After almost three weeks here in London I have to say that I could definitely see myself living here. I love the vibe of the city and the people here are unbelievably kind. My housemates and I have been trying to do as much as we can to take advantage of this beautiful city. This is hard, however, because of the massive course load that we’ve been given. The London program is definitely a lot harder than the Paris program. In Paris it felt like we had enough homework and tests where we didn’t feel overwhelmed and we were still able to enjoy the city after class. However, this past week we barely did anything afterwards because of group presentations and essays that were scheduled back to back.
Thankfully, FIE has some scheduled extra curricular activities that took us away from our homework at nights. For example, we were able to get cheap tickets to go on the London Eye and see a view of the entire city. I was hesitant at first to go on because of the long line. But, once we got there we only spent about 10 minutes in line. What I loved about the Eye was that it was a 30 minute ride, giving people a lot of time to revel in the experience. As soon as we got on we took as many photos as we can, and when we reached the top we soaked it all in. Going on the Eye was one of those moments where I had to remind myself that I was in London. I feel like i got so caught up in worrying about school work this week that I forgot that I was actually in London. I’m happy that I had that experience to bring me back.
On Tuesday we also got to see Wicked! Anyone who knows me knows that I have a special place in my heart for Wicked. This production at the Apollo Victoria Theatre in London was my fourth time seeing it (and definitely not my last). It was so weird to hear the cast performing the show with British accents, but I absolutely loved it. It was essentially the same production, but it was interesting to point out the different line changes that were made to suit the British culture. I definitely loved having the opportunity to see the show in the West End.
Overall I would definitely have to say that this week was challenging. Since we started our study abroad experience in July three beautiful souls passed away at home. It’s hard to describe what it feels like to be away from family when a death of a loved one occurs. I have lost a loved one here and my awesome friends who I have had the pleasure of getting to befriend have also lost a loved one. Although it is very challenging to get through I cannot express how much I appreciate each and every person on this study abroad trip. Our experiences with each other is unique and I learned that each and every one of us has each other’s back. I am so happy to be spending my time here with the awesome people in my program and in the Berlin/London program.