Mind the Gap!

This is the first time that I’ve flown in my entire life. I found it was quite exciting being on the plane, especially the second jet. The first was tiny and cramped, while the second was a massive carrier. My plane was extremely empty - everyone got at least 2-4 seats to themselves. During landing and taxiing, I couldn’t resist playing music from the Harry Potter soundtrack. In fact, after collecting my baggage, I boarded the Hog- --whoops-- Gatwick Express. For the duration of my stay in London, I’ll be at the Regency Hotel. It’s quite lovely, albeit with strange bathrooms (and no, I’m not talking about a bidet).

We’ve found that you get to know your fellow students quite quickly when you’re sharing rooms and intimate details of your life every day. We have an extraordinary amount of freedom to wander the city to our heart’s content, arriving and departing whenever the fancy strikes us. In St. Pete it’ll be more structured, but I think the whole point of studying abroad is lowering boundaries, not putting more up; therefore, I should have plenty of interesting stories to relay. Hopefully none of them involve me getting stuck on the wrong side of the city when the bridges go up! I’m going to be in Russia tomorrow, but for now I’ll give you guys a quick summary of what’s been happening in London:

Day 1
For my first day in London, I managed to completely explore the Tower of London; find King’s Cross station, platforms 9 and 10, but not 9 ¾; traipse through the Kensington gardens; and become completely and utterly lost dozens of times. I was extremely surprised to find Londoners volunteering to help us find the correct street or tube line to take. I never expected such outward kindness and helpfulness when I came here, and I must say that I’m pleasantly surprised.

My favorite moment of the day was when we went out to the local pub. Now, the drinking age is 18 in London, and they don’t exactly card you when you buy a drink. However, I’m not of age, and I have no desire whatsoever to drink - especially in a foreign country. What I like about pubs here is that they’re like hang out spots. You eat, perhaps get something to drink, and sit around and chat for a few hours. It’s laid back and lively all at the same time.

The lovely group of people I shared chips and many laughs with.

Day 2
So this morning we took a 3 hour bus tour to see the main sights of the city. The major stops that we took were at St. Paul’s Cathedral, Buckingham Palace, and Covent Garden. Our tour guide was the jolliest person I’ve met in London - she was brilliant!

London is quite expensive, so I didn't go to the London Eye today - I’ll save that for my next trip here. I got to go to the Millennium Bridge, which is where the first scene in HPOotP is shot (noticing a theme here?), and then St. Paul’s.

My first “independent” stop was at Westminster Abbey, and that took up a good part of the day. The Abbey’s Lady Chapel was breathtakingly gorgeous. I understand why they don’t allow visitors to take photos, but I truly wish I could have taken some of the ceiling and stained glass. Words just cannot explain the majestic nature of that chapel. I took some photos of the cloisters and gardens, though

One of  the strangest parts of being in London (and Europe in general, really), is walking past famous monuments, palaces, and other sights and it’s ‘just another walk.’ So it’s just like… “Oh hello there, Big Ben... hello Buckingham Palace… Scotland Yard.. I’ll be on my way now.” I think even if I lived all my life in a city like London, I couldn’t ever get tired of seeing such amazing buildings. One of the people I met here just said, “Once we get independently wealthy, I am going to buy the British Museum… and live there.” I heartily support that plan!

After Westminster, my friends and I traveled up to Tottenham Court Road, which is where a lot of computer shops are and cafes. It was pretty close to the British Museum, so that’s where we ended our night. The museum is something that takes weeks to see properly - we only had an hour. I got the Rosetta Stone in, Egyptian mummies and sarcophaguses, Assyrian artwork, and some Roman sculpture.

It was an excellent day, and what made everything better was lively friends and odd occurrences. At one point, we couldn’t find each other at an exit in a building has only one way out. I still don't understand how that happened.

One last thing: we finally found Platform 9 ¾! There’s plenty of construction and remodeling going on at King’s Cross, so they’ve moved it to a white hallway. They placed a sticker of a fake brick wall, and it really does away with any sort of charm that it previously had. I hope that the next time I’m in London, it’s put back properly and I can take a picture that doesn’t look like I’m standing next to an ad for brick designs, and have sawed through a small trolley. All of this, and the fact that it was actually in Platform 8, was sad.

I’m typing this last bit on the plane to St. Petersburg; next time I post, I’ll be telling you about my first days in Russia. More pictures are going to be up in the 'Pictures' tab. Cheers!

The person who will miss me the most.

It's hard to explain why I have to leave for 6 months. For one thing, he can't understand why I don't just stay at UofL for the spring semester. Travel's never been a big deal for him, and I know that while he's so happy about this opportunity for me, this is a bittersweet moment. I've been trying to make things easy by being less frustrated when he says or does something that upsets me. I definitely don't want to leave the country on a bad note! This is the first time I'll be traveling without my family, and it's natural that he feels protective and scared for me.

I'm talking, of course, about Fabrizio - my Bichon Frise. It's difficult to leave an animal that doesn't understand why you're going in the first place.

He doesn't know what is happening yet.

Look at my modeling skills. How can you leave me?

Still? You're still packing? No one - no one - resists this face.

Now he knows...

Best case scenario? Fabi will assume that I'm in my room for these next 5 months.

Cheers, as always. Have a go at making up your own captions for Fabi - there's some potential here for a short comic.

Well I guess you should know...

...that I'm still alive! I'm in the process of getting last-minute things together for my trip, so I won't bore you to death with mundane details. In about a week, I'll be posting from London. Shortly after that, I'll write directly from St. Petersburg.

There are so many amazing opportunities for volunteering while I'm abroad. I can apply for a job at the Hermitage, which could involve archaeological excavations, ushering performances at the theatre (and viewing them for free!), or helping with the art exhibits. As a ballet dancer, pianist, and general arts lover, this sounds positively fantastical. At the same time, however, there is a more career-pertinent position with the Russian Red Cross. I'm hoping that my schedule permits me to do both. I'm already starting to rev up my overachieving gene after a long break...

As for classes, I'm strongly leaning towards a St. Petersburg history/culture course and a Russian healthcare/economics oriented course as my electives. Besides two electives, I'll also take an intensive language class; I'll have to take a placement test for that. I'll let everyone know soon how I place and what my schedule will look like.

I'm going to post once a week at a minimum; additionally, I'll do my best to prepare fun weekly 'spotlights'... they might be certain palaces, monuments, or even food! I'm always on the hunt for interesting places to hang out, and if those places have delicious foods, then I'm hooked. I have a feeling that it won't be a problem to find something great to eat in Russia. ;-)

That's all for now. Cheers, everybody!

The Eternal and the Ephemeral

I'm leaving the country soon, and I've been trying to find the perfect way to phrase my feelings. However, this seemingly simple feat is proving to be much more complex than I anticipated. I'm a roller coaster of various, sometimes fleeting, emotions. At first I was so focused on planning my trip that I wasn't feeling much of anything -- think amateur travel agent. Then, when my countdown got to <24 days... I freaked. Scared, I suppose, about being on my own for the first time.

Now, I'm back in "busy" mode; savoring my last weeks. It's down to less than 13 days - soon I'll be on my way to St. Petersburg, Russia. Amidst my alternating fits of terror and jubilant cries of "Huzzah!" for this trip, I dwell in a surreal state of jittery anticipation.

Why Russia? My heritage is Russian, and I've spoken conversational Russian since I was little. Thus, this trip will allow me to harness my existing abilities to further my goals for my career and community; it's also about personal interest in Russian culture, traditions, and politics. I'll speak in much more detail of classes and my goals in upcoming posts.

As for this blog... I proposed this as part of my project for the Gilman Scholarship. I'll keep unintentional verbosity to a minimum by inserting pictures and videos of the places I visit. Truly, this blog will be a wonderful outlet for me; I can inform my peers of how my study abroad experience is going and keep you updated on certain scholarships/opportunities in the "If You Want To Travel" tab.

Enough words....

This is where I'll be in a week or so!