Alexandre's notebook entry: Feb 11, 2011 Going abroad What a dream it is for me to see the old world, the place from where my ancestors came. My friends here already know how curious I am about their culture and history. It is like a piece of me too. On my mother’s side I had Henry, my grandfather that came from Ireland; my grandmother is the daughter of a German man and Italian mother/woman and she was born in Brazil. On my father’s side I have a Portuguese grandfather and Spanish-Italian grandmother. I am particularly interested in Ireland for it represents the biggest missing part of my identity as Henry died only five years after my mother was born. Thus, I have no Irish cultural references. The UK is another place in which I would like to stay. Due to/As a result of my friends and their culture, I can’t imagine myself watching BBC’s Horizon, visiting those green fields, castles, historic places or improving my English in an Oxford class.However, it is not only a matter of travelling for me. As a Brazilian, and a proud one, I feel worried about being deported even before I touch old world soil. It happens, and I do know why. I do respect the way they protect their people from illegal immigration. Illegal immigration is a problem in my country too. Despite this, I do not know how to convince them that this is not true in my case. For instance, groups from my college were deported from Spain and England (having been refused entry) even having been registered for international science meetings. I have been saving money for more than a year to visit England and I am afraid of not getting to my English course. I need an international experience, not only for the English, but also for my self-improvement/personal development. It will help me to find a better job, be more confident and independent, and maybe find information about my ancestors. There is also the money/job problem. It sounds quite expensive to live in Europe and a trip that excludes a job will not be very useful for my CV, as in every single job interview that I have been through, they have asked for international experience. I do have more than that, but usually the people who interview are not those we are going to work with or even for, so… they consider more generic things, I guess. I hope everything will be fine. I need it, and I have many useful things to offer people abroad. It is going to be an exchange process as it is supposed to be.