This will be my second year leading the immersion trip to China with Vermont students and educators, and my third time visiting China. With March quickly approaching, the trip is starting to get “real!” There are so many parts of the trip that I am excited about that it is hard to narrow them down. First, as a world traveler, I love being part of bringing people to a new place and experience a culture that is so different from ours.
Watching the excitement on the faces’ of our students as they meet their Chinese peers and quickly discover how alike they really are is priceless. Watching the expressions of trip participants as they walk on the Great Wall and contemplate the history of the site is nothing short of spectacular. Having the opportunity to peek into life in China and experience the joys, the differences and the similarities will be life-altering for some trip participants. It will start them down a path in life where they seek out these experiences and make connections throughout the world. To sum up, life is about us building an understanding of ourselves and others in our world, and this experience is one way I can contribute and share in that.