Hola! Hujambo! Sawubona! Ahoj! Salve! Shalom! Bonjour! And Hello, my fellow international students.
A few days ago, I sat down in front of my screen, wondering what I should blog about and then a fellow ambassador friend told me about the upcoming school trip she would be going on in a few weeks. So I thought this could be a bit of a PSA with a little bit of storytime.
I’ve recently been planning my schedule for the next semester and because I have to be a full time student, I have to take Biology A&P II, Nutrition, Microbiology, and another 1 credit class (maybe another music). Just thinking about this gives me a headache.
Being an international student brings a lot of challenges, however, the good in this case definitely outweighs the bad. For example, a few weeks ago, I was walking to class and I heard someone yell across the quad, normally I would ignore this but what made me stop was that it was spoken in Kiswahili. I didn’t know the person but I turned and smiled feeling a sense of home in just that one exchange. A big part of the community that I have at CCBC has come from my different accent or because of the Kenyan flag bracelet I wear or something as silly as comparing forehead sizes and talking about tea.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Every morning I drink a cup of hot Kenyan tea even when it is 100oF outside and I’m sweating. Why? It tastes good and sometimes if I sit down and close my eyes it’s almost as if I’m back in Nairobi sitting at the dining table having breakfast. With all the different holidays coming up, I’ve started to feel a little homesick so I thought I would blog about it.
I know it can be heard to make friends, it took me an entire year to finally feel comfortable enough to find a group of people to talk to. Most of my friends on campus are actually international students so while I am a little homesick, I have also found that one of the most important things is family and community and that is what I have found. If you are a new international student, I encourage you to get involved in the different ISS trips and activities that happen around campus and try to make friends around campus.
Remember to check out the international students day trips to New York and more coming soon!
Loved reading this Morwa. Those classes are a lot to take in one semester but if anyone can do it, its you! Good luck!
Thank you so much. It can be overwhelming sometimes but we can do it.
Hey gal, Sasa; nice read felt like i was in Nairobi for a minute reading your blog good job, keep them coming. Feeling homesick too
Hey! Thank you for reading. I know I’m definitely not the only one that gets home sick and I’m glad this reminded you of home.