What inspired you to travel abroad?
As an aspiring International lawyer, I have always been looking for chances to go abroad to widen my perspective and engage with new people. I wanted to use the summer break the best I can, and wanted to step out of my comfort zone. I am familiar with the culture of south and east Asia, so I was targeting Europe, a continent that I didn’t have much information about. I was delighted when I found out that the internship was located in Germany, a country I have never been to. I was also excited because I have many friends in university who are Germans, and also because I had just recently started learning the German language. I thought it was a good fit for my interests, so I decided to go abroad for the summer.
Sharing a meal with the family!
Why did you choose The Excellence Center in Europe?
I have taken a course called migration in the semester before the summer vacation. In the course Migration we learned about the immigration and the rising refugee issue. Watching documentaries and reading about the refugee issue, I became very interested and wanted to gain hands-on experience helping the beneficiaries and learning how the NGO supporting such beneficiaries work. South Korea does have some issues with refugees but compared to other countries the history or the gravity of the issue is much less. When I found out about the internship in Germany, I was very excited because it’s not only a mere language academy but was a place that provided comfort for the beneficiaries by arranging weekly community programs for the beneficiaries to come together and maintain their ethnic-group.
What was your favorite part about Halle, Germany?
The city of Halle was very beautiful—the landscape was similar to an illustration of an ideal village. Each morning, on the way to the center, there would be a morning fruit market where people opened up their red-roofed stalls and spread out fresh fruits and vegetables on the wooden tables. The fragrance of just baked bread and flowers and the vivid colors of fruits was pure delight to see in the morning. In the afternoon, the color of the sky would be like blueberry yogurt and the sound of the church bell would fill the air giving a harry-potter vibe. Most of all, the people were very friendly and open to new people. I was one of the very few asians in Halle, but people treated me without discrimination and made me feel at home! The warm, family tale like atmosphere of Halle is what I miss most about, on top of the people who seemed to be free from the fast paced, individualistic society that I was more familiar to. Lastly, Halle might be small, but it has some of the cutest cafes where one can sit down, concentrate on their work or just chill.
What made your experience abroad extraordinary?
If anybody asks me why the internship experience in Germany was special, I would definitely answer that it was the people who made it special. I was one of the two interns who were staying at the center for about two months, and the rest were volunteers who came and went in about a week or two. Therefore each morning, I found myself bumping into a new incoming volunteer and I had a change of three roommates. Each person I met came from a different country and their age ranged from thirty to early teens. With each person I formed a strong bond, and it was at the center where I realized that friendships can truly be formed beyond the barriers of nationality and age. With each person I collected another part of the world, and even after a few months has already passed after the internship, I still keep in contact with all the people I met at the center. It was just a week or two that I spent with them, but it feels as if I have sisters and brothers all around the world.
How did the local program staff support you throughout your program?
The bosses/managers of the internship not only had perfect work ethic but also knew how to make the experience fun and enjoyable with their perfect sense of humor. The bosses were extremely flexible and tried their best to tailor the program to match the interns and the volunteers, and went extra lengths to make each person comfortable and gain the most out of their stay in the center. Other than a rigid and strict atmosphere, the bosses preferred the members to feel at home, so they made sure we had breakfast together each day as a family. Though it was just one meal a day, the shared breakfast we had each morning had a tremendous influence, keeping the family more bonded. We started each day with a nice meal, served with smiles and laughter. In addition, the bosses were very easy to communicate with. Whenever I had an opinion about the center or an idea, there was no need to worry about speaking up. They were extremely open to new ideas and were happy to interact with the interns and the volunteers the most they can.
The breakfast prep team
What's one thing you wish you would have done differently during your time abroad?
To be honest, I cannot think of a single thing that I would have done differently. I was diligent to the job I was assigned to do, and did my best to assimilate with the culture and people in the center. Each day brought new sets of opportunities and lessons to learn from, and I had readily appreciated each chance. In retrospect, because the center was so keen on giving each intern the best experience possible, at the end of day I did receive the best version of an internship. The welcoming environment allowed me to fit right in and actively engage and bond with the community since day 1, and thanks to the attentive bosses I was able to learn more about Germany and the refugee issue in Germany by visiting nearby universities, interviewing the beneficiaries and going on official trips to Leipzig. Throughout the internship my goal was to onboard as much as I can and cherish the given opportunity, and I am proud to say that I was able to achieve that goal.
Describe what a typical day in your life abroad looked like.
The day will start with breakfast (prepared mostly by me, because my main chore at the center was to prepare breakfast), talking about the day's schedules and each intern and volunteer's responsibility for the day. After cleaning up breakfast I would either be working on a presentation, or listening to a lector of the current status of refugees in Germany and Germany's stance in the matter, or participating as a teacher in an English class, or mingling with the other beneficiaries in the center. For lunch I would go out to nearby Arabic or German restaurants with the other volunteers, talking about what happened in the presentation or classes, and sharing plans for the weekend. After lunch we would all come back to the center and continue the work we had been doing before eating lunch. At about 6 we would wrap up, and either go out for dinner, or if it was Friday, we would organize a picnic in a nearby park for the center members and connected beneficiaries to come together and enjoy the company. We would cook our nation's dish or together make Syrian cuisine to share at the park. At the park the beneficiaries would bring all their family member, and we would talk and chill until its dark, eating the good food, playing volleyball or doing shisha.
What did you enjoy doing in your free time abroad?
During my free time, which was mostly the weekends, I would utilize the time to explore the country. I would take the train to further away cities such as Bamberg and Hamburg, visiting the famous museums and tourist places. I am a huge fan of art and history, and I would read about the cities before going there myself, and I was thankful for my chances to travel and quench a lot of my thirst to see and step into the historical places myself. I also loved hanging out with the bosses and fellow interns—the bosses would prepare a movie night in their apartment, and we would all gather to watch a movie and have a small dance party afterwards. It was an extremely bonding experience as not many have a chance to become that close to their superior. My bosses were not merely people who made orders, but approached the interns and volunteers as a person, enriching the time spent in the center. Sometimes if I am worn out of all the traveling and interacting with new people, I would go jogging or swimming in the nearby park and spend time reflecting on the internship program by writing in my journal in a nice cafe. However I spent the weekend, I would always be surrounded in a new landscape, soundscape and smell-scape, through which I gained small and large memories.
What type of accommodation did you have? What did you like best about it?
I lived with a Syrian family, in an apartment about 30 minutes away from the center via walking. The tram station was right outside the apartment so whenever I was running late I just hopped on the tram and the tram would take me right next to the center in about 10 minutes. So transportation is accessible and efficient. While the host mother spoke little English, her son was fluent, so communication was not an issue as well. The best part of the host family was that they showed me around the neighborhood, cooked me authentic Syrian dishes and told me their experience about the refugee crisis. On top of that, some interns were learning Arabic, and many said that living with the refugee family greatly helped in enhancing their Arabic skills. If I have to nitpick, I would say that for a person who is picky about sleeping conditions, it might be a bit uncomfortable, as wifi might not be stable and it may get hot at night, but personally I didn't have much issues with that.
Starting the day with energy and love
What is one thing every future participant should know about your program before their program begins?
You need to be open to new environments and people. Be ready to embrace a new country, a new city and a new team! It might be a lonely place if you try to keep to yourself and not step out of your comfort zone, but once you take a step out, your effort will be rewarded with memorable experiences and long lasting acquaintances. You are coming to a different country- make your best out of it! Travel as much as possible, make friends and explore the city! Read and learn about the culture you are connecting with, learn their basic language and do not be afraid to ask questions. It's okay to be a rookie in working, so just be open to the opportunity of learning and working in an NGO.
Would you recommend The Excellence Center in Europe to others? Why?
I would definitely recommend the internship program to others. If you are one with creativity, like a friendly environment and want to gain not only professional skill sets but long lasting acquaintances, the Excellence Center is the right choice for you. If you are looking for places to discover, chances to explore and travel, and learn more about the refugee issue, the Excellence Center is there for you. I am very grateful that I found the internship program during the first year of undergraduate school, as now I feel more prepared to face new challenges and environments. The internship program in Germany definitely taught me how to find my place and work in a team, and also greatly enhanced my skills of public speech, research, field research, analysis, organization and interpersonal skills. Beyond the work atmosphere, my host town is one of the most welcoming and beautiful towns I have ever seen, so both in terms of work and general living conditions, the internship is a ready package.
What do you feel the biggest benefit of traveling abroad is?
You get to widen your perspective and learn more about the country. One can learn about the culture and the country through books and the immense data on the internet, but stepping into the culture and watching it with their own eye is a completely different level of learning. I believe that sound and scent also carries a lot of information, and once you have the hands-on experience, the knowledge you have about a place or a person become more concrete and ample. You also get to meet a lot of people from all around the world. There is a saying that if you meet a person, you are meeting their version of the world. By talking with people whose life was surrounded and influenced by things that had never existed in your life, you gain access to a part of the world that not even books can provide. If you stay in one place, one country, with the same people, you get used to being a stagnant person. Just as lake water is the cleanest due to its mobility, I wish to have a more transparent, flexible view of the world, which I believe is obtainable by traveling.
Now that you're home, how has your time abroad impacted your life?
As I have mentioned above, I have become more fearless and more excited about the idea of embracing new environments and approaching new people. This is crucial skill for me, as a student who studies abroad in a US university, I am constantly faced with situations where I need to adapt to things completely different from my mother culture. As I aspire to become an international lawyer, the internship prepared me by not only widening my view of the world but also enhancing my skills of interacting and communicating from people of various nationalities. In addition, by assisting the duties of the bosses, I learned a lot of organizing and the importance of community and ethic bonding. I hope to become a leader who understands and cherishes the value of belonging and tries to work in the same stance as the volunteers and interns. I have never met a leader who was less authoritative but still effective in leading a team, and that is the role model that I wish to mold myself into. Now, as a second year in undergrad, thanks to the wonderful experience I had in Germany, I am looking forward to future abroad internships.
What does meaningful travel mean to you?
Meaning travel to me means a life well lived. Even though I was born in a small rural town and in a homogenous country, I was able to escape from my boundaries and overcome my introverted personality and reach out for a larger world. As a kid, I would write in my diary of how when I grew up and earned money, I would spend it on the chances to explore new places and meeting people from all around the world. To me, a meaningful travel is a reward I give myself, a step towards feeling my childhood dream. My wish is to go to as many places as possible, meet people of all origins and lives, and to put myself in new situations. Though it may be hard to move around and challenging to have to interact and get to know new people, I strongly believe each will be a strong foothold for me to become a better scholar and person.
