Before embarking on this study abroad, I was unsure of what to expect. This trip has been different from anything that I’ve done before and during it, I was placed outside of my comfort my zone. However, I am grateful for the experience that I have had. From this trip, I have two main reflections. First, the world is so much bigger, complex, and nuanced than the tiny bubble of comfortability that I exist in back home in Washington. Second, I am grateful for the diverse group of students from PLU that came on this trip and the connections I was able to make with them.
I find that often times in America, other countries are either romanticized or forgotten. By traveling to a foreign country and interacting with the people who call it home, I realize that they are people to, just like you and me. Additionally, this trip has made me aware how other countries have their own histories which impact the way the people living there navigate their world. While these things may seem obvious to others, and while these are things that I may have known before coming here, I don’t feel like I truly understood them until I had this experience. Even the people in Derry who didn’t live through the conflict still express a connection to it in some way. They are currently living in a unique time in the country’s history where peace is trying to be achieved.
Per my second reflection, I am grateful for the many cool people that I have gotten to meet on this trip abroad. We had the opportunity to meet two different PLU alumni who are here doing peacework in Northern Ireland. It was fascinating to hear their stories and hear the role that PLU played in their journey.
Additionally, I am grateful for the connections that I have made among my classmates here. I remember on the plane ride here not really knowing any of them that well and wondering how the trip will be. However, throughout this trip, I have engaged in many great conversations and shared many laughs with this group. It feels as if we have become a little family here in Derry. During the last weekend of the trip, we all got together to celebrate one of our classmate’s birthday and to have everyone together playing games, sharing stories, and laughing was such a fun time!
It may be blurry, but I think this is a great picture. 
Taken on our trip to Giant’s Causeway.
SOCI 387 Diversity, Conflict, and Peace in Northern Ireland 