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This summer 23 Ouachita students traveled by plane, train, bus and boat through three European countries.  Here are some of their reflections on the European Study Tour.

World View–Stephanie Hampton

There were so many unexpected things that I learned and experienced on this trip. Every day we were doing something new and different, and I never knew exactly what to expect. But one thing that always had me in awe was the way God’s creations were all around me, wherever we were. No matter what country we were in, there was always a reminder of His greatness there. When we were in Rome we got see the Mamertine Prison, which is where Paul was imprisoned, and we got to see the actual place he was held, and where he wrote his letters in the Bible. How cool is that? We also went to the Vatican and other important churches and cathedrals. In Paris we got to see Notre Dame, and in England we were able to go to a church service at Canterbury Cathedral. Being able to experience where people from all over the world worship the same God was amazing.But it wasn’t only the places we saw that reminded me of how awesome our God is. Even the art we saw told stories of the Bible. And these artworks were used to teach people the Gospel because most of them could not read. This art was used almost as a type of missionary to teach people about the love of Jesus. How awesome is that? Even to this day, pieces of artwork survive that proclaim the greatness of Jesus Christ. This trip helped me realize that His love does not have a langue and cultural barrier. He is great no matter where you are in the world, and there is evidence of it everywhere.

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart- Hebrews 4:12

My Kind of Salesman–Justin Young

As a business major, I can’t help but think with a business mindset. When I am at any business, I am almost always thinking of how to make it run more efficiently, how to better market their products, or how the quality of their product could improve. It is rare to be going through your day and unexpectedly learn a valuable business lesson that you didn’t even learn in school – something you had to experience first hand to really understand. I have a short story that instilled a long lasting memory and business principle in my life.

After feeling the repercussions from my faulty sock watch purchase, I was really not looking to spend any money. The leather market was full of salesmen begging and lying to get you to buy their product. As you can imagine, this is quite annoying and almost turns you away from giving them business. We finally made it out of the long stretch of leather salesmen and I saw a painter sitting to the side of the road. His beautiful watercolor paintings were hanging all around him. They caught my eye, so I walked over to see prices. When I arrived, I blurted out sarcastically, “Alright, what’s your sales pitch?” The older man laughed and just kept painting. After about ten seconds, he looked up at me. What he then said is really important for a business owner, or anyone selling a product. He said, “ I don’t need to beg you or lie to you to get you to buy my paintings. You see them. You know they are good paintings. You are welcome to buy them if you want.” It was so refreshing to me. No lies or begging. The lesson was: if you have a good product, you don’t need a good sales pitch. Find a way to add value to someone’s life and they will pay good money without you having to sell it to them with a big fancy speech. I bought that painting, and I will always think of the time I learned how important it was to add value to a customer’s life.

The lesson that the old painter taught me will last with me throughout my business career and life.

My Roman Holiday–Samantha Street

How many people can say they have spent their birthday in the beautiful and ancient city of Roma? Not very many…but now I can! I turned 21 on May 15, which was our third day in Europe. It was a full day but was my favorite day in Rome by far. During the first half of the day, I got to experience Vatican City, the Sistine Chapel, and the amazing view from the top of the dome of St. Peter’s Basilica. It was quite a workout climbing all 551 steps to reach the top of this dome, but the view was so worth it from the top! Vatican City was a very old place, and unfortunately I did not get to see the Pope on my visit there. However, there was so much historic beauty and meaning to everything we saw. The Basilica was beautiful on the inside and out, but the most amazing spectacle I saw in Vatican City was the Sistine Chapel. I was so bummed I could not take any pictures inside, but the pictures would not have done it justice anyways. There were so many details and paintings in the chapel that it was impossible to take it all in in only 30 minutes. I mean, it’s the entire Bible painted in one room! How cool is that?

For dinner that night, the whole group went out for my birthday to a very quaint Italian restaurant that is a favorite dining spot to the locals. The restaurant has been run by the same family for four generations, there were cats roaming in the streets, and we were all sitting outside tucked away in an alleyway. When I would think of Italy before this trip, this is what I pictured it being like, so I loved having a chance to soak in the culture during this meal! Then, of course we got gelato for dessert! We could never end a day in Italy without eating gelato! It’s just so good!

Last but not least, to top off what had already been a wonderful birthday, I went to the Trevi fountain to end the day with a birthday wish. (I still have my fingers crossed that my wish will come true!) The fountain was lit up and not overly crowded with tourists, so it was another opportunity to enjoy and soak up the Italian culture around me. I loved it! The fountain is absolutely breathtaking at night, and it was the perfect ending to a perfect day! My “Roman holiday” was so great. I made lots of lasting memories with lots of fun friends, and it is a birthday I will never forget!

The Most Important Lesson Learned–Nick Crump

We were in Europe for three weeks, and we were busy almost the entire time we were there. That means we saw a LOT of artwork. We went to a lot of museums, took a lot of pictures, and saw a LOT of art. One major thing that stood out to me, no matter where we were, was that almost anywhere I looked I could find something biblically significant in the art. Almost all of the art preserved in these museums has deeper meaning relative to the Bible and to the events that occurred in biblical times. It really spoke to me that all of these artists were such strong Christians and men of faith that they included God and His Word in everything they did. They were artists—that’s what they did for a living, paint and sculpt. And to me it means something that every single piece of art they created had something to do with God’s Word. I noticed that as the art we saw became more contemporary and modern, it started to sly away from that. Art became more abstract and grotesque, and not much of it has to do with the Bible anymore. Unfortunately I believe this portrays how society and ultimately the world have become. I think we have strayed away from what is truly important in life because we’re too selfishly caught up in our own busy lives. Anyway, I don’t mean to get on a religious rant, but this is one of the most prominent things that stood out to me over the course of the trip. It grabbed my attention right away and stuck with me until the end. Hopefully it will stick with me for the rest of my life. I think we can all learn something from this. We, as Christians, need to do a better job of incorporating God in every single part of our lives. These paintings and sculptures are proof that those artists did it. If they can do it, why can’t we?

Il Colosseo–Ryleigh Salmon

Gladiator. Jumper. Roman Holiday. The Lizzie McGuire Movie.

You’re probably sitting there thinking to yourself, “That’s the most random list of movies.” And you’d be right. But they all have one thing in common: the colosseum. I have seen the colosseum depicted in all these movies since I was little. Never did I dream that I would get to see it for myself, while I’m still young.

On our second day in the city of Rome, we took the metro to the colosseum and the Roman forum. While we were waiting to go into the colosseum, this guy walks up to our group of 25 and starts yelling, “20 postcards for a euro!” He was a little obnoxious and I immediately said no. He yelled some more and asked us if we were sure. So, I looked at Lara, my buddy, and we shared a silent conversation that said, “Why not? That’s actually a good deal.” So we did it. We bought the postcards. Later, I found out that most individual postcards cost a full euro. We got a deal.

Once we walked into the colosseum I just stood there, gaping. I had to pick my jaw up off of the ancient stone floor and dust off my chin. I was in AWE of this massive structure that I have seen in so many movies. It was so much bigger than I had pictured it to be.  Just standing in it made me feel small. And after thousands of years, it’s still standing. I stood on the main level, looking down at the ground floor and thinking of all the brutal things that had happened there. I got to go up to the third floor for as well. The stone steps up to my destination were a little scary. They’re worn down and slippery in the middle from the years of billions, probably trillions, of people walking up and down them. Needless to say, I slipped a few times.

After touring the colosseum we saw the Roman Forum, which was just as amazing. I got to walk on the famous Via Sacra, which means the “sacred road.” The Romans were the first to build roads. But this road was made of huge cobblestones and I literally had to watch my feet so I didn’t step in a crack and fall on my face. The forum was mostly a bunch of ruins and big old stones, but there is so much history there. I walked where Julius Caesar walked! And I saw the Arch of Constantine, which was right outside the colosseum, as well as the Arch of Titus in the forum.

Later that night, after a nap and dinner, Lara and I decided that we were going back to the colosseum to see it lit up at night. It was something that both of us HAD to do before we left Rome. We rode the metro, which is suprisingly easy to navigate even in Italian, and ended up right where we were that afternoon. The colosseum is even more beautiful at night. The lights were in between the arches and the whole structure was glowing. We walked all the way around the colosseum, marveling and taking pictures. And it was awesome. It was my favorite thing in all of Rome. It’s even better than in the movies.

Lasting Impressions–Buck Schroeder

At Ouachita, one thing we hear often, especially in our Liberal Arts course, is the point of “broadening our world-view.” I take this to mean recognizing life outside of “the bubble” and acknowledging the struggles and trials faced by many, as well as developing a respect for the different cultures and opinions of everyone that we come into contact with. This was definitely the case on our EST trip. We were often in large cities, where diversity abounds. We had no idea what was cool, what wasn’t, what was normal, etc. You might could even call it culture shock! We encountered so many people on this trip. Most we didn’t even talk to, as we passed them on the streets or sat next to them on the subway. But as the trip went on, I realized something bigger. God has a plan for each and every one of these people! He knows them just as well as He knows me, whether they know Him or not. He loves them just as much as me, whether or not they’ve ever even heard His name. With that perspective, merely walking down the sidewalk brought a whole new perspective to how big the world is.

Something else this trip taught me is how to be flexible. We had a buddy system while we were in Europe, and at all times we were supposed to be with someone else and have two other people know where we were. You can imagine that in three weeks, this could be a testing thing. You’re constantly in new places and want to see different things, but you have to stick with someone else. Hopefully your buddy was someone who wanted to see the same things as you or didn’t mind doing what you wanted every once in a while! This system taught me to compromise and be flexible with other people. It took a lot of meeting in the middle when discussing what certain things each person wanted to do and how we were going to accomplish that. It may seem small, but it went a long way in helping me to realize that getting my way isn’t always the best, and there is fun to be had just being with other people doing what they want.

I’m thankful that this trip helped to broaden my horizons and enlarge my perspective of the world, all while teaching me to respect my fellow classmate. What a once in a lifetime chance to get to see another side of the world with a great group of friends. If you get the chance to study abroad on EST, at Ouachita, or just a chance in general — do it! It will be worth your while.