Q Life Magazine Q Magazine (US) December 2015 | Page 13

Education | | Students visit Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar Everyone there is studying English, and when they hear an American trying to speak Arabic they get so excited; ‘Someone is actually putting the effort into learning our language!’” and rode camels along the beach. They could see Saudi Arabia just across the bay. “The water was so blue, and very salty,” recalls Ali. “And we swam in the Arabian Sea, that’s something I won’t forget.” On the day before they left, the group took an excursion into the desert, in six 4x4s. “We went sand duning,” explains Abbey Borghee, a junior at Texas Wesleyan University in Fort Worth, Texas. “It was like you see in the movies, just sand for miles and miles.” Spreading the Word The day ended at a seaside camp, where the students played volleyball The fellowship program continues for a year after the trip, when the students and professors engage with their communities at home, be they academic, civic, or religious. They give talks, write for their local newspapers, blog: “some of them get really creative,” says Hilbrand, “which is excellent.” Some focus on culture, others on politics; they pay visits to Kiwanis clubs, church groups, nursing homes, and are especially active on campus. Besides the obvious educational and professional benefits for the participants, the study visit brings constructive and much-needed dialogue between Americans and Qataris. “Since I got back I’ve been trying to spread awareness,” says Borghee. “It’s one thing to read about a foreign place, but to be able to send American students there, it’s the best form of communication. We have been able to come back 13