Welcome back to another installation of our Summer Adventure Series! Today we are featuring one of our Graduate Students - Siobhán Seigne and her time this Summer studying in Sofia, Bulgaria. Enjoy!

Summer Adventures – Siobhán Seigne

This summer I have been studying Bulgarian in Sofia, Bulgaria. I am here on the American Council’s Balkan Language Initiative Program thanks to funding from a U.S. Department of State Title VIII Fellowship, a summer FLAS from the Slavic Center, the Felice M. Grad Scholarship from CLLC and the Paisyi Bulgarian Studies Award. Studying abroad would be impossible without these funding sources! 

I am the only one in my program, which has made for a strange but serendipitous experience. My academic plan is entirely self-directed, and so I have been exploring topics related to my research interests. Additionally, as this is my third Slavic language I have been able to quickly move through grammatical features that Bulgarian shares with Russian. This has left me plenty of time to grapple with the many ways that Bulgarian differs from Russian. By the end of my program, I will have completed the B1-B2 Textbook despite starting from absolute zero at the New Year. Amazing things, New Year’s resolutions… 

Besides classes I have done a lot of travel with my host family. We have visited countless cities and villages around the country, giving me a good feel for the physical and cultural landscapes of Bulgaria. My favorite place has been Veliko Tarnovo because of the stunning views and old houses in the Bulgarian revival style. 

In my free time I have been writing book reviews (including one with fellow student Michelle Verbitskaya!) and working on my article manuscript. All in all, it has been an extremely productive summer. I’m looking forward to returning to Columbus in a few weeks to begin the teacher training workshop! 

Posing in front of a house in the Bulgarian revival style in Plovdiv.

                 Me and Dr. Hashamova in Vitosha Nature Park.

 Me and my host family's daughter, Magdalena at Pchelina Dam.

Have an adventure to share? Contact Ernst.150@osu.edu to find out more