Global Leadership Scholars - The London Experience: Off to London from.. Cambridge?

Hello all, my name is Amira Sakalla and I am a supply chain major in the GLS Class of 2016. As the title suggests, my journey to London on Thursday will be a bit shorter than most of my peers' as I take the two hour drive on the M25 from Cambridge, England to London. I arrived in Heathrow on January 2nd where I was met by my cousin whom I haven't seen since the year 2000, 13 years ago. He now lives in Cambridge, and for the past week I have not only been able to reconnect with him and other family members, but I've also gotten the chance to experience a bit of England before heading to its capital.

Spoiler Alert: I've already decided that I terribly dislike fish and chips. I love scones from Ely. Sticky toffee pudding is heavenly. Punting would be much more fun in warmer weather, but it's still great. I'll never actually be warm enough outside. My tea fetish isn't going away any time soon. The countryside is beautiful. The seaside is windy. English people say "aubergine" instead of "eggplant."

Anyways, although I came here early I made it a point to not step foot in London until I was with my GLS peers. London is a totally different ball game than any of these other cities, and I'm not about to take it on without some Vols by my side. I'm looking forward to a semester of adventure, travel, new friends, visiting family, and seeing where the wind takes me (there's a lot of it).

Of course the most exciting part of this whole trip is the fact that I will be interning with British & Irish Agencies Afghanistan Group!!! BAAG is a large networks of NGOs and other agencies that work to improve development and aid in Afghanistan. As a supply chain major, I hope to one day work in the field of delivering humanitarian aid, which includes coordinating across borders, with policymakers, and raising awareness to the public. BAAG is more than perfect for these aspirations, and I can't wait to learn from such an esteemed organization.

That's all I have for now. Thank you for reading and I'll update once again from the big city! :)

Amira Sakalla

P.S. - One other thing I have learned. Panorama pictures cannot be beat!