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Month: May 2018

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By kyrahaltman

My service at the Pet Grooming House has resulted in a 40-page essay about the "animal-friendly" entities who serve stray animals for free and without medical paperwork in Athens. These entities, unknowingly to the locals and the Greek government, are singlehandedly promoting stray adoption and animal welfare in the city without any financial incentivization. My research on this topic, through work-based learning at the PGH, has resulted in many surprising findings and recommendations for the government to care for the stray population and promote stray adoption by locals. I am excited to share these findings with the GW community, as well as the Greek government and Athens municipality when they are done being evaluated.

Moreover, I had the opportunity to conduct ethnographic research on the topic of my paper. I actually went to the Athenian Agora, the home of a very friendly and large stray dog named Brandt. My teacher had known this dog for ten years and offered to come with us to coach him to my site. I then walked him one hour to the PGH to be groomed and cared for free. It took over ten bottles of soap to get the dirt out of his fur, and we must have pulled out over 10 plants from his tail and back. He was also the most well-behaved dog I had ever seen being groomed at the PGH. After his grooming, I put on his new collar I bought him, gave him some treats, and brought him back to his home. My favorite part of this experience was that the owner of the PGH actually let me do the grooming myself. For the first time, I went through the entire (3.5 hr) process myself, cleaning this loving bear of a dog. I also was able to observe the process of taking a stray dog from the streets myself (not just asking people about it), the criticism from nearby Greek police/soldiers who saw us, the looks from different people as we walked together, and the difference in looks after he was cleaned. This experience contributed to my research and added a different element to the findings. I am overwhelming grateful for these experiences in Athens, and the kindness of the PGH. 

 

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By mlopez97

It feels crazy looking back at my original blog post (I am back in the United States now). I had so many new cultural experiences since early February. I traveled to Sevilla, Paris, Nice, Ghent, Brussels, Naples, Pompeii, Sorrento, Rome, Florence, Milan, Budapest, and many smaller cities in the region of Barcelona. I have learned a great deal about Barcelona’s culture, and my Spanish has significantly improved. Regardless, I think do not think my identity has changed considerably. There is a common perception that study abroad “changes you,” but I don’t know how accurate that is.

 

I certainly settled into Barcelona and became more comfortable talking to locals, allowing my “dumb American” identity to slightly subside. In my last week, I had a fifteen minute conversation in Spanish with a waiter at my favorite Mexican restaurant in Barcelona. I clearly had adapted better than many other American students, which was comforting to know. In March, when I was in line at a popular sandwich place, my friends and I were the only Americans to order in Spanish. However, my American identity was still very present. I dressed differently than Spaniards, I went to many restaurants that attracted other Americans, and I felt lost when visiting other European countries.

 

Other parts of my identity have remained completely stagnant. Now that I have returned to the United States, I realize that my ethnic and religious identity have not changed. I am still a slightly confused, half-brown atheist, but I am completely okay with this. I take pride in my unique identity.

...continue reading "Still Confused"

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By Marissa Kirshenbaum

A lot has happened since I wrote my last blog. In fact, this current blog is not even from "abroad", as I have officially returned back to the United States. Leaving Paris has been a whirlwind, one in which different feelings have all swirled together into one that is indescribable: I am grateful yet at the same time heartbroken, I am excited yet at the same time fearful. In the days leading up to my flight home, I felt at times content with the idea of leaving Europe, of rejoining my friends and family back home and reflecting on my meaningful experience. Yet, sometimes only a few minutes later I would feel devastated that my childhood dream has been terminated, that my time living in Paris has come to a close, and that I would have to say goodbye to a place that I had just gotten accustomed to living in.

Leaving Paris was more than coming back home after a long trip. In fact, when I was sixteen I spent five weeks travelling throughout Israel, so I believed that I would be used to the idea of leaving a place even if I had been there for a long time. However, this was different. It did not exactly feel like I was leaving to come home, because over the past three and a half months, Paris did in fact become my home. I went to school there, ate meals with my family, had my own bedroom, did my own laundry, and grocery shopped: all in Paris. I took trips throughout Europe and Africa, and returned to Paris. This was something that I had not expected would be so hard about leaving my sight of study abroad: it did not feel like my trip was over, but that my current life was being taken away from me.

Now that I am back and separated from Paris, I feel more of a sense of clarity. In this moment, I can reflect on my experience rather than dwell on what I lost. It has been interesting to reconnect with friends and see the life that I put on hold while I was studying abroad. It is interesting to see how people have changed and the things in society that have progressed. To me, it feels like I hit "resume", when in fact everyone else has been in "play".

...continue reading "Au Revoir mais pas Adieu!"

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You know what they say… April showers bring May flowers and the end of study abroad! Okay, I guess I’ve never heard anyone say that besides me. Everything has been super busy lately with finals and classes wrapping up for the semester. Last Wednesday, my program hosted a dinner to celebrate the end of the term. It was a great opportunity to have a variety of delicious, typical Spanish tapas! 

The final exam in my Food & Culture course asked primarily about the differences we observed between the culture of food and charitable food services in Spain versus the United States. My reflection about our community service experience discussed the variation of professionalism and volunteer-customer interactions between Spain and the United States. For example, the Saint Egidio organization has a strong emphasis on building and maintaining community among the homeless population in Barcelona. As I was volunteering, Alba, the woman in charge on certain nights, explained that the church plays an important role in the lives of these people by not only providing sustenance but also by providing support. The church’s dedication to this goal is evident through its variety of food events, special Sunday meals, and the guidebooks they created to help impoverished citizens access food kitchens and sleeping shelters throughout the city. Furthermore, Alba described an annual event held by Saint Egidio that I found very heartwarming. The church holds a special day of prayer once a year for those who have passed away in the local homeless community. Alba stressed the importance of this event: “it helps for them to know that someone will remember them when they are gone.”

This type of community-building is not so common in the United States. Whether this stems from the presence of larger homeless populations or cultural differences in the United States cannot be said certainly. However, a cultural difference was very clear when I volunteered for the second style of food distribution, which I discussed in my previous post.  There were several obvious differences between this type of food service and the equivalent in the United States. One was that a large variety of people came to receive the free meal; there were men in work attire who looked like they had come from work, groups sitting together and laughing, and couples eating together. This array of attendees was not limited to homeless people living in Barcelona, rather, anyone who could use the help of a free meal. Back home, although anyone would be welcome to receive the dinner provided for those in need, it is very unlikely that there would be anyone other than homeless individuals.

...continue reading "Food Culture and Service"

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By mariyaskhan

When I wrote my first blog post, I really had to give myself a hard look at who I was. Five weeks into my program, I was beginning to learn more about what made me uniquely American, Muslim, Pakistani, and Indian and how I fit in the world at large. And now, after a few months, I feel like I'm a stronger person in so many ways. I'm still pretty confident about all the different bits that make up who I am.

Interestingly, a couple of my English classes involved reading texts with references and stories that only people with strong Christian backgrounds would understand. I'm not going to lie - I did feel a little out of place every time I asked for an explanation or heard from a professor that I was at a disadvantage because I wasn't Christian. But instead of letting those kinds of things really bother me, I engrossed myself in those stories and loved analyzing things from a different perspective. I've always enjoyed looking at things in unconventional points of view.

Part of my program includes writing a giant research paper on a topic relating to Europe and its relationship to the world before the 1800s. When it came time to choose a topic, I knew that I was interested in exploring something to do with the Islamic World and Muslims during that time. I didn't exactly know what to pick, until I started exploring travel narratives. I sat through lectures going through Eurocentric ideas of the "Other" (a concept that I've always been interested in), and remembered an account of Viking customs from a Muslim travel writer. It got me thinking: How did Muslims view Christians? Are there Muslim travel narratives that have the same kind of Othering language as the Christian travel narratives? I finally decided to focus my research paper about two Muslim travel narratives from the 10th and 12th centuries. I think my Muslim faith and background gave me the unique perspective to come up with a topic like that, and I'm glad that I'm working on something that relates to my identity.

I'd also classify myself as a pretty introverted person. I'm pretty quiet and off to myself unless I'm surrounded by friends I'm really comfortable with. I've gotten pretty close to all the people in my program, and I love how we're such a tight-knit community. I feel less introverted and shy in general, which really lets me try new things and take some chances. I also love travelling and consider myself a city-gal, and I'm more confident in going off on my own and quickly figuring things out. Heck, I went to Greece alone for a few days, had a bunch of crazy problems that involved me staying in an airport for 12 hours and standing out in London at 2am waiting for a bus, and somehow managed to survive and get back to Oxford!

...continue reading "Gaining More Confidence in My Identity"

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By Nora_Wolcott

Today I expected to be writing about my spectacular tramp across the Tongariro Alpine Crossing, a 9-hour climb that is by all accounts one of the best in the country. But things don't always work out as expected. Here's how things went down: on Saturday I packed my tramping bag with everything I would need for the climb, including a hat, gloves, jackets and enough food to last me a full day. Accompanied by my best tramping friend Morgan I went down to the Auckland City car rental, and we were soon on our way to Tongariro National Park. After 4 hours of driving we arrived at Howard's Lodge, a small but comfortable hostel where we spent the night with 8 other trampers in bunk beds. In the morning we woke up at the crack of dawn, early enough to catch one of the few shuttles to the base of the mountain. This was where our adventure began, but not the one we expected.

Upon dropping our key off at reception, the worn-out looking receptionist greeted us with, "you do know the shuttles are cancelled for today, right?". We did not. Apparently there was a blizzard on the mountain, and the shuttle service had decided that morning not to let anyone climb for the day. With that we packed all our alpine tramping gear into the rental car, and sat deliberating on what to do next. We had come all this way, and were determined to make the most of our time. So, with that in mind, we headed North to Lake Taupo. The fog was so thick on the winding roads down we had to pull over a few times to let it clear, as we could barely see the road in front of us. However, when we made it to Taupo the fog evaporated altogether, leaving clear and sunny skies.

With newfound energy we hiked up Huka falls, glacial rapids the icy blue color we had become familiar with during our South Island trip. It was a short but beautiful hike, and yielded some great views of the waterfall, engorged from a night of heavy rain. After that, we used the money we had been refunded from our shuttle to Tongariro to book a boat out to see the Maori cliff carvings. I had fairly low expectations for this, which were completely surpassed by the carvings, which stretched high into the cliffs surrounding Lake Taupo. The boat we took out was a gorgeous little catamaran, which gave us plenty of time to soak up the sun while admiring the carvings.

...continue reading "Change of Plans"

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By mekaylatucker

Bonjour à Tous!!

I cannot believe that this semester is coming to a close, it has been such an amazing experience and the people I have met through my volunteering have only amplified this. I have to say that since the beginning of this journey with Serve the City: Paris I always knew that it would be the place where I felt I could be the most help and this has proven to be true. I have been able to take on more responsibilities than I thought I would have been able to, like coming up with projects to help get food out to homeless people.  I have even been able to lead a group of volunteers giving out food.

I have really been able to speak French a good amount because of this opportunity. I really hope that my work at Serve the City: Paris is having a good impact on the local communities especially because each week we focus on a different neighborhood in Paris. I do know if the little things I do will have an impact but I hope I have at least made an impact with the organization. I am so grateful for this time! I have learned so much! This week will be my last week and I really hope that I take the skills I have learned this semesterrs and take it with me on my next endeavors

Mekayla

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By ltchouaffe

In my first post, the words I used to describe myself was Cameroonian-American. In my last post I came to terms with my Americanness. Today, I still stand by my identity as a Cameroonian- American but in a new light. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I came to France to discover a bit of my Francophone identity and I have but I have discovered that is not bad being American. I think for the great majority of my life, I have tried to put that identity second. Its funny because people of immigrant origin and their family sometimes try to blend in but I was always trying to stand out. Perhaps I was ashamed of being American? There was nothing unique or different about it?

But France has shown me, that I should never disregard that identity. Being American is the reason why I think the way I do or act the way I act. There have been so many instances where my actions have shown that I am American and you know what the funny thing was- I never had to think about it. It was all so natural in every single way. It became more apparent to me when I started being homesick and craving American food. What a concept!

I think I needed to come abroad to see where I was from from the outside in. The thing about identity is that it can be hard but you have to embrace all of it. You have accept it all because it shapes the way you act in the world and that is something that I can’t change. I am American and Cameroonian and there is nothing wrong with being either.

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By teniolab

Just four weeks left. I cannot believe that my program and time abroad is coming to an end. I am not entirely sure how I feel about it. In these past two months, I have definitely “settled-in”. We have had less and less program commitments on the weekends. I have had the chance to spend more time with local and program friends. The most frustrating part of the situation is that I wish that this “settling in” sensation occurred mid-way through the semester, as opposed to happening right before I left. The benefit of having this feeling now it that it helps with the pain of leaving Botswana.

In terms of preparing for re-entry into the US, I am just trying to make the most of the connections I have in Botswana. Spending more time with my local and program friends helps to manage any sadness I feel about leaving soon. What really helps is the fact that my local friends no longer treat me as a “tourist”. They no longer take me to the super touristy or “must-see” places in town. We have reached a level where being bored but in each other’s company, is enough. For friends back in the states, I have to somehow find a way to recount my entire experience abroad. Do I just word vomit everything that has occurred over the last 120 days? Do I have them read my journal? Do I make a presentation for them? We have talked throughout the semester, mainly about my experience and the challenges I have faced. Talking in person would be a whole different story. You are going to be more vulnerable and expressions will be easily understood in a face to face conversation. Not that I could ever butcher the retelling of my semester, I just really want to portray Botswana is the accurate way.

What I’m really scared about the most is possibly seeing a change in my life once reoriented in the states. I mean, I know I have further developed my ability to adapt. But, what if I cannot cope with the reverse culture shock and immediately become disgusted by American values and stereotypes that I tried so hard to dismantle while abroad. The worst part is, I probably will not be the first to the notice the little changes in my life. It will probably be my friends and family who will see the changes first. I am saying that the changes will be bad. They may even enhance my personality. I think the key to coping with changes and reverse culture shock is to remain open-minded and give yourself time to process reorientation into the states. There is no perfect timeline for how the whole situation is supposed to unfold.

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By mhaimbodi

In my original post I stressed the importance of identity, and that for me, identity was something that I would be grappling with for the rest of my life. While my time abroad has not necessarily changed this sentiment, I think that it has given me a new confidence and maturity that can only come from time away from one’s support network and everyday familiarity. I am less reliant on the opinion of others, and I have learned that in defining identity, while your audience will always change, your definition won’t. I have introduced myself many times over the past few months, and in doing so I have gained a sort of self assurance that I didn’t know possible. I have become more confident in the impact that my words can have on others, and I am less afraid or self conscious to speak up. This does not mean that I have something to say about everything, because something that is very frustrating to me is people who don’t know when to stop talking. However, I think that the past few months have taught me about expression, and that if you have something productive to say then you should say it without extensive self doubt. Accordingly, my time has also reinforced the importance of thinking before speaking, especially when speaking about another country or culture that you are still learning about.

Upon reflection, I still am a black woman (obviously that did not change), but I think that my time in Dakar has given me a new appreciation of my mixed background. I have seen many mixed families here that have made me reminiscent of traveling with my parents and brother while growing up, and I have thought a lot about the privileges and experiences I was awarded because I have parents from two different places. I am prouder than ever to represent the histories of both sides of my family, and everyone who made it possible for me to be living, as my time in Senegal has given me a deeper reverence for family and those who came before me.

I think that the hardest part about leaving Dakar will be saying goodbye to the pace of life that I have grown accustomed to, and how welcoming the overarching community has been. I am notoriously impatient, and that has been tested greatly since my arrival in January just because of how time works here. It is very normal for things to start much later than they are supposed to, and to do a lot of waiting. This gave me a lot of anxiety (it still does sometimes), but it was also a wake up call/reminder that not everything functions according to my clock, and that sometimes it is necessary to step outside of yourself and simply appreciate that given moment. As for the welcoming nature of this community, I don’t think there has been a single day in Dakar where I’ve walked outside and haven’t greeted/been greeted by everyone I pass. It will be hard to adjust back to the impersonal society that makes up so much of the U.S, but I am grateful to know that humanity exists like this, and to have lived in a city as unique and special as Dakar.

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