England, 2012

London, a diverse and thriving capital rich in culture, tradition, and history is a city of 12 million within a day's travel of many other English destinations. An important trading center since Roman times, London has witnessed over 1400 years of global history. Many libraries, 900-year old universities, countless archives and museums of every sort invite your individual research and exploration.

Russia, 2012

Moscow is a multi-ethnic capital of 10 million people in the world's (geographically) largest country. It has been the scene of countless political, historic, artistic and cultural transformations: Mongol invasions, Catherine the Great, the Bolshevik Revolution, Stalinist Gothic architecture, Constructivist art movement, avant garde film and contemporary fashion just to name a few. We are looking forward to exploring the fascinating history and surprising present-day innovations of this exciting, cosmopolitan country.

Hungary and Eastern Europe, 2011

Two decades after fall of the Berlin Wall students will be traveling to Hungary this summer. The collapse of communism brought an end to the centralized socialistic state and today Hungary, like other Eastern European countries, is churning with political and economic change. Led by Professor Sára Kaiser from the University of Minnesota department of anthropology, students will be able to explore this transition firsthand and see the impact the transformation is having on people, places, culture and politics.

The Roman, Byzantine, Russian, Austrian, Ottoman and, most recently, the Soviet empires have left an indelible imprint on Hungary.  Evidence of this can be seen in the country's Roman ruins, early Christian tombs, and surviving Ottoman architecture. Close associations with the rest of Europe have left a lasting legacy of art and culture from the Renaissance to the 21st century. Hungary will be in the world spotlight early as it assumes the presidency of the European Union from January through June 2011.