Noel Duan

    20 Nov 2011

    One-way plane ticket to Paris is booked

    My mind is a tangled web at the moment, but I guess, come January 1st, there’s no turning back once I get on that plane.

    8 Nov 2011

    “It is a common practice of young ladies who avail themselves of their college’s Junior Year Abroad program to refer irreverently to the experience as their ‘Junior Affair Abroad.’”
    — Dean MacCannell, The Tourist

    27 Oct 2011

    “Many students dress in a way that immediately identifies them as American. It’s important to realize that this can bring you unwanted attention. College or fraternity sweatshirts, baseball hats, carrying water bottles and wearing sneakers will highlight the fact that you are American – and some people may resent you for that fact.”
    — My Paris study abroad program handbook

    28 Sep 2011

    As the icing on the cake, I found out today that Columbia will be funding my summer of research in Paris, which is exciting because even after the spring semester is over, I will still be spending three more months in Europe and I won’t be paying from my own pocket. I feel extremely lucky that I get to spend an extra summer doing academic research in Europe, and I truly intend to turn this into something that will ultimately become my senior thesis. I go to yoga a lot, no matter how much homework I have, because I’m so tired of making excuses for myself. I think I’ve changed for the better since I began doing yoga daily. There are a lot of exterior things in this world that could make me a hateful person, but instead I’ve found an inner peace and forgiveness that cannot be shaken. I’m making it a goal to become a certified yoga teacher by graduation (I’ll fund the training myself…somehow), because I want to someday teach yoga to domestic violence victims, especially battered women. I don’t think yoga substitutes for religion or therapy or is an excuse to be passive, but I do think it’s a reminder to be kind to yourself. Almost every morning, I run a 5k, which isn’t much (about 3.11 miles), but all these little things have helped me take control of myself. I’m not quite sure about who I want to be, but I’m quite sure about who I don’t want to be.

    As the icing on the cake, I found out today that Columbia will be funding my summer of research in Paris, which is exciting because even after the spring semester is over, I will still be spending three more months in Europe and I won’t be paying from my own pocket. I feel extremely lucky that I get to spend an extra summer doing academic research in Europe, and I truly intend to turn this into something that will ultimately become my senior thesis.

    I go to yoga a lot, no matter how much homework I have, because I’m so tired of making excuses for myself. I think I’ve changed for the better since I began doing yoga daily. There are a lot of exterior things in this world that could make me a hateful person, but instead I’ve found an inner peace and forgiveness that cannot be shaken. I’m making it a goal to become a certified yoga teacher by graduation (I’ll fund the training myself…somehow), because I want to someday teach yoga to domestic violence victims, especially battered women. I don’t think yoga substitutes for religion or therapy or is an excuse to be passive, but I do think it’s a reminder to be kind to yourself.

    Almost every morning, I run a 5k, which isn’t much (about 3.11 miles), but all these little things have helped me take control of myself. I’m not quite sure about who I want to be, but I’m quite sure about who I don’t want to be.