The Loveliest Village

I magine 42 days traveling through Europe. Now imagine all those days with 22 college students. This is how Auburn University Assistant Professor Bruce W. Smith and his wife Kathy spent their summer abroad.

From London to Barcelona and Munich to Paris, this Auburn group had a blast. They were there to look at construction sites and architectural buildings since all the students were from Auburn’s College of Architecture, Design and Construction. Smith, an assistant professor in the department of Building Science, seems to have enjoyed everything, except his increasingly heavy backpack.

“It was amazing how mine kept getting heavier through the trip,� Bruce said as his wife started laughing. “We don’t know quite how that happened. She helped me with my packing,� he said jokingly.

Throughout their trip, Bruce and Kathy had a hard time finding something on menus they could actually understand and want to order. They ended up just pointing at something and then having a competition on who picked the best. Bruce got lucky and won.

The Smiths seemed amazed at how well all of the students acted throughout their journey. Being away from families for over a month, not driving a car for the longest they have probably gone since turning 16 and being in countries not knowing a single word anyone is speaking seems tough. After all, 42 days is a long time.

“It’s all part of the experience,� Bruce said. “And really- no grumbling about it.�

They both agreed what the students dealt hardest with was not having the Internet at their hotels.

While in Rome, an architect named Angela took the Auburn group around the city showing them interesting pieces they might otherwise have missed. She also explained the meanings behind the famous buildings.

“That was the cool thing,� Bruce said. “‘This is what you’re suppose to see.’ Well, yeah, I see it.�

During one outing, the Smiths and four students went to visit a famous island in Venice known for their glassblowers. After their tour guide had been walking them from room to room, he said to Bruce, “What a very nice, large family you have there.� In their case, an Auburn family.

“And Bruce said, ‘Well yes, we adopted them’,� Kathy says, finishing the story. “So that was the big joke for the rest of the trip, that they were our children.�

Even with all the amazing experiences, the students were never far away from the real reason they came abroad: to help them understand how building and construction differs in Europe and America.

“We really saw some cool stuff,� Bruce explains. “They all learned a lot. It’s incremental.�

Hearing them talk about Bruce getting pick pocketed in Barcelona, the tiny towns in Florence with 30 churches in its short limits and the singing gondolas in Venice, the amazing time they had is easy to visualize. Learning and having a great time goes together perfectly in Europe. Being with Auburn friends and teachers far away is just like having a family right at your side in a country full of strangers.

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