Tell us about your travels.

The first time I ever went abroad was in college, to do missionary work in Kenya. Next, I spent about three weeks teaching English in Thailand. The first time I studied abroad was in Morocco. Now I have been to Spain, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Lebanon, Oman, Jordan, Palestine and Israel.

You were in Cairo during the Arab Spring in 2011. What was that like?

I arrived about five days before the revolution broke out. On Jan. 25, protests started, and on Jan. 28 the city changed in a big way. Years of grievances people had against their government spilled over. Protestors took control of the city, police left the streets and the military moved in. Hours of curfew were enforced and the atmosphere quickly became tense. During the hours outside of the curfew, people rushed out to buy things like food and phone cards.

What did you see during the protests?

Some of them had a celebratory tone, some were political and a few turned angry. Some I wouldn’t call even protests — they were more demonstrations, or rallies for political ideas or parties. It was a strangely welcoming environment; I did not feel uncomfortable. People came up to us as Americans and asked our thoughts on government, the future of their country and our political relations, just to get our perspectives.

Were you ever scared?

I was less worried when I was there than people who were watching it at home were for me. Things got chaotic a few times, but generally if we got a weird vibe we would promptly leave that area. The TV and Internet made it look like a city engrossed in violence, but Cairo is a massive city of 20 million people and the protests were usually concentrated to a few districts or neighborhoods.

When did you leave Cairo?

I left Feb. 5, 2011. School was supposed to start at the end of January, but transit had been blocked in the city. The school had to keep pushing back the semester and we weren’t sure it would ever start, so I decided to transfer to the Emirates. I did get to go back to Cairo for a year, from June 2011 to June 2012.

What was it like seeing this moment?

It was definitely a great experience in a lot of ways. The realities of the Middle East differ from any negative stereotypes. There was overwhelming hospitality anywhere I traveled. People separated my political identity as an American from my identity as a human and a guest. It helped me make a critical separation between people and politics — seeing how individuals see the world, not just governments. Not everyone in any country thinks the same thing.

Are you going back again to Egypt?

Yes — I will be in Cairo from May to August 2013 to take Arabic language classes.

Would you recommend that other MSU alumni travel to Egypt? Why or why not?

I would definitely recommend that other alumni travel to Egypt. Obviously, it’s a travel location that necessitates some extra precaution and pretravel research on the situation as it develops. But I think that in general, travel to Egypt is a great way to see the divide that exists between conditions as they exist on the ground versus how they are reported in the news. I’ve found this experience very beneficial as I currently have several friends in Korea experiencing the same news/reality discrepancy.

And specifically for Egypt: I think everyone can benefit from spending time interacting with the kind, exciting and interesting people who call Egypt their home.

About Weston Bland

University award: One of just six students chosen for the 2010-11 Citizen Scholar Award

Bachelor’s degrees: Arabic, global studies and Middle Eastern studies, December 2012; graduated magna cum laude from Honors College

What’s next for him: Graduate school in Middle Eastern studies at the University of Texas at Austin, starting fall 2013

Career goal: Academia — preferably become a professor of Middle Eastern studies

Hometown: El Dorado Springs, Mo.

Study abroad locations: The American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates; the American University of Cairo in Egypt; Université Moulay Ismail in Morocco