While the rest of you juniors are complaining about the “culture shock” of returning from abroad, junior Ilana Millner actually has license to do so. She fills us in on her health scare in Botswana, lavatory etiquette and what its like to be a girl in a house full of bros.
Street: What was the first thing you found strange coming back to the United States? Ilana Millner: The foliage! Most of Botswana is the Kalahari desert, and damn if I hadn’t been craving some East Coast greenery.
Street: What did you miss while abroad? IM: The biggest and the littlest things. Biggest: My family, friends, Penn. Littlest: Red Delicious apples.
Street: What’s the one thing you’d warn people about before going abroad? IM: There may be strange toilets and also no toilet paper. Additionally, cockroaches. Roll with it.
Street: How did going abroad affect your relationship with people, both those who came with you and those you left behind? IM: For those who came with me, the bonds only grew stronger. Exploring a new place and processing it with friends is one of the most treasured parts of my experience abroad. As for those I left behind — absence truly makes the heart grow fonder. All in all, I’m lucky to know and love a lot of people that I never could have imagined.
Street: What was your scariest experience while abroad? IM: While camping in the Namib desert, hours away from cell phone reception and a city, I developed a really horrid kidney infection. I ended up getting medivaced from Gaborone to Johannesburg, where I had to stay in the hospital on IVs for two weeks. Thankfully, [my boyfriend] Daniel was by my side the whole time, but jeez Louise, I panicked a whole lot.
Street: There are two types of people at Penn … IM: Those who see the Vagina Monologues, and those who don't.
Street: What is it like being in a co-ed frat? IM: Answer: kooky, amazing, glorious, fun. I couldn't have dreamed up a better family than Elmo.
Street: Most underrated thing about Penn? Overrated? IM: Underrated: the fruit cart across from the Upper Quad. Overrated: the Button.
Street: What was your last purchase? IM: A box of Vanilla Chai Tea. It’s really cold outside.
Street: You’re walking into a room full of friends and people you haven’t met. What is playing in the background? IM: Louis Armstrong’s “On the Sunny Side of the Street.” So mmm-mmmm good.
Street: What is one of your guilty pleasures? IM: Watching Gossip Girl while surfing perezhilton.com (double dipping!).
Street: Who is the coolest person you have ever met? IM: Terry Gross/Saul Williams/St. Elmo.
Street: What goes in your Chipotle burrito? IM: Never have I ever eaten a Chipotle burrito.
