Alice studied abroad in Capetown with a Princeton University Program

Alice:  Well, with my major you were really only allowed to go study abroad in, probably there were about four or five options. I mean, I knew that I wanted to study abroad. Of the options I had, South Africa was a place that I had always wanted to go to. And just the opportunity to study in a place that's, you know, a new country in so many ways but an old country, was something I couldn't pass up. A lot of people tried to study abroad in a place where

they think they'll have more of the comfort that they're used to, like they'll study somewhere in Europe or somewhere in Australia, even places where you might be closer to the western culture. But I wanted something definitely very different from what I was getting at Princeton. So I was happy to be in Africa.

Alice:  One of the best things was that I got to be independent in just sort of every way. Like, I was independent as a student where no one was, you know, looking over my shoulder to guide what I was studying. I really got to go out and explore what I wanted to learn on my own. But I was also independent in terms of, you know, living on my own in a new country, you know. I finally got to, you know, pay the rent on my own for the first time. I was cooking on my own for the first time in a number of years, so it was really, really rewarding to get to explore this new country pretty much however I wanted.

Alice:  The food was really, really great. All the fruits and vegetables were really fresh. They don't use any preservatives there, so I had to go grocery shopping every three or four days. But it was all really fresh and really good. Also, I tried a lot of game meats which were delicious, and they have all sorts of local desserts that we would never think to put together in the States that ended up being fantastic. The food was really interesting. It is a food and wine country, so they love creative things.