Insights Into Scotland
Scotland was incredible. After a long journey with a layover, my Preview the World class reached Scotland, and I was amazed. The first thing I noticed was the air. It smelled and felt fresher and cleaner in a way. I also saw the grass and how much greener it was. The atmosphere almost felt like how the world felt to me as a kid. It felt so vibrant and colorful which is something I’m not used to in the U.S. I also noticed the buildings and how old-timey they were. They felt almost like medieval times and were beautiful to see and learn about.
Throughout the trip, I also experienced kindness. People were so incredibly welcoming and understanding. It was very obvious that everyone in Scotland was able to tell that we were Americans. However, they were extremely nice to us and wanted us to learn and embrace their culture. While in Scotland I got to speak with a local who worked in a restaurant, and he gave my friends and me Scottish desserts to try and told us other things to learn and try while we were in the country.
I also got to meet a wide variety of people. My Preview class is only around 15 people and we were all pretty shy and did not actually start to talk to each other until we got to the airport. However, I have grown to know all of them well and it was wonderful to meet this many new people. While in Scotland we got piercings and went to different stores. We also were able to go to a variety of museums and got to see Highland cows which are extremely special to Scotland. Meeting these new people has made me enjoy my college experience a lot more. These new friends elevated my journey abroad and the connections I have formed will last a lifetime.
The main focus of my trip was to focus on and experience nature and climate change. With my class, I was able to engage in and experience different types of activities with a wide variety of artists. We attended a few workshops and in one workshop we created a series of poems about a new world. These poems could’ve been based on something we believed could happen or things that weren’t so likely. However, by doing this I became so engaged with the unknown future of our world. My class also experienced another workshop where we learned how to create telescopes by using our phones and special types of lenses. We then used our phones to take pictures of different types of plants. In Scotland overall I was able to see first-hand and understand their position on climate change and how their government is actively working on trying to fix and stop climate change. This made me realize that the U.S. has to do more when it comes to this issue. For example, they use wooden utensils which help not spread or leave plastic around which helps our climate.
Scotland was a great experience. I learned a variety of new things and about an entirely different culture. I hope in the future that I’ll be able to continue exploring the world and traveling more.
