Imagine living in a small town of 813, which I’m sure we can all visualize very well. Imagine, one day getting the opportunity to fly 3,247 miles south to a city called Quito, in Ecuador. Excitingly, this is the exact contingency my fellow spanish classmates and I have for next summer on June 13th thru June 14th. I know as a student in high school, that sitting in a classroom for six hours a day isn’t very hands on. Sometimes high school education can be less than exciting. But next summer I get the privilege to take my education to whole new country for 13 days. Not only on this trip will I participate in meaningful service, be immersed into a whole new culture and develop leadership skills, but I will also be impacted personally and transformed. This trip to Ecuador is not meant as a vacation, but as a way to make a difference in the world and gain knowledge about a different culture. As I said before, I will be participating in significant amounts of service. My classmates and I will be working side by side with locals, We will gain insight into the challenges the community faces and will help build lasting solutions to help empower the community. Some examples of the projects we will be doing are: building and restoring …show more content…
I firmly believe that you cannot travel to another country and come back the same. I’m excited for this journey ahead. I’m excited to be humbled; to be impacted; to be transformed; to be more educated; to be in awe; to be changed; to spread love; to make a difference; to be ALIVE in a new sense. Ma Jian, an author, said his book, Red Dust, “Everything I was I carry with me. Everything I will be lies waiting on the Road ahead.” This statement of his couldn’t be any truer in regard to my future travel to Ecuador. This journey that I’ll embark on will not only impact for thirteen days, but will continue long after I return to the United
College is a time for new opportunities, memorable experiences, and a time to explore things you’ve never encountered before. As a young adult, I realize the importance of studying abroad and how it will help me grow as a person. What could be better than traveling to Spain for ten days and learning a new culture, history, and a new perspective of how the business world is outside of America?
Feb 13 2017, adrenaline surged though my body as the thought of mission trip raced through my mind. “What is it going to be like? Who am I going to meet? How am I going to talk to the kids when I don’t even know how to speak Spanish!.”All these thoughts and more kept turning in my mind as the anticipation of our first flight drew nearer and nearer. “Bolivia”, just the name had a rustic feeling to it. In a quick 32 hours, we would reach our final destination for the next two weeks… Familia Feliz.
Travelling around the world is an experience of a lifetime. Our school is part of the Young Round Square program among 150 other private schools. The Round Square program believes that for our generation of kids to be fully prepared for everything that we’re going to embrace as an adult, we should be able to see all the things we have in common, but also our differences and how we can show everyone what respect and understanding can do the world. Being able to even apply for going to India, Peru, San Francisco, Dominican Republic or England is an amazing chance. Peru is the trip I’m applying for. Not only do I want to go there because of all the breathtaking sites, but because of what I’ll learn. Helping to build a new greenhouse and repairing older greenhouses, needs a lot of teamwork and communication.
When I originally found out that my service-learning partner was from Ecuador, I tried to think of my initial opinion of Ecuadorians. Instantly the initial thing I knew about Ecuador was that they were a Spanish-speaking country. However, knowing that a country is a Spanish-speaking country doesn’t tell me anything about the country itself. So I began to research online pictures of Ecuador and began to view different stereotypes about the country. After trying to develop my first opinion about Ecuadorians, I came to believe all Ecuadorians are well-dressed and are good looking. From the pictures of Ecuador, my initial response was Ecuador has really nice landscaping but because of the layout of the Ecuador, I came to believe Ecuador is over populated. Places that are overpopulated usually live in poverty because they have a hard time keeping up economically, and this leads to further issues. As it turns out, my initial thoughts of Ecuador are along the same lines of truth that Ecuadorians actually experience these problems daily.
As I was reading chapter 8, all I could think of was: why am I here? What could I possibly did to deserve what I have right now? The fact that I found, as many of the former JBU Walton students, is that I don’t deserve the scholarship. I know that there are many other Nicaraguan applicants who had mine or even a better GPA than mine, who could easily take my spot without being so overwhelmed by chemistry. I know there are many other Nicaraguan applicants who had greater expectations than mine, who had surely planned their lives more carefully, assuring themselves a future of success and changing for the country. I know there are many other Nicaraguan applicants with a stronger faith than mine, with lower incomes, with better ideas, with more ability and experience… so, why me?
If you placed a ticket in my hand that could take me to any destination of my choosing, I would not waste the opportunity. I want to take my love for traveling, helping others, and expanding my knowledge on others' way of life all the way to a third world country. I would take me and my ticket of endless possibilities to Liberia. While I'm in Liberia, I do not foresee myself staying in a hotel like housing. Staying in a village will open more opportunities to the experience I crave. I would love to teach new things to the children, teens, adults, and elders as well as engage in their culture and routines, to learn from them. I quite enjoy learning how others live, not only because it enhances my understanding of the world and others, but also
As a child, I had always dreamed of traveling around the world and viewing its breathtaking creations. Through the years I still have this sudden niche for traveling and experiencing new and exciting things. From Costa Rica to much of the United States I have ventured upon a lot of traveling. Through the sale of my parents family business I received the opportunity to travel west and help the new owners grow. After traveling through many of the western states I finally realized how different not only the terrain was, but culture as well.
Peruvians were forced to accept another country’s view but they made it their own and still to this day protect those ideas of things like the sun god as Apu Jesus Christ, at the Last Supper eating guinea pig, and much more. Americans see a rainbow flag differently than Peruvians do, also taking for granted what we have excess of while others in countries like Peru are overwhelmingly ecstatic to have what seems no little to us- this mainly referring to their water crisis and limited resources for isolated villages. I also saw a poverty cycle in the people we talked to or we were told about, and many of us in the group talked about how to end that cycle and help the children and their families. The people integrated who they were with what changes were and still are thrown at them for the most part but also face many hardships, especially with the water crisis that’s been worsened by the mudslides. In the past, we’ve talked about how best to help the people and whether us as outsiders know what would be best as opposed to talking to the people and including them in on decisions and projects. I feel the biggest impacts on me from this trip are (1) my views on what we take for granted like air conditioning, water, bathrooms, and much more; (2) I’m very lucky to live in middle class America and believe we
When I first found out that my service learning partner was from Ecuador, I tried to think of my initial opinion of Ecuadorians. Instantly the first thing I knew about Ecuador was that they were a Spanish speaking country. However, knowing that a country is a Spanish speaking country doesn’t tell me anything about the country itself. So I began to research online pictures of Ecuador and began to actually view different stereotypes about the country. After trying to develop my first opinion about Ecuadorians I came to believe all Ecuadorians are well dressed and are good looking. From the pictures of Ecuador my initial response was that Ecuador has really nice landscape but because of the layout of the Ecuador I came to believe Ecuador is over populated. Places that are overpopulated usually live in poverty because they have a hard time keeping up economically and this leads to further issues. As it turns out, my initial thought of Ecuador are along the same lines of truth that Ecuadorians actually experience these problems on a daily basis.
Ecuador is a socially and culturally diverse nation, and it is hard to understand all its aspects at the same time. People tend to ask Ecuadorians how is that a small country can possess different regions, in which people have their own cultures, traditions, customs, religions, and languages. Sometimes, people take for granted what they have and do not appreciate neither embrace their own culture. Even thought indigenous cultures have experienced some types of changes throughout the time, they have not lost their identity and are proud of whom they are as individuals and as part of a group. They respect and protect the environment. They are from collectivistic cultures that care about each other inside the family as well as their communities.
In recent events at my school, there is an opportunity unlike any other to travel to, and explore the near primitive nation of Peru.
As I lifted my heavy suitcase off the wheeled cart, my mind soon went to work reviewing everything I had brought. Considering the mad rush I had to get packed for my ten day stay in Bolivia, I knew there was no way I could have remembered to bring everything. I knew for sure that I had remembered my toothbrush, which is the thing I normally forget. I also mentally went through everything I had packed and to my delight realized I hadn't forgotten a thing! I was so proud of myself! I was part of a twenty-one member team from the United States that went to the largest city in Bolivia to provide humanitarian aid, which included eye exams and refractions. From the Santa Cruz airport, I rode in a small green
Did you know Ecuador is one of the most megadiverse countries in the world and also has the most biodiversity per square mile kilometre of any other nation? Ecuador is named after the equator, and the only country in the world named after a geographical feature. Three things that make Ecuador a interesting place are its climate, sports, and attractions.
Coco went to Peréz Zeledón, Costa Rica last summer as a participant with Amigos. It truly was an experience that has shaped her perspective regarding the importance of youth leadership and cultural immersion. She is a junior at Shorecrest High School, an active member of her community, and a hopes to stay involved with Amigos throughout her lifetime. In her spare time is a ballerina, enjoys playing tennis and is an avid reader.
However, achieving an Endeavour scholarship would be an honor and certainly an opportunity for me and for my country. Ecuador suffered a massive earthquake in April 2016, and most of the coastal part of the country is still isolated, my goal through this scholarship is working alongside Australia