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Crossing
10,000 miles of cultural barriers
Rebecca DeCesare
2004 Student Ambassador
Beverly Hills, Florida
My lifelong dream of traveling to Australia had
finally come true. At the end of 18 glorious
days as my delegation descended into a sleeping
Orlando at 1 a.m., I glanced at the other 45
weary Student Ambassadors that had become my
close family. I had seen them at their worst and
at their best. I saw them trying new things and
overcoming their fears. They seem a bit more
worldly on the return flight then when we left.
I knew at that moment that three years from now,
the prospect of
going away to college would not scare me. I can make
new friends anywhere in the world. I can take care of
myself and I can always come home.
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Months earlier, sitting in the
orientation meetings for our program, we watched
helpful movies about packing and learned the
general rules. We researched different aspects
of Australia and presented them to the group.
We learned about the 50-year history of the
People to People organization. As I watched
President Eisenhower and the old reels of film,
I got chills. It was sitting in the meetings
when I realized I wouldn't be another tourist,
but an American Ambassador. It seemed as though it was a big undertaking and a huge
responsibility, but I wanted to do something important
for me and possibly the future of the world.
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was entranced by his stories of their
creation and religious beginnings. We took a photo
with him with his Uluru in the background, which was a
big honor for us. Later that night, we saw him at the
hotel's barbeque playing pool, smiling and waving
hello to us. He invited us to play with him. We had
crossed 10,000 miles of cultural barriers.
The three hours on a boat was well worth the wait for my
experience at the Great Barrier Reef. It was great
knowing that I was swimming in an identifiable landmark
that can be seen from the moon. I saw clownfish and
blue tangs, Nemo and Dori, from “Finding Nemo,” in
real life. I could reach out to touch them without
glass between us.
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I roomed with a wonderful Aussie family during my home
stay. They were kind and generous to open their home
like they did. We attended their daughter's dance
recital, which was exactly like the ones I was in as a
7-year-old. We visited the harbor, played rugby on the
common green, and ate hamburgers with beetroot and
tomato sauce.
Half-way around the world, after 20 hours on planes,
in a different hemisphere, and it still felt like
home. I survived sleeping under the stars in the
outback, carrying minimal wardrobe, sharing bathrooms,
waking up early, and budgeting money. |
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