I sit here today, on October 9th 2016, at the top floor of a university library. I sit here on a comfortable chair, looking at an astonishing view while writing on my Mac Book. Why is this relevant? Well, I would like to take you back -to around three months ago. Three months ago, I had just finished my senior year of highschool. According to the book of standards, I was well on track -graduated with good marks, and was about to start the next chapter in life. The biggest dilemma that I had at the moment was choosing where I wanted to go to school. I was about to move away from my family, with essentially no experience of independance. Solution? My mom and I decided that it would be a wonderful experience if I travelled out of the country on my own to do some medical volunteering -this would not only look good on my resume, but it would also assert my independence skills.
On the 6th of July I waved my family goodbye as I set off to Africa, a world unknown. So I hopped on the plane and went in completely blind. Once I arrived I was first of all taken aback by all the white people I saw at the airport. Apparently though, the country that I went to was a popular tourist attraction, and hundreds and thousands of people go there every year for the geographical beauty of the place. Once I was picked up, it kind of hit me that I was in Africa, driving in an african car, with african people. The car was actually a Mitsubishi I'm pretty sure, which actually means that it's Japanese, but nevertheless you get my point. I know this may sound silly, but to me this was a tremendous experience in itself. I like to call myself a window-watcher, and for this reason I am really good at navigating and directions. Once I got into the car, I was particularly interested in the geography, being subjected to one type of geographical landscaping all your life really makes you appreciative of ecological diversity. As I was taken farther away from the airport, the smooth paved road slowly became red with sand. About 20 minutes in I saw this little village in the middle of nowhere. By village I don't mean huts and mud housing with people in grass skirts singing "kumbaya", it was a little more capitalized than that. They were more like shacks, kind of like one's you would find at a beach -just a lot more rundown and poverty looking. I also noticed an overwhelming amount of Coca-cola and Pepsi signs. I asked my supervisor if we had arrived in the city yet, but he said this was just the rural area surrounding the city, I was told the city was more modern and replicated somewhat of a western-style city.
My eyes were glued to the window and I couldn't help thinking "I had gotten myself here, all by myself". I just couldn't believe that travel time could equate to a new world. By this I mean that, although my flight was super long and super uncomfortable -my surroundings were completely and irreversibly changed all because of a day's worth of travelling. I couldn't wrap my head around this concept that my world and this world (from what I saw) could co-exist.
