I have many expectations for my study abroad. I expect to make a lot of good friends, learn Spanish in no way I could while at OU, stretch my comfort level to a great degree and make friends from Mexico as well. I am nervous for the language barrier with the host families. I am excited to travel around Mexico and expose myself to some of it's beauties. I am expecting to grow a lot during this stay as well, I think exposing myself to new people and feeling anxious about new things can really help one's growth. I know this experience will be a positive one!
Because I do not know any Mexicans and I have never been to Mexico, most of the stereotypes I have about them are from the media or are just from hear/say. I imagine that Mexico has a lot of rural space and beautiful country. I seem to imagine a good amount of people living in relative poverty. I imagine that a lot of Mexicans are very hard working individuals. For some reason another stereotype I have about Mexicans is that they are uneducated. I can see how some would be, although what I have heard of Merida makes that stereotype seem wrong. I can almost imagine seeing Mexico in the same light as the U.S. There are plenty of uneducated people living in our country, so I can see my own country in the same light. I also imagine that Mexicans mostly think of Americans in general in a negative light. I am sure they have stereotypes of their own. I hope that my stereotypes I hold are broken so that I have a completely new view of this country and its people.
I have achieved most of my goals for this trip. I have made plenty of friends that are students from OU. I have indeed stretched my comfort level quite a bit. I have done some things that I never thought I would do; I have lived and studied in a country speaking a language foreign to me, for nearly three months. For about half of this trip I had trouble communicating with my host family. But, each day I learned a little bit more, now I am able to talk with every member of my host family for an extended amount of time on a variety of subjects. My host family played a big hand in my learning process during this winter quarter. They put what I was learning into practice. Our opportunities to travel have been wonderful. This quarter has also been somewhat relaxing, I feel at home here now. Being away from home has made me realize what things in my life really matter. I have gotten so much out of this trip, it has changed me.
It is amazing to think how stereotypes shape perspectives. Before this trip, I knew little to nothing about our neighboring country to the south. Now I know that they have a truly rich culture and way of life. This trip has definitely broken most of my stereotypes about Mexico and Mexicans. One amazing trait, at least that I have found in Merida, is the Mexican people’s acceptance of foreigners. I feel that in the U.S., many people are not tolerant of those that cannot speak English. Here it is quite the opposite; even if you butcher the language in an attempt to communicate, most people are happy to help you along. Although there seems to be poverty in Merida, there does not seem to be any more or less in Ohio. I have also found that family seems to be a truly important aspect of life here in Merida, more so than that of the U.S. I can only hope that our presence here has changed stereotypes that Mexicans have about Americans, but I highly doubt that.