Florida A&M students are taking traveling into consideration more than ever despite the ongoing pandemic.
It shifted from a short-term activity to a lifestyle during the past 18 months.
Students made plans to leave longer and go farther this past summer. Having no break this past spring semester truly motivated students even more to take the time out of their busy schedules and live their best lives during the summer.
Zion Lampley, a senior at FAMU majoring in political science with a minor in criminal justice, is seeking to expand his horizons.
“I think it’s very important that I travel after this semester,” Lampley said. “This is probably the only semester where a spring break wasn’t given to us. On the other hand, this is probably one of the most stressful semesters in college,” Lampley, 20, said.
Lampley said he wanted to travel to places he has never visited, especially since he didn’t travel much as a child.
“I’ve never been out of the country, I’ve never been to the West Coast, and the farthest I’ve been is Atlanta Georgia,” Lampley said.
Traveling is definitely one of his goals in life even if that means taking time off work so he can fulfill that.
Mathieu Coqmard, a graduate student at FAMU, believes there are many people who will still say no to traveling. But as long as he is taking precautions he’s sure he’ll stay safe.
“We are entitled to make our own decision based on our own circumstances,” Coqmard said. “I knocked out two states this year and I’m extremely excited to continue completing my list of adventures.”
As Coqmard continues to make it his mission to travel safe and vaccinated, he also wants to make sure he’s comfortable as well while following procedures.
“It’s absolutely critical to be thoughtful when it comes to travel right now, and it continues to be a deeply personal decision,” Coqmard said.
Aliyah Wilburn, a transfer student at FAMU from Marianna, elaborates on the roller coaster she experienced throughout the spring semester and traveling this summer.
“This whole school term has been pretty hard and new for me. This past spring semester was the cherry on top for academic exhaustion,” Wilburn, 21, said.
She has always been an A or B student but by the end of spring semester she was just praying for a C. Instead of enrolling in summer classes as she previously planned, she decided to take the summer off to travel.
“I needed time to chill and enjoy before we are introduced to our new normal in fall,” Wilburn said. “In May I went to Orlando for the weekend with some of my friends and I went again in June with my family,” Wilburn said.
Wilburn completed an internship in Memphis, Tennessee this summer. It was remote but she and a few other interns planned to get together to explore the city.
Regardless of any travels students said they are mindful that we’re still in a pandemic. They said they keep their masks as well as their hand sanitizers on deck.