Three More Days!

Only three more days left of my trip! I'm sitting the reception area at the University of Edinburgh near Pollock Halls. I've had a great time in Edinburgh, MUCH better than Glasgow. I've gotten to see Edinburgh Castle and Princes Street and a lot of Scottish stuff. I have to say, I think I like Scotland A LOT more than I like England.

So with three more days left, I'm ready to go home. I'm exhausted (we all are), and I miss my bed and American food. You know, all of the salt and sugar and fat and so forth.

Tomorrow, we're heading out of Edinburgh at 8:30 am to head to York. Now, I'm excited about going to York. Because we're going to a really awesome place in York: Alnwick Castle. Those die-hard Harry Potter fans out there will know Alnwick Castle as part of Hogwarts. Another girl in my class, Becky, is also a die-hard HP fan, so we're both really excited. We'll stay the night in York, then head to London for one more day. I have a few things I need to pick up in London as well (like, um, another suitcase for everything I bought). We'll leave really early from the hotel on Friday to get to the airport. My flight is the first one out, and I'll be kind of sad to be leaving everyone. I've met some really cool people on this trip, and I hope we can all stay in touch.

I ran out of film the day before yesterday, so I sort of have a big gap where I didn't film anything for two days. But thankfully, the guy in my class, Jason, has also been filming, and he's agreed to let me use his footage in my videos. I promise, you guys, the videos are coming. But it's hard to find time to really work on them because I'm either too tired to get up or out somewhere seeing something. And then if you're just sitting around somewhere, you feel like you're missing out on something. Like there's something you need to go out and see or it'll be too late.

I hope whoever's been reading this blog has looked at the class website and seen all of the pictures of what we've seen. Yeah, there are some of me. Some really bad ones of me. I don't mean the pictures themselves are bad, no, just, I look really bad in them. But oh well, you try looking good when it's freezing or burning up, the wind's blowing, or you've twisted your ankle trying to climb the path to the Wallace Monument (this is a true story).

Just keep looking at the pictures, everyone. The videos and my own pictures will be coming as soon as I have time to work on them. Which, sadly, might not be until after my trip.

I've been thinking about coming back next year, though. But with a study abroad group? I'm not so sure. It's hard to do the things you want to do when you're with a group of people who all want to do different things. Also, sometimes the itinerary doesn't call for enough time in a place you want to stay in. I have to say, I am glad I came on this trip, even if it's not quite what I expected. I've had so many different, strange, exciting, and scary encounters that I'll be talking about them all for years to come. I'm not saying study abroad is not a good idea. In fact, I think it's a great idea. Especially if you're like me and have never been anywhere before or never experienced much in life. I think it's an opportunity more people, students and adults, should take advantage of. There are so many wonderful and interesting things out in the world. And it would be a shame if you let them go to waste.

Quick Update

So, a quick update on where I am right now. I'm in a little internet cafe in Glasgow, Scotland. Seriously, there's not much to see here. You know what I did last night? Went to Pizza Hut and saw X-Men 3. That was it.

Anyway, I decided to post because I know some of my friends and family are actually reading this, and I just wanted to let them know where I am. We have one more night here, and then we're heading to Edinburgh for about four days.

I know I promised pictures and video, but they're not quite ready yet, and I have a feeling they won't be ready until I have more time for the net. Like FREE internet. Which I hear we will have in Edinburgh.

I've talked to a few of my friends, and now they've started getting into the study abroad thing, so I think my constant talking about it has sparked their interests. I'm glad they're interested, but I just hope they know what they're getting into. I thought I did, and when I got here, it was a totally different experience.

So, anyway, just to let everyone know: I'm good, I think I'm losing weight because I hate the food here (I seriously miss American McDonald's), and I'll be able to give you more details about my stays in London, Stratford-upon-Avon, Oxford, and the Lake District when I get to Edinburgh. Until then. Cheers!

Internet At Last!

So, I'm finally in Great Britain with the first FREE internet access I've had since I got here. I know I haven't updated in awhile, and certain people have pressed me to. Before I start, I don't have pictures yet because I left my camera upstairs in my room. Oh, yeah, I'm in the lobby of the Shap Wells Hotel in the Lake District as I write this.

So, anyway, I'll give you a brief overview of what we've been doing so far.

DAY ONE

We arrived in Great Britain at London Gatwick Airport, but unfortunately, not everyone was there yet, so we had to wait an additional 3 or 4 hours. Finally, everyone arrived and we made our way by bus to the Kensington Close Hotel. Now, I posted the link to the Kensington Close Hotel on here awhile ago for people to look at. I just want to let everyone know that the pictures are deceiving when it comes to the size of the rooms. Our room was smaller than a dorm room. It was very nice, though, and it had air conditioning, which was a big plus as we were in for some very hot days.

Our director, David Sauer, met us all at the airport and would not let us do the one thing we wanted to do more than anything else: sleep. But it was cool, because after we checked and got acquainted with our rooms, we all headed out for a walking tour of High Street Kensington. Talk about culture shock. I guess I wasn't expecting so MUCH and so EVERYWHERE. It was crazy there, and it threw me off completely. Some of us decided to get something to eat, and we headed to a local pub, The Prince of Wales, where I got my first taste of British food. I ordered fish and chips, which were quite good. But seeing as how I was more tired and thirsty than hungry, I didn't finish them.

We all went back to the hotel to have our respective class meetings and get a foothold on what we'd be studying over the next few weeks. There was a suggestion made of a walk in Kensington Gardens to keep us all from falling asleep, so some of us headed off down the street to find the Peter Pan Memorial. Again, I took pictures, but my camera is upstairs, and I'm too lazy to go get it. Along with the Peter Pan Memorial, we also saw the pond between Kensington Gardens and Hyde Park, the Princess Diana memorial, and the Royal Albert Hall, all of which were beautiful.

We headed back to the hotel for a bit of a lie-down, as the British call it, until dinner, which we had in the hotel restaurant, The Carvery. After that, we were all so tired that we just went up to bed and slept.

So, that's all for Day One. I have a lot of work to do, so I'll have to stop this blog for now until I have more time to update, which will probably be tomorrow. I'll fill in the details about the rest of my stay in London as well as the trip to Oxford and Stratford-upon-Avon complete with pictures and possibly even video.

So stay tuned!

Oh, and by the way, my class website has linked my blog on their page, so I suppose I should do the same. You can find my class page with tons of pictures (if you can't wait for mine) at http://www.utc.edu/Faculty/Fran-Bender/potter01.html

Happy looking!

One Week Left!

Today I've been finishing up some stuff that I've been meaning to do. I actually hooked up the printer/copier/scanner I got for Christmas to my laptop and printed off the stuff to leave here for my parents. I tried to call my credit card company, but they had just closed, so I'll have to call tomorrow.

There's only one week left until my trip. By this time next week, I will be on a plane from Atlanta flying to England. In fact, right now I'll probably be watching a movie on seatback TV screen or on my laptop. And it'll probably be about time for them to serve dinner. Which I hope they do. But if they don't, I plan on bringing some snacks with me. And definitely water because I get thirsty more than hungry.

There's not much left to do. I got the dress I ordered that I plan to take with me in case I go out to the theatre or something. I learned the hard way that you shouldn't wear jeans and a Switchfoot t-shirt when you go to see a play at night. On Wednesday I'm going to the mall to pick up a couple more things. Thursday I've got to get my room in shape before I leave. Friday is the day I finish buying everything I need. Saturday is laundry and packing day. It's also the last day of work. I'm kind of sad about leaving, but it must be done. On Sunday we're going down to my brother and sister-in-law's house to spend the night because they're about 45 minutes away from the airport. I'm going to make sure I have everything packed and haven't forgotten anything. Then next Monday, I have to be at the airport at 9:15. I have about an hour flight to Atlanta and then over 3 hours of waiting for my next plane which leaves at 5:45.

So, there's not much else to say. I've got everything done. It's funny, though, that I have it all covered. No one seems to believe me. Everything is DONE, there's only a few more things to take care of. But every time I mention it, someone asks me if I should be doing this or doing that. And I say, "I've already done that. I've got it covered." And no one seems to believe me because they keep asking me questions like that.

So with nothing else to report, I'll guess I'll leave this blog until Sunday. In the meantime, check out www.kensingtonclosehotel.com, one of the places I'm staying at. It looks REALLY nice, and is located just outside of central London. It's only a few stops on the Underground from places like Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, and West End.

New Interactive Map

Hey everyone! I'm back again today with another goodie: a map of everywhere I'll be going. Right now, the only location is my hometown, which I am still stuck in. But before long, there will be pins for all of the places I go. It'll help keep people (especially my family and friends) keep track of where I am.

Keep checking back for more news. Only 11 more days until I leave!

New Counter!

Hey everyone! I got this new counter from Ticker Factory to help count down the days until I go to England.



Only 12 more days!

Two weeks and counting!

It's only two weeks until I leave for England! I can't believe it's gone by so quickly. I remember this time last year all I wanted was to be in England. Now, a year later, that dream is coming true. I think it'll be good for me to get away from this house and my family and everything. It'll be good for me to spend some time around people my own age and get used to rooming with someone. I just wonder who I'll room with. I'm assuming I'll room with the same person the entire time. Who knows? Maybe we'll become friends.

So, with only two weeks left, I think it's time for updated to-do list.

1.) Call credit card company and tell them I'll be traveling in the UK.
2.) Finish buying stuff for trip (weekend before trip).
3.) Finalize packing list and do test pack.
4.) Have bills paid up or leave checks to pay bills.
5.) Do laundry (weekend before trip).
6.) Make sure DVD player on laptop works.

There's a snag in my video journal project. I was planning on buying a lot of mini-DV tapes so I could have them even after I put them on my computer. Unfortunately, mini-DV tapes cost a LOT in bulk. A pack of 5 at Wal-Mart is $21. 20 tapes would run around $100. That's money I don't have. So the only thing I can do is buy a pack of 3 or 4 and rotate them. And make sure I download all of the video every night.

I still have 4 books to read on my reading list. And I have to prepare my oral presentation on Phillip Pullman.

It's time to start thinking about what I want to put in my video journal. It has to be something that will make people want to go on a study abroad trip. Something to make it look fun for the students, but educational for parents. So I've compiled this list of what to put in my video journals.

• interviews with students--both in my class and in other classes
• interviews with teachers--my teacher, the program director, other people on the trip
• footage of day trips--where my class goes, what we see, some tour stuff (if allowed)
• footage of class--presentations, lectures, places we go
• footage of other places--basically anywhere I go that looks interesting and that I can film
• my daily thoughts--the journal part of the video journal

Each video will cover 3 days worth of stuff and will probably be between 5 and 10 minutes long. The trip lasts for 18 days, so there will be five videos altogether. Each video will be narrated by me and will be posted on this blog.

I'll keep posting and keep you updated on everything in the next two weeks. Toodles!