The Best Semester of Your Life

Months and months of anticipation felt like a lifetime compared to the months actually spent abroad. Landing in London on January 5th was one of the most exciting days of my life. I was nervous to be away from home for such a long amount of time, but excited to start one of my most independent adventures of my entire life.

The first thing I wanted to do was to take a nap! I didn't get much sleep on the plane (due to excitement) and the jetlag was hitting hard! However, IES London had a different plan in mind. I arrived with my months worth of luggage and was told that I had one hour to get settled and that I would be going on a tour of the area and purchasing my Oyster card (the public transportation card that will inevitably become your best friend). IES staff knew we were all exhausted, but that the best thing for us was to get moving and adjust as best as we could to the time change as soon as possible. We all got our necessary items (sheets, hangers, and all the essentials) and got excited for what was left to come.

IES Staff wanted us all to have the best experience possible from day 1. Whether it was organizing fun and interesting tours around all of England, to just having a casual conversation about our travel plans in between classes. They never failed to lend their years of advice to ensure we were safe and making the most of our time overseas! I would not have traded this experience for anything and would not have wanted my experience to be with any other abroad coordinators.