So I’m off! I’m currently writing this from the plane headed to London. I’m super excited to head over, although it still hasn’t hit me I’ll be in the UK for roughly 5 months. I keep telling myself that this is actually happening, but for some reason it still hasn’t sunk in. Now forewarning this post is gonna be a long one but bare with me, I want to talk about getting to London, and some other things I want to accomplish this semester within this blog.
But every thing is going smoothly. After a (quick) 3 hour journey from Virginia Beach to Washington Dulles International Airport, and a short lunch in Fredericksburg, I was all checked in. I sat with my family for a little while then it was time to say goodbye. It was definitely sad to leave my parents and my sister, because this will be the longest I’ve been away from them. Security was a little more difficult than normal, just because I had more luggage to take care of (I had my backpack and a rolling carry-on suitcase), but I was in and out in maybe 10 minutes. I’d say that’s pretty smooth.
After security, I met up with some of the girls on my flight and we talked until we boarded. I blinked and it was time to board. It was definitely a great start to the trip! While walking up the gangway, I realized this flight is a double decker and a brand new one at that! I’ve never been on one before, so it was pretty cool to walk around to check it out.
I had the entire row to myself, so I stretched out to sleep most of the flight. I tried to sleep as much as I could because we were landing at 06:30 GMT (which is 01:00 ET). Since the plane was fairly new, I noticed that it was very quiet despite the 4 massive engines. That definitely helped me sleep because the droning noise doesn’t really help.
So now for the fun stuff!
I want to take a moment and talk about my expectations for my semester. Now I don’t usually set my expectations high because then if things don’t go the way I expected, I won’t enjoy it. So I have them set low so that whatever happens happens and I will definitely be happy with any of the outcome!
As for travel plans:
I don’t really have those set in stone yet, I have a few friends that are abroad in other countries so I will definitely go and visit them once our semesters are solidified. And like I said before, I don’t have many expectations as to trips, I will be going to Paris at the end of January with my program as well as other cities within England. So honestly if I don’t really travel anywhere else besides those places I won’t be sad. I definitely picked reason London because of the proximity to other countries in Europe. But my main reason for picking it is to become a Londoner, I want to explore as much of London as I possibly can within these next few months.
And that’s mainly what I want this blog to be about. Not only a travel journal but also a way to share my experiences that, hopefully, people will enjoy.
And that’s all for now! Stay tuned for a post about my first day in London 🙂