Just read it. It's literally the best book I've read in my 20 years... and I don't say that about books very lightly!
Saturday, July 30, 2011
No Hashtags...?
For some reason, when I try to put a number sign, the pound sign comes up...?
£££££££££££££££££££
Convenient for me, I guess!!
£££££££££££££££££££
Convenient for me, I guess!!
Mentally Preparing
Recently, I talked to my friend Bernadette (remember her? She's studying in Rome!), and she made me feel better about procrastinating. She said that you can't ever be fully prepared... at some point, you just have to go! Which is fully the truth.
Random truth numero dos: It's also important to touch base with friends and family before you go... they won't see you for 3 months!
And it looks like I will not be getting an international phone, due to crazy expensive-ness. So I'll get a by-the-minute phone in the UK, and use Skype as the main form of verbal communication with my friends and family in the States. The plan right now is to have planned Skype hours, and then if anyone wants to talk, I'll be there! Times TBD, due to time difference!
My internship ends next week! A lot of things that need to be done in the meantime, but it will be nice to just have time to mentally prepare for my trip! Bernadette also mentioned the importance of this type of preparation. I'm still finding it difficult to wrap my head around the fact that I'll be in England for 3 whole months! It's a huge experience that requires research on the culture and envisioning yourself in that culture with the right mindset. When you're able to think to yourself "Okay... I'm ready!" then you're mentally prepared.
Am I mentally prepared? Definitely not! But all of the free time that will result from the end of my internship will certainly help! :)
A little more than a month before take-off... I'm CRAZY excited, but there's a lot left to do!
Random truth numero dos: It's also important to touch base with friends and family before you go... they won't see you for 3 months!
And it looks like I will not be getting an international phone, due to crazy expensive-ness. So I'll get a by-the-minute phone in the UK, and use Skype as the main form of verbal communication with my friends and family in the States. The plan right now is to have planned Skype hours, and then if anyone wants to talk, I'll be there! Times TBD, due to time difference!
My internship ends next week! A lot of things that need to be done in the meantime, but it will be nice to just have time to mentally prepare for my trip! Bernadette also mentioned the importance of this type of preparation. I'm still finding it difficult to wrap my head around the fact that I'll be in England for 3 whole months! It's a huge experience that requires research on the culture and envisioning yourself in that culture with the right mindset. When you're able to think to yourself "Okay... I'm ready!" then you're mentally prepared.
Am I mentally prepared? Definitely not! But all of the free time that will result from the end of my internship will certainly help! :)
A little more than a month before take-off... I'm CRAZY excited, but there's a lot left to do!
HP6, Y U NO WORK?
So my childhood consisted of 2 things: Pokemon and Harry Potter.
My brother and sister obviously shared this childhood, and we still delve into these things (usually Harry Potter) on occasion.
John and I just bought the Harry Potter 6 video game (they're wonderful...) and it seems to be broken.
*night ruined*
Friday, July 22, 2011
Me: I can't think of anything to blog about, since I'm not actually in the UK yet. And also since I'm not preparing at all, which I really should be doing.
Friend: Well, blog about that!
So here it is!! Procrastination!
--
I probably should be packing/figuring out what to pack and what to leave at home, finding my camera charger (which hopefully isn't thrown out!), getting some English currency, researching cell phone plans in the UK, researching where I can go in a walking distance to purchase vital things on the first day, and other very fun things!
Also, this just in from SMUC: there were so many applicants for accommodation, that a lot of people were turned down and have to find a place to stay off-campus (aka share a house or apartment with other people). They did not say international students were guaranteed housing... in fact, they stated that if you were an international student and you didn't get a dorm room, they could assist you in finding a homestay.
I'm not sure if I got a room or not! EEK.
I know I'd probably grow to like being in a homestay, if necessary... but I've already started mentally decorating my beautiful room. Here's a non-decorated picture!
Friend: Well, blog about that!
So here it is!! Procrastination!
--
I probably should be packing/figuring out what to pack and what to leave at home, finding my camera charger (which hopefully isn't thrown out!), getting some English currency, researching cell phone plans in the UK, researching where I can go in a walking distance to purchase vital things on the first day, and other very fun things!
Also, this just in from SMUC: there were so many applicants for accommodation, that a lot of people were turned down and have to find a place to stay off-campus (aka share a house or apartment with other people). They did not say international students were guaranteed housing... in fact, they stated that if you were an international student and you didn't get a dorm room, they could assist you in finding a homestay.
I'm not sure if I got a room or not! EEK.
I know I'd probably grow to like being in a homestay, if necessary... but I've already started mentally decorating my beautiful room. Here's a non-decorated picture!
Isn't it gorgeous!? And apparently there's a nice view of the track out that window. I've already daydreamed about rocking out to T. Swift in this room!
Yes, this is it. I'm sure there will be more European things to come, once I actually do them!
TTFN!!
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
My Current Obsession:
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
I'm Still Confused...
So I heard someone recently try to differentiate a British accent and an English accent. Apparently, people with British accents don't pronounce their "t"s... "So it's like, 'Bri-ish.' Get it?"
*FACEPALM*
I realize it's a difficult concept, but I think that's incorrect.
I also realize that I probably will be corrected once I'm over there, but this is a question that I think I've finally figured out:
"What's the difference between Britain, England, and the UK???"
Okay, here goes.
England is a country. It is surrounded by Scotland and Wales. It lies in about the middle of Great Britain.
Great Britain (or just Britain) is technically the name of the largest island in the UK. So, the majorities of England, Scotland, and Wales are in Britain. However, all three countries have islands off of the mainland, which are not part of Britain.
The UK is more of a political term than geographical. It refers to the "sovereign state" of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Not gonna lie, that part confuses me, especially since a sovereign state is sometimes called a country. A country within a country???
... COUNTRY-CEPTION.
Why has that meme not been created yet?? A-la the wonderful Inception puns that are all over the interwebs!
But, I digress.
So, the UK is, for me, the most confusing part. There are a lot of political things that go into the connection, like the House of Commons, and that Prince Charles is the Prince of Wales (though his mother is currently the Queen of England). I definitely have a lot to learn when I'm there! However, as Psyk60 commented on the following video, "there's no particular reason why one country can't contain sub-units that are also called countries. Just like how the USA is itself a State despite being made up of states." Hey, hey!! Now I get it... more than I did. Still lots of confusion.
This is where I learned most of this... prepare for your mind to be blown!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10
*FACEPALM*
I realize it's a difficult concept, but I think that's incorrect.
I also realize that I probably will be corrected once I'm over there, but this is a question that I think I've finally figured out:
"What's the difference between Britain, England, and the UK???"
Okay, here goes.
England is a country. It is surrounded by Scotland and Wales. It lies in about the middle of Great Britain.
Great Britain (or just Britain) is technically the name of the largest island in the UK. So, the majorities of England, Scotland, and Wales are in Britain. However, all three countries have islands off of the mainland, which are not part of Britain.
The UK is more of a political term than geographical. It refers to the "sovereign state" of England, Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
Not gonna lie, that part confuses me, especially since a sovereign state is sometimes called a country. A country within a country???
... COUNTRY-CEPTION.
Why has that meme not been created yet?? A-la the wonderful Inception puns that are all over the interwebs!
But, I digress.
So, the UK is, for me, the most confusing part. There are a lot of political things that go into the connection, like the House of Commons, and that Prince Charles is the Prince of Wales (though his mother is currently the Queen of England). I definitely have a lot to learn when I'm there! However, as Psyk60 commented on the following video, "there's no particular reason why one country can't contain sub-units that are also called countries. Just like how the USA is itself a State despite being made up of states." Hey, hey!! Now I get it... more than I did. Still lots of confusion.
This is where I learned most of this... prepare for your mind to be blown!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNu8XDBSn10
This Has To Exist...
I don't know why the students at St. Mary's aren't called "Smuckers." I mean really! An abbreviation like SMUC just screams "Smuckers!" "With a name like Smuckers, it's gotta be good!" I can't have been the first to think of this.
Unless Smuckers doesn't exist in the UK?!
Oh my gosh. NO NO NO. I can, unfortunately, easily envision myself like the Jersey Shore guys... except instead of hair gel, I'll have delicious jelly!
And Now, To English Matters!
Now that the "About Me" post is done, here is everything I can think of that I've done/experienced related to the trip!
I've always wanted to go to England, but even more, I've always wanted to live in England for an extended period of time. During my college search, I even wanted to apply to colleges in England! My parents weren't too supportive of that venture, for obvious reasons. They cut me a deal that if I got a 1570 on my SATs, I could go. Obviously, that didn't happen because I am not a super genius. So studying abroad is literally a dream come true!!
When it came to choosing a school at which to study, I made it a lot harder than it needed to be. I essentially wanted to pick up Saint Vincent and plop it in England. So I did A LOT of research: not just on the schools that were connected to Saint Vincent, but on basically every school I could find a URL for: Durham, Cambridge, and Oxford, just to name-drop. I did more research and discovered that each university had colleges within it (as they do in the States). However, the average "college" had about 700 kids. So a "college" was too small, but a university was wayyy too big! I ended up taking what I thought was the lazy way out, and applied to Saint Mary's University College. But the more I looked into it, the better and better the school got! Close enough to London to get the basics, yet far enough away to not be in a dreaded city school; Catholic (hard to find in an Anglican country!), and only about double the size of Saint Vincent. Up until a few days ago, the size difference really intimidated me, until my parents informed me that I had applied to schools for undergrad that were even larger. If I felt comfortable enough in those schools, I see no problem with adjusting to the size of SMUC!
What. Else.
Already purchased plane tickets. Can't wait to finally experience the mythical "jet lag!!"
Easily one of the best parts of this trip: I'm (kind of) going with friends! Two of my best friends from college are also going abroad next semester! Abby (*cough* here's her sweet blog!) is going to Spain, and Bernadette is going to Rome! Are we meeting up, you ask?
HECK YES WE ARE!!!!!
Another tip for European traveling: flights are DIRT. CHEAP. I'm literally planning on flying to Rome for about $50. And all three of us are going to meet in the middle(-ish) in PAREEEEEEE!!! Thank you, Eurostar!!!
Abby and Bernadette aren't my only visitors! I begged and pleaded with my parents to skip the summer vacation, and to visit me in London... and they agreed! Dad is already planning super fun things to do in London and Paris! I know it'll be nice to see them when they arrive about 1/3rd of the way through my trip of a lifetime!
However, I already know that the hardest part about being away for three months will hands-down be my relationship with Aaron; not because it's holding me down, but because it's really the only thing that keeps me together. Summer's bad enough, when we only see each other 1-2 times a month. Going 3.5 months with only Skype? Ouch.
However, this trip, college, life in general -- it's ALL about attitude. If I have a positive attitude (which I usually do have... to a fault!), then everything should go smoothly!
I think that's it for right now, regarding trip prep. Thanks for reading!
1 Thing I Learned Today: It's probably a bad idea to pack bedding. Something to ponder and solve in the next month!
Who Am I?
Can I condemn this man to slaveryyyyyy?
Oh wait, what? I'm not a French refugee? Oh, cool.
Anyway... this is a little intro to myself, as well as what I've done so far regarding the trip!
So, I go to school at Saint Vincent College in western PA. I love it SO much, and am dreading graduating!
I actually have a great fake British accent, thanks to the Harry Potter movies! I think I'll have to see how transparent it is once I actually get to Britain.
My summer's flying by, with so much going on. I have an internship at the local university, I work at Bath and Body Works, and I volunteer at the local crisis pregnancy center. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being this busy! Though England will be a nice break, since I'm not allowed to work there! :)
I have a boyfriend. His name is Aaron Kushner, and he's pretty fresh. Today just so happens to be our 1.5th anniversary!
I think that's all for the personal things... I'm not terribly interesting, I suppose! Thanks again for reading!
Oh wait, what? I'm not a French refugee? Oh, cool.
Anyway... this is a little intro to myself, as well as what I've done so far regarding the trip!
So, I go to school at Saint Vincent College in western PA. I love it SO much, and am dreading graduating!
I actually have a great fake British accent, thanks to the Harry Potter movies! I think I'll have to see how transparent it is once I actually get to Britain.
My summer's flying by, with so much going on. I have an internship at the local university, I work at Bath and Body Works, and I volunteer at the local crisis pregnancy center. I LOVE LOVE LOVE being this busy! Though England will be a nice break, since I'm not allowed to work there! :)
I have a boyfriend. His name is Aaron Kushner, and he's pretty fresh. Today just so happens to be our 1.5th anniversary!
I think that's all for the personal things... I'm not terribly interesting, I suppose! Thanks again for reading!
My very first blog post! WHOAAAA
Hello world!!
... Yeah, that's all I got right now (it's pretty late...)
OR IS IT?!
Anyway, thanks for stopping by. My name is Sara Maurer, and this is my study abroad/travel blog!!
A couple FAQs (or what I imagine would be FAQs if this blog was around long enough for any questions at all):
"What the heck is that blog name?!" - I went through a lot of possibilities for a name. At first I was going to go with "Bangers and Mash," but I thought that was a little weird, and honestly was just a bad fit, since I don't like potatoes. Long story short, a "knickerbocker glory" is an ice cream sundae (YUM) that is normally served in the UK. However, the word "knickerbocker" is rumored to have NYC roots. So how appropriate for an American girl going over into the wonderful UK!
"Wait, so... what is this blog even about...?" - This blog is about me, a girl from western Pennsylvania, going across the Atlantic to have crazy awesome adventures in the outskirts of London. I probably will venture into London relatively often, but otherwise, I'm eager to have a typical UK "uni" experience (aka: I DON'T want to be touristy!).
"... But you're still in western Pennsylvania. Why did you start now?" - Because a lot of planning goes into a semester abroad! As the 1-month countdown leers near, I have a lot of things to figure out and to chronicle (the two main things right now: on which continent should I get a cell phone and PACKING! I'm structuring all of my Bath and Body Works purchases around the 3 oz airplane limit...)
Okay, I think this is already tl;dr...
I hope to leave personal things out, but honestly, I know that's bound to fail.
So thanks for reading anyway!!
1 Thing I Learned Today: That Surrey (where the great HP would have grown up if he were real) is just a half-hour drive from where I'll be in a few months. Harry Potter field trip = very very necessary!
... Yeah, that's all I got right now (it's pretty late...)
OR IS IT?!
Anyway, thanks for stopping by. My name is Sara Maurer, and this is my study abroad/travel blog!!
A couple FAQs (or what I imagine would be FAQs if this blog was around long enough for any questions at all):
"What the heck is that blog name?!" - I went through a lot of possibilities for a name. At first I was going to go with "Bangers and Mash," but I thought that was a little weird, and honestly was just a bad fit, since I don't like potatoes. Long story short, a "knickerbocker glory" is an ice cream sundae (YUM) that is normally served in the UK. However, the word "knickerbocker" is rumored to have NYC roots. So how appropriate for an American girl going over into the wonderful UK!
"Wait, so... what is this blog even about...?" - This blog is about me, a girl from western Pennsylvania, going across the Atlantic to have crazy awesome adventures in the outskirts of London. I probably will venture into London relatively often, but otherwise, I'm eager to have a typical UK "uni" experience (aka: I DON'T want to be touristy!).
"... But you're still in western Pennsylvania. Why did you start now?" - Because a lot of planning goes into a semester abroad! As the 1-month countdown leers near, I have a lot of things to figure out and to chronicle (the two main things right now: on which continent should I get a cell phone and PACKING! I'm structuring all of my Bath and Body Works purchases around the 3 oz airplane limit...)
Okay, I think this is already tl;dr...
I hope to leave personal things out, but honestly, I know that's bound to fail.
So thanks for reading anyway!!
1 Thing I Learned Today: That Surrey (where the great HP would have grown up if he were real) is just a half-hour drive from where I'll be in a few months. Harry Potter field trip = very very necessary!
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