This time 12 months ago, almost to the day, I was about to step on to Etihad flight EY19 bound for London via Dubai. Embarking on a trip of a lifetime that I had worked, saved and meticulously planned for over two years, I was elated. I would see no less than 10 countries, met amazing people and experienced their culture. Although I had a return flight the possibility of relinquishing that ticket and continuing my exploits was very real.

The reason for boarding that flight home is exactly why I am here completing task JR202 “Blogging” A desire to pursue this Journalism path and all that it might entail. The interest I have in this field has grown ten-fold over the past several months and my desire for knowledge now has me focused. My travels are well and truly on hold.

A few important things I have learned already. Firstly that to be a good Journalist you need to be informed and up to date with current news and my eyes have been opened to sources that are accurate and well reported and I must add Facebook is NOT one of them. My previous ignorance to this is something that I intend to rectify even the inconvenience of broadsheet will not deter me. I now know from my limited time spent in a newsroom your writing will pass through many hands before a final copy is ready for print with each set of hands manipulating the text as they see fit. Although disappointing unfortunately its reality and I admit I’m interested to learn at what point a Journalist has free reign, if ever. I’ve also learned to research thoroughly and ask the correct questions of the right people, if you do this the article will be easy to write. Accuracy is key, to gain trust from a reader is important to holding attention. This is equally important when interviewing, a detail such as the spelling of a name enforces your credibility whether doing a fashion edit or a feature article.

I’m looking forward to the experience of learning everything there is to know about Journalism over the coming months and hopefully this year my experiences will be equally as exciting and inspiring as last year but with a lot less Mojito’s.