Connections between two particularly different places provide a strong sense of belonging. By connecting familiar past experiences we are able to adapt to our current surroundings. As an international at Leeds Metropolitan University in England I have been able to bust out of my shell and submerge into the depths of these learning communities I hold before me. My education goes beyond the classroom and permeates into the communities I live in. It is through mentorship, friendship and kinship that my true self is exposed. Creating a balance in this world of congested is what I strive to accomplish each day. Personally, I have done this by involving myself within the Leeds Metropolitan quarter, through such organizations as the walking and volleyball clubs. Both these organizations have helped me make a connection between my home and Leeds by giving me a sense of familiarization. Some of the strongest connections I have made include; Leeds City Centre relating to the beautiful city of Chicago, the Peaks District to the south of Leeds linked to the vast mountains of Denali National Park, where I spend my summer. Although these places are an ocean apart, by discovering the comparisons and then contrasting them helps merge my old surroundings with my new environment. Lucille Baranko Landscape Architecture Leeds Metropolitan University, Leeds England Purdue University

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