SIT – Page 3 – GW Blogs from Abroad

to travel is to live

AdminJanuary 3, 2018December 17, 2018

Well I have been done with my study abroad for a while but mentally I am not.

A quick recap on my last week: I was planning on leaving Cameroon on the 10th of December but my flight ended up getting cancelled so I left the 11th. I am downplaying the crazy drama that happened in those 24 hours because I finally got over what happened (Air France provided nothing for my two friends and I) and I cannot stress myself over it again. I was worried because on the 13th I was set to go to Rome so we had to leave the 11th. We did leave the 11th, with a delay, but it happened.

Once we got to Paris from Yaoundé, I had to rush to my connecting flight to Lisbon. If it wasn't for me asking people to let me skip them, I would have never made it. Thankfully, I did make it and was in Lisbon by 10 am, however, my bags did not. Yeah, it has been a very dramatic week for me.

Since I was leaving to Rome the next day, I immediately went to buy some underwear, pants, and socks with my aunt to have some clothing. I wasn't really mad at Air France at this point, I kind of just expected that would have happened. Anyways, the next day ten minutes before boarding for my flight to Rome, I realized I had lost my passport. Yeah, series of unfortunate events in reality. I went around the Lisbon airport searching for my passport with no luck and even if I had found it, the gate had already closed. Many tears later, security found my bag with my IDs, passport, and all my cards. I was grateful but a miserable mess.

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December

AdminJanuary 3, 2018December 17, 2018

By gwujrbenjamin

བཀྲ་ཤིས་བདེ་ལེགས།! Tashi Dalek! This is Tibetan for hello, and in this blog I am using a traditional Tibetan greeting because I am back talking about my research on Tibetan peoples. To remind everyone, I am researching Tibetan mental health practices which is very interesting because not only is traditional Tibetan medicine the oldest system of written mental health methodology, but also it places the mental health above other kinds of health. In order to properly research this I became part of the community, volunteering at a local crafts center and Tibetan culture center. I taught English, and this gave me access to the community in a different way, one that was more comfortable.

People were able to talk to me more freely. I was able to shadow both Tibetan doctors in western medicine and Tibetan medicine hospitals. As well as a volunteer American doctor that works primarily with Tibetan nomads. This was an amazing experience, being so involved in a community that has such a rich culture. I was welcomed to learn Tibetan language, Tibetan traditional paining, and even to come over to Tibetan homes to eat dinner with the family.

These were not things that I thought I would be able to do because I had imagined they had nothing to do with my project. However, much like the medical system, everything in Tibetan culture is connected. I found speaking some Tibetan helped me become more of a trusted person to talk to, even though Tibetans have a culture of not talking about their problems. I also found that there is a huge connection between art, spirituality, and health with the Tibetan traditional art. Finally, being welcomed into a home to experience meals with a family taught me about the importance of the family unit and daily life dietary methodology. I was extremely fortunate to get connections through my SIT program.

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Half of my heart

AdminDecember 28, 2017December 14, 2018

By mariacort3s

Half is here, half is gone

I don't even eat McDondals right now but I could really go for ten chicken nuggets and a large fry. Chick-fil-a too.. Ah some Chick-fil-a sauce. My mom's cooking -- some Ajiaco, a Colombian soup, some of my feta, spinach omelets, just anything. My food cravings are so big right now, I want everything bad that I avoid when I am in the US.

I think about returning every day. Today my phone gave me the notification that in 8 days I'll be able to do early check in. Wow. I'm excited though because my journey doesn't end yet. I'm glad I have this in between week in Europe because it'll be used to reflect. I don't think I could make the switch immediately from here to home.

But at home, I can already picture my bed. I can see my cat standing by door, curious on who has just arrived, I can see my parents, my mom and brother on the couch, my dad in the dining table working on something, I see traffic, high ways, Christmas decorations, it's so so crazy.

But at the same time, I know Cameroon will be in my mind for a while. The life I have lived the last three months has been a rollercoaster and I would not change it for anything. I cannot talk enough about it. It sucks that now I am finally getting used to Cameroon and it is when I'm leaving. But I swear I'll be back soon. The people I've met, the education I have received, the streets I have walked, I can't thank life enough for this opportunity and to all the Cameroonians who opened their arms to me. Their hospitality and kindness transcends language barriers.

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Weeraba!

AdminDecember 28, 2017December 14, 2018

By jojoraewilliams

Weeraba means goodbye in Luganda, and even though I have said it a thousand times here in Uganda, today it is especially hard. I am wrapping up my last week of my semester and getting ready to catch a flight back to the US. I can’t believe that it’s December, and that I have to leave Uganda so soon. It has been a truly incredible semester. I love the scenery, people, culture, food, academics, and nature of Uganda. I am excited to see my family, but I am definitely not ready to leave this country.

This last week has been amazing. Academics ended last week for us, so we spent this whole week together as a program in Murchison Falls National Park. On the first day we went on a boat safari on the Nile to the base of the falls. We saw elephants and giraffes grazing on the banks, while crocodiles and hippos swam in the shallows. The hippos were some of my favorite animals that we saw on the trip. The falls were beautiful from the bottom and on our way back we saw one of the most beautiful sunsets over the Nile that I have ever experienced.

We went on a total of three game drives that were all incredible. We saw over 50 giraffes every time we went out. They are such cool animals and I love to watch them lumber over the savannah. We also saw a bunch of elephants, various herd animals, monkeys, beautiful birds, and a leopard. The leopard was my favorite animal we saw because we were able to watch it run for a long time across a plain. It moved so fast and with such graze that is was mesmerizing.

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Challenges and Rewards: Researching Abroad

AdminDecember 28, 2017December 17, 2018

I only have 22 days left in this gorgeous country and I find myself very much not wanting to leave! I attribute this feeling to the many incredible people I have met in the last two weeks.

Currently I am in a full-time research period, and a hallmark of the abroad curriculum of the School for International Training, known as the Independent Study Period (ISP). Because SIT places such a strong emphasis on fieldwork, each student is tasked with engaging in their community on a topic of interest independently for one month. The end result of this month of research is a 25 to 40 page research paper detailing findings and a 45 minute presentation on the process and findings of the independent study.

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Wealth in being alive

AdminDecember 28, 2017December 14, 2018

By mariacort3s

Welp! So exactly two weeks until I leave Cameroon. I won't be going back to the USA, rather I'll be going to Portugal where my aunt lives and then going to Italy for three days to meet up with my best friend Emilio who is studying there and my best friend Wendy who is coming from her program in Jordan and then I'll leave back to Portugal to make my way to the United States.

Wow, it just feels weird to realize how quick these past few months have gone by. I've gotten used to be being on this side of the world as strange as that sounds. It feels surreal to have to go back. As exhausted as I am and as ready as I am to eat Colombian food and sleep in my own bed, I will miss Cameroon with all my heart. These past few days as I focus on finishing my final assignment, my head is also preparing to leave. How will I explain this experience to people? I am not sure.

Summer going to 11th grade, I spent six weeks in Portugal with my aunt and when I returned everyone was so excited to know how it was and even to that I couldn't respond with a simple answer, all I would say is that it was amazing and you should just experience it yourself. As for Cameroon, where I have been for more than three months and have made amazing relationships with people, I would need a moment of your life to explain.

I'm not sure if everyone experience in study abroad are all this life changing, but even despite all the bad, all the identity crises, all the sicknesses, the people I have met, the lives I got to experience, the knowledge I gained is are all unforgettable and has truly changed the way I see the world.

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Free Speech vs State Stability: A Rwandan Case Study

AdminDecember 28, 2017December 14, 2018

By Kellie Bancalari

My time in Rwanda is quickly coming to an end, but not without wrapping up my research on the coexistence of free speech and state stability in post-genocide Rwanda.

This Friday marked the final day of my internship with Rwanda's leading english daily, The New Times. For the past month, I have interned with the news team and covered a myriad of topics and events including, the Africa Day of Information, the training of top officials on nuclear security, and even a UN FAO treaty signing on genetically modified plants. One of the coolest assignments I had while on the job was shooting a short-documentary on two brothers who fought off their killers during the genocide.

Through the internship, I was able to fully understand the current state of the media in Rwanda and how journalists here conduct their work. This internship served as an integral part of my research as I was able to observe how the post-genocide environment journalists operate in is affecting their work.

One of the findings during this observation period was how the media has been an integral part of the healing and reconciliation process of Rwanda. The stories that are published in nearly all of the Rwandan newspapers are focused on topics of reconciliation between people and the overall development of the country. These stories, my colleagues at The New Times have told me, help fight genocide ideology and bring the people of Rwanda together as one people (instead of divisions in the ethnic groups like in the past).

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Baganda Wange

AdminDecember 28, 2017

One week until I leave Uganda. It’s incredible how fast the time has flown this semester. One of the parts of this program that has had the biggest impact on my time here has been my homestay family. Throughout this trip, they have gone above and beyond to make me feel comfortable and have really made this country feel like home for me. My family (baganda wange in Luganda) is comprised of my mom, my dad, my sister who is 16 and my four brothers who are 20, 18, 12, and 7. Having such a big family, and one with such a different culture than I’m used to, was intimidating at first, but they were so welcoming that my fear was quickly replaced with a sense of belonging.

My first few weeks my family was amazing while I lived in their home. We had dinner together every night, where we exchanged stories about our days, talked politics, and explained our respective home countries to each other. My younger brothers always provided entertainment. My mom was the center of my family, and was as much a mother figure to me as my mom at home is. She was always there to help when I needed her, gave me the best advice and friendly conversations, and even drove me to the hospital at 3:00 am every morning for a week while I was sick. I love every member of my family and there is no other family I would have rather spent my time in Uganda with.

During the second six-week period of our semester, we were all doing independent research projects and we moved out of our homestays so that we could be closer to where we had to work. Even though I wasn’t living with them anymore, my family always checked in on me, and always had room for me if I wanted to come over. I would make the trek to their house every Sunday for family lunch, to catch up with my mom and two brothers around my age, and to play with my younger brothers. Every Sunday over my large steaming plate of matoke and g-nut sauce, the sense of home I had during the first six weeks would return and it was always hard to leave.

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November

AdminDecember 27, 2017December 17, 2018

By gwujrbenjamin

你好！Hello from my new home stay! I am currently blogging from a village named ShaPing outside of ShaXi town. This is a Bai minority agricultural village, so I am getting a taste of a new dialect of Chinese, and what it is like in rural China. The Bai minority is named after the color white because of the white houses, and emphasis of the color white in their traditional dress. The village is in the middle of a mountain range, and filled with corn fields.

The locals do not speack much mandarin. Yes, this rural area has its unique challenges, but mostly it is filled with lovely people willing to share their culture with you, beautiful ancient architecture, and a ton of shucking corn. This brings me to this blog post’s topic. For this blog I will not be focusing on my service and research that I am going to be starting in just a few weeks (yay!). But, instead, on a very basic and critical part of Chinese culture, familial piety.

Chinese people since the beginning of Confucianism, have put a large emphasis on the family unit. Specifically in the idea that the younger generation helps the older generation, or a continuous service to the family. Young people have an enormous pressure to serve their elders, and often take on this challenge with open arms. Upon entering a homestay in China this same concept flows. I am a 20 year old woman currently living in a house hold with a mother, father, grandmother, grandfather, and a grandchild.

...continue reading "November"