Why did you choose this program?
While Colombia is pretty well-known for violence and crime, the country's significant movements toward peace are relatively unknown.
Peace is something that is coveted worldwide, and motions that can establish that are things which can be implemented anywhere in a variety of situations, so I thought that learning about that process would be beneficial to both my own growth as a student, and the growth of a different community if I were to share what I had learned.
I also had never been to a Spanish-speaking country, and the opportunity to experience that culture as well as improve my Spanish skills made this program something that appealed to a wide range of my interests.
What did your program provider (or university) assist you with, and what did you have to organize on your own?
Really the only part of the trip that I had to organize on my own was the flights to and from the country. The program even arranged to have people pick us up at the airport upon arrival.
Everything was very well organized – we had a full schedule set for classes every day including educational field trips, Red Tree Study arranged social events outside of class so that our group could further experience Colombia's culture, and we were given optional excursions so that we could choose to explore different parts of Colombia or make our own plan if desired.
Everything was thoroughly planned and thought out so that the students could just focus on learning and experiencing the city and culture, without having to stress about planning things.
What is one piece of advice you'd give to someone going on your program?
Travel after! So many of my classmates spent time after the course traveling to different parts of Colombia, or even different parts of South America.
If I could do it again, I wouldn't have bought my ticket to return home until partway along the trip so that I could have decided whether I wanted to travel after or not.
What does an average day/week look like as a participant of this program?
An average day would be meeting downstairs in the hotel lobby at around 8:30, sipping a small cup of coffee while waiting for everyone, then walking to the Universidad de Los Andes together with everyone for class.
We would have lectures in the morning, which ranged from how gender plays a role in the conflict, to agrarian reform and how that shaped the conflict, to victims and reparation.
On our lunch break we would find somewhere close and quick to eat, whether that be the small arepa stand near campus or bustling hole-in-the-wall restaurants serving popular local food. After lunch we would return either for another lecture, or a field visit – some of which included a tour of the Casa de Nariño, a trip to a museum to see native artist Botero's work, or meetings with organizations aimed at furthering the peace process.
We would end class in the late afternoon, either relax at the hotel for a bit or walk around the city, then find somewhere to grab dinner. After dinner we would often go out and experience the city's nightlife, whether that be going out to Gringo Tuesday in Zona T, or going to a salsa bar where the locals attempted to teach us how to properly salsa.
Going into your experience abroad, what was your biggest fear, and how did you overcome it? How did your views on the issue change?
My biggest fear overall was about safety, especially as Colombia has a reputation for not being the safest city for a foreigner. Honestly though, there are many misconceptions about the city in general and the people there.
Overcoming my fear was as simple as spending time there. I never once felt unsafe in Colombia, even when we were out late at night, even when we were somewhere in a smaller group, and even when we visited former members of the FARC at the DMZ.
The people of Colombia are incredibly warm, open, and friendly, and their welcoming attitude made me feel that much more at home in their country.
I wish more people could know about the realities of Colombia rather than the widely-spread misconceptions, so that more people would be willing to travel there and experience what an incredible country it really is.
What is your favorite memory from the trip?
The weekend trip to Salento was one of the best weekends of my life. We visited a coffee farm and got to pick and taste coffee, hiked around a valley deep in the mountains, and walked around the cute little city for the first day.
Our transportation between these activities were old Jeeps with eight or so of us squished standing in the back of a single one or hanging off the back. Coasting down small streets and watching the avocado trees and mountains roll by, all the while laughing with my classmates was one of my favorite memories from the entire trip.
Not to mention that on the second day of our Salento visit, I got to go paragliding in the countryside. The view was incredible!
