In the summer, I work as a camp counselor at a horseback riding camp in Connecticut. My favorite parts about camp are making fires during campouts, stargazing, zip lining, singing camp songs and teaching classes in horseback riding. Whenever I have free time, I love traveling to experience new cities, ecosystems, food and cultures. This year alone, I’ve visited Belize, Boston, Puerto Rico, the Midwest and now Senegal with my friends. Once I return from Senegal, I will visit Arizona, Michigan, Wisconsin and take a road trip through Maine. Feel free to tell me about the best places to visit in Maine!
I dreamed of traveling the world since I was in kindergarten, when I would spend hours looking at maps, globes and pictures in travel guides. When I was 13, I even memorized the flags of every country in the world. Did you know there are 195 countries in the world and 54 countries in Africa? Once I got to college, I learned that my university has special programs where students can study abroad for a semester (half of a school year). I knew that by studying abroad, I could achieve my goal of traveling and learning new information.
My university offers programs on six continents, but I chose Senegal because I could practice speaking French and learn the national language called Wolof. Since I always learned about French history and culture in French classes, I wanted to discover another country that speaks French. My study abroad program is unique because I’m taking classes for the first half and doing an internship (similar to volunteering) for the second half. During my classroom phase, I’ve been studying international development and Senegalese history in the capital city of Dakar.
