It was around four months in when I realized I had time traveled. Time traveled to being an adult already, when I was still technically a teenager. At UWC Dilijan, I learned a lot; not only from an academic standpoint but also in terms of life. UWC Dilijan is a remarkable place that is a school and a living space, a microcosm of society and, hopefully by the end of term 1, a place that feels like home. It is where we laugh and have fun with our friends--loads and loads of fun--before checking the time and realizing the imminent, dreaded homework deadline is approaching by the second and (oh God) this probably means another all-nighter. It is where we break down and cry, from stress, from homesickness, from finally understanding we don’t really know what we are doing--at least I sometimes felt I had no idea what I was doing. But amongst all of this, amongst the laughter and the tears, we always had people who were there for us, an incredible support system you would probably never see anywhere else.
I learned a lot about balance in life and time management at UWCD. I knew beforehand that living on your own in a country light years away from your hometown would mean you would have to grow up and start acting as an adult, but then, I only knew what adults did and not how they achieved these tasks. Eager and excited about all the opportunities, I joined 13 CAS activities before utterly collapsing because many of the CAS activities clashed with each other, time-wise. This is a brutally honest reflection, warts and all, so I am being honest when I admit I was horrible at balance and time-management. I sometimes found myself sitting with bloodshot eyes in the common room at 3 am in front of still uncompleted homework, wondering how my life came to this. I had to balance my limited time between schoolwork, activities, and socializing, oh and don’t forget time for yourself, which I learned was crucial for one’s mental health. To top it all off, I had to get enough sleep to properly function or at least pass as a functional human being the next day. I learned to set up priorities and to value my own health, both physical and mental, before anything else. (I dropped to only 9 CAS activities.) I also minimized my level of procrastination and worked out a fairly decent work-life balance. But I believe the scariest part of being an adult--and no, it’s not taxes--is not having a guide. We all kind of stumble around in the dark without a torch to guide us like before, in the form of parents or teachers; no, we are expected to be independent and responsible. But luckily, we are all there for each other: for me, parents and teachers as well. They cannot guide me and tell me what the next step is, but they can give me a helping hand. We all just help each other up when we trip and fall down in the dark.
UWC Dilijan, contrary to popular opinion, is by no means a utopia, but when you love something, you see past its flaws and discover its deeper beauty; you seek to improve it whilst UWC Dilijan improves you as well. During my four months here, I’ve seen students join forces, determined to change these said flaws, and much of their efforts have paid off. I’m just glad I was part of this effort. We changed the packaged coffee to coffee in kettles, which reduced plastic consumption in the cafeteria. We record the amount of food waste and if it went up, as a form of self-punishment, we would take away snacks on Wednesday. During our project week, I joined a project called “Che-Che Plastic Bags”, which, when translated from Armenian, means “No No Plastic Bags”. (We thought the double “che” sounded catchy.) Our mission was to reduce single-use plastic waste in the Dilijan community by introducing reusable mesh bags for

fruits and vegetables, which are often packaged in single-use plastic bags in the only supermarket near the school. I started caring a lot more about sustainability because of the passionate, amazing people around me, and that in turn changed me to want to introduce this to the Dilijan community as well. I have always wanted to be actively involved in the local community and so I pounced on every opportunity. For example, I joined the Dilijan Arts Festival organizing team to put together an art festival with artists from all over Armenia and revamp Dilijan as a cultural center, DiliMUN to allow Armenian kids an opportunity to participate in a Model United Nations conference, IEF (International Environmental Forum) to discuss with Armenian youths some current, pressing issues plaguing Armenia like the Amulsar Mine situation, and Red Cross Armenia to teach local Armenian kids English, Spanish, or French.
I am really glad to have been so involved in the Dilijan community because Armenia is a beautiful place. Our school, cozily tucked away in the high mountains that are dipped in pure white snow, stands grand and majestic, in a way, juxtaposing the more post-Soviet scene around it but still incorporating beautiful Armenian architecture. Over the past four months, I have learned a lot about Armenian culture: the language, its customs, and the food they eat (a lot of barbeque and dill, apparently). I initially wanted to go to Armenia because of how unfamiliar and foreign it sounded to me: I yearned to experience a vastly different culture, especially if it is in a country I would otherwise never have the opportunity or excuse to visit. My roommate, who is Armenian, would discuss cultural differences with me and we would find out that we shared some similarities as well. Both countries were a little conservative, though Armenia definitely wins in that regard. As someone who grew up in Germany, it was also surprising to find similarities in vocabulary when comparing Armenian to German. (Pineapple is Ananas in both languages). Not only did I learn about Armenian culture, I also met people from all over the world. I could learn Spanish by actually practicing with Spanish-speaking friends, I could now travel around the world and have friends who could actually show me secret spots oblivious to tourists, I could learn about quirks and traditions of different cultures, like how some cultures preferred physical intimacy and how in, for example, Catalonian culture, on Christmas, children would beat a pooping log for presents. That doesn’t even include cultural dances that I learned from cultural evenings and just hanging around very passionate dancers, music from different countries (I made a playlist featuring international song recommendations), and food from different cultures, like sweet Indian street food, and chocolate sprinkles on bread from the Netherlands. By the end of this term, cafeteria food was looking more and more miserable and inedible by the day and we were all more than eager to get back to food from our own culture.
We all felt a bit homesick from time to time, but like I mentioned, there was a great support system. I made some wonderful lifelong friends here at UWCD who I will always be there for and vice versa. There is also a marvelous peer listener system; basically, if you have any emotional problems, you could always go to a peer listener, which I signed up to become for next term. Next term holds the promise of more adventures and--I’m sure--more mental breakdowns, but to anyone stumbling across this post and wondering about UWC, brave through it--not alone, because there will always be people there for you in UWC--and you will find the experience is priceless.

I am so grateful to have been given the opportunity to attend UWC Dilijan and I wouldn’t trade it for the world. Thank you, UWC Taiwan, for giving me the friends, the wisdom, and the experience of a lifetime.