Going to Thailand was once nothing more than a distant dream for me.
Entering UP back in 2020 as a student whose entire degree centers on studying the society, culture, language, literature, and development of the Philippines, I have also been quite interested in learning about culture and society across Southeast Asia, specifically in Thailand. With this in mind, it raised a certain question for me “How does our culture, literature, and development differ from other countries?” which made me more eager to go on an exchange program. Of course, I could learn a lot about the differences and commonalities through books, journals, and news articles, but for me, learning through firsthand experience is incomparable.
Four years of college had passed, and my dream of going on an exchange still seemed far out of reach due to my financial capabilities and priorities. Saying it was heartbreaking was an understatement, but that never stopped me from finding other ways to learn. Believing that an exchange was no longer possible, I applied to the Office of International Linkages as a student assistant, intending to learn as much as I could about internationalization. It was like hitting two birds with one stone. I can earn money at the same time learn and grow from the staff of OIL. At that time, I knew I couldn’t participate in an exchange program myself, but I was hopeful I could still gain valuable insights by connecting with exchange students and learning about the various cultures they had experienced in comparison with ours. Thankfully, I did through the UP Hiraya Program that we (the student assistants) were a part of. It was kind of a different kind of education—one that taught me how to turn what felt like a setback into an opportunity for growth.
After five months of working as a student assistant, something unexpected happened: the office and the Program Manager of MOVE UP encouraged me to apply for a short-term cultural exchange program at Burapha University in Chonburi, Thailand. I didn’t expect much at first, but to my surprise, both the office and the host university accepted me to participate in the program with the expenses being covered by both offices. To describe what I felt back then can be described as me feeling surreal. I remember going out of the office for a whole five minutes just to call my sibling and my parents about the good news I received. They were happy, and to be honest, I believe they were even more excited about my exchange program than I was. I was overjoyed but more than anything, I was eager to dive into this whole new chapter and see what it had in store for me.
During the ten days of my exchange, I fully immersed myself in Thailand’s local culture—its food, history, English-translated texts, community, sense of belief, and many more. Alongside those activities, I also interacted with people across the ASEAN+3 countries, observed how our society differs from theirs based on their stories, and learned so much about the lifestyles, religions, and societal problems of other participants from Cambodia, Vietnam, Japan, Korea, and Indonesia. Every conference, shared meal, and late-night conversation became a classroom where I absorbed insights beyond the limitations of a textbook. It was such a memorable experience but, apart from the friendships and connections I made across Asia, the biggest highlight for me would be presenting my knowledge about sustainability and community development during a presentation we had to create on sustainable tourism for ASEAN+3 economic development. This specific experience made me proud of myself as a student—a manifestation, perhaps, of all my learning from UP, which I finally shared on an international platform outside its theoretical aspect. That being said, the experience boosted my confidence and opened up many opportunities for me after I returned to the Philippines, not only as a student but as an aspiring researcher, project manager, and organizer.
This experience in Thailand wasn’t just a fulfillment of a long-held dream I had; as clichè, as it may sound, it altered how I saw the world and my role would be in it—reaffirming my belief that learning extends far beyond the classroom, and igniting my current passion for cross-cultural understanding and development that will forever shape my future mission, goals, and aspirations after graduating. As I was returning home in the comfort of my flight seat, looking at the bright white sky, I felt a certain sense of fulfillment, not only by the knowledge and connections I had gained but ultimately, the realization that the dreams I once thought were out of reach can come true in the most unexpected ways.
Mr. Rafael Francisco is currently an outgoing OIL Student Assistant for FY 2023-2024. He has played a vital role in the office’s endeavors, especially in assisting its first Short-Term Internationalization Program (UP-HIRAYA).