The first time my travel weary eyes saw the green fields of Ireland a surge of excitement shot through me. I was finally here! 15 hours of traveling and I was about to start the adventure I had waited for since I was 5. I still remember meeting my first exchange student when I was 5 and how amazed I was that she was living so far away from home. That was the moment w
hen my spark to study abroad began to kindle. That little flicker has developed into a giant flame over the years as I spent 10 months with Nadine, my German exchange sister, communicated solely through emails with friends who were studying afar, and talked to others about their experiences abroad. The sight of those green fields on January 27, 2010 was the start of my adventure. As my ring states, "The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step." And this was it! This was my first step in a long journey of discovery.The first few days were spent in orientation. I learned all the tips and tricks for getting the most out of my semester. But more importantly, those first few days were when I met all the people who have developed into my closest friends here.
The first time I saw Mackenzie I was in the London airport and we were going through security right by each other. We found out later we were on the same Chicago flight. I remember her striking up a conversation with two 
young travelers about snowboarding in Colorado and being tempted to chime in. I remember sitting a row behind Sean on the flight to Belfast and being tempted to ask him if he was studying at Queens as well, but not wanting to look creepy I just wrote in my journal. That first night in Belfast, the house I live in hosted a party for all new students and that is where I first met Jakob. I remember seeing him a few times at the party, but I didn't talk to him until we were all getting ready to leave for the club Rain. I teased him about not being a "real" German since he wouldn't come out and party with us. And I made him promise to check and make sure I was awake the next morning for orientation. That next morning I was ready to go to orientation and dropped by Jakob's room to make sure he was awake and that was the beginning of me being the responsible one in our friendship. haha Jakob and I started talking to Jitske during the tour of the captital on Friday January 29th. When we got back to Grant, I invited her to have pizza with us and hence beginning our tradition of eating together. The first time I met Lainey was at the statue outside of the Lanyon building. Mackenzie had brought her to hang with us and so we ended up spending the rest of the day together and having a blast. It was either that night or the very next day that the 3 of us got a boxed wine for the Valentines Day Giants Causeway treck and ended up drinking it all that night. It was quite a fun night and marked the beginning of our wine nights. Fabian, my spontaneous and crazy German friend, I met Saturday February 13th at a party at his house. I remember he was wearing a gray LSU t-shirt and jeans which stood out to me for multiple reasons. One, I had already learned that most guys over here dress up more than just a t-shirt and I was mis
sing the familiar guy apparel. Second, he had an American t-shirt on but didn't look American.. So I struck up a conversation with him and told him about the Giants Causeway tour the next day. The next day he was sitting on the bus ready to go, and that was the beginning of our adventures together. I met Trine and Julia one of those first few days in the pubs. Trine helped me pronounce a boys name called Pierre Eve. For the life of me I could not say his name until I heard Trine say it! For anyone that doesn't know, it is really hard to understand a French person with their rolling R's in a pub. haha
young travelers about snowboarding in Colorado and being tempted to chime in. I remember sitting a row behind Sean on the flight to Belfast and being tempted to ask him if he was studying at Queens as well, but not wanting to look creepy I just wrote in my journal. That first night in Belfast, the house I live in hosted a party for all new students and that is where I first met Jakob. I remember seeing him a few times at the party, but I didn't talk to him until we were all getting ready to leave for the club Rain. I teased him about not being a "real" German since he wouldn't come out and party with us. And I made him promise to check and make sure I was awake the next morning for orientation. That next morning I was ready to go to orientation and dropped by Jakob's room to make sure he was awake and that was the beginning of me being the responsible one in our friendship. haha Jakob and I started talking to Jitske during the tour of the captital on Friday January 29th. When we got back to Grant, I invited her to have pizza with us and hence beginning our tradition of eating together. The first time I met Lainey was at the statue outside of the Lanyon building. Mackenzie had brought her to hang with us and so we ended up spending the rest of the day together and having a blast. It was either that night or the very next day that the 3 of us got a boxed wine for the Valentines Day Giants Causeway treck and ended up drinking it all that night. It was quite a fun night and marked the beginning of our wine nights. Fabian, my spontaneous and crazy German friend, I met Saturday February 13th at a party at his house. I remember he was wearing a gray LSU t-shirt and jeans which stood out to me for multiple reasons. One, I had already learned that most guys over here dress up more than just a t-shirt and I was mis
sing the familiar guy apparel. Second, he had an American t-shirt on but didn't look American.. So I struck up a conversation with him and told him about the Giants Causeway tour the next day. The next day he was sitting on the bus ready to go, and that was the beginning of our adventures together. I met Trine and Julia one of those first few days in the pubs. Trine helped me pronounce a boys name called Pierre Eve. For the life of me I could not say his name until I heard Trine say it! For anyone that doesn't know, it is really hard to understand a French person with their rolling R's in a pub. haha 
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