By Caitlin Nearhood, university intern
Bluffton University student Katie Conrad is excited to explore Bogotá, Colombia, on her upcoming cross-cultural trip.

Conrad, a junior from New Carlisle, studying dietetics and public health, will go with 13 Bluffton University students and faculty members as they survey the environment and culture in Colombia while staying with host families and taking Spanish lessons. Paul Neufeld Weaver, associate professor of education and Spanish, will lead the group on a three week tour of Bogotá and surrounding areas from May 8-29.

Though eager to travel and learn, Conrad has normal apprehension about the trip.
“I’m worried with the possibility of getting sick. The chances aren’t high, but it’s still a possibility,” she said. “I’m also worried about communicating with my host family and the people we meet in general. I hate not being able to communicate with others.”

Though this will only be the second time Conrad has travelled outside of the United States, she is no stranger to travelling. In her lifetime, Conrad has journeyed to about 30 to 35 states in the western, southwestern, Midwestern, and eastern parts of the United States and has also been to Canada.

About once a week during this past semester, Conrad and her fellow trip members met to prepare for the trip by learning about the currency, language, food, customs, history, culture, and current state of the country (which is enduring conflict) as well as about important pointers about what kind of clothing to bring and wear, how much luggage to take, which vaccines to get and other health concepts vital to staying healthy on the trip.

Weaver assigned additional readings from books and articles about Colombia to the group for better understanding of the language, culture and current events too.

“A lot of the little things don’t seem bad until they’re added up,” Conrad said about everything she had to learn and remember during the weekly sessions.

In addition to taking Spanish lessons and staying with host families, Conrad and other trip members will tour the capital city (Bogotá), worship in Anabaptist churches, learn about peace-building, help with non-governmental organizations like Mennonite Central Committee, visit a nearby tropical island, and participate in more cultural activities. The group might visit the U.S. Embassy in Bogotá, too.

Conrad decided to go to Colombia was because the program works with Mennonite Central Committee, offers home stays with families for a more authentic experience, as well as wanting to go outside the U.S. for a change.

Originally interested in the Israel/Palestine cross cultural trip, she decided against it because it was “too touristy,” costly, and there aren’t home stays. The more immersion activities during the Colombia trip interested her.

While having to learn and retain much information, Conrad is looking forward to experiencing life outside of the United States for three weeks.

“It’ll be cool to live with real people instead of in a hotel,” she said. “Colombia is also the second most bio-diverse country in the world, so I’m excited to see the plant and animal life there as well as try new food.”