Day 5: Slow Day

Hello friends and family.

Today, after my breakfast of a banana, toast and pineapple juice, Hannah and I had a introduction meeting with the security of the campus. The head of security filled us in about the security measures here on the compound and being safe outside of the campus. He told us to always take someone who knew the city well with us of course, which I don't think I would ever go into the city without someone who knows the area well!

(The path to the cafeteria/breakfast)

Once we finished up in the guard office, Hannah and I met with Nardos in her office. She began setting up our times for our final introductions. She eventually took us to meet with the IT personnel today where our laptops got set up on the 'official' ILRI wi-fi (thank Lord!). The wi-fi does not like to stay connected very well. We also got our official CGIAR email accounts which is pretty cool if I do say so myself. Tomorrow we have a tour of the library. I am very interested to see what will be available to us in there in terms of research, etc. .

Hannah and I still have yet to get our sim cards for phones so we can actually reach people within the country. Hearing from past interns and even a few graduate students, they are very cheap! We were able to set it up for the 'official driver' Miguel to take us out tomorrow morning to get those. He is also the one that will be taking us to the National Museum of Ethiopia this weekend.

As for now, I am still reading up on Dr. Olivier's work on African cattle. All the information is so very interesting even if I do not fully understand it. With Dr. Olivier and Dr. Tadelle being geneticists I may be swayed towards the in-depth genetics of livestock in my future career! I start my official project planning with both of them on Monday.

(A grassy area between some of the buildings)

After Hannah met with her supervisors for her project of African Chicken Genetic Gains, it was not quite time for dinner yet so we ended up taking a walk around by the basketball courts. There were two young boys there playing basketball with a soccer ball. Hannah and I decided to ask if we could play. Their names were Javie (I didn't catch his whole name) and Gabriel. We played until one team got 20 points. Gabriel and I were a team and we got the dub! It was really fun to be active and play basketball again especially after I blew my knee out back in December.

(Yup, I climbed a tree for this cliché picture)

It was about 6 pm or so and I really needed a water! Hannah and I went to the Zebu Club for dinner which I ended up getting just french fries and a coke. Very American, right?! It was super nice out so we sat outside and ate. I love that Hannah and I are just so laid back with each other. We can make jokes and just be ourselves.

 

(There are actually quite a few cats roaming campus, this one visited during dinner)

I believe that I finally adjusted to ILRI and the campus here. Everyone is very helpful and nice. Hannah and I are even learning some Amharic (Ethiopia's language)! 

ስላነበቡ እናመሰግናለን (Thank you for reading!)

Āmeseginalehu lemanibebi. 

Day 4: African Cattle History...on steroids

Afternoon all!

This morning, after breakfast, Hannah and I met up with Nardos to make sure we were all set with paperwork. Both of us signed our contracts for work and then we went to tea with her at the Zebu Club. She also offered us a snack, I chose to have the English Cake. It was a very thick slice of bread that also contained white raisins. Which, I did not know because I do not like raisins at all! Anyway, after picking out the raisins it was actually quite good but filling at the same time. Hannah and I actually skipped lunch because of our late tea-time with Nardos (it was already around 11 am).

After tea, there was a young boy named Amnen kicking a soccer ball around in the street. Hannah and Amnen started kicking the ball to each other. Eventually they made their way to the actual soccer 'courts' (it is a cement pad with both soccer nets and basketball hoops). I have to say, for how young Amnen was (I would guess around 7 or 8) he was very good! He had to leave so Hannah and I walked back to our Hostel and took in some relaxation before meeting up with one of Nardos' colleagues.

I would tell you his name but quite frankly I cannot say it nor spell it! He told us a little bit about the work here at ILRI and set up a time to get to know the security measures around the compound. Next, we walked to Sululta to see if we would be able to have someone take us to a museum over the weekend as well as find time to meet with IT to get proper wifi set up on our computers. A very nice man that works here in this building set up a time with the IT guys as well as time to visit the National Museum of Ethiopia on Sunday.

Also, my second supervisor, Dr. Olivier Hanotte, was back from his trip in London. He introduced himself and brought me to his office which is only a few steps from the desk of Hannah and I. He started out by asking why I had applied for the internship, why I had wanted to come to Ethiopia and ILRI, as well as why I had a passion for cattle, why I chose to raise Angus and Hereford and why I strayed away from crossbred cattle. As many of you know, cattle has almost always been apart of my background and I have grown to love it. I applied for this internship because 1.) I knew that it was a once in a lifetime opportunity 2.) I have a goal of working towards the end of world hunger and 3.) because I truly want to make a difference somewhere, somehow in this world. I chose ILRI as my preference place of work because of the work with livestock being done and the ability to work with livestock and the people to make a difference in Africa.

After speaking with Olivier, I am overwhelmed but also extremely excited. I have to say, he just radiates knowledge. Olivier and Tadelle are actually senior scientists working here at ILRI and I very pleased to be working with both of them. After asking me those questions, he began to tell me about the history of how cattle migrated into Africa and where the origins came from and where they are now. He shared with me the history of the Bos Taurus cattle coming to Africa first and Zebu (Bos Indicus) cattle coming later, though many believe it is only Zebu cattle present here in Africa. Well he talked about the crossbreeding that happened naturally as well as what is believed as selected traits by farmers within the Bos Taurus and Zebu cattle to create the cattle that are present today. Between the African B. Taurus and the African Zebu even today there is still 80% Zebu and 20% African Taurus bloodlines. That is the equilibrium that has been reached between the two different sorts of cattle. No matter how far these lines get from the origination they will always have the 80/20 lines because of their equilibrium.

As for my project, I will be working with African Dairy Genetic Gains. There is one other type of cattle present within Africa of a line that I didn't quite fully catch him say (with Olivier's accent it can be hard to understand him at times) is currently not at its equilibrium like the Zebu and Taurus. Because there is no equilibrium, there is no consistency to the production of milk in these cattle. With no consistency it can be hard to determine whether that cow will produce sufficient milk for farmers or if it will be in non-scientific terms, 'a dud'. This is what the African Dairy Genetic Gains is working towards, the consistency in this type of cattle. Olivier told me that when Dr. Tadelle returns we will talk about my project and set up a time for me to go to the fields and see the cattle with the equilibrium and the cattle that have not yet reached that equilibrium.

Now, I hope that I did not overwhelm you! I am actually so pumped to be working on this project. Dr. Olivier did give me some of his own research papers to read up on to get a better understanding of the cattle history in Africa. So, I have some reading to do by the end of this week. But, I am looking forward to getting out in the field and working!

Day 3: Boran Cattle Research

Good afternoon everyone!

Today, I am writing from Sululta again. I really enjoy sitting in this space. I'm able to see out the windows and also be out in the open apart from a small office. Also, good news! The bank came and returned my card to me! Thank you Lord!

This morning after breakfast, Hannah and I met Dr. Tadelle here and started into the books he had given us yesterday. I have to say, I am so intrigued by the book that I read today. It is actually a research document titled, "Breeding Strategy to Improve Ethiopian Boran Cattle for Meat and Milk production", within the document there is 43 pages of pretty interesting information. All of it is on the improvement of Boran cattle (the most successful breed of cattle in Ethiopia for meat and milk production). It talks about productivity in all aspects of the cattle itself, the need for improvement and the commitment it will take for the improvement. One of the ideas in the paper that really stuck out to me was the Open Nucleus Breeding Scheme. Cattle reproduction is one of my favorite things to learn about and deal within the species. What this breeding scheme is doing is creating the best and most elite cattle for the farmers. From what I had read, several farmers are doing operating these herds jointly due to lack of money simply just the high demands for record-keeping within this scheme. The major issue from the paper I found was the need to breed for milk and meat production without sacrificing the high ability these cattle have to adapt as well as keeping the commitment of the farmers themselves and even the government. 

I finished the book this morning and plan to start on my second of three books this evening or tomorrow. My next book is, "Transhumance Cattle Production System in North Gonday, Amhara, Ethiopia: Is it sustainable?" I look forward to reading this book, taking some notes and creating some questions about the cattle industry here in Ethiopia. 

I really hope that my project deals with Boran cattle and improvement of the breed somehow. I think about a lot of the technologies that my family uses and others that are in the U.S. Especially with a good record-keeping system, I think it would help with the commitment level within the farmers to their herds. It would allow them to keep a better management plan as well as making sure they are working towards improvement. 

For Breakfast, I had a banana, some sort of muffin (although I did not finish it), and tea. This will probably become my staple breakfast while I'm here. Lunch was good and very filling. I am not really sure why but ever since we have arrived here, my appetite has gone way down. I could barely finish my piece of lasagna today. It may not look too much like lasagna but it tasted like it! Of course, it just would not beat my mothers lasagna, but it was alright being the 'Special of the Day'. 

 

(The Hydrangea and the Elephant ear plants were just so big that I had to take a picture!)

Day 2: The Happiest Yet

Welcome! Would like to have coffee or tea?

My very first day on the job and I already feel the happiest I have been yet.

I woke up around 7 am ready for some breakfast and just the rest of the day. Hannah and I met up at 8 am to go the cafeteria. The weather for today is cool and it honestly feels like a nice fall day back home. It's really nice knowing it's not going to be 90+ degrees and sunny. They actually warned us that it may start to get a little bit more chilly as time goes on the next few months. I put on my sweatshirt and headed to breakfast. For breakfast I had a banana, a raisin muffin (which I didn't finish eating because I really do not like raisins), and pineapple juice. I think the pineapple juice was actually my favorite because it was not like a bottled juice in the states but rather simply a freshly squeezed pineapple in a glass.

After breakfast Hannah and I returned to our rooms and waited for a lady of the name, Nardos. She took us to the Washera building where her office is housed. Her english is a little rough but she is very kind and said that we are able to come to her with any questions or problems that we may have during our time here. We even have an office designated for the both of us in that building. We each have keys to the office so we are able to access that office during the 'work' week when needed. After she showed us our office she asked, "Would you like some coffee or tea?" Well, I have to say I'm usually pretty open to trying new things and I really wanted to try some tea. So of course, we had tea at the Zebu Club. All I can say is, it was AWESOME. Probably my new favorite drink here. After chatting over tea she took us to a very new building on campus, Sululta. In this building, Dr. Tadelle Dessi, Hannah's and I's supervisor, office is there.

As soon as Dr. Tadelle saw Hannah and I, he immediately stood up and greeted both of us with hugs. As from I can tell about him, he is an extremely kind man and he excited that we are here. Prior to meeting him, I was little worried that he would be stern and not very open to us 'newbies'. But rather he was very excited and wanted make sure we were happy with our projects. We sat down at some chairs around a coffee table and he asked us a little about ourselves and our backgrounds. He also said that sometime soon he will take us to his house to meet his family and have dinner in the city. He asked for our ages and compared them to one of his sons who was sixteen years and six months. I told Dr. Tadelle that in about two weeks I would be turning 19 and he immediately smiled and said, "So we must celebrate!" He promised me a good meal within the city. Across from the chairs and table there was a big table for computer work where he said that both of us will work on laptops. Hannah and I thought it was pretty awesome that we basically have two offices that we are able to use. After our chat at the coffee table he asked, "Would you like some coffee or tea?" So we both agreed to go back to the Zebu Club and this time try some cappuccino. Before leaving the building though, he gave Hannah and I some books to read about our upcoming projects. Dr. Tadelle is actually leaving to go to the Netherlands tomorrow for fieldwork (I would assume) and said he would be back friday. Which would give us enough time to read the books. As we made our way to the Zebu club, he wanted us to ask him questions now. Turns out he has been with ILRI for 13 years. After some more chatting over coffee, I think the cappuccino was very good but I think I like the tea better. We finished and Dr. Tadelle asked us to get our laptops and bring them back to Sululta to make sure they connected to the wifi.

I am currently writing from the 'open office' space of Hannah's and I's in Sululta (pictures to come). Looking back at these last couple hours I know that I will be very happy and I cannot wait to start my work. Although, the head of my project, Olivier Hanotte, is actually in London and is to return Wednesday.  Hopefully, he and I can dive right in to whatever my official project may be. On Saturday night and just about all of Sunday, I was very worried that I would not like it here or be accepted. But, today I am reassured that soon all the people here will become almost like family and that coffee and tea here is very, very good. It has already been a full day and we haven't even had lunch!

Stay tuned for more updates on today!

A few pictures from today

 
(The keys to our office in           (The coffee table with a view in Sululta)
            Washera)


    (The other side of our desk in Sululta again,
                          with a view)

UPDATE:

Lunch yesterday was quite interesting. Hannah and I ate in the cafeteria this time because it is open during the weekdays and is even a little bit cheaper than the Zebu Club. I chose the 'International Dish' of braised beef over rice with potato wedges, a tomato sauce, and of course a bread roll. It was quite good actually, I just wonder where internationally the dish had come from!



After Lunch, Hannah and I went back to Sululta to use our computers and I started into one of the books Dr. Tadelle gave me about Boran Cattle and Ethiopia. After we had finished up there we headed back to the rooms for a nap. I waited a little while and talked to my friends who were just waking up at that time. Once I had settled into being a little awake, a little asleep I had a knock on my door. Hannah said that Nardos had called her and said we needed to sign our contracts for the internship. We went to her office and she told me that I actually was not able to sign my contract because of my project change. So, hopefully we can get that arranged soon. She took us to get our official I.D. pictures for our badges that we would receive tomorrow. We began discussing paying for our meals at this time because our meal stipends had not come yet.

 
                                                          (The view from Sululta)


                (The main area in Sululta)

The day began to slowly go down hill at this point you could say. Hannah and I told Nardos that we were able to take out birr from the atm's on campus. So, we got our cards and went to the atm's. Hannah went first. We each took out 500 birr or $21.53. Well, the only problem was that the machine did not spit my card back out. Nardos called a few people and they said to talk to the bank that owned that machine. She took us out into the city to see the supermarkets that were close to the campus. We then went to the bank that just happened to be on the second floor of a building with what seemed to be a few military men with guns and women on the balcony. The bank told us they would stop by at 9 am tomorrow to open the machine. Me, being the worry-wart, was very worried the rest of the night.

Once we had gotten back to our rooms, my nose started bleed very profusely. Just my luck, right? Bloody noses are somewhat of a repeat offender for me but this one lasted about 15 minutes. Hannah was thankfully in my room at the time and was able to hand me tissue until it had stopped. We tried to figure out the tv's in our rooms a little bit but the picture was either blurry and/or in foreign language.

Eventually we went to dinner. I was still very full from lunch so I decided to just get one of the desserts that seemed to be popular at the Zebu Club. It was called Black Forest. It was really good! It was kind of like a layered cake with different sorts of frosting between each layer and then topped of with frosting and chocolate shavings. After 'dinner', we returned to our rooms and settled in for the night. I talked to my family and friends again, ultimately I miss them very much and I love being to still contact them.

Official Day 1: Sunday

Good morning everyone!

Last nights sleep was so wonderful. The bed is memory foam and my room is very comfortable. I also want to point out that when we got into our rooms late last night there was food tin and a coke sitting on the little table in our room. The people here left us Americans a burger and fries as snack upon our arrival. It's really quite funny when you think about it. Unfortunately the meal had been sitting in our room for some time and had gone cold. Though I did not eat the 'snack', it just goes to show the kindness that is here in Ethiopia.

When I did wake up there was music playing and singing. I was extremely confused especially because it was only 6 am here. I eventually fell back asleep after chatting with some friends who were still up back home.

When I did officially get out of bed, around 8 am, I started into my normal morning routine. There was still music playing outside though. Halfway through my applying makeup process the lights in the bathroom had shutoff. Hannah came to my room and she had the same problem. Our first power outage! I wonder if it's a common thing or not. Once I had dressed, Hannah and I made our way to the housing office where we checked in and got our cards for breakfast that morning.

Breakfast was a combination of food I knew and food I did not know. This morning, I stuck with what I knew: toast, sausage, scrambled eggs, and large grapes. There was cereal but I was a tad leery about the milk. Hannah had cereal and she thought the milk may have been goat milk, which I don't doubt!

Sundays seem to be leisure days around here due to it being the holy day. Most Ethiopians here are Ethiopian Orthodox. Hannah and I took the morning to walk around campus and start getting to know our 'homes' for the next 2 months. Everyone is very nice, although it is very hard to understand the very heavily accented english they speak. I'm looking forward to see what lunch will contain and see all the other people we will meet.

Pictures of the Last Few Days + Today

  
                                                                                                 (Over Saudi Arabia)

    
               (The view from outside my door)











   


UPDATE:

Lunch was very interesting combination. The meal was a buffet. I took a little bit of spaghetti, breaded Tilapia, potato wedges, a bread roll, watermelon and some water to top it off. I really enjoyed the little bit of spaghetti and the Tilapia. I was not a real fan of the potato wedges mainly because they were quite dry and lacked in much other taste than starch. The bread here seems to be a safe choice. I also love the availability of fruit at each meal. In total the meal was to cost 150 birr. Which that amount translates into about $6.46. Pretty nuts to think about.  After lunch, Hannah and I returned to our rooms to just relax. I ended up taking a nap to stop battling with the wifi. In our rooms the wifi likes to turn on and off quite frequently. At 6 pm or so, Hannah and I went to the Zebu Club for dinner. She ordered a hamburger with fries and I ordered chicken wings with fries. The chicken was a little tough and the sauce honestly tasted like marinara. But, it was actually pretty decent. A little bland, could of used some salt. Also, the ketchup is like a sweet kind. I always thought that ketchup in the U.S. was sweet but Ethiopians must like the sweeter sauce. The wings and fries with a water cost 57 birr. In U.S. that is under $3.00. It's just crazy to me that the exchange rate is so very different. $1 U.S. dollar is equal to 22.76 birr.

The sun started to go down around 6:30 and by 7:00 pm it was completely dark. We used the flashlights on our phones to see the ground back to our Hostel. The Zebu Club and cafeteria are not far from the hostel which is quite convenient. Back in my room, the wifi was steady enough to where I could call my family and friends through 'Whatsapp' with the wifi disconnecting only a few times. I called my mother first at work but after the wifi cutout she became busy with customers so I called my dad and was able to wish him a happy fathers day and talk to both my brother and sister as well. They updated me on the cattle, the enjoyable weather for June, and even took the phone to see some of the pets, Socks the cat and Pistol/Pup the dogs. It was nice to be able to talk to my family and see how they are all doing. After that, I called my best friend Kylee. We chatted a little bit about Ethiopia and the campus as well as how the lake was that day. My last call of the night was to my other best friend Annika. We talked about Ethiopia, college, and some of our other good friends. I am so glad that I still am able to talk with my friends and family while I am here. It keeps me grounded in a sense.

More Pictures from the day

 

 (This was my dinner, I had              (This is the exchange rate for USD and Birr)

  forgotten to get a picture of 

  lunch)

 
    (This is just outside the windows of my room)


 
  (Just one of the walkways on campus. This                                                                                                    picture really does not do justice!)
                 

DSM-ORD-FRA-ADD

Greetings from Frankfurt, Germany!

Hannah and I arrived here in Germany around 6 am (local time). Friday, we left Des Moines right on time at 8:05 and landed at the Chicago O'Hare Airport earlier than expected around 9:10 am. We took off from Chicago a little later than expected due to do the extremely full plane and mechanical problems. It was about 3 pm by the time we got going.

The overnight flight to Frankfurt was actually quite nice. Free movies, very nice flight attendants, and some interesting food. As it came time for dinner and the attendants began passing out food, they ran out of the only thing I wanted, BBQ Chicken, by the time they got to the row ahead of us. So, I settled for what they called pasta. It was like a tortellini with squash and a strong cinnamon taste. It was decent so I ate about the whole thing. I really don't think that it settled with me too well. I continued watching my movie selections of Hidden Figures (really good movie!) and Ocean's Eleven (a classic). Afterwards, I was able to get about 2ish hours of sleep, which was nice. By the time we began descending, I began to not feel too good. The pressure, elevation, weird pasta, and lack of sleep was catching up to me and coming out. Yep, I got sick. Luckily we were getting off the plane soon. I was able to clean up and refresh in the bathrooms.

I'm very much looking forward to getting to Addis Ababa. I really just want to sleep! We should arrive around 8:45 pm (local time). I'm also hoping our checked suitcases make it to Addis with us! That's about all I have for right now. I'm praying that this next flight goes well, smooth, and very quick!

UPDATE:

I have officially arrived here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia at the International Livestock Research Institute!

The latest flight, Frankfurt to Addis went well! I slept about the whole time in hopes of not getting sick again. The flight actually had one stop to drop off passengers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. That was actually really cool to see! Of course those going to Addis were not allowed off the plane but it was definitely a sight to see! Very sandy as one would imagine. After about an hour of letting off passengers and refueling the plane, we got back in the air and made our way to Addis Ababa. This was about 1.5 hours. I started watching National Treasure but fell asleep, again.

When we landed, it was still all a shock that we are actually here in Africa. We went through customs where our passports and visas were checked. Then we made our way to the baggage claim, where we found both of our checked bags! That was quite a relief. We went out to the arrivals and pick-ups and due to Bole International Airport strict security. A kind man from the airport helped in contacting our ILRI driver. He was waiting outside for us along with other taxi drivers begging to give rides and military men/women holding guns. He helped put our bags in the car and away we went.

I really had no idea what to expect of Ethiopia. When we driving through the city, houses were made of metal tin and very, very small. There were people all in the streets and at one corner there were a mass of vans with people outside looking to be street sellers. After about 15 min from the airport to the research center we arrived and were given the keys to our hostel rooms. It doesn't seem as if the people here can really pronounce my name. They say 'Keely'.

I am blogging from room right now. My room really reminds me of a hotel. I wanted to get a shower super super bad so I go into the bathroom and the shower head is not attached to the holder on the wall. I tried to put the head up there but the holder cracked and hold the head. So, for the next two months I may be holding my shower head. But all in all, I am so glad that we arrived, our luggage made it, and the hostel is nice. Have a good night all!

T-Minus 11 Days until Takeoff!

Can you believe it? Nope, neither can I! I am at the just under two weeks mark before being embarking on my journey to Ethiopia! I wanted to take this "lull" time just let everyone know how I got to this point.

April 2016

My FFA advisor, Mr. Jym Hansen, told me I should write a paper about food insecurity in another country, go to an event and afterwards receive a $500 scholarship from Iowa State University. I was a little leery about writing a paper on such a huge topic that I didn't know very much about. But, I was all about the $500 from Iowa State. So, I sat down at my computer and started reading through the Iowa Youth Institute "Student Paper Resources." Everything I had to do for this paper was clearly outlined in this pdf. I could remember in elementary school reading about Chad, Africa and so I was like sure, why not? I dove in head first (about a week before the paper was due) and started researching and writing about this poor, desert country. Soon, the day had come to go down to Iowa State University and attend the Iowa Youth Institute. There were close to 300 kids in participation in the event ranging from 8th-12th Grade. In the morning,  I would attend an 'immersion' session and in the afternoon I would present my paper to peers and two experts. When I first arrived I thought, "I am way in over my head" and by the time to present (I was last to go in my group) all I could think, "oh my gosh, I am nowhere near as intelligent as these kids or have as much of an understanding." But, once I had finished my presentation I felt confident in what I knew and the solutions I had to offer.

Early-Summer 2016

Sometime in May or June I had received and email stating that I was one of the 75 Iowa Youth Institute attendees chosen to participate in the Global Youth Institute held in Des Moines, IA over the course of three-days. I was so super ecstatic but I really was not sure what to expect out of an even bigger event. A few weeks later, I was sent feed-back on my paper about Chad, Africa. It had helpful points and more questions that expanded my thinking about the solutions I had for Chad. As I read through my paper again, all I could think was, "I cannot believe I wrote such an elementary paper." I took on the feedback full-swing and 'upgraded' my paper. My advisor and a few of his colleagues read my paper and even a few told me they were impressed. That's when I knew I was on the right path.

October 2016

The Global Youth Institute was really a game-changer for me. It made me begin think about all the awesome ways I could work with others to see the end of world hunger. The first two days of the event were jam-packed full of speakers, the Borlaug-Dialogue, meal-packaging, interesting lunches (the soy lunch was actually my favorite!), an awesome tour at Hawkeye Breeders, astounding experts who sat right with us for meals, and a lot of great time spent with friends and laughs. By the third day of the event I was very wore out but I was extremely ready to present my final copy of my paper, Chad, Africa: Educating Sustainable Agriculture. With a group of kids that I had been with the last few days sat down at our roundtable and were led in discussion by 2016 World Food Prize Laureate Dr. Maria Andrade and Dupont Pioneer CEO Paul Schickler. It was so amazing to have a WFP Laureate and a CEO of progressive company listening and giving me a sense that what I have to say is valid and correct. I do believe that my passion and newest goals have stemmed from these three days.

Applying for the Internship 

After you have attended the Global Youth Institute you are eligible to apply for the Borlaug-Ruan International Internship. When I first sat down at the IYI I knew that this internship was definitely something that I wanted to do! So, I obtained my Passport, wrote an essay about what the internship would mean as well as a letter with my country of preference (Ethiopia). About a month or so after submitting my application I received an email that I had been selected for an interview in February. I felt the interview had gone great and I couldn't wait to hear what was next. A few weeks later, I was leaving work and just happened to check email and see probably the greatest thing I think I had ever seen.

All in all, if you ever have any doubt, in the wise words of Shia Labeouf "JUST DO IT." Just write the paper, just go to IYI/GYI, apply for the internship and really, just do your best. In the beginning of my journey to here, I doubted myself and knowledge the whole way but because I went out and just did it, I have discovered a big passion, newfound knowledge, and even an internship in another country. Faith can get you anywhere you just have to be willing to go.