San Diego’s Little Italy

When you are staying in Vantaggio in San Diego, you will live in Little Italy. This is a little village in the centre of San Diego with a lot of restaurants, cafés and bars. People here will speak to you in Italian and they are very friendly and hospitable. Well and if you do stay in Little Italy, at least visit Pappalecco, Vincenco and Yoghurtland. Pappalecco is a really nice coffee café where you can not only drink a delicious coffee, but where you can also enjoy typical Italian food. Breakfast, lunch or even diner! Vincenco is meant for de real connoisseur.  Do you like it to have diner and to eat good Italian food? Then you really have to visit Vincenco. Especially cheesecake in lemon sauce is excellent… My last recommendation is Yoghurtland, the true paradise for ice lovers. In Yoghurtland you can tap your own ice and you can pick your own toppings. Fresh fruit, m&m’s, chocolate, cookies, nuts… just name it, they will have it!

Universal Studios

This park, based in Los Angeles, has not only got many spectacular 3d attractions but also offers the well known studios of many popular Hollywood movies. You can drive through the studios by train, so you will have a good sight on where it all happens. You can see many recording places of famous movies. Besides the tour in the studios you will also be entertained with some small, spectacular attractions. Visiting the Universal Studios is absolutely worthwhile money.

Walk of fame

Well, and if you are visiting LA, then you should also visit the Walk of Fame. The Walk of Fame is made up of more than 2000 colorful tiles with on the tiles names of celebrities. Near the Grauman’s Chinese Theatre you can also find many concrete tiles in which celebrities pulled their hand- and footprints in the wet cement. I must be honest, the Walk of Fame was nice to see, but it wasn’t what I had expected of it. In Holland we would have said: I am an experience richer, and a illusion poorer.

Hollywood Boulevard

Many people and very much P.I.M.P. Yes, now I actually know what p.i.m.p. is… on the Hollywood Boulevard you can see many fancy cars and well dressed ladies and gentlemen on the streets. The nightlife of this boulevard was really impressive! Don’t go here alone in the evening, I didn’t felt really safe there. But you must visit this boulevard for sure, and of course have a look at the Hollywood sign. Tip-off: Pick a crystal clear night to look at the Hollywood sign J

Venice Beach & Santa Monica

Venice Beach is an awesome place to shop!

Both beautiful beaches! Really worthwhile visiting! I liked Venice Beach because of all the little market stalls with colorful jewelers and cloths. And besides this, Venice Beach also offers a lot of sports and recreation activities. Par example you can skate at the skate park, you can play soccer, basketball, fitness, squash and many more! Really nice to have a look at all the different  sports played with people from different cultures. In contrast with Venice Beach, Santa Monica is more touristic. On the boulevard they have a rollercoaster and many restaurants and shops. Tip-off: Have a look at Santa Monica Boulevard with a sunset, really beautiful!

Ocean’s Beach

Ocean’s Beach is a little, but beautiful beach. Not really impressive if you ask me, but well, I can wrap that off my bucket list! I wouldn’t really recommend going there.

Pacific Beach

This really is ‘the place to be’ if you like surfing and enjoying the beach. Pacific Beach is a large beach with a very cozy boulevard, and there are many nice restaurants and cafés to go in the weekend. And of course you can relax and enjoy the burning sun!

Coronado Beach

This beach is definitely my number 1. It’s a kind of feeling that I have when I am at this beach. Fine structured sand, a beautiful view on the ocean, a nice boulevard, great surf shops, it’s really worthwhile visiting! A great beach!

Old Town

In Old Town you will find the preserved historic State Park. This park memorizes the beginning of the city San Diego and has got many historic buildings dated from 1820 till 1870, still in the original condition. Besides visiting the museum at Old Town, you can also find many colorful restaurants, market places and shops there, which are great to see!

Seaport Village

If you walk a little further in the San Diego Bay, you will find Seaport Village. In this little harbor village you will find a lot of artists, drawers and even parrots and birds! You will also find many nice shops, under which ‘the Tile shop’ was one of my favorites. Besides all these lovely shops you can also go to some good restaurants and have a look at the see while you are enjoying a drink. Furthermore there are some fields where you can go to read a good book. Beautiful to watch the sunset in Seaport Village!

Kate Sessions Park

Bougainvillea

If you want to, you can go to Kate Sessions Park for a nice barbecue with your friends. This is a big park with a beautiful sight on the Pacific Ocean, really great! Take some nice drinks and food with you, and just enjoy…

Fashion Valley

The real fashion fans can enjoy it to their hearts. Fashion Valley is a true paradise for woman! Many shops where you can shop till you drop… To see all stores in Fashion Valley, you will need at least 3 days. Not really my kind of thing, but if you will go there I have a tip-off for you: go to Fashion Valley at a chilly day!

And of course all these things are not the last I have seen in California. The upcoming 2 weeks there is enough time left to visit some other places. This weekend we will do a little road trip to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon with some friends. Besides that, I would like it to surf at the Pacific Ocean and to visit La Jolla Beach and Mission Beach. And of course we have to eat a dessert at Extraordinary in the Union Street. They told us that they have the best desserts in whole San Diego. Well, I can guarantee you 1 thing for sure when you will visit California: you will never be bored! You can enjoy many beaches en beautiful cities. If you ask me what I liked the most during my 4 weeks stay in San Diego? In secret Old Town and Seaport Village stole my heart… J

Both Hillary and Condoleeza appeared at different days as part of the Commonwealth club event. Jean-Pierre Guittard made an announcement at the school during graduation letting all students know that CISL SF had bought free tickets for Hillary’s speech and for Condoleeza’s speech (enough for an entire class of about 8 people). Jean-Pierre wanted our students experience what it was like to attend speeches from very important people such as Hillary and Condoleeza and learn more about American politics and culture.

CISL SF student comments…

On October 18th, I attended the promotion event of Condoleeza Rice’s autobiography at the Mark Hopkins Hotel in San Francisco. She talked about her background which was written in her book. Though I didn’t know much about her before this event, I could know a little about her. She spoke about her family, her college life and her major at the university.

I’ve never attended this kind of event. My biggest surprise was the behavior of 5 protesters. In this event, they stood suddenly and shouted to her about every ten minutes. They were escorted out of the event by hotel security, but after the event they still stood outside of the hotel and repeated appeals. I recognized free speech in America by their behavior. This day was my first day at Converse. It was shocking and a good opportunity to observe a part of American culture. (By Jin Yoshikawa, Japan)

View Condolezza Rice slide show.

I’m so glade to have this opportunity to attend Ms Clinton speech at San Francisco’s Marriott hotel that Converse offered to me. In fact it’s the first time I attended a speech in USA I guess I’m lucky. Ms Clinton is popular and people like her , we were clapping for her a lot and she’s also so friendly she took photos with people. One week later the school also offered another opportunity to attend a Condoleezza rice speech. Both speeches were interesting I learned a lot about U.S. policy and the future of the USA . I have attended speeches a couple of times back home in Saudi Arabia but it was a different experience to be in the USA . Finally, I’d like to thank my school because they always offer a great opportunities for students! (Ahmed Alsomali, Saudi Arabia)

View video of Hillary Rodham Clinton’s San Francisco speech.

By CISL SD student, Linda Sintniklaas (Netherlands)

“This morning I woke up with such a good feeling! I felt really happy! Maybe you are wondering why I felt so happy this morning? It was because of my experiences as a travelling student in San Diego. During my stay here I came to know about all the beautiful places and all the beautiful people who live in this world. Sometimes there are those moments you think: where has the trust in people gone? And is politeness and hospitality still common? “

Last weekend for me those questions were answered. Friday afternoon I came home after a busy week of working and following English lessons. I was exhausted. After having checked my email and also checked my Facebook account, suddenly my cooking buddy walked into the study area. He asked me if me and my study friend would like to go to a barbecue somewhere in a park. He would give us a ride and he would leave within 30 minutes. Well fine, I thought, let’s go for it! Once in the car we first drove to a supermarket to buy some food and vegetables for the barbecue. Then we went further on to Kate Sessions Park, where the security guy from Vantaggio already heated up the barbecue for all students. The location? On top of a mountain with a beautiful view on the Pacific Ocean, really great! Wonderful to be here! After preparing the food, the barbecue started. It was a lovely evening and we met a lot new people from many different countries.

Well, and that’s how it supposed to go: “come to know people”. It happens at moments you actually don’t expect it, or you actually planned something else. It happens at those moments you need something, but you actually don’t really know what. It happens at the moments when you just have to go somewhere. Do not plan too much when you are travelling; people around you are already organizing a lot of things! And you’re in, for sure!

During the barbecue I met Alexandra, a girl of French that now lives in America because of her boyfriend. She’d invited us for the next day to come to Pacific Beach. So we did, and we had a great day and we shared a lot of laughter. We are now also planning other activities for the upcoming week, really fun.

Aside from Alexandra we also met another couple, Philip and Marielle. We had such a great time with them in Kate Sessions Park that we spoke planning a second dinner. And because of all that on Sunday afternoon my cooking friend dropped us off at Philips apartment. The barbecue was already prepared and they really arranged the whole thing. A lot of food and a few cold beers were already waiting for us, such hospitality! I felt happy and I was surprised to see such hospitality, because we hardly even knew about these people. And guess what? After having a nice warm bath in the jacuzzi we met nice people again! Friends of Philip. Very friendly girls with whom we spoke to for a while. Now we are already having some ideas to go on a road trip with a little group of persons. Maybe we will rent a car and go to Las Vegas and the Grand Canyon. Wow, this happens fast “come to know people”. And yes, you can still trust people. And talk about politeness and hospitality? Yes, you can still find people that are! This conclusion brought a smile to my face!

Despite everyone’s complaining about ‘Mondays’, I felt great today! Upcoming travelers, I can give you some advice: 1) Go for every adventure and take every chance you can take; 2) Things do always come when you will not expect them to come, be flexible, don’t plan too much and enjoy all those special ‘unpredictable’ moments; 3) Be open to everyone, this weekend I have really seen the best of people. Trust and hospitality therefore are determining factors. Go for it and enjoy!

Well, a day in the life of a student living abroad? It blew my expectations!

By CISL San Diego student, Nicolas Sayo (France)

If you are a shopping addict or if you just like shopping, San Diego is the ideal place. There are clothes for everybody : fashionistas, bargain hunters,  sportsmen, etc…

San Ysidro, 40 minutes south of San Diego by trolley, is my favorite shopping destination. San Ysidro, just across the border from Tijuana, Mexico, is a great place to shop with many factory outlet stores where you can buy casual clothes in many different fashions. The big Nike shop is a good place to start,  and afterwards you can try your luck at the Aeropostale store (I bought a tee-shirt and a polo for only 39 dollars!), or the Vans store (2 tee-shirts for 15 dollars). There are other interesting shops like Tommy Hilfinger, The Gap,  and the Cap New Era store. There are also lots of promotions such as “buy one product and then get 50% off of the second.” So San Ysidro is very attractive destination for people who like good clothes with low prices!

Another excellent shopping destination is the Fashion Valley Mall, a more upscale place for the shopping addict, featuring many famous designer boutiques. The prices are more expensive than San Ysidro, but  less expensive than in Europe. Fashion Valley is easy to get to by trolley from downtown (20 minutes). Fashion Valley Mall is very big! Here you can find many chic labels such as Hoolister and Abercrombie & Fitch, as well as electronics brands like Sony and Apple, where you can try out many products and receive advise from the sales staff.  So if you go to the United States looking to buy the latest fashion collections and brands, San Diego is the place to go!

If you don’t like rides but you are a surf lover or simply you love water and you are ready to live a different experience the Wave House is your place. Here you can find wave machines, wave pools and surf machines whose purpose is to recreate the thrills and challenge of the ocean. Contrariwise if for you it’s not the right day to experience something new and you simply want to relax you can swim in the swimming pool present in the park. Apart from the Wave House one of my favourite attractions is the Laser Maze. Inside this maze you have to navigate through a web of lasers going over and down them as quickly as possible to arrive to the end of the maze without being hit. It’s a perfect game to challenge friends. The convenient thing about Belmont Park is that you can decide to buy a ticket for all the attractions ( if you want to try all) or to buy just the tickets for the attractions you are interested in, it’s your choice. Outside the park you can lie down in the sun, drink or eat something in the numerous places situated near the beach or decide to practise some activities.

If it’s a beautiful day you can rent a bicycle or rollerblades for 8 dollars per hour. Ride along the coast is a good idea to admire the wonderful sightseeing, the beautiful houses and reach Pacific Beach in a easy way just doing a little bit of activity which is good also for the body. Mission Beach is in conclusion the right place to spend a day having fun or relaxing yourself not so far from downtown.

How Would You Describe Your Study Abroad Experience?

Hello, I’m a businessman who came from Hiroshima, Japan. I have been studying business English, TOEIC preparation, and the other all English skill which I need at CISL in San Francisco, USA from this April. During this time, even though studying English is quite tough for me because the linguistic system is completely different from Japanese, I’m pleased to say that I have rapidly and constantly been able to improve my English proficiency. For example, my TOEIC score was improved by over 100 points for the short terms despite of the fact that it was about 700 points before beginning the lessons. It was an unexpected delightful miscalculation, and I sincerely appreciate the hospitality CISL showed me during my English study. Mere words could never express my gratitude, yet I will try to explain how grateful I am for everything that CISL has done.

In addition, I enjoyed an extremely wonderful life in San Francisco because CISL could always offer fantastic and dedicated entertainment after school. For instance, when  I asked that I wanted to see the baseball game between Oakland vs. Seattle, CISL immediately planned that excursion. As a result, I was able to see the single to left which Ichiro made in Oakland. Honestly speaking, never did I see such a positive and excellent language school which showed fancy footwork. Moreover, I think that these exciting activities were very good chances to talk with not only other country’s students but also native speakers outside of the class. I could really use these interesting opportunities I preferred. Thank you very much!

Five students from Wendy’s Level 9 class wrote about their cultural experiences and we are proud to announce that the winner from her class is Eva.

Below is Eva’s blog entry:

What did I know about San Francisco before coming here? First of all, I knew that it was a big city with a lot of streets going up and down – like those pictures you see in films – and that on these streets there were driving the famous cable cars. Of course I had also seen pictures of the famous Golden Gate Bridge furthermore friends had told me that America was the best place to go shopping and that you could meet a lot of friendly and multicultural people. I think that was more or less my background information when I got on the plane to San Francisco.

One of the most important things you learn very quickly is not to think about European scales. Also distances may seem very small on a map. You will soon realize that in reality they are much bigger than expected.

Actually when you look at a map of San Francisco the distance is not the only thing to worry about. As I mentioned before, the city is not flat at all. When you take one of the cable cars or the buses, better listen and “HOLD ON”. You will also soon notice that the Americans are very friendly people for instance a complete stranger starts talking to you on the bus to tell you that he likes your shoes… however could arise some subject comprehension problems considering the differences between American slang and our European school English. I was quite surprised when the receptionist at the hotel told me that he couldn’t “break” my dollars after having asked him if he could change my money. So here my hot tip: listen to what your teacher tells you and do the pronunciation exercises (even though they bore you silly…). After a few days you will discover how easy it is to sound like an American: just use “like” at least twice in a sentence and pronounce the whole sequence as if it was one word.

Once you get more confident about the language you are ready to discover the many beautiful and interesting sites of San Francisco, one of the most liberal and gay friendly cities of the Unites States, go to the Ghirardelli Square and enjoy of the of world’s best chocolate or go watching the sea lions at the famous Pier 39. If you get too stressed with all the sightseeing, you can relax in the Japanese Tea Garden and refresh your energy drinking a cup of Jasmine or Green tea in the tea house or you can take some sun at Ocean Beach.

San Francisco has so many sites that you will need at least a week to get a full impression of its variety of people of cultures, of sexes, of shapes, of fast food restaurants and of so much more.

Have fun and don’t hurry around. If you take it easy you can make the best out of your vacation in S.F.

- You are walking through a forest; describe it.
- Through this forest is a path; describe it.
- Along the path you come upon a key; what does it look like; what condition is it in? Do you pick it up?
- Farther along the path you find a cup; what does it look like; what is it made of; what condition is it in? Do you pick it up?
- As you continue walking, you come to an obstacle; describe it.
- What do you do? If you go around it or past it, then how?
- Next you happen upon a body of water; describe it. Do you get in it? How fast is it flowing?
- As you walk along, you come to a shelter of some sort; what does it look like? Do you spend the night?
- Finally, you’re walking along when you reach a fence; what does this fence look like; what is it made of; what condition is it in?
- Beyond the fence is a field; describe that. Do you go over the fence into the field?

Here are some of their answers. What do you think that their interpretations say about their personalities?

“It’s dark and the moon is lighting up the forest. There are tall trees everywhere, on which I can see a lot of different animals, from birds to monkeys. The forest is pretty silent, and I can hear the sound of a snake coming towards me!

In front of me I can see a small lake. I would like to wash my toes in it. I’m entering the lake when I suddenly see a big crocodil swimming in my direction ready to eat me!

I’m running as far as I can from the lake when I accidentally see something shining on a stone: it is a key! On it can read: ‘Follow the path and you will reach a cavern.’ I’m running fast and silently as I’m entering the cavern. In front of me there is a locked box: should I open it?

I’m too scared to open it, so I decide to look for the way out of the forest. However, a huge wall prevents me from escaping! I’m trying to climb it, and when I reach the top, I’m able to see the sea. Where am I?

I’m jumping off the wall when I finally wake up: it was just a dream.”

“I’m walking through a forest. I see many trees. They’re everywhere. It’s very humid and cold. I see a river. There’s a bear trying to catch a fish for his lunch. It’s near midday. I have walked all morning, and I have no food. I have no water. I was with my friends, but I got lots when I tried to take a picture of a beautiful lanscape. I’m thirsty. I need water. The bear is gone, so I go the river to drink. It seems clean… I don’t know… but I need it. What is that near the water? It’s bright. Let me check it out… a key? Here? Hey wait! Maybe there is a house near here and I can find clean water. How am I going to find it? I have been walking since morning and I haven’t seen anything. What is that near that giant tree? It looks like a good that does to somwhere underground. The key! It works! SHall I go in? I have no food, no water. What can be worse than this? I’m going in.

It looks like a long and dark corridor. I just see one light at the end of it. I’m walking for 5 minutes, and here I am. A barrier? Maybe if I cross it then I can find someone to help me. It’s difficult to cross and it’s so high. Wait! There’s a hole here. Maybe I can pass through it. Yes! Wow! It looks like paradise. It’s a resort! I see my friends now. Everything is ok.”

“It’s a warm summer day. The bright sun flahsed through the tops of the trees. I’m walking on a path of pebbles. The birds are singing and a soft breeze blows on my face. I hear the soft sounds of a little stream. I pass over a little bridge: the stream is surrounded by thousands of beautiful little white flowers.

Suddenly, I come to a shrine that holds a golden key. An old fashioned one with teeth, about 4 inches long. I was wondering to which door this key might belong. I took it in my hand and it felt very light, though it looked rather heavy.

As I walked on I came to a huge white gate. It was built out of white bricks and had a wide arrow on it. The bars of the gate were golden and the lock looked like my key would fit in it. I tried the key in the lock and as I turned it, the gate opened itself. I looked at this quiet, peaceful place and realized that this must be paradise… I must be dead. Deep in the back of my mind I found that memory, two headlights of a train rushing toward me…”

What do these stories tell about the student’s personalities? Here are the interpretations of the different parts of the story, and what these parts represent:

- The forest represents your outlook on life; how you feel (overall) about life.

- The path represents your plan in life, and is generally more current; i.e. how your life is being lived, or how you see it going.

- The key represents knowledge. If you pick it up, then education is important to you.

- The cup represents your view of love. Was it broken or fragile? Was it solid and complete, pretty, clean or covered with dirt?

- The obstacle represents the challenges in your life; how you normally handle them or deal with them.

- The water represents your sensual side. If you get in it, this means that you basically feel good about it. If not, perhaps you avoid it, or it’s not particularly important to you, or enjoyable.

- The shelter is your view of home life. Again, if you spend the night, it’s likely you feel comfortable about your present home situation.

- The fence represents religion. Does it have hard lines, or broken ones? Is it imposing, or easy to jump over?

- The field represents your view of heaven. Is it pleasant, or threatening? Do you go over the fence and into the field? If so, you’re probably not afraid of death.

This is a great activity to do with friends or with your classmates. Thanks to Denise and her students for sharing!

“I was surprised after visiting ‘The Art of Trees’ at the Harbor, because beforehand, I didn’t expect that much. I was wrong!

I really think it is a good idea to do and show this public art and it also shows a creative, cultural side of the city of San Diego. The art trees were very interesting because you can contrast your opinion of them to the many perspectives that other people have towards them. You realize how different your interpretation is than the artist’s interpretation or the intepretations of others.

These art trees make the city look pretty interesting and different from others, as art is seen by everyone. That means that people who like art, or not, are able to see it, to interpret it and to give their own opinion of it. In this was, the trees make art accessible to everyone.

I personally liked one art tree called “Lean on Me” by Robert Verhees because it could have a lot of interpretations and point of views apart from being very creative and beautiful. In conclusion, I strongly recommend to everyone, tourists or not, to spend a little bit of their time enjoying the ‘Art Trees’ exhibit in the San Diego Harbor. I think that everyone is ogiint o havea good time looking at them and also taking lots of photographs!”

“I really enjoyed the field trip on the 22nd of July. We went to see the Harbor and the Art Trees. I really liked the sculptures like the swordfish. But I had a favorite one: it was the art tree caled “Stariway to Heaven” just like the Led Zeppelin song. The stairs of the art piece give the impression that the stairway to heaven in a long one: the stairs were also shiny and had some glitter on them, so they looked like the stars in heaven.

We also saw the ‘Star of India’. It is a large ship with extremely big sails. It was the first sailboat made from iron. I learned that the steering wheel in front of the boat is called a ‘helm’.

Outside the Museum of Contemporary Art, we saw a large LED tower. There was a little poem written on it in LED lights. IT was very strange and I think that art sometimes is a bit too abstract for me. Overall, I enjoyed the trip and I think that I will go to the museum in La Jolla soon.”