I will be telling you my story and that of my family as soon as I find out. I will also tell of some little anecdotes, just as an example of the history, we all have. This page will grow over the next few weeks and months.
A Brief History of my Traveling Education
My father was in the Army when I was born, so we moved around a great deal, he eventually left the army when I was about 9. By trade, he was a helicopter pilot and managed to find a job in Greenland. So when I was ten years old, my parents relocated to Greenland, so we (I have two brothers) were shipped off to boarding school for three wonderful years. I loved boarding school. It is one of the best places for a young child to go. I learnt to be self-reliant, take on responsibilities and create friends that would last longer than a few months.
While at boarding school I became friends with another girl, Vicky, who’s parents lived in India. After persuading my parents, and I think it took a lot of convincing, they let me go India for the whole of the summer holiday, a total of 3 months. I think I was about 11 or 12. What a fabulous experience that was. It was also an extraordinary experience for me as I was of the opinion that it set a precedent for travel.
A few years later (I was 14/15), I was attending a local state school and an opportunity arose for a years study in Canada as an exchange student. I was so excited and convinced that I would be allowed to go. When I asked my mother she replied that I had to ask my Dad and that if he is happy with the idea then she would be. My father worked overseas, which meant he was home for 3 or 4 weeks at a time and then in Greenland for 3 or 4 weeks. A no brainier to me, he would absolutely let me go. I had almost packed my bag before asking him. To my complete shock and horror he refused to let me go. I couldn’t believe or understand why. I had been to boarding school, I had spent the entire summer with another family and now he was saying No. I truly couldn’t see what the issue was and we had one of our big disagreements. He acknowledged that it would be a great opportunity for me, that I would learn a lot and that I would enjoy the year. However, he stated that he wouldn’t see me for an entire year and therefore he wouldn’t let me go. He know that it was a selfish attitude but he was in charge and that was the end of the discussion. I was mad. So mad that I even noted the number of days I sore him that year. A total of 43. I could have gone to Canada and come back for holidays and he would have seen just as much of me. Its funny the things you remember.
When I went to University (it was a Polytechnic then), I finally studied overseas. I went for a semester in Denmark studying European Law. As soon as I finished my degree, I saved up and went back backing around South East Asia and Australia with a friend. This time, it was my Mother who didn’t want me to go. You just can’t win.
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