A Quick Update and BIG News

This is going to be just a quick update, but I received my Visa in the mail the other day and I couldn't be happier. The intensity of the process and the complexity of the forms had me worried that something might go wrong, but when that UPS envelope arrived I was elated. Its basically a giant sticker which resembles the front page of a US passport but with UK stuff all over it. They stick it in one of the available pages of your passport....so we finally discovered the reason why we had to send the New York office my passport and not a copy. Anyway, it feels really good to know that we've done things well and I'm really all set to go to England now!

Now for the really BIG news ...... my London intership ... I've been tentatively placed with the Hampstead Theater!!!!!! I'll be working with their Children's Theater Program. Words cannot express my happiness at this news.

Meetings of the Most Exciting Variety

This week has certainly been filled with news of London!

Monday was my first internship placement meeting, where I discussed my specific interests and goals with Kaitlin, our London contact. We talked about my goal of finding a way to combine my eventual career in business with my passion for the arts, and how that could apply to my internship sites. We came up with several exciting options, including theater, film/television, galleries/museums, and journalism, with theater being my first choice.

If I get an internship with a theater, I could be working with theater management or PR operations, which would be soooo exciting. And while West End internships are super selective and probably out of the question, I'm still keeping my fingers crossed. It doesn't matter to me where my internship is; anywhere they could place me sounds fascinating and I can't wait to find out where I'll be working! YAY! :)

Tuesday was our pre-departure orientation meeting. Katlin reviewed a lot of what we had heard before, but we got exciting news that if we apply online for an International Student Identification Card, we can get tons of discounts in London (movie tickets, museum admission etc.). We were also given information about how to order our international cell phones, which will surely come in handy while we're there! Incoming calls are free and that's about it. So if you want to call me, the best thing to do would be to get one of those 10 cents a minute international calling cards. Of course, I'm a great advocate of Skype, especially if you have a webcam. That way I can talk to you AND see you for free! WOHOO!

So now, we wait until December 4th: our next meeting. It seems like so far away, but I have the feeling that November is going to fly by! Hopefully I'll have an internship update to post before then, but we'll see what happens!

Of Schedules, Syllabi, and Teachers

I just got home from the first Global Citizens Program meeting that I've been able to attend! It was a good thing I could make it considering the details that were covered.

First, a schedule of events, of sorts. There's an orientation scavenger hunt when we first get to London which sounds interesting. Hopefully it will involve running around London taking pictures with random things! It's probably not, but hey, a girl can dream right? We have classes Monday through Thursday (AKA FRIDAYS OFF!), one class per day. We're all hoping that it will provide for lots of free time, especially considering that the format is lots of participation, one paper / presentation and a final exam!

We got various syllabi, which were exciting if you're a dork like me! The Business Dynamics syllabus is pretty basic, as is the Macroeconomics syllabus. The syllabus for Britons at Work looks a lot like the Britain section of my Comparative Government class at NDA, which will be magnificent! And last but certainly not least, British Culture and Ideas. The selected readings look awesome, especially Satanic Verses and The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Fun stuff!

The resumes of our professors are HEAVY DUTY. Do they have resumes. I was excited to see that one of my professors is from Nottingham, which immediately made me think of Alan and his brilliant work in Robin Hood. (Anyone have a spoon handy?) I'm most impressed, however, by my Business Dynamics teacher, Nigel Vincent Knight (how British does that sound?). He's been an economic adviser to Parliament, the Royal Family, and the HSBC. Very impressive.

So overall, it was a great meeting. I'm sooooo excited for London and can't wait for the pre-departure orientation meeting with the London contact person, who arrives next week! Hooray!

Homeland Security!

So today was my appointment to get my "biometric data" (aka fingerprints) taken to go along with my Visa Application. It was not easy! You need a special ticket to get into the building. With some difficulty, my Mom and I did locate the Office of Homeland Security. Thank goodness for GPS systems (or Jane, as I affectionately call mine). The very non-threatening looking guard let us in, and I had to leave my mom in the waiting room. I went to the receptionist desk, and was scrutinized along with my passport picture. Good thing I got new ones taken, my hair was much much shorter and I didn't have glasses then (regardless I still look rather creepy in my passport pictures). Before I knew it, I was shut in a tiny cubicle getting my electronic fingerprints taken. Now I can finally have my fingerprints manipulated like on CSI ... oh wait ... I guess that may not be a good thing. Anyway, it took all of 10 minutes; a lot of driving for such a short appointment! So now all I have left is to put everything together and send it to the UK Visa office in New York. I suppose that I should keep my fingers crossed that I won't be denied by the Brits!

VISA of the Non-Shopping Variety

Well, I've finally managed to finish my UK Student Visa Application. I consider completing it a small miracle. There are only so many ways I can assure people that I'm not, in fact, a terrorist and explain that my parents are American. If a study abroad program is in your future, DO NOT PROCRASTINATE with your application. There are a ton of questions to answer. They're all super specific. Now that I have finished it, we need to find an office in Philly to submit my finger prints and various supporting documents.

The next big task is to schedule an appointment to meet with the EUSA London contact to discuss potential internship sites. I'm so excited. I'm going to try to get an internship somehow related to publishing, theater or film. Past Villanova students have been placed with the BBC, which I think would be absolutely amazing.

I cannot wait for it to be January 4th, but with October almost gone I don't even want to think about how fast it's really going to come. It's CRAZY! But everyday in Business Dynamics class, sitting next to Krista, makes me more and more excited! I can't wait to actually post about Londony things instead of logistics and longings!

While Waiting ...

So I was reading James Barbour's blog last night. I have just met him after seeing A Tale of Two Cities in New York. (This has only strengthened my desire to find Alan, while in London. British actors are soooooo cool). I've changed the template for this blog to match the one that he uses!

Anyway...I can't believe how fast the time has gone by. It seems like just yesterday that it was my first week at Villanova...and now we're already on fall break. Krista and I have booked our flights to London. We fly out on the 4th of January, and I am in the process of applying for my London Student Visa. I absolutely cannot wait to be in England. The anticipation is the hardest part, I hope.

On a completely unrelated note, I advise anyone reading this to see A Tale of Two Cities. I've always loved Charles Dickens and this is a brilliant musical. If you can manage to see it with the original cast, even better. Words can't describe the talent of that cast. It's right up there with Les Mis. I'm trying to get my parents to see it with me again before I leave for London. Fingers crossed!

Cleared for take off!

Yessssssssssssssssss! I got the official e-mail around 9:30 last night and have been freaking out ever since! Everyone is so happy for me today... it was special to say the least. I'm so excited and I've already changed my ringtone to "No Place Like London", fittingly the title of this blog. My good friend from NDA, Krista, was accepted too. We're planning on being roommates.

I've sent an e-mail to the Travers, and cannot wait to spend time with them next year. I want it to be January now! All I really have left to say is that Alan Rickman better get ready because he won't know what hit him! =)

OK, so we'll miss the fireworks in London on New Year's but I'll be ringing in this coming new year with the opportunity of a life time!

Testing....one two three.....

While attending Candidates Day for Early Accepted Students in the Villanova School of Business, I was asked to consider applying for the Global Citizens Program. In the Spring Semester, freshmen study in London, England and engage in a six week internship. I've applied and am hoping to be among those selected. Krista, a classmate from the Academy of Notre Dame and Ken from elementary school days are here too. Maybe we'll all go across the pond together!

I've decided to play around with creating a blog in case I am accepted into the program. I should be sleeping on this school night, but I'm finding it hard. Every five minutes I think of how exciting it would be if this blog were filled with the chronicles of my life in London next year. I'm so close, yet so far away from finding out....only 4 more days at most before we hear who gets to go!

Just think ... home of the Queen and Jane Austin, the land of Harry Potter, Alan Rickman and good family friends the Travers from our days at Simon and Jude. And don't forget how close London is to Ireland, Scotland, Paris and Rome!