The United Nations Pilgrimage for Youth was definitely the trip of a lifetime. I was able to meet so many new friends, learn so much about the founding of our great Nation, and made memories that will last me a lifetime. 

 

I found out about this trip from Shivam Purohit, a now graduated student from my school. She had gone on the trip the year before, and told me that I needed to put in for it. I did like she said, went to the competition at the Ft. Worth Odd Fellows Lodge the next week where I participated in a speech competition (presenting the UN’s aide in Haiti) and had an interview with the adult leadership team of the lodge.

 

Leaving Texas that morning in June, I wondered what this trip would bring. What would I learn? Who would I meet? What would I be able to take away from the trip? Flying into Philadelphia that day, I had no idea how very busy I would be for the next 2 weeks. In Philadelphia, we were able to tour the entire city. We visited Independence Hall, which was extremely interesting as the founders of our Nation met there to sign the Declaration of Independence. After seeing the Liberty Bell, learning about the printing press and the effects it had on society at the time, and eating lunch, we all loaded back into the buses for our short trip to New York City.

 

New York City was amazing. There’s no other word to describe it. When I saw the skyline of New York City from a distance, my jaw literally dropped. I had absolutely no idea it would be as big as it is. Growing up in a small town outside of Ft. Worth, I had considered Ft. Worth a “big city” up until this point. I loved touring the “Big Apple,” visiting the United Nations, participating in the speech contest at the fancy Affinia hotel in the heart of NYC, seeing “Mamma Mia” on Broadway, and of course taking a side trip into FAO Shwartz.

 

From New York, my bus traveled to Ottowa, Canada. It was quite the experience staying in Canada for a few days, I absolutely loved it. The air was so fresh and clean, no humidity, and the people were quite friendly. We were able to tour Ottowa, Canada’s capitol, and learn about the historical sites in Canada. We saw Niagara Falls (from the Canadian side) and I was able to actually ride on Maid of the Mist. For any future UNP delegates out there, I would highly recommend spending the $15.00 and going on the boat, it was a truly phenomenal experience.

 

We traveled to Gettysburg and later on Fort McHenry, where we learned a lot about the different battles early on in America’s history. The next day we traveled to Washington, D.C. where we were able to go site seeing and see nearly all of the memorials, the Arlington Cemetery, the Smithsonians, the National Archives, the Holocaust Museum, the Capitol building, the Pentagon, and the White House. Seeing things in the museums that I had previously only read about in history text books was fascinating.

 

It was interesting to be able to make connections between Ottowa and Washington, D.C. I was able to find many differences and similarities between the two, which was very interesting.

After Washington D.C. we went back to Philadelphia to depart to our home states from the Philadelphia airport. My least favorite part of the trip was having to say goodbye to so many of the good friends I made, and we will hopefully be having a reunion in the near future.

 

My favorite part of the trip was definitely visiting Kingston, Canada. Kingston was a quaint little town, and we were able to walk around the just enjoy the sites and sounds of Canada.

 

This trip was able to provide me with a more thorough background knowledge of our country that I had previously not had. I had learned about the United States’ history in books and talked about it in class, but it was a totally new understanding for me as I saw the Liberty Bell, walked into Independence Hall, stood on the spot where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his “I have a dream” speech.

 

The people on this trip were definitely amazing. I am still in contact with many of them, and we keep each other up to date with one another and things going on in our lives. The kids on this trip were students who were interested in the founding of this country, and they were nice to talk to. I made memories with these new friends that will last me a lifetime.

 

Out of everything I learned while on this trip, I was definitely the most impressed by the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals. I was amazed to see the plan the UN had for making the world a better place to live in, and I was able to speak about it in my speech in NYC.

 

I would like to extend my sincerest thanks to the Odd Fellows Polytechnic Lodge No. 148 who sponsored me and sent me on this trip. Due to their support I was able to go on the journey of a lifetime I will remember for years to come. Thank You.

 

Sarah Titus