The three things that most stuck in my mind from the project week experience were the times we displayed the ability to act independently and solve problems. Handling the airport, transportation within the country, and communicating with the people from the accommodation, are the three things.

Most of our interactions could be considered as transactions (i.e. we needed something from someone). For example, we had frequent interactions with our housing provider, transportation providers, and food providers. Such interactions were made quite easy by the level of English spoken by the providers.

I learned that I am quite capable of managing myself, which is an important realization to make at this age. Often as a kid, you do not concern yourself with what is actually going on when you go on trips because your parents handle the planning and interactions.

This experience was different from most due to independence. The most similar trips I have had were the outdoor education trips from my middle school experience and early high school. These experiences were more physically demanding but project week was no ride in the park. The trip I took in Grade 8 was probably the best trip in my secondary years but project week was close (if not the same) in terms of how fun the experience was.

The main connections would have to be about the core skills and qualities that embody all the actions we do. Being a risk-taker, a self-manager, and many of the other skills and qualities were necessary for the trip to be successful, and is also necessary to be successful in the IB experience, and in life in general.

My knowledge on how to organize accommodation, flights, and transportation has been largely expanded as a result of this trip and will serve to be useful knowledge in the future when I plan trips as an adult.

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