Florence

Photos by me.

I've been able to go to Florence twice; once in winter and once in summer. Once I visited for the first time in winter it quickly became one of my favorite Italian cities. Everything is old, historic and beautiful. Florence is definitely a place I would go and visit on a weekend trip while I'm in London. I love that everything you would want to see in Florence is in one relatively small area of the city, as opposed to other cities like London or Paris where things to see are spread out over miles of a city and take time to get to. Everything one would want to see: The Duomo, The Uffiizi Gallery, Michaelangelo's David, the Ponte Vecchio Bridge and the River Arno are all within walking distance of each other. That's another thing I like about Florence: its walkability. It's very doable to walk around the city and explore as many tourist areas are pedestrian only or have very few cars. When I stayed here I stayed at a hotel by the Arno river which was great to wake up to and made a very picturesque walk past the river and into the heart of Florence.

Why Westminster?

I've had a lot of people in my life when I tell them I am going to grad school abroad they ask me two things: where am I going to school, and why I picked that school.

So I decided to write up why I chose to attend the University of Westminster for my Master's Degree.

The location. When looking at schools I knew I wanted to be in central London. Central London or bust, as it were. I had researched some other schools, but ultimately they were too far from central London for me. I knew central London was what I wanted and I didn't want to settle. My campus, Marylebone, is right across from Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. It is also a 5 minute walk to Regent's Park. I can totally see myself spending some time in the park catching up on my assigned readings before class.

The cost. Having loans from undergrad I knew I wanted a university with lower tuition fees rather than higher ones. In my research, there are a lot of schools in London and they all range in tuition fees. While Westminster was not the cheapest in tuition fees, they certainly were not the most expensive either. I've seen some schools with fees of 26,000 pounds a year (that's $40,000!) Compared to my undergraduate university, and other schools I was pretty happy with Westminster's fees of 11,500 pounds a year.

The degree. With my undergrad degree being in Travel, Tourism and Hospitality Management, I knew I wanted to get a Master's to coordinate with that. When I was looking at schools, several schools had travel or tourism related degrees, but they just were not appealing to me. They featured various types of tourism or focused on certain aspects of the tourism field, which don't get me wrong, are important but ultimately not what I was aiming for. When I found Westminster's it immediately peaked my interest. Westminster's program deals with the demand for tourism, tourism marketing, how tourism shapes cities around the world (as well as London itself), and also deals with mega events and festivals and how they stimulate pride and energize the local community. All of these aspects have greater interest to me than any other degree I have found.

The housing. I also researched where I would be living while I attend school. If a school was not centrally located, their living facilities probably wouldn't be either. If I wanted to study in central London, I knew I wanted to live there too! The first thing I liked was Westminster offers 2 housing options specifically for post grad students ONLY. That was a huge plus for me because being 24 I knew I wanted to be with people of similar age ranges, not with a bunch of 18 year old freshmen. The second thing I liked were the options of the housing. By this I mean, you could choose to live in an old, Victorian building or a brand new renovated building. However probably what I liked the most was the location of the housing complexes. The new one is located near Kings Cross called Depot Point, while the other older one is located actually in the borough of Westminster near the Victoria train station called Wigram House (and is located a 7 minute walk to Buckingham Palace!) The prices per month for each are reasonable too, when you consider you are in central London. Depot Point, being brand new is about 1000 pounds per month, while Wigram House is about 640 pounds per month (for the largest room).

Overall, I really don't think there is anything I don't like about Westminster. There is usually that one big thing staring you in the face that you know you'll just have to get over...but here there really isn't. I love everything about Westminster; the location, the housing and costs, the degree, the tuition fees...everything seems reasonable.

I guess the compromise with that is dealing with the heart attacks I get when I add up the costs of tuition, housing and personal/travel expenses and wonder to myself 'how am I going to pay for this?!'

Prague

Image via here.

Prague is quickly inching to the top of my list of places to take a long weekend trip to during my time in London. I have wanted to go to Prague for about 10 years now. Ever since I saw the movie Chasing Liberty in 2004, part of which is set in Prague, I have been enchanted by the city and have been itching to go.

Prague, to me, looks like it's straight out of a fairytale. I think Prague's Old Town is one of the most well preserved Old Towns throughout Europe. There is always that worry that I build up places in my head to be greater than they actually are. A friend of mine, who is in London for her Master's, just recently took a weekend trip to Prague, and calmed my fears of the city not being everything I imagine it to be. She described Prague as "everything she dreamed it would be...a gorgeous city." She cannot wait to go back. As for me, I can't wait to just go.

One thing on my list to do in Prague is visit a special cafe. Several years ago, I saw a Samantha Brown episode where she went to Prague. She went to a cafe there called Cafe Imperial. She wanted to visit it to see if what she had read about it was true. She had read that this cafe had a pile of donuts sitting out on the counter that were stale; hard as rocks. For about 60 U.S. dollars, you were allowed to buy the entire plate of stale donuts, and throw them at people in the cafe! No joke. Of course, they couldn't guarantee your safety if you did this however. I'm not sure why, but when I heard that I knew I had to check this place out. Not sure what that says about me...but the concept of being allowed to throw stale donuts at people is hilarious and ridiculous. Now I wouldn't actually buy the donuts and throw them, but maybe take a photo of them at least. Unfortunately, upon my research apparently the plate of donuts has been taken away! So sad. Maybe in recent years, they've put them back. Even without the stale donuts, I would still like to check out the cafe. It looks like a beautiful cafe and restaurant decorated with thousands of ceramic tiles and ornate columns.

I'm already looking up airfares on RyanAir and EasyJet in anticipation of booking a trip over a long weekend next year onceI get settled in London.

309

I've been starting to count down the days until September of 2015. I guess it's enough that I can actually have this to countdown to; to know that each day that passes means it's one day closer to me leaving. At the same time, over 300 days to go until September seems like an eternity. 

Lately some people involved in my life have made some pretty questionable decisions, which is hard to sit by and watch. A positive of that is that I feel so grateful and lucky to be able to have this oppurtunity to pursue my education further, to live in my favorite city in the world and to travel around my favorite continent. For years this is what I have craved so badly. It's what I have wanted so much and there are very few things that would stop me from doing this. For me, a constant goal for me was to live in central London, do something I love and just travel. Travel is not a luxury to me; it is a necessity. It is something that I have to do, or else I'm sure I'd go insane. Staying stagnant in one place, or even one country seems hellish to me. I've been in my current city for just over a year and a half, and now with the impending move to London, I am restless and anxious. It feels like torture to wait a year to finally get to where I want to be, to where I have worked so hard to get to. To be so close to achieving something, to have it dangling in front of me...but wait, you cannot grasp it yet. 

School and various things keep me distracted for the most part. Future trips I am planning also keep me distracted because I know I'll be able to quench the thirst of my desire to travel. Even with distractions, the want and need for London creeps its way in and seems to weave itself like a thread through my daily life and routine. 

I try to tell myself that having this opportunity is an incredible feat - one that I couldn't have pictured for myself just a few years ago. I dreamt of it, sure, but they were just dreams; no basis in my reality. It makes me feel incredibly lucky to have worked so hard and gotten here, to have the chance to pursue my dream, my ultimate goal. So many people I know cannot, or will not pursue what they want for varying reasons. Or they live a life they simply live because they feel obligated to, not because they want to. I am so grateful for my travels, because traveling has opened by eyes to so many things and has made me into who I am. It has showed me what I truly want, and to sacrifice things along the way, but in the end, it is worth it. 

I have never pursued a traditional path in anything. Not while I was young, not in college, not in my impending graduation. While other people seemingly have a checklist...4 years in college, meet someone, fall in love, get engaged, get married, buy a house...I have never seen the solace in that for myself. Those are not wants for myself in the present, they feel like obligations in place by our society that I have no interest in. I am focusing wholly on myself, and what I want. I am allowing myself to be completely selfish, to fill myself with all of my ambitions and the determination to achieve them. 

Knowing this, it is no wonder I have such an intense desire to leave, and leave now. I just want to surround myself with everything I love, everything I crave, everything I need.

"Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail." 

Iceland

Image via here

Iceland is somewhere that's been popping up in my life a lot as of late which I'm taking as a sign that I need to travel there immediately. This small country is a fairly quick flight from London, and is on my 'must travel to' list once I get settled in in the city.

There isn't really anything I don't want to see. I want to explore Reykjavik extensively, see all of the waterfalls and geysers, do the famous Golden Circle tour, see glaciers, explore the smaller cities and towns, try to see the Northern Lights, The Blue Lagoon...the list goes on. From everything I've read and seen on Iceland, it is a truly beautiful and magical place offering extensive topography from huge glaciers to erupting volcanoes and everything in between. 

To be able to visit this incredible destination is something I hope to do someday, and I hope being a relatively short distance from the UK I hope I can visit it several times during my time in England.

Welcome to London

Image via here.

So about 2 weeks ago I, the day after my last post, was heading into school for one of my classes. I always take the bus and check my phone to pass the time. I checked my e-mail as I normally do, and I saw it: a message from the University of Westminster. I thought it was a message regarding my transcripts or something since it had only been about 10 days since I sent in everything. So I opened it and read: I am pleased to inform you that the University has made you a conditional offer of a place on the above course starting in September 2015. So, in short:

I'M OFFICIALLY MOVING TO LONDON!

I was so shocked when I read of my acceptance. It had only been mere days since I had submitted my application, but there it was! My acceptance. Of course, I called my mom right away to tell her. After the words came out of my mouth, I got emotional and started to cry. I probably looked like such a freak crying on the bus but whatever, I didn't care. I didn't really have time to process any of it as I had to rush to class as soon as I got off the bus. It was really hard to pay attention in class and I was just trying to digest the news, and figuring out who I should tell and when and all of that. I really wasn't surprised at the conditional offer. I haven't finished my degree here yet, so I figured that I would get a conditional offer. As long as I keep my GPA at 3.0 or above, I'm good. In recent days there has been some confusion with the school about my GPA being current or final and they changed my offer to unconditional, then back to conditional once they found out my GPA wasn't my final one, but the GPA I have now. I think that is all settled now, though so we're good. 

It's been a pretty surreal past several days. A lot of people congratulating me which makes it that more real. A lot of breaking the news to friends and family, which made it more real too. Even still, it's very surreal and I have moments of intense realization that hit me and sends me into a mix of happy/excited/emotional feelings.

So now I am working on the financial end of it. Trying to get my GPA up as much as possible so I can apply for as many scholarships, and researching getting loans as well. I think that will be the biggest hurdle, and the most vital to me actually moving. It helps to have a lot of time to devote to that, though. Which is why I applied so early anyway, so so far everything is on track and going to plan.

Slightly off topic, but today a new Taylor Swift song is coming out called Welcome to New York. Taylor gave a little insight into this song which is about her move to NYC. I really related to what she said, but of course for myself it is London, not New York that I relate it to. She says:

"New York has been an important landscape and location for the story of my life in the last couple of years. I dreamt about moving to New York, I obsessed over moving to New York, and then I did it, and the inspiration that I found in that city is kind of hard to describe and hard to compare to any other force of inspiration I’ve ever experienced in my life; it’s like an electric city. And I approached moving there with such wide eyed optimism. And I sort of saw it as a place of endless potential and possibilities."

I definitely feel this way about moving. London has played an important role in my life for the past few years. I've dreamed and obsessed about moving to London since 2010. London as a city inspires me, and my love for it is almost indescribable. The feelings I have toward that city is unlike any other feelings I've had for any other place I have traveled to. Looking to the future, I view my move to England with intense optimism and see it as a place where anything and everything can happen.

I'll be making the move in September of 2015. And now the hardest part is waiting.

Notting Hill

A peek into my favorite neighborhood in London, Notting Hill. These photos were taken on my last visit to London 2 years ago. On this trip I was finally able to explore more of Notting Hill. I was with a small group and we took the tube to Notting Hill Gate and explored. I fell more in love with every step I took, and wanted to capture every inch of this part of London with my camera. Being with a group, and on a schedule I was limited to how much time I could spend photographing this neighborhood. Constantly walking, trying to find the nearest tube station, compromised the quality of the photos...something that bothers me to this day. I have many more snapshots that had the potential to be good, but were ruined for the sake of trying to be somewhere I can't even remember. I look forward to the days where I can explore every bit of this part of the city, by myself, better camera in hand.