Countdown to Chaos

I leave in 20 days! My pre-departure to-do list is fittingly 20 feet long. I’m not sure what state of mind I was in when I decided cramming 7 weeks of graduate school in 3 weeks would be humanly possible, but it is now catching up to me. I am subsisting on pure adrenaline right now and I am sure the moment I get on the plane and find my seat, I am going to slip into a coma-like sleep for the duration of my flight to Edinburgh.

The week before I leave is going to be sheer chaos so I apologize in advance to anyone who has to interact with me between May 9 – May 17. On the 9th, I am taking a train up to Vancouver, B.C. for Nicholai’s father’s wedding and my sister’s 24th birthday. On Sunday, Nick and I are driving down I-5 to Corvallis, where we will be until Wednesday. He is going to help me pack while I go to work and class (thank goodness because there is nothing I hate more than packing… well, except maybe war and disease and stuff). Fortunately, I have been living like a minimalist these past few months so I think packing will be relatively painless.

Then on Wednesday night we are driving up to Bremerton to unload all of my stuff at my mother’s house (thanks, Mom). While in Bremerton, I am going to scramble around town to get last-minute necessities (travel alarm clock, comfortable walking shoes, outlet converters, an extra camera battery, etc.) and go to the bank to convert some USDs into pound sterlings. I’m sure with the current conversion rate that is going to be so depressing..

Thursday night I hope to have dinner with my father and then Friday will be reserved for spending time with Mom. I will do my best not to be an absolute basketcase on my last day in the U.S., but I know I will definitely be jittery and anxious. I love flying, but I am always paranoid I am going to miss my flight or lose my ticket (the last time I flew to the UK, I did lose my ticket the day before I flew out!).

Then before I know it, it will be 4 a.m. on Saturday, May 17 and I will head to SeaTac Airport to fly east. I have a six hour layover in NYC, my old stomping grounds, which means there will be just enough time to take the bus and subway into Manhattan, visit my favorite spots, and get back to JFK for my flight across the pond. I should call my internship supervisor and see if she is available that day for lunch!

Whew! I got tired just typing all of that, so imagine how exhausted I will be once I actually have to do it! But hey, I know it’s all going to get done (somehow, somehow) and I am so grateful to have the help of my partner and family during that time. This is the seventh move Nick has helped me with in our three years’ together, if you can believe it! God bless him and his van!

My Summer Home

For those of you who are interested in seeing my “summer home,” here are some pictures, courtesy of the Wisconsin in Scotland Program. I am told the Dalkeith Estate is “pastoral living at its finest,” and I cannot wait to make friends with all the sheep, cows, and goats!

Additionally, here is a brief history of the estate:

Sitting above the North Esk River, Dalkeith Palace is considered one of Scotland’s grandest early classical houses. Parts of Dalkeith Palace date back to a 12th century castle. Anne of Buccleuch, the first Duchess of Buccleuch, commissioned James Smith, Scotland’s leading architect at that time, to build the house in its present form during the period of 1701-1711. The interior of the house still includes a large amount of marble, including a large marble staircase, all of which was introduced by Anne of Buccleuch.

The George IV addition was built prior to George IV’s stay at Dalkeith Palace on his first visit to Scotland in 1832. He used the Music Room to receive Scottish noblemen and dignitaries. In 1942 Queen Victoria and Prince Albert were also guests. The house was last used as a Buccleuch family residence prior to WWI and during WWII it was used to billet soldiers of the Polish Free Army. Since 1986 it has been let to the University of Wisconsin for the Wisconsin in Scotland Program. The house provides enough room for student living, recreational areas such as a pool room, dining facilities, a laundry room, a computer lab, lounge and study areas, and offices. The student residential area is dorm style with community bathrooms. Students share rooms with 1-5 other students. The close facilities and special experience lead to a family atmosphere. The spacious lawn provides an excellent area for studying, lounging, or playing Frisbee. Finally, in fine British tradition, no 300-year-old manor is complete without ghost stories, which Dalkeith House also has in abundance. – WIS

40 Days + 40 Nights

I leave in 40 days for Scotland! The reality of it all is starting to sink in.

A sincere thank you to everyone who sent me travel books, maps, and other travel-related gadgets for my birthday. It has been very helpful for me as I start to prepare for my 100 days in Europe.

I recently learned I will have a 10-day travel break in the middle of my internship. I have decided to go to Greece then (instead of at the end of the summer after my internship) because the break starts mid-June, when Greece is suppose to be far less crowded and the heat is not unbearable. I have not decided whether to fly, train or ferry there yet – most likely it will be a combination of all three. Most likely, I will train from Edinburgh to London, then fly on a budget airline carrier (like EasyJet) to Athens, and then ferry hop the Greek Islands (Mykonos, Crete and Santorini are musts). The cost of transportation to and around Greece will obviously be the most expensive part of my summer, but I have always wanted to visit Greece so it is worth the investment. I took two classes on Ancient Greek culture and literature in undergrad and even spent a year of my life self-teaching myself the Greek language (I am a little rusty conversationally now, but I can brush up).

I do not know exactly how many days I have at the end of the summer to travel, but I think I am going to just jump on the Eurail and go to a few places. Realistically, I know I do not have the time to see everything I want to (because I want to literally see everything), at least not if I want to really enjoy my time in each place, so I am going to have to be selective and remind myself this is not going to be my only trip to Europe. Paris and Versailles is definitely on the top of my list, though. A bit cliche and expected, I know, but I make no apologies. I also have family in outside of Amsterdam, so it would be nice to meet up with them and get a inside perspective to life in The Netherlands.

I do not really have details now because my primary purpose for going to Europe is to work, learn, and do well in my internship, so I am focusing more on preparing for that than making travel plans. While I am looking forward to traveling this summer, I am most excited to meet the students and guests and get to work!

Greetings!

Welcome to Britt in Britain, my blog designed to chronicle my summer internship and travels abroad this summer. I will be interning in Dalkeith, Scotland with the Wisconsin in Scotland study abroad program. Dalkeith is located just a few miles (I mean, kilometers! No wait, kilometres!) outside of the City of Edinburgh.

The main purpose of this blog is to connect with my family and friends and show them what I am doing over in the UK. I will post pre-trip information, travel plans, pictures, reflections, and hopefully many, many stories about my adventures abroad. While I am in Europe, I hope to visit Versailles, Paris, Amsterdam, London, and wherever else the wind takes me. It is my last summer to run amok before I enter the workforce, after all!

I love you all and I hope you enjoy reading!