Packed with educational trips to legendary and historical landmarks, the London A-term offered an incredible insight into the city and the UK as a whole. Over the course of ten days, I had an unforgettable opportunity to learn about a community other than my own, and through this experience numerous benefits to myself as a person.
One of the most important benefits of this trip was education. Throughout the trip, we toured over 30 landmarks, including, cathedrals, castles, iconic buildings, parks, royal palaces and much more. Through our tours of the city, we had the opportunity to reflect on the similarities and differences between London and Houston. I thought about how dense the London area seemed compared to Houston, how elaborate the transportation network was, and how historical the city was in general. I learned about how the river Thames played a crucial role throughout history, how Stonehenge was built, and how the royal family had conquered, oppressed, and soon after became somewhat powerless in government affairs. This trip provided an educational opportunity to be immersed in an area much different than my own, all the while dedicating all of our time to learning about numerous aspects of the city. The wealth of knowledge that I acquired from this trip is incredible.
We also got to learn about how the importance of people’s ideas and free speech have developed over time. One of the first historical artifacts we viewed was the Magna Carta, a document which exhibited one of the first times the people were able to rise against the oppression of kings and queens. A few days later we saw an anti-Brexit march first hand, with over one million participants. Through these two events, we had the opportunity to come complete circle in how people have been able to express themselves and what they believe in. This is an aspect of society that I truly take for granted sometimes, so I thoroughly appreciated the opportunity to learn and reflect on this topic.
I was also exposed to a range of perspectives other than my own, whether it be from tour guides, citizens expressing their opinions on Brexit, the students at the International Community School, or even my fellow classmates. These different perspectives aided me in making my own interpretation of the city, and my conclusion of how unique every country can be.
I also had an opportunity to further practice independence. Throughout the trip, each member was far from home, but we worked together to do many critical tasks such as use public transportation, cook, and clean. Soon, us six seniors (on the trip) will have to do this ourselves when we are in college, and this trip offered a great stepping stone to learn some new skills in the process. Similarly, through all this hard work, as well as through all the long-distance trips, and the ten days away from home, this trip was a great bonding experience, and I had an opportunity to talk to several students that I had not talked to much before the start of the trip. This was not only an educational trip but one that resulted in great bonding experiences.
In summary, this trip was an amazing, unforgettable, experience, which offered incredible insight into the history, politics, and geography of a community other than my own. I learned how unique this country was, compared to my own. After an absolutely incredible experience abroad, I am ready to use the knowledge gained from this experience in future voyages throughout the rest of my life.
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