{"id":214,"date":"2017-06-05T02:41:48","date_gmt":"2017-06-05T02:41:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/template\/engr365\/?page_id=214"},"modified":"2025-08-10T13:50:47","modified_gmt":"2025-08-10T13:50:47","slug":"for-parents-and-friends","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/for-parents-and-friends\/","title":{"rendered":"For parents and friends"},"content":{"rendered":"

[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”section” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_slider _builder_version=”4.16″ header_text_color=”#8300E9″ custom_padding=”|||” auto=”on” auto_speed=”5000″ global_colors_info=”{}” button_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_text_size__hover=”null” button_one_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_text_size__hover=”null” button_two_text_size__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_text_size__hover=”null” button_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_text_color__hover=”null” button_one_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_one_text_color__hover=”null” button_two_text_color__hover_enabled=”off” button_two_text_color__hover=”null” button_border_width__hover_enabled=”off” 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Dear parents, family, and friends of the students:<\/h2>\n

Please check the Home page on the detailed potential itinerary<\/a>, estimated costs<\/a>, and FAQ\u00a0<\/a>of this course. Below is the information to address the very common concerns from family and friends.
If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact the instructor<\/a>.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.16″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.16″ custom_padding=”|||” global_colors_info=”{}” custom_padding__hover=”|||”][et_pb_text admin_label=”Header Text: safety” _builder_version=”4.16″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” custom_padding=”10px|||” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Safety<\/h2>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text: safety” _builder_version=”4.16″ border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Safety is our No. 1 priority of a faculty-led travel course at WCU.<\/p>\n

All students will be well advised throughout the entire trip. We will follow guidelines.<\/p>\n

We will also constantly monitor any alert or warning messages<\/a> published by the US Department of State.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Header Text: time difference” _builder_version=”4.16″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” custom_padding=”10px|||” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Time difference and jet lag<\/h2>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text: time difference” _builder_version=”4.16″ global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

In US mainland, there are four time zones (Eastern Time, Central Time, Mountain Time, and Pacific Time), and the summer\u2019s daylight saving time (DST) is in effect during our trip. In Bulgaria, a single time zone is used, and it also uses Daylight-saving Summer Time. Istanbul and Thessaloniki are in the same time zone as Sofia.\u00a0<\/p>\n

The time difference between the EDT and the the Bulgaria time is 7 hours. It is 7 hours earlier in Bulgaria than in EDT. Two examples are provided below:<\/p>\n

When it is 8:00 AM on May 20th in Bulgaria, it is 1:00 AM on May 20th in NC.
When it is 8:00 PM on May 20th in Bulgaria, it is 1:00 PM on May 20th in NC.<\/p>\n

If you want to chat with a student, it is best to try early afternoon, when it is early night time in Bulgaria.<\/p>\n

Due to the time difference, jet lag is very real, too. In the first couple of days after we land in Bulgaria, the students may be sleepy in the morning. It typically takes several days for the students to adjust to the local time. However, fun activities during the day can often keep them awake and help them get adjusted quickly.<\/p>\n

When the students get back to NC from Bulgaria, a similar jet lag adjustment needs to happen. It is very normal. We will advise the students to use the destination’s local time to guide their sleeping schedule even on the airplane, which often helps.<\/p>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Header Text: stay in touch” module_id=”wechat” _builder_version=”4.16″ use_background_color_gradient=”on” custom_padding=”10px|||” border_style=”solid” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

How to keep in touch with the students<\/h2>\n

[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text admin_label=”Text: touch” _builder_version=”4.27.4″ global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n

Phone service is one option, while using data or WiFi and a chatting app is sufficient and less costly than phone service.<\/p>\n

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Dear parents, family, and friends of the students: Please check the Home page on the detailed potential itinerary, estimated costs, and FAQ\u00a0of this course. Below is the information to address the very common concerns from family and friends.If you have any other questions, please do not hesitate to contact the instructor.Safety Safety is our No. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"on","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-214","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/214","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=214"}],"version-history":[{"count":45,"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/214\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1675,"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/214\/revisions\/1675"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yan.wcu.edu\/engr365_2026_plan\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=214"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}