Written at 4am in the morning when I couldn’t sleep:
Yesterday I arrived in London! Totally jet lagged, we were thrown right into the Ithaca College London Center (ICLC) staff’s orientation-like sessions to review some key guidelines for our start and stay in London. After that the flat-hunt began! What a stressful process this is but a completely beneficial process none the less. As we try to create groups of people to live with you have the opportunity to reach out to friends, acquaintances and strangers in hopes that someone will meet the space criteria for the flat you may want to settle in. Once you have your British phone it’s up to you to call different landlords and agencies in hopes that they can set you up with a flat that will possess all your requirements. Once you’ve made contact with them it’s trying to locate the area within London the flat is located. “Near ICLC?” “Not near ICLC?” And how long the commute is. If you’re still interested in pursuing the flat, you make an appointment to go see it. That is where the most beneficial part comes in. While scouting out these different flats you effortlessly venture out into different areas in London educating yourself how to navigate on the bus and underground system.
Even though I have only been here a day this process has topped my list of most stressful situations ever. Between sticking to a budget, catering to everyone’s need and just finding the right group of people to live with is a challenge.
By the end of the week I will have a place to live. I just hope it is the place I want and don’t lose every cent I have trying to afford it…
Marissa Osowsky 