Intercultural Negotiations

Even though I'm technically not studying abroad for the entire semester, I have still learned so much- and I've only been gone for a little bit over a month!

St. John, USVI

From January 12th to January 28th, I had the wonderful opportunity to travel to St. John, USVI for my Tropical Marine Ecology class field trip. Almost everyday while we were there, we had lectures, quizzes, and presentations, along with all of the snorkeling, hiking, and research that we did as well. But one night, the faculty arranged for a special guest to come talk to us.

His name was Ital, a native of St. John. Around 60 years old and standing at about 5'9” with dreadlocks hanging just inches off of the ground, Ital enlightened us on dozens of native herbs and plants and their medicinal characteristics. Afterwards, he not only performed traditional music for us, but got us involved as well. With various chants, dances, and instruments, I can now recite multiple songs from the St. John culture, including a song about a donkey wanting water (Hold 'Em Joe!) and an eagle spreading its wings for the first time.

Although, when thinking about the lyrics of the songs (and the entire presentation in general), it really puts things in a more global perspective; morals, customs, values, language, music, rituals were all unfamiliar to me- to us- but completely normal for Ital. And that was the beauty of it. It was the essence of an unfamiliar happiness radiating from his toothless smile and quivering voice that brought harmony and a feeling of unity to the room. When we first entered, we all sat there as though we were in a waiting room, but afterwards, we all danced our way out, only to continue singing the songs throughout the night…and the duration of the trip.

While Hybel's definition of culture accurately depicts the foundation of what culture truly is (“'the ever-changing values, traditions, social and political relationships, and worldview created and shared by a group of people bound together by a combination of factors (which can include a common history, geographic location, language, social class, and/or religion)'”), the metaphor of culture being “a mental set of windows through which all life is viewed” is a more relatable explanation that allows the reader to embrace the meaning and really connect with the cultural situation at hand. After reading the metaphor, I now think of my experience with Ital differently. When I first walked in, I was expecting to be on the other side of the glass, I was expecting to just be peering into his culture through the window. But him welcoming us to participate in his traditions, opening the door to his home¬, allowed me to not only visually witness the culture, but to be fully immersed- visually, musically, traditionally, linguistically, socially- in the St. John culture.


PS- On an unrelated note, here's a picture of me with a sea cucumber.

Snorkeling in St. John, USVI