You know what they say about the young...send me on my way

Well everyone, I'm off again on another adventure! At Elon, we have a Winter Term and have the opportunity to go abroad during that time, so I will be heading to London, England for three weeks to do my Human Service Studies Practicum.

Traditionally, the practicum consists of working at one specific organization for 3 weeks and attending class once a week. But due to visa/work laws in the UK, we will not be doing that. Instead, I, along with about 18 classmates, led by two professors from Elon, will be visiting numerous agencies, nonprofits and NGOs in London. We will also be having class together during the week. The three themes that we will be focusing on while we are in London are 1) Immigrants and Refugees, 2) International NGOs, and 3) Public Health in the UK. I am looking forward to continuing to learn about how to help people in an international setting. It will certainly be interesting to see how the UK does things.

My perceptions of England are pretty much opposite the ones I had of Southeast Asia before I spent last summer there (starting with the difference of "developed country vs. developing country.") And to be completely honest, I think I am still a little biased against the developed world. I felt such a strong connection with the Philippines that I am a bit skeptical about my ability to embrace another foreign country (though I anticipate it to be similar to my own) that is so different from the one I grew to adore this past summer. But I am aware of this bias that I seem to have and my goal over the next three weeks is to challenge my assumptions, and even let them go, and to really explore and get to know London in my own way :)

My flight to London is at 6:55pm Saturday, January 2, 2010 and I will be returning on January 23. I am so stoked for this opportunity and cannot wait to discover what I will see, what I will learn, and who I will meet!