Project Week – Border Bisbee
OTHER ACTIVITIES
During spring break, I went to the US-Mexico border in Arizona. Throughout the trip, I had the chance to visit Douglas, Bisbee, and Tucson in Arizona, before crossing the border to Naco, the town right at the border, and Cananea, where I stayed over night with one of the students, in Mexico. By the end of the trip, I was filled with numerous unforgettable memories and experiences, provided with valuable knowledge about the current situation of the border, and had got extremely close to the group and Mexican students whose cultures were new and fascinating to me.
Douglas, Arizona
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I had talked to most of the people in my group, with it being the middle of my second semester at UWC already, though had not had the chance to talk to them much before. It was only through having to spend the entire week working together that I got closer to them. One particular activity that was not exactly part of the trip program but helped me greatly in bonding with others was cooking. When we were staying at the hostel in Douglas, making dinner was one of the tasks for us. Despite not having distinctly decided on the rotations, everyone participated in at least one of the process: deciding on what we wanted for dinner that day that would also be appreciated by everyone, listing out ingredients and getting them at Walmart, and preparing the different dishes. It was a full chaos having more than 5 people in the small kitchen area everyday, and, despite not being the most skilled in cooking, I had joined in with the crew several times. Our interactions went from debating the amount of ingredients to discussing cultures of different countries. Amid the confusion, I have had the most fun while getting to know more about everyone. What's more was that in the end, we always managed to present a variety of dishes to everyone in which they enjoyed.
Naco, Mexico
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The first day we crossed the border to Mexico, we went to the Studio Mariposa, a free art center for kids. Always been interested in art, I found the studio very inspiring. Numerous kids came in throughout the day to explore their imagination and work on their art pieces. I guided several of them in choosing colors and using the brushes and gave suggestions for new techniques. However, a lot of the times the kids came up with ideas and symbolisms in their artwork that even I was surprised to hear. I became immensely fascinated by their creativity and realized that a lot of times I had not been open to suggestions from people I thought were less experienced. With this, I then allowed myself to be taught and to become inspired by the kids in the same manner that I would with anyone else.
After working at the Studio Mariposa, we went into the town to have lunch. I was introduced to authentic Mexican food and drinks which I realized was completely different from any I had had before. My friends and I learned about the origins of the food and the different ways to taste them from the restaurant owner, who gladly explained to us the dishes.
In returning, I realized the difference in getting across the border. There were more process checking our passports and longer lines of both vehicles and pedestrians who were trying to cross the border. I noticed the role that the government played in this immigration process and the different in power between the 2 sides. With limited knowledge about it, I made a note in mind to find out about it the next day, when I would be crossing the border again to visit a local school in Mexico.
Cananea, Sonora, Mexico
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There were so many events and emotions happening in the 2 days I spent in Mexico that I find it hard to recall the order. I visited several schools in Cananea, where I met and became friends with a lot of the students there. We exchanged different stories about our cultures and high school experiences. I shared with them both my experience in Thailand and the US, while they took me around the schools and explained to me the classes and activities. At first, I tried to fit the educational system into one of the two I had been exposed to in my life, though realized in the end that it was a complete different system with a structure of its own. Throughout the day, I witnessed and learned traditional dances and also had the chance to practice simple Spanish I learned from my friends before coming here.
In one of the schools, I met with my host family who took care me throughout my entire time in Cananea. They provided me with various gifts since my arrival, including different Mexican candies, a Baja hoodie which is a traditional Mexican clothing, and a serape cloth, all of which I received with great fascination and sincere appreciation.
In the last school our group visited, I was given a presentation of the current situation on the border and immigration issues. I learned about the importance of the border; how the already high number of immigrants, authorized and not, is still increasing each year. Despite how I was already told about some of them, the facts were still astonishing to me.
One activity that particularly stood out to me was painting the border wall. The first time I casted a sight on the wall was on the US side where I looked up to it as a powerful object. I feared the wall without knowing why – trying to not look directly at the barbed wires and the steel slabs. With this, I was puzzled when I was told that we were also going to be painting the wall. It was not until I was lead outside that I realized the walls were also previously painted into many different murals. The exact same wall, just on the opposite side, now looked pleasant and inviting with the vivid colors. I worked with my friends, dividing the wall into different sections according to our heights. When we finished, the final mural on the wall said UWC on one side and United on another, as the steel slabs were triangular in shape. This is one of my proudest pieces as an artist and most cherished experience as a student of the United World College.