Kareema Dean, Public Health Threats in Suriname, Summer 2026
One challenge I faced while studying abroad in Suriname was adjusting to transportation and how it affected the way we maneuvered throughout the city. During our classes and field trips, transportation was guaranteed to us through a van; thus, we did not have problems getting to our destinations. However, apart from classes, we were moving on foot. This was quite hard since I used to have more access to transportation in my home country and was used to traveling longer distances by vehicle.
Also, the weather in Suriname was influencing our ability to move around the city since it was hard to walk in hot and humid conditions. In addition, sudden changes in the weather often resulted in rain that could complicate our movements even more. Thus, the distance and weather should have been considered before we decided where to go.
Thus, transportation greatly influenced our leisure time. We should have been careful about where we wanted to go since we could not always be sure of having transportation at our disposal. This included the planning of our route, consideration of weather conditions, and the allowance of additional time to walk. Sometimes, this made our movement around the city harder since we could visit fewer places within certain time limits.
On the other hand, such a challenge became essential for adapting ourselves to the new environment. Walking helped us to get acquainted with the city from a different side and observe many aspects of local life that could be unnoticed from the windows of the vehicle. This helped us to become better adapted to the new environment and learn the best ways of movement.
In conclusion, transportation in Suriname was a new challenge, but this challenge taught me to be flexible when traveling abroad. It made me realize that some activities, which we take for granted in our own countries, may differ a lot in other countries.
Leave a Reply