Some Structural Logistical Info

Classes are informal. I generally have my shoes off and we can lounge in whatever position is most comfortable. Sessions are two hours with a break halfway through. Some weeks have four classes, others have one or to. We have reading assignments, 6 short essays and a research paper. Everyone is in a country committee and a student committee. I'm in the Morocco group and the Thank You Committee. We refer to our teachers by their first names and they ask for our honest opinions about what they say. We have three teachers: Paddy, Virginie, and Eddie. Paddy is from Ireland and takes a more conceptual, big-picture view of climate change. Virginie is from France and she is the youngest of the teachers. She specializes in disaster risk reduction, looking specifically into how people are affected based on their gender. Eddie is from Berkeley and teaches the history course. He's got an endearingly nervous/excited/jumpy personality and assigns long but interesting readings. He is half Chinese and I am grateful for his inclusion of racial perspectives in his courses. He is my adviser for my research project studying how class disparities determine awareness, access, accessibility, and affordability to resources and sustainable practices. I am most interested in looking into access to clean water within different classes. Having international teachers and a couple international students reinforces the comparative nature of the program.

It's empowering, humbling and terrifying to think about the fact that we are a part of a small group of people who are actually trying to do something about climate change. Back in California we visited several of the key organizations that are trying to make a difference. Because there is such a small following, all of the adults are taking us students very seriously and are offering us future internships and job opportunities. Our opinions and thoughts are all considered carefully and it is clear that they expect us to be a part of this movement well after the program is over. I am constantly fluctuating between overflowing with hope and excitement or having absolutely no hope at all. There is so much to be done and so many people-largely/only in America-that are trying to shut progress down. At the same time, I am inspired by those who have already done so much in their communities. In the end the determining factor is how much faith I'm currently feeling towards the good of humankind. Generally it's not much.

Jumbled Stream of Consciousness Thoughts on Vietnam

I don't have the time or patience to organize this. Sorry.

From the airplane window, rural forests of rice and scattered homes quickly transitioned into colorful city buildings cramped on top of and next to each other. We are welcomed by cloudy skies, heat and humidity when we leave the airport. The patterns of purples, reds and oranges on the seats and window curtains in out bus give the vehicle an inviting and lively vibe. Immediately, we drive one hour out of Ho Chi Minh City for lunch. It did not take long to get out of the city and into a rural region. Buses and cars were very clearly the minority on the streets. Motorbikes packed with up to four riders, puppies and even a refrigerator, rode around us the whole time. Street vendors were everywhere. The streets were paved in some parts and just muddy in others. Most of the pavement was crumbling and broken. Once out of the city, rice fields, cows with beautiful burnt siena coats, chickens, geese and ducks were dispersed amongst several rivers full of light brown water and small boats. Homes, colorful coffins and electric towers reach out of the swamp land surrounding the highway.

 The restaurant has an open feel as there is a roof but no walls in a series of gazebos with gardens and ponds flowing in between the eating spaces. We learned quickly that food served in Vietnam is typically faily style and each person uses chop sticks or a fork and spoon and a tiny bowl. The meals take much longer as the "family-sized" plates are rather small as well. Everyone receives a sample-sized portion and then waits five to ten minutes for the plate to be replenished. (I've found that I eat less this way as the process is much slower and my stomach has the time to tell me if I'm full or not. You also don't want to scarf your plate down because then you'll be waiting too long the next one.) Rice, chicken, duck, tiny shrimp, fried tofu, morning glory, shallots and bok choy are common dishes. As someone who is sensitive to dairy, it has been great that there hasn't been any except for the cheese we had with breakfast on the first day. Dessert, my favorite part, is generally fresh fruit-watermelon, mango, papaya, unripe guava-not the best, star fruit, and rambutan-sweet, jelly, good. All of the fruits are much more flavorful and delicious than what we have in the states.

The Can Tho University College of Rural Development is located 40 km outside of Can Tho-one of the largest cities in the Mekong Delta region of Vietnam. Our dormitory is directly on top of a swamp full of catfish and other creatures. The small campus has the highway and a river on one side and the rainforest on the other side. The earthy smells, sounds of birds chirping and critters talking constantly remind us where we are. Other than the ferns and eucalyptus, the plant life was completely unfamiliar on the forest walk. The slippery trail was wide enough for two people to walk side by side on. Our exploration was interrupted by the relentless leeches that yearned to feed on our blood. I found two on my ankles and at least 12 more climbing up my shoes ni the short 30 minutes we spent in the forest. I think I had the most although I may not have been getting rid of them properly. I may have had some repeat offenders. Thankfully none of them were on me long enough to latch on. I did find one on my sock about 8 hours after our hike though. Gross. Some of my classmates were not so blessed. There were plenty of engorged leeches and spurts of blood on the ground where we emerged from the forest. 

We are all helplessly terrible at speaking the language. I can say hello, thank you very much, cheers, and the number two with confidence. However gesturing has come somewhat in handy. I was walking around with some friends to the new impressive campus the school is building on the other side of the forest. We said hello to a man standing outside the school. He pointed at something up above and down the path while making a circular shape with his hands. He then pointed to his ankle and made the number three with his fingers. Although the signals were undecipherable to us and he had a huge grin the entire time, we seemed to know that it was a warning. Sure enough, a few minutes later, one of my friends pointed out a giant hornets nest in one of the taller trees. We promptly turned around and walked back, passing a ripped up skull of some animal along the way.

There are eight of us in each dorm. The mosquito net on my bunk bed creates a comforting, canopy-like effect that makes me feel safe and juvenile in a good way, especially with the Mickey Mouse sheets on my mattress. The bathrooms are nothing to write home about. The small stalls have a shower head right next to the toilet which makes for an awkward space negotiation come bathing time. Also, all the bugs that keep trying to get into our dorm settle for hanging out in the bathroom. And yes I do have mosquito bites all over my butt as a result -_-

Four walls per building/room is really not a thing here. Indoor versus outdoor is entirely deconstructed. Most spaces have an open feel, letting in cool air whenever it is present. For instance, the canteen has one wall, shielding us from the kitchen, the rest is open space. We were served bread, cheese and jam for breakfast on our first morning. All of the Vietnamese patrons (and the gluten-intolerant student in our group) were served noodles with bean sprouts, vegetables and meat or tofu. Upon our request, we have been served noodles in the morning as well and they are delicious.

We have wifi here and will have it everywhere in Vietnam. However, I am keeping my connection at a minimum. I left my computer at home and will be hand writing all of my papers. I have my iphone but wifi does not seem to connect to it very well.

I realized that I know almost nothing about Vietnam. My only preexisting knowledge was of the war (referred to as the American War here). It is all too clear how terrible of a time an American soldier would have had fighting in the forests here. They are slippery, damp, and unlike anything we have in the states. This thought struck me when our group realized simultaneously that the leeches of the forest were out to get us. There are also pythons. I am eager to ask my homestay family what they think of the war. I am meeting them on Friday.

Pounding rain, amplified by the ceiling material, woke me up at 5 am. I went immediately back to sleep but the rain didn't stop for hours I was told. It comes back on and off throughout the day, everyday. It is always cloudy. I haven't seen the sun in 5 days. Back in Providence, lack of sunshine usually makes me sad but out here not so much. I guess I'm too busy having a great time.

I haven't talked much about academics. It's crazy to think of what we are doing as college. We mostly have field trips and there are only two actual class meetings each week. We all are passionate about we are learning and engaged in what we are doing. We are using climate change as a lens to view and address social issues around the world as they relate to environmental problems. I am pleased with how the courses have opened up my mind to the scope of issue. It is so helpful to be able to see and do the things we learned about in lecture the previous day. It is going to be hard returning to Brown. I think school should be like this all the time. The teacher/student relationship is incredibly blurred. Here in Hoa An, the teachers are rooming with us in the dorms and hanging out with us at night. Also the smallest age gap in between the students and teachers in only 2 years. Strange. I often forget that they are our teachers and not our contemporaries. 

I've been eating a lot of tofu. Even when given a meat option. Most of the reasoning is the fact that the tofu is so exceptionally good here. It is always seasoned and fried and sometimes stuffed as well. Also, since starting the program, I've felt myself wanting to downsize the amount of meat I consume. There's the health benefits and what not but on top of that we have been learning about what it takes to raise an animal for food production and the American system is exceedingly wasteful and disgusting. Also, from a conservation standpoint the amount of water saved from producing vegetables rather than meat is huge. I'm not a vegetarian, at least not yet.

Yesterday I met a student named Phuonj (pronounced foon). It made my day.

credit: Forest Jarvis

SIT IHP Orientation

For the last two weeks I've been in Berkeley studying climate change as it relates to the politics of food, water and energy. The program is through the School for International Training's International Honors Program. There are 26 students, 3 teachers and 1 traveling fellow (basically our babysitter/#support). We are continuing our studies in Vietnam, Morocco, and Bolivia over the next three months. While in California we've had 4 class sessions, several guest lectures and outstanding field visits. My favorites included a trip to the geothermal power plant in the Napa Valley and the visit to Global Exchange in San Francisco. We have a group of 20 girls and 6 guys and they're all really great. Being in California was nice because I was able to learn about potential work that I could do after during the summer and after college. It was very confusing to be studying abroad, at home. It felt as though I was still building up to the real program. However it was nice to be constantly reminded of how blessed I am to live in such a beautiful place.

America's Cup race. credit: Forest Jarvis

UC Berkeley

Drake's Bay Oyster Farm

Lecture in Drake's Estero on why Drake's Bay Oyster Farm should be closed. 

Had freezing but fun time swimming at Point Reyes

Gizdich Ranch

Geothermal Power Plant in Napa Valley. My favorite site visit!

Paris 8/25-8/31

We arrived in Paris too early to meet our couchsurfing host, unprepared for the rain, and yearning to return to our beloved bus. Immediately after exiting the metro, we took asylum in front of an apartment building. We changed into warmer wear and planned out our next two hours. We ended up walking to a laundromat nearby the apartment's location and eating breakfast there. We had spaghetti noodles with pesto sauce and corn. I ate out of a corn can and Alexx ate out of a bread bag. It was a little low. The laundromat turned out to be a cool place to kick it. After breakfast, I watched Toy Story until it was time to meet our host. We feared that we had been scammed because our host had not given us the code to her building or her apartment number. It took us a while to make it inside but it was not a scam! Our host was an interesting character though. She was a very gracious, enthusiastic, self-professed nerd who even cooked us a tuna tart and rabbit with potatoes. We spent the entire day inside due to the rain and our need to acclimate to Paris. We rested and I watched some more movies. Our host slipped and fell after taking a shower and broke her wrist so she was in and out of the hospital and clinic all day.

The next morning, we got up and took pictures outside of the Louvre.

"it's so small."

We walked through the Jardin des Tuileries and were turned off by the multitude of rats and the apparent small size of the Eiffel Tower. I expected it to look more impressive from a distance.

We kept walking quite a ways and finally discovered PEANUT BUTTER at the blessed Carrefour Express corner shop. We continued on to La Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, my favorite church of the trip. 
There is also a view of the city from the hill that it sits on. We had dinner at a Chinese restaurant, however, the portions were small.











We walked another considerable distance to the Arc de Triomphe and then to the Eiffel Tower-more rats here. 

















Tuesday was reserved for Versailles. The palace was as big and overdone and full of gold as they say. I completely understand why the French were not too pleased with the consumption there. The garden would take days to properly go through so we did not even attempt it. We opted to twerk on the statues and play candy crush in one of the sitting rooms instead.

The next day was Alexx's last day. We scoped out the Louvre but the line was too long and Alexx did not have much time. We went to the Musee d'Orsay instead and I am so glad that we did! It turned out to possibly be my favorite Art Museum of all time. The museum is housed inside a gorgeous high-ceilinged former railway station. Sculptures line the middle aisle while mostly paintings line the hallways. The greatest hits from my art history course seemed to be there. I saw pieces from Degas, Renoir, Manet, Monet, VAn Gogh and so many others. Alexx left me there while I continued to walk around the museum. I got a bit lonely after she left so I decided to walk around and see all of the sights I had missed for the rest of the day. I walked to the Opera, the Bastille, Notre Dame-celebrating 850 years, the Pantheon and most importantly Hotel Le Meurice, the penthouse that Beyonce shot the album cover of 4 and, according to Jay-Z's song Glory, the place where their daughter Blue Ivy was conceived. TMI. Sorry. I went inside the lobby, casually asked for a map of Paris and took this photo.

5 stars y'all

I spent the entirety of the next day with Tim, a friend from Brown. We filled each other in on summer's and talked beside the Canal.














That evening, I met up with Dolapo, a fellow Jackie Robinson Scholar. It was student night at an Irish bar near the Bastille so we went out and I met the other students in her study abroad program. The highlight of the night was when the DJ played Naughty Girl into Single Ladies. Dolapo and I went in of course. That turned out to be my last song as I had to leave before the Metro closed.










The next day I packed my bags and went to the Louvre. Tickets are free for young adults on Friday night so I took advantage of that. The museum is much too large and I don't understand why France gets to have so many important works from all over the world. I guess it's nice that you can see so much history in one place but at the same time it's a reflection of an unequal distribution of power. The Mona Lisa was underwhelming. It is pretty small and just not an interesting piece of work. #oops. The Nintendo 3DS audio guides were kinda cool though. When I got back to the apartment, my host invited me to come meet her at her friend's birthday party as she had forgotten to leave the key for me. The birthday party was lame and randomly enough, I met a strange guy from Modesto. The next morning I made my way to the massive Paris airport and hiked the long distance to check in. Eleven and a half hours later I was home!

Reflecting on the trip as a whole I was blessed to have a really great time. I saw three new countries and was able to make memories with a good friend of mine. I was initially skeptical of how I would enjoy Paris but the more time I spent there, the more I liked it. Fortunately, the Parisians I met happened to defy the stereotypes of the rude elitists that you hear of. I have no doubt that they exist but I did not have to deal with them. Everything, especially the food, is much too expensive. However, I do appreciate the multitude and popularity of public parks, the slower pace of life, and the pastries. I was just informed that Paris 2.0 is happening for one night only on my program's journey from Morocco to Bolivia. We shall see if the positive experiences continue!

Liminal Space 8/24

Our transition from Marseille to Paris consisted of 15 hours on a bus. Despite my trepidation, the trip was considerably pleasant. A mystical bond forms between man and machine and also between passengers for that length of time. In the first hours I alternated between reading, watching the scenery, and dozing off, all while listening to an awesome playlist of Michael Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Janelle Monae, Anthony Hamilton, Beyonce, Paul Simon, and others. When evening came, I slept for almost 8 hours and soon after, we arrived. By that time I was reluctant to disembark and reenter the regular world, especially because I was unsure about how I felt about being in Paris. These feelings were reinforced upon exiting the metro station due to the rain -_-

Sidenote: Blasted Nutella

In an effort to save money, Alexx and I made our own food, with sandwiches as our most popular meal. We quickly learned that peanut butter is a rarity in Europe and apparently nonexistent in Spain, so we resorted to nutella. You may not know (or believe in such things) but I have a sensitivity to dairy. Basically if I am consistently consuming dairy products, I become congested and lose my voice after about a week or so. Unfortunately, I didn't realize that nutella contained dairy so by the time we reached Marseille my nose and throat started acting up and I finally read the ingredients and subsequently halted my consumption. It was a sad day.

Marseilles 8/21-8/23

sleepy foons

Marseille was my favorite leg of the trip. After a short flight and train ride, we arrived downtown and walked up to the home of our airbnb host, Morgane. She is currently training to be an ayurvedic masseuse.

Her flat has plants crammed into every possible space, including in the bathroom. She has photos of Tunisia all over the place and a shrine in the living room. Hindi decorations adorn her walls and the toilet walls are full of postcards and photos. Also this chair is extremely comfortable and creates a swaddling effect.

That evening, Morgane was gracious enough to guide us to Notre Dame, a cathedral on top of hill, overlooking all of Marseille. We were able to get our bearings and converse with Morgane over wine and bread with a homemade olive tapanade spread.

The next day, I slept in and then went to Plage du Prophète with Alexx. We swam and read all afternoon and spoke with a guy from Marseilles and a guy from Algeria. The Algerian didn't speak English so we were forced to practice our French. Practicing was fun until homeboy didn't get the hint that we were uninterested. Once back at home, we rested and read some more. Alexx was working on her pre-departure readings for study abroad and I was up to the last Harry Potter book by then. 

For our last day, we hiked for about an hour to Calanque du Sugiton, a beautiful collection of cliffs, trees, and grotto-like spaces.

 It reminded me of some of the beaches I'd visited on the Amalfi Coast of Southern Italy. The rocks were perfect for climbing and jumping off of and the water was varying degrees of cool temperatures. Once again we read, talked and swam all day, both of us in our preferred elements. 

We decided we couldn't leave Marseille without glimpsing the downtown area so we took a short stroll around the city. In short we were unimpressed and thankful that we spent our daylight hours swimming.

This beach getaway was a welcome intermission of our exploration of European cities. I was also pleased with the rare inclusion of African characters on their sculptures.