Hey there!
I have decided to keep a Blog of sorts
while I am traveling. As a disclaimer, I have never kept a Blog before and will
be learning as I go. I will update it as often as I can and hope to use it as a
means of communicating with anyone who wishes to check in on my adventures and
me. In addition, this blog will surely also be a way to feel connected to family and friends and a means for sharing my experiences with an understanding ear.
To get everyone on the same page as I embark on
this journey, I thought it would be beneficial to give a little background
information as to my motivation for traveling abroad.
I am a rising junior at Mount Holyoke College where
I am studying Biology and global public health through a degree program
entitled “Culture, Health, and Science.” My class schedule is a mixture of
biology and anthropology courses, which I have chosen in order to learn about
global health through a biological/ medical lens.
I have done quite a bit of
traveling in the past as a tourist and although these were fabulous experiences
I wished to learn more about the culture that surrounded me. In order to
nourish my passion for other cultures and people, I decided to study abroad my
Junior year. I found the program through Duke University, "Global Health
Issues in South Africa" on a flyer in the dinning hall of Mount Holyoke’s
Campus center. The online course description (some of which I have included
below) seemed to be created for me and sparked a flame of determination in
my heart and mind. I had no doubts about my intentions to study abroad through
this program, as it seemed to be tailored to my interests. Studying abroad for
the fall semester in India took a bit more work and research. I found the study
abroad opportunity in India through the Alliance for Global Education at a
study abroad fair hosted by Mount Holyoke College. The Alliance for Global
Education was one of many foundations that had programs focusing on public
health issues in locations of interest to me. I decided on this particular
study abroad experience because of my growing interest in alternative medicine
and India’s dynamic and diverse culture.
Overall, my intention for traveling abroad is to learn.
In the future I imagine that I will go to graduate
school, possibly live abroad and conduct research, and eventually work for the
government on a national or international scale. The path I take will in the
end be determined by the connections I make, the experiences I have and
opportunities I come across over the next few weeks, months, and years.
South Africa
July 11th-August 10th
During the first part of my journey I will be in
South Africa. This program focuses on three major themes: the health system in
South Africa; the clinical, social, and political aspects of the country’s most
prevalent infectious diseases; and the roles of traditional healers. The
program employs the lenses of biomedicine, medical anthropology, and public
health to provide a critical interdisciplinary perspective on these issues. We will
attend lectures, participate in field trips, and engage in independent studies.
As often as possible, courses will be conducted in the field and visits to
appropriate sites will connect theory and experience. Collaborative research
projects will give us the chance to work in groups to formulate a
question, design a strategy to answer it, carry out three days of field
research, analyze the data, and then present the project in the form of
a
scientific report. At the end of the program, we will deliver our results at
a symposium.
Over the course of the program we will first be
stationed in Johannesburg then a number of
locations on the outskirts of the Kruger National Park including the Wits Rural
Facility and Tsulu Camp near HaMakuya where we will be immersed in the culture
during a 3 day home stay.
India
August 11th- December 16th
Upon completion of my program in South Africa I
will be flying to Mumbai, India and then traveling to Manipal. Manipal is a
small university town located in southwest Karnataka, five miles from the
Arabian Sea. Located away from the hustle and bustle of India's megacities,
Manipal will provide an ideal rural, tropical location for studying India’s
public health challenges and rich cultural heritage, as well as Karnataka’s
thriving local economies, including the tea, coffee, cashew, fishing and silk
industries.
During the 16-17 weeks that I am studying in India,
I will be directly enrolled in the University of Manipal with the guidance and
support of the Alliance for Global Education through Arcadia University. My
studies will focus on the most pressing public health issues today through a
multi-disciplinary array of courses focused on Indian geopolitics, humanities,
public health, and traditional healing. Through coursework, we will visit
health clinics and academic centers that will enrich our understanding of
traditional Indian medicine. The courses that I will be enrolled in are
Contemporary Indian Society, Basic Epidemiology, Ayurveda and Indian Traditions
of Healing, and either Surveillance of Infectious Diseases or one of the other
courses focusing on Global/ Public Health Systems/Problems.
Thank you to all of my family and friends that have supported and encouraged my curiosity for the world and all that this life has to offer. In particular, thank you mom and dad for your guidance and constant love.
Cheers!
Thank you to all of my family and friends that have supported and encouraged my curiosity for the world and all that this life has to offer. In particular, thank you mom and dad for your guidance and constant love.
Cheers!
