Traveling with Technology

Hello all!

So I've been on the road traveling for the past few weeks so haven't had the chance to post. I did however observe lots of things of which I would like to share a few.

First off, it's amazing to me how prevalent technology has become. I considered taking my laptop along with me while I traveled but decided against it because I figured it would be more trouble than it was worth. Come to find out, there was really no need at all. Every hostel that we stayed in and 24 hour high speed internet access and multiple computers so you rarely had to wait. This made life so much easier when I needed to check something or write someone a quick email to let them know that I was still doing well. It's not even a questions anymore as to whether or not places need to provide internet access, it's just expected.

Another thing that intrigued me was a guy that I met in my hostel in Barcelona. He is from Australia but is teaching in London for the year, first of all, how cool would that be but second of all what a great chance to make a connection with students from back home to London because they could learn a lot from each other. I asked him what types of technology he was using in London compared to what he used back in Australia and he said it was pretty comparable. I then went on to ask him if he had ever considered using blogging or some other form of communication between his current students and past students back in Australia. He said that he had considered it but hadn't taken action or attempted anything. We chatted for a while and I suggested that he start a blog for 2 reasons....1) he could let students back in Australia see how different life in London is and also to let the students themselves communicate.

If I were in elementary school, I would think it was so cool that I was chatting with someone all the way across the world in England and would brag to my friends all the time. Blogging is such an easy way to start the implementation of technology. Students could blog about anything of interest such as their current weather, current news of their country, or collaborate and talk about past experiences they have had. This guy was in such a great position to start something really great and after chatting with him, he seemed to have a bit of a spark lit and ideas forming as to where to begin.

I have a few finals this week so am trying to study for those and catch up on the blogs I follow that I missed while I was gone but will hopefully get another post up later this week or early next week. Until then...