Olomouc (pronounced OH-loh-moats)

Monday

Yesterday was a long day. I was awake for over 30 hours, rising at 7:30 a.m. on Saturday in Texas and arriving at our hotel in the Czech Republic at 9 p.m. on Sunday. We flew to Frankfurt and then to Vienna. From Vienna we took a train to Brno, and from there a train to Olomouc. We flew Lufthansa, which was a fantastic experience if you don’t count the 100 crying children on our 9.3 hour flight. But I really enjoyed being able to use my German language skills for the first time in a real life setting.

I am in Olomouc for the first European Model UN conference hosted by Palacký University. Today the university organized a trip to Poland to tour the Auschwitz I and Auschwitz II-Birkenau concentration camps. Though I've have learned about the Holocaust for years in school and watched several films depicting life at a concentration camp, there's nothing like being there in person to put things into perspective for you. The camps (especially Birkenau) are vast; something I never realized from pictures or movies. The weather was gloomy and cold, but not as cold as I know it can be during the snowy winters in Poland. My heart ached as we walked through the barracks and prisoner's cells. It took all I had to hold back tears when I stepped into the gas chambers where hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children lost their lives. I will never be able to understand how or why this awful crime against mankind happened, but if we do not learn from our mistakes history may repeat itself. Even though the Holocaust happened more than 60 years ago, there are other recent cases of genocide that have occurred since then in places such as Bosnia, Rwanda, and Cambodia. Being at Auschwitz taught me something that I could never learn from reading a history book. I would highly recommend the experience to anyone who has the chance to go.

After we returned to the hotel in the evening, we went to an authentic Czech restaurant on the Upper Square with our 2 new friends from the university, Vojta and Martin. I tried the beef and chicken platter with potato pancakes. And we all took Vojta's recommendation and ordered a Kofola, which is the Czech’s homemade version of Coca-Cola, invented during the Communist era when Coke was sold at an outrageous price here. It really doesn't taste terrific, but all the Czech hipsters have begun drinking it again due to a new marketing campaign Kofola launched in 2002.

Wednesday

Today was our first day of committee sessions. Kaitlyn and I are representing Lebanon on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO.) Our committee topic is “Establishing Framework to Protect the Global Environment in the wake of catastrophic man-made and natural disasters.” The conference is held at a former Jesuit Konvikt at the university, and our committee meets in the Corpus Christi Chapel, a gorgeous 18th century chapel.

The weather is so cold here—it actually snowed a little bit today! But I would say the weather has been favorable since it was supposed to rain all week, and I haven’t had to use my umbrella even once.

Tonight was the opening of the Olomouc Christmas market. When our committee sessions ended at 9:00 pm, we walked around the city square and admired the lights strung along the buildings and Christmas tree. The cold weather, aroma of sweet pastries and mulled wine, and sound of Christmas music definitely put me in the holiday spirit.

Thursday

Happy Thanksgiving! Though this is not the first American holiday I've had to celebrate away from home, it was more difficult to miss than the Fourth of July. I certainly missed having a delicious traditional Thanksgiving lunch at my grandma's house with the family, but we found our own way to celebrate while abroad. After a long day in committee, our entire delegation went to dinner at the same restaurant we did on our first night, Hanácká Hospoda.

My Thanksgiving turkey was a duck, which unfortunately still looked very much like a duck when the waiter brought it to the table. The stuffing—potato dumplings. Cranberry sauce—red cabbage. Salad—sauerkraut. It was good; just not the same as being at home. After dinner we each went around the table and said what we are thankful for. I am certainly grateful for all the wonderful opportunities that I have been offered through my education at TCU. But also family, friends, and the good times that I get to share with them.

Chasing the American Dream: Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness

Semester at Sea has changed my life. Over the summer I met the most amazing people and shared fantastic adventures with them. I became more knowledgeable about other countries. And I also discovered my passion for global marketing, leading me to change my major when I returned to school this fall. But the most unexpected change for me was the new perspective I have gained of my own country--the United States of America.

Before sailing on the MV Explorer, I had never before considered the culture of America. Knowing that the United States is known as "the melting pot," I assumed our culture was a blend of the nations that our ancestors emigrated from. I now see that America does in fact have its own distinctive culture and traditions.

The United States has an adolescent culture, which stems from the fact that our founding fathers were rebels who "ran away from home." This idea is taken from a book I read for my international marketing class called The Culture Code by Dr. Clotaire Rapaille. Our adolescence plays into almost everything we do. "Looking at our culture through this set of glasses explains why we are so successful around the world selling the trappings of adolescence: Coca-Cola, Nike shoes, fast food, blue jeans, and loud, violent movies. America has never produced a world-class classical composer, but has successfully exported rock, hip-hop, and R&B-- the music of adolescence--to every corner of the globe." This also explains our fascination with celebrities and all the adolescent blunders they make, and why NBA basketball players have significantly higher salaries than scientists and educators.  

The books delves into the way that Americans view work, health, love, beauty, home, food, quality, money, and shopping. It also has a chapter on what people from other countries think of Americans and how we see ourselves. My favorite code of the book is the American Culture Code for America: DREAM. “Dreams have driven this culture from its earliest days. The dream of explorers discovering the New World. The dream of pioneers opening the West. The dream of the Founding Fathers imagining a new form of union. The dream of entrepreneurs forging the Industrial Revolution. The dream of immigrants coming to a land of hope. The dream of a new group of explorers landing safely on the moon. Our constitution is the expression of a dream for a better society. We created Hollywood and Disneyland and the Internet to project our dreams into the world. We are the products of dreams and we are the makers of dreams.”

“Our notion of abundance is a dream: it is the dream of limitless opportunity that we believe is synonymous with being American. Our need for constant movement is the expression of a dream in which we can always do more, always create and accomplish. Even our cultural adolescence is a dream: we want to believe we are forever young and that we never truly have to grow up.”

“We have the most powerful, most influential culture in the world because we believe in the power of dreams. Optimism is not only absolutely on Code, it is essential to keeping our culture vibrant. We do the ‘impossible’ because we believe that it is our destiny.” Americans should never close the window to exploration and discovery. Though it is foolish and incredibly expensive, the space program is important to the United States. The landing on the moon was a landmark in our history and what set us apart from other nations. Rather than shutting down the space program, we should set higher goals. If going to Mars seems impossible, that is all the more reason to get there. “Dreams are priceless.” Additionally, the US should never completely close its door to new immigrants, because that would mean denying hopeful people the American dream. “If someone wants to come here and embrace our culture, that makes our culture stronger and at the same time reminds us why America is unique.”

Through my Semester at Sea courses and Mediterranean travels, I have realized that I am 100% American. I value freedom above all things, but also accomplishment, competition, convenience, individualism, and equal opportunities. My sheer positivity and entrepreneurial mindset are supported by the culture of America. I hope I never again take for granted all the freedoms and opportunities that are provided to me for being born in this great nation.

This summer I caught the travel bug. I never want to stop learning, exploring, trying new things, and experiencing different cultures. I intend to continue traveling in whatever way I can afford. But I know no matter where I go or what I end up doing in life, I will always be an American.

Halloween 2010

“Sometimes people call me an idealist.  Well, that is the way I know I am an American.  America is the only idealistic nation in the world.”  -Woodrow Wilson

“May I never wake up from the American dream.”  -Carrie Latet

Rapaille, Clotaire. The Culture Code. Copyright © 2006