i’m sitting here in my room in my flat at 2:30 in the morning, looking at the empty closet, the mess on the floor, and the blank bulletin board in front of my desk. has it really been 3 months since i first got off the plane at Heathrow? the same bags that i had packed to come here are once again packed up and ready to be shipped off to Los Angeles. how weird.

three months ago i came here not knowing what to expect, not wanting to have any expectations in the event that i end up disappointed. i went to orientation and wondered if i had chosen the right school to spend a term abroad. i looked around at all the interestingly dressed people and wondered if i was going to be completely out of place. i smiled at all the English students who talked so quickly and pretended to understand everything they said. i didn’t know if i was going to travel much, but i knew i wanted to go to Paris at some point. i figured people here would go to pubs a lot, but i wasn’t sure how often and what they’d be doing. i went on wikipedia and tried to memorise as many football teams as i could so that i’d be able to chat about them. i attempted to learn about the British government and the royal family so that i wouldn’t be seen as a stupid American.

fast forward three months, and i realise that i’ve been happier at this school than at the last 2 that i’ve studied at. i’ve learned to branch outside of my ordinary “normal” clothes and experiment with styles that i never would’ve done back home. i can successfully catch most of what people are saying, even when they mumble. i’ve been to Worcester, Milan, Rome, Venice, Paris, Barcelona, Madrid, Bath, and around London. i’ve enjoyed a few fun-filled Ladies’ Nights at the pubs, and a couple of meals as well. i’m officially supporting Arsenal - go Gunners! - (for now..hahaha), and i’ve run into the Princess at the Goldsmiths store.

i’ve been asked by a lot of people in the past week whether or not i’m going to miss England. my answer? YES. a massive YES. though i’m not sure if i can speak about the entire country since i’ve only been to 3 cities within it, i know i’m going to miss London terribly. i haven’t felt this happy to be in a place for a long, long time. since i’ve entered uni i’ve never taken a single vacation for granted - every break has been enjoyed and savoured. now i just wish that this term would somehow be prolonged and that winter break doesn’t come for another few months..

i’d be lying if i said that there weren’t things here that have frustrated me. the service here isn’t great and it probably won’t ever measure up to the standards that i’m used to. the idea that studying hard in school doesn’t really help you get a good job just blows my mind (and everything that i was brought up to believe, especially in the US). the fact that many words are pronounced “incorrectly” (really, NIKE rhymes with Likey and not Mike) and that people say “well it’s called English, isn’t it?” hasn’t been the greatest, either. and having to defend your religion at all times because most of the country has given up on it got a bit tiring as well.

however, i’d never trade a single moment of my experience here. the people that i’ve talked to, the friends that i’ve met, the flatmates that i lived with..it’s all been so wonderful. as cheesey as it sounds, i haven’t felt so blessed and joyful in a while, and every day while i’ve been here i’ve woken up, looked outside my window, and smiled. literally.

for now, i’m going to take a final swig of my cider, throw some more things in my suitcases, and sleep for a bit before heading to the airport tomorrow. i’m not too worried - i’ll be back. i’m no where done with the UK! a trip to Wales in 2010 is already being thought out hehe (:

i’ll be adding more videos and pictures on here before i completely end the blog, so don’t leave just yet!

we had to take a 6:30 am flight to Madrid from Barcelona, which mean we left the hotel at 2 am, got on the shuttle and rode to the airport by 3:30 am, and then waited at the airport until 6 am.. it was a brutal evening, and by the time we actually got to the hostel the next morning (around 9) i didn’t even know how to walk properly. i fell asleep on their common room couch for a bit, and all i wanted to do was check-in and rest for hours and hours. however, since we were only going to be in Madrid for a few days, we ventured out at around 10:30 and started exploring the area.

i’m not going to lie - Madrid started out as a big disappointment. the area we were in was semi run-down .. it was next to all these tattoo parlours and just didn’t look anything near what we stayed at in Barcelona. once you got more towards the city centre, though, it started looking a lot better. we walked down the Paseo del Prado, and then onto the Passeo de Recoletos, which was this long strip that had museums, parks, gardens, and stuff on both the sides. the lines were extremely long for the Museo Nacional del Prado (which is where a lot of Valesquez artwork is kept) because it was Sunday (aka free entrance), so i decided that i’d put it off til Monday. bad idea - all museums are closed on Mondays. remember that!

anyway, we walked past the Casa de América and then onwards to the Biblioteca Nacional. the only problem was there was a LOT of construction going on in the city, so many things (aka Plaza de Colón) weren’t even visible…they were all hidden under huge tents and tarps. i did enjoy a lovely few hours at the Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofia. it was where the Guernica painting by Picasso is located, and i felt like i was in Paris, squeezing my way to see the Mona Lisa again. it was amazing though .. super huge! you definitely won’t get a sense of disappointment when you see it. i think this trip to Spain has made me realise how much i love Picasso’s work! i can’t wait to see more of his stuff.

we tried to get some food at around 4 pm, which was nearly impossible because of their closing down for siestas.. seriously, we were rejected by over 5 bars / restaurants. some just ignored us, some flat out said “no”, and some let us just sit at the table for 10 minutes before telling us there wasn’t any food. :( it was disappointing, but we found a little restaurant that had the BEST paella mixta in the world for only €7. that really made my day. oh, and i tried morcilla as well (Spanish blood sausage). it was quite delicious, really, and not at all daunting.

the evening was spent at Puerta del Sol, which is one of the main areas in their city centre. super pretty and it was amazingly crowded that evening! i think it’s because of their national holiday, but there were streamers all over the floors, people were covered in silly string, and kids everywhere had bubble guns. it was a lot of fun (albeit crowded) because it felt like the Spain that i had imagined - everyone out and about in the centre of town, all hanging out and shouting and having fun together.

Monday was an interesting day as well; i had planned on going to the museums that morning and then taking another trip into the city centre that afternoon. well, all museums were closed, so i decided that i’d just wander the city and head over to the Palacio Real, which is their palace. it was also raining and i was NOT pleased :( there were 2 girls from the hostel that i became friends with, and we all wandered around the city together, taking pictures and chatting. the Palacio was GORGEOUS. seriously, it makes you sad that America doesn’t have anything like that. the lines to get in were also ridiculous, so we just took a couple of pictures and then went to Gran Vía, which is one of the main roads down the city centre. i walked and took pictures for a few hours, and then at 16:00 left to get on the metro and head to the airport.

after missing the train from Central London to home and chatting with the rail services guy for 30 min, i finally was able to be back in my own room.

pictures to come! (: