First Impressions of England

It was hard leaving my family and friends behind as I began my journey. Everything that I had ever known was in my hometown of Cincinnati. Although it is only a temporary separation, this is the first time in my life that I have felt completely cut-off from home.

As Julia and I arrived in England, the first thing that struck me was how similar it seemed to the United States. Despite the similarity, there was still something subtly different about it that almost felt surreal. The buildings here are older, smaller shops are favored over the larger department stores, and people are just as content to walk or bike as they are to drive. Its amazing to see how few obese people there are in England, which says a lot about the lazy lifestyles of many Americans.

One of the things that I have had to adjust to here is transportation. It was strange at first to travel from place to place without driving. A good thing, because I would probably get myself killed if I tried to drive over here. For one, the British drive on the opposite side of the road as Americans. Secondly, all of the street markings are different. While in the States we use double yellow lines to separate cars that are traveling in opposite directions, here they use a dashed white line. If I ever decided to drive a car, I know that I would merge over to the right hand side of the road without thinking about it and slam headfirst into an oncoming bus! Now that I have adjusted to it, I actually prefer to travel long distances by train. Not only are they faster than cars, it is nice to just sit back and enjoy the scenery while sipping a cup of tea before arriving at our next destination.

The main reason why Julia and I chose to come to England was because neither of us had mastered a foreign language. Still, on occasion, I have had some trouble understanding the heavier british accents. The biggest adjustment however wasn't the accent, but the different phrases that are used. For example, the British use "queue" to mean "get in line" and "trousers" to mean "pants," in fact "pants" means "underwear" over here so be aware of how you use it! It had been my hope to acquire a slight British accent while I am in England, until one of my friends at Surrey actually complimented me on my American accent. I guess the fact that it is different from everyone else makes it special.

On a final note, I believe that many Americans may have the impression that the rest of the world is not quite as technologically advanced as the US. This is not true at all. You will be surprised at how much is the same no matter where you travel. Though there are some differences, the same is true for different parts of America. Someone who has grown up on a farm is going to view the world differently than someone who has grown up in a big city, no matter what country they are from. Don't ever let something like this affect your decision to study abroad. You will find that no matter where you go, everything that you truly need will be provided for you.

Intro

For those of you who do not know me, I am a 4th year Biomedical Engineering student at the University of Cincinnati. I have traveled to England to study Biomedical Sciences at the University of Surrey (UniS) with my classmate Julia Jones. Since I have a tendency to be brief when I write, you may visit Julia's blog here, for a more elaborate and exciting rendition of our adventures.

Many of you may be wondering why should I travel, what makes England, or any other country for that matter, better than the United States? To be honest, I asked myself the same question before deciding to study abroad. After all, I was content enough to complete my studies back home. But there was a part of me that wondered what it would be like, that desperately wanted to see new places, meet new people, and experience events that I never dreamed I'd see. Even now, halfway through my visit, it is hard to believe that I made it this far. For that I need to thank Julia. It was she who gave me the courage to explore the world.

As you read this blog, I hope that it can convince you to consider finding the time to expand your own horizons. Whatever country you may wish to visit, whether it be England or otherwise, I hope that these few passages will give you insight to the steps you will need to take in order to have an unbelievable study abroad experience.