Travel Study/ study abroad programs bring people together in a way in which the stereotypical dormitory on a college campus cannot accomplish. Other than the program itself, the individuals on these adventures away from home initiate dialogue, which develop friendships abroad and eventually, make their way back home.
The unfamiliar surroundings and faces that remove us from our elements, place students in the same boat, so to say, while in a new and exciting place without those stable strongholds we are accustomed to. The bonds we have created over a short period of time will last long after our five-weeks encountering Vietnam and each other (based out of my own experience in other travel study programs). The small and big acts of kindness amongst people are refreshing after spending too much time in a competitive university, where I have at times awkwardly sat in a classroom of peers, who do not necessarily like to “make friends.” The friendships and connections go beyond just the students and faculty in the program.
Like other students have mentioned, for the most part people have taken very kindly to us and welcomed us into their culture. From playing cards with our motorbike business men across the street from the hotel (who wave and smile to us every morning) to our Vietnamese translators from Hue, University who graciously take time out (unpaid) of their lives to assists us in our studies and experiences in Vietnam, we as students are privileged to have such an experience.
My facebook status read “I’m sitting on top of the world, on the other side of the world… if you have a chance to study abroad, don’t pass it up.” The experience, along with the friends acquired, has become the symbolic capital, which cancel out the fees I shelled out for the program.
To be continued… “The Motorbike Diaries”
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