My name is Philip Reilly, and this is my pre-departure post in anticipation of my flight to the UK next week. I am a history major entering my junior year, and I am excited to be attending the University of Exeter for the entire fall semester. I am also a grateful recipient of the Provost Ralph Wilcox USF-Exeter Student Exchange Scholarship, which has been immensely helpful, and is making this once in a lifetiem experience possible for me.
I love traveling and getting to know new places- in fact I am currently typing this from a hostel in Italy! However, it is rare to get to spend a long period of time in a foreign country. It can be difficult to get to understand the people and culture of a place after only spending a week or less there. That is why I am so excited to be studying as an exchange student, and living and working with locals. I will be able to gain a perspective on life that I have not been able to before.
I also hope to be spending lots of time traveling throughout the UK. There are so many incredible sites to see, both natural and manmade over thousands of years that simply can not be found in the US. My expectations and ambitions for this trip are high, and I hope that I can meet them.
