What better way to get to know the people at African Leadership College (ALC), ALU’s campus in Mauritius, than to actually hear from them? To help you get to know some of the staff, faculty and students, we’ve introduced a Question of the Week series, designed to get feedback from the ALC community on everything from favourite foods to current events.
Seeing as we’re all on the beautiful Indian Ocean island of Mauritius, which is now a home away from home to many of us, we decided to kick off our new series asking the ALC community what they think about living away from home. Here’s what they had to say:
The best thing about living away from home is …
“Getting an opportunity to see the world from a perspective that is totally different from what you’re used to. You get to meet new kinds of people with different worldviews that will contribute to your personal growth.” -Faisal Burhan, Student, Tanzania
“Living with so many different people from diverse backgrounds and getting to experience the culture of the Mauritian people.” – Selasi Torkornoo, Student, Ghana
“My life in Mauritius is different from the one I led in my country, DR Congo. Everyday I discover new things that help me think critically about my community and how I can build it. My experience here has also shown me how big the world is geographically, but how small it is mentally. We are from different countries, but we feel like we’re from one family because of the love, which keeps our ALC community together. I’m ecstatic about being at ALC because I get the kind of help I would find in my family here. Living away from home teaches me everyday that we’re one.” – Baraka Pilipili, Student, Democratic Republic of Congo
“Having family visit you and bringing back things you miss from home! “ – Yoann Dechambenoit, Director of Technology and Operations, Afropean
“Knowing how special your home is. When I meet people who have different cultures and traditions, I love the diversity in this world even more and appreciate how special my home country is. The magic is in the differences.” – Mohamed Wassim, Student, Tunisia
“Knowing that one day you will go back and give back.” – Abdilatif Ali, Student, Somalia
“Discovering things for yourself, it could be something as simple as figuring out how long to boil an egg to something extraordinary as making friends with people you never thought possible.” – Tofik Saad, Faculty for Communicating for Impact, UK
“Discovering the world by myself- discovering how other people look at life, how things work and how things are totally different from my life at home.” – Agbolade Obadeyi, Student, Nigeria
“Realizing that moments when I tend to miss home are being replaced by exciting activities which leave me with a curious and anxious for more.”- Mohamed Ibrahim Bangura, Student, Sierra Leone
Not doing the dishes for more than one person (me).”- Morema Thabo Mafantiri, Student, Lesotho
“Living in an environment where you are accepted for who you are. The ALC community is so accommodating that each and every one of us feel that we belong here. You are not afraid to get out of your shell because you know you are already loved.” – Simiso Ellen Shabangu, Student, Swaziland
“Being challenged by a new culture” – Raphelle Nemo, Staff, France
“Simply living away from home! It’s such a wonderful experience to begin a new life in a completely different environment and learning to adjust to the different people and culture.”- Elsa Yeboah-Boateng, Ghana
“(More or less) constant electricity. And no go-slow.” – Mena Odu, Faculty, Nigeria
“Being away from home has actually made it vivid in my mind that I am not just a Swazi citizen but a global citizen.”- Jessica Mkhwanazi, Student, Swaziland
