The three things of this culture that I would love to take back would be the accents, how casual drinking is all the time, and the fact that I can get to so many countries for a lot cheaper and a lot faster than if I was in the United States.
Accents. It is sort of funny, but this is one of the main reasons that I chose to come to England. I love the way Brits talk! It is so polite, intelligent, and just makes you want to sit and listen to them all day long. Sometimes it’s a bit hard to understand, but nonetheless I love it! I also am going to miss how people automatically know that I am an american when I start to talk and they ask me all of these questions about America. Especially when I am sitting in class and have a question to ask, literally everyone in the classroom turns around to look at me as if i’m some sort of alien. On another note, the Brittish accent is SO attractive. Pretty much all of the men that I have met here I have been instantly attracted to from the second they open their mouth. (except for the look of most of their teeth of course).
The second thing I am going to miss is how casual the drinking is here. I was talking to a few girls in my class today and they were asking me how I felt about the drinking age in america being 21 instead of 18 like it is here. “I HATE it” was my response, and not simply because I like the way I feel when I drink but I love the social aspect of it and how I feel like I meet so many more people when I’m out having a few drinks with friends than if I went to a coffee shop or to a grocery store. In america, alcoholism seems a lot more prevalent and people look at alcohol like it is such a terrible drug. But in my opinion, as long as you don’t abuse it, there is no harm being done.
The third thing that I wish I could take back to the states with me is flying to different countries for cheaper and faster than if I were back in America. I have loved traveling all of my life. I have moved so many times in my life, and have been lucky enough to travel around America, but I feel like there is so much more out there to see and experience in the world. Since I have been here in England, I have wanted to go to so many different places, but I feel like I am in such a time crunch and have to watch my money so closely because I can’t have a job here. Although even if I did stay here for an entire year, I don’t think I would be able to go to as many places as I would like to.
I cannot wait to go back to the states and be back with all of my close friends and family, espcially my mom, but at the same time the amount of freedom and independence I have out here is something that I would never want to exchange for the world. I love being on my own time (except for classes of course) and being able to go where I want to go without having to report back to pretty much anyone. I mean of course I have to let people know where I am for safety reasons, but as far as the decisions that I make while I am abroad, they are all up to me! Some people back in the states say that they could never go abroad because of how homesick they would get, but I think that that is not even an excuse. Homesickness comes and goes whether you are in the states or not. It is a state of mind and as long as you know what makes you happy and what gives you peace of mind, then you will be able to get over it. I feel like i’m preaching a little bit in this, but this is definitely something that I feel so strongly about because I have been there, and I know that homesickness and missing something that you are away from is not the end of the world. As Marilyn French would say, “It’s just a fart in a bathtub”.
Yesterday I had some time to just sit back by myself and reflect on my thoughts (which is my most favorite thing to do). I have definitely noticed that when I am thinking to myself I am saying everything with a British accent, it's as if my brain is adapting to it already! I am sitting on my bed right now while I am typing this, and my window is open and all of a sudden I start to hear clubbing music coming from outside... a little strange eh? These walls are SO paper thin it's not even funny! I can hear everything that is going on outside at night as well as whenever my flat mates decide to turn over in bed. This is something that I am not used to at all because, especially at HPU, you can barely hear what is going on in your suite mate's rooms never mind your next door neighbors. Speaking of HPU, I have been talking to a few of my friends over there this past week and they are already doing their midterms! I cannot believe how fast time is flying by, then again we're only in our third week of classes over here, but still it absolutely astonishes me. I feel like there is so much I want to do and so many places that I want to travel but time is running so short, as well as the amount of cash that I have in my bank account....
Although spending money here does not bother me as much as it does when I'm over in the states, it is still stressful trying to stay inside of a budget when all I want to do is explore everywhere I can in Europe. When am I going to have another chance to see the christmas markets of berlin? or eat a pizza made by a true italian in Italy? Or have the time of my life at Oktoberfest in Germany?! Probably never! I said it once and I'll say it again, this trip is about not only learning more about myself and growing as an individual, it is about experiencing all that Europe has to offer! Who knows, maybe this trip will convince me to move here after grad school and become some sort of an event planner in Europe?
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