Dear family

Once upon a time, there was a little girl who hated wearing jeans, loved animals more than anything, and dreamed of travelling the world everyday. She would look at maps of the world and wonder when she could go to the places that seemed only finger lengths away on the map, but where she knew was truly thousands of miles away. This little girl would sit on the edge of her seat listening to the stories her grandmother would tell of travelling to Russia, the tales her mother and godmother had from their time in Africa, the magical fairytale her aunt told about her 16th birthday in London, and her father’s stories about driving through Germany and the rest of Europe.

Soon, this little girl, no more than five feet tall, started to grow up. As she entered high school and began taking Mandarin, Chinese, she wondered if the day would ever come when she could actually go to China and use the language and experience the culture. At night, when she couldn’t sleep, she would go on United Airlines’ website and search for flights to Taipei, Seoul, or Barcelona. She dreamed and dreamed, but was never really sure when she would make it to these beautiful and mysterious countries. She was content with her day dreams, but she always yearned for the day that she would be able to get herself there.

Then, in the summer of 2011, a miracle happened. Thanks to her generous, wonderful, and loving family, she had the privilege of  flying across the world to China. That summer, she got to taste what it was like to travel and what it was like to experience something entirely new; a culture so different, she was sometimes overwhelmed, but always excited. She knew, when she touched down in Chicago after 10 days in a country that would take up a special place in her heart, that she would forever be fighting off wanderlust.

Now, a little over three years later, this little girl is all grown up and is sitting at a desk in Rome thinking about how she got here.

I knew from the beginning that my family was incredible. We have been through good times and bad times together, and I know we have only grown stronger. It is all thanks to them that I was able to fulfil my major life long dream of studying abroad. I could not have done this without their constant support of every kind and never ending belief in me.

I am so grateful for all I have been blessed with that it is extremely hard to put it into words. Everything that I have been given, all the opportunities that I have had here that I know not everyone will get to experience, all of the love that I have been given every day of my life, it is all thanks to them. I have been given so much more than I could ever ask for, and I owe it all to my personal cheerleaders, my own collection of people who have loved me through my good moments and my bad ones.

So, thank you to my mother and my father! Thank you to my brother and my sister! Thank you to My godmother, my grandmother, and my aunt! Thank you to my cousins and my other aunts and uncles who have supported me!

I do not know how I could ever repay all of you for the impossible amount of priceless gifts you have given me, but I will try every day to show you how grateful I am and how much I have grown as a person because of you all. Every step of the way, I wished all of you could be there with me.

Thank you so, so much for giving me something so incredible, most would say it’s impossible: thank you so much for giving me the world!

 

Hola readers!

So I don’t think I mentioned in my bio that I am a daughter to two immigrants from Poland. I love my Polish culture and couldn’t be more proud.

My host family was really interested in the language when I told them and we even spent a whole day together where I taught them some words in Polish, including how to say their names. It was a blast. At school, we have an amazing professor who studied abroad in Poland when he was younger and then decided to live there for 2 years. I was so happy to have met him and be able to speak Polish to someone here in Costa Rica.

I decided that I wanted to find the Polish people. I set out to find a neighborhood, as we have in Chicago, or maybe just a restaurant. I had trouble finding the neighborhood, but with some help from the professor, I was able to locate a Polish owned restaurant near San Jose.

I embarked on this trip with two friends and we got to see so much on the way. We discovered new parts of San Jose that we haven’t been to and even passed through another university here in Costa Rica. We had tons of fun. The restaurant had delicious food and I felt like I got to connect with my culture by going there!

The trip turned into a day spent in San Jose. We got some souvenir shopping done and then of course got lost trying to find the bus back to Heredia, where we live. The thing is, at this point, getting lost is not as nerve-wrecking as it was when I first got here. I feel so happy having reached a point where I can get into a taxi and say my address out loud, not have to show the driver the piece of paper. So when we walked down the street in search of the bus, we knew we didn’t have to worry, we calmly asked around and found our way. What’s really interesting is that ticos (Costa Ricans) will always give you a direction, even if they don’t know. They feel it is rude to not help someone, so they would rather give you any direction than not one at all.

Until next time,
Pura Vida!

Dear Costa Rica,

You are one of the most beautiful and welcoming countries out there! I have been here for about 4 months now and you are making it very hard to leave you behind. I realize that I only have 2 weeks left with you, my dear, and it makes it hard to think saying goodbye.

As I walk down your streets, to school, to the bank and so on, I can’t help but think of things I will miss about you. I will miss your beautiful nature. The wonderful sounds of birds and chickens in my neighborhood. I will miss your warm sun and amazing breeze at night. I will miss all the beaches and mountains, oh how I love the view of the mountains! I will miss your amazing coffee and the fact that I can get a very good cup for a $1.50. I will miss the fresh fruits and veggies. I will miss the amazing campus and the very cheap bus ($0.50) I take to classes. But most of all, I will miss all the wonderful people you have.

During my time here, I got to be a volunteer with an amazing English teacher and meet many adorable and intelligent kids. I spent my last day with them, this past Thursday and already miss them! As a goodbye, I received a book of pictures and a poster of their little signatures. 🙂 I hope you treat them well in their years to come! They all deserve the best.

Having been blessed with, hands down, THE BEST host family has also made me fall more in love with you. My host mom is a superhero. She works, goes to school and takes care of her family and house. My host sisters are both really smart and my little host brother is a cute little trouble maker. During my time here, they all cared for me like I was part of the family. Nothing more could have made me feel at home and feel sad about leaving. It’s sad to think that I have such a short time left with them!

You made me fall head over heels for you, and now I fear saying goodbye will be too hard. Thank you Costa Rica for everything I have learned and everything I got the chance to see and experience. Thank you for all the new Spanish I learned. I will miss you so, dearest Costa Rica! I promise to find time and money to return to you one day.

With all my love,
Joanna

Too many H’s for ya? If you haven’t noticed, I am quite the fan of alliteration in my blog post titles (I often spend more time coming up with these cutesy phrases than writing the actual post … whoops!). Regardless of my ultra-fabulous writing creativity, this weekend’s mini-trip to my Vietnamese host partner Hannah’s hometown of Tay Ninh was moving and enlightening. Sometimes life hands you 24 hours which can singlehandedly change your world view … and help you to realize how truly amazing it can be!

Miss Hannah picked me up at the dormitory around 1PM on Saturday, and we set off for the bus station. Upon arrival, I was delighted to discover that the bus we would take on the two-hour trek to Tay Ninh was bubble-gum-pink. Kind of a silly little observation, but I was excited nonetheless. We clambered into our tiny, cramped seats (leg-room? What is that? This is VIETNAM. This does not exist.) and napped the entire ride there–it was quite nice, actually. When we drove into the bus station, Hannah told me that her aunt’s home was only a short walk away, so I was all ready to walk there … but then I got off the bus. It was so. freaking. hot. I mean, Saigon is hot. This was … boiling-lava-I’m-going-to-die-right-now hot. Hannah saw my horrified facial expression and quickly snagged a cab. We drove to Hannah’s aunt’s house, where we dropped our things off and washed our faces. Their home was small, but very clean and tidy–two bedrooms, a living room, and a tiny little kitchen. I met both her beautiful cousins (an 18-year-old and an 18-month-old) and her ever-so-jolly uncle. Her aunt sells eggs at the market each day, so I was to meet her at dinner later. Hannah then asked if I wished to go exploring, and I said, “Of course!” So off we went (by a borrowed motorbike, of course!).

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, Hannah is an active Cao Đài, a relatively new faith tradition that has strong roots in Vietnam. Tay Ninh, Hannah’s hometown, is the epicenter of the Cao Đài religion: a walled-in complex of religious buildings that is surrounded by the homes of the faithful. Within the main facility, there exists the main temple (called the “Holy See”), a Mother Goddess worship temple, a primary school, a secondary school, the “monkey forest,” and a hospital. There are eleven gates to get inside the complex; that afternoon, we entered one and spent the next two hours exploring. It was all so incredibly stunning; the colorful buildings were illuminated by the setting sun, and the lingering rain clouds surrounding the nearby mountain added an air of mysterious tranquility. Yet what was even more beautiful was Hannah’s sense of utter peace that came upon her when we entered the grounds. It was simply inspiring. She quietly described her faith to me as we wandered the manicured gardens of the temple, and I peppered her with questions about the history and values of the faith. I watched her pray in front of the Mother Goddess altar alongside her fellow Cao Đài members, most in their traditional all-white áo dài. I caught her little smile as she described her childhood memories, playing in the field in front of the Holy See with her friends. Her nostalgia and simply joy that she received from returning home made me so indescribably happy. I felt at peace knowing that even across the globe, all people have that same sense of “home” that I miss so dearly.

After some more exploration of the surrounding town (and a sugary snack of Vietnamese sweet soup), we returned to her aunt’s home. To my surprise, there were about twelve people packed into the tiny house: Hannah’s other aunt and uncle came over, along with her cousins and their boyfriends. Everyone smiled and nodded at me … and that was pretty much the end of our greetings, as Hannah is the only person in her family to speak English. When I asked her why there were so many people over, Hannah smiled at me and said that it was normal for her “big family” to eat dinner altogether. And before I knew it, we were all sitting in a circle on the pristine tile floor with the most delicious assortment of food before us. Huge, green lettuce leaves, an assortment of aromatic herbs, crunchy white bean sprouts, and stiff rice paper sat piled on one platter, in the center. Then Hannah’s aunt delivered a steaming plate of little fried goodies: hot vegetarian spring rolls and salty shredded jackfruit fritters. Hannah and her cousins began quickly rolling all of this food into perfect little rice-paper-rolls … when I tried to make one, it literally fell apart, much to the amusement of everyone in the room. I laughed and shrugged, and then Hannah proceeded to make the rest of my meal for me. I was slightly flustered by my complete idiocy, until I remembered the Hershey kisses I had stashed in my bag (so American, no?). The family was delighted by my dessert, and I realized I had nothing to be embarrassed about. I was having the most amazing meal that I think I’ve had in Vietnam yet … good food, but the wonderful people I was eating it with made it all the more lovely.

Hannah and I went to bed early that evening, as we were both exhausted from our long day. We awoke the following morning at 6AM and headed straight for the market, where we saw Hannah’s aunt in action, selling duck eggs like nobody’s business. Hannah told me that she sells almost 5,000 eggs a day. I was very impressed! We grabbed some delicious (and super cheap!) iced coffees and headed for Hannah’s mom’s shop and coconut farm. Even though Hannah doesn’t live with her mom, she helps out at her outdoor store where her mother sells everything from áo dàis to fresh coconut water. We spent some time talking with her mom (Correction. Hannah chatted with her mom. I nodded and pretended I understand Vietnamese.) and then she showed us around. Seeing Hannah interact with her mom made me miss mine even more!! (#2moreweeks) But soon, we were headed off again … this time for the “Black Lady” mountain. Hannah had planned for us to spend the majority of the day climbing this gorgeous rock formation … I made it about an hour before I was too sweaty and exhausted to continue. It was only noon; I felt awful, because Hannah was a little ball of energy. But she understood; her lazy American friend could simply not handle the disgusting heat. Instead, we had a delicious lunch of vegetarian rice and fried tofu, and took an afternoon catnap.

Around 5PM, we set out to catch the bus back to Saigon. However, we got to the bus station and there were TONS of people … all of the scheduled buses were delayed for at least four hours. Hannah said that this was normal for a Sunday, and perhaps we could just try again tomorrow. But all of a sudden, a woman that I recognized grabbed my arm and started speaking in rapid Vietnamese to Hannah. She took our bus tickets and disappeared … Hannah had a shocked look on her face. I asked her what was wrong, and she said, “Nothing is wrong. This woman is taking a cab back to Saigon and she’s taking us as her guests, for free.” It turns out this woman, who is Hannah’s neighbor, and her husband didn’t have time to wait for the bus … so they were paying for the expensive cab back to Saigon and invited us to come along. On the ride home, she told us her incredible life story and showed us videos of her adorable 1-year-old son. They dropped us off at my dormitory; Hannah and I agreed that we were incredibly lucky. My goodness, I’m going to miss how sweet the Vietnamese people are … even strangers here can be so kind.

Well. Another amazing weekend in Vietnam, done. I now have just under two weeks left until my family arrives and the program is finished. I can’t even begin to think about leaving … I’m going to ignore that final departure date until it actually arrives.

Stay posted!!

I’ve finally found my claim to fame: Bollywood Dance.

Ok, so maybe that’s a bit of an overstatement, but just yesterday I got to perform along with the rest of the USAC Bollywood Dance class on the main auditorium stage filled with incredibly talented dancers.  Christ University hosted a dance competition, and graciously allowed us to perform during the intermission.  All the dancers were incredible!  Each dance had a deeper significance — they were beautifully performed and offered a beautiful message to the audience.  And then there was us…all smiles, boldly going where I’m sure no one of us had ever dreamed, with nothing in mind other than trying to remember the steps that we’d spent months practicing.  Midwest girl makes it big in Bollywood.

I’m  not going to lie, this has definitely been my favorite class here.  All of the early morning practices were totally worth it once we were on stage dancing along to the cheers of the audience (was it only the small group of USAC students sitting in the front?).  Nonetheless, it was an unforgettable experience.  It felt great to really be a part of something.  Not only were we being exposed to the culture of the place in which we were studying, but we were actively participating in it.

Studying in India has forced me to step outside of my comfort zone in ways that I didn’t even think was possible — Bollywood Dance being a perfect example.  I’m so grateful for my time here, all of the opportunities that I’ve been able to take advantage of, and all of the connections I have made that I’m sure will turn into long lasting relationships.

With Thanksgiving last Thursday, I had an extra long weekend here in Rome to celebrate everything the city has given me so far and explore some things I had not yet discovered. In fact, that has been the theme of every day recently as the unfortunate end of my journey draws near. Having had my first Thanksgiving away from my family has made me realize just how fortunate I am to be having this experience.

Last weekend I went to the Modern Art Gallery. This was by far my favorite museum experience in Rome! They had such a terrific collection! Unfortunately I don’t know much about Italian artists after the baroque period. I think I’ll have to do some research because I was really impressed by the dada and futurist works! Unfortunately I didn’t get any pictures inside or out. But the building was pretty spectacular as well. I was really tempted to go back and go through the gallery again, but money is a little tight as the semester is coming to a close. Better spend that chunk of cash on a nice meal or some souvenirs instead!

With my Art In Rome class I visited the Vatican Museum, which includes the Sistine Chapel. I had just started to worry that I would not make it before I left! The Vatican has an interesting collection of art. I didn’t get to explore as much of it as I would have liked since we were led by our professor restricted by time, but the general variety they had was quite intriguing! It was definitely another place that I wouldn’t mind taking a second trip through (there was even a whole room of egyptian artifacts that I missed!)

 

Despite not being in the States, I was lucky enough to have two Thanksgiving meals! The first was on Wednesday night and it was put on by our dinning hall (or as we call it, mensa). It was so much fun because all of the staff, faculty, and administrators come as well. Since so many of them are Italian and don’t usually celebrate Thanksgiving, they bring they’re families along to partake in the American holiday! Then on Thursday a group of friends that weren’t traveling for the weekend got together for another meal downtown. The food was absolutely amazing (all roman style dishes) and the company was even better! I truly had so much to be thankful for this year.

Early on Thursday, a couple friends and I woke up early to do a turkey trot 5K around the Vatican. And by early I mean the race started at 6 am to avoid the tourist crowds! Even though I was fully prepared to crawl back in bed when my alarm woke me up, I am so glad to have gone through with the race! Not everyone can say they have run around a sovereign nation! After the race the sun was just coming up and we were able to see some silhouettes of Rome’s most famous monuments against the pink sky. It was truly beautiful and something you just can’t capture on camera! We topped off the morning with a trip to the market for some food to hold us over until mensa started up again on Sunday night. I never feel more European than when I get to shop at the market!

That afternoon, a couple friends and I went out to Cinecitta to tour Italy’s famous film studio! I just love Italian film and relished every exhibit! I especially liked the Federico Fellini room that had costumes from some of his movies and his journal of sketches. It was also interesting to hear about the construction and history of the studio. Cinecitta is a must for any film buff going to Rome!

I am not ready for my time in Italy to end! It has been such an amazing semester and I have had the most wonderful experiences, I feel quite prepared to stay quite a bit longer. Nonetheless, it will be good to see my family again and touch base with my roots. After all, to quote one of my favorite Italian movies, La Grande Bellezza, “Roots are important.”