Moving to the United States to study English is exciting . . . but of course, it is also a little stressful! In addition to worrying about cultural differences at home and in public (What is the tipping policy in the United States? Should I bring my host family a gift?) students also worry about...
Category: <span>Student Life in the USA</span>
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Idioms with “apple” (and the best apple pies in SD and SF!)
Not too long ago, we explored the expression “As American as apple pie” and other “as . . . as” expressions in English. To celebrate the upcoming fall season, today we are looking at expressions with apple. Apples and pumpkins are the fruits most often associated with fall, and there are many expressions with apple that...
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A Perfect Lunchtime at Mission Dolores Park
By Roman, CISL SF student After a two-month stay in San Francisco, the Mission District has become one of my favorite places in the city. This area, found between 16th Street, 24th Street, Van Ness Avenue and Church Street, is one of the most lovely neighborhoods in San Francisco. Based on my experience, I...
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CISL SD student activity: visiting the beautiful lakes of San Diego
San Diego is of course known for its stunning beaches and bays, but did you know that there are also many beautiful lakes in San Diego County? The area’s serene lakes are excellent places for water sports like wake boarding, skiing, and fishing. It is easy to get caught up in the peaceful environment, but make...
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Experiences from Luis
Luis from Spain, who speaks Spanish as well as Basque, wanted to improve his English so he decided to come to America. He chose San Francisco, because his father told him about his own experiences, that San Francisco is the nicest city on the American West Coast. The classes at CISL San Francisco helped him...
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The best end-of-summer activities for CISL San Diego students
Summer is coming to an end . . . but let’s be honest: long into the fall, it still feels like summer in San Diego! To celebrate the official end of summer, we suggest that our students take the opportunity to experience some of the best outdoor events that San Diego has to offer. 1....
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Jake’s San Francisco Experiences
Jake, whose Korean name is Sangwon Jung, took a year off from his university in South Korea to seek new experiences and to improve himself. He decided to go to San Francisco for six months to study English and to meet a lot of people from all over the world in this exciting city. The...
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A San Francisco Walking Tour for International Students
By CISL SF student Roman Barufke, Germany So, you’ve got a free afternoon with no homework and don’t know what to do? Well, there are a lot of opportunities in this wonderful city. Today, I am going to recommend a walk through the northern part of San Francisco, which starts at Washington Square, then goes...
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Tips for enjoying an American baseball game
Have you been to an American baseball game? If you are studying English at CISL San Diego or San Francisco, you have access to discounted tickets! There are many traditions surrounding a baseball game, and some of them might be strange to a person attending a game for the first time. If you would like to...
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Celebrating the German World Cup Victory in San Francisco!
by Roman (Germany) I have to say in advance, I’m German and I’m a big soccer fan. But my hopes for a German triumph at the 2014 World Cup were very low. The team didn’t play very well in the months prior to the tournament and there were also some injured players who didn’t even...