Although I have done lots of service in the U.S., I have never done service abroad. My inexperience of doing service work abroad is part of the reason I was initially interested in this trip. I’m looking forward to the opportunity to serve abroad, especially with the information I have learned from the articles and discussions in class. After reading the articles assigned to us, and after participating in the discussions in class, I’m beginning to question not only what my role is in doing service abroad, but also what role, if any, I play in doing service in the United States in communities outside of mine. I am currently fear that I will be just as unhelpful as Pippa felt during her time abroad. I think that many of the discussion points and criticisms that the authors of the articles we have been reading in class can be applied to all communities outside of our own. Still, I’m looking forward to challenging my own perceptions about service abroad during this trip to Nicaragua.I have been to Cancun, but I was on vacation traveling as a tourist. The area where I stayed was very much so catered towards American tourists so I experienced very little Mexican culture. It was as if I was just in a different part of America.
After class discussions, readings and personal reflection and research, I have become skeptical of all tourism in foreign countries, especially those that are considered “developing.” I understand that tourism provides a great deal of money to the country and for some countries is the major contributor to the economy. However, I feel that there sometimes exists a cultural appropriation in visiting “developing” countries that is passed as normal as long as someone is a tourist. Moving forward, I will be conscious of decisions that I make in traveling to different countries and I will always search for context as I navigate new places.