For most of us collegiettes, spring break / reading week is a wonderful but very temporary release from the stresses of university life. We always wish it would last a week or two longer, so we could actually feel rejuvinated and fully relaxed as we head back to school for the final stretch.
What happens when that wish for more time comes true? What do you do when your school’s spring break lasts four weeks instead of one or two? Moreover, what would you do if you had that much time on your hands and you were in Europe? This is the situation I’ve been fortunate enough to deal with because of my semester abroad in Nottingham. Based on discussions I’ve had with friends from all over, there are several different ways the students of Nottingham are spending this time off.
If you are a native Brit, you are most likely heading home for a month-long siesta. You celebrate Easter or Passover with your family. You catch up with family members and with old friends. You sleep A LOT. You may go on a family vacation. You may even get a head start on your assignments for the upcoming finals period. From what I’ve come to understand from my British friends, Easter Break is a time of pure relaxation, a time to feel the calm before the storm that is finals season.
For exchange students like myself, this abnormally long spring break is treated way differently. The break is a golden opportunity to travel around Europe. Many friends of mine are trying to fit in travels to as many European cities as the month will allow them. However, I have chosen to make my break a combination of the British tradition and the exchange student agenda: I am traveling to visit my friends who live in Europe.
To some extent, it feels like I am reuniting with family: I am spending time with dear friends of mine who I haven’t seen in months, and I am actually seeing my family in London at the end of the break. However, in order to reunite with these people, I’m travelling from place to place at different times: for instance, I’ll be going from two weeks with one friend in Poland to two days with another in Berlin.
I’ve never had the experience of being nomadic, or a “couch-surfer” before, even to the slightest extent. I was always the girl who stayed at home, the girl who wouldn’t even visit her friends in Ontario for the weekend. Yet, here I am, travelling from country to country in Europe with my giant monogrammed suitcase. For me, this adventure is both terrifying and amazing. It’s scary to travel alone, no matter how many times I do it, but it’s also comforting to know that in every place I end up in, after every plane or train ride, there’s someone I know and love waiting for me. I hope one day you can also experience the beauty of travelling with someone you know well, whether you’re travelling to meet them in their home country, or you’re travelling with them to a place that’s new for both of you.
Right now, I’m only in my first week of this super long break. At this point, it feels like forever until I’ll be back in Nottingham. However, I’m going to do my best to enjoy every minute of this break, no matter where I am or who I’m with. Yes, I miss my new friends from school, but I know I’ll be seeing them soon enough. If there’s one thing I’ve become sure of in my time abroad, it’s that time can be completely crazy: although there are some days that feel like an eternity, time still goes by tremendously fast.
Images obtained from:
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http://amormagazine.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2015/01/335815-0222e7e6-aa37-11e3-9dd3-54db44ed2f71.jpg