Something that I noticed while here in Prague is how much of the city I got to know. Whether it was day excursions to different parts, exploring on my own, or going out at night, I learned familiar streets and locations that helped me navigate the city with more independence. Being able to traverse this new place that I have only begun to know has truly made me feel like a “global citizen”. I feel safe hearing the sound of cobblestone on the streets and seeing familiar lights cast their glow onto me. Making Prague a new home is what I think study abroad and being a global citizen is all about.
Last year, I said the US could benefit from using the attached lids on plastic bottles. Although I still believe that, my new benefactor would be to push for and fund more research opportunities. Prague is full of innovation, and it would be a mistake to defund institutions that achieve ground-breaking work. The political leaders within the US today are not doing this, instead weaponizing and threatening the integrity of education to achieve their own personal agendas. It is disgusting, and we the people need to vote and fight for a future filled with high-quality education and brilliant innovation. Also, I think the US should push for a better Holocaust education. I truly believe that every person should have to visit a concentration camp. To see the history and the horrors is completely different than reading about it, and if there is a way to honor the victims of both the Holocaust and WWII, it is to make sure people understand the gravity of it. We must never forget.
Aside from serious school blog business, I can’t express enough how much this trip meant to me. It was exhausting for sure, but worth every second of being awake. The people, the places, the pictures, the memories… all of it culminated into the best two weeks I could have ever imagined. It makes me so sad that I’m not going to wake up tomorrow and head down to breakfast to see them all. I am so excited to foster our friendships for the rest of summer, my senior year, and maybe even for my lifetime. This was such a special way to start my summer. Thank you Pitt and Prague for bringing these people into my life, I couldn’t be more grateful. Oh and also my parents for helping finance this trip lollll, God knows how much they have to put up with me. 🙂
Swanson School of Engineering 