At no other time in our lives, military service excluded, will we be able to travel abroad and see the world at a discount as low as we are offered through Simpson College’s May Term. Everyone should take at least one May to take a break from the classes offered on campus and journey overseas.

Simpson offers a wide variety of trips to a wide variety of destinations that can broaden our horizons and expand our personal experiences. More than four continents and a boatload of countries await eager young adventurers chomping at the bit to see life outside of The Zoo and the practice field (not that these aren’t wonderful places with so much to give).

To decide if a trip is right for you, simply weigh the costs versus the benefits.

COST: Money. A lot of money for a poor college student like most of us happen to be. You’ll easily spend more than $3,000 with all costs considered. This is still considerably less than you would shell out if your were to visit the same country later on in life, so you might as well knock it out now while its cheap.

BENEFIT: You get to see exciting new foreign lands, meet new foreign people, eat new foreign foods and buy new foreign products to bring home. Eating fish and chips along a wharf in London is quite a bit different than at some Long John Silver’s. Experience is what counts.

COST: There might be anti-American backlash. Face it, we’re not citizens of the most popular country in the world right now, nor will we be in the next couple of years. Don’t worry about your safety. At worst, you’ll be relentlessly cajoled and, depending on location, be the victim of senseless acts of fruit-bys.

BENEFIT: There might be pro-American “frontlash.” For reasons still to be determined by the CIA, non-American women like American men. Maybe it’s our deep pocketbooks, maybe it’s our deep intellects (ha!) or maybe it’s just our good-time attitudes, but American men have relatively good luck when it comes to women around the world. For every German girl screaming in your year, there might be two hanging on your arms.

COST: You won’t get to spend a month with your friends hanging out during the greatest month of the school year. Sand volleyball, foggy memories and less-than-intense studies are all contributing factors to walking euphoria.

BENEFIT: You won’t spend one month in muddy heaven only to spend the next two trying to remember what you did. And who’s to say that foggy memories end when you leave the Simpson campus? Don’t you think there are pubs overseas? Extra bonus: the legal drinking age is much lower in other countries.

There you have it. If you count more benefits than costs, bon voyage. If not, see you on the sand.