It's been just over two weeks since I arrived back to California. Although it's nice to be back at home in time for the holidays, I do miss being in Barcelona and spending time with my friends. The café con leche, my host Mom's cooking, and the ease of getting around the city is what I miss the most.
Dear future IES Abroad London students,
“You must be so excited!!!!” Don’t get me wrong, that statement is 100% true; it just loses its flavor after hearing it from various mild acquaintances for the 36th time. I haven’t even left yet, but this incredible academic and cultural opportunity has already dominated most of the dialogue in my life.
I’ve been back in Oregon for just over two weeks (and as I speak, Oregon is having its first snow of the year and of the season!). Adjusting back home hasn’t been as challenging as I anticipated, but I suspect that the hardest adjustment will come when I return to school next weekend. That said, I do miss my apartment and its proximity to the piazza, to cappuccinos with the perfect amount of foam, and to mouthwatering pastas. (My apartment in Siena was 100% the best real estate I’ll ever live in.)
Other items not included in the above list include:
It still doesn't feel real that I'll be spending a semester abroad in London! I'm feeling excited at the prospect of immersing myself in a foreign country but at the same time I'm sad that I didn't get to spend more time in San Francisco. I haven't been home in a while because I spent the summer working back at Rochester so I've really missed the food and culture. I could go on and on about all of the things I love about the city, but pictures will do a better job of showing it.
Hi, my name is Breanne Ayala, but most people call me Bre. I am a junior at Sewanee: The University of the South in Sewanee, Tennessee. I am from Medford, New Jersey (right between Philly and the beach). As time is ticking down to begin this amazing experience of studying abroad I am finding myself filled with mixed emotions (eagerness, frightened, excitement, and so much more).
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been asked: “are you excited”, “are you all packed”, or “do you feel ready to go”. But no matter how many times people asked me these questions, I still didn’t feel that I was really leaving! Don’t get me wrong, I am more than excited to spend the next few months making my new home in an amazingly beautiful country, but I think that I first needed to be ok with leaving this home.
So here I am, three days before my flights to Chicago and Paris, without a bag being packed at all. The scary thing is, I've procrastinated packing far worse than this. I mean, I've gathered some of my belongings, carry-on items, clothes, and some other small things, but nothing has actually made it into any suitcases or bags. They'll eventually get packed in time, hopefully with everything I need, but I guess we'll see when I arrive in France! Right now I'm just facing the different decisions about what to pack: this pair of shoes of these ones?