I
originally intended to take a registered course abroad this winter, but since I
didn't necessarily need the extra credits, I decided I should do something just
as exciting but more community-oriented. That's when I came across the
Alternative Breaks program, and it looked like the perfect
"alternative"! I was really surprised when I got an email
notification that I had been accepted into my first-choice program, the
Guatemala trip! It's hard to believe that the trip is now just over a month away.
We
watched a documentary at our second meeting: "Living on One Dollar".
The film followed the efforts of 4 college friends to make ends meet on a
budget of one dollar a day, in a small village in Guatemala (Fortunately, our
living conditions won't be quite as harsh when we travel there in January!).
The documentary was very eye-opening, not only about the struggles that some
Guatemala residents go through, but also about the crippling socioeconomic
forces that make it difficult for them to improve their situations.
At
our most recent meeting, our trip leaders were generous enough to provide us
with snacks, but I sensed that there was an ulterior motive… Chris and Sarah's
choice of Tostito's tortilla chips as a snack was a subtle way to introduce us
to the Latin American culture we will soon be exploring. The selection of
chocolate-dipped cookies, made from the Cacao bean, was a disguised attempt to
educate us about the native flora of Central America. Our trip leaders were
clearly trying to be sneaky, but I saw right through it.
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