Although very delayed in posting this pre-departure blog post, I still remember much of my thoughts prior to arriving in Belgrade, Serbia. For the most part, I was very excited and had been counting down to the day that I would leave the U.S for Serbia since the beginning of Spring quarter 2018. I had lived in 3 other countries prior to moving to the States, so I should have been a pro at traveling and being in different cultures and surroundings. This, unfortunately was not the case.
When I had moved from country to country, I had always done so with my family right beside me. My parents would always be by my side and they had all the necessary documents, they were the ones that would be speaking to airport officials and taking care of the major traveling procedures. All I had to do was stay close to them and try not to get lost. This time, however, it was just going to be me. I also hadn’t booked the recommended flight and so I was going to be traveling alone. I had to make sure that I had my passport, my bags were secured, I checked in on time and most importantly that I did not miss my flight. I worried about traveling alone, about how to navigate airports that I had never been in before. I constantly stressed about how I was going to make sure that I did not miss my connecting flight in Zurich. I also incessantly worried about packing the right things. What was the weather going to be like? I was told that Belgrade at this time is usually in the high 90s. But, what if it got cold one day, I should probably pack one cardigan or one sweater at least? If there’s one thing that living in Evanston has taught me, is that weather is not consistent and a single day can go through multiple fluctuations in temperature. But I also had to make sure that everything I was packing would fit into one suitcase and if necessary into my carry-on. This led me to opening multiple tabs on how to pack a lot in a small space. You would be surprised at the amount of things that people can carry in one suitcase, if they just packed well.
Besides the above logistical worries, I had more serious worries brewing under the surface. Belgrade, Serbia is for the most part a rather homogenous part of the world. What I mean by this is that, Belgrade does not have a lot of people that are of African descent, and look like me. I’m an introverted person by nature and as a result, I have a tendency to steer clear of situations where I may be the center of attention. So, my worry was mostly focused on how do I make myself invisible in a city where not many people look like me and that as a result I would stick out like a sore thumb. I also couldn’t stop myself from wondering about what the people I would encounter in Belgrade would think of me. Questions like, do they like black people?, have they encountered black people? and how do they treat black people? constantly swam around in my head and at one point, I thought I had made a mistake in choosing this program. What helped to calm my worries was the orientation that was held for the program. There I was reassured that for the most part, people here are not hateful. What I may find offensive about an interaction is likely to be due to ignorance as opposed to outright hatefulness.
Ultimately, the excitement of experiencing a culture that was vastly different from those that I have been around my entire life trumped the various worries that I had about traveling abroad. So, I packed my bags, completed my to-do list and boarded the plane and now I am here.
I’ve been told that life is an adventure worth taking. I would like to think that this study abroad program in Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina was one adventure I would not dare to miss out on and so I am beyond excited for what more is to come.
Belgrade, Serbia as seen from above <3