No place in North America equals Quebec City for its charm, unique culture, and beauty. The only walled city north of Mexico, when you pass through the portal into the city’s historic section, the focus for most visitors, it’s like entering a fairy tale complete with a castle. The century-old Fairmont Le Château Frontenac—with its towering top ringed by steeples and turrets—overlooks the St. Lawrence River and soars over the town, adding to the magical feeling. 

Ben Schuster earned his Bachelor’s degree in Communication at the University of Pittsburgh in the spring of 2015. He studied abroad in the Fall 2014 semester of his senior year to London, England. Read up on his interview below to learn more about his experience abroad! 

Centuries-old works of art adorn the vast public spaces of the Hilton Anatole Hotel - so much a part of the place that guests often pass by without even noticing. 

Built in 1979 by one of Dallas' top real estate development families, the Anatole houses over 1000 pieces of art, making it the largest hotel art and antique collection in the US. No surprise it's located in Texas, where the state is often remembered for the slogan, "Everything is bigger in Texas."

Lora Woodward is an avid outdoor enthusiast and non-profit professional, with the enviable ability to call work 'play.' For the past eight years, she has been working for Pittsburgh-based nonprofit Venture Outdoors, an organization dedicated to getting people outside. As the Program Director, she oversees the organization's client and program development, leadership training, volunteer management, and risk management.

Florida Culture for the Week of November 2, 2015 by Josh Garrick
 
NOW to Mar 1, 2016 – Winter Park to Present ‘ART on the Green’ OUTDOOR Exhibit

Originally from Long Island, New York, Aimee DiAndrea moved to Pittsburgh in 2003. Aimee has been surrounded by the arts from the age of three. She trained in ballet with companies such as American Ballet Theatre, San Francisco Ballet, Hungarian National Ballet, and Miami City Ballet. Aimee spent her last two high school years away from home, training at North Carolina School of the Arts, where she majored in ballet. After graduating high school, Aimee spent over three years training and dancing with Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre.

Art is important. Art matters. And yet, so often, art seems expensive and out of reach. We go to Art Hops, or art fairs, or find that little pottery place on our travels, and buy what we can to bring color and life and art to our homes. We rent art from the local university for a term or more, head to the annual sales at the art insitute. We devour art at museums, stare at that van Gogh, tears fall upon seeing that Bierstadt you've loved your whole life, chuckle at the poker dogs, teach our kids to love art as much as we do. 

Cast your mind back 15 years to the turn of the millennium. You would go on holiday with your family or friends, you would pick out a snazzy postcard, you would write a heartfelt message, and you would drop it in the post for those who couldn’t make the trip. For a wandering educator such as yourself, this may be a pleasant trip down memory lane – for the students of today, this would probably be met with “But why wouldn’t you just send a selfie?”