Returning home and looking ahead

Being back home from Ecuador feels good but still anxious about the final project. No rest for us yet. It is a bit of a culture shock when returning from a trip such as this one because you are in the thick of it then you’re not. I find that this can be a difficult transition in the first few days back home. After being with your fellow students 24/7 throughout your trip, it seems different in the quietness of home.  Realizing that you no longer are traveling but still scrambling to complete the final touches on the group project is again pressing. As they say “the plane has landed” and we are back home preparing to cross the finish line together. There is another culture shock for some of us because we don’t have to register for fall semester. This is it the final academic hooray for so many of us yet for me it hasn’t quite sunken in. The final project reflects what has been learned throughout ones’ academic career. I believe our group has shown this throughout the trip.

There is a pleasant feeling knowing you can pick up where you left off before the trip. But what is also interesting is that many things have changed and that too is ok.  I’m excited for us as a group our hard work is finally paying off. I’m amazed how new everything feels after being away, and I wonder if others in my group feel the same way. Something has changed in our lives since the return home — the experience of a different culture and how it enriches one’s sense of being. We came back to what is familiar yet still exploring for potential new prospects. There is a pleasant familiarity to this because we know what is expected of us as citizens and students.  

Returning home feels good when catching up with family and friends. Explaining what you have learned along the way in our travel with respects to the people and project. Wondering how it will affect these individuals we met during our trip. Studying away from home can give us a broader view of the world. Traveling can change the way we view the world around us in fascinating ways. We realize that we connected with so many like-minded individuals throughout the trip. The completion of this project means we have made a difference in the way one culture interacts with another culture. These occasions offer us insight into other cultures and perhaps an appreciation for our own culture. More importantly coming home recharges you for the next possible adventure ahead.