Through My Eyes, In My Words:

Modern Sub-Saharan Africa: Kenya and Tanzania

Taught by Rexford A. Ahene, professor of economics and business and co-chair of the Africana Studies program, and Kofi Opoku, professor of religious studies and co-chair of Africana Studies

Rich Lear of Stroudsburg, Pa., is a Marquis Scholar majoring in government & law and French. He is a member of Students for Social Justice; Creating a Harmonious, Interesting, and Livable Lafayette (CHILL); and the Association for Lafayette Women. A tour guide for the Office of Admissions, he performed in We Were Pioneers, an original, student-produced play telling the story of Lafayette's transition to coeducation in 1970.

During our interim course in Africa, we covered much of both Kenya and Tanzania's culture, history, development, conservation efforts, and geography. We had the opportunity to go on several safaris, seeing so many animals as if they came straight off the Discovery Channel. We fed giraffes and petted a rhino. We toured cities and the countryside, even stopping in local communities and a Masai village. We met with conservation leaders in both Kenya and Tanzania. We snorkeled in the Indian Ocean. And we soaked up a lot of sun.

This trip opened up my eyes to cultures I never thought I'd experience in person. The professors were great in organizing the events and were always available to answer any random question a curious college student might throw at them. (For example, Why are the eggs here completely white? Or, Why are there so many people walking?) There were some moments when things almost didn't seem real, such as the moment we watched a cheetah stalk its prey, or the time we stopped for the view of the Ngorogoro Crater before descending into it for the day. These moments were the stuff of magazines and television, and yet I was standing there watching it all really happen with my own two eyes. These are the times when I realized that this will be a lasting impression in my mind.

The study trip had something for everyone. The firsthand experience in two developing African countries helped me expand on my own ideas on politics and government in Africa, while the safaris and talks of conservation efforts appealed to the science majors, and the literature and culture tended to the liberal arts in general. The course was exciting, versatile, and a once-in-a-lifetime experience, all at a college student's fingertips.