Lucky 13

I have 13 days left until I leave for my trip to England to Study Abroad. I am looking at packing lists and trying to make sure I have what I need and pre packing to see how much space I have in my suitcase leftover. Talking to people about traveling is intimidating because everyone is always saying, "Don't travel alone, look like a tourist, or draw attention to yourself," because you can get mugged or whatever. Sort of makes personal safety seem like a life and death situation. Leaving the United States for the first time in my life, alone, and female- the last thing I want to think about it how unsafe this could be. I want to be looking at this trip as exciting, not as an introduction to a new Taken movie. I took the itinerary we have and posted it on my desk to help me remember why I decided to do this in the first place.

Weather conditions during the month of June in England should be between 55* and70*- I hope California appreciates the summer they get.

Thanks Jane Austen for making me want my own Mr. Darcy

During Spring Break for the semester I decided to watch the Pride and Prejudice movie (2005). I loved the movie so much I watched it four times in the span of that week. I remembered how much I love reading the book and started thinking about how we get to see where the dance hall where she used to go. As well as, how much I love Mr. Darcy.

I hope we get to learn some of the dances Jane used to do!

We get to spend an entire weekend living Jane Austen and I am so excited for the chance to see everything.  Visiting Chawton where Jane Austen spent the last few years of her life, Jane Austen house museum, and Winchester Cathedral where Jane Austen has her dedication.

Dreary Weather Can't Keep Me Down

We recieved the tentative itinerary for England on Thursday at the first Oxford meeting.
During the first week our class is going to the Bodleian Library! Let me just say up front, I read the book A Discovery of Witches, and I desperately want to see books come up from the stacks, the wing and desk Diana sat at, and a manuscript. I really love Libraries and going to THE BODLEIAN LIBRARY is like the superbowl mvp Library.
We are going to the Ashmolean Museum the same week, where we get to see all the curiosities that have gathered there. I am pretty excited even without getting to see Ashmole 782.

Been looking up travel tips, I get it England- lots of layers. I am trying to find the best way to pack my stuff to fit in the smallest suitcase possible. Oh, and finding out about how I have to hang stuff to dry. . . ekk.

Wishing for a tea party with all this cold and rainy weather. . .

One of the day trips the Study Abroad Program is taking us to a real English Tea House! I was thinking about how much fun that is going to be. I started imagining all of the servers dressed like Ghost Elizabethan era clothes, speaking very properly, serving tea, explaining how each tea should be properly sipped. . . calling us peasants when we picked it up without a pinky being up! Probably not what it will be like, but it sounds like fun!

92 Days & Counting

I have finished writing my scholarship essays officically. I really hope that I can get help paying for the trip, but I won't let a lack of money stop me. I had to discuss why I want to go on the trip, and it sort of reaffirmed how amazing England is going to be. Just being on an Oxford campus is going to thrill me from toes to the crown of my head. I just keep picturing being surrounded by books, and beautiful architecture.

I have this fantasy, I just got my motorcycle license and I really want to rent one for the day. Just to explore on my own or with a homie, if I meet someone who is ready for an adventure. Going through the country or streets and seeing the sites on a motorcycle sounds like an absolute dream come true. England, ready or not, here I come!

Inspiration

Just to remind myself how important this semester is. . .

England Here I Come. . .

During the Summer of 2016 I will be leaving the United States for the first time and going to England for the Study Abroad program with my Junior College. I get to stay in a homestay and immerse myself in English culture. I can't wait!