I can’t
believe I’m already on my way home; the past three and a half months went by
too fast. The last month of Independent
Study, something that I had been dreading since my arrival, was actually one of
the fun and challenging experiences of my college career. I actually felt really independent and
empowered by creating and executing a study project almost entirely by
myself. I was assigned an advisor who
helped a bit during the end; but due to his travelling schedule, he was
unavailable to help in the planning stages of my project. Upon my arrival in Uzi, I expected to have
someone tell me what exactly they wanted to be done with regards to tourism on
the island. So after a little tour of
the island on my first day, I created a plan to survey the locals’ attitudes
regarding tourism and then make a plan to sustainably develop tourism for the
future. While I ran into a little bit of
a time crunch, I think it was actually pretty successful! I ended up surveying 100 people in Swahili
(with some help from my translator) and was able to make some (hopefully
helpful) recommendations based on the people’s responses. In the end, I finished my thirty-five page
paper and twenty-five minute presentation; now I just have to keep my fingers
crossed until I get my grades back.
In the
last few days after Independent Study was over we were able to hit the beach
and just relax. I’m not complaining
about the work load this semester by any means; but this was the first time all
semester that we were able to sit at the beach and not have to do
research. And because the Zanzibar
archipelago is most commonly known as the “spice islands,” no trip would be
complete without a spice tour. We were
able to see the farming, harvesting, and drying process of many different
spices like cinnamon, vanilla, and the largest export: cloves.
Now I
sit in Dubai, waiting to board my third of four flights on my two-day trip
home. In less than 24 hours I will back
on my home turf. Look out America, here
I come!
