Jessi | Israel

Jessi Donaghe is a UW senior who traveled to Israel during the summer of 2012 as part of a Faculty-Led Program. During her Faculty-LedProgram, a group of students, led by a UW faculty member, earned academic credit while traveling throughout Israel studying “Religions of the Middle East.” Jessi learned about Judaism, Islam, and Christianity while visiting historic sacred sites and meeting with leaders in cities like Galilee and Jerusalem.

The group stayed in hostels during most of the three-week course; Jessi really enjoyed the experience. One of her favorite parts of the trip was visiting Hezekiah’s Tunnel, a tunnel under the City of David, which is mentioned in the Bible (2 Kings 20:20). Another highlight of Jessi’s trip was travelling to Egypt and climbing Mount Sinai. She reflected on the experience saying, “Now I can say I had breakfast where Moses was said to have gotten the Ten Commandments. That is an amazing thing to be able to say.”      
        

Jessi’s greatest challenge during the trip was finding her way around Israel. She admitted that she got lost in a busy city market. However, she was able to find her way after asking for directions. Jessi recommends that UW student’s pre-designate meeting places when wondering in a new city!

If you are interested in traveling to Israel, studying religion, or participating in a Faculty-Led program, feel free to contact Jessi at jdonaghe@uwyo.edu. 

Beth | Turkey

Beth is a UW graduate student, who traveled to Turkey during the summer after her senior year. Beth travelled to Turkey as part of a Faculty-Led Program that focused on drawing and cultural study.

Beth’s faculty-led group visited places like, the HiahSophia, a converted mosque that now acts as a museum, and the city of Istanbul, which, according to Beth, featured many “cultural jewels.” The group stayed at hotels and bed and breakfasts. While this was enjoyable short term, Beth would not recommend staying at such establishments for more than a week.

Visiting large cities with high crime rates was a new experience for Beth, and she had to learn quickly to distance herself from strangers.  According to Beth, in Istanbul, “it is considered promiscuous for an American woman to smile at a man she does not know.” While this was a big departure from friendly Wyoming life, Beth was happy to learn how to function in large cities. 

Beth’s favorite memory from her trip was an outing to a small farm, where the group sketched buildings. While the group was sketching, children came out of their houses and started making their own drawings. She really enjoyed getting to know the small children, who were eager to play with the UW students.

Beth describes her trip to Turkey as, “one of the best decisions I had made for myself.” Reflecting back she said, “I am so glad I chose to invest in this type of education… It has helped me come to term with what I want to do with my education and where I want to go as an artist and professional.”

If you are interested in travelling to Turkey or participating in a faculty-led program, feel free to contact Beth at ecochra1@uwyo.edu.