Dinner Party!

We currently have about 10 people in our flat and invite everyone that walks by. This is why I love it here. Ahhh I never want to leave. We're carving a pumpkin for tomorrow's Halloween party in the Study Centre! It's a puking pumpkin, so creative. My IA besties and I head off to Belgium next week as well!! Yippee!!! Okay well there's a ton of people here so I can't really focus on this right now, but I'll update later!! Cheers!

Frolic

Today is quite possibly the most beautiful day we've had in London all semester. A perfect day to lay in the grass at Regents Park and listen to Coldplay all day. Like something out of a movie. Too bad I'm such a good student and am writing papers instead. At least we have our door propped open to get some fresh air, and I love the constant flow of people in our flat. It makes it feel homey. Ahhhh we also just realized that when we get back from Italy, October is pretty much over. This semester is going by unbelievably fast and I'm grateful for each and every day. But it's making me sad to think about leaving. Also Brick Lane Market this morning was INCREDIBLE. Definitely going back ASAP. Back to hw!

9 Things You Should Know Before Studying Abroad (For a Semester)

1. It is expensive. Very expensive. In fact, it may very well be the most expensive semester of your life. You must accept it. Embrace it. Love it. Stop thinking in terms of dollars and realize that Europe is pricy. Don’t feel guilty every time you purchase something, but don’t be frivolous either. Buy things you need at a reasonable price FOR YOUR CITY. You will be spending more money on a day-to-day basis, but you worked damn hard to get here, so don’t worry about it.

2. Everything feels like an adventure. Buying groceries, going to the bank, even studying seems more fun in a new city. Ok maybe not studying. But since you’re a resident, not a tourist, mundane errands of everyday life suddenly become exciting. Finding a new place to buy pita and humus (which will become staples in your diet) can make your entire day.

3. 
    3. You will learn to love everyone in your little community or study center. People who are willing to leave everything they know behind for an entire semester must all have something in common, right? You will learn to absolutely adore where you live, and who you’re constantly surrounded by.  You may even use your window as a main form of communication.

4.   

4.   There are student discounts! You just need to ask. Don’t forget to ask either, or you might miss out on a great deal. Taping your ISIC card to your forehead might help you remember.

5.  Your diet will change. It will become hard to read the nutrition label. (Thank you, metric system. ) The sheer number of sweets, candies, and other goodies will tempt you, and it is highly likely that you will become addicted to digestives. But it is possible to slowly wean yourself off of these treats, and start eating healthy.  Fruits and vegetables are cheaper, and incorporating them into meals will save you money and give you the vitamins to stay healthy. Trust me, your body will thank you.

6.   You may actually have to do work. Shocking, I know. While some people’s study abroad experience may involve very little studying, you will get the short end of the stick. At first you will be angry and frustrated at the idea of being trapped inside a room when a beautiful city lay at your feet. But then you’ll realize that what your teachers have to say is actually interesting, and you may start to enjoy going to class. Even look forward to it. With such small classes it is extremely difficult not to become best friends with your classmates. You will learn with them, drink with them, spend long hours in the conservatory with them, and may even have venting sessions with them.  Without them, Mondays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays ( or any day for that matter) wouldn’t be the same.

7.    Traveling to your top destinations actually becomes possible. Not only possible, but very likely!! When companies like Ryanair and Easyjet offer incredibly cheap flights, why not hop over to Istanbul or Rome for the weekend? If you’re worried about money, see number 1!

8.   You will get crazy. Not in a black out drunk kind of way (though that may be true too), but more of a “im-weird-and-make-harry-potter-videos-with-flatmates-late-at-night” sort of thing. But guess what? Everyone else in the study center will be weird too.  A good weird. A fun weird. The kind of environment where you may do or say something completely random or socially unacceptable, and everyone around you laughs or joins in. You will be shocked at how welcoming and friendly every single person is. Enjoy it, because people like that are hard to find (see number 3!).

9.  You will never want to go home. You will start to plan your life based around living in this city, and going home for grad school is no longer an option. You will seek citizenship when out at bars (aka British boys).  So dream big and go for it!

Well there you have it, 9 things to think about before studying abroad. I could think of 100 more, but I’m sleepy. Goodnight!

EUROPE

I should be writing a paper but instead I'm marveling at the fact that I'm actually in Europe. I can hop on a plane to any major European city RIGHT NOW if I wanted to. Wow what a feeling. Like having the world at your fingertips.

Amsterdam!

So it's been a while since I've been on here. So busy!! School's going well, it's definitely hard but I really like all of my classes. I think I've learned more here in two weeks than in my entire two years at FSU. Thats how smart my professors ( and classmates) are. I love it. But I don't love all of the work. I really wish I had these types of classes in Tallahassee; it's s hard to focus when London is at your doorstep. My flatmates and I spend lot's of time in the conservatory, which is a glass study box in the courtyard kind of underground....tough visual, I know. I'll post a good picture soon. I gave my first presentation last week and it went really well! Now I'm trying to work on a paper thats 30% of my grade due in 2 weeks....and we're out of town for the next 3 weekends. Well i must go, we have lots to do before leaving for Amsterdam tomorrow!!!!!!! Yipee for stress relief.

Working hard and playing harder,
Aly

Hmm

I want to reconstruct the entire education system. Its a bajillion times more effective to go out and learn about something than to be trapped by 4 walls and a ceiling. This makes me angry.

Life Revelations?

So we had our first day of Monday classes today. Yippee! I have European Union from 10-1 and then Modern Diplomacy from 2-5. Talk about long classes. I really like my two professors for these courses, the way they teach is awesome and they're both pretty laid back. They also don't expect us to know freaking everything like my Tues/Thurs professor. So after looking over all of my syllabi (syllabuses?...sounds like a mode of transportation), I have a mere 6 presentations to give, 10 papers to write, and finals which all consist of essay tests. My flatmates literally get to play in a sandbox for one of their finals. Please remind me why I didn't just sign up for Broad Curriculum? Oh yes, Brussels. My programs trip to Brussels is the only thing keeping me semi-sane right now. Its amazing how I can go from totally stressed, to determined, to not even caring, to back to working within a 30 minute period. Its like a vicious cycle. I know the point of studying abroad is to study, but how am I expected to sit inside a classroom reading textbooks when in London?!?!  My professors are just going to have to deal with the fact that class is coming second to Europe. We have weekend trips, day trips, excursions, breaks and all sorts of fun stuff happening, and I refuse to read all the pages I'm assigned. HA! How's that for beating the system. So my grades might suffer for a semester, but today I learned that I'm not cut out for academia. I love school and learning and all of that, but doing it outside of a stuffy classroom is what really counts, I think. Why read about something when you can be out there experiencing it instead?
On a side note, I started to realize that as much as I like to learn about how and why countries interact with each other, whats really fascinating is the people and culture of that country. Not necessarily the stuff you learn about in third grade, but more about interacting with them on their turf. Travel, I guess is what I'm talking about. How cliche. But I want to do it for the rest of my life. Preferably with my sister, who'd be an awesome companion, but if anyone is having a fifth-life crisis and wants to join, let me know.

Wow I've been rambling. I'm not even going to take the time to edit this (Sorry!) because I should be finishing my presentation/starting a powerpoint/watching the news/reading textbooks.

Oh by the way, we're going to see Deathtrap on Wednesday with Jonathan Groff!! If we get there early enough we can get front row seats for cheap!!! Some theatre kids in the study centre already went and met him! SO excited. Night!!