While some Allen Community College students spent their summer taking classes and studying, the other half pushed their guts to fill this time with exceptional experiences. A couple of students on the Iola campus went outside of the box and made life-long memories of Summer 2014. Here, they decided to share their adventures.

Neil Jantzen, a soccer player from Topeka, Kansas, had a chance to spend two weeks traveling through Europe. A family trip that took place in June 2014 took him to Netherlands, England and Ireland. Jantzen said, “I was mostly impressed by Amsterdam, Netherlands. This laid-back country makes you feel warm and welcomed.”

Traveling through Amsterdam, Jantzen and his family saw canals, food tours and museums. The student was also surprised by the friendly attitudes of Amsterdam teenagers, who were anxious to talk with tourists and helped them out when needed. On the other hand, he was shocked to learn that the usage of soft drugs like weed, marijuana or hash were under the governmen’st protection. Each person over 18 years old could obtain these supplies in a local coffee shop. Jantzen also was a witness to a worker’s strike, who refused to clean the streets because of a payment delay.

“I wish there could be more open-minded and inquisitive people here in America, like in Amsterdam,” Jantzen said. “I would definitely go back to visit Europe again. This trip made me realize how much there is out there to explore and to try; it’s what I would make my primary goal now.”

Based on his experience Jantzen advises American students to learn more languages and expand their horizons striving to see the world outside of the United States.

ANOTHER ATHLETE, Michael Burns from Nassau, Bahamas, who runs for Allen’s track and field team, worked this summer on his athletic achievements. Burns participated in the Bahamas National Track and Field Competitions. The event took place on June 24-27 at the Thomas A. Robinson Stadium. He competed in the long and triple jumps, where Burns placed sixth and fourth, respectively.

“I was glad to take part in this event,” Burns said. “There was a lot of competition and learning.”

As a participant of this event, he was taken to travel to Canada afterward. The trip was organized by the Bahamas Athletics and included the final round of competition at a Canadian track and field meet. Even though Burn did not win, he was glad to watch and learn from his competitors.

THIS ARTICLE’S writer, a sophomore from Ashgabat,Turkmenistan, this summer realized one of her Bucket List dreams. I went skydiving in Oklahoma City, Okla., on July 26. I jumped from 10,000 feet and enjoyed 40 seconds of free fall from the plane. The experience was even more special because I shared it with my friend and fellow Allen student, Elvira Avdeyeva.

I’ve always dreamed to do that and when I had a perfect chance I just couldn’t resist it. I definitely would do it again, but next time from an even higher altitude.