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Studying abroad can be one of the most rewarding experiences of a college student’s life, but there are soooo many things to consider when preparing to apply for a program – the financial costs, choosing a country to go to, and even knowing what program to apply for.
To provide advice and help synthesize all of the information that’s involved with studying abroad, I’m joined today by two guests – founder of the non-profit Girl’s Going Global, Martice Sutton, and Girl’s Going Global student ambassador, Rachel Jones. Girls Going Global is a non-profit organization designed to expose and empower African-American girls through travel and cultural exchange.
In our conversation, we discuss what it means to travel abroad as a Black woman, some important safety tips to keep in mind when staying in a foreign country, and the importance of viewing study abroad as a chance for cultural immersion — rather than as a vacation.
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Congratulations, you've been accepted into the inaugural class of Bear pap for Black Rose University. Whether packing for a new year on campus, begging through year gap year, enrolling in a community college, or grabbing your souls for graduation, tbgu is here to help you thrive at this stage of your life and beyond.
Hi. I'm sorrya Taylor, and I'm the TBG podcast production intern. We'll return to Jana right after the break.
Studying abroad can be one of the most rewarding experiences of a college student's life, but there are so many things to consider when preparing to apply for a program, the financial cost, choosing a country to go to, and even knowing what program to apply for. To provide advice and help synthesize all the information that's involved with studying abroad, I'm joined today by two guests. Founder of the nonprofit Girls Going Global, Martisse Sutton and Girls Going Global student ambassador Rachel Jones. Girls Going Global is a nonprofit organization designed to help expose and empower African American girls through travel and cultural exchange. In our conversation today, we discuss what it means to travel abroad as a black woman, some important safety tips to keep in mind when studying in a foreign country, and the importance of viewing study abroad as a chance for cultural emrgon rather than as a vacation. Here's our conversation. Hi, y'all, I really appreciate you both taking the time to talk with me today about traveling abroad. I am so excited for this conversation, and I personally have experienced traveling abroad. I'm just excited all things traveling abroad, travel, all of it. So I can't wait for us to dive right in. So to start, can you tell me a little about Girls Going Global and the work you both do through this organization.
Sure? So, Girls Going.
Global is a nonprofit organization that empowers girls through travel and cultural exchange programs. So we started in twenty twelve in Philadelphia, and I always tell people we had no intention to travel when I started this organization. It was a global awareness organization, and I just wanted girls that looked like me to know that there were women presidents in other countries to know who Malala was. I never wanted to travel with children. And then we started doing passport scholarships, and of course, once our girls got their first passport. They wanted to go somewhere, and we got on the megabus from Philadelphia to Toronto, Canada, and our summer travel camps were born. So then we expanded to Atlanta, and then we moved our headquarters to Atlanta, and today we work with girls throughout the US and we have traveled to over eight countries over the past nine years, and we've been able to just do so many things. So that's the quick gist on Girls going Global and how we originated.
Lovely Martiz, where did the idea for GGG come from.
I went to Spelman College. I was an international studies major, and I studied abroad in Barcelona, Spain. So the black travel movement that you see today did not exist in two thousand and nine, and so people would assume you were African if you were traveling throughout Europe. No one understood the concept of a black American. And so I again wanted to a make sure that other girls that looked like me knew that this was not something that was only designated for a certain type of people, whether that be around race, class, et cetera. And then I also knew that my family had a really hard time understanding the point as well, and so that was another reason why I thought it was important to again on both sides, make sure that people are educated and aware that travel is more than just a vacation. It truly is a transformative learning experience.
I totally agree.
And Rachel, as a student, what work do you do through Girls Going Global?
I go to film in college. There's this filming chapter of Girls Going Global, and I'm the Girls Going Global liaison, So I work directly with ms Martis as well as the other executive director and all the members of the team in order to get girls more involved with GGG national might as well as helped them understand the full extent of what GGG is and understand the importance of like travel for black women and black girls.
And where has studying abroad taken you? What were your perceptions before your time abroad.
My perceptions for me personally was a little bit different. Both of my parents were a military brat, so they moved around a lot, and they wanted me to have that perspective to be able to see the world. There was cultural differ diferences. I'm from up North, so moving from up north to down south, there was a cultural difference going out of the country. I was like, Oh, yeah, do a lot of things differently. For example, when I went to Italy with GIGG, I wasn't used to having to pay to use the bathroom. I was like, Oh, we have to pay to use the bathroom, but you have to pay for water, you have to pay for the minor things. That was like a really big cultural difference for me that I didn't necessarily understand. I was like, oh, we just used together, Like what do you mean? So that was like really big for me. I think my perception as a whole. It just broadened it to understand that not everyone is in the same situation as you. A lot of Americans, I feel like when we travel outside of the US, it's been a titlement type of thing, Like we expect other countries or other people in other countries to speak English, but when you go to another country, you should want to adapt to their language. I think that was a big cultural difference to try and learn and adapt to the languages that were there as well.
No, totally.
I remember when I traveled to Copenhang and Denmark, and I remember member going to Denmark and having to take a step back and recognize, oh, y'all prioritized biking over cars here. That is something that you had to sit in the culture and just remember that you're a visitor of this country and your perceptions are valid, but just also recognize that this is their culture.
So I totally see your point with that. And Martisse, you mentioned traveling to Barcelona. What did you wish you knew before stepping foot in your first foreign country.
I wish I knew about how often people from the continent of Africa traveled, because I was super unfamiliar with that. One of the stereotypes in Barcelona, specifically for African women was that they were prostitutes, and so there was a huge misconception and oftentimes people would think I was a prostitute, and I had no idea about that perception about that myth. I knew nothing about it. So I wish that in doing my research, and that's why I think it's important to beyond doing research on a country, like also trying to find out more about the diaspora within said country and being more aware of how Black Americans specifically and or other black diasport communities are accepted and treated in a different country, so that was one thing that really took me by surprise.
Wow, can you walk us through the options and the programs available to students who want to study abroad?
Yeah. So I always put study abroad or international travel experiences for college students in three buckets. So I say their study abroad, you can interurn abroad. You can also volunteer abroad, And so you would do your research based on which bucket would you like to be a part of, researching internship programs versus study abroad programs versus volunteer programs, And that will also come into how much time do you have available, and so you're typically going to speak to your college of mind. You're going to speak to your Study Abroad office to find out what those options are. And some of the things you should be mindful of are your major, what requirements your school has, what programs are accepted by your school, what courses will actually get credit versus those that will be just for you to explore on your own, and also thinking about the location. The general idea when you're thinking about programs are what do you want to get out of it? Do you want to solely study, do you want to study and have an internship experience and or do you want to have a volunteer element a part of your time abroad as well?
Definitely, And what advice do you have for students trying to choose what country they would like to go to for their study about experience, Like what sorts of things should they be considering when picking a program.
Yeah, so back in my day, I just knew I was studying abroad in Italy, like that was where I was going. And then my advisor was like, blue, but your language is Spanish and so I couldn't. It was like it was just as simple as that. It was just like, you cannot go anywhere that's not a Spanish speaking country. So the first thing is being aware of again what those requirements are. And so I landed on Barcelona because it was in Europe, and I knew I could still get to Italy if I studied abroad in Barcelona. And I was also at the time very interested in traveling throughout Europe, which for a lot of students that's typically what they're looking to do when they have a study of broad experience. So when choosing your destination, think about what parts of the world would you like to explore more of and what are the countries that could be surrounding that you could also travel to if that's something that you want to do. So A, that's one component. B Again it's around your major and your requirements. So different majors have different courses that have to be done by a certain time, and that would influence what country you would participate in. And then lastly, I would say your destination could be based off of the type of experience you want. So if you want to study abroad and you want to go to an actual university instead country, maybe that's only available in Morocco, right, and so you would have to choose Morocco versus. If you're open to being able to do something where it's a program and they have like a campus or a learning center, then that might widen you up to be able to go to Amsterdam, go to Ghana, go to a couple different places, but you're not going to be on a university campus. So those are the type of things I would say you should look for in deciding on your country. And today I will say that the study of broad locations have become more diverse. Again. Once upon a time Europe with all the craze, but I'm excited to see that there are more students, especially students of color, that are exploring the continent of Africa that are doing Southeast Asia. I would encourage people to step outside their comfort zones a little more and go further out. To miss Martisa's point, I would definitely say just go out of your comfort zone. I feel like a lot of the places that I have gratefully been, I was not interested in that first. I felt like it was just like, Oh, I'm just go. Let me just see what it's talking about over there, how they treat Black American people. I think it's also just having that notion of curiosity in general. That's what's good for study abroad. I think it's all about the experience. You never know when it's going to be the right time to go and or if it's going to be the right country until you go. You have to experience it for yourself. So I think that's like one of the biggest things, at least for me, that I could say to anyone else that wants to try and study abroad, is to just try it and go. It's always just an experience. You could hate it, love it, but you still.
Went right and I definitely agree with the point to consider a country where you can travel to other countries in a easy fashion. Like when I went to Copenhagen, Sweden was right nearby, so we were able to travel to Sweden for the day, have a day in Sweden, learn Swedish culture, talk to locals, and then pop right back over to Copenhagen in one program. So I really appreciate that experience because I have two more countries at it to my docket, so it was really cool.
And like even when I was in Barcelona, for example, so my best friend studied abroad in Rome, so I went to Italy to visit her. Then we went to the Beyonce concert in London, and then we did like Halloween and Amsterdam, so we did a lot of bouncing around. That is always the cool thing about Europe. I will also add because I think Rachel brought up a good point about you won't know until you're there, and so my actual first experience out the country was actually the South Africa, and I did not enjoy myself, and so I studied abroad still thinking that like I'm going to have this transformative travel experience, right, because when you hear about study abroad. Everybody's like it's life changing, and I just felt like this was not happening for me. So even once I went to Barcelona, I overall had a good experience, but I was ready to go, Like I remember that two months I want to say it was like a month or two months before my program was over. I was packed up ready, like I was ready to get out of there. And again I didn't hate Barcelona, but once I was there, I did realize this is not exactly the country I would choose again to stay for four plus months. However, a thing to also keep in mind is this goes back to choosing your program. Right. So I chose to do a homestay versus having an apartment versus staying at a dorm, and those things matter. And my best friend did a homestay, but she stayed with a family, so she had a mother, a father, and two children in her home, which was a completely different experience than me, who I had one older woman who only spoke Spanish. The pro to that was that I had to learn Spanish because she only spoke Spanish. The con to that was she was an older woman and she had rules, and the one rule she had that used to wear us out was you could not cook in her kitchen, like at all. She refused to let you cook in her kitchen, but she made all our meals and she wasn't a great cook. So again, I feel like that's a prime example of how even me choosing how I was gonna live with this person was a different experience than my friends that were there that stayed in an apartment versus those who stayed in a dorm. So I also want to throw that out there and say that I don't think it was just the country. I think the program I chose also influenced the experience that I did.
Yeah, thank y'all for walking me through that.
Hi, I'm sorrya Taylor, and I'm the TBG podcast production intern. We'll return to Jana right after the break.
So we know many students face financial barriers when thinking about studying abroad. Do you have any recommended strategies that you give to students facing these challenges?
The first thing I always say is really understanding the cost to study abroad, because there's a misconception that study abroad is super expensive, and oftentimes the tuition is cheaper than your university or college in the US, and so it's important to make sure that you're clear on the numbers before for you just rule yourself out or before you decide that it's gonna be this heavy burden. So first starting with that, and then secondly, like most things, in all things, you should always be looking for scholarship opportunities, fellowship opportunities. There's the Gilman scholars Program, which covers your full study abroad experience. I did the iss HBCU Abroad Scholarship. There's a scholarship with Diversity Abroad, and that's a really great resource for students of color to go to. And there's a whole database of international education scholarship. So I would definitely say that should be your first two strategies. And then lastly, asking for help, like asking your family and friends, doing a crowdsourcing campaign. You'd be surprised how many people are willing to contribute when you can share your experience with them. So those are some of the things that I've done over the years of me traveling, whether it's been an undergrad or even when you know, I had my first job abroad in India and I did a crowdfunding campaign to get my flight back to the un and that was something I had never done before, but it worked. So I would say, just put yourself out there and in all ways, and you never know what can come back to you. I would say the same specifically asking for family or friends at my school specifically, they email a lot about scholarships for study abroad or just in general, like if you're going to do a semester abroad, here's the way that you could pay for the break for down a payment plan, How this could be added, how this could be taken away. I think that's very important, Like miss Bartiz said, understanding the entire cost, because it's not just the flight to get over there to get back, it's the trinkets that you want to buy, the food if it's not included already, So you know yourself better than anybody else, and knowing that if you're very like oh, I want to buy this as a third, make sure you have the funds to cover that. Asking for help from other people or you work, if you work in school or anything like that. I think that's also really important to about today. Yeah, I think that's also a great point. And another thing that I mentioned how I talked about how you can intern abroad, you can work abroad. Those are also ways to fund your experiences. So maybe you're somebody who you don't have the opportunity to actually study abroad, whether it's due to cost, your major, whatever, then maybe you will focus on having a postgraduate experience. So that might look like doing a research fellowship, that might look like teaching abroad, but you create ways for it to pay you. And that's something that has been very successful and lucrative for a lot of students, particularly those that decide to teach abroad. But there are tons of fellowships. Always look up international fellowships and your major specifically or whatever your industry is, internships, and then also teaching abroad.
I know for my school I went to UNC Chapel Hill, there were specific scholarships for students of color, and so it's really important for students to also consider.
Those scholarships, like they want.
Students of color to travel abroad, and so that's literally your ticket to success right there. So that's making sure that you're like Rachel and ms Martis said, like going through the specific channels you need to find money, Like the bag is there, you just have to find it sometimes. So now let's talk about some common misconceptions about settying abroad. So sometimes when people studying abroad, they see it as an opportunity to go on vacation through their school.
What goes into a study abroad experience?
I would say, first, it's kind of in the name study study heavy on the study abroad. I think a lot of it, at least through GGG, we focus on a lot of cultural immersion and volunteer experience and community service, so it's very imperative that we actually learn the culture when we go to these places. A couple of my friends have studied abroad in Europe, have visited multiple countries within Europe. However, they still had work to do and that was done first before they were able to go to all these different places. It can be a vacation on the weekend, but you still have to get your work done eventually. So I think that's like one of the biggest misconceptions when it comes to like study abroad and being seniors. A vacation on social media is different than what it is in real life. So yeah, also study abroad, I think there's a misconception that it's easy in terms of like your actual study element like your classes. People think that you're going over there and that all your classes are going to be easy, and that is not true. So again that's why you need to do a lot of research on your program. I myself thought that I was going to be able to go to Barcelona. I was like, I'm going to raise my GPA, and I didn't think it was going to be easy, but I definitely expected it to be like comfortable. And let me tell y'all, I had to earn every grade I got over there, Like the B that I got, I was still in somebody's office hours. I was still getting tutoring, like I had to work hard for the grades that I did get. And so I do think that's a huge misconception. And people get over there, they mess around, they come back, they drop their GPA, and they're in a whole whirlwind of like the ripple effect of what happens when your grades aren't where they're supposed to be. So you do want to be mindful of not taken study abroad as an opportunity to just play to that point. I'm a STEM major, so my best experiences is studying abroad are during the breaks because my STEM classes you can't take the best set in the US, at least for my specific course curriculum. So it's like a little difficult even if I'm getting the credit. I'm getting the credit for my English class, so I'm getting the credits for my comparative woman Studies class. But it's still gonna be hard because the thought processes is completely different and it challenges you in a different way. So I think that's also like one of the purpose of doing study abroad because it challenges you in a different way you never would have thought.
I also think what's interesting about the difficulty is that you're in another country, Like it's going to take a toll on your mental health. And so while you're balancing new coursework, you're balancing new classmates, you're also balancing an entire different environment. Also, in my program, it was like we had class all day and then we had an emerging experience in the afternoon, and so that's really draining, and so it's also exhausting at points, and so I thought that was the hardest part about child being abroad was like, Okay, I'm tired, Like I want to take a nap, I have work, I have papers to write, but I'm tired, I'm exhausted, and I'm trying to immerse myself in this news space. So all of that combinedent was really hard for me personally.
Yeah, that's so true.
So I'm curious, are there any countries that are quote unquote unsafe for black women and girls?
What does that even mean?
You know, I'm always hesitant about that because I truly do not believe in generalizing countries or like demonizing countries either. And so I tend to feel that the same way that a woman, a black woman has to be mindful in most major cities in America, I would say you would have to have that same level of consciousness in any major city around the world, right, And so I do think that certain countries get a bad rep But it is true that you should be mindful in certain countries. So of course those that might be Middle Eastern countries, I would even say some countries in Southeast Asia. There's different countries in Africa where you need to be a little bit more mindful of your dress, mindful of your mannerism, so making sure you're looking into local customs. But quite frankly, even as Rachel mentioned, we've had girls that have been in Rome and still felt like they experienced racism. I still felt like I experienced racism in Barcelona. I feel like I experienced racism in India. I have experienced racism in every country that I have visited. I have experienced racism in South Africa, but it just looked different because that's a colonize country, and so it was more so just more of that that was going on around classism and colorism more so than like overt racism. So I think for black women and for black travelers, what we have to know is that there are things that are going to follow us or that are going to happen wherever we are. But I wouldn't let that stop you from having experiences because just as much much as I had all those experiences in different countries, I've also had experiences of warmness of pleasantries in every country that I visited as well. So I don't like to put anything out there as unsafe or anything like that. I think you can have these experiences anywhere for sure.
Thank you for breaking that down. We know that some parents are weary about traveling abroad, So what can students tell their parents who may be hesitant about letting them travel to another country because of safety concerns.
I would say specifically, usually with study abroad, you're going in a group. It's not just you. So I think that's like a really big thing for parents is that they're not going by themselves, and at least in the summer experiences, usually there is a chaperone or there's going to be an adult or I mean, I guess we're considered adults, but an actual adult present in those instances. So if there was anything needed or really necessary to call our contact your child, like.
You will be okay.
And I think it's also just learning to let go a little bit and like let your child have freedom, let them experience the world in a different light. That's what I personally have to my parents. But like I said before, my parents were military brads and they were a little bit more comfortable with me going abroad. But it also was because I was going with groups like Girls going Global, that if anything was to happen to me, I would be okay. And nine times out of ten that is what's the case. Also, I think that people that wanted to persuade their parents to help them study abroad is to help them learn or like you could U say, oh, it's it gonna be a GPA booster, or just like I don't want to say it for this, but like just the case it's gonna be a GPA booster or get them a little bit more excited. A lot of Black American students are wanting to go back to Africa and travel different countries Africa.
I'm going to.
Learn more about my roots and stuff like that. I feel like a lot of more parents are going for that to understand who they are as people. So I think that's both a good experience.
Also like letting them know like I'll bring you back something, I'll bring you back, but you know what I mean, I think that could be an encouraging thing. RTC have anything to add to that too.
I mean I think also including your parents in the experience, right, So one making sure that they have all the information. So I think when you can come to your parents and you can say, hey, this is the program, this is the contact information. When they have all of that, that already creates a different level of ease because they can already trust in you, right, they can trust that you've done due diligence and you're prepared to be adult and be a leader and take care of yourself while you're abroad. A lot of times I've had friends who have had their parents come over for different holidays. They've had their parents come over to drop them off the same way they would if they were going to school. Now, in my case, I didn't have that, and there were a lot of times where I was not a part of a group, where I was going by myself. That was different than Rachel's experience, and I think in those types of situations, again, there does have to be an emphasis on your parent trusting you and your decision and how you're able to navigate, and I think you show that and how you operate even being in college. So I was away. I was in Atlanta. My family is from Philadelphia, So if you're in the same city as your family, this might not exactly apply, but how you carry yourself in your day to day life and how you make decisions and navigate college it would be translated into your study your broad experience as well. So those are some things that I think you should think about when pitching it to your parents and making sure that they're on board for the experience. But I also think that today, it's so different, Like the landscape has changed so much in ten years, and today I feel like most parents are advocating for their students to go abroad. When it was my turn, everybody didn't understand why, Like it was just like, why do you need to go to India for what? Today, I feel like there are more parents that are pushing their children to have these types of experiences. Now I do believe there are still black families that are like, why are you going to India? Though? You know, but I mean again, it's not as hard of a sale as it once was.
Right, not totally a great those are great points. It's natural to want to explore outside of the study of rock curriculum. What are some safety tips for students in a foreign country for the first time.
Yeah, I feel like it's kind of the same as operating in America as a black person and a black woman specifically, you just have to be on your p's and q's, Like you have to look around, so also looking into the policies and doing research. They don't allow like mace or any type of bear spread anything like that, So if you need to, you know, have a little quote unquote weapon or something to defend yourself. An umbrella works fine. I think that's also like something that you can use. I guess safety tip if you were like walking somewhere alone but also trying to make friends, and from my experience personally going with a group. Go somewhere with the group their strength in numbers. It's not just by yourself. That's like really important when you're going to a new place, if you're by yourself, like I said, use them. Are just knowing your piece of queues. And also now with technology, there's find my iPhone or any type of location app, so you can pin your location I know, but doing research, there's a way that you can dial the police or whatever the safety patrol is in that area on your phone without having service. So if you feel like you're in danger, you're uncomfortable, you're able to call those people and be like, hey, I'm not from here, I don't really know where to go, And in that sense, no like basic terminology. But I think those are probably two or three things that are important. Yeah, I think some key practical takeaways for anybody that's having a first time travel experience is number one, making sure that you register with the US State Department so you can go to travel dot gov and you just register saying that Hey, I'm Martisa and I'm gonna be in Belize. I'm gonna be there from these states to these states. And why that's important is because if there's any major emergency that happens in another country, like let's say there's a hurricane or an earthquake or whatever, the US knows how many US citizens are in said country, and you want to make sure that you're registered so that when they're evacuating people, they can say, like this person Martisse has not checked in yet saying that they're here to be evacuated, So you want to do that. That's number one. Number two, you definitely want to have travel insurance, and so you can look into your healthcare providers to see what's already covered, but more than likely you need to also get a separate policy, and so I always recommend World Nomads. There's also a company called Alliance that you might want to look into. So travel insurance would be the second thing. The third thing that I think is really important is I do suggest everybody have like a credit card or some type of card that in the case of emergency, you have money at your disposal. That was one thing that I didn't have, and I never had a situation where I did need it, but I did realize like everybody else in my program had credit cards, and working with Girls going Global, there have been several times where we absolutely needed to have a credit card available to be able to navigate different things like if a country shuts down, if your flight is canceled and you can't get your money back, if there's a flood and you need a new hotel room, you know what I mean, all those things that maybe you weren't able to budget for but they're happening. And then other things that are just more qualitative are of course, like looking at the local customs, traveling in groups, making sure that you have things like a door stopper. It's funny that Rachel mentioned the umbrella because that was definitely my weapon of choice. So I mean, there are certain things to just again making sure that you're aware of your surroundings, looking up what the common scams are in set country, Like every country has different scams that they're known for, you should be aware of the top three scams that tourists have faced in said country. Keeping your accommodations to yourself when you meet people, even when it's a taxi driver and stuff like you need to be a mindful of like not being so quick to tell everybody like, oh, I'm staying at the such and such, take your time with that. And again with social media today even more so being mindful of when you're tagging your location. So those are some things that I would say are the key things to think about when you're thinking about safety as a woman and as a black woman in another country.
Those are amazing tips.
The one tip that I got was to be cautious of how I dressed and so being in Copenhangen, the style.
Is very simple.
It's very quiet, it is not bright with colors, it's not loud. And one thing that I noticed, like the first couple of days of the commun being that I was wearing like my quote unquote American clothing and instantly people are like, oh, you're American, you're American, You're American, You're American, and it put like a target on my back. I mean, there's some things you can't like help, but how you dress. But it's something that I took into consideration and when I started to like dress and like lending in just to make sure that I wasn't stepping on toes or just being too loud in a new country.
But I love all the tips that y'all gay. They're amazing.
That's why it's also important to immerse yourself and have like local friends, because they also help you integrate into the country and tell you those different types of things, like they know what parts of the city are dangerous, they know the common scams, they know how you should dress. So that's why you definitely should try to meet and befriend local people.
So what are some thing students often forget to bring one studying abroad? What did you wish that you would have packed that you didn't.
Okay, adaptor to like the outlets and stuff. I think that's very important. I am grateful enough I remember that I packed it last minute. But one thing I will say in Europe, I know in a lot of Black American culture we use wash cloths. In Europe, there is no wash class. We got there and there was no wash class, and I think that was very like bro like, So what am I gonna use? That was one thing that I was really upset. I didn't have a wash cloth and a doctor. Sometimes usually when you travel, you might want to have a water filter depending on where you're going and if you can drink the water in that country. I think that's also really important. I think also like just having a camera also because sometimes your phone it dies, or having a portable charger, that's very important. Those are probably like my top couple of things. And a carbon monoxide detector depending on where you're going as well. That goes back to like the safety piece, being able to make sure that there's no carbon monoxide in your room, just to be safe on that end, and I think that's also very fun.
But no, I for sure agree with the adapter. That is an overlooked item. If you travel abroad without that is I hope you have a friend that will lend you one from the time that you're there. I think one thing that I wish I would have brought is definitely like a sleeping eye mask. Like in cop Hagen, it got bright at like three am, so it was already light outside and I wasn't used to that, So making sure that you have an eyeba or something to put over your face if the time zones are different, you're not used to when the sun will rise. That was an overlooked item that I wish I would have had for sure, for tac I have anything to add.
If you create a packing list, you should be good. But I will say one thing would be and this would be based on your personality, but snacks, and I think it also depends on how long you're gonna be going. So when I studied abroad, this wasn't as important, but when I was like going for a full year and some change, I used to have my mom send me care packages of different things like cereal, noodles, pop tarts, all types of things that at home you probably find yourself being like I don't want that, but then once you get in another country, you're like, oh my god, I wish I could just find some noodles right now. And then in other countries it's super expensive. Like I remember being in India and like if I want a cereal, if I want an American cereal, it would be like fifteen dollars a box. So it was important for me to have those care packages from my mom. And even when we travel with the girls, like a lot of girls will pack their favorite snacks to get them through the experience because for some people, you might have to go over the hump of getting used to the food, and so you need to have something that if you decided that you can't eat anything right away, do you have something in your bag that can hold you over? So I would throw that out there too.
Definitely bring some snacks for sure. That is a pro tip.
Hi, I'm SORRYA Taylor, and I'm the TBG podcast production intern. We'll return to Jana right after the break.
When setting abroad, did you ever encounter students with the savior slash superiority complex? How can one counteractice or check themselves for this behavior.
I don't believe that I have experienced it directly or personally, but I have seen it happen in my circles, I'll say that. And I think where we see that happen the most is during volunteer experiences.
Right.
So it's really important that when you go to communities that a you're mindful of what type of sensitivities are present and again knowing what type of local customs you need to be mindful of. I think it's super important that before you take pictures of people or record people, that you ask for their permission. I think that's a way that a lot of times people will snap a picture of themselves doing service, and then they'll tell a story about somebody without their consent and make huge generalizations or perpetuate stereotypes. And I think that's something that all people have to be mindful of when they're traveling throughout the world. So I see saviorism show up the most in volunteer projects. I feel like I see it the most in countries that are deemed as third world. I do think in terms of superiority, there is a notion that Americans just truly walk around the world like we are the greatest country in the world, and there is a such thing as passport privilege, and I do believe that Americans have passport privilege, Like you can look it up online. There's a website around like the most powerful passports to have in the world. And for Americans, it is true. We're able to get in and out of certain countries without a visa without much red tape in a way that a lot of other countries cannot navigate. And so I have experienced people go abroad and impose their American ideologies on other people and it comes off as superior because you're saying it as if this is the right way to do it. And I guess where I did have that experiences when I was in India and one of my roommates she was British, and I mean, I feel like everything about me saying this is going to be like dating dn't because it's like British colonizer. But she was very strong about the way things should go. She was very like at home in my flat, you know, like it was very like in my flat, we do this is this, and my country we do this is this, and not being open to the different ways that other people live. And so those are things you should be mindful of, not only when you're interacting with local people, but even when you're interacting with other people in your programs. Your way doesn't have to be the right way. And that can go for if they're even from your country. How somebody does their laundry and Memphis may not be how you do it in Philly. So, you know, being open to different types of people and their ways of life. I think I said it before about like American people coming into other countries and just expecting people to know of English and not being receptive to the language. But it also kind of goes into like being open minded in general as to why you decided to study abroad Philly, immersing yourself.
In the culture.
You didn't come here just to be like, oh, I'm on vacation, or you shouldn't have went to just be like, oh, I'm on vacation. It should be a way for you to understand the culture and then go back to your own country and have a different perspective and be like, Okay, well they do things there that way and I'm like, oh I like that, and then take that and adapt because I always say America is a melting pot of cultures, So if that's what it is, we need to be able to be receptive to everything and then go over and do the same. So yeah, and Rachel, that goes back to safety too. Around language. It's also important that whether you're traveling for vacation or not, it is important that you know like a solid three things to say and said language like help, thank you, hello, goodbye, noam on one police and you can google this of like keywords I should know. You should have a list that you know when going to another country so that again you're respectful, you're not coming off as superior, and then you're also being safe. So I think those are things to keep in mind as well.
I love all those tips are amazing.
So let's close with a fun one. What country is on your twenty twenty four bucket list?
I would say Zimbabwe. I don't know why I did this project in like second grade and I could never get it out of my head and I just really want to go see it.
I need to get on Zimbabwe TikTok or Zimbabwe Talk. I need to see it.
I think for me the goal is I would say Thailand. I want to go to Thailand really bad. I've been on Thailand Talk and so a lot of my for you page has been about Thailand and groups going and friendship and all the things.
Martizo, what about you?
Yeah, I'm also torn. I'm torn between like Southeast Asia, like doing a Thailand, a Indonesia that's on my list to like make that run because I didn't do that when I was over there before. But I also have been dying to get to Zanzibar. So those are my bucket lists. Which is in Tanzania or Tanzania? I know I said this in another country, So yeah, those would be my bucket list places for this year.
Well, I'm hoping that we all get our dream trip whenever it happens, but especially for this year.
So where can we keep up with y'all? What are your social media handles?
Well, you can keep up with Girls Going Global at Girlsgoingglobal dot org all one word. You can follow us on Instagram at Girls Going Global. You can find us on Facebook at Girls Going Global. If you can find us on Twitter at Girls Going Global and so, our applications are open now for our high school and college experiences, So if anybody is interested in that, again, you can go to our website and apply. But yeah, Girls Going Global is how you can find us all over the internet GGG yes, and for Summon specifically, it's at GGG dot Spellman So yes, GGG GGG.
Thank y'all so much for this conversation.
I learned a lot about traveling abroad and how to stay safe and how to stay vigilant and prepare.
I appreciate this conversation so much, So thank you again, thank.
You, yes, thank you for having us. We're so excited.
I want to thank Rachel and Martis once again for joining us for this episode. Class is over for now, but before we dismiss here's some homework to take home with you. Began researching what study a broad program you like to apply for, whether it be a volunteer study or work experience. Your college's Study Abroad office is a great place to start. If you already committed to a study a broad program, Begin creating your packing list to make sure you aren't leaving out any essentials for safety. Look into registering your study abroad trip with the US State Department, as well as starting a travel insurance policy. To learn more about the work Rachel and Martis are doing, or to do more research on this topic, be sure to visit Therapy for Blackgirls dot com, slash tvgu This episode was produced by Elie Ellis and Zaria Taylor. Editing is by Dennison Bradford.