Britain Calling

Three More Days!

2006-06-27T12:23:00.000-07:00

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

2006-06-23T06:49:00.000-07:00

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!

2006-06-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

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!

2006-06-05T16:08:00.000-07:00

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

2006-06-01T20:53:00.000-07:00

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!

2006-05-31T21:53:00.000-07:00

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!

2006-05-28T20:35:00.000-07:00

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!

Good News...and Bad News

2006-05-25T20:15:00.000-07:00

I'm updating earlier than planned because I have good news...and I also have bad news. I'll start with good news first so maybe the bad news won't seem as bad.

Okay, the good news. I got an email from my study abroad teacher, and she got her itinerary today. I might get mine sometime this week. For those of us who don't have our itineraries yet, she posted it on the class website. So I now what we'll be doing every day, and how long we'll stay at certain places. By the looks of things, we are going to be doing a LOT of traveling. I don't think we're staying in one place longer than 5 days. And the place we're staying in for 5 days is London. There's also a cover letter that came with the itinerary, but it won't open for me. I think it has important information, so I guess I'll just have to wait until my itinerary comes in the mail.

So, the bad news. The one place I wanted to stay at in London, the one place I've been looking forward to going to and staying overnight at, we're NOT staying at. On the CCSA website, it says that students have stayed in the dorms of King's College, Hampstead Campus in London. But we're not staying there. And that sucks. In fact, during the whole trip, we're staying in hotels and ONE dorm. How touristy can you get? At least with staying in dorms, you still retain that backpacking through Europe feel. But staying in hotels is so touristy. I don't want to feel like a tourist. I want to feel like I'm really experiencing Britain. More bad news: it looks like there won't be a total free day at all. I'm not sure, but it looks as if we're having class EVERY day. Probably not for the entire day, but at least for a few hours in the morning or the afternoon. So I'm not sure how I'm going to plan my Oxford trip. But there will be time for sightseeing, shopping, going to pubs, and going to the theatre.

The other neutral/good news is that everywhere we're staying has some sort of internet access. Or is near a place with internet access. So I'll be able to update this blog with tons of pictures, along with my videos and blog entries. Also, I'll be rooming with someone, so that'll help me sort of prepare for the fall, when I have to live in the dorm.

Other bad news: the scholarship I won is being kept by my school to pay for my study abroad class tuition. They'll give me what's left over after it's paid for, which won't be until AFTER I come back. So I was forced to find another alternative for money. I pre-ordered currency with my credit card, and it should be here by next week. I can't wait to see what it looks like. Whatever I don't use, I'll exchange most of it and pay it back on my credit card.

I'll keep you posted in the next two weeks with updates concerning my trip. For those MuggleCast fans, I hear Eric Scull will be in England at the same time I am. But I think he'll be in London while I'm in the Lake District, so oh well. Eric, if you read this, come to the Lake District first! Just kidding. Until next time....

money, money, money....MON-AY

2006-05-24T23:08:00.000-07:00

So it's time for yet another post. I haven't posted in awhile. It's about two and a half weeks until I leave. I've finally got everything turned in. I sent in a recent picture and a copy of my passport to the CCSA central office today, so they won't be bugging me about that anymore. All that's left to do is get the rest of the stuff I need for my trip. I won't be getting that, though, until the weekend before I leave.

Some big news, though. I won a scholarship! The WorldTopper Scholarship I applied for, I GOT IT! In fact, I got way more than I thought. I got enough to take with me to England. But I'm worried, though. I'm worried that because I've already paid for my entire trip, the school will keep my scholarship to pay for my class tuition. I can't have that. I have to have that money for my trip, otherwise I'll have nothing. I'm really worried. I emailed the study abroad advisor tonight, but I'll have to wait until tomorrow to hear from her. The financial aid office hasn't replied to my email. If it comes down to it, and there is no way I can get money, I'll ask my parents for it. They still have some money they put in my savings account. I'd draw up an agreement and pay them back with my financial aid residual check that I get every year. And if that wasn't enough, I'd pay them back with money from my job or another residual check. I think they'd agree to this if there were no other way. I'm really hoping the scholarship will come to me, though, so I can use that money instead of having to borrow it.

I'm getting excited about it, though. The whole trip. I've decided to get myself more into the mood by watching lots of movies that take place in England or have something to do with backpacking through Europe. But I am not watching Eurotrip. That movie sucks. My movie list basically consists of the following movies: The Terminal, What A Girl Wants, Chasing Liberty, and Bend It Like Beckham. Those are movies I watched last summer and got me into the mood to go to England. I can't wait to get there and meet everyone. I know there are at least 30 people going. There are 10 people to make a class, and there are three classes. Plus, my teacher is bringing her husband and daughter. So there might be family members or TA's going. I'm hoping I'm not going to be all shy and want to hang out by myself. I hope I'll make some new friends and be more myself around everyone. Maybe by the end of the three weeks, because we'll all be together all the time, we'll all become closer friends. Who knows? Maybe there's a cute guy going that I can become friends with.

Okay, so I think it's time to talk about my own little trips that I plan to take. I haven't gotten my itinerary yet, so I don't know when classes are, or when CCSA-sponsered activities are, but whenever I have free time, here are the things I plan to do:

Go for a walk at Hampstead Heath--this is probably the first thing I do as soon as I have some free time. Hampstead Heath is about a block or two from where I'm staying, and it's also one of the best parks of London. By the pictures I've seen, it looks just like some of the fields in Kentucky.
Go shopping--what kind of girl would I be if I didn't go shopping? Of course I'll be going to places like Piccadilly Circus, Camden Market, and the complex in Glasgow, Scotland. But I'll also go book shopping and shopping at college bookstores, especially Oxford University bookstore.
See the sights--Edinburgh Castle, Big Ben, museums, moors, farms, universities, buildings, just ANYTHING. This will take quite a few days.
Go to the theatre--my teacher talked about my class going to the theatre together, but I don't know if it'll happen. Or even what we'll see. Whatever we're doing, I am DEFINITELY going to see The Phantom of the Opera in West End. Also, hopefully, Evita. It's a shame Rent isn't playing now. I also thought about going to see The Mousetrap. It's one of my favorite Agatha Christie plays.
My day trip to Oxford--this requires more explanation, but the basic gist is, I'm taking the first entirely free day I have, getting on a train, and going to Oxford. This will be early in the morning, and I'm making my rounds, going to the major sites of JRR Tolkien and C.S. Lewis. I want to pay homage to these two men who inspired me in my writing.
Go to a pub--but no drinking. I don't drink, even though it'll be legal for me over there. I'm going to a pub for pub fare, like fish and chips, or bangers and mash. Plus, I've got to eat SOMETHING besides McDonald's when I'm there.

So that's all I can think of to write now. I'll write more in the next two weeks, especially when I get my itinerary. I plan on posting my pictures and videos of my trip on here. As part of my scholarship agreement, I have to do a follow-up project. I chose to do a video journal of my time there. My video journal will include videos of the places I go, some footage of class, interviews with people on the trip, and my thoughts on places I go. So keep watching and reading, and I'll be here to update!

The Final Countdown

2006-05-01T00:34:00.000-07:00

I decided to start the countdown a bit early. Hey, it's already May. Why shouldn't I be able to count down until my trip. And so, without further ado:

THE COUNTDOWN BEGINS

43 DAYS UNTIL I LEAVE FOR ENGLAND

So, I figured that maybe some people would want to know how they can prepare for a trip like this without too much hassle. It's really simple. After reading up on everything for about a year, I've come up with some of the most useful trip preparation tips:

Get yourself a good guidebook. I looked at reviews and excerpts from a lot of books, and I recommend getting a guidebook from Eyewitness Travel Guides. The book I got was Eyewitness Travel Guides: Guide to Great Britain which has all of England and Scotland. There are 3-D maps with walking tours, information about tons of places to see, to eat at, to stay at, and a lot of off-the-beaten-path places, too. There's good information about ways of traveling and places to stay. Eyewitness Travel Guides also makes guides for Ireland, Jamaica, Australia, France, Spain, and many more places. If you're going to more than one country, though, don't buy them all. Get one that encompasses all of Europe.

Pack light. You'll have to carry around all of your stuff PLUS souveniers that you bring back to wherever your home is. If your trip is for more than a week, pack enough clothes for the entire week. Make sure you have enough for 7 days, because even if you plan to do laundry on the 7th day, you might not have the means, or you might get caught up in the weekend trip to Paris. Also, use space saver bags. The ones you only have to squeeze the air out of yourself. It leaves more room for the stuff you bring back.

Bring 2 pair of good walking shoes. No matter where you are, the best way to get around is by walking. A lot of people (especially girls) make the mistake of bringing inappropriate shoes like heels or new shoes. Bad idea. Looking good won't matter when your heel breaks going through security checkpoints (true story that I heard) or your feet are sore after a day of sightseeing. Bring some good, broken-in, comfortable walking shoes that you can walk in for 4 hours and your feet won't hurt. Alternate the 2 pair because you'll really get tired of walking in just one pair of shoes.

Observe. This isn't advice you'd find in a guidebook, but it's advice I got from someone who's been there and done that. There's a guy from my school who went on pretty much the same trip that I'm going on. He said when he was in London, he liked it, but that he sometimes felt crowded. So he'd go walking in some of London's parks. One day while walking through Kensington Park, he saw an elderly lady feeding the squirrels. So he went up to her and asked if he could take her picture. She said yes, as long as he would take a walk with her around the park. For an hour, he walked and talked with her. He said he learned so much from that walk and that old lady than he would have anywhere else. So observe people where you're going. Ask them questions, even stupid-sounding ones. You'll learn a lot just by looking and listening.

Keep in touch, but not too often. This is something I never thought about, until it was pointed out to me at my study abroad orientation. It may seem okay to call your family, friends, girlfriend or boyfriend every night when you're there, but what good would it do? You'll just miss them all that much more, spend a fortune in calling fees, and you'll miss out on some great opportunities. So call, but not that often. Email, but not that often. Keep people abreast of where you are and what you're doing, but not that often.

Well, that's all I have time for in this early hour. I'll post more later!

So Much to Do...

2006-04-24T14:49:00.000-07:00

I know I haven't updated in awhile--okay, like a month. But there really hasn't been that much going on pertaining to my trip. But here are the updates, anyway.

I got my passport! Woohoo! It's so cool to have this little book with nice paper that allows me to leave the country. It's official. I can officially leave the country. Well, you know, when I get my ticket and boarding pass and stuff. This actually brings back memories of last summer when I was dreaming of this trip. I can't believe it's been almost a whole year of dreaming and preparation. Last summer there were days when I wanted more than anything to be away from here. I wanted to be in England, where no one could get to me. The only problem was I didn't have a passport. Now I do. If I have the money, and I want to go, I could actually LEAVE the country. That's a pretty cool thought. Who knows? It may come in handy someday.

I've also been getting emails from my study abroad advisor and the person teaching the class I'm taking during the trip. Tomorrow night I'm going for my study abroad orientation. I'll get to meet other people who are going on the same trip that I'm going on and find out more about what's expected of me while I'm there. My teacher, Dr. Fran Bender of the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga, is teaching the class "Beatrix Potter to Harry Potter: British Literature for Children." She sent my class an email the other day with a reading list. Here's what I have to read:

Beatrix Potter: The Tales of Peter Rabbit
C. S. Lewis: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Mollie Hunter: The King's Swift Rider or You Never Knew Her As I Did
Roald Dahl: (title to be selected)
Philip Pullman : Lyra's Oxford
Mark Haddon: The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
Rudyard Kipling: "If" and three stories from the "Just-So Stories" (available online)
Robert Louis Stevenson: A Child's Garden of Verses (available online)
J. K. Rowling: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

It sounds interesting, doesn't it? I've only read 2 of the books on the list, but I'm going to re-read them. I also found out that I'm flying to Gatwick Airport near London, where I will spend six to seven days. From there we go to Oxford (home of famous epic fantasy authors C.S. Lewis and JRR Tolkien), then up to the Lake District (I hope we get to go to Loch Ness), then to Glasgow, and then to Edinburgh (home of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling--ooh, I wonder if she'll be there!). I'm not sure if we're flying out of Edinburgh or going back to Gatwick on the return trip. One thing's for sure. I'll be doing a lot of road-tripping. I better make the most of each place. That's what this blog is for. I'm going to take TONS of pictures and video which I will post on this blog. That way, even if I can't talk IM my friends, I can let them know where I'm at and what's going on.

I sent in my last payment for the trip, which leaves me with $200 total. Not enough for the trip. So I applied for another student loan. I need at least $1000 to take with me. With the exchange rate, it'll be about 600 pounds. That's enough for food and souveniers. My cousin Katie has already put in her order for a British scarf. I plan on getting one for myself as well. Plus t-shirts from everyone I go, maybe some keychains and snow globes and some interesting other tidbits. Just whatever strikes my fancy. My friend Meg has told me to bring back food, like candy bars that we don't have over here.

I'm getting nervous the closer I get to the trip. I was hoping I wouldn't. I was hoping I'd be fine. I thought I'd be fine. But I'm getting nervous. I shouldn't be, though. I should be excited and looking forward to it. Maybe after orientation I'll feel better. I need some encouraging stories. I also need to watch "The Terminal" again. That movie made me excited about airports. I'm actually excited about flying. I'm looking forward to watching a movie without having to rent it. Yeah, I know, everyone says to sleep on your flight. I'll probably end up taking a nap, because I can't sleep well unless I'm in a bed. But to pass the time, I'm watching movies. Or reading. Or both. Depends on if I have anything to read. I might buy something before I leave.

There is so much to before I leave. I'm slowly getting everything I need (it's mostly stuff that I can use in my dorm room next year, too, so I'm not wasting money) and getting everything turned in and set. The only big thing I'm irky about doing is telling my boss. I have to tell him. Soon. Very soon. Mom offered to come with me. At first I took it as another thing people think I can't do. But now I'm thinking I'd like to have her there. That's probably why I SHOULDN'T have her there. I think I SHOULD tell my boss myself. After all, she won't be there all the time to help me. I'll have to do things myself. I promised myself I would tell my boss by the end of March, and now it's almost the end of April. I must tell him by the end of this month. I think Saturday would be a good day. I'll have plenty of time.

So that's pretty much it. I'll try and update more as the final countdown comes around. I'll start the countdown on March 12, one month before I leave. Until next time!

2006-03-20T19:45:00.000-08:00

Hey again! I figured it was time for an update in this old blog. Since last time, I finished and sent in the scholarship application for the WorldTopper Scholarship offered by my school, Western Kentucky University. I had to pay $14 to get it there on time because I didn't get my letter of recommendation as soon as I would have liked. But it's there and all, so I'm happy. I'm waiting to hear back from the scholarship as to whether I got the scholarship. I hope I did. $500 is a lot of money, and I could really use it to help pay for my the tuition on the class I'm taking.

In other news, I got some luggage from my brother yesterday. He and my sister-in-law have traveled quite a bit, so I knew they would let me borrow it. I got a big suitcase with wheels and carry-on with wheels. I thought at first the big suitcase would be TOO big and would be too heavy to even roll around. But I sort of did a practice pack today with some clothes from my closet, and I think it'll be just right. The suitcase may look big on the outside, but there's really not that much room on the inside. I was going to get some space-saver bags, anyway, so there will be more room. There's also a problem with the space in my carry-on. I was planning on taking all of my Harry Potter and Chronicles of Narnia books with me (the class I'm taking covers these books, and I just know I'll want to re-read them or look something up while I'm there) but they take up half of the room in my carry-on as I discovered today during the practice pack. So I'm thinking I'll put half of my books in my carry-on and half in my checked bag. And I'll make sure I get to the airport in plenty of time so my luggage will definitely make the flight.

I found out my family won't be able to go the gate with me, so I'll have to be by myself for at least an hour. I'm getting to the airport 2 hours in advance, and depending on the length of the lines at the security checkpoint, I'll check in and wait with my parents for an hour. I'm checking in first thing and getting my boarding pass. If the security line is very long, I may have to go ahead and get to the gate. But if it's not too long, I'll wait for an hour with my family. I'm going to get some food for the trip and maybe look around the bookstore they have there. I think my cousin Katie is going with me, so we can hang out for awhile.

I'm hoping to convince my family to have a PAR-TAY before I go. I'd like to have one on June 11th, the day before I leave. That way I can say goodbye to my family and friends as well as see a few of them.

Well, that's all I have for now. I have to make an appointment with a study abroad advisor to fill out some forms, and I'm still waiting for my passport and ticket to arrive. Nothing much else is going on. I'll update later!

Britain is calling...

2006-03-11T21:33:00.000-08:00

What is it with me and green blogs? If you haven't seen my other blog already, titled "Unfortunately, Famous", you'll see what I'm talking about.

Anywho, because I've been getting into blogging lately--and since no one but Meg ever reads my blog anyway--I decided to make this blog about my upcoming study abroad trip to Scotland and England. Yep, I am going to Great Britain. It is calling me...calling me...

Okay, enough wimsy for this blog entry. To start off, my trip will be from June 12th to June 30th. I'm leaving from the Nashville airport since it's the closest. I'm going on a trip with the Cooperative Center for Study Abroad (CCSA). It's their Scotland/England summer trip. I haven't gotten my tickets yet, but I think I'll get them soon. There's so much to do before I leave. I actually made a list of stuff to do, and believe me when I tell you it was a lot longer than this not too long ago.

Stuff to Do:
1.) Finish and send off study abroad scholarship that's worth $500--due March 15th
2.) Send copy of first 2 pages of passport to CCSA central office (when I get passport)
3.) Make appointment with study abroad advisor at school to fill out forms--March 31st
4.) Get luggage from my brother
5.) Finish buying stuff I need for the trip (mostly travel stuff)
6.) Finalize packing list
7.) Get money in form of traveler's checks, cash (both US and British currency), and ATM card
8.) Activate international service on cell phone--to do right before I leave
9.) Plan out Oxford day trip (explanation to come later!)

So what will this blog be for? Well, mostly to help me plan out the little details of my trip (even though I have a thread on one my friend's message boards for that), but also give updates and thoughts on the trip. And of course, this blog will be used to record the trip itself. I'm hoping to post pictures and even video on this blog. As part of the scholarship agreement, you have to pick a project to do after you get back. I love filmmaking, so I thought why not make some videos of my trip and make them available for other possible study-abroaders to see? Since this blog comes equipped with an RSS feed, it'll be easier to post them here.

This blog will also be a way for my friends and family to keep track of where I am and what I'm doing. I might not have a chance to phone them or IM them as often as I'd like to, but I will have internet access to most of the places I'll be at.

So keep on checking this blog. It'll be updated frequently with, well, updates. But I'll also post pictures and tell you about things the central office sends me. Great Britain is calling for me...and soon I shall be there.

Until then, though, check out www.ccsa.cc and click on Scotland/England for info about my trip. Look around the site for other trips available (they have some good ones), travel tools, student handbooks, student reflections, and pictures from past trips.