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Month: November 2014

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By rbhargava

This past Friday, Nov 21st, I arrived back home to New Jersey after my 17 day  trip backpacking through South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. As you may of noticed, I was not able to post anything during the trip due to a complete lack of access to computers! So through this post and the next few I hope to share some of my memories during a very enjoyable trip traveling through southern Africa with some amazing friends.

On the evening Nov 2nd, 6 of us left Stellenbosch by bus to travel to Port Elizabeth. Although only six of us were leaving, a group of 10-16 people came to send us off at the bus stop - as some close friends wanted to give us one last goodbye! Our group was composed of 4 Germans, one girl from Hong Kong, and of course me. The overnight bus to PE was quite the experience, as we later found out we had taken the cheapest "budget" option bus available. Sitting next to my friend Maren, we tried to keep ourselves entertained while cockroaches  crawled up and down the window and South African Christian gospel music played overhead the entire night. We survived the journey though - and arrived in Port Elizabeth around 5am in the morning.

On our first day of the trip, we rented two tiny Polo cars to drive all the way up to coast to Durban with over the next several days. We went to the beautiful Sardinia Bay just outside PE before relaxing a bit at our cozy backpackers - Lungile Backpackers. In the evening we met a friend of a friend in downtown PE, who gave us a nice walking tour of the city as well as the Casino and joined us for dinner on the beachfront.

The second day of our trip was an obvious highlight for all of us as we took our two Polos to the famous Addo Elephant Park and were treated close encounters with countless elephants as well as buffalo, warthogs, eland, kudu, and several other animals. At more times than we would have liked we found ourselves stuck with elephants blocking the road. There was once when a very territorial elephant event drew a line in the road with his front foot, placed a large stick along the line, and waved its ears at us - clearly indicating that we should not come any closer. Driving through the park and encountering wild animals the entire day was a true joy, and we all enjoyed some adrenaline pumping moments.

On the 3rd day we left Port Elizabeth for Chintsa - a small town on the Wild Coast. Stopping in Port Alfred and East London, we spent the majority of the day on the road. Unfortunately the weather was overcast and rainy - something that would define the majority of our rip along the coastline that is world famous for beautiful sunny days year round. At Chintsa we stayed at the gorgeous Buccaneers Backpackers where we were treated with a well deserved homemade meal by the kitchen staff there. In the evening one of the managers of the backpackers took some of us to a dam to enjoy the sounds of wildlife in the approaching full moon night. Sitting along the dam with a small group of backpackers from all around the world and listening to the sounds of frogs burping in the middle of the forest was an experience I won't forget. Just like many moments during my Spring Break, I felt quite apart from the rest of the world and thoroughly enjoyed the company of the random other backpackers who were with us. And with that, I knew my trip was off to a success!

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By bbarfiel

In my original post, I tried to give you a sense of my community and the way that I define my self. Since then, I have experienced a lot of things that have confirmed and challenged my initial thought. Overall, I still identify myself in the same way in my first way. I am still a driven, man of color who is trying to break all of the stereotypes society has instilled. While this is completely true, I believe my identity is greater than this. ...continue reading "BUILDING IDENTITY & COMMUNITY"

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By bevvy2212

One of the good things about writing a blog is that it prompts me to go out and explore. This past Tuesday was November 11th and a national holiday in France, so there was no school. I took the advantage to explore Musée des égouts, namely the sewage system of Paris. Fun side note, Victor Hugo was good friends with the sewage designer back then, so he knew a lot but the Parisian sewage system and Jean Valjean from Les Miserables used the sewage as a hiding place.

The museum is near the RER stop Pont de l'alma. Ticket was about 3.60 euros for students. The smell... was a bit atrocious even at the entrance. I have some really dull senses so the smell wasn't that bad for me. My friend on the other hand was about to faint. According to her, "I was lucky enough not to die from the Beijing poisonous smog and now I land myself in the sewers of Paris." So think before you go.

It was quite an interesting experience and a bit confusing/gross at times. The Parisian sewage system is the only one of its kind in the world, made up of 2100 km of sewers that can be inspected and really well constructed (since Paris is so big), so it's really hard to imagine how it all began on the Cité Island where Notre Dame sits. Yes, the original Paris was that big. An Island. People used to take water from the Seine and dump their wastes back into the Seine, a bit un-sanitary if you ask me. But since the population was small enough back then, it was still under the Seine's capacity to purify the water. As the city grew, water became an urgent concern. Fountains and aqueducts were built to introduce fresh water into the city but the waste water still flowed into the Seine, example of how not to build a sustainable living city. But then again, drastic circumstances calls for drastic actions, which was the main motivation for refining the Parisian sewage system to how it is today. As we were walking inside the Museum, we could actually see the sewage water and the grimy stuff that was floating on the surface. Definitely quite the experience, but not sure if I would recommend that to anyone.

After that, we walked over to the Eiffel Tower because it's right around the corner. It's probably one of the most touristic things one can do in Paris and I've put it off for so long. Walking up the Eiffel Tower is still on my bucket list, not sure if I will be able to cross that off during this time I'm at Paris, but then again, more the reason for returning to Paris, right? We took the elevator to the second viewing deck, and switched elevators to go to the top. You have to have a ticket to the summit, otherwise you will be turned away at the door after being in line for two hours. The people in front of us found this out the hard way.

I love cities by nights. I think it offers a very different view. I haven't been to the top at night so it was definitely an awesome/freezing experience to see Paris at night. No pictures can do it justice, truly. They offer champaign in a brightly lit cup at the top of the tower. Applications are now open for those who would like to buy me a drink at the top of the Eiffel Tower, limited time offer, snatch it up before it's gone.

So from one of the lowest point of Paris to the highest point, as above, so below.

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By mcbitter

10805259_10205383992308083_416554692_nI know it's only mid-November, but that doesn't mean I can't get excited for Christmas! This weekend, my friends and I went to the Christmas markets on the Champs-Elysees, and let me tell you, they know how to do a market! On each side of the avenue were little shops full of handmade crafts, jewelry, ornaments, you name it. I found one particular shop that was different kinds of tea, all of which were named for various cities in France. Besides the shops, there were also tons of food booths set up - you could get crepes, waffles, German sausages, even cotton candy! It was absolutely wonderful and a great way to spend an afternoon. After walking through the shops (we only did half of them so that we can go back again!), we went for a ride on on the "grand roue de Paris" - the ferris wheel! It gave spectacular views of the city and was well worth the ten euros. Next time, I also want to check out the ice rink that was nearby.

Speaking of holidays, Thanksgiving is coming up, right? As sad as it is, you can't find this gem of a holiday outside of the United States, so that's probably why France is already focusing so heavily on Christmas. (Or that might just be the norm now.) We have a Thanksgiving dinner planned with our program though, so I'll definitely get my turkey! As for all the other traditional favorites, there are quite a few specialty food stores around the city that offer them - stuffing, cranberry sauce, the works. This will be my first Thanksgiving away from home, but everyone here has become my family too, so I have no doubt that it'll be wonderful!

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By Jess Yacovelle

I've been living in London now for nearly seven weeks, and by this point I've experienced numerous things to do each and every day. I've compiled my five favorites into the below list; check them out!

1) Find "a place." To me, the number one thing that's helping me get to know and experience London is a restaurant a few friends and I have found: Belushi's. We hang out there a couple nights a week and we interact with other regulars. By relaxing and chatting with locals in a familiar setting, it's easy to learn more about London life.

2) Trafalgar Square. There's always something going on in Trafalgar Square. Whether it's a street dance performance, a food fair, or a special exhibit, Trafalgar Square is a beautiful place to see. The architecture of the statues is also gorgeous and well worth a look.

3) See a theatre show. Comedians and theatre shows are huge in London. There are upwards of twenty shows occurring on any given night. The downside to this cool cultural tidbit is that it's a pretty expensive habit; tickets range in £30-£100! But it's worth it to try and see a show or two a month because London theatre is amazing. As of now, I've seen Shakespeare in Love, Evita, and The Lion King, and I've also seen comedian Jon Richardson live. My wallet is a little annoyed, but they were incredible shows and well worth it.

4) Try every café in sight. I'll be honest, I'm a sucker for coffee. I'm infamous in my family for visiting Stonehenge and taking pictures with a cup of coffee in my hand. So one of my favorite ways to pass the time in London is to experiment and explore various cafés. If I happen to be with a friend, I'll sometimes check out hotel cafés; the coffee is usually more expensive, but it's always delicious!

5) Drink coffee and sit along the Thames. Have I mentioned that I'm a sucker for coffee? Even though the temperature has dropped significantly since I've arrived, the Thames is still a beautiful place to visit, especially if you're on the South Bank. This side of the Thames faces St Paul's Cathedral, the Tower of London, and Big Ben. My favorite spot? About a five minute walk up from the famous Globe theatre. It's far enough away from the tourist trap to be peaceful, yet still close to the picturesque view.

6) Camden Market. Camden Market is perhaps the greatest place to visit in all of London; they set up stalls and stalls of fashion, gifts, and ethnic food for you to purchase. Some of the best meals I've consumed in London were from Camden Market; definitely arrange for a visit if you can.

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By makenadingwell

This weekend I traded in paella for curry and flew back to London, my second hometown. Not only did I get the chance to hang out with my childhood best friend, but I also arrived just in time to see a football match between the U.S. and Colombia with a friend from GWU. Since I spent my summer and the span of the world cup in Colombia, I was thrilled to be surrounded by passionate Colombian fans once again. However, being at the match was a little confusing, culturally.

Sometimes I said “grathias” like I was from Spain and sometimes I cheered like I was from Colombia. I snuck back into a British accent when I was with my British friends but I chatted like an American with my GWU friend. I’ve read that we’re different with each person we’re with, but is that really the same with each place we’re in? Which country, let alone team, did I represent? At one point I think I even said “merci” to a cashier at a café by Tower Bridge.

It seems like every weekend, students studying abroad are darting between trendy cities, picking up more than just the currency. However I remember being a kid, moving between England and the U.S., and traveling all around Europe, and always feeling so self-conscious of belonging to the “appropriate” culture. I heard, “you’re American, why do you say some words weirdly?” or “you’re not British, why do you like the football team?” I always reminded myself that I was supposed to be American first and other influences were secondary. Even to this day, I still feel that pressure to prove my “Americanness.”

However I only had a Colombian jersey when I went to the Colombia v. USA match, my British accent came out purely unintentionally, and I said “claro” to people who clearly do not speak Spanish. After my third trip to London in three months, it’s become clear with each comparison that I can’t fight the culture from any country or city I spend time in. Two months into Spain and I no longer like to eat dinner before nine. I prefer tapas-style meals and I stare unwaveringly at people on the metro, admiring fashion or following interactions between groups. I respond to everything with “vale” or “claro,” and I no longer feel a rush to leave after eating at a restaurant.

Now back in Madrid, I even still say “crisps” and “cheers” and prefer a refreshing foggy morning like those in London. Likewise, from Colombia, I crave finding seasoned strips of mango or fresh empanadas on the street and love obsessive football fans. I too appreciate a well-executed preppy outfit or a good political debate during Sunday brunch, a clear change from living on the West Coast.

But there’s also the culture of travelling, of always carrying an apple and a granola bar and finding comfort in naps on buses and small backpacks that we’ve all grown accustomed to. Finally, after months of dipping between countries and exchanging stories every Monday morning with friends, its clear we carry a little more than just the stamps in our passports and the pictures in our instagrams and I could get very used to this.

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By Hannah Radner

London is massive. While certainly not the largest city in the world, it is by far the largest city I have ever lived in, dwarfing both Boston and DC. Something is always happening in different parts of the city, and while central London may be a fantastic spot to live if you're into the touristy sights, there are also plenty of other awesome places to go. On a map, it doesn't look that bad. It looks like my dorm is a hop, skip and a jump from the Thames, when in reality it's a good twenty-minute walk. There are markets everywhere - Borough, Smithfield, Portobello Road, and Camden, just to name a few. Brick Lane is the place to get Indian food, and there is a 24-hour bagel establishment as well as a forthcoming cereal café (that's right, a cereal café) in Shoreditch. I could go on and on about how many things there are to do in London (most of the above mentioned I have not even done yet). The problem with wanting to do all these things: They are ridiculously far away from each other, unless you fancy walking for a few hours. Luckily, there is no shortage of transportation in London.
First: getting here. London has six airports: Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Luton, Southend and City. There are probably more. City is actually the only airport in London proper. I flew out of there to get to Dublin and it was an absolute pleasure. It was a 30 minute ride on the DLR (to be discussed later); there was one terminal, security was easy, and it appeared very clean and fairly new. I've been told by my trusty unofficial guidebooks (and yelp) to avoid Southend and Luton as they are quite difficult to get to and the experience is a pain. Stansted and Gatwick have trains and buses that go to and from them, more expensive than the tube though much less expensive than a cab. Heathrow is quite far out from the city, though being a huge international airport, not difficult to access. The Piccadilly line on the tube goes straight to the terminals, and one could also take buses, trains, cabs, minicabs, whatever suits your fancy.
Once you are finally here, you now have the pleasure of staring helplessly at a giant tube map on the wall and, once you've figured it out, cramming yourself in the train with the masses to get to your destination. However, the tube may not be the best way. Here is my personal list of transportation in London:

1. Bus. I'm sure I said this in an earlier post, but they are all double decker and it is not a myth. Go upstairs and try and get a seat at the front. The bus is great because a single ride is cheaper than the tube (bus is £1.45 and tube is £2.20 in Zone 1). Truth be told, I have only just discovered the wonders of the bus. I didn't initially allow myself to use it because there are so many buses going to so many places and I was terrified I would get on the wrong one or miss one and have to wait 20 minutes for the next one. A friend of mine introduced me to the Citymapper app about a week and a half ago and it has since changed my life and now I have learnt to use and love the bus, so here is a shameless plug for Citymapper. Take the bus.

2. Tube. It's faster than the bus, but for a ride it's 75 pence more expensive, which adds up after several rides and adds up even more after you think about the murderous exchange rate (RIP my bank account). You most likely will not have a place to sit. You also have to deal with the station's shenanigans, like people who wait until the last minute to pull out their Oyster Card (like a smart trip card), stand on the left on the escalator (DC people understand my pain), strollers, suitcases, body heat, and the maze that leads you to which platform you're looking for. But still, it's much faster than the bus, there are less stops, and you don't have to pay to switch lines (like you have to pay £1.45 again if you get on a different bus).

3. DLR. It is a tube line but it deserves its own bullet point. I took it once, to City Airport, and it is what a public train ought to be; it has big windows and ample seating, ventilation (!!!), and it runs from central to east London, which is cool if you simply want to see a different part of the city. I've heard that, if you're lucky, and if no one is sitting in the front seat, you can "drive the train" and that it's awesome but I don't know what it means and I'm kind of afraid to find out.

4. Cab. This is if you have money to burn, or if you don't and you just don't care, but it's late at night and you just want to go home. It's a good late-night option, if the night bus is somehow inconvenient to you, which it very well may be. It's easier to hail a cab than to wait in the cold for a night bus, and the cab doesn't stop, which is a relief when you just want to go home. Sure, it may cost £10 for a short ride, but it was worth it because I am now in the warmth of my own bed 30 minutes earlier than I would have been had I taken the bus. Who's the real winner here?

5. Bicycle. London has its equivalent of Capital Bikeshare, though they are operated by TfL (Transport for London). I have never ridden a bicycle in London and I do not ever plan to because I don't have a death wish. The cars drive very fast and drivers show no remorse and it's scary enough being a pedestrian; I couldn't imagine sharing a road with them, much less on a bicycle with myself all exposed to the elements and what not. The bikes would likely be a great option for riding through a park (on the paths that allow bikes) or through neighborhoods with less traffic. The other cool thing about the bicycles is that each 'station' has a post with a map of the surrounding area on it, showing walking and biking distance radii. They are everywhere, so it's hard to get lost.

I could go on about all the trains that go in and out of London, like National Rail and Eurostar but that would take ages. Many stations are under construction for a new project due to open in 2018 called CrossRail, a high speed rail system that runs the length of London from East to West. Citymapper, which tells you a myriad of different ways to get home, includes a "jetpack" option, clearly preparing users for the future and/or driving someone somewhere to finally invent a usable jetpack. As I said before, London is huge, but it's quite easily accessible, especially when you open yourself to the wonders of the bus or open your wallet to the wonders of a cab.

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By anuhyabobba

The hostel I stayed in during my stay at Puerto Iguazu had the following Paulo Coelho quote painted on the wall near the entrance -- a quote that has struck with me since:

“When you travel, you experience, in a very practical way, the act of rebirth. You confront completely new situations, the day passes more slowly, and on most journeys you don’t even understand the language the people speak. So you are like a child just out of the womb. You begin to attach much more importance to the things around you because your survival depends upon them. You begin to be more accessible to others because they may be able to help you in difficult situations. At the same time, since all things are new, you see only the beauty in them, and you feel happy to be alive.”

My time in Buenos Aires has been marked by a tremendous growth in terms of how I see myself. The first month, before Buenos Aires became a place I see as a type of home, it was a period of time where I was absolutely lost. Over the first two years of university, I have fostered a sense of comfort in how I defined myself, who my friends were, and what I wanted to be. But, the three weeks from when I arrived in Buenos Aires acted as a blank slate. Beforehand, I saw myself as shy, as a person who cannot hold a conversation and also as a person who is dependent on company. I love company, but study abroad is one of the first times where I did activities on my own accord and independently without associating any type of negativity with acting alone. Study abroad allowed me to find comfort in me. Living by myself and without a housemate made me figure out this big city largely on my own. Granted that coming in without knowing Spanish made the process all the more difficult, but four months in, I speak confidently and walking the city streets is not as daunting as it once was.

The most important notion study abroad has helped me come to terms with was how to adapt to my environment without losing a sense of self. I think it can become easy to mold yourself around surrounding circumstances, but I sometimes completely omit my own self, my own likes and dislikes from this process. Like Paulo Coelho said, traveling and living abroad has been this type of rebirth. I did not necessarily lose the person I was before, but I simply built on it greatly to become a better version of myself. I have learned how to reach peace with where I am location wise while also developing on the person I already was. It can be a hard balance to come to, but by being abroad, it was a balance I had to work toward daily.

I am two weeks from the end of my program, and I look back smiling because I am all too grateful for what I have learned in these past few months.

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By clairemac93

The title seems broad, but months pondering this subject and I’m yet to come up with a better summarization of my feelings. White people here, are indeed, afraid of everything and everyone…it seems at least.

Stellenbosch is located in the Western Cape. It is 17% white, 49% coloured, and 33% black African. But I’m going to be perfectly honest. Despite my returning to the United States and everyone imagining that I spent my days surrounded by “black Africans”, I spend my days in Stellenbosch almost entirely interacting with whites and maybe, coloured people. Stellenbosch is an Afrikaans university, which is why it attracts that demographic. In fact, despite the Western Cape being 17% white, the most of any region in South Africa, Stellenbosch University is 68.5% white.

So great, we’ve established there isn’t much diversity here. But that’s not really my issue, as whether I’m here or at a small liberal arts college in the United States, I will probably find myself disappointed by the sea of white privilege—myself being a part of that. What I’m disappointed about is the connection it has taught me here between race, income and safety.

Last semester we experienced two girls, on their own during dark hours, individually get kidnapped on campus. It shook the campus. Suddenly students were saying there was a “crime spike”. Every kid who had his wallet stolen or was approached by someone weird contributed to this theory. Emails were sent out explaining the situation to parents, and to avoid another “incident”, evening exams offered bus trips for kids to and from the exam venue. I later received an email from the University president that “crime had been pushed to perimeters of campus”.

And I stood there, and I wondered what that meant. Crime had been “pushed” off campus? There was always crime in Stellenbosch. The kidnappings had just made people more aware of it. And there are reasons for that. Despite the university being, predominantly wealthy and white, the town of Stellenbosch itself is not. In fact, Stellenbosch is actually vastly majority coloured and there is a huge township, Kayamandi, viewable from basically every window at this university. Within a 5 minute walk from campus, you can find yourself in a very different world. Forget the tree lined streets and cute cafes, bring in the discounted expired-goods grocery stores and beggars on the streets.

As such, its not so surprising to me that Stellenbosch University would be a target for crime. Kids here have grown up in literal bubbles of gated communities which within themselves have 8 foot walls and security systems. They went to private all-boys and all-girls schools where they receive a world class education while other students in their country can’t afford books or even a school lunch. They walk around campus with I-Phones in hand and newly bought clothes. This is all not so different from my university at home. But what I’m saying is that the blatant display of class difference here would piss me off as someone not part of that social class, too. Though kidnapping is certainly extreme, for a large amount of robberies or theft to go on here is unsurprising to me, as from the outside it looks like these kids have everything- and could certainly live past losing a laptop or a sandwich.

It is also shocking to me that the university would promote its students to stay indoors during evening hours, to bus to and from exams, and to never walk alone. Perhaps living in DC has given me a thick skin, in which they text us to tell us of crime but don’t necessary guide us of what to do- instead assuming us mature enough to react on our own. I feel like promoting these things only keeps these already naive students in their bubble. Hiding from crime does not make it go away and these same students will one day be entering into the real world where crime still happens, and be equally as uneducated of how to handle it.

But that is one more caveat. I totally understand why the kidnappings shook this campus. That just doesn’t happen here and is incredibly unfortunate. However, aside from that students are convinced that Stellenbosch is incredibly dangerous. As they spread this message, as do professors and university officials, a general fear becomes ingrained in students. For example, I had a study partner tell me that she previously lived on another side of Stellenbosch and moved because she felt “unsafe”. I asked her why and what had happened. She told me that nothing ever happened, she just felt it. I asked her if there were more black people around her previous residence, and she explained yes. I’m not sure she caught my connection between the two. Students come to fear the outside world as if its going to eat them alive. It also creates an unnecessary fear of anyone who’s not a clean-cut kid. I was walking with a friend once who saw a black man carrying a chair down the road ahead of us. She instantly grabbed my arm and told me that we should stay away from him because he “looked dangerous”. I, naturally, laughed and asked how carrying a chair makes someone scary. I then explained that if it was a white person carrying that chair, they would assume it was just a student moving or doing something stupid. Suddenly it’s a black guy and you are in danger of the man-with-chair. It’s actually ridiculous.

I am yet to feel unsafe at all in Stellenbosch, any more than I am in DC. I feel that if you look like you know where you are going, what you are doing, and look people in the eyes you are doing yourself the largest favor. I’ve walked at all times of day and night, alone, and have rarely been approached. When I have, I have acted calm and nothing has happened to me. I think that by the time you are in college you should not be hand-holded of how to function day-to-day and unfortunately dealing with crime is part of that here. And even if crime, predominantly theft, does happen, can you really blame them?

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By marisalgado94

I woke up and immediately knew that something definitely wasn't right.  My vision was a bit blurry, my eyes had this sore, sandy feeling, and the sunshine that was bursting through my window seemed way brighter and harsh than it usually did at 5 in the morning.  I sleepily stumbled into the bathroom and my fears were confirmed- my eyes definitely had some sort of infection. I had been battling a cold for the last week and assumed that my latest symptom was just another progression of a particularly aggressive cold.  I called up my academic director and being the wonderful woman that she is, she told me she would take me to the doctors that afternoon.  This made me, and my mom back in the States, feel much better as part of my hesitancy of going to the doctors earlier in the week had been not knowing how to use my month of Portuguese to get myself through Brazil's lovely health care system.

My classmates joked that now I would have a chance to see healthcare in Brazil in action... the ultimate "case study".  As studying health in Brazil is the main focus of my program, I too thought it would be interesting to make observations on the type of care that I, along with others in the doctor's office I was going to, were receiving.  After arriving at one of Salvador's many hospitals, one that is a part of SUS (Brazil's healthcare system), we were told that an eye specialist was not available for emergency care.  The receptionist told us that the best place to go would be to a private medical center that was just around the corner.  As I looked around the waiting room, I saw a crowd of people scattered about, each waiting their turn to be seen for free as public healthcare services in Brazil are free for everyone.

Long story short, I went to this private eye center and after paying quite a bit of money up front and a little wait time, I was brought in for a consultation, told I needed antibiotics, given a prescription and sent on my merry way.  Walking back out to our car, we passed by the hospital’s waiting room again.  It was still crowded and full of people who probably wouldn't be seen for quite some time.  Like I said before, SUS is Brazil's public healthcare system.  According to Brazil's 1988 constitution that was written post- military dictatorship, healthcare is a citizen's right and it is the government's responsibility to provide universal, equitable, and decentralized healthcare to all citizens for free.  As you can imagine, in theory this sounds great but in practice, there are a lot of issues with the implementation of the system.  In Bahia, for those that are of a higher socioeconomic class and have money, access to quality care is never an issue because they can afford private medical insurance.  For those who are living in poverty however, this is not a luxury that they can afford.  Of those living in poverty in Bahia, 84% of them are afro Brazilian, resulting in the health of the Black population being some of the worst.

Yes, I got to see some of Brazil’s healthcare in action, but I really only got to see what it’s like for those who live a privileged life.  It made me aware once again of where I come from, how my race plays into my experiences here in Brazil, and how healthcare in Brazil still has a ways to go.  In 3 weeks I will begin my research into the effectiveness of community organizations in preventing drug use among adolescents.  Because there is a lack of care for the afro Brazilian population, prevention of health problems at the community level is key for ensuring the health of the population until something can be done structurally to change the racial stratification that plagues the healthcare system. As I plan out my research, I use every experience to build a foundation on which I will start from.  Everyday here has something new to teach us, we just have to be open to learning.

Unless otherwise indicated, the content and opinions expressed on this web site are those of the author(s). They are not endorsed by and do not necessarily reflect the views of the George Washington University.
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