Hey there readers! Wow, it's been awhile since my last update...

Anyway, Rome has been treating me pretty well. I've gotten a lot better with my Italian and can communicate somewhat with the locals at stores and restaurants. Also, been living more Italian these days, chatting with a couple of friends over a cappuccino just yesterday. Haha! October really flew by. We had midterms two weeks ago and then had a week off for our fall break. Me and another NU study abroad student decided to hit up Barcelona, Paris, and Amsterdam during our break. All three cities were wonderful. I had a great time in each place and they're all very unique cities. A few days in each really wasn't enough. I hope to one day return to experience it all more. I do have to say, however, that Barcelona was my favorite. I could really see myself living there. The city just had such a good vibe. Being so close to the beach also helped. Although, I'd have to learn more Spanish.

I can't believe it's already November! That leaves me in Rome for another 6 weeks, and that's bound to fly by even faster. It really will be a bittersweet ending to the semester since I'll be so excited to get back to Boston, but sad to be leaving Rome. Being abroad has, so far, been such a good experience. It's exhilarating to just see something new everyday. There's still so much I haven't seen in Rome, so more exploring is necessary.

I've been keeping in touch with my friends in Boston, and last night was Kamayan! Barkada's annual cultural show with the other Filipino student organizations around Boston. I'm sure it was a great event at Blackman, and I wish I could have been there to support. Shout out to them and congrats!

More updates to come!

It's almost been a month since I landed in Rome. The experience so far has been unbelievable. I honestly learn/see something new everyday. While I do miss some of the conveniences we have in the US, and the school services that NU provides, I think it's great learning about another country's culture. I'm seeing a unique aspect of the culture by having the opportunity to live in this city and experience it first hand. I feel I am really benefiting from what Italy has to offer by studying here. I am lucky and blessed to have this opportunity.

School hasn't been too bad. I'm finally getting a routine going and really adjusting to how other people live here. Rome almost has two sides to it. Life in the morning is full with people running errands, doing their grocery shopping at the many farmers' markets, or socializing with friends at a cafe. However, the bustle is different. It has a certain calm to it. People seem relaxed, and friendly with each other, so it feels like a very small community. Nightlife is a different story. People seem to come out of the woodworks to experience the nightlife here. Restaurants and bars are always busy, and the city's many piazzas (fountain squares) are full of people hanging out, entertained by various street performers. The popular streets of Via Del Corso and Via Condotti, lit up by the streets' retail stores, are filled with tourists and locals alike. The nightlife reminds me of the flow of big cities in the US. I find it very unique seeing how this city operates. The quieter, slower, small town-like feel of the day, and the urban hustle and bustle of the evenings.

With September passing, that leaves me with roughly two and a half weeks for this adventure abroad. Time has gone by quickly and I feel like it's going to go by even faster once I start going away for the weekends to visit other cities. All I can do is let it all soak in and appreciate everything that goes on around me.

Hi guys! Buongiorno from Roma. The past couple of months have been hectic. My summer was packed with NYC life. The Museums, the great food, the subway, the fast pace, the people! It was a great time and I now consider it as a place for me after graduation. Then, I spent some time with my family in Ohio, then back to Boston to finish packing/cleaning/getting ready for my study abroad.

So I'm finally here! I arrived last Wednesday and it's been a blast so far. It's a pretty laid back lifestyle in Rome. They have their "siestas" where businesses close mid-afternoon and the city practically shuts off. The people have been friendly and the food has been delicious. Classes started this past Monday, so I'm finally learning more Italian, which is very helpful because I can begin to communicate properly. Our host school, American University of Rome (AUR), has done a terrific job so far with setting up mini excursions for us to the beach, a local lounge, and a walking tour to the Colosseum. I'll post pictures up once I upload them from my camera.

A little bit about the process of studying abroad: My program was done through the College of Business Administration (CBA) at Northeastern. CBA's study abroad program was set up only recently and my group is one of the first to go to AUR. It's a terrific program because it allows students to take business courses while abroad. It's also convenient because, as a CBA student, I dealt directly with the coordinator who was very helpful and knowledgeable on my degree requirements and which courses were transferrable back to NU. If you're a business student, I highly suggest going through the CBA's program if you want to study abroad. It's very convenient knowing you don't have to use all your open electives in order to study abroad. They also have pre-approved courses, so you don't have to keep going back and forth with your advisor. The other alternative is to go through the traditional study abroad process, but the deadline is much earlier in the year and not every school allows you to take business courses. If you have any questions about study abroad, I can definitely try to answer some questions, or send you the right way.

More updates from Rome soon! Ciao!

It is the last full week of June, which means it is my last week at Kensington Investment Company! I am very excited to be done with my third and last co-op. It's been one crazy ride at KIC these past two years with the company feeling the effects of the recession. It has been a great experience furthering my knowledge of the real estate industry and also of the strategic decisions a company has to make to adapt to different economic climates. I've been involved in a few different aspects of the company and I definitely will be taking with me a lot of new/improved skills. I'll miss the people at the office. It's been really fun working with all of them and I'll definitely keep in touch. They're throwing me a going away lunch on Thursday too! Woot! Anyway, will I be working at KIC in the future? We'll see. If a position is available, then they'd be pretty high up on the list, but you never know these days. I do want to keep my options, though, and look around to see where else my experiences will lead me to. If you have any questions about the co-op program, definitely feel free to ask. I'll try to answer them with the best of my knowledge.

After this week, it'll be my summer off! It'll be my first since my freshman year! So, what's next for me? I have a few things planned ahead. In July, I will be spending about a month in New York City to experience life in the Big Apple. I am very excited. It'll be a good change of pace from my life here in Boston. August, I will probably be going to see my family in Cincinnati since it's been awhile since I've been home for more than a week. After that, I will be back in Boston to get stuff together for my semester abroad! I don't think I've mentioned this, but I was accepted to the Rome study abroad program through the College of Business. CBA recently started their study abroad program and as soon as a city in Italy was available, I hopped on it. Anyway, so after this co-op I'll be somewhat of a jet-setter. I'll try to keep all of you updated on my travels.

This past weekend, I volunteered at City Year's Serve-a-thon with a group sponsored by the Asian American Center. The AAC sponsors a group of students every year to do the Serve-a-thon and I've volunteered every year since my freshman year. It's always been a great experience. In the past, we've helped paint murals, clean parks, and fix torn up basketball courts at under funded schools and neighborhoods. This year, we helped brighten the Nathan Hale Elementary School in Roxbury. A few of us were given the task of painting a giant US map on the ground towards the back of the school to make it a more welcoming and usable space. After seeing the finished product, I was really proud of helping out to make the school a nicer place to be. The school will definitely be able to utilize the space for classes and/or recess.

Other people in our group and the other volunteers at the site were in charge of painting murals to be hung inside the school, painting four square and hopscotch courts in the playground, and planting a few trees and bushes.

Overall, it was a terrific day. The weather was perfect, and the City Year teams did a great job organizing the volunteering event. Thanks City Year! Also, a shout out to my friend Jaime Siochi for gathering people from Northeastern to be a part of the AAC Serve-a-thon team! Woot!

Summer is really kicking into gear. It's definitely a bit quieter around here, but still a ton of fun. Two weeks ago, some friends and I went to a Red Sox game against Toronto. It ended up being an amazing game. There were a bunch of home runs were hit, and the Sox rolled to victory. It's always a fun time at Fenway Park, especially when the good guys win.

I've been exploring Beantown a little bit more too. I work close to the financial district of Boston, but closer to the harbor in this new developing area around Fan Pier. I take walks around there every so often (during my lunch breaks), and have been wanting to go to the Institute for Contemporary Arts (ICA) ever since I stumbled across it during one of my walks. Anyway, I finally found time to go with some friends and I recommend everyone to visit the ICA sometime. The artwork is very interesting, and the layout of the museum itself is amazing. For awhile, there was also a display of racing sailboats right by the ICA. Boston was a stop for the Volvo Ocean Race, so they had all the boats there, games, product promotions, etc... It was a cool set up.

So that's it for now. One thing definitely to look forward to if you're attending NU in the Fall, is that you'll definitely never run out of things to do in Boston. There are always special events going on around the city. Obviously, it's not as big as New York, but I think the Bean holds it down pretty nicely. : )

Here are some pics!

Summer session is really kicking in. Most people have gone home and campus is definitely a bit quieter these days. But, all is well. I actually really like summers in Boston. Most of my friends are still here, either on coop or in class. We get real chill time because we don't have Barkada events to plan, and we get to know each other more. The university does a good job accommodating students who stay for the summer too. They have this "Summester" program where the school provides special programs and discounts to events around Boston. There are some real good deals to take yoga classes, see the Blue Man Group, go on a Duck Tour, see musicals, visit Martha's Vineyard, etc... The gym at Marino Center is not as packed too, so that's another plus.

Another good thing about summer session is that it's a sign that I have only a month and a half left in my coop! Even though I love being on coop and getting that hands on experience, it'll be very nice to be done and be able to get out during the day to enjoy the sun. My coop experience has been amazing these past few months. I think I made the right decision to come back to KIC to learn more about the real estate industry. I've learned a lot, not only about property accounting and real estate, but also about management and business strategies. Being in the same work place during good and bad economic times has really opened my eyes to how a particular business works, and how fast things can change. By observing different management decisions, I feel that I'm better prepared for the future and running a team of my own.

I'll see what events I can go to that's part of this Summester deal. I'll update you on what happens!

The academic year is coming to a close. People are busy studying for finals, and I have 2 months left at Kensington Investment Company. However, before '08-'09 officially ends, the Student Activities and Leadership Office took some time last week to recognize students and organizations who have contributed a lot to Northeastern this year. A few of my friends who serve on student organization executive boards were recognized for their achievements. So congrats to them!! And lastly, Barkada was awarded Student Organization of the Year!! Thank you to our advisors, our eboard, and everyone who came to our events to support us. Thanks so much for making this year an absolutely amazing one for Barkada.

In other news, my coop is two thirds of the way done. I've been getting involved with some of the operations side of the company, such as reconciling our receivables and charging our tenants, and forecasting. It's a nice change from all the accounting work. They all tie together, so I'm really gaining a good understanding of managing and accounting for real estate properties. I'm hoping the last two months of my coop that I am able to continue to learn about the real estate industry and property management. If you have any questions about coop, don't hesitate to leave me a comment and I'll get back at you.

It's been a fun couple of days at NU. The Council for University Programming (CUP), has been putting on events for NU's annual Springfest. The two events that I went to were the dance show and the Springfest Concert. Both were absolutely amazing.

Thursday's dance show, hosted by CUP and Kinematix (NU's Hip-Hop Dance Troupe), had an awesome vibe, so I'm sure the performers were pumped to get on stage. I got to Ell Hall to a mob of people waiting to get in to the auditorium for the sold out show. Most people were there to see Supercr3w, from MTV's America's Best Dance Crew, but I was mainly there to show some love for Kinematix since I'm very good friends with some of the people who formed Kinematix a few years ago. Anyway, after 15 minutes of waiting with the mob, the doors opened and the show got under way. All the groups did an awesome job, the crowd was into every performance, and it turned out to be a really really good event.

Pictures: --thanks to Miray Shirakami for the Supercr3w pic!

Next up: Springfest Concert. First, I'd like to say that it was good to have another genre of music come to NU to headline the concert. The past couple of years it's been a lot of hip-hop acts, Lupe Fiasco and Nas in '07 and Ludacris in '08, so this year's change up is refreshing. The show featured DJ Diplo, Guster, and Jimmy Eat World. Diplo started things off right and played some pretty good beats to get everyone pumped up. Guster was good, except I didn't know all their songs, so it was harder to appreciate. Jimmy Eat World was more awesome just because I'm more familiar with their music.

Thanks again to CUP for continually putting on great events for this year's Springfest. Already looking forward to next year's!

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This past weekend was "Bahay Kubo," Barkada's first culture show since 2004. It was a huge success and all of Barkada's hard work definitely showed through our performances. It really made me proud of the executive board that I work with and the general members that stuck with us, performed, and helped put the show together. I'd also like to thank our advisor, Scott Quint, LASO, NU Bangra, and KASA for performing, and everyone who came and showed support! Thank you to all. Seeing all our friends, family, and advisors enjoying the show made all the work we put in worth while. Thanks again!

With that said, this culture show really helped me realize how getting involved on campus really enhances your college experience. I have definitely increased my leadership skills as a part of Barkada's executive board. To go along with that, you just get to meet so many people and also impact so many other students in a great way. If you have any questions about student organizations, leadership opportunities, or other ways to get involved here at NU, just leave a comment and I'll respond back.