Pitt Plus3 Program

Psyched for Cyprus: Day 7- Company Comparisons

We’ve officially made it one week in Cyprus!! It feels like time just flew by but each moment was filled with so many activities, and today was no exception. Today’s itinerary was packed with various company presentations and tours in the realm of shipping, specifically marine shipping. In total we met with representatives from three…

My Cyprus Story

The past two weeks in Cyprus have been unforgettable. I’ve been able to achieve so many things professionally, academically, and personally. When it comes to professional and academic development I’ve been able to speak with executives of companies and hear straight from the source on certain aspects of business I’m interested in. Also, we had…

Goodbye Cyprus

Today, unfortunately, was the day we departed from Cyprus. As we were taking the bus to the airport, it truly hit me that we were leaving this beautiful Mediterranean country. The bus from Limassol to Laranaca, about two hours, was the first part of a long journey back home to the States. Surprisingly to me,…

Training the Crew

Today we visited Bernard Schulte Shipmanagement Training Center. BSM was in Limassol and quite close to our hotel, so we just walked and did not have to take the bus. Once there, we were introduced to a teacher who showed us around the training center. The first room we were in was a relatively small…

Life off the grid!

We began our morning bright and early so that we could get to the Waorani nation before dark! It was a long day of travel, starting with an 8am bus ride into the Amazon rainforest. Then, we got onto gas powered canoes that would take us on the river into Waorani territory. Maddie, George, Riya,…

The Cyprus Club

What happens when you throw 24 unfamiliar people in a hotel on a Mediterranean island? My answer before my trip to Cyprus would be completely different than my answer now. If I had not decided to participate in this program, I would have missed out on meeting some of the most amazing people I have…

Day 14 – Bye Cyprus!

Our last day in Cyprus, or at least our last day of the trip since we were in Cyprus from 4ish hours until our flight left. All of our flights went smoothly, and practically nothing was delayed. Now, I can’t connect this to the supply chain like most shipping companies we visited airports have implemented…

Day 14 – More Shipping

On our final day, we visited the soul behind the shipping industry, the engine for the industry we studied the whole trip. And while we didn’t learn anything about the logistics of the supply chain, the blue-collar workers that train at the BSM ship management center certainly play a large role in keeping the chain…

The Lodging Lifestyle

What’s good friends?!! Our first night at the Iyarina lodge was definitely an adjustment. We went from the comforts of a Quito hotel to an environment that was per se… more connected to nature. Said nature, however, completely made up for the lack of the comforts that I am used to in my day-to-day life….

BSMTC: The Reason You Get Your Goods

The Bernard Schulte Shipmanagement Training Center (BSMTC), is a training facility for crew members of BSM. It is often overlooked how rigorous of a job being a crew member is. Visiting BSMTC will prove the fact that crew members have one of the most important jobs in the entire supply chain. The Simulation The impressive…

Back In The Burgh

We left at 5:45am and flew home this past Friday. The day was quite long, and I slept the majority of it. Instead of boring all you readers with those details, I figured I’d do a reflection on the trip. Overall, I loved the trip and I am ultimately sad to go. This was my…

Not in Germany anymore… [Reflection Post]

My 12 days in Germany was such an amazing experience. I got to explore so many cities, delve deep into how automobiles are made, and eat delicious food. The German (and Austrian!) cities are all so different than American cities. Let me go on a tangent about transportation because this stuff interests me. I grew…

Long Way to Home!

This is my last blog of the trip, and unfortunately, it was not a very fun day! Today was entirely spent flying home from Cyprus, which for me was a journey that lasted about 22 hours! At 12:00 a.m. on Friday, we promptly departed from our hotel and went to the airport. Our flight was…

Last Day in Cyprus!

Today is our last day in Cyprus, and I’m a little heartbroken, to be honest. I’ve made memories on this trip that will last a lifetime, and I’ve learned so much about a nation that I truly knew almost nothing about before coming here. I know one day I will return here, but until then,…

Our Trip to Salzburg

Our first official day off program! To celebrate our company presentations and the hard work that we as a group put into them, we collectively agreed to take a day-long trip to Salzburg, Austria. If I had to describe this trip in one word, I would say it was extraordinary. Everything about this trip was…

Cement & More Boats

The first part of today, our second-to-last day in Cyprus, was spent at Vassiliko Cement Works. What stood out immediately upon entering the plant was the sheer size of the operation, both in terms of physical size and the sheer amount of concrete produced. After entering the plant, we were quickly ushered into the main…

The End of a New Beginning

With our bus for the airport leaving at midnight, the night time flight didn’t feel real. It was hard to believe our two week adventures were finally over. On the bus ride we listened to music before we all went our separate ways. After our flight out of Cyprus in Larnaca to Frankfurt, checking in…

In the wise words of Lana Del Rey, “Down on the West Coast”!

Let’s go to the beach! We flew from Quito to Manta, and made our way down to Puerto Lopez, a beautiful beach town on the very west coast of Ecuador. It was such an amazing way to end the trip with everyone. Our first day there, we went to an incredible National Park beach called…

Irish Gab-Bye

These past two weeks in Ireland have been two of the best weeks of my life! The memories and friendships I have made on this trip will last a lifetime! I have learned so much about Ireland’s history and culture. I have also learned a lot about myself through this trip as it was my…

UNIC student for the day

Today we spent the day at the University of Nicosia. We started with a bunch of lectures from a variety of professors. The first one was mainly about blockchain, and crypto assets. We learned how databases are needed for society to function and that life is organized by databases. Today most people get their information…