As one may be able to infer from the title, yes, my phone was stolen. And, yes, it did suck. A lot.
To be honest, I debated whether to write this post: after all, what value would my tale of woe give anyone? But the lack of a cell phone has had such a profound impact on my study abroad experience that it would be impossible to not write about it.
One of the best things about studying abroad with IES Abroad is that they organize optional and mandatory excursions for students to partake in over the course of the semester. During our orientation week, we all drove about two hours northwest of Vienna to Linz, where I took a food tour and went on a boat ride on the Danube. Because of experiences like this, I was very excited when the staff of the IES Abroad Vienna center released the optional field trips form for us to fill out.
I may have recovered from COVID, but now I’m suffering from another disease: senioritis.
Movies are really important to me. At home, I have a favourite art house cinema, where I can watch good films and cult classics alike in a group environment with a big screen. Sure, I love Netflix (at least the UK catalogue), but there is something special about going to a movie theatre. When I’m not working on schoolwork. It’s much easier to go on tik tok or youtube than to sit down and watch a movie on my laptop with my full attention. So I have taken to going out to the movies when I have a couple hours to spare.
In my wise age of 21 years, I am convinced that one of the peak human experiences is a polar plunge. It may be easier to swim if the body of water you’re entering is warm, but it’s much less rewarding. Every time I travel and have the chance to swim I take it because it makes me feel like I belong in some way. Not that I don’t belong otherwise, but it allows me to step away from my hectic daily life and routine. Sometimes it’s grounding to lift my head up and do something simple. A breath of fresh air, except the breath is me gasping because it’s so cold.
To be honest, I don’t know if I belong here.
Starting a new year of college is always overwhelming, and this semester has been very out of the ordinary for me—what with being in a foreign country and all—so I guess being really stressed out isn’t unexpected. Trying to figure out my shipping address, dorm etiquette, a post-midnight fire alarm, and decorating when I know everything must go in two months have all been taxing, to say the least.
Halfway Through: Being with Yourself in Amsterdam
Two months into my experience in Amsterdam, I think I can now confidently offer real thoughts and advice about how to be in Amsterdam, how to be away from home, and how to be with yourself in Amsterdam. I can also confidently say two things: that I didn’t know what I was getting into prior to arriving and everything has been more than I could have ever imagined.
Okay, here’s something a little embarrassing. I love cream tea.
This is Week 5 here at St. Catherine’s, which means I am more than halfway through my academic time here at Oxford. In my previous posts, I had mentioned trying to settle into a rhythm here.