Ei! My name is Antônio Jorge Medeiros Batista Silva (yes—four last names!) and I'm a '25 from Governador Valadares, Brazil. My journey to Dartmouth has crossed two continents, three countries, and over 10 schools—and I'm a strong believer that everyone's path to the Big Green was unique in a way. At Dartmouth, I study Linguistics, Native American & Indigenous Studies, and Spanish. I am passionate about social justice, language-learning, and the oxford comma!
Personally, I am not the biggest fan of the Winter. I do not particularly enjoy the snowy days, nor the outdoors during that time. With that in mind, I was scared that at Dartmouth, I would feel like an outcast. In the last two months in Hanover, temperatures have dropped drastically. Waking up early in the morning, heading out to class, and grabbing coffee on the way – the routine I got used to during Fall term – became very difficult at -4 °F temperature (or -20 °C for my fellow internationals!). However, Dartmouth offers many opportunities to make this time enjoyable, even if you are not into traditional Winter activities.
As the temperatures outside get lower and lower, my friends and I have developed a new routine. Since the beginning of Winter term, we all gather in a study room near Novack after class – our favourite café on campus. Here, I get to be comfortable, surrounded by people I like and going for a caramel macchiato every now and then. Besides that, I have got a lot of work done, which is turning out to be great.
I have found myself a group of friends that, like me, are not the biggest fans of the outdoors. As an international student from the tropics, I miss the Sun and the warm days. But now, I am learning to adapt to my new surroundings. Although Winter hikes and ice skating are still not particularly attractive to me, I have managed to find a sense of home even in this crazy weather.
My advice, thus, is for one to accept the challenges found on your way. Coming to the United States for college, I knew I would have to face certain adversities – I forgot to account for how much my mood varies according to the weather. However, Winter here has still been able an extremely rewarding experience as I've been able to enjoy my friends' company and explore activities that might not be the traditional winter activites we immediately think of. Overall, I get to learn to adapt and find new ways of calling Dartmouth my home.
From orientation week to your classes, you can easily find community at Dartmouth! Read on to know how I met my Dartmouth family and where you might also find yours.
Through Dartmouth's Guarini Institute for International Study, I am getting to take classes and experience life at Wellesley College, an all-women's school!
