On to the Next Adventure
It’s a bit surreal that my Global Fellows chapter has come to an end. Nearly five weeks later, I’m still trying to find the right words to convey my experience and I continue to reflect on all that I took away from my time in The Gambia.
Instead of going back home to the U.S., I flew directly to Denmark then took a train to Lund, Sweden where I’m studying abroad for the next four months. I’ve now been in Sweden for nearly a month and I absolutely love it here. My hours outside of class have been spent biking (a lot), eating, traveling, and going for fika — an important part of Swedish culture that is at its simplest, grabbing coffee with someone. Lund is a super quaint college town with a vibrant student life; I highly recommend visiting if you are ever in Copenhagen (it’s only a 40-minute train ride away).
I figured there would be a transition period, but so far there hasn’t been. My first days in Lund were not particularly challenging, instead I felt oddly acclimated and comfortable. With this being said, I don’t know that I could have chosen a more different country to study abroad from The Gambia. Sweden is highly developed and economically well off, whereas The Gambia is one of the poorest countries in the world and significantly lacks infrastructure. The two country’s general outlooks on social policy, in particular gender and sexuality, are miles apart. The weather is on opposite ends of the spectrum (I was sweating every day in The Gambia and now I’m lucky if I can go outside in only a sweatshirt without freezing). Swedes are really friendly people but are not ones to engage with those they don’t know and tend to stick to themselves. For example, you would rarely say hello to the person sitting next to you on the train, let alone strike up a conversation. If a Swede has no specific reason to talk to you, they probably won’t. While this surprised me at first, it became normal really quickly. And don’t get me wrong, Swedes are incredibly kind, they just tend to have a wall up that you first have to break down. This was definitely a bit of a contrast to what I experienced in The Gambia. Hugs and smiling faces greeted me each morning at Starfish, some from those who I barely knew. Everyone always said “salaam aleikum” (the standard Gambian greeting that translates to ‘peace be upon you’) to neighbors and shop vendors alike. I do miss that about The Gambia, that instantaneous warmth and welcoming atmosphere.
I thought living and working in The Gambia would “change me”, but I don’t think it has. Fundamentally I’m the same person as when I left, just with new perspectives, ideas, and knowledge. It’s what I do with these things, that is how I act on these insights, that has the potential to change me in the future. I cannot tell you what this change will look like because I don’t know myself, but I’ll leave you with some of my key takeaways from my time in The Gambia: be adaptable, go after your passions, don’t hold back, ask questions, believe in yourself and your capabilities.
To Mollie and Kirsten, thank you for being the best Global Fellows partners I could have asked for. I miss our conversations, nightly workouts, and daily trips to Cash & Carry. I am so appreciative of the support network we built, and I don’t know that I would have pushed myself to fully embrace this experience to the same extent I did without you guys.
With love,
Lindsay
