When students start picking their study abroad destinations, Europe and Australia seem to be the most popular spots. But for senior comprehensive science major, Val Angulo, Africa was the only place to be. She traveled all the way from Long Island to Tanzania and stayed with the Maasai tribe, learning all the tips and tricks of being an excellent warrior.
Name: Valerie Angulo
Class: 2014
Hometown: Old Brookville, NY
Major: Comprehensive Science
So what made you choose Tanzania?
I thought it would be similar to The Lion King to be honest, and it sounded pretty cool and adventurous.
Was it like The Lion King?
Totally. When we were in the Serengeti we even saw a mini-Pride Rock.
Did you always want to go to Tanzania?
No, I wanted to go to Spain first…and then I considered Argentina…and then I considered South Africa…and then Tanzania. There was a good amount of thought put into it.
How different was it over there?
The craziest things to us were no big deal over there, so it was really interesting. I mean, people would walk around with machetes and it was all really casual, whereas here I don’t see that as being accepted.
Yeah Radnor Police wouldn’t be on board with that. Did you see any cool animals?
All of the cool animals. The hyenas were really annoying but we saw one lion kill a hyena in the middle of the night, which was a little terrifying. The giraffes were definitely as cute as you’ve seen on TV.
Did they have any ceremonies?
After we stayed with the Massai for three days, they had a goat sacrificing ceremony and they offered for us to be branded, so most of our group agreed to do it. I got branded on the back of my neck. It didn’t hurt as much as I expected, they just took a hot poker and held it there for a few seconds.
What was staying with the Maasai tribe like?
It was sort of challenging because it was so different, but you could also tell they were interested in the way we lived as well. For example, all the little children would follow us and take our cameras and take selfies. It was also really hot and we would sleep in bomas (mud huts) with our homestay sisters on a cow skin hide bed.
What was the craziest thing that happened to you while staying there?
I was doing my independent study project in Maasai land and we were camping in a man’s backyard when I noticed 50,000 shillings went missing. After I realized this, I decided to prop up my backpack in a certain way so I could tell if someone was going through it. When I got back to the boma, I realized it had been moved, so the next day we left to go to church and I set up my laptop to record whatever happened in our tent when we were gone. After I returned, my backpack had obviously been messed with so I automatically checked the laptop. When I played the recording back, I saw a video of a warrior going through my stuff. I told my advisor and he showed the video to a group of elders and parents. They brought the warrior in and made him watch the video of himself. They sentenced him to receive 70 lashes banned him from the family boma.
What’d you have to do for your IS project?
I was going to do science but I like artsy stuff more, so I picked Maasai story telling. I had a Maasai elder come over every night and tell me a story or two and I would record and translate it. I analyzed the themes in the stories and related it to their culture and values.
Would you want to go back?
Yeah, of course! I think I should go back in 10 years or something to see what’s up. You have to go with some good adventure buddies.