Reflections from Home

3 months ago, I was sitting on a plane bound for the U.S. and going over everything I had experienced in London and around Europe for the 3 months prior.  While sleeping did take up the bulk of my journey home, I couldn't help but think about all of the new friends I had made and the wealth of knowledge that came with every class I took, every show I saw, and every city I visited.

     There was also a lot of fear that came along with all the fond memories. Would things be the same with all of my friends back home? Would I be able to keep and stay in contact with the new friends I had made? Would I miss London too much? Could I keep and practice all of the lessons I have learned?

     After being home for 3 months and being able to reflect on all of my experiences while abroad, a lot of my fears have been alleviated. I came back to the same friends that I remembered leaving before the semester.  I've been able to keep in touch with and even see some of the new friends I had made in London. And I have used the lessons I learned to book jobs and better myself as an artist. I do miss London a lot though. It's hard to not yearn for intensive theatre classes from 9-5 every day and the theatre culture that is ingrained into the city but I've managed to keep myself busy with auditions, work, rehearsals, and spending time with the friends that I missed.

     This is way overdue but l want to thank everyone who helped me with the costs of traveling and living in London, as well as all of my travels around Europe.

Thank you to:
The Velasco Family
The Encinas Family
Sarah and Sam Afifi
Laura Abad Santos and Tony Rogers
The Rocco Family
Marilou Reventar
The Echavez Family
Tony Mangle and Alex Mariquit
Jude Tan
Manny Caballero
Cristina Ramos
Erly de Vera
Matthew Maguire and the Fordham Theatre Department
Ellen Newman and the LDA Staff

Most of all I would like to thank the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program, who provided the bulk of my funding for my tuition and travels. Without them I truly would not have been able to study abroad and I would like to encourage anyone thinking of studying abroad to visit their website because they are a valuable resource to any student who is thinking of following this path. http://www.iie.org/Programs/Gilman-Scholarship-Program

To those of you planning on studying abroad at the London Dramatic Academy or anywhere else in the world, I hope you found my blog useful, informative, and maybe entertaining at times. If you do go abroad, cherish the time you have there because it will truly change your life.

Thank you all again.

-Daniel