Day Trips in the making!

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Melena Appling

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Melena Appling

<i>"Hello" in your host country's language:</i> Hello! <i>Home Institution (your U.S. University/College):</i> University of North Georgia <i>Expected graduation year:</i> 2024 <i>Destination city & country:</i> London, England & Rome, Italy <i>Program provider:</i> CIEE Open Campus <i>Major/minor:</i> AA Communications transitioning into BA Communications with concentration in Public Relations <i>Demographics:</i> Asian/Asian American <i>Future career aspirations:</i> First, I will graduate college obtaining a AA in Communication along with a BA in Communication with a concentration in Public Relations. In the next 5 years, I plan to be a brand manager who is running social media management accounts (social media marketer) for local businesses. I hope that this will pave the way for me to run my own public relations department for a large corporate business in the future. I look forward to working with people and helping them resolve their problems. I enjoy speaking and communicating with others, and I am quite excited for my future! <i>Top 3 goals for your time abroad:</i> 1Study more about the place that I am studying abroad. Learn about myself and find comfort in independence. I hope to take awesome courses, and learn from a new university!

Hello from London once again! I started this week off by heading to the Notting Hill Carnival. This was essentially a massive party in the city, so many people came from all over the United Kingdom for this event. The streets were blocked off and the tube did not run to that city therefore, there were loads of people walking toward the event. It was wild listening to Caribbean music at a large festival with a parade and people wore bright colors representing their cultural backgrounds. There were Caribbean food trucks lining the streets and many small shops in that area of the city. Monday was a Bank Holiday weekend, meaning I did not have class, but I had an assignment for class. I went to Brick Lane and immersed myself in Indian culture for a report. I went vintage shopping and ate some authentic chicken tikka masala (which fun fact: this is the national dish of the UK) and lemon rice with naan.

Afterwards, I had my classes for the week, both my Intercultural Communication and Mass Media in Europe classes. I find so much insight in the fact that we get the chance to learn about where it is we are studying during our classes. We openly talk about the United Kingdom and significant events in which take place. On Friday, I went to Brighton, England which is on the seaside of the UK. My study abroad group toured the Royal Pavilion which was the party castle of the Prince of Wales also known as Regent George, and King George IV. Following a lunch of fish and chips we walked the pier while we discussed the experience and the beauty of everything, the water in particular was gorgeous.

On Saturday, I went to Edinburgh, Scotland on an independent trip with a handful of friends. We ate a cute brunch at a place called ‘The Pantry’ where I had delicious smashed avocado toast. We walked to Edinburgh Castle and saw the prisoners’ quarters, the cathedral, museums, and a great overlook of Scotland. The scenery in Scotland is amazing, seeing all the animals, grassland, and old architecture. Additionally, I had dinner at an Asian restaurant. I got some yakisoba noodles and chicken ramen; I cleared the plate, and it was so filling! I got to see the Greyfriars Bobby statue which is a golden dog memorial. I ate some delicious fruit pancakes from ‘Nobles’ and my friends and I walked the Royal Mile, so we did lots of shopping. I saw some unique art at the National Gallery of Scotland. Then we made our way back to the train station to head back to London. It was a fun spontaneous week, and I wouldn’t change a thing about my experience!