LonDONE with... london
Wow. Who even knew.
This post is specifically going to be less satire—as I've noticed that lately, I have dove into the deep hell of surreality—and more reflective. I need to get some real thoughts out here. Even today I was thinking to myself of the weirdly specific lessons I've learned; so no, this isn't just about fulfilling my assignment (although that is a large contributor towards this post's existence). I want to share what I feel was important about this study abroad to me, seven weeks and six grand later. Three differences from my normal life and three lessons I learned from them will be shared.
Difference One: Living in an exponentially more diverse city than Provo.
Learned Lesson One: Cosmopolitanism.
We spoke of this in our prep course, actually. Cosmopolitanism is the idea of faceting one's self into the 'cosmos'—an expression of limitlessness. London is limitless. I've no idea how many countries were represented in the backgrounds of the thousands of people I've spoken with here. It's quite a lot. That being said, although London is a predominantly English-speaking city, it isn't American English. That throws a bit of a wrench into your day, as one second you'll be having completely familiar interactions with people, and the next they'll go off about something you've never heard of using words you didn't know existed.
Difference Two: Living amongst millions more people than in Provo.
Learned Lesson Two: Individualism.
Being surrounded by so many identities very different from my own led me to question what I thought of my own self. I remember one of the first things I thought about to myself when I arrived back into Europe was that I could theoretically purchase alcohol if I wanted to. Last time I was here, I was constantly with other missionaries, and back in Provo, it's 1) illegal for folks my age to buy alcoholic beverages and 2) hard to do, because you're still surrounded by LDS peers. Not that I would buy alcohol, of course. It was just odd being in a living circumstance where I'd be able to purchase drinks and nobody would bat an eye. Along with apparent alcoholic freedom, I started to understand that I truly was fine with being an introverted individual. I also understood that I was completely happy with the lifestyle I'd chose to live. I came to know more about why my relationships with other people were the way they were. I learned much about my own self, which in turn benefited my interactions with others.
Difference Three: Living amongst 35 girls and five other boys.
Learned Lesson Three: Men and women are both similar and different in ways I hadn't thought about.
I remember very clearly the first time I ever found out that the male-to-female ratio would be so skewed. I was simultaneously really excited and really apprehensive. But, I came to recognize before I arrived that my mindset was not to date the most attractive person I could find. Not at all! I decided to study abroad to learn about, experience, and fall in love with a new area, not a new person. And so my apprehensiveness faded. In making friends (with the purpose of not going beyond that) with a lot of girls at once, I just had to understand that speaking of specific guys' attractiveness in movies was going to happen much more often in my life. However! I have female friends on the study abroad who like Pokémon just as much as I do, who like running just as much as I do, who like rap music just as much as I do, and who like weird, barely-understandable humour just as much as I do. I don't need much else, n'est-ce pas?
This period has truly gone by so quickly. It's hard to comprehend that in less than a week, I'll be back in Provo, as if I never left, working at the BYU Creamery and spending hours at a time at the library. I'll look back and wonder, was that even real? Did I actually live in London from April to June? The fact that I know that'll happen makes me a little emotional. But, that which I've learned here will always stay in me. And I'll know that it really, actually was real. The friendships I've made, the love I've developed for a city, the times I've been happy, the times I've been sad, the tired hours on the bus, the energetic hours jumping around Welsh palaces, all of those memories may fade. And that sincerely saddens me. But these lessons I've learned, the shifts I've gone through in my mind, those won't fade. They'll stay with me forever, and I'll be forever grateful for them.
Cheers, mates!
--
Photo highlights of the trip:
The first night together seemed so surreal.
The face you make when Big Ben is all covered in scaffolding.
Our faces pictured here are surprisingly accurate descriptions of how our dorm was.
Harry Potter was a common obsession and the day my Patronus (an eagle owl) was found, I couldn't have been happier.
The night before our Paris trip saw my hair cut in a fashion I'd never experienced before.
My lovely family came to visit. We all loved being in a city with so much heritage and such a large contribution to contemporary culture.
My spiritual side was awakened in Leeds.
"The London Eye. It goes around. That's it." - our Thames cruise guide
I was graced by the heavens with a completely unforeseen "bump" into one of my favourite singers, Lauv, at the Tate Modern Museum of Modern Art. I'll admit, it was hard to concentrate on the exhibits after that.
"New"t Scamander
I "new"t was going to happen eventually.
N. "Sam"ander, on his way to do some magic.
This post is specifically going to be less satire—as I've noticed that lately, I have dove into the deep hell of surreality—and more reflective. I need to get some real thoughts out here. Even today I was thinking to myself of the weirdly specific lessons I've learned; so no, this isn't just about fulfilling my assignment (although that is a large contributor towards this post's existence). I want to share what I feel was important about this study abroad to me, seven weeks and six grand later. Three differences from my normal life and three lessons I learned from them will be shared.
Difference One: Living in an exponentially more diverse city than Provo.
Learned Lesson One: Cosmopolitanism.
We spoke of this in our prep course, actually. Cosmopolitanism is the idea of faceting one's self into the 'cosmos'—an expression of limitlessness. London is limitless. I've no idea how many countries were represented in the backgrounds of the thousands of people I've spoken with here. It's quite a lot. That being said, although London is a predominantly English-speaking city, it isn't American English. That throws a bit of a wrench into your day, as one second you'll be having completely familiar interactions with people, and the next they'll go off about something you've never heard of using words you didn't know existed.
Difference Two: Living amongst millions more people than in Provo.
Learned Lesson Two: Individualism.
Being surrounded by so many identities very different from my own led me to question what I thought of my own self. I remember one of the first things I thought about to myself when I arrived back into Europe was that I could theoretically purchase alcohol if I wanted to. Last time I was here, I was constantly with other missionaries, and back in Provo, it's 1) illegal for folks my age to buy alcoholic beverages and 2) hard to do, because you're still surrounded by LDS peers. Not that I would buy alcohol, of course. It was just odd being in a living circumstance where I'd be able to purchase drinks and nobody would bat an eye. Along with apparent alcoholic freedom, I started to understand that I truly was fine with being an introverted individual. I also understood that I was completely happy with the lifestyle I'd chose to live. I came to know more about why my relationships with other people were the way they were. I learned much about my own self, which in turn benefited my interactions with others.
Difference Three: Living amongst 35 girls and five other boys.
Learned Lesson Three: Men and women are both similar and different in ways I hadn't thought about.
I remember very clearly the first time I ever found out that the male-to-female ratio would be so skewed. I was simultaneously really excited and really apprehensive. But, I came to recognize before I arrived that my mindset was not to date the most attractive person I could find. Not at all! I decided to study abroad to learn about, experience, and fall in love with a new area, not a new person. And so my apprehensiveness faded. In making friends (with the purpose of not going beyond that) with a lot of girls at once, I just had to understand that speaking of specific guys' attractiveness in movies was going to happen much more often in my life. However! I have female friends on the study abroad who like Pokémon just as much as I do, who like running just as much as I do, who like rap music just as much as I do, and who like weird, barely-understandable humour just as much as I do. I don't need much else, n'est-ce pas?
This period has truly gone by so quickly. It's hard to comprehend that in less than a week, I'll be back in Provo, as if I never left, working at the BYU Creamery and spending hours at a time at the library. I'll look back and wonder, was that even real? Did I actually live in London from April to June? The fact that I know that'll happen makes me a little emotional. But, that which I've learned here will always stay in me. And I'll know that it really, actually was real. The friendships I've made, the love I've developed for a city, the times I've been happy, the times I've been sad, the tired hours on the bus, the energetic hours jumping around Welsh palaces, all of those memories may fade. And that sincerely saddens me. But these lessons I've learned, the shifts I've gone through in my mind, those won't fade. They'll stay with me forever, and I'll be forever grateful for them.
Cheers, mates!
--
Photo highlights of the trip:
The first night together seemed so surreal.
The face you make when Big Ben is all covered in scaffolding.
Our faces pictured here are surprisingly accurate descriptions of how our dorm was.
Harry Potter was a common obsession and the day my Patronus (an eagle owl) was found, I couldn't have been happier.
The night before our Paris trip saw my hair cut in a fashion I'd never experienced before.
My lovely family came to visit. We all loved being in a city with so much heritage and such a large contribution to contemporary culture.
My spiritual side was awakened in Leeds.
"The London Eye. It goes around. That's it." - our Thames cruise guide
I was graced by the heavens with a completely unforeseen "bump" into one of my favourite singers, Lauv, at the Tate Modern Museum of Modern Art. I'll admit, it was hard to concentrate on the exhibits after that.
"New"t Scamander
I "new"t was going to happen eventually.
N. "Sam"ander, on his way to do some magic.
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