By Travis Misner
NCAA Guest Blogger

The final day of the conference was today, and it was very bittersweet. I’ve had the most amazing time in Taipei, making connections with people all over the world.

At the same time though, I’m excited to come home and get back to real life. We started out the day by going to a place called “Pavilion of Dreams.” This was a technologically advanced museum, where you were given a hologram of a flower at the beginning of the tour, and made your way through a labyrinth of giant leaves, as if you were an insect then to a room full of interactive 3D pictures.

This was one of the coolest places I’ve ever been to without question.

After that we had our closing ceremonies and dinner to cap off the conference. At the ceremony, the committee announced that they were going to elect one male and one female student from the forum to represent the voice of the students at the 2013 university games in Kazan, Russia. They said that the 2 students were who the selection committee found to display great leadership qualities and public speaking abilities.

To my surprise, the chair of the committee called my name to represent the males from the conference. This is truly an honor and I cannot wait for the games in 2013.

As the trip winds down and I have an opportunity to reflect, I can honestly say this was the greatest experience of my life to this point, and I am so thankful for the opportunity to attend. I’ve made lifelong friends and gained knowledge about other cultures that is priceless.

Now for the 17 + hour flights before I’m back in Dubuque for classes tomorrow.