An eye-opening educational experience

When I left for America in the summer of 2006 to participate in the Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellows Initiative at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, US, I knew that I was in for an unforgettable experience. However, what I had yet to discover was that the three weeks I would spend there would keep on affecting my daily life and influencing the person that I am until this very day.

Participants of the Initiative came from all the over the world, with their own personal ideas, opinions and beliefs to live under one roof, in an environment which encouraged individual expression, communication and the sharing of common values. Today I realise that above everything else that there was to be gained from the programme, including lectures, classes, activities and educational visits, it was the diversity which the BFTF Initiative exposed me to and the people I met that made it such a special and unique experience.

Since then, we have done our utmost to ensure that the spirit of BFTF does not die out and that the friendships we fostered would continue to grow and develop. Each year we have pooled our organisational skills and planned a reunion of the 2006 alumni. Last year we met in Denmark and for over two weeks, adapted to the Scandinavian way of life with all its cultural differences, traditional goings-on and culinary delights. This year, after much online deliberation, we decided that Malta would play host to the BFTF reunion and thus, for three weeks in July, nine of the original "fellows" came together in the country I call home, and continued where they had left off last year in Aarhus, and the year before at Wake Forest.

The aim of these BFTF reunions is much more than just an opportunity to meet each other again. They provide us with a chance to experience new cultures and to share even more of our own. I had gone to the US as a representative of my country and this year's reunion allowed me to take this role one step further by hosting my fellow participants here.

Besides the regular features which any holiday to Malta in the middle of the summer must include, such as a weekend in Gozo, a day trip to Comino and the Blue Grotto, and multiple outings to some of our beautiful beaches, this reunion took the visitors right into the heart of Maltese life. They experienced first-hand the glory of the local village festa and were treated to a delicious, authentic Maltese meal. Cultural expeditions involved trips to Valletta, the Megalithic Temples of Ħaġar Qim and Ġgantija, Mdina and the Crafts Village.

A brunch with the US Ambassador, Molly Bordonaro, was also organised and this was very successful and enjoyed by all. BFTF is a programme funded by the US Department of State and therefore the Ambassador was most eager to meet some of its past participants who were all excited to share their experiences of the Initiative. During the meeting, held at the Ambassador's residence in Attard, we had a lively discussion about the BFTF programme and current affairs.

My friends and fellow "BFTFers", as we like to call ourselves, have only been gone for two weeks and yet we have already begun circulating ideas regarding next year's event. Slovenia has been suggested, but there are no concrete plans just yet. However, one thing is certain; as long as we have anything to do with it, the BFTF Alumni of 2006 will keep on meeting, as we have done so far, and remain a group of closely knit friends from all over the world with a common sense of determination when it comes to following our dreams and coming together each and every year to remember and build upon those irreplaceable three weeks which we spent together in the US.