People say the best part of studying abroad is the amazing experiences you have or the great places you see. So far, my favorite part of studying abroad has been checking away messages of my friends back at home.
This week has been particularly fun for me because it is the third worst week of the semester (behind finals and girls' rush, of course).
Not only do my buddies have massive amounts of work to do, but they've just come back from a glorious week of rest and relaxation.
Some of my favorite away messages of the past few days have included "Trying not to freak out over life," "iCruise, iWish iWere still there," "Trying not to be so bitter about all the suddenly tan people," and, best of all, "I don't screw my boyfriend anymore because school is screwing me so hard."
I don't mean to be inconsiderate. Believe me, I understand what it's like to be stressed and have piles upon piles of work, which I can't start because of my insanely demanding extracurriculars (cough Cav Daily cough). I feel that after five semesters of stressing over papers and exams, however, we're all entitled to a break.
And that is why God invented study abroad.
Sure, you get to go to amazing places and see amazing things while abroad, but all of this is only possible because of the minuscule amounts of work assigned. Also, only having class three days a week helps.
So far this semester I have turned in two papers, and for one of them I wasn't even required to have outside sources! My media studies professors would be appalled if they found out I didn't have to turn in summaries of insanely dense critical readings every class.
All of this extra time has given me plenty of opportunity to explore London and other parts of Europe.
For example, last Friday I saw a matinee showing of the play "Wicked" and Saturday I explored Portobello Road Market in Notting Hill. To my dismay, I did not find Hugh Grant's travel book store, nor did I run into Julia Roberts. I did, however, see where George Orwell lived. Who would have imagined that the "Tory anarchist" would live in a bright blue terra cotta townhouse? I suppose it's better than the bright pink one next door.
One of the best parts of London is that most of the museums are free -- a perk of being robbed blind by the exchange rate. Two dollars to one British pound is not my idea of a bargain. Perfect time to study abroad, right?
London is home to some of the most brilliant pieces of art. I recently had the chance (in my copious free time) to visit the Tate Modern, which hosts pieces by Jackson Pollock, Matisse and Picasso, just to name a few. Did I mention I got to see these for free?
Though the Tate Modern has some great pieces of art, I could not fathom how some of the pieces made it into the museum. How a cartoon of a man tripping and face-planting into the sidewalk made the cut is beyond me. But then again the museum is in an old industrial warehouse and has a huge crack in the floor running all along the bottom level.
Plays, museums and shopping are all just a small part of the study abroad experience. I haven't even mentioned the nightlife yet, but that will be for a later time, my devoted reader.
So while you're cramming for that next midterm, just remember that all of these fantastic opportunities could be yours if you so choose to study abroad. If you do decide to study abroad, I highly recommend checking your friend's away messages frequently, especially during exam time.
Wow, I'm really going to kick myself in the mouth next year. In the meantime, anyone have a good excuse as to why I failed all of my classes this semester?
Courtney's column runs biweekly Wednesdays. She can be reached at kessler@cavalierdaily.com.
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