Tag Archives: flights

Can’t Sleep, Let’s Talk

All I can say is, “WOW, what a flight!!!”

I can’t complain because it was an estimated 22 hours, cut into 16!  It’s only been my 3rd time flying, NEVER for this long though.  My first flight was to Atlanta, second was to Puerto Rico (ranging from 2 – 4 hours respectively).  Now it was to HONG KONG! It still hasn’t hit me yet, or has it?! It is 4 in the morning and I CANNOT sleep, LOL.  I don’t mind though.  It is giving me the chance to jot down my thoughts!

So……. I didn’t really read much on the plane, I thought the movies were much more interesting and made the time go by a little faster.  Economy class sleeping wasn’t so great until I found the perfect position! Ahhh , I laid the open seat’s tray out beside me and put my head right across it! Nice way to think of the idea with only 4 hours left, ey!?  Come to think of not so bad things – The food was pretty all right too.  Not the GREAT breakfast my dear mother cooked me before leaving 5:30 in the morning, but still good!  I enjoyed every moment of it!!

NOW to the hard stuff! J  I know experienced travelers told me to pack light, but hey I am an over packer by nature! I thought I did pretty well with my two suitcases, backpack and large purse.

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DON’T judge me! Haha  I put a lot of things back that I thought I would need……….. okay want.  I did wish I packed less traveling from the airport to the University, but when I think about it I rather have everything I need and not have to worry about buying things right away – then scramble for it when I get there.   But back to my point – if you have patience and strength, the train and bus aren’t impossible; they just require lifting and great steering.  If you don’t have patience and have limited strength take the taxi! Our route was off plane at 230pm HK time (go to immigration, pick up bags, get HK money, then buy bus ticket), bus, then train, then shuttle to guesthouse on campus arriving around 530pm HK.  It was quite a ride, but when you have people to talk to it flies by!  It funny because after all of that, I wouldn’t even call that a journey.  That was the short trip.  I would call the campus we finally arrived to an EVERY DAY journey.  WHY? Because we are up in the mountains with steep hills, water surrounding us, and buildings not so close together.

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This campus and country will change me for the better.  I already envision great things! Talk to you guys soon!

 


Location: Guesthouse clinic road, shatin hong kong

Intro Post: 6 Weeks!

Hello! My name is Natalie, and I’ll be studying at the University of Leeds this coming year. I’m a rising junior majoring in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, and I have plans to attend medical school.

I’m going to talk a bit on the background of my study abroad and what’s happened so far, and then I’ll address my goals for my GeoBlog.

I’ve known that I wanted to study abroad since I started at Penn State, and the reason I decided to go to England, specifically Leeds, is because of some pretty awesome friends. Nearly my entire group of friends this past year was study abroad students, and the majority of them were British.

The Eberly College of Science has a few different universities with which it has “science partnerships.” By my understanding, that pretty much means that PSU has evaluated these universities’ science courses and have deemed them of acceptable quality. Within this list, I had options to go to France, Germany, New Zealand, Singapore, and England (and maybe a few more? Can’t remember…). I favoured England over all the others (and I also have family there–my granny grew up in England), and within had choices of Leeds, Bath, or Sussex. I had friends from both Bath and Leeds, and it was mutually agreed upon by them that the cost of living in Bath was much higher than in Leeds. Thus, by my rationale, it seemed most practical to live somewhere a bit less expensive so I had more money to travel and do other things.

A lot of people have asked me why I’m going for the whole year, as not many people do so. In fact, I’m the only person from Penn State going to Leeds for the whole year. The answer to that that question is kind of vague, but mostly revolves around my experiences with the study abroad students at PSU. In addition to my friends this past year, I had a whole other group of foreign friends in the spring of my freshman year. Everyone I have met who was abroad for only one semester was really not ready to go home, but those here for the whole year were about ready to do so. I think I’d rather be ready to come home, than be left hanging with all the things I wanted to do still. So we’ll see if my feelings on that subject change, but I really think I’ll enjoy England and be happy for the whole year. I hope!

So I spent most of last winter and spring sorting out what courses I planned to take. Unfortunately, I was not able to get as many Leeds courses to specifically replace PSU courses required for my major as I would have liked. However, I did get enough to result in my schedule comprising of a few courses in my major, all 400-level electives required for my major, and nearly the rest of my PSU gen ed requirements. I’m going to have a lot of catch-up to do senior year (I’m expecting 6, 400-level BMB courses senior fall!). But it will be worth it, and so all will be well. Somehow.

I got my official acceptance from Leeds in April, and everything was sort of left for a while. I started looking into UK Visa stuff in June, and it was a bit of a pain. Leeds was late sending me my Confirmation of Acceptance to Study (CAS) number which allowed me to get my visa. Some UK visa bureaucracy stuff that was out of their control. So once I got that, there was an online application, I had to go down to Pittsburgh to get my photo and fingerprints taken (Yikes! I’m in the system now), and then had 2 weeks to send a ton of stuff in. MAJORLY stressful. So much that had to be “just so.” And I was paranoid. Not really for any good reason, but more because transposing a number or not being clear enough about something could equal not getting my visa. And thus I would have to reapply, pay more money, and it might even screw up my entire next year. So that was a stressful time. But all is well now. I have a pretty sticker stuck in my passport that says “UK Visa” and has a pretty picture on it (much better than my passport photo)

Getting a plane ticket was also kind of fun. I scoped out Travelocity looking for cheap flights, and found one for $480! The reason it was so cheap is for 2 reasons: I have a layover in Boston and another in Reykjavik, and the airlines are Jet Blue and Icelandic Airways.  I figured for the price it was really good considering that I don’t really mind the layovers, and I really don’t have anywhere to be. That is to say that I fly 8th Sept, get to England the 9th, and don’t really have any obligations till the 12th or so. I’m flying into Manchester, and will take a train to Leeds.

So, moral of the visa/flight is that I can at least at this point GET to England 🙂 Now that I have those, it’s kind of starting to become “real” in my head!

I’ve also just gotten my housing sorted out. I’m living in halls (dorms) about a 25 minute walk from campus. There’s due to be 5 in a flat, sharing a kitchen. I’m doing self-catered which means that I don’t have a meal plan, and will be cooking! I’ve decided to do self-catered mostly because I’m kind of sick of eating dining hall food, and it will give me a chance to get out into the town to go shopping and such. It’ll be interesting, considering that I’m not used to having to cook meals, but I’m looking forward to the change/challenge.

Hmmm….what else to talk about…

I guess a big thing about getting ready to go is all the logistics. I’ve a ton of things to sort out still, like banking over there, telling the phone and insurance companies over here that I’ll be away for the year, figure out a budget (It’s going to be SOOOOOOO expensive! Yikes!), and the list goes on and on!

I think the biggest thing now is PACKING! I’m just bewildered at how I’m going to pack for a year in a suitcase and a backpack! I’m not really planning on sending anything over. Just too expensive, and that also means I’ll have to get it back home. I guess I’m just telling myself that my goal this year is to learn to live as lightly as possible. I want to do as much as I can while I’m over there, but don’t have all that much money to spend. So we’ll see how it all works out! But back to the packing…My friends’ preliminary advice with regards to packing was to pack your favourite clothes, and not to bring any basic things (like T-shirts) which can easily be bought in England. So beyond that…I think I’m going to have to keep in mind the weather, as I seem to be pulling out mostly summer things, with it being as hot here as it is now. However, there is an 18 degree difference Fahrenheit between the high here and in Leeds for tomorrow. Yikes! And I need to start converting degrees again…I was doing really well during the school year with Celsius, but the summer has been Fahrenheit-theamed. Sounds loads hotter to say 100 degrees rather than 38!

So that’s kind of my story of how I got where I am now. Kind of long.

So, one of the most important parts of this intro post: my goals for this GeoBlog.

  • First and foremost, I expect this will be one of the most important experiences of my life, and thus I would love to have documentation of my thoughts, feelings, and observations to look back on at the end of the year as well as later in life. And I’m sure there is sooooo much I’d forget if I didn’t record it! And of course, one of the requirements of having a GeoBlog is actually writing in it, and thus that will be an incentive to keep up with it.
  • Second, I expect to keep my family and friends updated on my time at Leeds through the blog, and of course anyone looking to study abroad, whether it be Leeds, England, or anywhere.
  • In terms of content (my thoughts at this time, which of course may change), I expect the beginning will chiefly address getting set up in England, culture shock, and my feelings about studying abroad. Over the past two years, my time spent with international students has really peaked my interest in differences in culture and language. Thus I anticipate writing quite a bit about the differences between British and American culture, as well as the destinations of my other travels. Of course, interesting tidbits will be thrown in whenever they arise. I’m thinking that maybe by about December, I’d like to make a note to myself to spend some time thinking about and blogging about the personal growth I’ve noticed and experienced. And as a side note, I have a camera which I love, so once I have pictures to post, they’ll be in here 🙂

Well, that’s all I can think of for the moment. A very long post, but it gives what I think is necessary background, as well as kind of showing where my head is on the subject right now, about 6 WEEKS from departure.  

I expect to write again near the end of August, and we’ll see what’s happening then! (Hopefully I’ll be mostly packed, or at least know what I’m taking!)

Natalie


Location: Allison Park, PA

To Mexico Tomorrow!

Oh my!

 

Tomorrow morning, I will be waking up bright and early at 3:30 AM to start my day and journey to Puebla! I cannot believe that it is finally here. I suppose it didn’t help that I put off packing until today, either. I can just hear John Denver singing in the background…

 

 

35691.jpgSo, I have successfully managed to fill my suitcase and carry-on to zip-able levels, but I leave behind in my wake a masterful disaster of clothes, books, and other belongings that sadly did not make the cut.

 

I would be lying if I wrote that I wasn’t nervous at the moment. The cool and calm thoughts of last week have currently flown the nest. I’ve been fortunate enough to travel enough times that it’s not the flights or airports or buses that’s doing it, but it’s rather just the big idea that I am going out there. More on my own than I’ve ever been. I mean, I am looking forward to so many things, but I can’t kick these jitters. To summarize– and quote Zac Efron– I suppose I am nervous but excited.

 

I’ve been reading a few books in Spanish (tending to stick with a few familiars, like Harry Potter y La Piedra Filosofal, for instance) and reviewing my vocab, so hopefully I’ll be able to speak it well enough to converse and get by. I can’t wait to get to Puebla, mi ciudad nueva!


Location: Bethlehem, Pennsylvania

Wait…I leave in less than 24 hours?!

Hey everyone! I truly can’t believe that I leave for the airport in the early hours of the new year! I have been going crazy trying to figure out what I need to pack to live in another country for 4 months; I hope I have everything! I have already packed and repacked 2 times to try and make sure I have everything that I wanted to bring while still being under the weight limit. It was certainly a challenge but there are some great packing resources online (and a personal packing list helps a lot too). Today I’ll be finalizing and zipping up my bags and preparing for the adventure to begin. What a crazy thought.

I’m so glad that the weather is cooperating so far for my departure; the crazy weather over the past week had me scared that my flight was going to be cancelled. My plane takes off around 8am from Newark and I’ll be arriving at Heathrow airport at about 8pm (3pm our time) on Saturday, January 1st. I am pretty anxious about trying to find my way to my hostile by myself with all of my luggage at night but I think that’s one of the great things about my semester abroad — I’m going to be put into many unfamiliar positions, but having to figure them out on my own will be such wonderful learning experiences.

Since I can’t actually move into my dorm until the 3rd, I have to stay in a hostile for my first 2 nights in London. That in itself should be a great experience — I’ll be sure to mention that in my next blog!
See you in 4 months, America!!!! 

Location: Susquehanna, PA

And now I’m stuck in the UK

I have the worst luck with flying. Seriously. I was supposed to fly home this morning to be with my family for Christmas. I have a flight back to the UK on the 26th because I want to do New Year’s in London, so it was already a short trip. 

Yesterday, there was a “blizzard” and Heathrow and Gatwick closed down. Now, let me remind you, I was stuck in Austria a couple of weeks ago for the same reason. Well, Gatwick was closed then. I ended up having to take a bus to Bratislava in Slovakia and flying out there in a blizzard! They literally guided my plane through completely snow covered tracks. We couldn’t see anything. The only thing that was cleared was the runway. That much snow and we still got off fine. 
Anyway, I was thinking “good thing I booked my flight for Sunday”. And it should’ve been a good thing. The snow stopped around 6pm last night so, as all of you Northeastern people know, that should be ample time to clear. Well, no such luck. I woke up at 7am this morning, an hour before I was supposed to, and checked my flight. A big red “canceled” glared at me from the screen. I cried a little.
I spent $15 trying to call Delta’s customer service, but never got through. Eventually I found a link on my reservation and rebooked on a flight tomorrow, but it’s a shit flight. It’ll take me 14 and a half hours to get to JFK and from there I have to figure out how to get to my home in upstate NY. I called my mom to see if she could switch the connecting flight I’m going to miss tonight to tomorrow. 
Like in Austria, though, I’ve lucked out a bit. In Austria I was staying with one of my best friends from back home who was studying there. Here, in London, I’m staying at my boyfriend’s. So at least it’s not costing me a fortune on hotels. 
I just want to get home for Christmas, though. I already bought everyone presents!

Location: London, England