Coming to the United Kingdom was such a cool new experience to be able to do, especially at this time in my life. I have gotten to dive into a different culture and experience both similar and different things than my own culture. On our first day, a few girls and I decided to go out to eat. Immediately we learned that they do not have ice in drinks and you must ask for your check. These actions were new and interesting to us but nevertheless, we adapted.
Drinking Culture- Your Unordinary may be someone's ordinary!
Being in London, I have learned that the British love to drink! I have never been somewhere where drinking is so socially accepted. It was cool to see alcohol consumption brought up in a positive way especially because I feel in America it is almost shunned. When visiting multiple PR firms they all brought up how Pubs are a fun way to grow closer to coworkers as well as meet new clients which I found very interesting.
Getting Around- 10,000 steps a day!
It was very fun walking around the city of London. On this trip I have walked more miles in a day than I would a week. It was a very nice change of getting around and definitely cheaper! At home I only use my car to get around so it was very fun to use new transportation techniques. I feel that back home, public transportation is a lot less appealing than it is here in the United Kingdom. I also had so much fun traveling on trains and being able to see different parts of the country in cool new ways.
Shocks, Surprises and Overcoming them
Before coming to the United Kingdom, I did my best to research the country but of course you never know what to expect until you arrive. Upon arrival we were given an orientation where they told us some basics and warned us of possible pick pocketing and thieves. It wasn't until this became reality that we took this news seriously. On this trip, a phone was stolen as well as multiple cards having fraud committed on them. It is so unfortunate that these things had to happen but it is also amazing how well these students have overcome these conflicts and still made the best out of their trip.
This program was overall an amazing experience that I could not compare to anything else I have ever done. Of course with visiting another country comes culture shocks and unexpected issues. Although we did have some downs in our trip I feel that this group always did a great job seeing the light in situations and moving forward positively.
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