“I left Ibadan for an exchange program (Fulbright Teaching Assistant) in 2014. When I completed the Fulbright program in 2015, I enrolled in a doctoral program, which is what I am working on now.
Many thoughts of uncertainties filled my mind as I prepared to travel. Before my Fulbright program, I had visited the US twice but I had not really thought of living there. I was hoping to re-connect with friends I knew who were in the US but that did not really happen mostly because of distance and probably because of conflicts in our schedules. We may be in the same state but really far apart. My friends come to Detriot whenever they’re coming to Michigan and so anytime they tell me they are coming to Michigan, they calm down the moment I tell them I stay at Houghton (Upper Penninsula) which is a 9hr-drive from Detriot area. I have been able to see some friends at conferences though.
It took me some months to settle into (East Lansing) Michigan State University, and by the time I started enjoying my new space, it was time to say goodbye. I came to Nigeria that summer. By the time I returned to the US in August, it was to a different school in August. Since I was going on a cultural exchange program, I had packed lots of stuff with me from Nigeria: different artifacts, teaching materials like books as well as clothes. It turned out that I could not wear most of the clothing I took with me because of the cold weather in Michigan. I had to do lots of shopping for winter to protect myself from the harsh weather. We experience blizzards and freezing rain here and those freak me out.
The level of diversity in America is baffling, depending on where you find yourself and I believe that the diversity is a major strength of the nation. Meeting and working with other immigrants helped to broaden my horizon about the world. Putting into consideration the level of diversity, you always have many options when you go shopping. You need lots of discipline if you go shopping with a credit card. lol. Plus, with all sorts available, you can get lost in the mall or supermarket.
A shocking experience that I had to get used to in Michigan is Tailgating. Michigan State University (MSU), where I did my Fulbright program, is a big sports school and American football was always such a big event on campus when MSU hosted. Fans of both playing teams would come to campus early and pay for parking which was not usually cheap (depending on how close the parking was to the Spartan stadium). They would set up their tents, games, food and drinks, bring in TVs and generators and would celebrate and cheer all day long. That’s tailgating. The beauty of tailgating for we students was the free food and drinks, as well as interacting with strangers.
I had fun on my first tailgating. I was with a group of friends and we roamed round the University, observing people having fun and sometime joining in too. For a big college like MSU, walking round the campus can be pretty exhausting but it can be fun with friends. Tailgating might not be fun on a rainy and chilly day; I especially dread Michigan cold weather and so on such days I would rather stay indoors. It can get as low as -38.8 degrees Celsius and the winds make the blizzard worse. The wind blows the snow right into your face and if you stay for so long outside, you will freeze.
The best part of my tailgating experience were days when our University hosted the games or won even when away. There is always so much excitement all over campus. People could be super nice because MSU had won. I remember once when I went late to the dining hall and they had closed the station that I wanted food from, the supervisor told the person serving to allow me. That was weird, considering how people are strict about timing and stuff but it was cool to eat something I wanted after a long day of classes.
The celebration of sports in colleges in the US, I have come to learn is a big part of college life. I still don’t understand how American football works but I don’t mind joining in the celebrations. I now know why Superbowl for instance is such a big deal and why you should never schedule your event for a game day like Superbowl coz nobody ain’t gonna show up!”
