Students are thinking pink during field trip to see Washington's cherry blossoms

Students and faculty from the Language and Culture Institute in Falls Church, Virginia, took a field trip recently to the National Mall in Washington, D.C.

Below, some of the students reflect on seeing the cherry blossom trees, the monuments, and other sights around D.C.

Omar Alghonian

What do you know about cherry blossom trees? last Monday my classmates and I went on a field trip to Washington, D.C. We visited The Lincoln Memorial, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial and we saw the cherry blossom trees.

First, The Lincoln Memorial. It’s a big white building and inside is a 19-ft marble statue shaped as Abraham Lincoln. Second, The Vietnam Veterans Memorial. It’s statues of soldiers who died in service in Vietnam. And there’s a long black wall that has names of dead and missing soldiers. Last but not least, The Cherry Blossom trees. They are very beautiful and they are everywhere specially beside Martin Luther King, Jr’s Memorial.

Have you ever seen any of these places?

It’s very amazing to see new places and new things. So if you ever get to visit Washington, D.C., you should see these places.

Hailah

Last Monday I went to Washington, D.C., to see the Cherry Blossom tree. It was an amazing trip. I enjoyed a lot. I take many pictures of the beautiful pink and white flowers. They are plumbing every year only one time in the spring. grow quickly, but they don't last very long. These flowers have an amazing story. In 1912, Japan sent 3000 from these trees to the U.S. as a gift to celebrates the enduring friendship between the people of the United States and Japan. Since that it's become a symbol for the spring in Washington, D.C. Every year there is a Cherry Blossom big festival in Washington, D.C. It's free and open to the public. Every year they welcome more than 1.5 million people to enjoy seeing the natural beauty, take pictures and enjoying the different activities there. I really like the place if you don't visit it before you must see it.

Alhumaid Abdulhamid

Have you ever visited the National Mall in Washington D.C at spring season? For the first time in my life I went there with my school. It was a really amazing experience, and I believe everyone enjoyed the trip even though the weather was quite windy. I have visited Washington many times, but that trip was the first time for me in spring and it was the best because I got to see many things that I have not seen before such as, Lincoln Memorial, Korean War Veterans Memorial, Martin Luther King Memorial.

The first station in our trip was to see Lincoln Memorial. As soon as we arrived there, we gathered in front of the Memorial to take a picture with our teachers, after that we explored the memorial for almost twenty minutes. The memorial was big and there was a huge statue of Abraham Lincoln sitting in a chair facing The Monument and there was an exhibit floor under the statue which has a lot of pictures talking about the American history and about the memorial. After we finished exploring Lincoln Memorial we head to our next station.

The second station was The Korean War Veterans Memorial, where we saw many soldiers’ statues that looked like they were in a middle of war. They were standing behind each other in a triangle position. Also, there were many curved pictures of soldiers in a big wall in front of the statues. We walked around the memorial and took pictures and read about the history of The Korean War Veterans. After almost fifteen minutes, we walked down to our next destination.

The third and last destination was Martin Luther King Memorial. It was located between the cherry blossom trees and facing The Tidal Basin. We took many pictures with our teachers with the statue of Martin Luther King and with the cherry blossom trees. This experience was extremely amazing even though the weather was cold. Finally, our trip ended, and we had the choice to stay at The National Mall or to go back to school with our teachers.

In conclusion, the trip was interesting we got to see the most attractive places such as the Statue of Abraham Lincoln, The Korean War Statues and the statue of Martin Luther King. All of those stations were awesome to see and explore. We really enjoyed every single thing in that trip from knowing about The American History to seeing the cherry blossom trees. I would like to thank all of our teachers and VT school for being with us and sharing all the information that they know about what we saw in the trip.

LCI students see the big strides made by Virginia Tech robots

Students in the LCI's Reading and Writing 450 classes toured the Virginia Tech Terrestrial Robotics Engineering and Controls Lab in Goodwin Hall this week as a part of a unit on robotics.

The lab's director, Alexander Leonessa, introduced students to Darwin, Charlie, and Thor and explained the robots' applications. Thor, for example, was designed for the U.S. Navy to put out fires at sea.

Classes were also treated to a special trip to Ph.D. candidate Vinay Kamidi's robotic locomotion lab, where he is working on algorithms to provide a variety of locomotive gaits to two dog-like robots that may have future applications in search and rescue, in hazardous environments, and as electronic guide dogs. Students were able to see both "dogs" in motion.

Finally, the group was joined by Kaveh Hamed, who explained the potential uses of robotics in medical technology, such as in intelligent prosthesis and in exoskeletons for those with mobility impairments.

The LCI students will be using information the learned during the tour in upcoming research papers on the positive and negative aspects of artificial intelligence and robotics.

LCI welcomes Thailand's Srinakharinwirot University

The Language and Culture Institute today welcomed the president and other representatives from Thailand's Srinakharinwirot University to Virginia Tech.

Among the subjects discussed were possible faculty development training.

Students get to the heart of Congress

Students and faculty from the National Capital Region took a field trip recently to the U.S. Capitol, the home of  Congress and the seat of the legislative branch of the federal government. Read what they had to say about their trip.

Alhumaid Abdulhamid                                                               

One of the most exciting field trips hosted by Virginia Tech since I enrolled was the visit to the Capitol Building. There, we saw many interesting things, such as the many statues, the Capitol Rotunda, and the great dome.

The trip began at the school, where we met before we walked to the Metro station. There we took the train that was going to Capitol South Station. The trip took almost half an hour. Then we walked for ten minutes to the Capitol Building. We took a group picture with my classmates and my teachers in front of the building. Then we went to the main entrance, where we went through security check. After that, we got our tickets and waited for the tour to begin. While we were waiting, we looked around the main hall that had many statues. Then the tour began, first we entered a theater where we saw a 15-minute film about the history of the Capitol. Then we met a tour guide named Norah, who showed as around the building.

The first stop was the base of the Capitol Rotunda. There, we saw the many pillars holding it. Also, the guide told us about the center point of the District of Columbia and that there is no mailing address for the building because it was the central of the capital and all the streets lead to it. 

The next stop was the Capitol Dome. I was amazed by the beautiful paintings and how high it is. The guide told us that the Statue of Liberty can fit under it. Below the dome, on the walls of the Rotunda, there were large paintings, and each one of them represents a time in the American history. Also, in the Rotunda and in many places of the building there were statues that represent each state of America. These statues are either presidents or people who the states wanted to honor for their good deeds. 

In conclusion, we enjoyed our time during the tour, and we learned about the history of the Capitol Building. The Rotunda, the dome and the many statues were fascinating. I would like to visit The Capitol Building again with my family someday.

Gufran Alyati

One of my greatest field trips was yesterday. I have never thought that I would visit the United States Capitol until I joined the Virginia Tech Language and Culture Institute.

The first thing we did when we gathered at Virginia Tech meeting room took the Metro from West Falls Church station to Capitol south station. Second, when we arrived at the Capitol we took some pictures of the building from outside. Then, we got our tour passes and entered the center of the hall where there many statues. There were two unique statues to me. One of them was the enormous white statute where I took a selfie with it. Also, I liked the golden statuette for the first king of Hawaii who united the island chiefdoms into a peaceful kingdom. The statue was amazing with unique golden clothe. Third, we went to the theater for a 15-minute movie. It was about how the presidents started to build the Capitol and then how they rebuild the dome after the British war. Fourth, we saw the breathtaking dome. It was vast and incredible. The dome was built from cast iron and painted by Roman painters. One of the most famous statues in the dome hall was for Dr.Norman Eborlaug. His nickname is “ The Father of The Green Revolution." This doctor brought the corn and oatmeal to the USA, South Africa, and the middle east. Fifth, we went to the Supreme Court galleria room. The design was fantastic and historical with the red sofa in the middle and dark brown wood furniture. There were many candles around in the place. Finally, the journey was ending.

It was one of my best field trips. The United States Capitol building was beautiful and full of history which I liked end enjoyed it a lot.

Anonymous Student

Today I visited the US Capitol Building. It is a very important place. The Senate and the House of Representatives come together to discuss, debate and deliberate national policy and craft the country’s lows. It is a very enormous place. it’s over 1.5 million square feet. It has more than 600 rooms and a lot of corridors. Also, this capitol building has a huge white dome. The construction of this dome took more than 11 years. It is overlooking the city of Washington D.C. and it has become an icon of the Americans people and the government. People started to be building this building in 1793. Then it was burnt and rebuild again. The capitol building is divided into five levels. Each floor is dedicated to something different. The interesting thing is that the capitol building is not only for the use of congress, also, it is a museum for the Americans arts and histories. It is open to the public. Each year the building welcomed a million of people from around the world. If you have not visited this place yet, I highly recommend it for you to know the history about the US laws.

Argentine Fulbright students take New York City by storm

Sebastián Dell Elce, one of 10 Argentine students participating in the Friends of Fulbright Argentina Undergraduate Exchange Program at Virginia Tech, wrote recently about the group's trip to New York City.

Exploring New York's Chinatown.

And just like that I woke up in the City That Never Sleeps. I had always dreamed about visiting this place, and finally I was there, in the city where dreams come true, where a great part of the main events of the world take place. So many dreamers, such possibilities, and yet I still could not have foreseen the incredible day it was.

The rest of the Friends of Fulbright students and I started the day with a surprise birthday party for our peer and friend, Agustina. A muffin and some balloons were set in anticipation for the coming day.

 We began our tour visiting Grand Central Station. Thousands of movies show New York City’s famous station, and we discovered why. Its majestic lamps, huge posters and well-known clock make this station unique. Then we went on and walked to the New York Public Library. But not only for the books is it famous; its architecture and art pieces are human heritage. By the time we left, it was already time to stop for lunch — but only for a small break, as we didn’t want to lose a second. The best was about to start.

"The 11th Argentinian Hokie.Argent"

We walked between never-ending skyscrapers for some minutes and then went inside one. They were waiting for us, “the Argentinians.” All of a sudden, a man appeared speaking in very Argentinian Spanish. We sat in a meeting room, and he started talking. We had never imagined such an inspiring story. He was also a Fulbrighter, very involved with his job, which consists of South-South and triangular cooperation. His passion for and confidence in what he does was breathtaking. He also mentioned the importance of having a worldwide perspective, and how you can change the future independently where you work.

We then moved to another building — as astonishing as the first — for a second meeting. After going upstairs, an Argentine shield appeared. Finding that Argentine symbol in the middle of the big city was moving. It was the Permanent Mission of Argentina in the United Nations. After introducing ourselves, they started explaining what they do and how they are representing Argentina to the world, before later opening a discussion regarding Argentina’s role in the world.

The day went on, and we attended the MoMA to see some of the most famous pieces of art in the world. After eating some slices of famous New York pizza while sitting in the street with our formal clothes, we returned to the hotel.

That’s how I finished one the most incredible days in my life, proud of the Argentinians who are representing my country, and inspired by their lives to be a better world citizen and a better professional.

At United Nations, Argentine students are challenged to change the world

On a characteristically bustling New York City afternoon, students from Virginia Tech’s Friends of Fulbright Argentina Undergraduate Exchange Program gathered at the United Nations headquarters in Manhattan. There, they met with Jorge Chediek, director of the U.N. Office for South-South Cooperation and envoy of the secretary-general on SSC, and Alejandro Verdier, deputy permanent representative to the Permanent Mission of the Republic of Argentina to the U.N. Both encouraged the students to think about how they can make an international impact.

For Clara Perez Bonin, a civil engineering student from the National Technological University in Buenos Aires province, the experience of attending such meetings was unique. “It gave us a new perspective of global collaboration,” she said. “It made us feel interested to try and do our part in working for a better world.”

Discussions centered on the U.N.’s work of integrating the political, human, social, and economic aspects of making the world more equitable. The students learned specifically about the Sustainable Development Goals, or Agenda 2030 after the deadline for meeting them. Adopted by all 193 member states in 2015, the goals form a global action plan  to end extreme poverty, protect the planet, and bring prosperity to all humans.

The students talked about Argentina’s role in addressing Agenda 2030, including confronting the country’s target of eliminating poverty.

“It was interesting to see the problematics that Argentina is involved in, which were a little bit different from what I imagined,” said Lautaro Lorenzen, an electrical engineering student from the National University of La Plata in Buenos Aires province.

As the Sustainable Development Goals are a joint, universal compromise, the meetings animated the students to consider how they could play a role in effecting change in Argentina and the world – how they, as STEM students, could bridge the gap between technologists, entrepreneurs, and nation-states to collaboratively, sustainably innovate.

“The hosts were very generous and showed us what their jobs were like,” Perez Bonin said. “They opened our minds to international networking and its importance – something that may sometimes be strange for technology students.” 

Gonzalo German Guendulain, from the National University of Córdoba, agreed. As a biotechnology student, he said, he doesn’t usually find himself in a diplomatic environment. “Visiting the U.N. gave me a completely new sight of the opportunities we – students from different universities – have for contributing our knowledge to a world that’s constantly changing. Beginning to visualize our professions as a link to people from around Earth, and deconstructing the idea of involving ourselves in political surroundings to contribute to this purpose made me realize that every person from this group has capacities necessary to help construct a fairer, more developed, and friendlier world.”

Written by program coordinator Leslie Jernegan

Argentine Fulbright students get a taste of life as Hokies

Friends of Fulbright Argentina students meet with Jorge Chediek, director of the U.N. Office for South-South Cooperation.

For Mercedes Saenz, one of 10 undergraduate students from Argentina spending seven weeks studying at Virginia Tech, the experience is more than an academic exchange.

The biotechnology student from the National University of Rosario in Santa Fe province said much of her learning has come not from the classroom but from the residence hall. “My roommate is Pakistani-American,” Saenz said. “We’ve gotten along great since we met each other. We spend hours talking about our home countries, showing pictures, and comparing our traditions and cultures.”

In its third year at Virginia Tech, the Friends of Fulbright Argentina Undergraduate Exchange Program is organized and implemented by the Language and Culture Institute. The program enables high-achieving Argentine students to live and learn at a U.S. university. Its goals are to provide a meaningful study abroad experience for participants and to bring diverse perspectives into Virginia Tech’s classrooms.

Read more at VT News.