Submitted by Stephanie Stern on the 2019 winter session study abroad program in South Africa sponsored by the Department of Sociology and Criminal Justice and the Department of History…
We spent the last 10 days of January in Cape Town. Cape Town is a beautiful city unlike any other in the world. The locals are friendly, the food is delicious, and the scenery is beautiful. I really enjoyed talking to the locals and gaining a little bit more of the real side of what we have been learning about in our HIV/AIDS and South African Crime class. Something I noticed in my time in Cape Town that surprised me was that I assumed that the general population would be a bit more educated. My experiences with conversations with locals made me realize how lucky Americans really are that most of us have general knowledge, and a certain degree of education, as a whole. Basic logic seems to be missing from a lot of people here, and it is obvious that it is due to simple differences of values and expectations. I realized I took the value and normalization of education in my world for granted. My last week in South Africa was so bittersweet. Reflecting on the entire program, I have changed so much, and the experience really opened my eyes to the reality of what some people’s worlds are like in comparison to my own. I gained a lot of insight from this experience. As someone who travels a lot, I am always looking to find a deeper understanding of how and why the world works as it does. Being my first time in Africa, and my first time coming so close to the reality of extreme poverty and HIV/AIDS, it has become clear to me that now more than ever we need to focus on being humans before being Americans, South Africans, or whatever.
Hearing the way people regard Americans due to our president, and our cultural values that emphasize a fast paced world where everything revolves around “the customer is right,” puts
my values and how I have grown up into perspective. The way South Africans value nature, and the essence of “ubuntu” (“humanity”) has inspired me. Travel and exposure is the only way to really connect with who you are in relation to humanity and not just individually. I am looking forward to continuing to expand my horizons and South Africa was an incredible experience that I will look
back on for the rest of my life.
