Earl Edwards is a business major at Howard University. I had the pleasure of meeting Earl my first year at Spelman when we were paired with our "Morehouse Brother". Then, I instantly knew it would be a hysterical relationship. Earl was the king of comedy..seriously! From mini skits, to his rerecording of "love this" by August Alsina, Earl had a bright, funny future ahead of him. Earl has traveled to London, Jamaica, Haiti and Mexico. To find out more about Earl's travels please read below
Earl, a young, black, educated male has found time to travel with friends and family. With family he's traveled to Jamaica, Mexico, and Haiti, and traveled to London for educational opportunities.
Since earl has been to multiple places we will break it down by place.
L O N D O N
When you think of London you think, cheesy English accents, fish & chips and high fashion. Earl was able to capture London from a black male's lens. Since he went with his school, Morehouse College, he was able to take rigorous courses at the London School for Economics. "It was an education trip" said Edwards. He studied economic policies and marketing concepts. Indeed, it was challenging, being in such an environment opens your mind to how education is pursued and received internationally. "[It was] a very challenging and enriching experience. Every student was intelligent, dynamic, experienced. As an American who has numerous opportunities, I sometimes get complacent. They had a thirst for knowledge and a drive that was much higher than mine.]".
“It was very challenging and enriching experience. Every student was intelligent, dynamic and experienced. As an American who has numerous opportunities, I sometimes get complacent. They had a thirst for knowledge and a drive that was much higher than mine.” ”
Outside of school, was the time of his life! Partying in another city, let alone another country was a life changing experience. From 3 story clubs, with different genres on each floor to international food, and women, it was a black man's paradise. "[The] food was different, it was NOT heavily seasoned" as he preferred lol. At least they had Sushi, lots of Sushi!!!!! Some of Earl's favorite meals were Fish & chips, lots of pasta, Corner fried chicken joint aka boot leg KFC, and surprisingly, Mc. Donald’s! (It was very clean and made him feel good)
From a fashion POV Edwards said the best part of London was going to Oxford Circus' Huge mega shopping center. (Where he found the latest trends). He explained how fashionable everyone was, "they dressed modern, classic, form fitting, tailored clothing". (Every girls dream, am I right?) Sounds like an AWESOME experience.
The most positive outcome from the trip was learning international girls loveeee an American accent. Some negatives were everyone wanting to be the “Black” American!!!! "Bumping Chris Brown 3 months late and shit" *inserts pissed emoji*
“They wanted to mimic the hip hop culture.”
The Craziest thing that happened in London were "people kept asking for my autograph" One lady came up to him and said “ok, my kids say I should know who you are, but I don’t can you tell me? He replied, "I’m nobody at all, I’m just Earl lol. Though "I looked mad athletic, head phones, sweat pants, and Nike shoes, I could see why some people tried to put me on snap lol." Even funnier, someone thought I was Kobe Bryant!!
J A M A C I A
While in Jamaica, Earl was able to climb a waterfall and rock climb without a harness, needless to say it was a terrible experience. lol Some other cool activities were: Sting Ray diving with his dad, and snorkeling. Word of Advice: Be careful with the snorkel and boat propellers.
H A I T I
Earl initially went to Haiti with "bad intentions". I asked why he feared Haiti? Was it as terrible as they say? His response surprised me, "It was the total opposite, IT WAS BEAUTIFUL". 'Paradise Bay'. The waters were insanely blue and overall a nice place to visit. As Americans, we hear about shit and we visualize it as a negative place, you have to go somewhere and experience it before you talk shit."
“Visit before you judge”
The craziest thing he tried in Haiti was Jet skiing and also trying to snatch fish out the water with his bare hands, "one fish actually bit my hand".
Earl's favorite place was: London! "I like seclusion, different food, different world, different city structure, and the tube! Although, Jet lag did suck!! Sometimes I would fall asleep while in class".
Some foods to try: Light whipped ice cream! (YUM)
Earl was able to attend the London school of Economics during the summer
Recommendations: If your GPA is high enough go to the London school of economics & travel with people you like, friends/families, with someone you love.
Thanks Earl for being my traveler of the week!