Country – Page 6 – #RamblersAbroad

For Prospective Kookmin(or Korea) Exchange Students

By luctechco | August 2, 2016

Hello, and welcome to my first blog post! Today is August 2, 2016, and the end of summer is in sight, which also means that the fall semester is just around the corner!

For my study abroad trip to Kookmin University in Seoul, South Korea, I am expected to be on campus on August 27, the weekend before classes start on August 29th, for a one day orientation. With less than a month before I start a whole new chapter of my life in South Korea, I’d like to share with prospective students what the summer has been like for me (since it might be the case for you)!

Initially, I had hoped that all the details for my study abroad trip would be set in stone before the summer started, heck, even before finals were over, but, alas, that was not the case.

I am not sure if it is just Kookmin University or perhaps all Korean colleges, but one should consider that your host university might operate on a much later schedule than is the norm for US colleges. I applied to Loyola’s study abroad office and USAC, the University Study Abroad Consortium that creates the study abroad experience, by mid-January and received my approval from both of these institutions by February and March respectively, and then waited to hear back from Kookmin University.

During this time, I went ahead to get course approvals, applied to the Benjamin Gilman International Scholarship and the Loyola sponsored USAC scholarship, and renewed my passport. Finals came and went. Students all around me announced their study abroad plans and were registering for class, but I still had not received word from Kookmin University. I emailed my USAC advisor and was told that Kookmin University doesn’t actually close the fall registration application window until July 1st, so waiting was inevitable.

Two-thirds of a summer flew by, and then it finally happened! I was notified on July 14th by email that I was accepted by Kookmin University and admitted to their International School of Business. At this news, I was ecstatic and felt 20 pounds lighter with alleviated stress and uncertainty! Immediately, I booked my flight to Korea’s Incheon airport. I received some additional materials from my USAC advisor and was officially free to prepare for my trip during the next six weeks.

However, the waiting didn’t stop there. Another week passed(understandably) before I received my original acceptance letters from Kookmin University through the mail, signed by the college president himself. As soon as I could, I took those documents and everything else necessary to the General Consulate of the Republic of Korea located on the 37th floor in the NBC Tower in Chicago and applied for my student visa on July 26th. I actually got a call from the UPS store, letting me know that my visa is ready for pickup as I was writing this. The visa process only took me a week!

I also received an email just this past hour from the International Affairs Division manager in Kookmin about class registration, so that process is underway, too!

Besides that, I have been checking into what items I need to buy and pack for my journey abroad, printing backup copies of my identification and insurance cards as per USAC’s suggestion, and am just trying to enjoy my last few weeks in the states. I downloaded an app (Tengugo Hangul) to learn how to read Korean and am now working on learning how to make sentences with an online resource (howtolearnkorea.com). I’ve started watching a handful of videos on Youtube about Korean etiquette and norms, too, and am getting so incredibly excited to immerse myself in a new culture and to share the experiences with Kookmin’s 200 other exchange students. With just a little bit more than three weeks before departure, all the pieces are finally falling into place.

I hope that if your study abroad plan to Korea feels delayed like mine that you not panic like I nearly did. Your study abroad trip will happen- just a little bit slower than what you’ve come to expect, which might honestly be your first cultural lesson.

~~~

The next post will be more emotional and personal as I will only have one week before I depart, but until then an-nyeong-hi-gye-seo (goodbye)!

Pre-departure Thoughts

By luctechco | August 24, 2016

Watching the sunset over the Mississippi River in Moline, Illinois

August 23

As I sit in probably one of the most scenic and calm places in my hometown of Moline, Illinois, I feel a mix of emotions build inside of me. After staying in Chicago for more than half a year, I forgot that so much beauty exists in the vibrant shades of green that is abundant nature, the unabashed curiosity of friendly passers by, and the calm that exists in quiet outdoor spaces. It’s crazy to look around and to recognize this place not only as my home but to recognize it as the United States, my place of origin and nationality. I look around and my heart tightens at the fact that I won’t be able to enjoy the sights and sounds of home for much longer; tomorrow, I will be leaving this all behind in order to study, explore, and immerse myself in South Korea, my mother’s birthplace and original home.

Much of the emotion within myself is barely contained excitement! To see the beautiful mountains, to hear the traditional music and dance, and to eat the spicy and fermented food of my ancestors with the mobility and freedom of a young adult is a chance of which just thinking of is making my eyes water with emotion! Finally being able to experience and understand the complex culture and nuances that are Korea will hopefully bring me and my mother as well as the rest of my family closer together. Family matters aside, living in Seoul, literally one of the biggest megacities in the world that is caught in between the not so distant past and the constantly changing cutting edge of the present, will no doubt be a chance to see all that Korea and its people has to offer(certainly being a young adult in any major city will have its upsides)!

Already I have written in my class schedule in my newly purchased planner, and I am beyond stoked to start learning about my majors and minor from a non-Western perspective in classes with students from all over the world! I am excited to see how university age students from Korea and from different countries interact and contribute towards class discussion and campus life. I have been in contact with the 9 other US students(most from Texas or the west coast) in my program via a Groupme chat, sharing tips and thoughts. Plus, I’ve even signed up for and been contacted by an Ultimate Frisbee team in Seoul called Seoul Train(yes, really) that has already started practices and will have 6 tournaments throughout the fall. I can’t wait to jump into life at Kookmin University, the greater Seoul area, and the rest of Korea!

Amid this excitement, however, is a fair share of anxiety. The obvious sources of this feeling being having to navigate international airports, fly halfway across the world, improvise nonverbal communication, find out who my roommates are, traverse a totally new culture, and trying to orient myself in what will be my home for the next four months. But, one source of anxiety that I believe not all study abroad students have to worry about is the prejudice that may exist towards foreigners and people of color specifically.

I am a Mexican Korean American, which in itself is a combination unique in the United States and will not doubt be in Korea. The United States, though far from perfect in terms of racial relations, has allowed me to explore my racial identity through it’s large and multi-faceted communities of color. In contrast, Korea is a country that is 96% homogeneous and reportedly has a lack of sensitivity around other races and lifestyles. I am afraid that my “otherness” will either be completely erased or unnecessarily exaggerated, and it would be heart breaking to arrive in Korea, expecting to feel at home but to face discrimination instead. However, I will try to quell my anxious and slightly pessimistic thoughts and try to enjoy my time abroad(but updates on this to come)!

In writing this blog post, the realization that tomorrow my journey truly beings really hit. I’ve been waiting for this trip for the entire summer, and I feel ready! Here’s to the journey being safe… and to the jetlag not being completely awful!

—-

Is it Even Possible to “Settle In” In a Place Like China?

By luctechco | September 22, 2016

If you could go ANYWHERE in the world for five months, where would you go? For good or bad, I never asked myself this question. Instead, I simply let my surroundings decide for me. Confused? Yeah, me too.

I moved to Chicago a little over two years ago when I enrolled in Loyola University Chicago. Since the first time I set foot on Loyola’s campus, I fell in love with everything around me. Fast forward to one month ago, and I felt a very different feeling as I set foot on Loyola’s partner campus–The Beijing Center (TBC) locate at the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE)–here in China. I wish I could say that I came to China because I love Chinese culture so I wanted to experience it firsthand or that I am intrigued by the recent economic boom in China and I want to learn more about its successes but, in actuality, I knew little to nothing about China before my arrival. In all honestly, my home institution–Loyola University Chicago–played a huge role in encouraging me to explore the once isolated country of China.

On August 8th, 2016, I landed in Beijing with a 50lb backpack digging into my shoulders and a huge suitcase in hand. I waited for two hours in line to go through customs and then had my luggage screened not once, not twice, but THREE times before I was allowed to exit the airport. As I walked outside, a young Chinese man was holding a sign that read, “TBC.” I couldn’t help but smile. Finally, I stopped holding my breath. Someone was here to guide me!!

As we sat in traffic on our way to campus, my eyes stayed glued to the window. I was amazed by the new world in which I had just landed. My mind was racing a million miles a minute. What does that street sign mean? What kind of food is that?! Why are so many people squatting? Is traffic usually this bad? What is the taxi driver saying to the Chinese man who came to pick me up? Am I going to have to pay for this taxi? Oh shoot…does he take credit card?!

The Chinese man kindly paid for the taxi as we were dropped off in front of UIBE. The Chinese man helped me with my luggage and escorted me to my dorm. Seeing that it was 6:35am, I was one of the first students to arrive. Instead of collapsing on my bed like I would have liked to have done, I immediately began to unpack. I couldn’t believe it. I was finally here.

Today, September 22nd, I sit on my bed as I write this blog post. I look around my room and see the lamp I bought from IKEA, the dishes I dirtied from cooking breakfast this morning, and the books I checked-out from the library scattered across my desk. My planner lay next to me and glance at it, seeing the events I plan to attend over the next few days. If you can be “settled in” in a place like China, I would say I’m almost there. I do not fee

l do not feel familiar and I do not feel comfortable but I definitely feel growth and that is why–even if I didn’t know it before I came–I am here!

If you are dying to see pictures from my adventures here in China, follow me on Instagram!
Personal Account: littlered_10
Travel Account: contagiouswanderlust

Learning Curve

By luctechco | January 18, 2017

“I’ll be leaving the country in January.” “Oh, where to/what for?” “I’ll be studying abroad in Vietnam for four months”.

A nice thought, this more or less summarizes more than half of the conversations I’ve been having over the past month or two in preparing to leave for my first semester abroad. It never fully felt real, although I heard myself saying the words and the excitement in my voice. I had traveled before, and had in fact led a trip abroad for high school students to Costa Rica, so of course I was ready for my time abroad.

Hell no.

I boarded the plane just over a week ago, said goodbye to friends and family I wouldn’t see until May, and set off for what I thought would just start to push me outside of my comfort zone. After making great friends with the people next to me, handling the first 15 hour leg of the flight like an old pro (even giving advice to people who hadn’t done it before – I am a straight fraud, everything I know I learned from Pinterest), and enjoying a free hotel because of a missed connecting flight, I believed I had it all figured out.

To give you context, I’m a biology major turned international studies circa sophomore year with another major in sociology, and if I’m passionate about two things, it’s about pushing outside of my comfort zone and building authentic, raw relationships with people. I chose the Vietnam center for a combination of reasons, ranging from the fact that my scholarship applies to this program to not having any prior context for Vietnam to wanting the most intense adventure I could find. I’m a lead facilitator for Loyola’s experiential education office, Ramble Outdoors, and am pursuing a career in adventure education. More or less, the combination of outdoor adventure and working with people is kind of my thing. Even in the first week I have absolutely seen how lucky I am to have the opportunity to study abroad in a country like Vietnam.

Meeting some of our partners for the first time and exploring district 10 together!

I was the first to arrive for our program, which has a total of 16 people. No emotion had hit me yet of the fact that I was leaving for a few months and it won’t fully hit me for a few weeks more. That night I walked around by myself trying to do my best to look like I knew what I was doing. The air tasted sweet although the fumes of the motorbikes often overpower it. Vietnam has already flipped my world upside down in some ways and I love it. With having a smaller program, there are so many perks, especially having Vietnamese partner students. Their kindness has been overwhelming and I’ll talk a little bit more about them later on. Vietnam is a lot to take in at once, and in 7 days I’ve already been drenched in a rainstorm while riding on the back of a motorbike, struggled through language barriers to the point of frustration, made travel plans for the upcoming holiday, maneuvered through a few of the districts of the city, and tasted more food than I could have imagined. While I still have an incredible amount of cultural and linguistic wisdom to catch up on, I couldn’t be happier to be studying at the Loyola Vietnam Center.

As someone passionate about adventure and having been challenged and pushed to my limits in several other aspects of my life, I’m so excited to start my journey through Vietnam and discover what this semester is going to mean for me. I firmly believe that travel holds such powerful meaning for one’s life and keeps one from limiting their own life to a narrow worldview.

Life is not meant to be lived in one place, and while traveling this melcouth world takes courage, life is meant to be lived creatively and the benefits of studying abroad have already proved to be ineffable.

As Maslow once revered, “In any given moment we have two options: To step forward into growth or step back into safety.”

Today, and for the rest of the semester, I’m choosing to step forward.

a new taste of Thailand

By luctechco | January 19, 2017

วัดพระธาตุดอยสุเทพ- Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

สวัสดีครับ Sawadeekrap!

Welcome to beautiful Thailand! Filled with stunning temples, smiling locals, spicy food, and a tai-kadai language, this authentic culture craves study from all disciplines. While sharing my unique adventures and pretty pictures, I aim more to delve into the vast abyss that is Thai culture, too often assumed to be pad thai, pretty girls, and white beaches. With my background studying cultural anthropology, paired with language and political science, my time in Thailand will be focused on deconstructing the importance Thais place around their food, as well as how tourism has changed the meaning, practice, quality, and importance of eating as a Thai. Since a little kid drinking ชาเย็น chaa yen (Thai iced-tea), my mom instilled a passion for Thai cuisine. It is important for us, as humans who require sustenance, to appreciate the food we choose to eat. Anthropologist Gillian Crowther, author of Eating Culture (2013), reminds us of the function food plays in our lives. “Food is our everyday creative and meaningful engagement with nature through culture…humans don’t just randomly feed; we select, fashion, concoct, and make an edible assemblage that fits our imagining of food” (Crowther 2013:XVIII). Food, therefore, is the simplest form of the selective choice of environmental manipulation for human advancement. Changing the environment from object to artifact for the sole purpose of consumption creates the basic definition of a culture; placing hierarchical importance on objective material in a human’s life. Food, therefore, is vital for understanding any culture.

My first week in Thailand was overloaded with new flavors, textures, smells, and sights. With a home base at Uniloft in the neighborhood of สุเทพ Suthep close to the campus of Chiang Mai University, I am luckily far away from the touristy center of Old Town, where authenticity within cuisine is quickly diminishing. On ซอยเจ็ด Soi 7, carts serve dishes from ข้าวซอย Khao Soi (traditional chicken bone & beef liver soup) to ข้าวไก่ทอด Khaw Gai Koah (fried chicken on rice). At my favorite restaurant, ขนมจีนหล่มเก่า หลัง มช kah nom thien loo khaw laam ngoo, I order ส้มตำ Som Tam, spicy papaya salad–crisp, refreshing, sour, sweet, salty, and spicy, all masterfully combined together in perfect proportions, leaving your mouth in awe of its magic.

All these dishes are prepared by one woman cooking on a single burner stove, with 1 wok, 1 knife, and 1 spoon. Watching these chefs prepare the 30 orders that come in at the same time is a miracle in itself. No measurements, just different spoonfuls of น้ำปลา nam plaa (fish sauce), น้ำตาล shugar, น้ำมะนาว nam manow (lemon juice), พริก prik (chili), and ถั่วเหลืองหมัก khoon loo mak (fermented soy paste). It is amazing that different combinations of these simple ingredients create such a varying palate that defines Thai food.

Since I have been here, two Thai students have reached out to help me and Christian, an ethnographic film major, with our Thai and learning the ins and outs of Chiang Mai on their motorbikes. Recently, Mew and Chitsa took us out to try a Thai dessert, ขนม kha-nom (literally ‘dessert’). This cereal of coconut milk, ice shavings, corn, stale bread, green noodles, and fermented water chestnuts coated in a waxy red sugar was devoured by my new friends. Even for my adventurous diet, watery coconut milk with salty corn didn’t sit well with me. Despite my intolerance for the dish, Mew and Chitsa were ecstatic that two Americans were willing to try something so foreign. Their positive attitude and excitement made me feel at home in such a new environment. Their smiles and laughs were parallel to that of many Thais, where my desire to share in their local culture makes thems proud of their heritage and traditions. That makes me feel great, showing someone that what makes them who they are is valued in the eyes of someone completely different from them. So, I look forward to continue try new things, learn more Thai, and become as local as possible with my three new adventurers.

Mi Casita Nueva

By luctechco | January 30, 2017

I have spent three weeks in this new home of mine. Three weeks filled with lots of sunshine (and lots of bloqueador del sol since there is a hole in Chile’s ozone layer), español with more slang than I can keep track of, climbing hills (read: mountains) to get those nice views of Santiago, and a ridiculous amount of bread. While it hasn’t all been easy and smooth, I feel as though I am finally settling into a life here in the Southern hemisphere, and I am truly enamored.

The semester doesn’t actually start until March (it’s summer here right now), but I am taking an intensive Spanish course through Universidad Alberto Hurtado (pictured above), which is technically broken up into three different classes: gramática y poesía, cuento hispanoamericano, and cultura y expresión oral. Basically, we do a lot of grammar, a lot of reading, and a lot of talking for three hours each day. It is challenging, but I am lucky to have really great classmates/friends to learn alongside me. The great part about this being a program through a Jesuit university is that I already have so much in common with mis compañeros. There are six other students with me: four from Saint Louis University, one from Loyola Maryland, and one other from Loyola Chicago (go ‘blers). In the short time that we have known each other, we have done a ridiculous amount of laughing, held heated discussions about social justice issues/politics, and had some true bonding experiences (refer back to my previous comment about climbing hills/mountains). I am truly blessed by these incredible, passionate, and hilarious new friends.

Mi familia Chilena is really wonderful as well. In my cozy little apartment, it is my host mom, my two siblings (one brother and one sister), and me. They are so fun and lively and although I cannot always understand what they are saying, they make a conscious effort to speak slowly and clearly and correct me when I need help. Our apartment is located in a really hip and safe neighborhood and is a short walk to the metro station, which I take to get to school and various parts of the city.

“But Maggie, we don’t care what your family and friends are like, how’s Santiago?????” Great question, dear reader. Santiago is a huuuge city with a population of a little over five million people, meaning it accounts for just under a third of the entire population of Chile. It is considered a very safe city, although theft is wildly common and you have to be incredibly conscious of your personal belongings at all times. The city itself is very developed with a nice mix of old and new architecture and lots of colorful buildings. However, there are also very impoverished and underdeveloped regions, which can be seen while driving in and out of Santiago, as well as from the many hilltop views (like other cities and countries, wealth is not necessarily evenly distributed here). Flanking the metropolitan area are the Andes mountains to the East and the Chilean Coastal Range mountains to the West, views I never plan on getting sick of.

“And what have you been doing when you’re not trying to master the horror that is Chilean Spanish????” Another incredible question. Here’s the answer in an easy-to-follow list format:

Cerro Santa Lucia – a little hill/park in the center of Santiago. Not only is it a beautiful park, but it also has incredible views of the city.

Cerro San Cristobol – a larger hill (984ft above the rest of Santiago) on the north side of the city with a beautiful church at the top, as well as a large statue of the Virgin Mary. It’s unbelievably peaceful and offers great panoramic views. While my friends and I had quite the difficult time hiking up (the straightforward, paved path would have been too easy – always take the road less traveled), the peace and beauty at the top was well worth it (vale la pena, one of my favorite Spanish phrases).

Museums – the Centro Cultural Gabriela Minstral (which had an amazing exhibit about Haitian migration) and a Picasso exhibit at La Moneda (the seat of the President of the Republic of Chile with a cultural center underneath)

A visit to Costanera Center, which just so happens to be the tallest building in South America (980ft). It is six floors of mall, fifty-some floors of largely empty office space. It is also home to Emporio La Rosa, which is apparently one of the 25 best ice cream shops in the entire world (I can attest to this, it’s really good).

A day trip to Isla Negra and one of the casas of Pablo Neruda, the late, great, Nobel Prize-winning Chilean poet. Not only was this a great glimpse into the life of this amazing poet and a huge part of Chilean culture/history, it was also a lovely way to spend a day right along the Pacific Ocean and eat some really good, fresh fish.

So there you have it, a snapshot of my last eleven days. While it’s finally starting to hit me just how long six and a half months is (don’t think I don’t miss you, friends and family, I most certainly do!), I am beyond excited for the adventures and challenges I will face during the remainder of my time here. If the last week and a half is any testament to what the rest will be like, I am surely in for the adventure of a lifetime.

Un besito a todos, ¡chao!

Perfect Travel Is In the Eye of the Beholder

By luctechco | January 31, 2017

Here we are, just a couple of weeks into the semester and I’ve already crossed the border several times, doing so once again tomorrow morning as we leave for Cambodia. I’m in love with Kuala Lumpur, would absolutely take a job in SE Asia if offered one, and have officially caught the travel bug with hopes to visit Thailand, Indonesia, and hopefully some more of SE Asia over the next few months. I didn’t realize how little I knew about international travel until I became faced with constantly learning as I’m going. Preferably read while listening to Nobody’s Perfect by Hannah Montana, here’s what I’ve learned so far:

Fake it ‘til you make it.

So cliché. So real. Whether it’s getting through public transportation, deciphering new social situations, or just trying to enjoy each moment as it comes, I’ve learned the art of faking it solely to improve my own self-confidence and realize that I can in fact do what it takes, even if I’m on a greater learning curve. I’ve fallen up stairs so many times, have made a complete fool of myself, have been wrong about directions, and have had to ask for help more than I would like, along with a longer list of mistakes. However, it’s okay to not be okay! I’m excited to get better at traveling, but I also hope to get better about not being the perfect traveler who just posts cool Instagram pictures about how “perfect” life is without showing any of the flaws.

Famous statue outside of the Batu Caves – it’s even more impressive in person.

Finding your niche abroad is so important.

I hit just a patch of homesickness early on and I realized it was because I wasn’t connected to any of the kinds of communities I was used to. Once you find similar groups abroad, it makes all the difference, and the mutual interests make it worthwhile to overcome language barriers and push outside of your comfort zone. While it could be easier if everyone in the program all had the same interests and were all best friends, it wouldn’t be nearly as meaningful or satisfying when the authentic connections were made. While I’m an oddball in many ways in this program, that’s a good thing since it’s pushing me to not be comfortable or just sink into a single community when there’s so many things to do and people to meet here.

Prayer flags found at the top of Broga Hill.

Comfort Zone. Learning Zone. Panic Zone. Repeat.

As a challenge course facilitator, one of the biggest philosophies we teach participants is that of these three zones. Your comfort zone is just that, comfortable and not a challenge. Imagine you have the whole house to yourself for the day and no responsibilities, just getting to enjoy the day however you want. Next is the learning zone, where you want to be most of the time. This is where you are growing but not pushing yourself to a panic. It’s kind of like when you’re at the gym and in order to build up muscle you have to tear it down by doing hard workouts. However, you don’t want to push yourself too hard, less you pull a muscle or in this case, fall into your panic zone. This is where you are not comfortable whatsoever and experiencing anxiety, terror, the like and need to return to your comfort or learning zone ASAP. I’ve experienced all three of these abroad already and even though I like to challenge myself, it’s important to realize that you’re allowed to be in your comfort zone, and when you’re ready you can push yourself back into your learning zone. Whenever I’ve gotten close to my panic zone, my favorite thing is to walk around the city by myself to a new coffeeshop, as this is what I do all the time in Chicago. I love working out by myself too, so sometimes I do that as well. And sometimes, I really need to escape for a bit and the great thing is that Netflix not only works in Vietnam, but also has shows that you can’t get in the US. I stay in my comfort zone for however long I need, and then move back into having fun and adventuring in new ways.

The best coffee in Kuala Lumpur can be found at Merchant's Lane in Chinatown - can confirm — The best coffee in Kuala Lumpur can be found at Merchant’s Lane in Chinatown – can confirm.

Find the right travel buddies.

This one is definitely important! With all of the things to see and do around SE Asia, it’s incredibly important to find the right people to travel with. There’s really no hard feelings about not being perfect travel buddies with everyone, so you just need to know yourself and figure out who you travel well with! Every trip should be enjoyable, not high stress past the usual, and have at least a little bit for everyone. It may take a period of trial and error to find the right crew, but once you do, it makes it all the better. For me personally, I’m very go with the flow but definitely have weird ticks that make it hard to be travel buddies with everyone. That’s true of every person. One thing I know about myself is that I prefer to go through airports by myself or with very specific people, so I don’t mind booking flights that are the same time but different airlines. Outside of that, I love getting to see what everyone else wants to do and tag along for the ride! (As long as I eat some food and preferably get to hike in the mountains, I’m set). Communication is key, especially early on.

Find people who are willing to tag along with what you love to do, and vice versa.

Enjoy the moment and say yes.

A few years ago I don’t know if I would have said yes to studying abroad in Vietnam, but I’m so glad that I am where I am in life right now and get to say that I’m studying abroad in SE Asia. I’m excited to look back at this in 20-30 years, and when I do, I want to make sure that I enjoyed it to the fullest and have no regrets. Sometimes this means saying yes to not being in control or saying yes to things you may have pre-judgments about or don’t think that you’ll like. What I hope is that I’ll leave here knowing I said yes to everything I wanted and needed to and was able to say no to what I absolutely didn’t. I want to be completely authentic, letting my yeses be yeses and my no’s be no’s. Let this semester be one full of life lessons, mistakes, and challenges. Besides, what good story ever becomes of someone doing everything exactly right?

Added Bonus: Food for thought (who said I never gave you anything?)

Vemödalen – “the frustration of photographing something amazing when thousands of identical photos already exist”.

“You can kiss your family and friends goodbye and put miles between you, but at the same time you carry them with you in your heart, your mind, your stomach, because you do not just live in a world but a world lives in you.” -Frederick Buechner

This One’s for Sufjan

By luctechco | February 12, 2017

Walking on the beach of Phu Quoc Island, looking distantly into the horizon of the South China Sea while listening to Oceans is an incredible experience. Less incredible was walking behind an older woman who’s bikini top was at her waist and her bottom piece was more nonexistent than existent, if you know what I mean. Over the weekend I spent 48 hours in retirement paradise amongst mostly people old enough to be my grandparents. I met up with a new friend, Kate from Canada, and shared laughs over the fact that we were the “young chicks” as one sweet older couple called us.

As she headed off to motorbike around the island, I headed off in search of clean beaches and time to reflect over the last 4 weeks of my life. As I walked, I strolled through street markets, to local areas, to dirt roads, to talking with local children just getting out of school, to accidentally stumbling upon and deliberately sneaking into a 5-star resort with a beautiful beach. Here’s the thing though: it worked. As I walked onto the beach and set up camp, I wasn’t questioned. I blended in, sitting there amongst the small crowd of variably tan white people, and was never questioned whether or not I belonged there. It was then that I realized that the privilege I have in the US as a white female is just as real here and everywhere else in the world. The whiteness of my skin is a ticket to not being questioned of my authority or belonging. So what do I do with that? How do I treat my privilege here or anywhere? These are the questions I’ve had for much of college and studying abroad continues to confront me with this, especially living in a district mostly populated by local Vietnamese. I still don’t have answers. I do my best to acknowledge my privilege and bias but I fail all too often. One important lesson I learned from an international experiential education conference I attended a couple of years ago is that there is a 100% chance that you will offend others at least one point in your life when trying to make cross-cultural connections and confront your own privilege. However, now more than ever you have to make room for brave space. Be okay with the fact that you will fail and try anyway. I’ve learned the most through conversations with others, and I’ve already had several eye-opening conversations here about race and what it means to be a foreigner in Vietnam.

So switching gears a bit, I’m a month in and have been blessed enough to have done a ton of traveling and bouncing around within SE Asia. However, I’ve been yearning for something more, something more immersive. And yet, I’m the only one getting in my way. There are moments of motivation where I reach out to service organizations that are mostly Vietnamese run or have conversations with locals who don’t have English as their first language that push me outside of my comfort zone. And then there are moments that have me running to my cà phê sữa đá in English-speaking cafés and my bed with Netflix. I want to be happy enough with the progress I’ve made so far, the small victories, the lessons I’ve learned, but I can’t help but think that there’s more to this. Should I just throw my computer out the window, cut off all ties to the US and walk out my front door in search of solely Vietnamese company? Should I keep enjoying my status quo of classes, cafes, banh mi, and short interactions with locals? As I struggle through what it means to be in search of an immersive study abroad experience, any advice can be directed to 497 hoa hao, Phuong 4, Quan 10, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. At the beginning of the year I made a list of 17 for ’17 achievable goals for the year that would challenge me to open up my perspective of the world and enjoy each moment as it comes. While I’m happy that I’ve started to make progress on many of them, I’m realizing more and more how little I know and have experienced so far.

Fisherman off the coast of the South China Sea

So by now you’re probably wondering why I titled this post the way I did. For reading this far, I’m granting you the answer. So one thing that’s great about all of the flights around SE Asia is that they all play music while boarding and getting off. On my solo flight to Phu Quoc, excited for the weekend ahead, I knew it was going to be a good time because as soon as we landed, they started playing an anthem by the great hero, Sufjan Stevens. And not just any song, but “Chicago” of all possibilities. I took this as a sign that not only is it going to be okay, but I need to see each moment for what it is and accept each emotion as they come. Between signing myself up for an adventure race in April, joining a local church, and continuing to make a name for myself here in Vietnam, I’m slowly but surely learning who I really am and want to be, all the while experiencing things I never could have dreamed of before coming here.

Here’s my motto for the rest of the semester:

Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry. – Jack Kerouac

Catch you on the flip side.

What It’s Really Like: Life in District 10

By luctechco | February 27, 2017

Not District 10 of the Hunger Games, but district 10 of HCMC. Before I left for Vietnam, I had no expectations, few prior judgments, and honestly no clue of what I would find upon my arrival. While I want to give an accurate picture of what the Vietnam program is like, at least from what I know six weeks in, the mystery of it all is almost half of the adventure. Overall, without spoiling some of the more meaningful details, here are some of the very basic, larger aspects of the program that make it what it is.

Awesome Core Staff.

Currently, there are three main people who run this program: our Director, Chris Albright, our Assistant Director, Wilson Potts, and our Student Life Advisor, Audrey Kelly. These three make the program what it is and offer incredible support, restaurant recommendations, and a professional yet down-to-earth program. From the time that they pick you up at the airport to coordinating service learning projects to working creatively with you to build your best time abroad, they’re willing to both challenge and support you through all of the ups and downs.

Vietnamese Partners.

This part of the program is unique and so helpful. Each Loyola student in the program is paired with a partner, although not limited to them. They are there as a connection to the local culture, a guide through learning the very difficult language, and as a friend. I have started to get to know several of the partners and they all have very unique perspectives. I had the chance to go home with one of the partners during the Tet holiday and meet her family and stay in her home, which was an incredible experience! While my visit got cut short and I may have been the only foreigner for miles, I was blessed with the chance to see what home life looks like for one of the partners, eat great food, and dip my toes in the sea. I also had the chance to go “camping” with many of the partners and members of BKDEC, the dorm’s English club. It was one of the most high-energy, non-conforming times I’ve ever had in my lifetime, but it was so fulfilling to see another side of these students. These students have helped with everything from catching Grab bikes after getting phones taken to getting ice after a pulled muscle from a soccer game to just solid friendship.

Small Program.

The Loyola Vietnam Center is the least populated program of Loyola Chicago’s three global centers. With 16, we’re an average sized group of students attending, although semesters have varied from 3 students to upwards of 20. This creates a great experience in many regards because it allows greater flexibility of the program, more individualized support, and the opportunity for deep connections. It also allows for an awesome orientation week, which included a visit to the AO Cultural Acrobatic Show, which was by far one of the best shows I’ve ever been to. What’s great is that we live in District 10, which is the equivalent of Rogers Park to District 1’s downtown loop, and we study in both Districts 1 and 3. Our core staff all live in District 1 and having everything so spaced out allows for continuous adventure and not getting stuck in one place.

Food. Everywhere.

You can’t turn the corner without being in sight of some sort of food, or motorbikes for that matter. There’s food for every budget and set of taste buds, ranging from $1 pho to upscale Indian food. Beer is cheap and everything from octopus to ostrich to funky desserts are available throughout the city. Now you just have to search!

Great Travel Opportunities.

The Vietnam program offers a combination of planned excursions and free travel weekends. We also have two weeks vacation during the Tet holiday, which happened early this year. Our semester in particular had one week of free travel, with most of us heading to Malaysia, and spending the second week all together for a planned excursion to Cambodia. With the cheapness of SE Asia combined with the close vicinity of many countries, it’s a perfect program if you want to experience several SE Asian cultures, intentionally explore, and up your country count (not that it’s a competition).

Language Barrier.

Being a tonal language, Vietnamese is much harder than learning Spanish, which I’ve been learning since 6^th grade. Everywhere I go, I attempt to use my (limited) Vietnamese knowledge and have to rely on the fact that almost everyone I come into contact with knows more English than I do of Vietnamese, which is hard because I feel like I’m forcing them to sacrifice their comfort just so I can order food. Even within the country, locals have a hard time understanding each other because of the different accents. When I was home with one of the partners, she explained that her parents had the central accent, but when they came to the south of Vietnam no one could understand what they were trying to say. The time I felt most confident with my Vietnamese was during one UberBike ride where the driver and I only talked in Vietnamese the whole time (I literally used every single word I know). While I will keep attempting to learn more Vietnamese, I’m learning to accept the small victories rather than expect fluency in three and a half months.

The Challenge.

I came to Vietnam in search of a challenge and adventure, and I was met with more than I could imagine, all in a good way. It’s forced me to observe without judgment, make decisions based solely on my own inner compass (which if you know me is incredibly difficult), and face feelings I never have before. At the same time, I’ve already gained so much from my short time here, and I only expect that to continue to shape me as a person and my experience at Loyola. I traveled to the farthest part of the world from Loyola and picked probably the hardest program for me personally. If you’re desiring to be pushed out of your comfort zone of the Western world and are getting antsy for change like I was, this very well could be the program for you.

All in All.

While I still have two months to go, I already feel like I’m going to be changed for the better through this program. I’m excited to accept the challenge of making study abroad what I want it to be, whatever that ends up looking like.

Defining Modern Vietnam

By luctechco | March 8, 2017

Vietnam is not a country that is easy to categorize or define. It is a place full of perplexing contradictions and subtly hidden answers to them. Despite living here for two months now, the only thing I feel like I can accurately portray to everyone at home about Vietnam is everything I do not understand.

Just mentioning the country still tends to leave a bitter taste in the mouths of many Americans who lived through the era of the Vietnam War. It serves as an unsettling reminder of our futile and costly attempt to halt the spread of communism—what was once perceived to be our nation’s greatest threat. Surprisingly, though, I have found that today, in many ways, Vietnam is no longer very “communist” at all. Besides the hammer and sickle flags and propaganda plastered on billboards, it’s hard to find other tangible remnants of the Marxist-Leninist revolution. While the Communist Party of Vietnam (CVP) still manages to hold onto the reins of power, its modern-day rhetoric leaves one with a sense of dissonance.

The anti-Western sentiments that once fueled the revolution have been lost to an enchantment and arguably even an obsession with consumerism and Western culture. In fact, it was the failure of the regime’s centrally planned economy that warranted the revitalization of the free market and open door policies otherwise known as the Doi Moi that purposefully abandoned the main tents of communism in order for both the regime and the Vietnamese people to survive.

Because of this, within Vietnamese society lies a palpable sense of nostalgia for tradition and a thirst for modernization. It is this juxtaposition that makes Vietnam such a fascinating and often baffling place to navigate. The Vietnamese identity is somewhat of a reaction to a history of imperialist influences—first China, then France, and finally US. Upon perusing the motorbike-filled streets, it is not uncommon to see women in traditional rice hats and tunics riding right next to youth sporting trendy graphic tees emblazoned with English phrases and Western logos. Popular American songs that were once banned by the CVP can now be heard blasting from karaoke bars, boutiques, and coffee shops all over Saigon. It is hard not pass down any street without being greeted by Western Capitalism in the form of KFCs, Dominos, and Circle Ks. Supermarket aisles are lined with goods like Oreos, Ritz crackers, and Coca Cola.

The Vietnamese youth of today embody the spirit of globalization. Many of the students I have met express enthusiasm for learning English, international entrepreneurship, and even moving to the West. As an American, I expected to be greeted with much more resentment than I have; how could I not serve as a glaring symbol of both privilege and imperialism in a country that had faced so much devastation at the expense of my own? Nevertheless, the idea of America somehow manages to stand as a glimmering symbol of both hope and opportunity in the eyes of many Vietnamese. I often feel that much of Vietnam’s persona today is characterized by this sort of optimistic yearning for the future. As the country witnesses such rapid and expansive development, many hope it will bring a better quality of life, one that is similar to life in the West.

How Westerners themselves could possibly ever fit into this newly molded modern Vietnamese narrative, though, has yet to be determined. In fact, I do not think we are necessarily meant to. Even though this society is riddled with reminders of home, they’ve all been carefully curated to the taste of the Vietnamese. As an outsider, I’m constantly met with stares that ask, What are you doing here? Some of these stares are purely curious, wondering what my purpose here could possibly be. Some of them carry an air of suspicion with them. Others are invasive, coming from men who are unfazed by my awareness or even my sneers.

This happens especially in the neighborhood I live in, District 10, which is far removed from the tourist-clad streets of District 1 where you’ll find the iconic Independence Palace, bustling markets full of souvenirs, and streets that could sometimes pass as downtown LA. District 10 is unforgivingly Vietnamese. It finds its identity in its crumbling sidewalks (due to too many motorbikes taking shortcuts across them) and its pop-up banh mi stands run by the same ladies day in and day out.

Being a foreigner here gets exhausting and that is simply because that is all I am meant to be in this culture: an outsider. As an American, I always struggle with this idea while traveling abroad. Even though my country is intended to be a place for people from all sorts of backgrounds, many other countries are not. The challenge is learning to appreciate a place knowing you will never really understand or be a part of it. As I mark the halfway point of my journey here, I am reminding myself to bear this in mind.

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