Holiday 2017 E. Catherine Barclay and Friends

Dear Friends and Supporters of the E. Catherine Barclay Scholarship,

As we approach the holidays, we are delighted to bring you direct news from both last

year’s and this year’s E. Catherine Barclay Scholarship recipients. We trust that their

letters will bring a smile to your day and cheer to your holidays. Paola Velasquez (2016-

2017 scholarship recipient) recently shared this update on her activities since coming

home from Dijon this past July:

“The last few months have been quite eventful for me. I completed my undergraduate

degree in French this summer and attended my convocation ceremony just a few weeks

ago! I am so glad, and so thankful to have finished my degree. I can’t believe how much

I’ve changed over these last four years. I have also started my after-degree program in

education at the University of Calgary. I have decided to concentrate in secondary French

education. I did my very first practicum in October. (Yay!) It was so exciting to share my

love for languages with others and to observe the new methods of teaching. Moreover, I

have been working with the University of Calgary’s activity program for international

students. This job is an opportunity for me to show these students our province. It is so

rewarding to understand their excitement to visit new cities and to discover new cultures.

It reminds me of how I felt while I was studying abroad.

I often find myself daydreaming and reminiscing about my time abroad. It is crazy to

know that just last year, I was in Dijon, probably coming back from skating at La Place de

la République or from one of the Christmas markets. I feel so fortunate to say that I lived

in France for a year. I am grateful to have met so many wonderful people who reshaped

my view of the world and who are still some of my best friends. I will always keep the

memories from my time abroad close to heart. In fact, I am already planning my next trip

to Dijon to visit my friends! I am so excited to see what the future holds for me.”

Meanwhile, the present E. Catherine Barclay Scholarship recipient, Bailey Diakow,

recently reported the following from Tours:

“It has been a busy 3 months of studying and travelling and I am doing well. Although

living abroad has its challenges, each day brings so many new experiences, and I am

embracing them all!

One of the biggest challenges I have had so far was embarking recently on a 10-day trip to

Munich and Prague. I ended up taking this trip alone as there were several groups of

people heading out to different areas; I really thought these two cities were valuable places

to visit and that the first school break was the perfect time to do it, so off I went!

Continued on next page

We would like to welcome

Siobhan Doherty, our new

key contact in the Faculty of

Arts Development

Office. Siobhan would be

happy to help with any

questions regarding gifts.

Her contact information is:

Siobhan Doherty, Advisor,

Faculty of Arts/

Development and Alumni

Services, 2500 University

Drive NW

Calgary AB

T2N 1N4

Tel:(403) 220-8291

Email: siobhan.doherty@

ucalgary.ca

Paola at the United Nations in

Geneva Switzerland.

I found Munich to be a very somber city. I had not realized to

what extent this city was the hub of the Nazi regime in WWII. It

wasn’t until I was standing in Konigsplatz square, the main

gathering spot for Nazi rallies, that the significance of the history

of the city really sank in. My trip to Dachau, which was the

“model” concentration camp upon which all the other

concentration camps of WWII were formed, also left an indelible

impression on me. That experience will forever stay with me.

After my experience in Munich, it was a relief to get to the city of

Prague, which had such a vibrant and upbeat vibe to it. I found

myself happily immersing myself in the history and culture of

this beautiful city. This is one place I think everyone should see

at some point.

In honour of E. Catherine Barclay and her work to encourage international travelling and hostels, I also chose

this trip to start my hostelling experience. I decided to stay in group rooms at each hostel for the price and the

availability at the hostel with the best location. Staying in a room with several people was far outside of my

comfort zone; however, both hostels ended up being really positive experiences. I also discovered that hostels

are a perfect place to stay if you are travelling on your own as each hostel offered walking tours and group

activities that allowed me to see much more of each city than I would have on my own as well as allowing me to

meet so many interesting and wonderful people. The two hostels I stayed in were “Munchen-City” in Munich

and “Prague- Hostel Downtown” in Prague. I would recommend them to anyone who is travelling on a budget

but wants to stay in a safe prime location in the city. I plan to continue my “hostel” experience soon!

After all this travelling, it is now time to prepare for final presentations and exams. I have found attending

university in France to be quite a challenge when I compare it to my Canadian university experience. Initially it

took some adjusting to get used to the “relaxed” teaching but difficult testing style. However, once I was better

able to understand which information was the most relevant, I became more adept at working my way through

the courses and have adapted to this new way of learning.

I will be remaining in Tours for the final four weeks to finish up the semester, but after final exams I have plans

to go to London for four days with friends before I head back home for the holidays. All in all, I am immersing

myself as much as I can in my studies and in my travelling in order to fully embrace this opportunity. Thank

you once again to everyone for making this incredible experience possible. I promise to maximize it to the

fullest!!”

We join Paola and Bailey in wishing you the best for a happy holiday season,

Silvia Rossi (1991 recipient) Andrea Jung ( 1993 recipient) Audrey Taylor ( 2009 recipient)

Bailey at la gare de Tours.