Awkwardly Introverted

  🚧 Blog Post 1: Berlin Berlin is a city that knows how to hold pain and possibility in the same breath. On the surface, it’s edgy, modern, and full of life — from punk Elmos on street corners to people of every background living their truths. But beneath all that is a deep, complicated history that never really lets go. Before this trip, I thought I understood the Berlin Wall. I’ve seen documentaries, read articles, even watched Reagan say, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” But standing there — hand on concrete, eyes tracing the cracks — was different. The wall wasn’t just stone and steel. It was a line drawn through families, ideologies, lives. That gold plaque quoting Reagan’s speech? Gave me chills. I geeked out seeing it in person, especially with the U.S. Embassy right nearby. The symbolism wasn’t lost on me — division, unity, and diplomacy, all colliding in one space. I also learned something small but oddly poetic: Berlin means “swamp land.” And yet, here it is — a cit...

A Holocaust Study Abroad Journey — Blog Series Intro There are some things you can only learn by going. Not by reading. Not by watching. Not even by listening. You have to stand where it happened. Breathe the air. Hear the silence. This past spring, I traveled across Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic as part of a Holocaust-focused study abroad program. What I experienced was more than history — it was human. It was haunting. It was healing. And it changed me. This blog series is my attempt to process all of it. The sorrow. The beauty. The rage. The resilience. It’s part travel journal, part reflection, part truth-telling from the perspective of a Black American woman trying to make sense of a world that still hasn’t learned. You’ll see moments that broke me. Quotes that stuck with me. Stories that should never be forgotten. And how visiting Holocaust sites forced me to think not just about then, but now — about racism, memory, identity, and silence. This isn’t just about the past...