I've already been here a week?!?

I seriously cannot believe that a week ago we were just getting here and discovering this gorgeous place!  The first week had some up and downs of loving it and missing home, but I definitely feel comfortable here now even after only a week. The campus is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!  There are so many rolling hills, amazing buildings and cool forests here that make it really pretty. On Wednesday some of us went to explore Keele Hall (the building in the picture).  It was SO PRETTY! We honestly spent probably an hour just taking pictures of it and everything around it. 

There are so many cool paths and winding roads around by Keele Hall.  I love just walking around and looking at the buildings because they are like ones you would picture being in fairy tales...that's seriously how amazing they are.  Today our friend Ollie took us out to the woods behind Keele Hall and it was really cool.  There are a bunch of lakes and paths back there that were really awesome to see, and I'm sure in the spring they would be even more beautiful than they were today.

 

On Thursday we went to the International Students Reception inside Keele Hall (the picture is of us on the staircase in it), and the inside is just as beautiful as the outside.  The reception had Keele students who had been abroad as well as  the ones coming from other countries and studying there this semester.  It was cool to see the students' perspectives of the US and other places they had visited.  After the reception we went to Sneyd's and hung out for awhile which was lots of fun.  Friday night we went to the "Refreshers Ball" in the union.  The name implied it was a classy event, but it was pretty much a big party for all intents and purposes which was lots of fun.  Tonight there is a Hedfone Party in the union.  Apparently everyone gets their own pair of headphones and picks what DJ they want to listen to, so everyone is jamming to different things which is really funny to watch according to people who went last year. I really like it here, and I have a feeling I am not going to want to leave by the end because of the awesome experiences I am bound to continue having :)

Starting to settle in...

So this weekend was A LOT of fun!  On Saturday night me and some of the other people from BG went to Lindsay Bar for dinner and a drink.  We had cheeseburgers (we are such Americans lol) and they were delicious!  Next we went to the student union, and let me tell you it was NOTHING like the union at BG.  It had a small sitting area and a shop on the first floor but besides that there is no comparison.  The second floor has about 5 bars in it.  It was pretty dead when we went because it was still early, but while there we met up with a few of the French exchange students and went with them to another pub on campus called Sneyd Arms.  I felt so English being there! It was adorable inside.  We spent a lot of time there that night, and even met some really cool English people who had drinks with us! (Don’t worry adults who are reading this, I promise I didn’t have too much!)  It was a blast! I love Sneyd’s, and the walk there was gorgeous. 

On Sunday all the international students went into Newcastle-Under-Lyme (the city closest to Keele) to take a bus tour around and see the sights.  It was so beautiful, and I still can’t believe I get to live in such a gorgeous place.  We also went grocery shopping at a supermarket called Morrison’s.  I was SO lost in there!  First of all it was packed, and second of all the brands were all ones I didn’t recognize so I had no idea what to buy.  We only had a half hour there so I didn’t buy much, but Becca, Hannah, Sarah and I all went back on Monday so we could take our time and pick out things to make.  That night we all ordered pizza and ate it together.  I really love the other BG people that are here and I feel like I can be myself around them.  We met lots of British people that night in Becca’s hall too that were awesome.  Then Ellen and I went to her dorm to meet some of the people in her hall, who are really nice but CRAZY.  They go out/drink like at least 5 or 6 nights a week!  They stay out until like 6 am, then go to class and sleep all day.  I could NEVER do that! Two or three nights a week is definitely my limit, and I could never drink nearly as much as them haha. 

Monday we bought “Freshers Passes.”  Basically the first few weeks they have a bunch of events in the union that you can pay to go to or buy a band to get into most of them.  Last night was “Skins” night.  IT WAS INSANE! I have never seen so many drunk  people in my life! Lol but it was fun.  The girls here seriously wear as little as possible out.  Like dresses that BARELY cover their butts and are skin tight.  I only saw like 4 people wearing pants last night, it was crazy! Don’t they know it’s like 30 degrees outside? Haha.  Hardly any of them wear flats either. Almost all were in heals that were a million miles high.  I don't think I could ever wear some of the stuff they do, but they are still fun to go out with!

Today was much first day of classes, which are structured a bit differently here.  I am in only 4 classes with one lecture and one seminar for each a week, so I only go to class like 8 hours a week!  You would think this would be awesome, but I honestly wish I had more to occupy my time during the day because it's when I have to be alone in my room that I get a bit homesick.  The grades in each class are basically based on one paper, too.  Talk about terrifying!  But at least they give you the prompt really early so you can work on it all semester.  After class Ellen and I went to a poster sale and then got coffee with a guy from here named Chris who was very helpful and gave us lots of great advice about things to do.  Then we went to hang out with Becca, Chelsea, Hannah and Sarah in Hawthorns and at Sneyds.  We saw the English guys from Friday there again and one bought us drinks and desert! They are so nice and lots of fun.

Woah that was a lot, sorry everybody!! (at least the ones who lasted til the end lol).  I promise to not make them all that long!  Love and miss you all! P.S. check out the pics on FB.  They are gorgeous!

Made it!

I’m finally here!  It has been an interesting journey so far.  On Thursday we arrived at the airport around 12 and boarded the plane to JFK at 3:00, but it didn’t end up leaving until around 4:30 because they had to “de-ice” it.  Pretty much they sprayed hot water and then anti-freeze on the wings of the plane, and it was pretty funny to watch.  We had a 2 hour layover in New York and then finally got on the plane to Manchester at 8.  Longest. Ride. Ever.  The 7 hours to Manchester seemed like it took FOREVER.  We got dinner (sort of) and a movie on the plane which helped it go by a little faster, but I was sitting by the window with two rather large people next to me.  The lady had her arm pretty much on my lap the entire ride and I only slept a total of probably half an hour, so needless to say I was exhausted all day yesterday. 

So finally we got to Keele around noon, and it is gorgeous!  Apparently it has the largest amount of “green space” of any university in Europe, and all of the buildings are old and beautiful.  The way they do housing here is there are different halls and each on has about 10-20 “blocks.”  Each block has a few floors with about 10 rooms on each.  I am in Lindsay Hall block P.  Quite a few of the international students (including Ellen!) are in Lindsay but not on the same block.  The others are mostly in either Horwood or Hawthorn.  Although I like Lindsay, I definitely have the least desirable room out of any of my friends because I was cheap and didn’t want to pay extra for a sink.  Big mistake.  Ellen and a few others have sinks in their rooms and my friend Becca has an entire bathroom (her room is pretty much like a nice hotel room lol).  My room isn’t too bad, but the bathrooms are.  There are only 2 toilets and one shower for 10 girls, which to be does not seem like nearly enough. I suppose I will just have to adjust though.   It’s hard not having the ability to text, also, because once we got our room assignments they dropped us and our luggage off at them, and then we pretty much were on our own until we had a meeting at 4:30 because you had no way of getting a hold of anyone yet.  Besides the bathrooms and lack of ability to find people when you are separated, I am having a really good time.  I was a bit homesick yesterday but not too bad, not nearly as much as I was at BG when I first got there.  It’s nice knowing people here already and the students at Keele are really friendly and invite you to go out with them.  You can tell they are very open to meeting people, as are all of the international students which I love.  Alright well I think that was definitely too long of a blog post already so I’ll stop now, I just wanted you all to know that although the journey was a bit rough, the destination was well worth it J  (wow do I sound corny or what? Haha)

TTFN! <3

Explore. Dream. Discover.

So today was truly an awesome day for multiple reasons, one of which was because we booked a tour with Contiki!  I am so beyond excited for it!!!  So here is how it will go.  We start in London on April 10 and travel for the next 21 days.  We go to Paris, Beaujolais, Barcelona, the French Riviera, Venice, Florence, Rome, Corfu and Athens.  It is going to be AMAZING!!!!!!!! Ugh I cannot wait.  Also the other day my roomie Ann, who is having a fabulous time in Spain at the moment, booked a ticket to come see us in England in February which is really exciting.  I can't wait to see her and hear more about her awesome trip.  Oh my goodness I can't believe that in exactly 3 days I will be on a plane well on my way over to Billy Shakespeare-land :)  SO CrAzY!!!!!!  I attempted to get more packing today but all I really managed to do was make my room look like there was an explosion in it.  Seriously you can barely see the floor, so I probably should work on that more tomorrow haha.  Anyways I suppose this will be my last post until I get over to the UK.  I am going to have an open mind for this trip and make the most of this incredible journey I am about to embark on....wish me luck! :) :) :)

“Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines, sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.” – Mark Twain

Almost there...

So there are officially only 9 DAYS until I get on that plane. Single digits?!? When did that happen?!? :) I am so excited I can hardly contain myself.  My family is probably getting really irritated with me because it's ALL I can talk about.  I still have so much to do - exchange currency, pack, buy my last minute toiletries, tell the bank I'll be abroad, and SO MUCH MORE!  I'm putting off packing as long as possible because I have no idea how I'm going to fit over 5 months worth of things into only 2 suitcases, but I guess I have no choice.  Ahhh the closer it gets the more surreal it seems! I CAN'T WAIT!!!!!! (you all probably know that already but I still can't stop saying it).

TTFN!
:)

Only two weeks away?!?

This morning I woke up and it seemed like any other day...until I looked at the calender. January 6.  This date really has no significance in my life, yet it still shocked me and made reality hit me like a ton of bricks.  I only have 2 WEEKS until I will depart on my journey to live in a foreign country.  It seems like only yesterday that I was writing "130 days until England!" on the whiteboard in my room at BG.  I am thoroughly excited yet terrified at the same time that it is so soon.  It seems daunting to think about being away from family and friends for almost 6 months.  I hope that I am able to adjust and not get too homesick, but from what I hear from others who have done this program in the past it goes by so quickly and is so amazing that I won't notice how long I have been gone.  Since I have never been to another country it is exhilarating to think about how awesome it is going to be to see so many other countries and explore many new cultures throughout Europe.  Ahhh I cannot wait!!!  So much packing and planning to do until then, but I have a feeling January 20 will be here before I know it :)

TTFN!

Am I really starting a blog?

I have never been one for blogging.  In fact, the whole blogging idea seemed like a waste of time to me.  Let's face it, the majority of people don't really care about how my day went or significant things that happened in my life, and the ones who do care I can tell in person.  A blog to me seemed like an online diary, and anything I would write in a diary is something I would not want others knowing.  Although this was my original view of the whole phenomenon, it has now been skewed by the fact that I will be in a different country for nearly 6 months, with limited opportunity to contact family and friends.  A blog now seems to be something that gives me the ability to keep people informed of my wondrous adventures and experiences I will hopefully be having while in Europe this semester.  For anyone who follows it THANK YOU! I will attempt to hold your interest throughout the semester.  I'm going to follow this initial post with one that is actually relevant to my studying abroad and see how it goes...
hopefully it will not bore you to pieces :)

TTFN!
(aka ta ta for now....i am going to attempt to throw some British slang into the posts because I love it, although as of right now my vocabulary of British slang consists only of words I learned from the Georgia Nicholson books in middle school, so it may not be completely legitimate haha)