I was eight years old when I first watched the movie "Oliver Twist" and sat mesmerized, listening to the British dialect. I practiced reciting the dialect over and over until it was parallel to what I heard in the movie. From that moment on, I was addicted to the British accent, culture and history. It became essential that someday I would live in London.
So when the time came, I applied through Ball State University to study abroad.
If I could recommend any experience while studying at Ball State, it would be to go on the London program.
To understand why this program is so fulfilling, one must first understand the city of London itself because the real goal of living in London is to become immersed in the culture.
The culture is brilliant and exquisite. One of the most essential things about this city is that fashion is a major priority. The men wear highly polished, pointy, elegant, expensive, shiny shoes and pinstriped pants. The girls always wear delicate jewelry, magnificent skirts and heels or boots. The majority of people are fit and slim, and I have yet to come across anyone severely overweight. People actually care what they look like and it is crucial to look stylish when one is meeting with friends.
The tube is idiot-proof for the most part (until you get into Central London when the lines all interconnect in a very confusing way). But I can literally taste freedom because of how easy it is to get up and take myself anywhere across most of London until 12:30 a.m., when the tube stops running, or use the bus which runs 24 hours every day.
Of course, everything you pass is a piece of history and has a story behind it. It's surreal to stand outside Buckingham Palace and watch the guards protect every entrance while you stand behind the iron black bars encrusted with a gold color. They have guns, wear the tall hats and move with a sharpness.
London's more of a melting pot. There are people from every part of the world and I am making new friends from countries that I have never even heard of. I have noticed how extremely hospitable everyone seems. Everyone is polite and proper, though exciting and worthwhile. If you ask someone on the street for directions, you never know what accent in which you'll hear the answer and they are more than happy to help.
The parks are lovely and perfect. It is romantic to enter St. James's Park, in which you can see a huge ferris wheel called The Eye. You encounter animals that are fatter than imaginable and everyone is laying on one another and laughing.
Nearby is Piccadilly Circus, which is full of huge lights and usually where we theatre kids start hyperventilating from all the wonderful shows shining at you from everywhere. There are pubs, nightclubs and shops in every direction. The nightclubs have wild lights, the people working in the bathrooms will literally wash your hands for you and cocktails are served in wonderful curved glasses.
And of course, the men love to buy women drinks. Possibly for different reasons than to be cordial, but it's flattering all the same. But drinking is very different in London than in America. It's more of a way of life as opposed to "what the cool kids do." You drink because that's just how you socialize. You don't go to people's flats, but meet at grand pubs. Everyone smokes cigarettes, but it's all very casual. They hold their cigarettes with no care and suck in so hard and long you'd think you'd be diagnosed with lung cancer a second later.
Classes, set up through The City of Westminster College, are hands-on and practical. Learning is not a chore but something you can gain and apply to your life while in London, because the history is everywhere.
We go on daytrips through the program to places such as Canterbury Cathedral or Dover Castle. We go through underground tunnels that were used during World War II. You can see the ocean standing on top of the cliffs and Dover is enthralling and magnificent to look at.
Europe is not as far away as you may think and I highly recommend signing up for the London Center Program if you want a rewarding experience that will change your way of thinking.
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