Passport? Check.
Visa? Check.
Dog grounded for the rest of eternity? Double, triple & quadruple check.A lot has gone on in the last month before I jet set across the pond. The most interesting was my dog ate my passport! That’s right, the single most important item when traveling abroad. But life has a funny way of working itself out and I was able to get a new one in time to still process my working visa. From the stress of money management—which as a poor college student, I’m not sure I’ll EVER get over—to the realization beginning to set in, it’s been a roller coaster of emotions lately. Some days, I’m thrilled, others I find myself tearing up at work as I think of all the people I love and will miss.
What keeps me going though is the endless amount of memories I know I’ll make—and creeping on all of my future friends on Facebook. Naturally.
So that leaves me at 13 days and counting before I set off on the adventure of a lifetime. As of last night, I also made another one of my
famousinfamous rash decisions—which in my experience have always turned out to be great ones.My hair is pink.
Not entirely, but more of a pink ombre look. Lauren’s London Look as my older sister and fabulous personal stylist likes to call it.
Stay tuned as I document what it’ll be like to pack my life away next week and how I plan on matching London fashion to my own.
Cheers!
Lauren, In Arizona
Plan for plans to not go according to plan.
A phrase I quickly learned to live by.
Sounds crazy, but I had the most difficult time adjusting to the fact that I can’t map out everything. (Unless, I have a backup plan—something I highly recommend!) In all seriousness though, the lesson here is simple: Learn the art of crisis management BEFORE you leave the country.
As a future PR professional, this should be something that comes naturally, right? I thought so too. I also tend to think that anything that even slightly veers off my plan is the end of my world as I know it. So let me paint you a picture of exactly what went down…
In the beginning of July, I began researching different airlines, student travel websites and really anywhere I could score a deal on cheap/reliable airfare. I ultimately decided to go with STA Travel, an extremely affordable website geared toward helping students get the best bang for their buck. After numerous attempts to find a flight leaving Phoenix that also arrives in London around 6AM, I almost cried when nothing could get me there in time. Then it dawned on me that I was too far west—hashtag serious south west problems. Leaving me with the big question, where should my one way ticket to U.S. paradise take me before London? Seattle? Atlanta? Chicago? That was an easy question to answer since my favorite city in the world (so far) is my beloved Boston.
So it was settled. I mapped out the entire itinerary even leading up to my December return back to the states. Once my sister gave me the green light to purchase the tickets on her credit card—seriously, Brittany, I really can’t thank you enough!—I was ready to make the most important purchase of my life.
That was until I made the biggest mistake yet. Purchasing my ticket on a Friday.
If I can give you any single piece of airline advise from this post, it’s buy early and during the middle of the week. After the tortuous morning I had at work scrambling to find a city that made sense to leave from and still got me to my destination in time, I finally found a place of refuge in a little place called New York City. Needless to say, I’m sure I’ll find a way to entertain myself for that 11 hour layover.
But in all seriousness, just to ingrain it in your head one more time…
Fridays are literally the worst day you can buy an airline ticket.
The good news is I’m well on my way to my future life in London—7 weeks and counting!
Cheers!
Lauren, In Arizona
Do not follow where the path may lead.
Go instead where there is no path and leave a trail.
—Ralph Waldo Emerson
One of my favorite authors with an impeccable way with words. This guy really knew his stuff when it came to traveling. Not only was he born in my favorite U.S. city (Oh heyyyyy, Boston!) he spent part of his life exploring Europe. He also understood what it was like to live on a limited income. Sounds like your modern day college student to me! Shout out to the man who has always been an inspiration on life and literature. Cheers, Emerson!
Lauren, In Arizona
Lauren In London 