Reflections on DC!

1. What did you learn in Washington D.C. about media?

I had a great time in Washington D.C., especially in all of our media-based activities and educational experiences. One of the most notable stops on our trip around D.C. was at the State Department, where we were informed on the ways in which the State Department is utilizing media tools such as "chats" and Facebook to connect to the global population. For example, I was very excited and surprised to hear about the CO.NX webchats-- uniting people from all across the globe-- including State Department experts-- using media 2.0 resources. These chars allow people from countries such as France, Egypt, Kenya, Pakistan, etc., to engage in enlightening and relevant chats on significant current events. I find this to be a very impressive and practical use of "chat" technology, and I appreciate how CO.NX uses chat, a very common and easy to use media tool, to unite people internationally (much like the DOTCOM program has united Azerbaijanis, Armenians and Americans through blogging!)

2. What did you learn in Washington, D.C. about your student colleagues from the other two countries?

The best part about living with my student colleagues from Armenia and Azerbaijan-- sharing a home, eating meals together, and just spending time hanging out and talking-- is that there have been so many opportunities to just ask cultural questions and learn about our similarities and differences. For example, eating breakfast one morning, I asked one Armenian friend about breakfast in her country. I told her that, in America, "breakfast is the most important meal of the day." I asked her what her favorite breakfast food was, and was surprised to hear that, in Armenia, breakfast is not common and, oftentimes, students don't have their first meal until after school at 2PM! Of course, aside from the cultural differences, I learned a lot about our similarities-- we all love music, we love comedy, we love movies nature. D.C. was a wonderful time and I felt like we all really bonded during our time in the big city. :-)

3. What has been hard or challenging about the DOTCOM program so far?

Sometimes the language barrier is a bit of a challenge and I have to be careful in choosing my words because I want all of my friends, from all three countries, to be able to understand my dialogue. I appreciate the "language barrier" issue because it has made me aware of how I speak and it has made me realize the importance of really pronouncing the words I speak and conveying what I say in a clear, coherent way.

4. What has been exciting and rewarding about the DOTCOM program so far?

The most rewarding experience by far has been meeting and getting to know all of the other participants from Armenia, Azerbaijan, and America. It has been only a week and I already feel so close to everyone and cannot wait to continue spending time with all of my new friends as the program progresses!
On another important level, aside from all of the enjoyment I have experienced during this program, I have also gained a great deal of insight from my experience with the Armenians and Azerbaijanis (and other Americans). For example, during dinner tonight, my host family-- consisting of five Americans, an Armenian, and myself-- had a really fantastic, open discussion on the conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan. This open discussion gave me the opportunity to synthesize what I already knew about the two countries, and allowed me to expand my understanding of the conflict because my Armenian host sister provided a great deal of insight, as well as the rest of my host family. I really feel myself becoming more globally aware, and I am recognizing deeply how important it is for me, an American teenager, to be aware of conflicts such as that of Armenia and Azerbaijan. This is our world and we are all citizens of it, and there is no such thing as an "isolated" conflict: We are all responsible for advocating peace and tolerance.