Jayson Ito-Adler ’13
Global Studies Major
Butler University-Mexico, Mexico, Spring 2011
CIEE Alicante, Spain, Spring 2012
Currently teaching English in Thailand through CIEE Teach Abroad
My four years at Colby would have been painfully incomplete without either of my semesters abroad (I was a Global Studies major – isn’t studying abroad what we were supposed to do?). I was fortunate to spend five months in the former Mayan capital of Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula, Merida, and later six months in Alicante, a small city on Spain’s scenic Mediterranean coastline. These stretches of time were defining for me in many ways, a series of opportunities to overcome challenging situations and discover what I truly find important.
Fresh-faced, nineteen-year-old Jayson flew into Mexico with a basic understanding of Spanish and a wide-open mind. Thankfully, that’s about all he needed; everything else fell into place naturally. I studied Anthropology, Archaeology, History, and Latin American Film alongside Mexican students at the Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán (UADY). Everything fascinated me, from seeing students greet each other with cheek kisses to realizing grades and test scores were blatantly posted on the wall. Add in an incredibly welcoming, supportive host family and the trip was bound for success. I left Mexico with better Spanish, new friends, a diving certification, much browner skin, and a pesky “travel bug” I haven’t been able to fight off for years. I can remember sitting on my host-parents’ porch near the end of the semester, reflecting on the past, wishing I didn’t have to leave, and knowing someday I’d be back.
Fast-forward past a summer at home in Belmont, Massachusetts, another winter term at Colby, and I was back on a plane, ready to meet my new host family and study abroad cohort in Alicante, Spain. I quickly realized everything was different. In Mexico, I always felt like I fit in; people saw me as one of them. Now, Spanish people kept asking me if I’m “chino” (An influx of post-Franco immigrants from China has resulted in many of Spain’s older generation classifying Asian-looking people as “chinos”). Everyone spoke way faster than in Mexico, and cared more about fashion, and adamantly proclaimed their food, football and festivals are the best in the world. I couldn’t keep up. But little by little I began to acclimate and find my way. I started appreciating my new home, in part thanks to scheduled naps, good wine, and good company. As Anthony Bourdain puts it in his CNN series Parts Unknown:
“… an ordinary life in Spain looks pretty good to me”, and he’s undoubtedly onto something. By the end of the semester, I had reached a point of happiness, a sense of contentment with who and where I was, that has since been unparalleled. I hope to live in Spain for many years throughout my life. I want that feeling back.
Mexico will always be my ‘second home’. Spain will always be my ‘happy place’. However, as I write this I’m currently teaching English for a year in Kamphaeng Saen, Thailand. Studying abroad led me straight into a career teaching abroad, which has already proved to be rewarding and, of course, challenging. I have 327 students ranging from 7th to 12th grade. On most days, I’m sweating through my shirt by 8:20am addressing a room full of bright, energetic Thai kids – a stark change from my college-self who (quite masterfully) arranged class schedules that kicked off around noon. I know I’ve changed as a result of the situations and interactions I faced while studying abroad. My time in Mexico and Spain showed me I could do anything I put my sights on, fueled my interest in international education, and sent me back to Mayflower Hill with renewed energy and appreciation for my education.
