University of the West Indies

While in Trinidad, I took two courses from the University of the West Indies. The courses I took directly from UWI were Gender, Sex and Society, and Steel Pan Theory and Practice I. In addition to two courses of our choice from UWI, we also took Post Colonial Literature and Caribbean Culture and Society, which included a service learning component. I have included a few pictures of the campus for your viewing pleasure. Believe me, there are way too many days during the Washington rain that I wish I could be back in the Trinidad sun!







One of my favorite experiences in Trinidad was the opportunity to volunteer at a local AIDS orphanage, Cyril Ross Nursery. This home housed about 40 children who all acquired HIV from mother-to-child transmission. It was an amazing experience to learn that these children are children too, and are no different from anyone else. I got especially close to a young girl named Aneisha. She was too years old and took a liking to me immediately. Unlike the previous mission experiences I had had, I really got to know Aneisha because I went back to spend time with her every week over a four month period. She remembed me every time I got there, and always ran to me with excitedment. Her happiness and innocence made a huge impact on me, and for that I will always remember her. Unfortunately the orphanage did not allow us to take photographs of the children there in order to protect their confidentiality. This is more than understandable, but sometimes I wish I had a picture of some of the children so that I would never forget any of them.