I am taking a trip to India summer of 2020! I will be gone for a month, traveling around Gujarat and beyond to visit family. I have not visited India since I was 4 so I am hoping that I can spend this time learning more about my culture and background. We plan to look at lots of historical sites and temples around the country, as well as meet up with friends that have lived in India their entire lives. Along with being immersed in the culture, I am hoping to volunteer at a local hospital and help out those in need. My temple organization has built a non-profit hospital in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. My family has connections with people who work at the hospital so my plan is to join them for a couple of days and directly experience the Indian public health system. My mission is to learn more about the living conditions of those living in poverty in India and finding ways to make it better. The UN Sustainable Development Goal that I will primarily be focused on during this trip is number 3: Good Health and Well-Being. Many villages around the country do not have access to the proper care they need, which is a really important issue that I want to spread more awareness on. I volunteer at the Lawrence General Hospital here, and I want to examine how health circumstances are here compared to in India. I am so excited to visit!

COVID UPDATE #1

The paragraph above was written before the Coronavirus outbreak, which has unfortunately messed with a lot of plans. Instead of going to India this summer, my family's current plan is to go for a shorter trip over winter break in December and spend a week or so traveling and seeing family. This would most likely mean that my service could not be completed in India but we are still trying to figure it all out.

COVID UPDATE #2

Seven months in and this pandemic is still taking over our lives! As of October, we no longer have plans to go to India any time soon, but we hope that people continue to take the necessary precautions to stay safe and allow the pandemic to ease. This sadly means that travel and global service won't be part of my final Global Endorsement but I am hoping that I can find ways to immerse myself into a nearby cultural community.

UPDATE #3

Hello! This will most likely be my final update for this travel page. While I didn't get to travel during High School, I know that I will get many opportunities to do so in college. At Northeastern, global experience is highly valued and encouraged, so I hope that as part of a study abroad program or something similar, I can go to India and learn about the public health system there as I study to be a nurse!