May 2013 – Page 3 – GW Blogs from Abroad

Tea With Chava

AdminMay 11, 2013December 14, 2018

For the past couple of months I've been volunteering each week at a place called Beit Cham Lenotzlim HaShoah, or Community Center for Holocaust Survivors (rough translation). I go with a couple of my friends from school and help set up tables for dinner, or any other little tasks they have, and then sit and chat with residents there during dinner. It's really quite pleasant and entertaining, I'm not quite sure how it counts as volunteering. The first person I met was a man from Romania named Yakov, who is such a character. He enjoys singing Romanian songs and telling stories about famous people he’s seen on his travels with his grandchildren. He and his wife told me the story of how they met and other amusing heartwarming anecdotes. I quite enjoy going to this senior center.

For my Hebrew class final project, we need to get into pairs or groups of three, choose a topic and interview an Israeli, then present on it. My group is with two girls, Lena and Elana, and because all of us go to this center we asked to interview the woman who runs the place, Chava. ...continue reading "Tea With Chava"

Sshrishti

AdminMay 7, 2013

Overall, my experience at Sshrishti has been a powerfully instructional and extremely fulfilling experience, and one of my favorites from my semester in India. I came in to the experience with an expansive list of goals which, now I realize, were quite overly ambitious. I soon found out that, especially in a small Indian community-based NGO like Sshrishti, things don’t always go as planned, and it is necessary to be flexible. By learning this important lesson, I was able to adapt to the opportunities readily available and contribute toward the areas where Sshrishti really needs help. By focusing on a few specific projects, I was able to have a much greater impact than I would have otherwise.

My service took place mostly at two of Sshrishti’s centers: Jai Hind Camp and the main Learning Center (SLC). Jai Hind was where I was placed originally, but entering a slum for the first time so soon after arriving to India was incredibly shocking, and I switched to the SLC for a time, as it served a similar population without being located within a slum itself. At SLC, I typically spent my time teaching independently, not alongside a teacher as I had originally expected. I also soon realized that my teaching would not be exclusively English, as with the frequent teacher absenteeism, it was quite common for me to cover math and computer lab classes as well. Some other challenges I faced at SLC were the unplanned and completely unpredictable schedule of which classes I would be working with and in which subjects. This made it basically impossible to prepare lessons ahead of time, so I definitely learned the value of flexibility. Probably the most difficult challenge for me was witnessing violence in the classroom, both among students and between teachers and students. Luckily, I was eventually able to have an open conversation about these issues with my volunteer supervisor, and she took action to help me address this issue. ...continue reading "Sshrishti"

The Final Goodbye

AdminMay 7, 2013December 14, 2018

By skatz14

What a whirlwind this experience has been! It has gone by faster than I thought possible. As I am finishing up at my volunteering site, I have been thinking about this whole journey and how it has impacted me and what I have learned. I started my volunteering experience happy with what was ahead of me, but unclear of what types of relationships I would build with my students. Over the course of this experience, I have seen my student’s achievements as well as their struggles. I supported my students by listening and helping, and as a result I gained their trust.

For me, the best part of this experience was building the strong relationships that I now have with my students and will continue to remember. It is hard for me to think that when I say goodbye to my kids, I will not be able to keep in direct contact with them and see how they are doing in school and in life. I would love to be able to know how they are doing and where they end up. Although most of my students have been exposed to certain things that no one should ever be exposed to, especially as 9 and 10 year olds, I see the drive and passion in many of them to get past the negatives in their lives. I believe that many of them will persevere against the odds and end up in good places later on in life. ...continue reading "The Final Goodbye"

Reflecting on Volunteering with UMPMRS

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By hkbardo

Working with UMPMRS has been both meaningful and challenging. I wish that the project I initially intended on assisting with was further along in its fruition, but as with many non-profits, and especially the way things work in Brazil, one must be patient and adjust expectations to a more relaxed time frame. That said, my daily experience in and around the organization is always insightful, whether I am actually helping to feed and instruct children, or simply observing the inner workings of the NGO and the myriad obstacles its staff must constantly confront. Walking up and down the favela each time is an eye-opening experience in itself, and listening to the harrowing stories of various residents within the community has been thought-provoking. ...continue reading "Reflecting on Volunteering with UMPMRS"

Reggae Buenos Aires Style

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By jtmanley

Yesterday, a friend and I attend Festival PUMM! Festival Sustentable para un Mundo Mejor. This free, no ticket required event was sponsored by the Government of the City of Buenos Aires and held in the barrio of Belgrano right next to Aeroparque Jorge Newberry. The festival brought together some very big names in Argentine and Brazilian reggae scene to perform some of their hits. We got there a little after 1.00 p.m. when stage tests were still being done. We left a little after 9.00 p.m. Yes, that's 8 hours of standing! It was worth it though.

There were six musical acts in total (three minor acts and three headliners). Argentine reggae band Lacandona Social Sound was the first to perform. They started things out right with good songs. Things backtracked a little bit when Caña de Azúcar got on stage, as they were unable to maintain the audience's attention. Rondamon picked up the ball and impressed me with their interesting addition of electronic elements to the traditional roots reggae sound. Ending the minor act portion of the show, Rondamon paid homage to Bob Marley with a good interpretation of "Buffalo Soldier." I actually bet my friend at the beginning of the show that if any band played a Marley song it would be that one. ...continue reading "Reggae Buenos Aires Style"

the end of the road

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By jamfanous

My time in Ghana is rapidly ending and our project is almost done! This entire semester I worried that something would go wrong and prevent this project from completion but now, so close to the final product I believe it will carry on after we leave. Many of the students and teachers are invested in the project and will continue it, as well as CDDF staff that have many more ideas for the school and will be keeping a close eye on the recycling being done. ...continue reading "the end of the road"

Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By jtmanley

Unfortunately, I did not heed TLC's advice. I spent last weekend in the Argentine province of Misiones to enjoy Iguazú Falls. One of the New Seven Wonders of Nature, Iguazú Falls forms a natural boundary between Brazil and Argentina, and it is a hotspot for a wide range of flora and fauna. During my short time there, I was able to explore Iguazú National Park in its entirety via foot, boat, raft, and train! Going to Iguazú let me get away from the hustle and bustle of city life (which makes that of Washington, D.C. look like child's play at times). ...continue reading "Don’t Go Chasing Waterfalls"

Far From Boston…..

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By rachels522

Last week my group returned from a two week trip along the Caribbean side of Costa Rica and Nicaragua. We went to Los Chiles, Nicaragua, which is only accessible by boat. We went on a beautiful ride through the jungle of Nicaragua and Costa Rica where we saw Howler Monkeys, Slider Turtles, Crocodiles, and tons of cool birds. After roughly four hours we got to Los Chiles. It’s a beautiful town. There are no cars. We stayed at a rustic lodge. While in Los Chiles we went on a hike of the Indio Maiz reserve, which was amazing. I had never been somewhere where I felt so secluded (until later in the trip…). While in Los Chiles we got a chance to talk with Minor and Armando, two migrant workers. We were specifically supposed to talk to them about their experiences working on Pineapple Plantations in Costa Rica, but the conversation really branched out. They both work illegally in Costa Rica. They barely get paid enough to survive. It took Minor until he was 21 to finish high school because he kept leaving to go to work to make money. Now he studies agriculture and works whenever he is not in school. It seems like such a hard life. It can be a many hour walk to get to the plantations. While they live in the barracks at the plantations they must work every second they can to make as much money as they can in order to return to Nicaragua with enough money to support the family. It seriously puts into perspective the relative ease in which I live my life and the corrupt way in which food is produced. I’m going to seriously start looking into what is grown in the DC and Boston areas and start trying to make the Eat Local movement something that everybody that I am friends with is aware of and knows about. ...continue reading "Far From Boston….."

Turkey, Hold the Gravy

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By jadoerge

Semester Break Adventures Part 3: Istanbul

So after our travels in Budapest and Bucharest, Morgan and I were finally on our way to our first real “destination,” that we had planned on: Istanbul. Although I could easily go on about our time in the city where East meets West, I will try to keep this as short as possible while still including the funniest and most culturally relevant tidbits.

After our relatively uneventful overnight train from Budapest to Bucharest, we certainly weren’t expecting what we were getting into during our 18-hour marathon train ride from Bucharest to Istanbul. While the train was a bit older, it was still nicely equipped and we had no real complaints about the train itself, per se. However, after a few hours on the train, things began to get interesting. First, at the border leaving Romania, we had to have our passports checked, during which, our passports were actually taken from us by a few officers and taken to a building about 50 yards from the train, which was terrifying all in itself. Interestingly, this happened at the other two border crossings as well before reaching the Turkish border. After thirty minutes, we finally were on our way again (passports in hand) and were trying to kill time with movies and books waiting the 1am arrival at the Turkish border, since we knew that we had to get out at some point during the ride. Once the late hour finally arrived, we all had to get off the train and go to a customs office which amounted to an office the size of a dorm room with two very exhausted customs officers who then proceeded to tell us that before we got stamps, we had to buy a visa at the visa office which was just down the road. The visa office, mind you, was about the size of a small closet with a flickering light and an older man who demanded 15 Euro per Visa. Unfortunately, we hadn’t used Euros since we left Germany and only had a few extra bills on us that amounted to 25 Euros. (None of this was clarified by anyone either on board or at the train station in Bucharest) After a few minutes of minor heart attacks and considering which bench we would sleep on for the night, one of the nice conductors on our train offered to lend us and a couple of American girls the necessary Euros as long as we paid him back with Lira once we were in Turkey. After we finally got our Visa, we were able to get a little shut eye before passing through the gorgeous old city walls of Istanbul around 8am. ...continue reading "Turkey, Hold the Gravy"

Awareness of the Issue

AdminMay 6, 2013December 14, 2018

By mashod93

As part of our “Reflection Week”, my fellow students of Amideast and I have been writing pieces on our times here in the forms of blogs, videos accompanied with text and opinion editorials. At the beginning of the semester, I had no idea what I would write about as my final reflection piece. I thought I would focus on my language skills and gauging whether they had improved and if so, what I could attribute to this progress. ...continue reading "Awareness of the Issue"