I woke up this morning and realized that I only have 15 short days before I board a plane to London. Where does the time go? I'm not quite sure how I'm feeling--I haven't hit panic mode yet, and I can't decide if that's a good thing or not. Before I went to Wales, I had list after list after list of things to do, things to pack, and things to remember. This time, not so much. It could be because I haven't had an entire summer to prepare, or it could be arrogance talking, since I think that I've done this all before.
But I keep forgetting that this is not going to be Wales all over again. For those of you who don't know, I spent the Fall of 2010 in Bangor, Wales. I studied Linguistics at Bangor University, lived in a flat with seven other British students, and took an Outdoor Pursuits course. It was quite simply the best four months of my life thus far. Bangor is a small city on the north coast of Wales and on the northern edge of Snowdonia National Park. I will never forget that day in September when we first drove into Bangor--there were mountains, castles, the Irish Sea, and I could not believe that I was going to call that place home. Bangor truly did become home for me, in ways I honestly cannot explain. One of my friends just returned from his semester in Bangor and one of his last blog entries said this: "I have always heard that home is where your heart is, but what am I supposed to do when I leave a piece of my heart here?" That's what Bangor does to so many Central students--it takes a piece of your heart.
Anyway. My next adventure is to London, which might as well be a world away from rural Bangor, but really it's only a three hour train ride. London is one of the most multicultural, cosmopolitan, diverse, whatever you want to call it, cities in the world. It is home to nearly 8 million people and sites like Big Ben, The London Eye, Buckingham Palace (and the accompanying royalty), Tower Bridge, the Tower of London, and so much more. Red telephone booths are on every corner and red double decker buses zoom by. A voice reminds you to 'mind the gap' as you step onto the Tube, and Londoners walk briskly by you with their black umbrellas in tow. It was the location of unnecessary rioting last summer, and it will be the location of the Olympic Summer Games this summer. And, it will be my home for four months.
To be honest, I am a little worried. I have never lived in a city. My family lives on a farm (for now anyway..) in rural Iowa and I go to school in Pella, where the biggest excitement is a Republican candidate coming to town (and that's not saying much). Bangor is by no means metropolitan, so London will probably come as a shock. I first really visited London when I was 15, and I hated it. It was hot and crowded and busy and not nearly as beautiful as I had imagined it to be. But I went back two different times last fall, and both times I loved it. So, when I realized that I had no other classes to take at Central before graduation and when a professor suggested it, I thought, why not?
Central owns a hotel in Central London (yards away from Buckingham Palace actually) that houses the study abroad program. I have a room with my friend Abby there, and the hotel has a huge communal kitchen and lounges for us and the directors' offices are right there. There are 28 other students in the program, most of whom I don't know yet. I have an internship at a magazine called This Is London, where I will be working two full days a week. I haven't heard exact details of what I will be doing, but I was told that there will be some writing and editing, as well as research involved. Here is the website, which has an online publication of the magazine: http://www.thisislondontickets.co.uk/ I will also be taking three classes I believe, two about Britain historically and today, and one called Religion in London. And the rest of my time will be spent exploring the city, spending time with my aunt who lives in London, visiting the many other people I know in the UK, and maybe traveling to a few other places. I am more than excited for what is in store.
My decision to be away from Central for my last semester didn't come lightly. It means missing all those last moments and spending time with my friends before we go our separate ways. It means that I won't be in the States to do job interviews and apartment search--that will be my challenge when I come back. But I would miss a world of experience if I didn't do this. I learned more than I thought possible during my semester in Wales, and I know that in that sense, London will be no different. My internship will provide great experience, and my classes will be interesting as well. For me, it is an opportunity to spend time with family and friends that I otherwise don't get to see, and for that alone it will be well worth it.
