Travel

Throw on the Lion King soundtrack, turn the volume up, and breath in deep. You may not be breathing in that distinctly “Africa” smell- but imagine spices, takataka (trash), car fumes, wandering livestock, and you are well on your way.

That’s exactly what I did on the Boeing 757 that flew me from NY to Amsterdam and later to Kilimanjaro airport outside of Arusha, Tanzania. I closed my eyes, waking up only to see us fly by Cape Cod and the tip of Provincetown- a true magic moment. And then suddenly we had touched down, driven for hours in the dark, and were peeing under the stars by the side of a dirt road- magic moment #2.

Morning’s light revealed that we were in a private protected area, Ndarakwai, right between Tanzania’s two twin tall boys—Mount Kilimanjaro and Mt. Meru.

We camped at Ndarakwai for a week- talking, reading, and hiking. We also had the much anticipated African wildlife experience- seeing zebras, elephants and even a PUMBA! And, there was an incredible treehouse (see picture).

Our academic director asked us to spend some time writing about “why am I here?” and I came up with a few open-ended lines of thought to explain my semester here.

I came to Tanzania to learn.

Sure, I learn a lot in a semester at Harvard too, but I figured that studying abroad would teach me more about myself and more about myself in the world. The reason I picked a country in Sub-Saharan Africa is a confusing one because I think it comes from two very different strains of thought. Originally my interest in Africa came from experiences I had at the end of highschool focused on the negatives here- learning about genocide, unfair trade, Darfur and other human rights issues. I wanted to take action, fight for what I believed in. But that kind of action and fight was a lot more complicated than I realized. There is so much behind those feelings of wanting to help-- so much power and privilege and history. I'm not sure what to do with those feelings right now, other than keep learning and hoping that one day I'll figure it out.

Part of the "learning" process took me to Senegal after I graduated from high school. One of the first things I realized there was that this feeling of wanting to help was truly out of place there. Sure, there are definitely human rights crises in Africa and other places in the world-- but there is a big difference between a crisis and the issues of poverty or poorness-- the issue that is more visibly present in a place like Senegal or Tanzania. And I'm not really in a place where I can say what poorness is-- if it is financial, social or mental.

So I should definitely clarify-- I'm not studying abroad here with the intention or presumption that I can or should be making changes here. I am new to this place and have no right to think that I know what is best for people who live here, or that I can give them anything better than they can give themselves. So even though I am still concerned/overwhelmed/passionate about those human rights issues-- they didn't bring me to study abroad in Tanzania for four months. Instead, these feelings did inspire my original interest in learning about Africa and travelling here- and that is how I've learned that there is something about this place that draws me in. I am fascinated and excited by what I see and learn here.

So I came to study abroad in Tanzania to learn here in this beautiful place that totally captures me and makes me think. Hard. And hopefully one day I'll figure some more stuff out and know how to live and act in a way that feels right. But I am a long long way off from there.