An Opportunity Not To Be Missed…

It certainly was not to be missed – how would you like to go to university/college in the States?!!  I practically jumped at the chance, given my wish to attend higher education; and the opportunity to live somewhere new.

So, in 1982, a few months after recovering from cerebral malaria (almost miraculously), I found myself jetting off to Rollins College in Florida; I decided it was the place for me when I saw the promotional material.  The campus looked spectacular, it was small, and it had several study overseas programs…which were a major attraction for me!!!  I had only been there a matter of weeks when I went into the international office to get more information about these overseas programs.

You might imagine that I was quite excited about this new adventure.  I was fulfilling my wish to go to college; I was also going to have the chance to live and study somewhere new to me; and I was going to have the chance to visit and spend time with good American friends I had met in Nigeria.  It was a WIN…WIN…WIN opportunity…I felt like all my dreams had come and I had gone to heaven (in a manner of speaking).

The campus and buildings were as beautiful as in the photographs; Winter Park (where Rollins is located) was also attractive; and I really enjoyed the education on offer – the small classes, and the variety of courses taught as well as being educated in such attractive surroundings!  Before I went, I knew I wanted to go to university, but didn’t know what I wanted to major/graduate in.  Going to college in the States allowed me to take a range of courses, and finally make up my mind what to major in – International Relations.

Remember, I mentioned about study overseas programs – I went on not one…not two… not three…but on four of Rollins’ programs.  Eck!  Well, I just couldn’t resist the chance to live and study in Sydney…in Dublin…in Paris…and in Vienna.  Although I spent a semester each in Sydney, Dublin, and Paris; I only spent eight weeks in Vienna during the summer of 1985.

As you can imagine, each had its own many and varied experiences along with the different people I met. I really enjoyed spending time in each place, but my absolute favourite, was and still is, Sydney…especially around central Sydney, and around the harbour.  I’ve been fortunate to spend more time there since 1983, and I loved it as much.  I also like Australia – its size, diversity, climate, proximity to the ocean…

I enjoyed Dublin, and Ireland – the countryside, the people…before going I knew Ireland was an island to the west of Britain, but I hadn’t realised just how close it is – only about a half hour plane trip from Glasgow.

In Paris I had to walk through the Trocadero (near where I was staying), over the Seine, and under the Eiffel Tower everyday to get to the college where I was taking my classes – a real hardship let me tell you!

Indeed, I did graduate from Rollins in 1986 with a BA in International Relations. However, I spent only two of my four years on campus in Florida.  Spending the other two years studying elsewhere added another dimension to my degree…or that’s what I like to think…