Studying Abroad - The Feeling of bahok

"In a moment of crisis, everybody must come
together no matter what the language and culture." - Akram Khan

Speaking from my own study abroad experiences, it's
thrilling to have the opportunity to go to an event that appeases and
entertains lingering reverse culture shock. Akram Khan, a British
choreographer, loads on the diversity with dancers from China, Spain, Slovakia,
India, South Korea, Taiwan and South Africa. The piece, bahok, is all about creating a universal concept of home based on
the cultural memories of the world-spanning dancers. If you've been abroad at
all, you can appreciate the subtle nuances and identities of every country
that, brought together, defines an idea applicable to the world as a whole in
its human simplicity. 

Inspired by communication in airports, bahok will appeal to study abroad students who appreciate the
fragility of the travelers' states of mind. They are trying to say something to
each other in a new way, attempting to relay a sense of their home to each
other. When I got to Fiumicino airport in Rome, the school staff rushed us onto
a bus to take us to Perugia. All the students looked slightly harried from an eight
hour flight on edgy nerves and excitement, and we all sat quietly during the
bus ride to Perugia. But at dinner that night, after a shower, a cat nap, and
some delicious Italian gnocchi, we were ready to chiacchierare, to
chat. The dining hall was roaring with conversations between students from all
over, trying to find a common thread to connect with. The dancers carry their
homes with them, just as a student abroad carries about their notions of home
and their physical comforts in their suitcases and memories. Through words and
the weeks together, you begin to see what each other are all about. In bahok, this is done through the language
of movement.

Another battle during study abroad is homesickness. However,
I found in my experience, the longer you stay, the more you re-define your
sense of home, taking a little of this culture and little of that culture, and
putting down your own unique welcome sign at your stoop. When I left Italy, I
was just getting to the point where I didn't want to leave.  I was there just long enough to want to
include it in my new definition of home. I have a feeling bahok will be the same way.

-Melissa WrayMarketing Intern & U of M SeniorStudied abroad in Perugia, Italy