HISA

Studying abroad at HISA has been one of the best decisions of my life. I come from Denmark and go to school in Boston. I needed a breather from the stressful and competitive college life and HISA was perfect. The school is not like any other as it welcomed each student including myself into the lives of the caring family who runs it. I felt that the courses focused on my own creative process instead of test results and I loved seeing myself grow as an artist. I have an introverted and quiet personality so the small class sizes and caring teachers felt great. Who would have thought that school could be fun? It was important to me that I would not feel pressured to join any of the school trips and activities. This wish was met with understanding and I found myself gladly saying yes to almost all of them. I have learned a lot from these past months. I have become more confident not only as an artist but as a person. I am a better cook, dancer, student, listener, taster and creator. The people who I have met have been some of the most wonderful people, and I will forever cherish the friendships that I have made over the semester.

In addition, I wish to give a shout out to the women of the faculty who were clearly the glue of the school, who were always kind and passionate as my teachers and mentors.

I hope that many more future groups of students coming to HISA will have equally great adventures.

I don’t think there’s another study abroad program in the world that can offer what HISA does. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure you’ll have a positive experience no matter where you decide to go –traveling anywhere around the world with a group of college kids is sure to be an exciting adventure. But the approach that HISA takes is more than that; this program will help you grow as an adult. Here, I was immersed into an artist’s community. Each member of the faculty is well accomplished in their own field –writing, sculpture, poetry, painting, etc. And each will take the time to sit down and share their insights with you. It would be ridiculous and nearly impossible not to take advantage of everything they have to offer. When a real artist looks over your work, they can illuminate an entire world that you never knew existed. HISA’s unique commitment helped me find myself and produce amazing work.

I just completed the fall semester program, and it was everything i imagined it would be and more! The island of Paros is beautiful. We had hot beach days up until we left in December, and only about 8 days of rain the entire time! Both the school and student apartments are right on the water. I took Painting, Interrelated Media, Creative Writing, Greek, and Cycladic Arts and Culture. The classes were wonderful and gave us so much creative freedom. Every teacher I had took a personal interest in my growth over the semester, and I made lifelong friendships with the other students. I had a lot of free time to spend in the other towns and islands, which I really appreciated. I never thought I could be so happy. Absolutely loved it.

My semester in Paros was unforgettable. I dearly miss the hot sun shining through vibrant blue skies, and the ferries coming in and out at all hours. I miss the walk to school past all the fishing boats and stray cats (so many stray cats! I turned a corner in town once and saw about a dozen of them scattered across the path). I miss fresh €3 gyros a block from the shore, and late nights making friends with the local bartenders. I miss sitting at cafes with Barry to talk about movies, and Europe, and love, and all the things I can do with my life after I graduate. I miss joking and writing with my classmates, and I miss George's quietly affirming critique when we brought random fragments of unfinished novels to class. Now that I am plunged back into 'real life' (where I live with my parents, drive a car, go to work, and very rarely eat gyros by the ocean), it is much harder to make art, but my trip to Greece ensured that I will keep doing it. The world feels so much bigger now than it did before. To say that I had a life-changing experience with HISA feels trite, obvious. I am forever grateful to everyone there for bolstering me as I found myself again and again. I will see you again soon.

INCREDIBLE! That is an exactly the right word to describe what is HISA’s memories was. I came from Indonesia to Greece on summer June, 2017. I had been spending all of my summer season having the hot weather, beach, watermelon and etc. in Indonesia but a decision to spent my “sweet seventeen summer” in Greece was an epic adventure!

Well, my trip to Greece especially for study in HISA was my first international flight and study abroad as well so i expected a lot to get UNFORGETTABLE MEMORIES there. One thing that I know is studying in HISA was beyond my expectation. Greece, especially in Parikia, Paros Island and HISA were a package of a lifetime experience.

Study abroad in HISA for a month enriched my soul, my mind and my knowledge. In addition it also transformed my perspective of a life. Barry Tagrin and Yuko were inspirational people, they spread the love and intelligence in sense of art everywhere. They made us feel like “Greece is a sweetest second home and greatest place to study art” and that’s feels so right. In the beginning I was concerned about my capability on painting but working with Neva and my classmates built my confidence! I produced six paintings by my own sense of art and that’s unbelievable.

We went to Greece islands such as Mykonos, Delos, Santorini, Naxos, Antiparos, even Athens. What an incredible historical trips. We learned so much about the Birth of Athena, the legend of Greece mythology in Athens, we went to photography exhibitions in Antiparos, we visited the Temple of Demeter in Naxos, we watched an unforgettably beautiful sunset in Santorini and many more.

I have never fallen so in love with a place and memories but Paros and HISA took a special place on my heart.
Well, my trip to Greece especially for study in HISA was my first international flight and study abroad as well so i expected a lot to get UNFORGETTABLE MEMORIES there. One thing that i know is studying in HISA was beyond my expectation. Greece, especially in Parikia, Paros Island and HISA were a package of a lifetime experience.

Study abroad in HISA for a month encouraged my soul, my mind and my knowledge. In addition it also transformed my perspective of a life. Barry Tagrin and Yuko were inspirational person, they spreaded the love and intellegnece in sense of art everywhere. They made us feel like “Greece is a sweetest second home and greatest place to study in the art” and that’s feels so right. In HISA, i took the painting class and my teachers name is Neva. In the begining i was concerned about my capability on painting but working with her and my classmates made me realized that “i believed miracle can happen, so possibly” it builds my confidence and i did it! I produced six paintings by my own sense of art and that’s unbelievable.

We went to Greece islands such as Mykonos, Delos, Santorini, Naxos, Antiparos even Athens, the capital city of Greece. What an incredible hostorical trips. We learned so much about the Birth of Atina, the legend of Greece mythology in Athens, we went to photography exhibition in Antiparos, we visited the Temple of Demeter in Naxos, we watched the unforgettable most beautiful sunset ever in Santorini and many more.

I have never fallen so in love with a place and memories but Paros and HISA took a special place on my heart.

My semester abroad with HISA was everything I had hoped for and more. I was looking for a semester to unwind, take a breath, and regroup with myself. The island of Paros was the perfect place for just that! Paros became a real home to my peers and I as we hiked, swam, and painted our way through the island. The teachers were all extremely supportive in each of our creative aspirations and provided us with the tools and resources needed to make our ideas come to fruition. Furthermore, all of the teachers were so passionate about their lessons that they made each of us excited to learn and work on our projects. I am so grateful to HISA for everything from seamlessly coordinating with my school’s abroad office to planning weekend trips to the nearby Cyclades islands. This has been such an incredible semester and time to explore my creativity, passions, and self. Thank you Barry and Yuko for orchestrating this special program, I hope to come back soon to visit!

Where do I even begin? My study abroad experience in Greece far exceeded my wildest dreams, and I have the HISA family to thank for that. The professors were passionate and excited about the subjects they taught, which made learning far more interesting. The field trips and hands-on experiences made the information easy to understand and fun to learn. The staff was always there for us, always easily approachable and consistently available to answer any questions we had. The program directors and professors genuinely care about their students and took the time to get to know us on a personal level. The HISA community is a family, and they made me feel right at home. The relationships I formed with the students and staff will be something I cherish for a lifetime. Best of all, I know that when I choose to return to Paros Island, I will be welcomed back with open arms. I could go on and on about how this experience positively impacted my life, but I highly suggest you experience it for yourself.

Greece was the experience of a lifetime! Every day of my stay was a different memory getting the opportunity to meet locals, learn new Greek words, try new unique foods and immerse myself in the beautiful culture that welcomed me and anyone to become apart of their home community. I've never been outside of the United States nor have I traveled alone before so going to another country by myself at 18 seemed super scary but HISA made the travel and the entire trip easy and worry free. The friends I met were diverse in ideas, backgrounds and cultures and taught me so much about myself. The housing was so cozy; when the three months passed I had such a difficult time parting with the place that I spent relaxing, reading and doing homework. My favorite parts of the entire journey of studying abroad in Paros Island Greece was of course being able to walk just across the street and indulge in backlava and the best gyros you could ever imagine! The second best part was the outstanding instructors that inspired me to think about different perspectives and do things I never thought I would have the courage to do. I took painting, sculpture, philosophy, art and culture and the goddess course where I got to be around such well knowledgeable, funny and extremely unique instructors that had so many awesome experiences to share! The instructors and faculty were more than leaders and guides for us they became our friends. I wouldn't trade my time In Greece for anything. It was a priceless experience that I will always cherish.