Hey! My name is Mallory Winburn and I’m a junior Marketing major, minoring in Economics. I am from McKinney, Texas and loved moving to Fayetteville! I enjoy hiking, yoga and reading. I have a comfort zone that I was not very good at stepping out of until I found studying abroad. I took a huge leap out of that comfort zone in the Summer of 2018 when I went to Mozambique and as you can imagine, I was met with a huge dose of culture shock. In that culture shock I met tons of amazing people, learned a lot about myself and so much about a part of the world that isn’t talked about much.
I met this sweet little girl and boy in the middle of the bush. They speak the native language of the area, Makhuwa. The coolest part of this entire trip was meeting them and even though we did not speak the same language there was so much love to give and things to learn. They were so happy to see us, and we were so happy to see them. Everyone in this area taught me so much about what it means to be thankful for what you have. I learned this from a toddler and a girl that wasn’t much older than 6. This trip was so impactful on how I carry myself to this day and it changed the way I think of every day things.
Not only did we work and meet amazing people, we got to see amazing views such as this one. This was at Ilia de Mozambique, an island off the coast where we spent a weekend. Places like this is where we spent our weekends. We went with our faculty leaders that took us and the families that were hosting us in country. We got to explore the island, meet the locals and shop around!
Overall, my experience in Mozambique is something that I will never forget. This trip has and will continue to affect the way I think about everyday life. It has ignited a fire in me that I hope never burns out. I will continue to pursue my love for traveling to developing countries in the (hopefully) near future!
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Come meet Mallory and the other peer advisors for a HogsAbroad 101 drop-in session at the Study Abroad House! Come to the office weekdays from 3-5 pm to get all the study abroad basics. Peer advisors are available to help you review your options for study abroad and start searching for a program.
