After trying a lot of classes, I decided to study International Relations and French. International Relations is about studying the relationships between different countries and how all the nations in the world can work together. French is all about learning things like grammar and vocabulary, but also about the culture, the food, and the people of French-speaking countries.
This led me to my biggest move yet: one across the Atlantic Ocean. I studied for a summer in France, where I stayed with a host family that shared all of their traditions, culture, and food with me. It was eye-opening to see how a group of people could be so different from myself. From there, I went on to study in Switzerland, Scotland, and Indonesia, learning more and more about people along the way.This continued after I graduated from college, when I moved to Manhattan for a year.
So how did I end up back in Switzerland?
My favorite thing about this country is how diverse the cultures and languages are. Whereas the United States' official language is English, Switzerland has four official languages: French, German, Italian, and Romansh. As a result, there are four very distinct and regions in the country that have their own types of food, their own traditions, and even their own holidays!
Since I am interested in the idea of cultural exchange, Geneva, Switzerland is the perfect place to do my research project, which is about how refugees become a part of their communities. In Switzerland, there are a lot of programs to help refugees learn about Swiss culture and history. My job here is to figure out how well these programs work.
