Student Reflections

I absolutely loved this trip! It was so exciting to travel abroad with my classmates and experience a new culture. Also, the sheer amount of information I learned and retained isn’t quantifiable. Spending all day in the field with peers and professors was an invaluable learning experience! I was able to ask questions and discuss with my new friends while seeing the outcrops up close. We covered such a wide range of information, but it never felt like I was attending a lecture. The geology/tectonics were so well integrated into the experience and I was able to really dig into the learning. It’s amazing to see textbook level outcrops in person! I recommend this trip to everyone!

~ Ren

Taiwan is such a wonderful place. Everyone we met was so incredibly kind and generous. I enjoyed getting to know all of the students we traveled with and learning about the foods, culture, and customs, but especially the geology. I hope to have the opportunity to visit Taiwan again in the future.

~ Michi

Going to Taiwan was a life changing trip for me. Not only did I learn a lot about geology and geophysics, but being able to experience a different culture and meet new people opened my world view in new ways. Walking away from the trip really made me want to continue to strive for new experiences with an open mind. I enjoyed Taiwanese culture a lot because of how nice everyone was, how good the food was, and because of how deeply tied it is with Japanese and Chinese culture. My favorite memories from the trip are trying new foods with the Taiwanese students, and experiencing an earthquake while standing on the same fault. The geology of Taiwan is unique, and being able to see its orogeny, active faults, volcanoes, and complex metamorphic geology in person allowed me to gain a deeper understanding of my major. Connecting what I've learned in my geology courses to a real life experience was very impactful for me.

~ Ray

This was my first ever trip outside of the US, and it was genuinely one of the best experiences I've ever had! Everyday was packed from morning to evening with a mix of geology, adventure, beautiful views, amazing food, hot springs, and cultural immersion. As someone who's really shy, the course structure was set up in a way that I could naturally make friends with all of the Taiwanese students while also growing closer to my Utah classmates and friends. The language immersion was SO helpful with practicing my Mandarin and Cantonese (though it's definitely not necessary to know, many people spoke English!). Everyone we met (professors, students, guest lecturers, shop owners, etc) was so sweet and had so much passion teaching us about Taiwan's geomorphology and culture. Some of my favorite memories include exploring Taipei's nightlife and shopping district, trekking across the mountainside in the fog / rain, and eating some of Taiwan's local fruit while relaxing in a natural hot spring.

~ Lux

This trip improved my understanding of geology and geophysics as we were able to apply the concepts of folds and joint sets that many of us had been learning in our structural geology class from the same semester, or, I was able to compare studies of seismic tomography we learned about in Taiwan with information I had learned in my seismology class the previous semester. We also learned practical field skills while visiting outcrops as well as applications for various hazard mitigation and monitoring techniques from visits to earthquake museums and national science facilities.

~ Nick

Favorite Memory: Taking late night walks with the Taiwanese students and talking about random stories and our favorite music! I've listened to a lot more Chinese music since jaja. Impact: Taiwan is an actively changing environment. As a geomorphologist- understanding how the underlying tectonics impacts surficial processes has been insightful on how I should combine my knowledge of both matters. Key Takeaway: Understanding how other people view and study Earth Science helps us become better scientists! My key takeaway/advice is to talk to people you might not normally engage with. Everyone is here to learn! Understanding: Being actively surrounded by the geology we read in literature helps us visualize tectonic and geological processes. Culture: I loved being able to engage with the Taiwanese students to learn about how they approach life and geosciences as a whole. I cant wait to see them in the near future.

~ Ivan