So Long and Thanks for all the Fish (and chips!)

This is it. Tomorrow I embark on a 16 hour journey home. I can't believe this trip is almost over.
In some ways, I feel like I only just got here yesterday. There's no way I've been living here almost 4 months! There is still so much about the culture and the city I haven't gotten used to; I feel like I've only glimpsed the tip of the iceberg.

Then...

And in other ways, I feel like it's been years since I've been home. I found this picture of Mom and I that was taken at the airport right before I left. Looking at the picture, I feel like I have changed so much, both inside and out. The one thing I'm not sure about is to what degree I have actually grown; I feel as if I have changed, but how much of it is the influence of my environment? I guess the true test will be when I get home and return to normal life. Will there really be any difference?

Four months ago I had never traveled by myself or left the US. Now I can say I've been to 4 new countries, traveled thousands of miles on my own, and experienced life in so many new ways I never thought possible.

I am so sad to be leaving. There were a lot of things I wanted to see but never got to, so I know I'll be back. I'm going to miss just being able hop on the tube and jump off anywhere. I'll miss packaged sandwiches from Tesco. I'll miss walking through the street markets on weekends and watching the street performers in Covent Garden. I'll miss crumpets and tea, black cabs, double-decker buses, cross-country train rides, endless stairwells, ginormous museums, castles and cathedrals, fish and chips, and yes, even cold rainy weather.

And at the same time, I cannot wait to go home. This is the longest I've ever been away and I miss the family so much. I'm coming home with a completely new appreciation for my own country and sense of place in the world and I look forward to experiencing everything in a new light. This is certainly not the end the blog, or my own travels, but rather just the beginning.

I'm homeward bound tomorrow, and I can't wait to see what the future holds in store. Until next time!

...and now.

How it all happened

Once I had made the decision to apply for a semester abroad, I began the process of filling out the application and being interviewed.

The application was over a dozen pages long. It asked the usual questions (name, age, address, etc); a wide array of personal questions (health problems, phobias, insurance, etc); and some essay questions (why do you want to study abroad, how will this benefit your education, etc). Before I could submit the written application, I had to undergo 2 interviews, one with the faculty director who would be leading the trip, and another with the international education director.

The leading professor was very nice. She had a bubbly personality and I felt immediately at ease, nervous as I was. She started out by telling me all about the program.

We would be living in a 200 year old row house in the heart of London, about 2 blocks from the British Museum. There would be 17 of us living in the house, plus a cook who would make us breakfast and dinner. Classes would be taken in different parts of the city and we would have plenty of time to travel, including a week in March to complete a research project anywhere of our choosing in the British Isles. I was giddy with anticipation, but did my best to stay relaxed and calm.

After asking some questions about who I am and some of my past travel experience (none of which has involved traveling alone or outside the US), she showed me a map of the London Underground.

"And how woud you feel about navigating this?" She asked.

Oh. My. God... I thought, staring at the colorfully tangled web subway routes. I didn't say that out loud though, instead opting for a cooler honesty.

"Well, I'm not going to say it won't be a challenge," I said, laughing a little, "but I bet it's one of those things that isn't as hard once you get used to it."

I glanced up at her, and she was nodding.  "That's exactly it," she said. Whew, I thought. I sure hope she's right!

The second interview with the international education director was quite a bit easier. She asked me a few of the same questions, but mostly told me more about the program logistics.

I received my acceptance letter about 3 weeks later.  Another couple weeks after that, I attended a mandatory pre-trip orientation where I met the other students, signed up for classes, and received a packet of information and preparation instructions.

The next step is to buy the plane ticket, get some warm clothes (being a lifelong Floridian does have its disadvantages) and finish smoothing out the smaller details, all of which will probably get done in the next few weeks here.

London Fundin' and other Wonders

Sometimes I think that life is an unwritten story. Perhaps this is due to being born into a family of talented writers, but I like to think that everything you do and everything that happens is a new part of that story, and certain life events make up new chapters.

Childhood was one chapter for me, then the teen years, and then college. And now I'm starting another part within college, this one called "London" (for lack of a more creative title).

Life is indeed full of wonders of all shapes and sizes, many disguised behind masks of uncertainty and obstacles waiting to be conquered. This little wonder, known as "study abroad" in academia, is shaping up to be one such experience.

It started as a dream years ago, and has since come to fruition faster than I ever expected. I am fortunate enough to attend a college with an exceptional study abroad program, which includes a study centre in the heart of London. For little more than the cost of tuition (which is mostly covered by my financial aid), I will be spending an entire semester (Feb.-May) overseas in the UK.

It’s still a lot of money, but I've been saving up from my work-study job for the past year, plus the other day I found out I won a study abroad scholarship from the school. I am a little surprised by how smoothly everything is going so far, but I can't complain. I know it will be much harder once I get there.

Why? Mainly because, a) I have never traveled outside the US before, and b) I have never really traveled extensively on my own.

Yet somehow, this still seems like a fantastic idea. Call it youthful idealism, but somehow the thought of throwing myself at the mercy of world travel has been a tantalizing aspiration of mine for some time now.

Now that I’m actually starting to realize this dream it seems a little scary, but I am undeterred. I worked hard to get to this point and once I get past some of the more difficult parts, I know it will be a wonderful growing experience and very perspective-setting.

Next post I'll tell you how I got to this point – the application, the interviews, and the start of my planning process. Right now I have finals to study for, though, so sit tight and check back in a few days.