Interpersonal Relationships: Lancaster, England

The closest feeling I have found to home while studying in England was my weekend spent in London. I had been before in the summer of 2014 for an EL Seminar. We spent a good twelve days in the city, and by the end of the trip, I was able to find my way around with much ease and really felt I knew the city. I felt the same way returning in 2016. London is a huge cultural capital of the world, and not to mention geographically large as cities go. It didn't take long for me to remember though and I found myself leading my group of friends to the right tube stations and I quickly recognized some streets. It all  became so quickly familiar and I really enjoyed that feeling. Home is a feeling of such comfortability. You don't feel new there, but rather start noticing the new things that enter. Whenever I travel to somewhere I have never been, I instantly feel like the new kid in town. It's not an isolating experience though. I just look around and try to take everything in. It can be overwhelming in the best way, and very exciting. Returning to London was different though. I honestly believe that I could live there for a time in my life and be very happy. I am not one to look for big city life, but London moves at just the right pace for me. It is a perfect mix of fast and slow, new and old. It really feels like it could be home for me someday. 

I have found the the individual is celebrated here. Personal freedom is something widely understood in England and is something highly valued by its people. Personal progress in life is admirable and stressed in the culture here. It's really not much different than America in that sense. Of course the community and one's place within it is still very important here. There is a recognizable hierarchy here. It is handled in a way that is not patrolling however. People are generally very proud of their profession whatever it may be, and they really let that take on a part of their identity. I think the biggest difference though considering work and identity is the fact that it doesn't consume their lives here. In America, there is so much value placed on your job and it normally takes precedence within your life. America is so deep into corporate capitalism that it stresses work around the clock. Take retail and chain restaurants for example. You may find yourself working late hours into the night at Kohls or working night shifts in Red Lobster as a waiter. These products of heavy capitalism have yet to fully infiltrate the town of Lancaser and the majority of the city centre is made up of locally owned shops. These places, including pubs and restaurants, will close at 5:00 everyday. Pubs stop serving food after this time, so if you haven't had dinner yet, don't go looking for it at a restaurant in town. This sets up life's daily schedule here, and the evenings really belong to the people, away from work and their jobs and responsibilities. This is something I had to get used to here, because in America, there is always somewhere to go. There is such a large emphasis on work in America and daily life that is missing here. Balancing work and family life can become a struggle in America. Although family life is very important in America, for many it has taken the backseat when work gets involved. I cannot speak widely to family life in England, as I have yet to meet and interact with a family all together. However it seems that such the work schedules allows for families to at least enjoy each other's company at some point in the day. 

The role I play in my host destinations country is mostly as an American. It's hard to hide that fact as as soon as I start speaking. Everytime I engage in conversation with someone new, it's the first thing they notice. Of course I am always brought back to my experiences with a Brit in the U.S. and how quickly they stand out based on their accent. Being an American here is great. Perhaps the next biggest influence on my identity and the role I am playing abroad is as a student. There are many student discounts available when traveling and visiting different cities and countries here. It sets me aside from a tourist and also from work. Education is something very important to me and it has offered many benefits. There is great value placed on education here, although it is not stressed for everyone the way it is in America. Almost everyone is encouraged to go to college in America and earn a degrees. Here, it is more admirable to seek higher education but not necessarily expected of everyone. I guess there is a larger emphasis of personal freedom in that way, in that society is not pressuring young people to earn a degree if they want to work like it does in America. 

Having passed the halfway mark of my time in England, I am very pleased with the outcome thus far.  I am so happy with the decision I've made to study abroad in college. This has been a great opportunity and I encourage it for anyone with a remote interest in seeing other parts of the world or just travelling in general. You learn many responsibilities that I know will be very useful to me after graduation. My sense of the world and how ironworks has been broadened, and I am learning so much about my own personal self and identity. It offers a great break from Allegheny life while still being able to continue my education. I love Allegheny and it has really been the greatest choice in higher education for me, but taking a semester to go abroad has done nothing but increase the value in my experience within higher education, even away from Allegheny. I am looking forward to returning and being able to apply myself in a new way after all that I have learned abroad. Thanks England!