It’s over. I handed in the group paper. I said my goodbyes. I left Pondy. The last three weeks have been really busy which is also why I haven’t made any updates on the blog – my sincere apologies! We had our last lecture on the 22th of March and after that we worked full time on the group paper which we handed in last Wednesday.
Looking back it has been an inspiring and instructive semester but at times also challenging and tiring. To have lectures and seminars every day and in addition to this tons of readings is not something I’m used to. It has been tough. But now I see that I have learned a lot both academically and personally from the challenges I faced this semester. Studying and living in India has not always been easy and many times I have felt frustrated over the ways things are done here and my inability to do anything about it, but now I realize that this has been important for my understanding of peace and conflict. By experiencing the chaos and diversity that characterizes the Indian society, I have been able to relate to the topics in the courses on a deeper and more emotional level – and I believe this emotional involvement is a very important part of working with issues of peace and conflict!
So what now? As I said, I left Pondy and at this very moment, I’m sitting in the restaurant of my hotel on the Andaman Islands where I plan to write the individual exam. After handing in the exam in a couple of weeks I will go back to South India and travel for another month until I finally return to Denmark. So wish me safe travels and see you in May!
