It’s March. Right about half way through my study abroad experience here in London. I loved it here the first month. After I realized that I was spending too much money going to places, eating out, and spending on alcohol, I really stopped a lot of it all together. That was the second month. I felt dull and I locked myself in my room, thinking about how unproductive I was. Now I’m thinking I don’t want to waste my time here. I’m going to Lyon France next week. Dublin and Hamburg in May. Lina, my high school friend visited my in February and Ai will also be visiting me in May. I went to go watch Aladdin the musical last week. It was awesome and also really cheap. I used an app called Today Tix. I’m going to go watch Phantom of the Opera next week. The Great Gatsby and Les Miserables are also coming up in April and May.
I got my midterm grades back. They’re good. But only good because I panicked and prepared really hard for them. 93 on my Intro to Digital Audio and 85 on my Emotions class exam. The “Rollins method” as my boyfriend and I call it, works really well. Bothering the professor and siting with them for hours until you really know the material and your professors tired of you. It worked. I also think Rollins professors are much more knowledgeable and enthusiastic about the content they teach though. Its understandable that Rollins tuition is high. Haha. The exams here are hard. Very detail oriented and little external support provided. Good experience.
The people don’t wear thick coats. They wear stylish thin trench coats and scarves. The older generations have very neatly painted nails and silk scarves. The younger generations are so ethnically and culturally diverse I cant tell who’s local and who’s not. I guess I’d say they draw on eyebrows but very little eye makeup. The advertisements here are very witty. British humor. Sarcastic and not so straight forward. I have yet to observe people here. I started realizing that its kind of nice taking the tube alone. I get to stare and observe other people, see what the differences are .
I’m starting to apply for Summer Internships that will give me room and board. I figured I cant make it for the deadline of the Summer Research I was going to apply for. That’s a lesson. I also need to find volunteer opportunities for April and May so I can go out and learn some more. I need hours to log. Feeling like I’m slowly getting back on track. One semester isn’t as long as it seems.
Sara, we at the office of international programs are so excited that you are taking advantage of the wonders of London! Though big cities like London can get quite pricey, it sounds like you’re doing a great job budgeting and enjoying all that the city has to offer. We can’t wait to hear about Gatsby and Phantom, along with all your other adventures!