I got home last night (after about 20 hours of travel) and I felt so conflicted. On one hand, I was extremely excited to be back in America and to get back to my family, friends, and own home. But coming home also meant that I wouldn't be able to see the rest of the people from the Dialogue for 24 hours a day anymore. This was such an incredible experience and although there were certainly ups and downs, I wouldn't have wanted the Dialogue to have been any different. All of the places that we visited and the things that we did really changed how I remember the Holocaust and what I know about it. In addition to the places we went, the people on the trip really contributed to how much I learned; the friends that I made on this trip are some of the most intelligent, insightful and frankly incredible people that I have ever met. I gained so much from the people around me and I don't think the experience would have been the same without them.
It will certainly be strange to talk about my experience due to the nature of what we were studying. It is weird to describe the trip as "fun" when people know that I studied the Holocaust for a month, visited various cemeteries, concentration camps, and memorials. But it was fun. And also sad, amazing, meaningful and so much more. It was truly a life changing experience and I'm so thankful to have had the opportunity to go on this Dialogue.