››› November 18, 2011 | Posted By Logan Buckley '14
When I last wrote this summer, I was excited at the prospect of going to London, but it still seemed far-off--after all, I had a whole semester to get through beforehand, and winter term besides. No longer. The semester is more than halfway done, and I am busy making arrangements for traveling, living and studying abroad.
The Monday we returned from fall break, I turned in my housing contract--the first actual housing contract I've filled out, I think. One of the reasons I'd been interested in going abroad was because I thought it would give me more of a taste of independence than I get here in Oberlin. Turning in the housing contract (despite the fact that it is pre-arranged housing through the program--baby steps) made the reality of the program more apparent.
Another exciting development is that this semester I decided to declare a politics major. I was unsure about that before this semester--I'd considered several other majors from history to environmental studies--but my excitement for the London program combined with my experiences with the politics department here in Oberlin convinced me that a politics major was the right choice. I look forward even more now to next semester, when I will have the chance to do an in-depth research project on class politics in London.
As the program comes closer I spend more time thinking about the opportunities I'll have in London. I am particularly excited to travel, and it seems like the options are endless--Ireland? Paris? Istanbul? I'd really like to spend most of my time in the UK, since I may not have a similar opportunity to get to know another country for a long time, if ever. I've also considered trying to do some traveling in Europe after the semester ends, especially in France.
Many deadlines loom and tasks remain unfulfilled. I still need to buy my plane ticket, apply for enrolled-not-in-residence status, and what seems like a million other little tasks. But each thing that I do ratchets up the excitement more, and I'm sure the remaining weeks before I go to London will fly by.