ABSTRACT
Any cliché that people use to describe their study abroad experience could accurately describe my semester in Cameroon. It truly pushed me to be more open-minded, take a more global perspective, and examine a lot of my beliefs and preconceptions. Having the opportunity to stay in families’ homes in the country and to be engaged in the various communities that I was a part of, in such a tangible way, allowed me to really begin to understand a culture and social class so different than what I’ve experienced before. The lifestyles of my host families there served as windows into the lives of people all over the world who live in developing countries and who far outnumber those living in what I have previously considered a pretty “normal” American lifestyle.
