Exploring the South of Jordan

It has been a while since my last post, but it has been a busy and joy-filled month or so and I wanted to share some of my recent adventures! The Dead Sea A few weeks ago, SIT arranged for my program to take a week-long trip to the south of Jordan. We began our …

I’m in Oaxaca!

Bienvenidos! I have officially been abroad for four weeks through SIT’s Migration, Borders, and Transnational Communities program! While the first week of our program started in Tucson, Arizona, I have officially been in Oaxaca, Mexico for three weeks now, and I’m excited to begin sharing insights into my life abroad through the Off-Campus Study Blog! …

Hello From Amman!

Arriving and Orientation I began my semester in Amman, Jordan, a little over three weeks ago with SIT’s Refugees, Health, and Humanitarian Action program! After three flights, delayed planes, canceled trains, and very long Uber rides, I landed safely in the country I am so fortunate to call home for three months. I was welcomed …

And That’s A Wrap

It’s been two weeks now since the program ended, and I write this final post back at my house, surrounded by my family, my cats, and a roaring fire to fight the Illinois cold. The program ended in a blur after arriving to Baños for our final retreat. While there, we took some time to …

Ecuador, At A Glance

If you’ve been following me along with the semester so far, you’ve probably noticed a gap in my posts upon arriving to Ecuador. Time (as well as my 15 page research paper) caught up to me, but I’ll do my best to recap the whirlwind of the last month now! 45 straight hours of travel …

Returning

Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about returning. I got back from Jordan about seven months ago, but I’m finding now that the return process isn’t something with a clear beginning and end. So while I’m currently on a different off-campus study program, in this post I would like to talk about the return process …

Nepal Vol. II

After the main two days of the Dashain festival were over, we jumped back into classes with a few exciting site visits. First, we headed to the Nepali World Wildlife Foundation headquarters to learn about their mission and projects as an NGO. Afterward, we headed to what was probably one of my favorite site visits …

Temples, Terai, and Tranquility

On paper, a month can sound like a long time, but based on how fast my time in Morocco flew, I was determined to squeeze every last drop out of my month ahead in Nepal right from the moment our plane landed, and fortunately our orientation gave us an exciting insight for just how much …

Morocco Vol. II

You never really realize how much you’ve missed the quiet — the type that comes only from being in nature — until you’re finally experiencing it again. After spending two weeks in the heart of San Francisco, flying to Morocco, and then spending two more weeks in some of the largest urban areas, it was …

An Unexpected Start

After an exhausting travel day flying from San Francisco to Montreal to Morocco, our group spent the day battling to stay awake so we could explore Casablanca, catch up on school work, and hopefully fend off any lasting jet lag by getting to sleep at a reasonable time. When I finally went to bed that …