Crystal Bae, a new graduate student who will be pursuing a M.A. and Ph.D. in Geography, caught my attention when she posted on the New Graduate Student Map that she would be moving to Santa Barbara from Washington, D.C. via bike. Crystal shared a link to her blog (www.crystalbae.com), which detailed her three-month bike trip across the country with her partner. I followed the blog throughout the summer and was impressed with the photos and stories (check out the Bike Tour By the Numbers post for the incredible trip summary).
I recently contacted Crystal to learn more about her research interests, motivation for biking across the country, and future plans. Here is what she had to say:
Where did you complete your undergraduate degree? What discipline?
I have a B.A. in English Literature from the George Washington University in Washington, D.C., which helped me develop a strong critical eye and approach to thinking about the form of stories and of language. As I concurrently took undergraduate courses in Geography, I began to tie together the connection between how people interact with their environment and how people talk about and understand places.
What do you hope to study at UCSB? What inspired you to pursue this field of study?
In a general sense, nearly everyone I meet who is unfamiliar with the field of geography confuses it with geology, or doesn’t understand that geography extends beyond cartography (mapmaking). These days, more people are understanding the value of incorporating geographic research in almost every domain of study, such as medical professionals using GIS technology to track the spread of diseases, transportation planners studying patterns of commuting, and individuals analyzing the data they generate in their daily movements.
My research interests are specific to urban geography, focusing on spatial behavior in rapidly developing global megacities such as Jakarta. I plan to study the connections between how people perceive neighborhoods, their development of “mental maps” of a location, and their patterns of movement throughout the city.
Please describe your experience biking across the country.
Crystal Bae with two other touring cyclists she met on the road (near Hebron, ND)Before last year, I commuted on a bike simply because it was the fastest way to get around Washington, D.C., but in the summer of 2012, I started doing more riding just for fun and challenging myself to ride further. My partner Adam and I started discovering the pleasure and practicality of traveling by bicycle and we decided that when we moved for my graduate studies, it would be by bike. I had time before school began and he would have to job search anyway, so we decided to ship our furniture and other belongings and take the time to ride across the country. Cycling reduces a city—or even a country, in this case—to a human scale. You observe much more than when you zip through a place by car or train, you get to meet wonderful new people everyday, and you really learn the value of living simply.
Above all, we learned that people are incredibly generous. They are often drawn to us out of curiosity, seeing the loaded-up touring bikes, but once you share your story, they’re likely to open up and share a part of their lives too. It has helped me relate to people with all kinds of different outlooks, experiences, and circumstances. Another effect of doing the cross-country ride was that I was able to see so much of the country that I had never visited, and I think I’m a much more flexible person when it comes to planning now—you really can’t prepare for everything on a trip of that length.
Why did you decide to pursue your graduate studies at UCSB?
Crystal Bae riding in MontanaUCSB has a very strong Geography department, which initially inspired me to consider coming here for my graduate work. Ultimately, my decision was based more on the strengths and interests of the faculty in the department, which mesh well with my research goals. There are many people here conducting incredible research, and the vibe when I first visited was that everyone is approachable and passionate about their work. For my undergraduate work, I didn’t move far—just a jump from the Washington D.C. suburbs into D.C. proper—so it’s also nice to have the opportunity to live on the West coast.
Name an accomplishment you are most proud of and why.
I am proud of not only bicycling across the country, but also of making the time to write blog posts to keep everyone in touch with our trip. After a long day of riding, I’d stay awake in the tent to write down the days’ events and reflections in my notebook. The biggest factor in helping me ride for hours everyday was the encouragement from family, friends, and even the people I didn’t know who followed my blog. After the trip ended, many, many people who had been quietly following along sent me messages saying how much of an inspiration the trip was to them—that was unexpected.
What do you hope to be doing 5 or 10 years out of graduate school?
My hope is that I will be teaching at the university level and continuing to pursue my research interests. I haven’t had the experience of living abroad for more than a few months, so maybe by then I’ll have the chance to combine that with my research. Of course, I will hopefully still be cycling often to balance out the time spent writing at a desk.