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I traveled to London, England in November of 1998. It was with a school exchange program. Our high
school( Chester High School) located in Chester, South Carolina alternated years of travel with Hayes
Manor School in Middlesex, England. You had to audition for a place. Each student that was interested had
to write an essay on why they should be chosen. In my essay I wrote why I felt that I would be a great
person to represent young Black Americans during an era where there was so much negative light shined
upon us. I was one of the two Black Americans chosen for the trip.
school( Chester High School) located in Chester, South Carolina alternated years of travel with Hayes
Manor School in Middlesex, England. You had to audition for a place. Each student that was interested had
to write an essay on why they should be chosen. In my essay I wrote why I felt that I would be a great
person to represent young Black Americans during an era where there was so much negative light shined
upon us. I was one of the two Black Americans chosen for the trip.
| England - A Not So Far Away Land by Meredith Talford |
Prior to my trip to England. I had
very little knowledge of the British
culture. Beside watching Princess
Diana's funeral on TV I was very
ignorant. The trip was seven days
and each student and teacher lived
with different host families. My
family consisted of a mother and
daughter. The mother was of
Scottish Decent and the daughter
was Scottish and Jamaican. Her
father resided in Jamaica. I was 17
and Jocelyn was 14. There was a
little bit of a language barrier.
Mainly phrases and "slang”. Of
course we visited the common
tourist attractions such as
Buckingham Palace, Stone Henge,
and the historical city of Rochester,
but also I started everyday of the trip with my host in class and then she joined me and my other classmates
on the trip of the day. Getting left outside Buckingham Palace was my most memorable moment. A member
of the infamous British Paparazzi told me if I stood with him I could get a peek of the Queen and after 20
minutes of waiting I realized my party was gone and so was the Queen. Luckily, someone realized I wasn't
on the subway and came back to get me.
During the trip we attended a Diwali Celebration. Diwali is a major Hindu festival. It's also known as the
"Festival of Lights," it symbolizes the victory of good over evil, and lamps are lit as a sign of celebration and
hope for mankind. It was very similar to an American Dance with some American music.
My experience was a bit of a culture shock. My home town is the typical small town USA. The population
consisted of mainly Black and White Americans with little direct influence from other cultures, so I was so
exited about traveling abroad. My host family was very friendly and accepting of me. The mother was elated
that I was a person of color like her daughter. The mother told me stories about how she was not excepted
in Jamaica and how her family wasn't accepting of her" brown baby", but eventually they all looked beyond
the ethnic differences. She assumed because of my lighter complexion I was "half coss". After a brief
discussion I understood "half coss" meant biracial. There was a large population of Somalian and Ethiopian
students at Hayes Manor.Many of Jocelyn friends were of mixed race and I must say the rainbow was
beautiful. I remember riding the city bus with Jocelyn and thinking this is my first time on a city bus and it's
in London. Then I looked up at the sky and thought to myself “I am half way around the world and I feel so
comfortable." I remembering looking at the different textures, sizes, the shapes, along with the mixture of
curry, ginger, and variety of peppers that lingered in the air and thinking to myself, “I want to experience this
everyday.”
Over all it was a pivotal time in my life. As a woman of color growing up in a small town in the south, I felt
like anywhere other than where I was, was so far away. Other places were spoken about as if they were
far away lands in a fairytale book that I could only visit in my dreams. My trip to England changed that for
me. Now almost 10 years later, I am yearning to travel and discover more of those far away lands.
-Meredith Talford BSW MPH CHES
on the trip of the day. Getting left outside Buckingham Palace was my most memorable moment. A member
of the infamous British Paparazzi told me if I stood with him I could get a peek of the Queen and after 20
minutes of waiting I realized my party was gone and so was the Queen. Luckily, someone realized I wasn't
on the subway and came back to get me.
During the trip we attended a Diwali Celebration. Diwali is a major Hindu festival. It's also known as the
"Festival of Lights," it symbolizes the victory of good over evil, and lamps are lit as a sign of celebration and
hope for mankind. It was very similar to an American Dance with some American music.
My experience was a bit of a culture shock. My home town is the typical small town USA. The population
consisted of mainly Black and White Americans with little direct influence from other cultures, so I was so
exited about traveling abroad. My host family was very friendly and accepting of me. The mother was elated
that I was a person of color like her daughter. The mother told me stories about how she was not excepted
in Jamaica and how her family wasn't accepting of her" brown baby", but eventually they all looked beyond
the ethnic differences. She assumed because of my lighter complexion I was "half coss". After a brief
discussion I understood "half coss" meant biracial. There was a large population of Somalian and Ethiopian
students at Hayes Manor.Many of Jocelyn friends were of mixed race and I must say the rainbow was
beautiful. I remember riding the city bus with Jocelyn and thinking this is my first time on a city bus and it's
in London. Then I looked up at the sky and thought to myself “I am half way around the world and I feel so
comfortable." I remembering looking at the different textures, sizes, the shapes, along with the mixture of
curry, ginger, and variety of peppers that lingered in the air and thinking to myself, “I want to experience this
everyday.”
Over all it was a pivotal time in my life. As a woman of color growing up in a small town in the south, I felt
like anywhere other than where I was, was so far away. Other places were spoken about as if they were
far away lands in a fairytale book that I could only visit in my dreams. My trip to England changed that for
me. Now almost 10 years later, I am yearning to travel and discover more of those far away lands.
-Meredith Talford BSW MPH CHES