Wales truly couldn’t be further from my Oregon reality that sustained me for the last 29 years. There are so many changes, all which have been an interesting and exciting challenge.
I touched down in Manchester almost two weeks ago, and I hit the ground running as soon as I left terminal. Going on 18 hours of no sleep, and the caffeine worn off entirely- my only source of energy was my yearning for sleep. Though in the United Kingdom at least, I still have a few hurdles between me, and my shut eye. My final test before sleep was getting my luggage upstairs without a lift. After finally settling into my flat dripping in sweat from the last 24 hours of travel, it was finally time to revisit the back of my eyelids, and that, I did. Until 3 pm the following day to be exact. I’ve never had to deal with jet lag, and it was an interesting adjustment to say the least.
The following day, I peeled myself from my slumber so I could get a proper introduction to the university I would be calling my home for the next 4-5 months. I toured with other exchange students who were also a part of the School of Environmental Science, and got a deeper dive into where I would be taking my last classes as an undergraduate student. I met two friends already, and can’t wait to make more connections along the way.
In the past nearly two weeks since arriving here, I have had so many moment’s where I am still in shock that I made it here. Every one of those moments I tell myself that this is reality, and I need to make the absolute most of it before I return home and the next pinch me moment I’ll snap out of a past lived realty to a different one back in Oregon. That being said, I can’t wait to share more about my new reality, and my many adventurous.
Julia Baker