Inspired

Hola, amigos!

I know it’s been a while since my last update, but I’ve been on vacation for the past week and not had any internet access. Here’s a new post for you!

The other day I realized something which is actually quite obvious. I realized that I’ve never been surrounded by so much diversity! It was always rare when I could meet someone from a different country, and now I have yet to meet any Americans here in Macau. For those who aren’t local Macanese, there are also many from mainland China. I’ve also had the opportunity to meet and be surrounded by people from Britain, Canada, Portugal, Sweden, Denmark, Holland, Germany, Finland, the Philippines, and Korea. And the best part is, I’m constantly interacting with these people on a daily basis, and each day is a new cultural learning experience. I enjoy telling them about my country, and I enjoy learning about theirs.

I’m also inspired by them. They are all so well traveled, and they all speak English as a second language (except for my British professor and the Canadians, but they speak other languages as well). Many of them speak more than English and their native tongue! Some of them have told me how hard and exhausting it is to be speaking English all the time here (that’s our common language and the method of instruction at IFT). Honestly, I can’t imagine how difficult that must be.

And then I look at myself and realize how little of the world I’ve seen. Most of the IFT exchange students have been to the US, but I can’t say I’ve ever been to any of theirs. Besides this study abroad semester, the only other time I’ve been outside the US was a week-long vacation to England a few years ago. But England and America still share similar cultures and language, so does that even really count?

It also makes me realize that I can only speak one language. My VERY basic knowledge of Spanish doesn’t even come close to considering myself fluent in a second language.

One thing I’ve been interested in is spending a summer in Cuernavaca, Mexico to live with a host family and become fluent in Spanish. I first heard about this program through the NAU Study Abroad office, and I’ve kept it in the back of my mind for a while now. But now I’m becoming more serious about the idea.

Not only do I owe it to myself to become bilingual and see more of the world, I also owe it to others to make myself more accessible in communication. I can’t expect everyone I meet to speak English. It’s not fair to them, and it’s not fair to me. If I truly want to become a more worldly person and see the world, it seems only justified that I put forth a little more effort.

A big thank you to all of you amazing people who continue to inspire me every day!

Love,
Kati