Last Days in Chicago

In two days I will make the long and difficult journey up north to O'Hare to begin my even longer journey to Tunis, Tunisia. I've been waiting all summer for this week, yet somehow my bags are still completely unpacked. Guess I'll have to get on that today.

When I left France in July 2005 after spending 11 months there as a high school student, I swore to myself that I would go abroad again and live in France for at least another year. My French wasn't perfect-- I was sure a few more months would greatly improve it, I had to go back. More than that, I was addicted to French culture and knew I would miss my friends and host families terribly. As time passed and my months in the states grew into years, my desire to spend more time à l'étranger didn't change, but what I wanted from such an experience did. At the beginning of this past year I diligently filled out applications to spend a year in Paris, all the while thinking that I really wanted something new. One thing that had been the most exciting about living in France was learning the nuances of their culture and attempting (fairly successfully) to adapt to it. It was at this point that I realized that I wanted to go to a different country, one that was less westernized than France, so I could really strengthen my cultural understanding. Muslim, Arabic speaking countries are constantly in the news in the US, yet they remain very foreign to me. I don't pretend to believe that I understand anything at all about how these cultures work but I am extremely eager to find out as much as I can. I feel that living experience in one of these countries will give me skills and experience that, as an international studies major, will be extremely beneficial to me. I chose to go to Tunisia because it is a stepping stone between the known and unknown. From what I've heard, Tunisia is the most modern and forward thinking of Northern African countries. Women's rights first became a priority of the government in the 1950's under Tunisia's first president Habib Bourguiba. Hopefully this will make the cultural transition a little less jarring. In addition, Tunisia was colonized by the French, further smoothing my transition. According to Wikipedia "French also plays a major role in the country, despite having no official status. It is widely used in education (e.g. as the language of instruction in the sciences in secondary school), the press, and in business. Most educated Tunisians are able to speak it. Many Tunisians, particularly those residing in large urban areas, readily mix Tunisian Arabic with French." This being said, it is my hope that my French skills will carry me through... I know absolutely no Arabic. Another reason I wanted to go to Tunisia is the awesome location. I'll be living in Tunis, on the Mediterranean. The Mediterranean is wonderful. Also, I get to take a trip to the Sahara at some point. The food will be fantastic as well. I'll be eating lots of fish and lots of couscous.

I'm going with a program through Oregon State University. It's technically a French immersion program. I would have done the Arabic program but unfortunately I needed to take a year of Arabic in order to get accepted and there was no way I could jam that into my schedule halfway through the school year. So, instead, I'll be taking French classes even though I've completed all the French grammar classes at UChicago and can't get any more credit. I'll also be taking a gender studies class that focuses on women in Tunisian literature and a class on Tunisian culture that includes weekly cross cultural discussion meetings with Tunisian students.

Once I get to Tunisia I'll be taken to a hotel (Hôtel Salammbo) right in the middle of downtown Tunis. Then I while away the days until September 21st when classes begin. Hopefully I can use this time to wander around and get to know the city. I'm also hoping some of the other kids in the program are getting there as early as I am so that I don't need to wander alone. I move into a host family's home between the 20th and 24th. Keep your fingers crossed that they are French speaking. French speaking or not, the chances that they'll be celebrating Ramadan are very high, creating another new and exciting challenge for me.

I'll update this blog as frequently as possible. I have no idea how much internet access I will have once I am there or how much free time I'll have.