Study Abroad: Egypt

Every college has an office brimming with colorful brochures and wallpapered with posters of the Eiffel Tower and Coliseum. Countless students end up at these famed landmarks thanks to popular programs. A handful of students, however, take the obscure brochures from the less-frequented back corner of the room, which leads them to adventures in far-flung locales and rewarding results.

When I decided to study abroad, I had two options: I could be practical and work on my French minor in Paris or my English and journalism majors in England, or I could take a risk and go to an exotic land. I chose the latter, and soon found myself on an 11-hour flight to Egypt.

Thanks to a sandstorm that flitted across Cairo upon my arrival, my first impression of Egypt was that it was tan and ethereal. As I passed policemen with AK-47s, cars not following any rules, and a disjointed mixture of people, buildings, languages, clothing and more, it felt like a dream.

The trip stayed, in many ways, otherworldly. From the custom of rudely haggling down prices to a universal tardiness of at least 30 minutes, I had never seen anything like it. I spent weekends getting lost in marketplaces more convoluted than Aladdin’s and climbing through crumbling temples and tombs. I spent classes learning hieroglyphics and Middle Eastern censorship laws. Classmates, taxi drivers, professors, tour guides and strangers eagerly sought conversations about politics, economics, and religion, offering information far beyond what I could learn in a classroom.

The Egyptian culture was full of practices I valued and problems I feared. I admired the citizens’ pride in their history, while I balked at their unwillingness to try to improve their hated political system. (While this unwillingness was widely acknowledged at the time, it has clearly changed). I was embarrassed at how many people knew English while I stumbled through basic Arabic. But their disdain for specific countries and groups surprised and disappointed me.

More subtly, Egypt changed my perceptions. A disaster went from being late for my internship to being stuck in a dangerous part of an unknown city. History became the mummified body of Ramses II from 1300 B.C.E, rather than Plymouth Rock from 1620 C.E.. Being unable to sign a guest into my US dorm after 2 a.m. seemed reasonable compared to being unable to meet with more than five people for fear of a conspiracy charge. Back in New York, watching the riots in Tehrir Square, I saw the faces of sarcastic Ramy, passionate Mohamed and fatherly Amr where the news showed rebels. I empathize more with these people I once saw as different, react better under pressures (which no longer seem overwhelming) and am more confident in my ability to be self-sufficient when faced with a new situation.

I am certainly not alone in growing from studying abroad. Among others who have participated in less-conventional programs, Fordham University junior Victoria Rau and Boston University senior Diego Huezo-Rosales value their experiences.

While Rau, who studied in South Africa, has returned to her daily norm, she credits the experience with helping her in her major.

“It would be strange to say that I’m a different person after my experience in South Africa because I have settled into my life again, but my experiences there have had a lasting impact on me,” she said. “As an international political economy major, my experience studying an emerging market while observing it firsthand gives me so much more confidence when I talk about economic development than a similar class taken anywhere else could.”

Huezo-Rosales saw more personal growth during his travels in Ecuador.

“I'm a strong believer that one learns the most about themselves and grows when one is out of their comfort zone,” he said. “It's a chance to see who you are and what you are capable of doing.”

Rau notes the value of going somewhere few others have ventured.

“Talking to South Africans about their country’s challenges and triumphs, aspirations and anxieties, gave me more insight than reading about it in a book ever could,” Rau said. “There is such an indescribable sense of privilege, awe, and responsibility in encountering a place that few of my friends, family members, and peers will ever have the opportunity to visit.”

Huezo-Rosales also found benefits in going off the beaten track.

“I never once regretted coming here rather than going to Europe,” Huezo-Rosales said. “I wanted to go somewhere ‘alternative,’ somewhere I'd be least likely to go in the future. They are like hidden treasures and, in a strange way, it's better like this because it's rarer and not everyone gets to see it.”

For those who are able, venture toward the back corner of the study abroad office. College itself is an adventure; why not take it a step further and try an adventure beyond the norm?