Reflective Essay: My Alaskan Experience

                                                                           November 1, 2007
     Dear Erica,                                                                
  It is with great pleasure that myself and the People to People Student Ambassador Programs invite you to travel with us to Alaska for two weeks. You will explore all " The Last Frontier" has to offer.
        Congratulations,
        Mary Jean Eisenhower
       President and CEO, People to People International
   
    This was how the letter began, giving me the opportunity to travel to Alaska. I remember showing the invation to my parents...my mom began to cry. She said "Barry we have to make it possible for  Erica to go, this is a once in a lifetime experience." With that invation I began my journey to Alaska.
    Every month beginning in April, I went to meetings preparing me for my adventure to Alaska. Not only was I taught about the history and different cultures but I was taught how to live on my own. Every meeting would target a different aspect of that I would need to be successful going on this adventure. One or two of the meetings were on the history, many tribes and cultures of Alaska. But, most of them were on packing, talking about what we would need to bring and how to present ourselves.
     The day of my deperature came... my parents dropped me off at Newark Liberty International Airport on the morning of July 21st. We said our good-byes and off I went on my journey to Alaska " The Last Frontier". The eight and a half hour plane ride seemed to take forever. The fact that the plane was so cramed did not help either. When the plane finally landed in Anchorage, Alaska it was a rainy and dreary day outside... but thankfully that changed. The weather for the trip was mostly beautiful except for a couple days here and there.
     Over a course of two weeks I participated in numerous activities and visited many towns and places too. I was introduced to Dog Sledding, White Water Rafting  and Hiking  which were all so much fun. But, I think one of my greatest accomplishments while in Alaska was hiking all the way to the tippy top of Flat Top Mountain in Anchorage. From atop the mountain the view was amazing.  In some ways I think climbing down the mountain was harder than climbing up because the side of the mountain was steep and winding, but climbing up was just hard on my legs. Another interesting aspect of this trip was talking to native Alaskans and hearing about their way of life.
     Finally, this fourteen day adventure came to end on August 3rd. I truly had the experience of a lifetime.  I was exposed to activities and a place that I had never been to nor ever experienced before. And while on this trip I made long lasting friends.
    By going on this trip with People to People Student Ambassadors not only did I learn about and experience differnent activities and a new culture, but I learned how to be more independent.