Looking back and reflecting on this journey, I never thought that I would enjoy it to this extent. To be honest, at first, I was rejecting the thought because I was tight on time with my studies and work, and I didn’t have time for anything extra to do. But throughout each class, my attachment to Soliya and the group grew. I made time, even planning to finish my work extra early on Tuesdays to make sure I didn’t miss anything in the discussions with my peers.

As for me, it wasn’t the first time I engaged in cross-cultural experiences. I have attended several Model United Nations conferences abroad, went for a summer abroad, and my work is based on international or MENA region experiences with different people and cultures. However, it should be noted that Soliya was a very different experience from all of these events. In Soliya, I got to truly understand the difference between dialogue, debate, and discussions. In most of the conferences that I have attended, I was forced to debate and prove that my point of view or stance was always right. I would disregard other points and people because there was one target: proving that I was right. But dialogue and the discussions in the Connect Express were so different. It felt like a free space, a place where I could talk about anything without feeling judged. I loved how I got to see different cultures’ points of view and understand where they were coming from, even if it was totally opposite to mine.

I loved how we got the chance to truly know one another. By the last session, I had become so familiar with these faces and people, which was so interesting because I never thought that a platform like this would connect all these cultures that would have never crossed paths if it weren’t for Soliya. Reflecting more on our discussions, I loved how there was a facilitator who controlled everything so nothing got out of hand. I truly also enjoyed the breakout rooms, where we got the chance to know each other more on a one-on-one basis, which made us all closer and more aware of each other. The topics that we talked about were so enjoyable and at the same time intimate. What was ironic was that it wasn’t weird to talk about these things, even though we didn’t know each other that well.

I think for this experience to be better, it would help to shorten the session by an hour and make it longer than a one-month course. That would give us more time to get to know each other better and accommodate everyone’s schedules.

Soliya helped me understand more about the type of communicator I am. At first, I thought I was more of a speaker and someone who always opens up new conversations. But I realized that I could also be a good listener. I took it as a challenge to listen more. In some scenarios, I couldn’t keep my mouth shut, of course, but at least I gained the skill of listening, which is so important. I even sometimes challenged my peers, who are now my friends, to analyze their feelings and question why they have these opinions or misconceptions.

Something that made me really happy was that, in the last session, when we were divided into breakout rooms, one of my peers complimented me and said, “I really like how you are always open and listen to our different opinions.” This sentence still rings in my head, because I never thought I would have been this person in this experience, but I’m happy that I became a safe space for someone when they needed comfort. I think if I use this skill in my personal life—whether in work, family, with my partner, friends, or at university—I would gain more insights in life and develop closer relationships with people who think of me as someone who can view different perspectives and is open to new ideas.

I think this is what people in Egypt need. They need to hold on to their culture and values while still being able to understand and work with everyone. This is what I learned from my Palestinian sisters in this course. Even with the hardest challenges in life, they still hold on to their values and country. Even though they face different threats and people who want to erase their identity, they are still open to listening to what other cultures see and show us, in a simple way, what they are actually going through in life.

One of the main challenges that I observed in myself was that I was shocked at the beginning of the sessions by how some nations didn’t know about the war happening in Palestine. For me, it’s something so familiar because I am an Arab who shares borders with Palestine, and I see the challenges and genocide that they are facing. At first, I couldn’t accept that fact. But after reflecting and understanding my peers’ feedback, I realized that they were surrounded by different challenges and people who hadn’t educated them about this matter at all. What I liked most is that they were open for us to send them articles and papers on the history of Palestine and how the issue started. What amazed me as well was how the Palestinians handled these topics and situations. They weren’t defensive like the rest of the Arabs. Instead, I learned from them peace and tranquility by how they shared their point of view in the most subtle way possible.

For me, this experience educated me on many things about different cultures and how one needs to understand their identity. I also saw how my identity could change over time, depending on the challenges and priorities in life. But what’s most important is that once you know your identity and are pleased with it, never change it or feel ashamed of it. What makes you who you are is your identity.