Mara Gordon | Adding spice to summer plans

The nurse was sticking the fourth needle into my arm when it finally hit me - I'm going to Africa this summer.

I was getting my vaccinations at Student Health earlier this week. The nurse was telling me about scary things like tsetse flies and malaria. But the more absurd her warnings got (Rabies! Charging hippos! Travelers' diarrhea!) the more excited I got.

I'm finally having the adventurous summer I've always wanted.

The trip is totally out of character for me. I've spent most of my summers in Washington, DC, interning here and there.

When I learned about a Penn program in Botswana, however, I jumped at the chance to get off this continent. I'm going to be helping out a social worker in Gaborone, along with about 10 other Penn students working all over the city.

I've been vaccinated against absolutely everything. I'm stocking up on Luna Bars in case my stomach doesn't, uh, agree with things there. My dad sends me e-mails freaking out that he signs, "Just your ongoing daily ray of sunshine."

I can't wait.

This isn't intended to be a holier-than-thou rant about why I'm not working in consulting or on Capitol Hill this summer. I'm a little jealous that my roommates will all be in New York next month, sampling drink specials and workplace fashions.

But I feel lucky that I'm getting the chance to travel, and I'd like to offer some practical advice for others who want to spice up their summers.

I talked to some students who have interesting plans to get their advice about getting away from the daily grind. Here are some of their suggestions, whether you're looking for a cheap long weekend or you want to escape for the whole time.

1. First and foremost, they say, just go for it.

When else in your life will it be this easy to drop everything for four months and explore the world?

"I think traveling abroad is crucial to expanding your mind," College freshman Brandi Waters wrote in an e-mail interview. Waters will be studying Zulu in South Africa this summer. "I'm really excited to have the opportunity to engage . with the cultures and environments I've merely studied about here at Penn."

2. Use campus resources to help organize your trip - or even pay for it.

College sophomore Jelena Djordjevic is leading a trip to Bangalore with Penn International Business Volunteers to do microfinance research, and the University is footing a large portion of the bill.

Grant money is easier to find than you might think. You just have to know where to look.

Djordjevic recommends heading to the Center for Undergraduate Research and Fellowships and talking to professors about possible sources of funding.

3. Talk to people who know the place you're headed.

I asked Djordjevic how she found an internship halfway around the world, and her answer shouldn't have surprised me at all: Google.

"A lot of people e-mail [non-governmental organizations around the world] being like 'I'm a student. I'm really interested in doing an internship,'" she said. "They're more than happy to take free laborers."

She said that contacts in Bangalore helped place PIBV volunteers in apartments and dorm rooms. Since they know the lay of the land, they were her best resource in trying to organize housing options from thousands of miles away.

4. Shop around for cheap travel options.

You've already got a job in New York or the idea of a summer away from Entourage makes you panic. Don't worry - there's an entire industry of airlines whose business strategy is to offer cheap college students no-frills service.

RyanAir and easyJet were two of the first European airlines to go the dirt-cheap route; Southwest Airlines is their equivalent here at home.

They cut costs by cutting services (you often have to pay for food and checked luggage)- but they're still great deals. The Web site flylc.com is a great source for navigating inexpensive flights around Europe.

Long weekends in Europe don't have to be as pretentious as they sound.

Mara Gordon is a College junior from Washington, D.C. Her e-mail address is gordon@dailypennsylvanian.com. Flash Gordon appears on Thursdays.

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