I have been privileged enough to be able to travel to beautiful countries like France and Spain, even dipping my foot in Central America, but nothing could have prepared me for my study abroad experience in Ghana. In the past, I have been the typical family to go on summer vacation for a week or two in Barcelona or Belize, never thinking much out of my comfort zone. I loved it in these places, but one thing I couldn’t get out of my head was how similar they were to America. They would play American songs, idolize the same celebrities, and wear the same clothes. Sometimes the only differences were the language and the buildings. Upon noticing this, I was in the middle of a 4-week study abroad trip in Sevilla, Spain. I thought to myself, this is awesome but what if I went somewhere totally different? What would happen? After finishing my trip in Sevilla I couldn’t keep the thought out of my head. I’ve never been pushed far out of my comfort zone, fear often taking over that need. But at a point, one gets tired of the same routine, and I decided I wanted to spend my time in a place where I was forced to change my lifestyle.
I am one of the few who even has the opportunity to be able to study abroad anywhere. Travelling is costly, and therefore a luxury no matter where you are going. One must realize that privilege because certainly, not everyone has it. Travel is definitely not easy and can be unaffordable, trust me I know. The phrase “You’re so lucky!” has been spoken to me many of times. Because I myself know that I am beyond lucky to be in another country, but sometimes it’s not just luck, it’s work. Many people work hard to get to have the opportunity to travel somewhere, and boasting about it online isn’t in spite of others but a proud product of their dedication.
This summer, I spent 3 weeks in Ghana, West Africa. During my application process with my program, I thought the 3 weeks looked daunting, especially in Ghana, where I knew very little information about. Thanks to the public schooling system we often overlook the whole continent of Africa and many of us don’t have the same expertise on a country in Africa compared to a country in Europe. But in Ghana and many countries in Africa, they are still developing. Ghana has government controlled power outages at least 4 times a week. That means no electricity for a whole day or sometimes more. My first night in my hostel, we had no power and had to take showers in the dark. It forced me to realize privileges that I never knew I had. I never thought to think, that majority of the world doesn’t have hot water.
I never realized these things because I was never forced to. That’s why traveling is so important. But it is also a luxury, even though it should be essential. One cannot progress and grow without realizing how different people live in different parts of the world. No matter where you go, this newfound information is crucial to one’s life. Especially as a young person, going out of your comfort zone enables you to try new things without hesitation.