Cuba : Before

Most people are very surprised when I tell them that I have traveled abroad to Cuba. Typically, their first reaction is shock. Then they ask, "How did you manage that?" or "Why?" As to the first question, I am quite willing to explain that I was able to go at all to Cuba through the partnership that my church has with a church in Matanzas, Cuba. This partnership was forged over many years and every other year a group of youth from my church is able to go to Cuba on a religious visa. As to the other question, I explained to others that I have always loved to get to know and learn about people, especially those from a different country. This characteristic was forged more securely from my trip to Guatemala and from the experiences I gained there. More specifically, I began to really develop excitement about the trip as we began to plan out the logistics of my group and as the date of the trip came closer. My group traveled to Matanzas in 2009 and I can safely say that this trip has been one of the most influential experiences of my life =^. .^=