Today I got up early again at 8:00am to shower and eat a quick breakfast before catching a private charter bus at 9:15. This bus took us to a nearby hospital called Hospital Gorliz. This hospital was SUPER amazing. It had everything to offer: A nice building design, location right by the beach, and a…
Day 2 – On the Move
While we started the day a bit later than yesterday, we had many more program activities. After waking up, we boarded the bus traveling to a tulip farm. Even though most of the tulips were not present, those we did see were absolutely stunning. The owner discussed his business of harvesting and selling tulip bulbs….
VAMOS ECUADOR
Hey everyone! My name is Ben, and I’m beyond pumped to get on the road to Ecuador. I’m from Philadelphia, PA (yes, inside Philly) and am majoring in marketing and finance, but who knows, maybe after this I’ll switch to supply chain. I love all things sports, playing sports and watching sports, no matter what…
Sustaining Afloat
We started the day off by visiting one of Amsterdam’s many tulip farms. The farm can reduce excess water use by planting tulips in sandy soil with high groundwater levels. The amount of groundwater is monitored by the canal, which is the source of the water. The farm also practices sustainable methods of upkeep and…
Scavanger Hunt and K-pop
Still not used to the time difference, I woke up at 2:00 AM Korea time or 1:00 Pittsburgh, and all my lights were on, the blinds were not closed, and the TV was on. That’s when I realised that I passed out soon after I got back to my hotel room. Even though I was…
Plus3 South Korea 03: Exploring Seoul
Today began at 10:30 am with a surprise: we were tasked with finding our program leader, Dr. Yun, using a set of clues and what we had learned about using Seoul’s public transportation the day before. By walking, taking the occasional wrong turn, catching buses, and using the subway, we made our way to Jogyesa,…
South Korea 02: On Public Transit
Today started unexpectedly with a scavenger hunt, the target being the elusive Dr. Yun. After some bus and subway travel, we tracked him down to the National Museum of Korea, an architecturally striking complex with expansive open spaces and free galleries. We ate lunch there and walked around for a while before heading to a…
The scavenger hunt
Today we met in the lobby at 10:30 pretty nice gave us time to sleep in and everything. When we did, we found out that Dr. Yun had arranged a scavenger hunt to find him! He had left the hotel early and said to find him at a famous temple in Korea and gave us…
Costa Rica Blog Post 1
Costa Rica’s focus on sustainability makes the country seem impressive and progressive to me. Before researching Costa Rica, I always thought of beaches, massive jungles, and fruits. As I do more research, I am realizing sustainability is almost like a brand identity for Costa Rica. As we learned in the pre-departure meetings, at one point…
Days 1+2: Landed in the Netherlands!
We’re here! Travel to get to the Netherlands was thankfully very smooth. The worst the flights had was a bit of turbulence and an incredibly loud baby, but once we landed we hit the ground running! After dropping off ours bags at the hotel, we had a super quick breakfast and met the city through…
Healing by Sea: A Day of Innovation and Care in Gorliz
Today we traveled to Gorliz, Spain to visit the Gorliz Hospital. The Gorliz Hospital is a public hospital that sits right on the coast of the Bay of Biscay. At the hospital we were first met with nurses who showed what it takes to deliver good patient care in their hospital. We got to visit…
Day 3: The Dutch are Better at This Than us…
On day 3, May 5th 2026, aka Liberation day for the citizens of Netherlands, we had the opportunity to visit the famous tulip fields. We received a talk from the owner of the small tulip farm, where we learned that farmers strip the tulips of the flowers so the plants can direct more energy into…
Canals Chocolate and Clothes
Once arriving in the Netherlands with very little sleep, we got right into our tours with a canal cruise around Amsterdam. We learned about how they regulate the water levels or move water through them using the lock and dam system. As we moved through the canals we got to see the many house boats…
So Much to Do on Day 2!
Day 2 in Bilbao started with a scenic bus ride out to Hospital Gorliz which quickly became one of the most memorable experiences so far. The hospital staff warmly welcomed us, taking time to introduce themselves, share their experiences, and explain how their healthcare system operates. Even the patients were very open and accepting of…
Bilbao Day 3 on the Sea!
This morning we headed over to Hospital Gorliz by bus. We got to Hospital Gorliz around 10 am. We started off the hospital tour with a presentation about the hospital and its origins from the staff. It was really interesting to learn about the history of the hospital. One of the things that I found…
The Hunt for Sustainable Textiles
After catching up on the rest we missed the day before, the entirety of the Plus 3 Netherlands group was ready to go on the second day of our trip. Our agenda for today: scavenger hunt across the city and a visit to the House of Denim, a company whose main focus is making jeans…
Bulbs and Boats: Tradition and Innovation
We started our experiences today by visiting a tulip farm in South Holland called De Tulperij. The farm is a small family-owned business that has been operating for three generations. The farm specializes in the production of flower bulbs such as Tulips and hyacinths. The farm does not grow the plants exclusively for their flowers,…
Gorlizko Ospitalea!
Today was our second full day in Spain, and the weather couldn’t have been better. After breakfast we boarded the bus and headed to Gorlizko Ospitalea, where we began with an introduction to the hospital’s policies and practice. Many of their approaches to patient-centered care and evidence-based practice were almost identical to what I’ve learned…
셋: Exploring Seoul
My first and second day in Korea consisted of mainly tourism. On day one, our group started off our day by visiting Gyeongbokgung Palace. Personally, I was impressed with how large the palace space was, and I also enjoyed seeing all the mountains and natural beauty in the background. Later in the day, we spent…
Bilbao Day 2!
Today was my first full day in Bilbao! In the morning we had multiple different lectures. Our first lecture was about the history of Bilbao and general demographics. We also played a Kahoot to learn some more fun facts about Bilbao. We got to ask many different questions to one of the professors at the…