ICS Colombia
Alayna Topolovec
Degree: Bachelor of Construction Project Management / Bachelor of Arts in International Studies
ICS University: Universidad de los Andes, Bogotá, Colombia
I honestly can’t believe the number of places I have seen, the people I have met and the things I have done! It has been by far one of the best experiences I have had in my life... I will miss Colombia and South America and will no doubt be back to visit in the future. The cultures here are so diverse, exciting and colourful and they really give excitement and enthusiasm an entirely new meaning.
Alayna completed her ICS in Colombia in 2018
Q&A with Alayna
What was the highlight of your ICS in Colombia?
Despite all the amazing places I visited in South America, my highlight without a doubt was the people that I met along the way. I now have not only great friends in Colombia I also have friends all over Europe and North America as well.
How did your language and intercultural skills improve?
Throughout the year, my language skills improved immensely and my understanding of different cultures was heightened also. I think I have benefited in many ways from the ICS experience.
What skills have you developed in the past year that will benefit your personal life and/or career?
I believe I have become far better at standing up for myself and not letting people walk all over me. I have also become more confident in my opinions and in my decisions as throughout the year I have learnt there is not always time to question a decision for 2 days before making it.
How did university life in Colombia differ to Australia? How did you adjust, if needed?
I found that university life was, in general, similar to in Australia. While there were some differences, they were reasonably easy to adjust to. The biggest challenge at university was that all the classes were taught in Spanish so it took time adjusting to taking exams and writing essays in a different language. This was definitely the biggest challenge I faced in terms of university life.
How did you finance your ICS (e.g. scholarships, loans, budgeting)? Any advice?
I saved up all my money as I didn’t have any scholarships or loans. I am, however, at an advantage compared to many other students as I am studying construction, which is a degree that requires us to work almost full time in the industry while studying. Regardless, my budgeting advice would be to say yes to all the experiences that are going to add to your ICS (like travel opportunities) but say no to those that won’t (like that pair of jeans from Zara that you can probably buy at home anyway).
What’s an assumption about your country that you found to be untrue?
Safety definitely! I felt safer in all areas in Colombia than I did in many cities I’ve visited in Europe. This is the biggest misconception that foreigners have about Colombia by far!
What was your ICS research project and why did you choose it? What were the findings?
My research project was about the tourism industry in Colombia and the breaking down of stereotypes that prevent international tourism to Colombia. I chose this because I was frustrated about how many people choose to avoid the country even though it is one of the most beautiful and culturally rich places I have ever been. I found that most locals have a similar opinion about the cause of the bad reputation as well as the best way to fix the problem. I also learnt that many Colombians are very optimistic when it comes to improving the country’s reputation, which was very uplifting to hear.
If you were going through a tough time, what support did you receive or access?
Luckily I didn’t encounter many issues throughout the year but when it was required the travel insurance was very helpful and the company was very easy to deal with. Otherwise, I relied on friends both in Colombia and at home as well as family to get me through tough times. However, I don’t recommend being in contact with family all the time as tackling problems on the other side of the world becomes counterproductive. Instead, try to use the services and friends you have locally within the country.
If you could redo ICS, what are some things you would do differently?
There aren’t many things I would do differently - I had a wonderful time, travelled a lot and took every opportunity. One thing I would change is being a bit more careful with my budget (having one in the first place would have helped!)
Why should International Studies students choose Colombia for their ICS?
I have travelled a fair bit after finishing school; I spent a year in the United States and Canada as well as travelling through Europe, an exchange in France and volunteer trips to places like the Maldives. Not to mention all the other countries in South America that I visited during my ICS. Of all these countries, adding up to over 50, Colombia has by far been my favourite! It is a country with wonderful people, mind-blowing landscapes and one of the most vibrant cultures I have ever experienced. I could not recommend it more as a choice for ICS.
Blog #1 - Arriving in Colombia
I arrived in Bogotá, Colombia on the 2nd of January and was immediately blown away by the immense size of the city and the energy that it has. I was later surprised by how different the city is when travelling less than 30 minutes in any direction, making it an absolutely wonderful and interesting city to explore. Now being almost a third of the way through my ICS year I still feel like I haven’t seen nearly enough of it.
This could be due to the fact that I find myself at the airport travelling to new places almost every second weekend and I think by the end of the year I would have been to El Dorado Airport in Bogotá more times than I have been to Sydney airport.
Overall the conclusion I have come to after these initial first months in Colombia is that I couldn’t recommend it more!
So far I have travelled to Santa Marta and Parque Tyrona, Catagena, Barranquilla (for Carnaval), Medellín, San Gil, San Andres Island and during the mid-semester break, Brazil. Each of these trips have been amazing in their own ways and I have had the opportunity to see things that are so completely different to anything that I have seen in the past.
It is incredibly interesting to witness how the culture and people change as you travel around the country, but no matter where you are, the people are incredibly kind and helpful.
Before starting my ICS year my aim was to make the absolute most out of it and so far I feel as though I have been successful. I never say no to travel opportunities and am always ready to try new restaurants and meet new people. Luckily, here in Colombia, it is not a difficult task with everyone being overwhelmingly welcoming and willing to help with your Spanish. This is very useful since the language has proven to be quite a steep learning curve, but one that is filled with many great experiences and often some funny mistakes.
With one more month left of University until the long summer break, I am looking forward to a lot of travel around South America to countries including; Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Cuba and Costa Rica. I am particularly looking forward to exploring the Galapagos Islands, climbing Machu Picchu, seeing Cuba and surfing in Costa Rica.
Blog #2 - Exploring Colombia
My first semester in Colombia is almost over and with the last couple of weekend trips and end of semester celebrations, the last month has been very exciting. The highlights of the last month of the semester have definitely been the two weekend trips one of which was to Desierto de la Tatacoa and the other to Cali, the Salsa capital of Colombia and possibly of South America. The weekend of our trip to Tatacoa we were expecting to be going to a desert, however, we were very wrong!
There was a surprising amount of rain and a storm that kept us up the whole first night, especially since we were all sleeping in hammocks in a room that was missing 2 walls. While trekking through the desert the next day, we were all drowning in the immense amount of mud that the rain had left behind but despite the unexpected nature of this desert, it was absolutely incredible and well worth the trip on a very small and bumpy plane!
Two weeks after, a group of my closest friends from this semester and I went to Cali on our last weekend trip of the semester and our last weekend trip together as many of the other exchange students head back home after only one semester abroad. This trip involved a lot of Salsa classes and Salsa bars as well as a food tour through the markets where we tried almost every Colombian speciality there is. This city was a perfect demonstration of all the best parts of Colombian culture and made for a perfect trip to finish off the semester.
This semester I have been very lucky to have an amazing group of friends to travel and explore Colombia with. Now that the semester is over, we have been celebrating the end of exams, birthdays and a lot of going away parties.
Blog #3 - Arriving in Bogota
After my mum arrived in Bogota to visit and I showed her around, we started my summer break with a trip to the Galápagos Islands. During the 10 day cruise, I was able to visit almost all the islands and see almost every animal the Galapagos is famous for with the exception of only a couple. Despite the many amazing animals my favourite definitely became the sea lion, of which I now have hundreds of photos of. We also did snorkelling sessions every day and were lucky enough to see penguins, different types of sharks, sea lions, sea turtles and a lot of different types of fish. We were even able to see a shark that our leader had never seen before!
After this trip we headed down to Santiago, Chile for a week where we met with my sister and friends from home. Together we made trips into the Andes mountains and to the coast which were spectacular, but my favourite was definitely the mountains where we went hiking in the snow and ziplining over glaciers. We were also spoilt going for wine tastings and delicious meals where we got to try some of the local cuisines. Now we are in Ecuador again but this time exploring the mainland including Quito, Baños and Cuenca all in the Andes mountains which makes for some spectacular scenery. In the coming week, I am looking forward to heading to Peru for the Inca trail and to visit the Amazon.
Blog #4 - Travelling through Peru and Bolivia
I have spent the last month travelling through Peru and Bolivia, crossing lots of different things off the bucket list.
After leaving Ecuador and spending a few days in Lima, we headed to the Amazon Jungle near Puerto Maldonado in Peru. During our stay at the cayman eco-lodge, we were lucky enough to see a sloth, a giant boa constrictor, a tarantula, many caymans and monkeys.
Following this, we headed to Cusco to prepare for the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. During the four day hike we had a little stray dog follow us for the whole four days that we named Coya (‘Princess’ in the local language) which was fortunate for us as she was very good at keeping our spirits up during the tough parts of the hike. In the end, one of our porters liked her so much he decided to adopt her. I even got a chance to practice my Spanish delivering our thank you speech on behalf of our entire group.
After conquering the Inca Trail we spent the whole next day in Cusco finding a t-shirt that said that we had “survived the Inca Trail”. Next on the trip, we headed to Lake Titicaca for a home stay with a local family. Which gave me another good opportunity to improve my Spanish. We also got smashed by a bunch of 60+ year old Peruvian women in a game of beach volleyball!
Then we crossed the border into Bolivia where we spent 2 days touring the salt flats, definitely one of the highlights of the trip so far! We got to take lots of photos, visited Cactus Island, stayed overnight in a hotel made of salt and had a campfire under the stars. We were even lucky enough to see some flamingos.
Following this, we spent two days in La Paz before heading up to the Caribbean for the next part of our adventure.
Blog #5 - Costa Rica
My final destination during the university break after visiting Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia and Chile was Costa Rica. It was a perfect way to finish off such a big trip with many opportunities to relax on beaches in National Parks and to spend time with my friend who was heading home when I headed back to Bogotá.
Our trip started in San Jose, which we discovered, after spending 2 full days, is a city with not many tourist attractions. So we even got to watch a movie. That day was not a good day for my Spanish, after seeing a different movie than what I’d asked we ended up ordering two large pizzas between the two of us instead of one large with two separate toppings, we finished less than one of the pizzas.
After San Jose we headed to Tortuguero on the Caribbean Coast of Costa Rica where we happened to be in the right season to have the very rare experience of being able to watch sea turtles lay their eggs during the night. After this we had 4 days of adventure activities including white water rafting, waterfall rappelling and zip-lining through the Cloud Forest, afterwards, we crossed over to the Pacific Coast and spent three days at Tamarindo Beach where we learnt to surf. Then to finish off our time in Costa Rica we spent three days in the Manuel Antonio National Park, which was filled with beautiful white sand beaches and lots of opportunities to see monkeys, sloths and other wildlife.
Finally, on the 11th of August after travelling for almost 3 months starting on the 22nd of May, I returned to Bogotá. It is really good to be back and to see all my friends in Bogotá and to have a wardrobe after 3 months of living out of a backpack. So far I’m also enjoying all my subjects this semester and have been able to catch up with some friends I travelled with who are passing through Bogotá. After travelling through a large portion of South America I have discovered that I am very glad that I chose to come to Colombia and it is my favourite country so far in South and Central America.
Blog #6 - Returning to Bogota
After returning to Bogota from 3 months of travelling around South and Central America, I needed a few weeks to settle back into university and to catch up on much-needed sleep after 3 months of sleep deprivation and of night buses and midnight flights. This has given me the opportunity to enjoy some of the food and culture in Bogotá that I haven’t yet had time to enjoy and to experience some of the nightlife with locals.
This has been really enjoyable as last semester I was travelling almost every second weekend and did not have much time to experience all the things that Bogotá has to offer. With a lot of my friends from last semester had gone home this has encouraged me to make better friends with locals. I also have found that this has helped me improve my Spanish speaking skills which was very exciting as it is the first time that I have personally recognised the improvement.
This semester is going even faster than last semester with the mid-semester break only 2 weeks away and lots of plans for travel coming up. This weekend I have been lucky enough to be invited to a friends ‘Finca’ (holiday house) for a pool party and the following weekend we are planning on going to Caño Cristales, which is a rainbow river that I have been wanting to see since arriving in Colombia and now is the best time of the year to see it.
My dad is then visiting in the mid-semester break, and we are going on a week-long motorcycle trip around Colombia between Cali, Meddlín and Bogotá which I am looking forward to especially to seeing parts of the Colombian countryside that many other people would not be able to see.
Blog #7 - Mid-semester break
After having had some time to get back into Uni and to recover from three months of travel through South America, the weekend trips around Colombia started up again starting with a trip to Caño Cristales, which is in a very remote area of Colombia that proved difficult to get too but 100 per cent worth the effort.
The trip there involved getting a charter flight from Bogotá and then a boat along the main river followed by a 5-hour hike, with some stops to go swimming. We were also lucky enough to see it at the right time of the year where all the colours are the clearest and brightest.
On the way back to Bogotá we didn’t fit onto the charter flight so ended up flying on a WW2 Cargo Plane and during the flight the pilots let us stand in the cockpit, which was an incredibly cool experience!
The following week was the mid-semester break and I was lucky enough to have my Dad visit for two weeks during which we went on a motorcycle tour around Colombia. We started in Cali and rode through Salento to Medellín, then to Guatape, Honda and Villa De Leyva before heading back to Bogotá. The trip was amazing and I was able to see a lot of the more remote areas of Colombia that would not be possible to see otherwise. We also got to experience some of the culture of Colombia going on a coffee tour in the famous coffee region of Salento and eating a lot of local food from all over the Country. Once we arrived back in Bogotá, I had two days to show my Dad around and we got to try some new restaurants and explore markets.
With only two months left in Colombia now, I feel like I have done a good job of seeing the country and experiencing the culture, but I still have a lot of things that I want to tick off the list starting with this weekend when I will head to the Pacific coast of Colombia.
Blog # 8 - I'll miss Colombia and South America
With my time in Colombia coming to an end in less than a month now, I have been busy finishing off uni assignments and fitting in all the last minute travel that I have wanted to do. In the last couple of weeks, I have travelled to Curacao an island just north of Venezuela and to the Rosario Islands, part of a National Park just north of Cartagena in Colombia. I am also looking forward to spending 10 days in Cuba after I finish my exams and before I head home for Christmas. Each of these trips has been spectacular and I am anticipating Cuba to be an amazing trip to top off the year that I have spent in Colombia.
With the end so near, I have also been forced to reflect on the year and I honestly can’t believe the number of places I have seen, the people I have met and the things I have done! It has been by far one of the best experiences I have had in my life and I wouldn’t take back a single moment. Having said that it has also forced me to reflect on my life in Australia and I must admit that there are things that I definitely miss and am very excited to go back to. Namely, those things happen when and where they are supposed to happen and everything is incredibly organised.
In short, I have realised how lucky we are in Australia (mostly because it is so easy to get good cheese and good bread, which I have been deprived of this year).
Despite this, I will miss Colombia and South America and will no doubt be back to visit in the future. The cultures here are so diverse, exciting and colourful and they really give excitement and enthusiasm an entirely new meaning.
Therefore, I will be spending the last few weeks enjoying the food, music and culture with friends and discovering still more countries to make the most of the time I have left in this amazing and diverse region of the world.
More information about ICS
- Read about the Bachelor of Arts in International Studies
- Read about In-country study in the UTS Handbook
