I had grown so accustomed to living comfortably (as much as I can on a college-student budget) that I used to take many amenities for granted.

Looking back, I was ignorant and wasteful of resources. For example, I would leave the water running sometimes while I was brushing my teeth instead of being mindful and turning off the faucet when I did not need it.

My perspectives changed the moment I arrived in the small and pristine town of Chachapoyas, Peru. The isolated town is deep within the Andes Mountains at an elevation of 7,657 feet. It can only be accessed via ground transportation as there is no airport in the city and flying is too dangerous anyway due to the high altitude and wind currents.

One can either brace a 22-hour bus ride from Lima, the capital, or fly to a closer town and take up to a 12-hour bus ride. I decided to try the former option because it seemed like a more interesting experience to tell my friends.

I was in Chachapoyas for my anthropology master鈥檚 thesis research, but it was quite an enlightening journey that I will always remember and hold dear to my heart.

I received the complete traveler鈥檚 experience, including unfriendly rat visitors at night, to being squished in the backseat of a rundown Toyota sedan with four other locals and bags of cabbages during a bumpy one-hour drive down a mountain. But I would do them all over again if I had the opportunity to return to Peru.

Chachapoyas has nearly all the basic amenities that you would see in any urban dwelling but to a lesser standard. However, surrounding rural places I visited such as Kuelap, an impressive archaeological site, and San Jer贸nimo, a tiny village to the north, did not. The people there live in modest homes with simple furnishings. They are self-sufficient and make almost everything from scratch, whereas I was struggling with the thought of not being able to even shower with hot water for days.

As much as I wanted to enjoy these experiences, I had a difficult time adjusting to this lifestyle at first because I had become so spoiled at home. Compared to these wonderful people, I felt prissy and useless for not knowing basic skills required for living in those rural areas. Fortunately, everyone was understanding and patient enough to deal with my lack of survival skills.

I met several genuine and incredible people during my random mini-adventures in Peru. Since I made an effort to speak Spanish and adapt to my circumstances, the locals were welcoming and I felt more competent as time passed. Everywhere I went, people were kind and helpful even though I was an outsider鈥攁 gringo鈥攚ho spoke only broken Spanish. I even befriended French backpackers at a hostel in Lima who had visited my hometown in Vietnam.

My Peru trip taught me to always appreciate what I have regardless of my circumstances and to cherish the friendships I make in my life.

These situations also reinforced that I need to enjoy the present as it is happening instead of trying to record everything on my phone. We often become unaware of our surroundings when we are so engulfed into our daily routine of waking up, going directly to work or school, and returning home exhausted.

It is crucial to take a step back, breathe, and appreciate everyone and everything around us. Be grateful for the present because the past has already happened and the future is uncertain. As cheesy as that sounds, I personally needed to take those steps to really value what I have: simple amenities, supportive friends, and an experience of a lifetime.

My journey to Peru鈥攁nd the unexpected lessons鈥攖urned out to be a blessing in disguise.

Vu Tran is an anthropology graduate student in UCF鈥檚 College of Sciences and a recipient of the UCF Order of Pegasus for academic achievement. She can be reached at vuqntran@knights.ucf.edu.

My impression of these people certainly changed because a poorly written email, paper, or article shows that the writers were negligent or didn鈥檛 know any better. Taking time to review what was written can help ensure the reader understands the message.

Writing obviously is an important skill that we utilize every day, from texting our friends and family to emailing our colleagues, so why don鈥檛 people pay more attention to the details? Writing well just seems to have become a lost art.

From my observations, I have also noticed that many people don鈥檛 differentiate between writing formally and informally. Abbreviations such as LOL and OMG and emoticons should always be avoided in professional and academic settings. Misspelled words are among the worst mistakes to make 鈥� and easiest to fix, because of spell-checkers on our computers. There have been so many times when I see other students and acquaintances submit writings with rows of scribbled red lines indicating that words are misspelled.

There has been a current educational shift of resources and attention to STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) fields and careers, but more emphasis still should be placed on improving writing in students across all disciplines. Without the necessary writing skills, people cannot effectively share their research and ideas.

I often review papers for friends in various disciplines. Unfortunately, some of them don鈥檛 articulate or thoroughly explain their research because they lack basic writing and critical-thinking skills.

Regardless of our profession, we all have to write in order to communicate. Whether you are a student, an academic scholar, a physician, or even a business associate, you must be able to write coherently and professionally. While many of us may not be profound writers and have to produce multiple drafts to improve our work, writing well will help you succeed.

Having the capability to write well means one can formulate intelligible ideas and articulate them into legible sentences. In turn, we are able to critically think about our own work and can constructively evaluate each other鈥檚 ideas.

Surprisingly, many students and even professionals who have excelled in their collegiate coursework struggle with communicating their ideas because they did not learn how to write well. Aside from the basic essay format that has been engrained into the public school curriculum, many people have had limited opportunities to exercise writing abilities outside of the required English courses. Writing wasn鈥檛 a big focus of some of my undergraduate courses because of class size and other reasons.

Writing allows for us to put our emotions and thoughts into words that we may have difficulty expressing through speech. It is a way for us to express ourselves as individuals. And writing does not always have to be formal, such as in academic papers, grant proposals, etc.; it can be fun and artistic.

Writing is a skill that should be practiced on a regular basis, so take personal responsibility to improve your technique. Practice by posting in your own blog, creating short stories, or sending meaningful notes to your loved ones.

And don鈥檛 forget to use a dictionary and re-read what you write. By editing yourself you may learn a thing or two for your next correspondence or writing assignment.

Vu Tran is an anthropology graduate student in UCF鈥檚 College of Sciences and a recipient of the UCF Order of Pegasus for academic achievement. She can be reached at vuqntran@knights.ucf.edu.

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, many of us soon will be reunited with our beloved families and friends for a delicious feast filled with turkey, pie, and whatever else your heart desires. Even if you don鈥檛 celebrate Thanksgiving this way, you may still get to enjoy time off from school or work to focus on yourself and your loved ones.

And so, with the end of fall, comes winter. Aside from the fact that Florida weather rarely drops below 40 degrees, the arrival of winter brings finals week and the hectic holiday season.

For students, I like to refer to this period as the calm before the storm. As much as I love to daydream about roasted turkey, I have to be realistic. Like all semesters, this one has been long and hard, but before we can celebrate our accomplishments, we must conquer one final hurdle: the final exam.

Whether you have dreaded that exam since the first day of class or you have been enthusiastically gathering sources for your paper all semester, you must now face this final challenge of the year. Just like all things in life for everyone 鈥� not just students — if you have a final paper or project, you should not procrastinate until the last minute to get started! Revisions are the key to perfection and are necessary for a commendable submission.

Time management is also an important skill to practice if you want to move on to a professional career. I admit that I have been guilty of procrastinating on occasion depending on the project, but when I have something I am passionate about, I am cognizant of the time.

And if you are struggling in a class, simply ask for help. Consult with your professor or teaching assistant on how you can improve before the final assessment. Never assume about your status in a class or at your job. I once had a friend who thought he had an 鈥楢鈥� until he found out at the end of the semester that the professor had subtracted points every time my friend took his phone out to check the time.

Some of you may have semesters left to finish while others may be graduating in December. If you are walking for commencement, arrive early and dress appropriately. After all, you are representing the university, and your family may have traveled from far away to support you on your big day. I suggest that you do not come late with mismatched shoes and a hangover.

Winter can also be a stressful time for everyone because of the holidays. Whether you are cooking for a large family or preparing for an office party, you may have a daunting task ahead. Make sure you do all your shopping early for the event or holiday. My mom always scowls me for procrastinating before a holiday party to buy a gift or food.

I constantly struggle with finding the perfect gifts for my parents because they do not view material belongings in the same way. They grew up in small, rural villages along the coast of Vietnam and often did not have money for presents. As a result, they prefer handmade gifts, which they believe have more sentimental value.

However, after about 20 years of working on do-it-yourself projects, I believe that my creative juices have run dry. If you are experiencing the same problem, I suggest creating a Pinterest account to explore new ideas.

If you are a parent, remember that spending time with your child will always be more valuable than an iPad or a new toy. My brother and I would always look forward to the holidays when we were growing up because my parents would have the entire day off to play with us. Sure we would have liked a new Barbie or action figure, but nothing can ever replace family.

So as winter dawns upon us, use your time wisely. Do not be lured into a false sense of security.

You might not be defending against video zombies or massive armies of trained killers led by the 鈥渕other of dragons,鈥� but you do have your own battles to face. Remember that there is light at the end of the tunnel, and we will be able to relax during the winter break.

Vu Tran is an anthropology graduate student in UCF鈥檚 College of Sciences and a recipient of the UCF Order of Pegasus for academic achievement. She can be reached at vuqntran@knights.ucf.edu.