28 de junio de 2012

“Travel is fatal to prejudice, bigotry, and narrow-mindedness, and many of our people need it sorely on these accounts. Broad, wholesome, charitable views of men and things cannot be acquired by vegetating in one little corner of the earth all one's lifetime.”
― Mark Twain, The Innocents Abroad/Roughing It

As I reflect back upon the wonderful trip to San Miguel de Allende, a high point would definitely be learning and experiencing Mexican culture.  Prior to this trip, I had no knowledge of how much an integral role culture played into the daily lives of people.  Even though we were only able to experience a few cultures in depth (maybe three out of 62), it was remarkable how the people cherished, loved, and cared for their unique cultural background.  Traveling to Mexico for me was more than just eating new foods or improving on a foreign language.  It allowed me to enjoy myself in a place where oftentimes stereotypes portray a different image than how it actually is.  All in all, the main lesson that I have taken from this trip is to never judge a book by its cover until you actually take time out and “read” it yourself. 

-Keith Simms

While staying in San Miguel de Allende, I was exposed to a variety of new cultural aspects that enriched my travel experience in Mexico.  I also learned many new facts and stories about Mexican history including the brutal Spanish colonial regime and the 62 indigenous tribes/cultures found throughout Mexico.  The friendly and extremely social people I encountered throughout my trip surprised me, and while visiting a Mexican primary school or orphanage, it was hard to find a kid who was not eager to talk to me about anything.  I learned that by talking to such kind strangers as these and spreading around the sense of good will among others made me feel better as a person.  I learned many new expressions as well:  “madre” is used frequently as an insult, while “padre” is used like the American word “cool.”  This trip provided me with a fun but serious insight into Mexican culture and life.

-Ethan Ehrenhaft

On the 2012 San Miguel trip, I learned a lot about Mexican history and culture, like how Mexico gained its independence and the heroes that made it possible.  In the Liceo or Spanish school, I learned a lot of new Spanish, like the past tense of verbs and lots of new vocabulary.  We always did fun things after we had our daily class, like trips to the market or a guacamole competition.  Some new words that I learned are “mestizo”, a person of mixed cultural descent, “padre” or cool, and the past tenses.  This trip really showed me how you shouldn’t judge a book by its cover because Mexico is a great country with a vibrant culture and friendly people, even though TV and newspapers portray it as violent and reckless country.  The SMA trip was a great experience for me. 

-Jasper Boers 

On my trip to San Miguel de Allende, I gained much knowledge about the history of the city and Mexico in general.  I learned about the three periods about Mexican history, which are pre-Hispanic, colonial and independence.  I also learned about the role San Miguel and its people played in the independence war for Mexico.  I was surprised that some Mexicans still follow some traditions from tribes like, constructing masks and having ritual dances, which adds to the extreme diversity of people and culture in Mexico.  I grew personally by learning about and living in a totally different culture that ranges from indigenous temples, to colonial-age churches, to modern offices.  I learned to always seize the chance to talk and interact with people that are different and most often there were less differences between us that I had assumed.  Not only did I open my eyes to culture and myself, but I expanded my knowledge of Spanish in a way that can only happen in a Hispanic country.   

-Brian Ross  

I learned a lot about Mexico, the people of Mexico, my peers, and even myself during the STA San Miguel trip in 2012.  I learned about Ignacio Allende (who San Miguel is named after),  Pancho Villa and other heroes of the Mexican Revolution as well as the Mexican war of independence from Spain.  I learned about Mexican culture and way of life, which is very interesting and unique.  Everyone I met was extremely nice, whether they were fortunate or not.  The Mexican community reminds me of a happy family similar to the STA community because everyone respects and loves each other based on what is on the inside not the outside.  For example, the Casa Carmen staff treated us like family and opened their arms to us.  I learned to be very careful with my possessions, too.  Traveling without my family helped me mature and grow more independent because I was in charge of my room and my decisions.  Lastly, on this trip, I have learned that even though you might not have money, possessions or other things, you still can be happy and nice – which is something that lasts forever. 

-Brian Geffroy

On this trip, I learned a lot about Mexico, its history and culture.  I learned that the indigenous people of Mexico created great civilizations and cities that are still being discovered.  Mexican culture is very rich in history and is does not have the violence one might think.  I learned the expression “bueno como pan,” or good like bread, and “xuchitle,” meaning offerings.

-Parker Lombardo