Murray's Global Adventure In Puerto Rico

Jaelynn Murray, a member of the Carolina women's basketball program, is spending five days in Puerto Rico for a faculty-led trip that will feature interactive educational experiences, including with Puerto Rican students and community members and tours of local sites and community organizations.

You can follow along on her journey through GoHeels.com and @uncwbb on Twitter and Instagram. #GoHeels

Day One

Early this semester, I was accepted into the Global Takeoff program sponsored by the Center for Global Initiatives at UNC. This program offers fully funded, faculty-led, short-term global experiences. I'm very grateful for the opportunity to travel with fellow UNC students, while also learning about a different culture.

My day started off very early with a 4:00 a.m. depart time! Our group left Chapel Hill and began our journey to Puerto Rico. We flew from RDU to Fort Lauderdale and then from Fort Lauderdale to San Juan. While I've become accustomed to flying with the women's basketball team, a journey to a new country was quite the experience for me. I was so excited to land in San Juan!! We gathered our bags and departed for the hotel.
We got settled into our hotel but quickly left to explore the city! We ate at Pollo Tropical for lunch and I tried some new food, native to the country. I had ensalada (salad), pollo asado, yuca, arroz blanco and frijoles negros. It was such a good meal but very different than what I would eat for lunch in Chapel Hill!

After lunch, we arrived at University of Puerto Rico Rio Piedras and toured the campus with several students. We learned a lot during the tour and I enjoyed seeing a different college campus!

Since we had a long day, we closed with dinner and a short reflection from our first day!

Day Two

We woke up early to begin a new adventure in Puerto Rico! We had breakfast at Panchy's, where I had tostadas francesas (French toast) and jugo (juice)! It was such a good breakfast and one I would need to keep me fueled for the day!

After breakfast, we took the train from the University to Sagrado Corazon. Once there we took the Bici Caño tour, where we biked through G8 communities. These are eight communities that came together and made projects after the hurricane. It was so neat to tour the area on a bike and see how these communities came together after a devastating disaster. After the bike tour, we had lunch at Comedores Sociales. It was another good meal! I found a place that was similar to Purple Bowl or Frutta Bowl in Chapel Hill, which is where I go with my teammates A LOT! I had an acai bowl, complete with granola, berries and honey! While we were in the area we also got to shop in Plaza del Mercado and talk to vendors.

We then went back to the hotel for a little bit to prepare for our check out on Day 3. We then had dinner and a though provoking discussion on Identity. Each person on the trip has a different background and story, I enjoyed getting to know each of them better.

We then closed the day with ice cream and a reflection! These are such long but rewarding days! Our schedule is full but I am learning and seeing so much!

Scoreboard Slider

University of North Carolina Athletics

Players Mentioned

Jaelynn Murray

Related Videos