Arriving in Newcastle

Before my departure from London Gatwick to Newcastle, Sam and I met up again with Alex and went out for the traditional English breakfast which is protein heavy, consisting of British bacon, sausage, and eggs, and the sides vary, but the options are usually fried tomatoes, mushrooms, baked beans, and toast, along with a cup of tea. After our extremely filling breakfast, we parted ways with Alex and went to King’s Cross to find our train.

Before coming to the UK, I had previously read about the 16-25 railcard which is a card that you can buy if you’re between 16-25, or a ‘mature student,’ and it will save you 1/3 on all train fares within the UK. It costs £30 for the year, but it pays for itself quite quickly. A train fare just from King’s Cross to Gatwick is £10, and yet, I only had to pay £6 once I got the card, so after a few trips to London or Edinburgh, it’ll pay for itself. If you’re going to get one, come with a passport photo ready. I luckily had an extra with me from my visa application, but Sam didn’t have one so he couldn’t get one yet.

We arrived at Gatwick, and our flight was with the budget airline, Flybe. I knew that we would have to check our bags for this type of flight, but when I tried to book it online, it didn’t work. I talked to the help desk at the airport and found out that it does that sometimes if you’re trying to book it from the U.S. However, It costs £14 to book it online, and £40 if you do it at the airport. That’s a HUGE difference… so when I found out, I went off to the side and figured out how to do it from my phone then booked it right there, checked it and got away with it. Make sure you don’t fall for their tricks and let them get all of your money! It goes fast in Europe…

We finally boarded our flight, and basically, you lift off, hang out in the sky for a few minutes and then start descending again… incredibly short flight, so I recommend taking the scenic view from the train instead. As we were landing, I started talking with the lady next to me, Colleen, who happened to be from Newcastle and was returning home. She was fascinated that I was from America and came to Newcastle to study for a year. We talked until exiting baggage claim and she introduced Sam and I to her husband, John. We exchanged phone numbers and she invited us over for tea sometime, which I was incredibly thrilled about because it seemed like such a traditional English invitation. Later on, I found out that she has never just given out her number like that but she must have seen the good in me, which I am thankful for… and you’ll find out why later.

We met up with our uni’s meet and greet students and took a taxi to our accommodation. The girl who was in my flat before had just moved out the previous weekend and apparently took her room key with her so when they gave me a key, it only worked for the building and the actual flat, leaving my room unlocked. I was a little nervous about that at first because of my camera gear, computer, etc… but luckily, there were only three rooms in my flat and only one other girl had already moved in.

I put my stuff in my room, and then went with Sam, his friend Emmy, and her mom to a place called ASDA which is like the UK’s Walmart. Emmy studied in Atlanta the previous year and knew what it was like to come to a brand new place with nothing so she and her mother so generously took us to shop for all of the basic necessities as soon as we arrived.

After shopping, we took our new things back to our flats then began to search for Grey’s Monument, which is in the center of Newcastle, and a great meeting place. I met a girl named Gabi in Iceland, who was on her way to Prague for the same TEFL program that I want to do when I graduate, and she was taking a European adventure along the way with one more night in Newcastle. We met her at the monument, then went to an Indian restaurant for some amazing Indian food. After, we checked out a bar called ‘PleasedToMeetYou’ which I enjoyed because it didn’t give off the insane Newcastle party vibe that I had heard about. It was a rather relaxed bar with interesting people and quality drinks. After drinks, we parted ways with Gabi, then Sam and I decided that we were really going to enjoy this town. Our flats are in the center of town, with only a short walk to anything we need. The city has gorgeous architecture and the people are friendly. We were off to a good start for our year in the UK.

This post was rushed, as I am trying to catch up. I’ve fallen behind since settling in Newcastle, and especially now that I’ve started classes. More to come soon!! Thanks for reading!

Forever wandering and wondering,

Brianna Leilani

A simple day in London

After 3.5 hours of sleep in a hostel room full of twelve people, I awoke just as I was supposed to meet Sam in the lobby and so I took a shower as fast as I could and ran downstairs. I met him at breakfast which was one of the worst excuses for a breakfast I’ve ever seen, but we ate it so we didn’t have to spend more money and headed out for King’s Cross Station.

The first thing we did was go to buy an Oyster card as I had learned the previous night that you shouldn’t be in London without one. It’s initially £5 for the card, but after that, you can just refill it. We took a train to London Bridge and when we got off, I could not stop complaining about how bad my foot hurt… every time I took a step, it was like torture. I came across a shoe store and went in to buy some soles for my shoes hoping that might solve the problem… unfortunately, it did not.

We continued on to London Bridge, then stopped in a coffee shop situated underneath and had some coffee while recharging our phones. After coffee, we walked across the bridge and to The Tower of London. We then passed by All Hallows-by-the-Tower, which is the oldest church in England, founded in 675. William Penn, founder of Pennsylvania, was baptized here in 1647 and John Quincy Adams, 6th U.S. president, was married here in 1797.

We then continued to walk on and I was probably about to cry from the pain in my foot. At that point, we stumbled upon a running store, which obviously had better shoes than the (too big for me) Dr. Martens that I was wearing. I normally don’t like running shoes for day-to-day wear, but at this point, I didn’t care. I knew that I couldn’t leave that store and walk anymore with the same shoes on so I caved and bought some new Nikes, also discovering once I took my shoe off that I had a blister the size of a quarter on my left foot. I know that may be too much information, but the lesson here is that when it comes to traveling and walking for extensive amounts of time, many day in a row, wearing the same shoes (because there wasn’t room to bring more), you should sacrifice style for comfort… for sure. I learned the hard way and it’s a week and a half later that I’m writing this, and the blister is still healing, but finally getting better.

Anyways, after my shoe dilemma, we decided to get sim cards so our phones could be relevant and we could function properly in 21st society again. I’m exaggerating, but really, smart phones can be quite useful when lost in London or trying to figure out the underground system. We went to vodaphone and purchased a basic package that includes 500 minutes to UK numbers, unlimited texts in the UK, and 1GB data plan for £20. It’s really awesome because it’s only pay as you go, which in the states, is a lot harder to come by so next month, we can choose a whole new plan… and we probably will, because vodaphone isn’t the best on picking up signal.

After getting our phones set up, we felt like we were finally living in the UK, and we went to a nearby coffee shop. Yes I know, more coffee… While I was trying to pay for mine, and fumbling through my various types of coins, the barista asked my name and told me today’s coffee would be free for me. I told the guy he made my day, and he really did, because I was broke at this point.

We sat in this coffee shop for about an hour, finally getting in touch with family and friends back home through iMessage and Whatsapp. I also downloaded the London Tube app which is one of the most useful apps ever. Wherever you are in London, you put in your location and where you’re trying to go, and it’ll give you the directions for the tube which seriously makes life 10x easier.

We took the tube back to King’s Cross and went our separate ways because Sam had plans that evening with his friends, and I had plans with my friend, Alex, who had just moved to London earlier that morning. I took the tube to Stoke Newington, where she was staying, and we met at a Turkish restaurant, which had amazing food. We caught up and talked about our experiences thus far in London, then went to a convenience store and bought cider which we drank on the walk back to her place because there’s no law against open containers in the UK. We finished off our evening at a local bar, down the street, and made plans for breakfast the next morning. Then I hopped a bus back to King’s Cross and went to bed, ready to take the final step to my new home the next day… Newcastle!

Forever wandering and wondering,

Brianna Leilani

Iceland –> London

On Tuesday morning, I woke up, saddened by the fact that I would be leaving the dreamworld I call Iceland later on that afternoon. Sam and I went to our favorite little coffee shop 2 blocks down the road and had some coffee with a chocolate croissant. After coffee, we made one last visit to Hallgrimur’s church to take the lift to the top so we could see the beautiful view of Reykjavik that everyone had been telling us about.

After viewing Reykjavik from the top of the church, we went back downstairs to find an organist playing so we sat down and listened for awhile. Finally, we went back to our hostel, then gathered our belongings and took a bus to Keflavik airport. Keflavik airport is one of my favorites that I’ve been in. It’s extremely modern and clean. We went to duty free and both bought some Icelandic chocolate, and I grabbed a variety of Icelandic shots to take to Newcastle with me.

After waiting at our terminal for quite some time, we realized that no one else was around so there had to have been a mistake. We found out they switched our flight due to inclement weather. We finally found our gate and boarded our plane to London. I was excited because I had never ridden on a plane where you walk outside and up the stairs to the plane. It sounds like something silly to be excited about, especially for someone who has taken as many flights as I have, but I’ve always ridden on massive jets so they have the inside walking gate directly to the plane. This was something new that I had only seen in films.

After 3 hours, we arrived at London Heathrow airport, exhilarated to finally be arriving in our new country of residence for the next year! It’s a huge airport and we had to walk through long and winding corridors to finally get to customs. After waiting in line, I walked up to the customs officer with my visa. She asked me what I was doing here and for how long, as well as what uni I’m attending and what I’m studying, then she stamped my visa and that was that. I’m always daunted by customs, because the United States’ is so intense, but it was actually rather simple.

Sam and I went on to find the entrance to the London underground and bought tickets for the Piccadilly line to King’s Cross, which was £5. Upon arriving at King’s Cross, we got our first real taste of London. It was crowded, loud, and bright… a lot like New York, but much nicer and cleaner. We asked for directions to King’s Cross Road, so we could find our hostel, Clink78. Clink78 used to be a courthouse where Charles Dickens worked while writing Oliver Twist. It is also where the Clash went to court for shooting a prize pigeon in 1978.

Our hostel was £16 a night, and was at a pretty central, easy to find location. They charge £2 for a towel (which I got out of by fumbling with my change long enough) and £3 for wifi during your stay. They have two old courtrooms that they have turned into a computer room and tv room, as well as a lively bar and kitchen in the basement. I would say that it was pretty decent for the money, but very crowded, so if you like more privacy, it might not be for you.

After checking in, Sam and I went to dinner at a small Italian restaurant a block away. I ordered my first English cider and a gnocchi gorgonzola, it was delicious. Then we walked around for quite some time until we were thoroughly lost and finally found our way back by midnight. We went to the hostel’s bar where everyone was hanging out and I ended up talking to a guy from Belgium, named Robin. He was in London looking for a place to live because he’s a chef and just got an internship at a very nice restaurant in the city.

When the bar closed, Sam went to bed and I went outside with Robin. We walked around for awhile and then I saw a bus going to Trafalgar Square so we decided to be spontaneous and chased it down. He had an Oyster card, which I didn’t know about at the time, but it’s a card you can use in London for buses and the underground. It’s only £1.40 for a bus if you have the card, but £2.40 when you have cash… so I recommend you get one if you’ll be in London. Very useful.

After the hassle of digging for my change, we just sat down in the first seat but then I remembered that it was my first time on a red double decker bus, so obviously, I had to run to the top. We sat in the first row and I was like a little kid in a candy shop the whole way to Trafalgar Square. We finally got there, and walked through the square, Chinatown, Hyde Park, past Buckingham Palace, Westminster Abbey, and the London Eye. It was so perfect because it wasn’t crowded, especially since it was only a Tuesday night. By the time we had seen everything, it was about 5am so we searched for a bus to King’s Cross and went back to the hostel. I climbed into my teeny tiny little hostel bed, snuggled up to my belongings, and went to sleep, dreading waking up in 3.5 hours.

More from London coming soon!

Forever wandering and wondering,

Brianna Leilani

Preparing for a year abroad

I’ve been promising to write about how to prepare for a year abroad and haven’t really lived up to that quite yet, but now that the time is quickly approaching, I have a little bit more of experience in that department. I made myself a checklist of things I need to do before I go and I’m happy to say that the most stressful parts are over, like the anxiety of applying for a UK visa and making sure that my financial aid is cleared, etc… so here are a few things that I’ve learned during the process.

The UK Visa Process:

–Do NOT apply for a UK visa more than three months before your arrival date. A friend of mine who is also moving to the UK applied for his visa a little over three months before we’re supposed to be there, and they wouldn’t accept it. However, they did accept his money…all $495 of it… and no, it was not refunded to him. Two months later, he reapplied, spent another $495, and now he has a UK visa, but spent double what he should have. The lesson–read all instructions very carefully!!
—Don’t stress so much about the visa process if you’re a student applying for the Tier 4 and you already have a school sponsor… I stressed out a great deal, and got really nervous, but it was actually pretty simple and once I sent off my application, they kept me informed by e-mail on the status of my application and I got approved in less than a week!

Packing for a year abroad:

–As far as packing goes… my best advice is to bring a carry on bag of enough clothes to last you for two weeks (5 outfits is enough) and then ship the rest in a box. Remember to only take what is absolutely necessary! I actually was able to fit quite a lot into a box because I used space saver bags that you can vaccuum the air out of. The bag ended up weighing a total of 18 pounds. However, I fit in 3 winter jackets, a few large sweaters, roughly 12-15 shirts, 2 or 3 pairs of pants, and more!
–The carry on bag that I am using is the Osprey Meridian Wheeled Convertible Luggage–22” and it’s really awesome because it has wheels that are built for almost any type of terrain and it converts into a comfortable backpack. It also has a daypack attached to it that zips on and off. It’s super convenient because I’m able to take off the daypack and keep it with me on the plane, while putting the luggage in the overhead bin, as well as have easy access to my laptop while going through TSA. One thing I do want to point out is that this luggage is not within the carry on restrictions for European budget airlines, but then again, nothing really is… so just be prepared and pay to check your luggage online before you arrive at the airport because they’ll charge significantly more to do it in person.

$$ Money ££ money ££ money $$:

–Ugh, the money issue. If only we could do the things we wanted without having to worry about this part… but unfortunately, we cannot. This has actually been my biggest worry of all… but in my experience, it always works out if I set my mind on something. So although a year abroad (especially in Europe) is not going to be as affordable as say… staying at home and living your comfortable life in the states… you can make your circumstances a little easier by being smart ahead of time.

–The major thing is banking… because ATM charges (roughly $5 each time) and currency conversion fees (3-5%) will sneak up on you and take you for everything you’ve got. There are a couple of ways to avoid this. Option A is to join a bank that is a part of a Global ATM Alliance (Bank of America, for example)… then you can find their ‘sister’ banks in the countries that you visit, and withdraw money for no fees, as long as you use the banks in that alliance. In England, the sister bank would be Barclays. You should do research on where you’re going and make sure that your destination has a partner bank. Option B is to open a Charles Schwab High Yield Investor Checking account. Charles Schwab is a mostly web based bank that refunds ALL ATM fees… yes, ALL. This is almost a no brainer… you can go anywhere in the world, and they will refund ALL of your ATM fees. What’s the catch? Charles Schwab is mostly online and phone based, which for some people, can be a problem but their awesome customer service makes it worth it! For me, option B was the best choice since I will be traveling often to unknown different places.

This post is pretty lengthy, so I will end it here, but these are just a few things that I have learned. More to come soon! Let me know if there’s anything you would like to see more/less of!

Forever wandering and wondering,

Brianna Leilani

A magical day

This is the first summer in years that I’ve spent entirely in Georgia and it has been raining everyday for the past two or three weeks, making it impossible to do anything outdoors.

However, yesterday, Olivia and I didn’t care… we needed to get out of the city and do something different. It was raining as usual, but we decided we were going to drive up to the foothills of the mountains in North Georgia, and cross our fingers that the skies would clear. As it turns out, mother nature was on our side. As soon as we arrived at Pooles Mill Park in Cumming, Georgia, the rain disappeared, and we were the only people at this usually crowded river.

Before diving into the refreshingly cold water on that hot and humid day, we hiked the trails a bit and came across huge patches of chanterelle mushrooms. I serve at a local farm to table restaurant and Olivia happens to be a foraging guru so we knew that these mushrooms were delicious and desirable. We followed our intuition and found more and more chanterelles, eventually filling Olivia’s backpack up.

At that point, we were burning up and decided to take a dip in the water, climbing and sliding down mini waterfalls like children. After playing on Earth’s natural playground, we paid a visit to my father and his fiancé, who just happen to have a treasure trove of chanterelle mushrooms in secret spots of their land. We couldn’t resist the urge to pick more and later realized that we had 10 pounds of chanterelles that we didn’t know what to do with.

That’s when we decided that we would turn our fun day in the sun into a profitable venture. With a little bit of research, we found out that chanterelles were currently selling at $12 a pound. We went back to Olivia’s house, cleaned the mushrooms, and packaged them and decided that the next morning, we would sell them.

After three phone calls, we found a local restaurant willing to buy nine pounds for $100. As soon as I hung up the phone, we both jumped up and down with excitement from our first sale. That was $50 to each of us by simply making use of what the earth has already provided us and having fun all the while. I’m writing this because people are always telling me that they want to travel but can’t come up with the money for it. I am not wealthy by any means, but I have never let money stop me from accomplishing my dreams. Yesterday was a perfect example of finding innovative ways to make some fast and easy money. A “get rich quick” scheme if you will (but without the scheming of course!) So I encourage you to become creative and find ways to make use of what Earth has provided for us. $50 here and $50 there adds up quick… believe  me.

Forever wandering and wondering,

Brianna Leilani