but finished with a tunnel (El Forat) to the other side. Que guay! This was definitely the highlight of the hiking trip and once you made it to the other side there were killer views overlooking the sea. We stopped here with the group for some time to have a snack and soak it all in.   A little bit longer of walking we arrived back to the vans where all the girls passed  out in the backseat for the half hour ride to Alicante.

The very next day was another adventure of senderismo, but this time with my host family. My host mom, host sister, her boyfriend, and Luna y Lola (two of our little cocker spaniels) went near the pueblo of Elda for some hiking. We made a few stops for snacks, saw many bikers, some ATVers, and set up my Grand Trunk Double hammock during lunch. My host mom absolutely loved the hammock and kept on saying it was very “chulo,” or very cool! I might leave it with her as a gift since she is very into hiking and even did parts of El Camino de Santiago in northern Spain.

Once we all arrived back to our apartment, siestas or naps were needed across the board…and I normally never siesta. After, we all rallied and went out for some tapas to complete the day full of family.

The month of March consisted of a lot of senderismo but I needed to stream live games of March Maddess as well, one of the best times of the year for college sports.  Although my bracket ended up being horrendous…the sweet sixteen was extra sweet when four Ohio teams and two Wisconsin teams were playing. Unfortunately the Badgers and Buckeyes couldn’t pull a championship march madness run together and I lost much sleep watching the games with the time difference. There’s always next year.

The last part of March was the most crazy: Las Fallas. Some friends and I took a bus early in the morning to Valencia and returned to Alicante around 5 in the morning the next day. To say the least the say was very eventful and also very long and tiring. We ate some paella, enjoyed much street art that Valencia offered, and were in awe of all the structures created for this festival. Las Fallas is a traditional celebration held in commemoration of Saint Joseph. The term Fallas refers to both the celebration and the monuments created during the celebration. During the week leading up to March 19, each group takes its “ninot” out for a grand parade, and then mounts it, each on its own elaborate firecracker-filled cardboard and paper-mâché artistic monument in a neighborhood street. This whole assembly is what is called a “falla.”

In la Plaza de la Virgen there is also the offering of flowers. There is a wooden silhouette of the Virgin Mary that is filled in with bouquets of carnations. It is a whole ceremony where people dress up in their best and most colorful traditional costumes and pass by the Virgin bringing the flowers, which are then arranged by the crew on site.

The five days and nights of Fallas are a continuous party. There are a multitude of processions: historical processions, religious processions, and comedic processions.  The Mascletà, an explosive barrage of firecracker and fireworks displays, takes place
in each neighbourhood at 2:00 pm every day of the festival, and we saw the main  event at la Plaza del Ayuntamiento. Picture your ordinary 4th of July show, but only with the fireworks that make the loudest of noise and display no colors. This went
on for a good half hour! Smaller neighbourhoods often hold their own mascletà for saint’s days, weddings and other celebrations.

Around midnight is when La Cremà happens and the Fallas are burnt as huge bonfires. This is known as the burning and the climax of the whole event, and the reason why the constructions are called fallas or “torches”. Traditionally, the falla
in the la Plaza del Ayuntamiento is burned last. There are also many little fallas that are constructed and earlier in the night burnt. This festival was so awesome because I never could image an event like it! So much fire, people, vendors, fireworks, for
completely the whole day. In Alicante in late June there is a very similar event called Las Hogueras, which is basically the same thing with more partying in the streets since it is much warmer weather.

March was a little more relaxing and went out with a bang for Fallas, but will go out even bigger once my family comes to visit me in Alicante! Only 2 weeks until spring break begins and I truly start travelling the world.

-Zak S.

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Living in a society that thrives off of global interaction, it has become almost necessary to have a deep understanding of cultural diversity in order to be an insightful, erudite professional and companionable individual. Global humility and cultural competence are skills you learn from immersing yourself through living in the country and taking advantage of what your surroundings
have to offer. One must experience it themselves in order to truly understand the impact of history, tradition, art, and lifestyle on the local people, and the global community as a whole. What makes such experiences so special and unique is that they cannot be replicated through textbooks, media, or even from person to person.

My 4 months spent in Lausanne taught me much more than a new language, how to rely on public transportation, or how to make cheese fondue. Studying abroad gave me the opportunity to gain an appreciation for my surroundings from places to people. So, here are 10 things Lausanne taught me:

1) Adventure is beautiful. Don’t let fear scare you away from this. Sometimes it is best to throw yourself out there to see where you land. Hop off the plane, and throw out the itinerary; that is when you will find true adventure.

2) More than anything, being abroad is not about the number of places you go, but the people you meet. Interactions are so important in making your experience. You learn so much from people who are similar and different from you, who speak another language, who have grown up in an entirely different society. Whether it is at a local grocery store, a club, or on a train…don’t be afraid to start a conversation with a stranger, even if you barely speak the language. Turns out, gestures are universal, and conversations push your language skills, no matter how bad you think you are at speaking the language.

3) Keep a journal and make it a habit. Through your travels, you’ll experience so many different emotions, learn new history, and sometimes find yourself in places you never thought you would be. Write it down. Whether it is a few sentences or six pages, it is the best way to keep your memories alive and remember your experiences. Once you are home, they slowly start
to fade, but when you open that journal, it’s like you are transported back in time.

4) The peers and staff members you study with abroad will become your best friends, and your family. Although only for a short time, the friends I made abroad in my program were truly some of the most caring, and influential people I have ever met. Living in the same house with seventy other students heightened this experience, and I feel incredibly blessed to have
met the students that I did. Each one impacted me in a way that helped me grow and make the most of my time abroad.
5) You will have some experiences that you can’t explain in words; it is something you have gone through yourself, and only you will understand its impact.

6) The best way to share your experiences to tell stories. Go through all the photographs you took with your friends and family, and tell them the story behind the photograph. A picture is worth a thousand words anyway, right?

7) Keep a budget. Studying abroad in general can be pricey, and it especially was in Switzerland. I was fortunate to have a supportive family, and a partial scholarship from Grand Trunk. However, it is extremely important to budget yourself and make the most of it. Remember, those cheesy “priceless” Visa commercials? It is so true. The experiences you
have are absolutely priceless.

8) Time goes by fast. Before you know it, it will be time to pack up and go home. So make the most of your time abroad, cherish the friendships you make, and leave with no regrets. Be thankful for everything you have, and don’t take a single moment for granted. You wont realize what you had until you have to go home.

9) Don’t judge a book by its’ cover, you’ll end up missing some pretty good stories. Be open to take in what the world has to offer.

10) “No one realizes how beautiful it is to travel until he comes home and rests his head on his old familiar pillow” So true. Glad to be home.

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North Avenue Beach  -  Backyard Session Clean-up    

Wednesday May 23^rd

1600 North Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL

12pm – 4pm

Grand Trunk is working with partner,  Leave No Trace Center for Outdoor Ethics and local groups  to clean up North Avenue Beach in Chicago, IL while providing onsite Leave No Trace education.

North Avenue Beach/Lincoln Park is considered one of Chicago’s premier beaches. The beach, which features a biking and running path as well as extensive volleyball options and attracts large numbers on weekends and weeknights. Issues such as litter, crowding, and waste disposal are becoming a noticeable issue as more users recreate.

In Chicago?  Join us!

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Carnaval is a time when everyone dresses up as well, comparable to Halloween in the states. My friend and I went to Don Dino, a local costume shop to pick up some masks and a vaquero (cowboy) outfit for me, and since we live on the Mediterranean I felt it was appropriate to ride a sea horse for the night. Before I left to my friend’s piso or apartment, I helped my host sister and her friend prepare their cat costumes and intricate face paint. My Carnaval experience was a lot of fun while I socialized and danced the night away. It is known that the Brazilian Carival is one of the best-known celebrations today, and the Carnival in Rio de Janeiro is the largest in the world, according to the Guinness World Records. However, I was greatly satisfied with the Alicantian Carnaval.

The week after, a good bit of our USAC group signed up for an excursion to Morocco! We all had to wake up extremely early the day after class to catch a flight into Sevilla, where we had 8 hours to kill before the trip started. Luckily I had a friend who was studying there and he gave us an awesome tour of the city. After a very early Spanish Scramble breakfast, we went to the 3rd largest Cathedral in the world and the 4th largest Gothic cathedral (that had Christopher Columbus remains), the Mushroom, walked along the river, and went to Plaza de España, one of my favorite spots that was also featured in a Star Wars movie!

Then is was time to board our bus to catch my first ever ferry, cross the straight of Gibraltar, and check into our hotel in Tangiers. After resting up the first night after an extremely long day of travel, our first destination was Tetouan, which stands as a relic of beauty of Northern Morocco overlooking the sea. We passed through many markets with our guide Muhammad, through a tannery and past where the king of Morocco once lived. On our bus ride back to stopped along the coast for some camel rides, and at the Caves of Hercules. Truly an awesome place. During our lunch in Tetouan we of course at couscous with a wonderful show by a little band and a man juggling cups of fire!

The next morning started off as an eventful one. When we were riding to Chefchouen a Morocco boy tried to hide in the engine compartment of our bus, thinking we were going to Spain. Sitting in the back of the bus I stared down at a pulsating floorboard, and luckily he got out okay. This was definitely a new and alarming experience for me! Once we got to Chefchouen we had another walking tour of the city and had a chance to bargain in the markets. I got a chance to buy some Moroccan handcrafted slippers! The city was awesome, nestled between two mountains, houses painted all white with blue doors, which was all topped off with an amazing lunch. Some of the most common dishes are tagines and couscous. The lunch we ate at the Casa de Aladdin, which had an awesome interior design, was couscous with chicken, liver, lemon pepper, olives, and apricots. Delicious! The night in Chefchouen was our last in Morocco and after a long bus ride, ferry, another long bus ride, and flight we made it back safely to Alicante.

After a week of class another day trip was in store for a few friends and me. We took the train to a neighboring city called Elche, where there is the largest concentration of palm trees in the world, around 200,000 to 300,000. We visited the Huerto del Cura which is a botanic tropical garden with many ponds, bamboo, and plants. At the center is the “Imperial Palm Tree” that is composed of about six palm trees supported amongst one another. We also saw the Basilica de Santa Maria and intended to climb one of the towers that overlooks the city, but it was closed. It would have been awesome to see all the palms throughout the entire city!

Aside from staying busy with my studies and a few trips, I also started a new Remo or rowing class. On the port of Alicante about 20 students and I enjoy an evenings worth of rowing, and we are progressively getting better. I have been designated as our leader who calls out “Chop! Fuera,” which basically keeps everyone’s paddle in rhythm when it hits and exits the water. This got old after about the fifth sentence, and now I am convinced chop fuera is a type of Chinese fare. Coming up should be some more relaxation and day trips around the Alicante area. Adios!

Zak S.

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I never believed that a place could really change you. I am still not entirely sure if it can. But I did learn that there are moments of impact that change your perspective, open your mind, and allow you to understand the depth of what is in front of you. You encounter these moments in the most unexpected ways, and that is what makes them so distinct.

Our international program had the opportunity to take a 6-day educational field trip to Israel. The intensive, packed tour was hands-down, one of the most amazing experiences I have ever had. Here is some of it that I would like to share with you.

Day 1: Arrival

We left Lausanne at 4 a.m. with a juice box, couple granola bars, and some luggage filled with excitement, anticipation, and a little bit of butterflies. We boarded our bus for Geneva airport, and arrived at our gate about an hour and a half later. I think I left on this trip not really knowing what to expect. I mean, I never even imagined myself traveling to the Middle East. Of course the anticipation sent rumors around; like how we may have a bodyguard, or how soldiers walk around with their weapons in public areas. The news seems to portray the Middle East in a certain way, and little did I expect Israel to be the way it really was.

We arrived at Ben Gurion International Airport in Tel-Aviv in the afternoon safe and sound. Passing through the immigration checkpoint was probably the catalyst for my eagerness to explore this new area of the world. As I was getting my passport stamped, the officer asked me why I was visiting Israel. I responded telling her it was a trip with my university, and she was immediately elated, telling me that I was incredibly lucky to have such an opportunity. I grabbed my passport and walked away, really trying to think about what she said. I really was lucky. I mean, I am in school, and am going to Israel, a place many people dream of visiting all their lives; and I was here as a college student. Not only that, but I had been given the chance to bond with 80 other students, faculty, staff, and even our International Programs dean! It was honestly such an awesome chance to build life long memories among so many others.

We met our tour guides, Uri and Yishay, and boarded our busses. Our guides were incredibly involved and caring, making sure our experiences went comfortably and free of worries. They introduced us to many different Israeli cultural ideas, snacks, and the way of life, throughout the week. We departed for the Mediterranean Coast first. About an hour later, we arrived at the Sea of Galilee, just in time to watch the golden sun set into the water. Everyone rushed out of the bus, grabbing cameras to snap the beauty of our first site in Israel. Along the rocky beach were the remnants of the 2,000 year-old aqueduct built by the Romans, which once brought water to the city of Caesarea. We clicked away at the beautiful ruins before the guides called us together for a brief introduction, “the Holy Land in the Prim of contemporary World Affair”. The guides introduced us to the history of Caesarea, and recited a Hebrew poem as the sun set behind us.

This would be a week of learning, questioning, and overcoming our own fears and preconceptions. The guides shared and Israeli dessert called rugelach, a croissant like dough filled with chocolate, which according to our guide include enough calories for the day; but hey, they were delicious!  That was only the start of the tastiest week of food. We wrapped up and got back to our hotel in the Upper Galilee area. We had our first Mediterranean meal at our cute, village style outdoor hotel, followed by a second introduction of the geography of Israel, and the itinerary for the week.

Day 2: Nature, Security, and Spirituality in the North

Let the trip begin! Bright and early, 7 a.m., we were packed and ready to go. WE walked a couple hundred meters to the Sea of Galilee Yigal Allon Centre. There, we spend a short time at the “Man in the Galilee” museum to check out the ancient galilee boat, which is dated back to the time of Jesus. The 2,000 year old boat had an entire museum dedicated to it, and video clips showing the process of excavation. Next, we took a ride up to the Mount of Beatitudes, a traditional site of Jesus’ “Sermon on the Mount”, overlooking the Sea of Galilee. The octagonal church was surrounded by lush greenery, and a beautiful view of the sea.

We then visited another church, “Sacellvm Primatvs: Sancti Petri”, the site of the Restoration of Peter at Tabgha. Our next stop was Capernaum, another town on the shores of the Galilee, at the heart of the ministry of Jesus and the site of Jesus’ teachings and healing. We then drove to Tiberias for lunch, where I had my first real Israeli falafel.

After lunch, we boarded the bus for Beit Shean National Park, one of the largest archeological sites in Israel with its’ Biblical Tel and ongoing excavations exposing the vast Roman-Byzantine city. This place was massive and just to think that was all dug up is so impressive. We hiked up the hill to a flat area overlooking a valley and Jordan in the distance. We left the park and drove through the Jordan Valley to Jerusalem. Jerusalem is a 3,000 year old city. We stopped at Mt. Scopus, a breathtaking pot from where we say the night scene of Jerusalem.

Day 3: The Layers of Jerusalem

Our first stop was the Mount of Olives, the traditional site of Jesus’ ascension to heaven, and for a view of the glorious Old city and new city of Jerusalem. We walked down the hill, passing thousands of burials in the Ancient Jewish Cemetery, down to the Garden of Gethsemane and across the Kidron Valley. We ventured through the Christian Quarter of Jerusalem, visiting a few churches, including the Church of the Holy Sepulcher, where certain believers think Jesus was crucified and resurrected. The church was very ornate with many candles and metallic décor, and filled with pilgrims from around the country and world. In the Christian quarter, our tour guide introduced us to the Jerusalem bagel, which was a large, oval bagel you dipped in zatar spice.

After lunch, we continued through the Jewish quarter of the Old City, walking through the Cardo, a Byzantine street that is now the world’s oldest shopping arcade. We walked through the Hurva Square, the central square of the Jewish Quarter. We even visited the 2,000 year-old Herodian Mansions and the room of the Last Supper.

Lastly, we visited the Jerusalem Archaeological park and the southern wall excavations. We had the chance to walk along the wall, and even visit the stone where Jesus is believed to have stood, at the historically single entry for Jewish people to the walled mound. We met back to visit the Western Wall, or the “wailing wall”. Each of us wrote a prayer to put into the wall, as a sign of respect to the site. We walked through the Western Wall tunnels, along the interior side of the wall along the Temple Mount. After dinner, we had a speaker from Tel Aviv University come in to speak to us about Israel I the Arab World.

Day 4: The Dead Sea Basin

Our fourth day began with a trip to Masada, in the Dead Sea Basin. Masada is the sit of King Herod’s mountain palace, and the site of the Jewish Zealots’ last stand against the Roman Legionnaires. We discussed Masada’s role as a symbol of Jewish defense, and its current significance in modern Israel. The ruins were very interesting and the view across the desert was spectacular.

We then took a short hike in the Ein Gedi Nature Reserve to the freshwater spring, Nahal David, a lush oasis in the Judean Desert overlooking the Dead Sea. We came across a few hyrax and ibex on our way up.

I remember always seeing pictures of people floating in the Dead Sea in our earth science textbooks in elementary school, but never did I think I would be able to do it too. We spent a few minutes floating in 35% salt water of the Dead Sea…the salinity of the Pacific Ocean is around 3.5%! There was no sand at this beach, they were just pearls of salt. We then hopped out to cover ourselves in the healthy mud mask by the water, and relax as its healthy properties seeped into our skin and hair. Even our dean joined in on the muddy fun! After washing it off, we enjoyed some more time in amazement at our inability to sink.

After floating in the Dead Sea, we visited Genesis Land, a biblical style encampment in the Judean Desert, to experience Biblical Hospitality with a camel ride through the desert and an evening ‘Hafla’ feast.

Day 5: Memory and Renewal

Probably the most emotionally stirring day for all of us, we spend the majority of our fifth day in Israel at the Yad Vashem complex, the Jewish National Memorial to the six million Jewish victims of the Holocaust, including the Avenue of the Righteous, the new Historical Museum, the Children’s Memorial, and a concluding memorial service.

You know when sometimes when you feel like you are expected to feel a certain way, or show certain emotions because that is how you are supposed to feel? The Holocaust Museum felt like that at the start. I mean, we are visiting an extremely terrible and sensitive part of human history, so of course we are supposed to feel sympathetic and remorseful, maybe even hatred…but I did not expect to be as emotionally stirred as I was.

All through school growing up, you are told the facts: who, what, where, and when, about the Holocaust. You are never really told to think about why or given the opportunity to question why. I feel like it is difficult to feel immense emotions without experiencing its cause. I have to say though; this museum honestly did an incredible job at allowing the visitor to deeply experience the memories, and it broke my heart.

I still have trouble trying to find the words to encompass my emotions, but what I do know is that I dare not place myself in the shoes of the victims, as it seems impossible for us today to even imagine the severity of their pain.  I felt emptiness inside me, and my head kept spinning around the first hand accounts, the difficult images, and uncensored videos of the events of the Holocaust. We try to place these feelings in the back of our heads as we go on with the day, but I know this museum left me with a lot of questions on human nature and capabilities.

Later, we departed for Bethlehem, the site of the birth of Jesus, crossing a large, cement wall checkpoint into Palestinian territory. There, we visited the Church of Nativity before returning to Jerusalem for our farewell dinner near the Jerusalem Railway Station complex. A local Palestinian couple joined our dinner to answer any questions we had about the current politics, and shared with us their hopes and dreams for the future.

Day 6: Departure

After checking out from our hotel, we visited two more last sites before our departure back to Switzerland. Our first stop was the Garden Tomb, the traditional Protestant site of Calvary. We then visited the Israel Museum, one of the most creative and innovative museums in the world showcasing a wide collection from Judaica and archaeology, to Renaissance and cotemporary Israeli art.

We ended the visit with a tour of the Dead Sea Scrolls and the Shrine of the Book and newly restored Second Temple Period model of Jerusalem. After our lunch and wrap-up session at the museum, we said our good-byes and departed for the airport.

Remarks:

Being constantly on the go, I did not have enough time to really soak in all that I had learned and experienced about a new part of the world, and about myself, until I boarded our flight back home. So many preconceptions were broken, and I discovered how the news could be deceptive toward the nature of a place and it’s people. It amazed me how important peace and living in love really is to the people in Israel. It really is about the people, not just the monuments. Opening my eyes to what the Middle East truly is allowed me to mature in my thoughts. I learned that you can infect, not educate love; at the same time, you have to give it the opportunity to leave its’ mark on you.

The stones of the ruins provided a framework, but it is not about that. The stone is just a guide; it is about what you do with it that matters. So go, and do good.

Six days in Israel; it’s just not that kind of trip.

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“In a normal sleeping bag, the insulation on the back gets squished to oblivion as soon as you get inside, leaving nothing more than a thin piece of fabric protecting your back from the elements. Grand Trunk’s hammock compatible bag gets around this by letting you pull your entire hammock through the bag.”  – Gizmodo [Read The Full Article]

“Most sleeping bags compress under your back when you lay in hammock, which can crush the insulating loft and in turn cause your back to freeze. The Grand Trunk’s Hammock Compatible Sleeping Bags prevents this by wrapping around both you and the hammock.”  – Swag So Fresh [Read The Full Article]

“A unique sleeping bag that you can wrap around your body and the hammock, making you look like an enormous cocoon.”  – Tecca [Read The Full Article]

We only will have a limited quantity available online in May, before they hit stores in June.  Reserve yours now!

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We flew into airport on Friday, and spent the weekend walking around the entire city. Rome is so different from Lausanne. The streets are bustling with crowds of people, cars honking in every direction, and the smell of freshly baked pizza seeping through the restaurant window panes. With frequent stops for gelato, we followed our maps to some of the major tourist sites including the Colosseum, the Trevi Fountain, Vatican City, Roman Forum, the Spanish Steps, the Pantheon, and the Fountain of Four Rivers.

Although quite a touristic site, Rome was a great first trip to adapt myself to the culture of traveling. It definitely set the tone for the rest of my trips in the semester. Most of all, I found it incredible to finally see the places I have studied in my humanities and art courses in real life. Having the background knowledge of the historic sites I was now visiting really helped me link the importance of each monument, and imagine myself physically present in the history of Rome. Understanding the impact of the history of a place turns even the most touristic sites into a unique, and special experience.

-Priyanka S.

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We boarded the bus and arrived to our Swiss Chalet on Friday morning, excited to
finally see some snow. Our climb up the mountain was absolutely breathtaking as
we drove through Swiss village areas and mountainside vineyards. About an hour
and a half later, we arrived in Villars, a sweet mountain village overlooking the
Rhône Valley. The village is actually home to the most expensive school in the world,
Collège Alpin International Beau Soleil, a boarding school, whose tuition alone costs
around 100,000 francs per year (That is 110,000 USD!) While we waited to check-
in to our chalet, we began our much awaited snowball fight! Going to school in
Malibu, this was something we never get to do. We spent the evening relaxing in the
house, building forts and snowmen, and bonding over hot cocoa, board games, and a
personal presentation from our professor.

The next morning, many of us decided to hit the slopes. I have never snowboarded
outside of California, so this was quite the experience! Switzerland is ranked in the
top areas in the world for winter sports. The fresh powder from a night of constant
snowfall was absolutely perfect for shredding the enormous trails. Unfortunately,
the runs are not labeled by color, so we ended up riding down (or sliding down)
probably what was a double black diamond our first run! The crazy thing was that
the 10-minute Gondola ride that took us up to the first base of ski lifts was only
maybe one-fifth of the way up the mountain! In fact, the ski areas reach altitudes
above 3000 meters! After an exhausting, fun day on the slopes, we returned to our
comfy, warm chalet to relax. For the rest of the evening, we enjoyed listening to our
professor’s evening remarks.

Prior to our departure back to school, we stopped by a nearby alpine ministry
organization, L’Abri, where travellers come together to discuss philosophical and
religious topics. We shared lunch and a delicious dessert banquet, and reflected
on our experiences from the weekend. After an exciting and tiring weekend, we
returned back to Lausanne to get ready for the rest of the week.

- Priyanka S.

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Our contest platform received tens of thousands of hits and the voting total came in at over 30K votes! We are definitely considering offering this contest in the future, and encourage any interested students, universities, or sponsors to leave comments below so we can reach out to you, or contact us at studyabroad@grandtrunkgoods.com.

This is just the beginning.. You can follow each of these three winners’ adventures as they share their experiences of their travels right here on our website.

AND THE WINNERS ARE:

Grand Prize: Priyanka Shah

Priyanka is a Sophomore studying Sports Medicine at Pepperdine University in Malibu, CA. We loved Priyanka’s creative video and she followed it up encouraging her friends and family daily to vote for her via her Facebook and Twitter accounts. Priyanka will spend next semester in Lausanne, Switerland through Pepperdine’s International Campus program. We can’t wait to follow her adventure through her travelogue.

Runner-Up: Zak Suhar

Zak is a Junior studying Business Management and Spanish at the University of Mount Union in Alliance, OH. The moment we saw Zak’s video, we knew he was exactly the kind of Grand Trunk ambassador that we were hoping to receive a video from. He is already an experienced and recognized blogger, and we can’t wait to see happens when he begins his adventure. Next semester, Zak will be fine tuning his Spanish skills while at the University of Alicante in Alicante, Spain.

Honorable Mention: Caleb Timmerman

Caleb is a Sophomore studying Psychology and Marketing at Berry College in Mount Berry, GA. Throughout the contest, it became clear that Caleb would not accept anything less than receiving the #1 rank in vote getting. That relentlessness has paid off, as he has been chosen as our final Grand Trunk ambassador. Caleb’s adventure next semester will be awesome to follow, as with the Berry College program he is participating in, he will travel to Switzerland, England, France, Italy, The Azores.

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