Hello there!
I thought I would give you all a little bit of background about me before I leave for Tanzania. I am a junior at St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minnesota and am currently pursuing bachelor's degrees in biology and environmental studies. This summer I am doing research on soil microbial ecology at Iowa State University as part of the Biogeosciences REU Program there. In my free time I love to cook, garden, read, run, and hike. I am extremely thrilled to have the opportunity to study abroad in Tanzania this fall. I will be leaving August 13th, will arrive in Dar es Salaam on August 15th, and will come home on December 22nd. This will be my longest trip away from home, however, I have done quite a bit of travelling before. This past January I spent a month in Ecuador volunteering at Finca Sarita, an organic farm on the western coast of South America. Additionally, I have travelled to Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Holland, and Paris. I absolutely love travelling and experiencing different cultures. During my time abroad, I am looking forward to learning Swahili and living with a native Tanzanian family. I think that the homestay portion of the trip will offer tremendous insight into the culture and people of Tanzania. In addition, I am looking forward to tent camping up by the Tarangire national park, hiking in the Usambara Mountains, and snorkeling off the coast of Zanzibar. Overall, I am so excited to go to Africa and cannot wait to get there. As the date gets closer and closer, the reality of it all is starting to set in and it is a little bit nerve-wracking! But, I know that this is the trip of a lifetime, and I am ready to embrace whatever is thrown my way while in Tanzania!
