Fellow Learning Log
Ahmed M. Hassan Log 2
DATE
May 22, 2017
Last month, I focused mostly on self-care. I traveled to New York for the first time. During my time in New York, I visited friends who helped me tour the city. I went with them to the site seen and visited several museums, central park and time square. After a week in New York, I traveled to Ethiopia and India. It was also the first time to visit India. India was very beautiful and exciting.
Overall my travel was very relaxing and stimulating at the same time. Walking streets in India was fascinating because of the hug population size. It was amazing to watch the diversity within the Indian population and how they all lived for centuries together peacefully.
I have not done many site seen while I was in India. I wanted to experience the city and people. I mostly walked and chatted with people that I met. While I was there I rented an apartment in local townships where I hang out with locals as well as students from other countries who came to study in India. I believe that approach enhanced my experience.
My time in Ethiopia was brief and focused on visiting some friends and family members who live there. I spend most of my time with them chatting and catching up. It was nice to see them get excited about the changes that are happening in their country. The country had a change in leadership recently. The new leader announced changes that will have a positive impact in the lives of Ethiopian population and neighboring countries.
My travel time was very different from my routine. I was able to relax more and spend less time attending to daily demands such as responding to email and phone calls. I was able to experience things as they come and not rush in meeting daily demands. It was a rejuvenating experience to let go of the need to be in control of an experience thing as they come. The fact that I was in another country helped me relax because I was not able to access phone messages and sometimes my email.
The experience taught me that sometimes seeking new experiences helps me learn more about myself. It takes me out of my comfortable daily routine. It also helps me break away from my daily automatic routines that require little or no attention. The trip helped me reevaluate my priority in life and appreciate the opportunities that I had so far. It is nice to take some time and reflect life in general and the projects that I have been involved so far and show some gratitude towards those who helped me.