Get Me to Taiwan (Pretty Please!)

Sophie Xavier Start Date: Oct 23, 2017 - End Date: Jan 16, 2018
  • Cultural Exchange
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Study/Degree Abroad
  • Taipei, Taiwan

My Travel Story

by: Sophie Xavier Start Date: Oct 23, 2017 - End Date: Jan 16, 2018
  • Cultural Exchange
  • Educational/Research Trip
  • Study/Degree Abroad
Hi, everyone! I'm Sophie Xavier, and I'm a sophomore at my college in Washington State. This year my school is for the first time ever opening a study abroad trip in Taiwan. Currently I'm taking Chinese, and my long-term goal is to one day become an interpreter/translator fluent in English (my native language), Japanese (my second language; my family lived in Japan as missionaries from when I was 12 until I was almost 18), Chinese, Korean, and a few Central European languages as well. The trip for my school is during Spring Quarter and lasts from March 25 to June 20, 2018.

As I mentioned, I used to live in Japan. The rest of my family still lives there and I was sent back to America in 2016 to finish my Senior year of high school and to begin college. With parents whose income consists mainly of weekly donations people give to their ministry, school hasn't been a small item on my life's list of expenses. That being said, I'm trying everything I can to be able to go on this trip. The program itself is $5700 USD, not including airfare or textbooks. 

For quite some time now I've dreamed of one day visiting China, and my hopes skyrocketted when this program was introduced to my Chinese class. Not only would it help develop my skill in the Mandarin language but it would also expose me to a culture on which I have very minimal knowledge, and it would be somewhat of a "sneak-peek" at what I one day hope to achieve: to travel and speak for a living.

The way I want to make a difference in my community is through communication. I believe good communication is the key to anyone's heart and mind, and if I could make a living out of helping people understand one another, my biggest dream would come true. 

Thank you all so much for viewing my page, every single penny helps! God bless!
  • Taipei, Taiwan

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