The Study Abroad Experience Pt.1

In the summer of 2011, I was lucky enough to participate in a London Study Abroad program that was being held by my school.  I was in London for 2 months, and during that time had the greatest experience of my life.  While it had its downfalls, I would never take back anything that happened.  When I was there I got the chance to travel to Bath, Stratford, Paris, and Edinburgh.  But despite all the traveling around we did, I still hold a special place in my heart for London, and it was by far my favorite place to be.

So why did I study abroad?  At the time, I’d never left the U.S. before, and was dying to get out of my comfort zone and experience a different country in a very personal way.  I’d wanted to study abroad ever since high school, and when the London program came about, I just couldn’t pass it up.  After all, London and Rome were the two cities I most wanted to travel to. 

While I was in London, I took three classes- London Theatre, Media and Politics, and Victorian England.  I also was lucky enough to get an internship at a small London-based publishing company, where I learned valuable skills and gained valuable experience that will aid me in my search for a job in the publishing and editorial fields.  The internship was by far my favorite aspect of my ‘productive’ time spent in the greatest city on earth.

In addition to classes and work, I spent much of my free time traveling the city, wandering around and exploring, trying to take in as much as I could in the short time that I had.  These were the times I loved best- being alone and taking in as much of the culture and lifestyles that I was able to.  I wasn’t afraid to do things on my own, in fact, it was a nice break from all of the group outings and activities we had, and it allowed me to catch my breath and regroup.

By the end of my time in London, I was truly sad to leave.  I had no motivation to leave except for the fact that certain people on the trip were annoying, but other than that, I had absolutely no desire to return to the States.  I love the city and the people so much that if I were ever to get the chance to move to London and work, I wouldn’t think twice about taking it.  Traveling to another country definitely altered the way I look at the world- before my experience I had only known 1 version of every story.  But being in the U.K. showed me that there are different sides to every story, and that each nation in our world has a unique view on things – even allies don’t agree on every detail.  While that is easy to think about in theory, until you actually experience it, you don’t get the same perspective.

When I returned to the States, I was unmotivated to go back to hum-drum job at Target, and continue living on in the country.  It was definitely a painful experience- the memories that I’d created seemed like a dream to me.  It took many months until I found my place here again, but I know that deep down, part of me still wishes I hadn’t returned.  But my life was waiting for me in the United States, and for the time being, that will have to do.