About this Blog

I started this blog as a way to keep my family and friends informed and worry-free during my six week trip to Egypt in the summer of 2009.  Since then, I have kept it up as a place for my insights and explorations into the topics of travel (international and domestic), politics, human rights, gender dynamics and what it means to be me right now.  I try to offer equal parts travel diary, academic insight and personality, on all the aforementioned topics.  I do my best to keep things interesting when I’m back in the US by following up on the countries and topics I’ve already experienced, researching new opportunities and keeping an eye on relevant news.  I’m personally quite thankful that I have a place where people read what I write every day, and I know no other medium exists that could offer me that satisfaction.  If you have any suggestions or questions, please let me know.

About Me

I’m Delia, a rising 5th year senior at Northeastern University in Boston, Mass.  I spent the first half of summer 2009 living and traveling in Egypt, speaking Arabic and getting to know the history and culture of the place.  I then worked at Amnesty International for six months as my first co-op.  I learned a lot more about international human rights law, grassroots organizing and the practical reality of a non-profit.

I spent spring 2010 studying abroad (legally) in Havana, Cuba.  I lived with seven other Americans from NU, and 9 from University of Michigan.  We spoke Spanish, studied the culture, attended underground hip-hop battles one day and Santería ceremonies the next, drank rum and swam at some of the best beaches in the world.

The summer of 2010 I did a program in France and Benin (francophone West Africa) studying local NGOs and micro-enterprise.  I currently work part-time at OISP, or Northeastern’s study abroad office, where I spent my second co-op. I loved getting to know the administrative side of international education, and I’m excited to explore that industry more.  It was also my first professional experience with managing other employees, which helped me grow a lot as a worker.

This past spring I got very involved with the Social Enterprise Institute on campus, which led me to take two of Professor Shaugnessy’s classes.  They both brought me to the Dominican Republic, once for 8 or 9 days over spring break and again for a month for summer 1 classes.  I was lucky enough to spend that time on field research with Esperanza International, a Grameen replicant that works with the poorest of the poor, including Haitian immigrants.

This summer I’m spending time with my family and gearing up for my fall job in Thessaloniki, Greece.  I will be bringing 145 college freshmen abroad for their first semester of college, and I can’t wait!  I study International Affairs, so I don’t plan on staying in the US for too long at once, even after graduation.  I love books, movies, music, politics, languages, grammar and the sound of my own voice.

If you have any questions about travel, the places I’ve been, Northeastern or the co-op system, feel free to drop me a line.

Contact

The quickest way to get ahold of me is to leave a comment on the blog, whether it be on a specific post or one of these pages.  I do my best to answer everything, and I tend to check the blog obsessively, so I’ll definitely see it.

If you add me on facebook, twitter or LinkedIn, do me a favor and shoot me a message explaining who you are, and feel free to include a link to your blog or website.

You can reach me by email at harrington[dot]delia[at]gmail[dot]com. If you have some other address for me already, go with that.  No worries, all roads lead to gmail.

Here I am on Glimpse, a user-based travel website with connections to National Geographic.

I also caved and got a tumblr.  It’s a bit different from this, much shorter and easier to digest.

Here I am, all webified and such.

I’m blogging for Northeastern’s Coop Connections about my time in Greece here, so feel free to have a look!

This is the blog I kept at my last coop job, Northeastern’s Study Abroad department.  Check out my professional social networking abilities .

Waiver

This blog reflects solely the opinions of its author, and when noted, those of guest authors.  It does not reflect the opinion of Northeastern University, Office of International Study Programs, the N.U.in program, the College of Professional Studies, Northeastern University Admissions, Amnesty International, the United Nations Association, the United Nations Association of Greater Boston or the National Council on US-Arab Relations.

The writing and photos here are solely the property of the blog author, unless noted otherwise.  If you wish to use some of it, please let me know and include full name credit and a link back to the source.  If you wish to use something from a guest post, please contact them directly or ask me if you need their contact.