UK Visa: Part Three

Our last episode in this tale left you (allegedly breathless and giddy) in anticipation of my next steps in the visa-drama saga.

Well, friends, I have news for you. Since we last spoke, I have successfully collected all my paperwork, got fingerprinted, sent off my documents to the UK consulate in New York, and received word (this morning!) that my visa has officially been issued!

To be honest, the process this time around has been pretty smooth sailing. I didn’t have to go to the consulate in person or dig up records/bills/birth certificates/social security card/etc. And considering that this is my second visa and second intercontinental move in 365 days, I’m doing alright for myself.

Since my visa and passport are (as we speak) being delivered by UPS, I can officially buy my plane ticket! Onward!

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Au Revoir, Europe!

Well, I’ve been a bit quiet on the blog lately because I’ve been traveling. A lot. Between cutting off my internet in preparation to move back home and traipsing all over, blogging has kind of been put on the backburner. The past few weeks have had me traveling a bit in France, all over Germany, back to France, and up to England.

As I type this, I’m sitting in my hostel in London. My flight leaves tomorrow afternoon for the US, where I’ll start the whole visa process anew, albeit with a different country. It’s crazy and exciting to think about the year ahead in England, hopefully with more graduate study to come. But don’t worry! I’ll post more about my recent travels, but I will say that I managed to spend a few days in York and I really loved it. At this point, I’m ready to spend some time resting and relaxing stateside. It’ll be nice to not have to pay to wash my clothes or walk about a mile to the grocery store. I think a summer at home is just what I need to re-charge before an intense year doing my MA.

And with that… I’m off! See you in the US of A!

Winter Break!

So I’m officially on break now! I have two whole weeks to decompress and cut loose. The grey winter months have been getting to me. February has been really cold, gray, and rainy. Although France is beautiful, I definitely prefer to see it during the spring and summer! I’ve been going back and forth with my travel plans for a while. Morocco, Turkey, or somewhere with a beach have been on the table for some time. But due to money issues and  a verryyy generous offer from my parents to use their timeshare, I’ve decided to head down to the sunny island of Barbados!

But first, I’m going to make a pit-stop back home in Philadelphia. I’m flying to the US on Monday for a few days, to run some errands (Dentist! Haircut!) and see my family. After that, I’m flying down to Barbados with my friend Kimmy. Hopefully the weather will be warm and sunny, it’s forecasted to be 85-ish degrees! I can’t wait to lay by the pool and (hopefully) come back a shade or two darker.

But in other news, I got an acceptance from the University of York! That was the school on my short list, so I’m really excited that it’s going to be an option for next year. I also received three rejections within a span of 24 hours. Although I was kinda bummed, the idea of moving to York next year is pretty exciting. The program that I got into is a Masters one, with the majority of the students continuing on to a Ph.D. position. The specific program that I would be undertaking is a taught degree in eighteenth century contexts and representations, meaning that I take two classes per quarter while working on a Master’s thesis. The whole degree, from start to finish, only takes one year.

So, I’ll keep you posted about where I end up. Right now, it’s kinda looking like I’ll be relocating to York, England in October. But I still have to wait for other offers, so that may change in a few weeks. Please keep me in your prayers!

Miscellaneous

Well, I am a very lax blogger as of late. I think that Christmas break really set me in a bad updating pattern. As in, I didn’t do it at all over break and the habit has (unfortunately) continued into the New Year. But I do promise to try better. Really and truly.

The aforementioned cold has, thankfully, passed and I am in perfect health. But really, the reason that I haven’t been blogging that much is because there isn’t really anything worth saying. I wake up, get ready, go to school, teach, lunch, teach some more, come home, hang out with my roomie, make dinner, and go to bed. That’s really all there is to do during the week in such a small town. Weekends, I can do something a little more exciting.

Last Saturday, I spent the day in Compiègne with my friend “A” and her three adorable kiddos. She’s an American who married a Frenchman, so it’s great to talk about our mutual experiences and encourage each other as sisters in the Lord. I’ve met a large number of American women out here, especially those who have married into French families, which is an interesting dynamic.

Since the funds are a bit low these days, I’m staying low and not traveling a lot. But… I will be over the next break, which is in about five weeks. I just officially reserved an entire week in BARBADOS. Originally, I thought about going to Portugal for the first week of March, but I checked the weather forecast and it looked really chilly. My friend, Kimmy, and I were in the mood to go somewhere sunny and beachy, so Barbados fit the bill perfectly! As it turns out, I only have to pay for my flight/excursions/spa treatments because the hotel is all-inclusive and a part of my parents’ timeshare. Bonus!

And the best part? I’m going to try and get a multi-destination flight, so I’ll hopefully be able to pop in to Philadelphia for a few days and visit the fam, visit Target, workout at the gym, and eat diner food. I haven’t made the arrangements yet, but that’s my super awesome plan. Cool, yeah?

So, back to France. K and I made breakfast for dinner tonight. Pancakes, (from scratch!) eggs sunny side up, and sausage. Comfort food, for sure. Yum.