I was excited from the very start of the preparation process, both before and during the visa application. It was my first time applying for a visa on my own, and even though it might seem like a small thing, it felt like a real personal win. It taught me about responsibility and what it means to truly prepare yourself. It felt like growing up a little.
I also spent a lot of time preparing the content for my presentation. At the time, I was interning at the Foreign Affairs Division of the Senate Secretariat, and I had the chance to ask my seniors there to review what I had put together. I cared about getting it right because I genuinely wanted my friends in England to understand what Thailand has been through and what we have learned from it.
When the trip itself came around, I was a little nervous about whether I could manage ten days in England on my own. I was also nervous because the friends I was travelling with were people I had never met before. But it turned out that we clicked really well and looked out for each other the whole time. We planned each day together, with backup plans ready, and we worked beautifully as a team. I was nervous, too, about whether I would be able to connect with the students in London, but everyone turned out to be so kind and so respectful of our differences. Exchanging perspectives and making new friends made me feel grateful that I had pushed myself to be there. We are all still in touch.
The trip also helped me push past my own limits for the first time. I am not really someone who walks a lot, but going to the Seven Sisters unlocked something in me. There was no turning back once we started; you had to hike up to see the view. And I did it. I was genuinely proud of myself for creating new experiences and proving that I could go beyond what I thought I was capable of.
On the day of the conference, I was nervous, but our group ended up presenting last, so the nerves had worn off by then. I presented on how the Middle East conflict affects Thailand, a topic I really wanted to cover because I felt most people would not know about it. One of the key points I shared was that Thailand imports around 57 per cent of its oil from the Middle East, out of a total import dependency of 95 per cent. Honestly, even I was a little shocked when I found this out during my research. My friends presented on flooding and on PM2.5, and together it felt like a meaningful exchange, a chance to understand each other’s realities and to stay open to different perspectives.
This trip to England helped me grow and step beyond my own boundaries. I want to give a huge thank you to Ajarn Farhang and to all the friends who took such good care of us and made us feel so welcome. I really appreciate it, and I hope we will meet again someday. Thank you for giving me this experience and for opening my eyes to a much bigger world.
Chanoknan Janta (Kwan), Kasetsart University