Study Abroad Experience in South Africa Speaks to the Souls of Holy Family Travelers

You learn a lot about yourself when you are submerged in 58-degree waters in a steel cage, miles offshore from the Southern-most tip of Africa while a school of five, 11英尺长的雌性铜鲨离你的脸只有5英寸远. 

十大网络彩票平台大全社会学教授. Jenai感谢, who found herself wide-eyed in that cage looking into the souls of those creatures, 那次经历令人难忘.

“我不会说我害怕，”格里格谈到这次冒险时说. “说实话，我更害怕水温.  我只是感到敬畏.  存在是有意义的, 字面上淹没, 在他们的环境中, 在他们的水里近距离地面对面.  People had told me that sharks are soulless, and I was trying to see for myself.  我不这么认为.  我认为那里有很多事情正在发生, and seeing all of these female sharks circling together felt intentional to me.  他们是一个社区.”

The experience was just one of many memorable moments for Grigg who had the privilege to lead a group of 11 others from the University through a 17-hour flight and on an 11-day intercultural studies trip  in South Africa through Education First (EF)’s Study Abroad program in May. 教职员工. Pat Griffin (criminal justice) and her two adult children, Connor and Michaela McGlynn, Dr. Diane Menago(心理学博士主任. 程序)和博士. Shelley Robbins (psychology faculty) were among the contingent that included undergraduate and graduate faculty and students, 政府, 校友, 父母, 家庭, 和朋友.

The tour began in Johannesburg where they visited the homes of Winnie and Nelson Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu, 参观了种族隔离博物馆.  The cultural immersion continued to the UNESCO World Heritage Cradle of Humankind, 世界上大约40%的人类祖先化石都在这里, 在导游的带领下参观斯特克方丹洞穴.  然后是克鲁格国家公园, 这群人在星空下过夜的地方, 看到了南十字星座, 在冒险乘坐狩猎车进行一整天的狩猎旅行之前.

“This portion of the trip was very educational as we visited the Court of Human Rights and a prison that was still operating as such in the 1990s, very recent history that was poignant and powerful,” Grigg said. “We took this glass elevator into the third largest canyon in the world. 我们乘雪橇下山. The lodge where we stayed in Kruger National Park was next to a preserve.  I’m walking to my room at night, and there is a zebra just running past me. 一只疣猪在我房间里盘旋. 在一整天的比赛中, 我们看到了一只母狮, 大象, 斑马, 长颈鹿, 狒狒, 水水牛, 和牛羚.  One of our students was trying to eat a banana, and a monkey just stole it from her. 太棒了.”

从那里, 这群人飞往港口小镇开普敦与鲨鱼相遇, 观赏鲸鱼, a visit to Nelson Mandela’s prison cell and even a stop at a penguin colony. The visit concluded with a trip to the Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens to view flora and fauna that are unique to South Africa. 

“This opportunity was a lifetime dream and exceeded any of my expectations,” Menago said.  “对我来说, the trip was historical and educational and allowed me to see nature in a way I have never done before. Most memorable were the historical components regarding apartheid and learning about the evolution of humans where some of the oldest remains in the world were found was profound. 近距离观察自然的能力, including taking a cable car to the top of Table Mountain and going on a whale watch off the Cape of Africa, 是我从未经历过的. 我认为对我影响最大的是我们遇到的人.  They were so incredibly kind and demonstrated such gratitude for everything they had. 对我来说, it is a reminder to be grateful for what I do have and to demonstrate appreciation for that every day.”

“这次旅行在很多方面改变了我，”格里芬说.  “Our tour of the Constitution Court showed me the importance of paying attention to the design of a space as this communicates meaning. 色彩运用的意向性, 木, and seating arrangement was so important in this structure and was intended to serve as a reminder of the history of the country, 希望未来和改变. I also took away the importance of high-impact practices, such as this study tour.  The safari was amazing and the natural beauty of Cape Town was second to none. These experiences are becoming more central to how I want to carry out my work as an educator. 我们的司机, 例如, 说科伊桑语, 其中包括点击辅音, showing me the importance of listening and communicating around language.”

“All of the plants there were different from anything we had ever seen before,” Grigg said.  “它们看起来更史前. The African people were the kindest people I have ever met in my whole life, 满握的手,扩展, 当他们和你打招呼时，灿烂的笑容.  食物很美味, 有很多不同种类的肉，还有咖喱和炖菜, 受到马来西亚的影响. 我们游猎日的日出是如此壮观. 看起来你在手机上用了滤镜. It was autumn, almost winter, when we went so you didn’t have to worry about mosquitos. 音乐无处不在, and young kids had their ankles tied with bracelets made from soda can tabs, 所以当他们跺脚跳舞的时候, 它们会叮当作响，发出美妙的音乐.”

正是这些对五种感官的吸引力, 以及他们创造的记忆, that Grigg hopes all 十大网络彩票平台大全 students and colleagues returned with from South Africa and what they take away from all trips abroad. 

“对我来说总是一样的, 格里格说, 谁曾带领探险队前往法国和意大利等热门目的地, 还有中国, 日本, 和摩洛哥. “The hope of any study abroad trip is to understand a little bit of difference but also the commonality. 我总是希望学生们说，‘哇! I got to broaden the way I think about the world because I got to see the way someone else lives.’ It’s amazing that you can come clear across the planet and see that family is still important and that humankind functions in universals. It also is important that we get to bring the humanity of America with us to these places and that we show our students the importance of being good ambassadors for our country.”

就像那些围着她转的鲨鱼, 格里格的使命是向世界展示美国游客, 尤其是来自十大网络彩票平台大全的学生, 难道他们不以自我为中心吗, 奢侈的, 傲慢的人认为他们是导游, 赫拉克勒斯, 而其他人则期待着他们. 相反，他们瞥见了自己的集体灵魂.

“It felt good to show the humanity of America to our friends in Africa,”她说。, 并把他们的人性带回家.”