Feeling numb.

The days are just flying by, everyone is counting the days. Some of us because they really want to go home, but most of us shush each other when we talk about how little time is left.
I know I feel so sad about leaving this place, but not really. I feel numb above all.
Right now all I do is live day by day, trying not to stress about the massive presentations and papers I have due pretty much tomorrow. Every day I check off another presentation, another assignment, another last class. This is all great, but at the same time I am just rushing through these last precious days, just trying to make it.

Also my body just sort of decided to give up which means I am on antibiotics and steroids right now (haha I love saying that) because of a strep throat. arghh!!!!!! There could not have been a worse time for this. Anyways.
See you on the other side, when life is full of good stuff again.
That will be on Monday by 7.15pm.
fingers crossed.

Studying. UK vs US

Coming to the US to actually study here at a University was one of my dreams- I never thought I would actually do it but here I am. There are so so many differences between the University systems and between the two schools I have been to- some are hard to adjust to, some are not really noticable.
Something I want to say before you read this comparison: Both of the schools are pretty small with the student body being around 6000 students. QMU in Scotland is probably very different to the University of Edinburgh, that has around 25000 students. It is not really representative for Scottish Universities and neither is St. Edward's like any other American college. They are both pretty special schools and I love them both very much. They were the right choice for me, even though I never thought that small and personal classes would be the right fit for me. I find it actually nice that the teachers know my name and where I'm from. Another thing is that my course (film and media, or communication here in the US) are pretty modern and fun classes and not as serious or stressful like law or science for example. So keep this in mind when reading this!

	Scotland (UK)	USA
Assignments	We have around two/three essays per module per semester and then maybe an exam at the end. We have to keep up with reading during the semester. My uni relies very much on independent studying, doing your work in your own time and being responsible for what you do.	Loads and loads of stuff. Homework for almost every class, reading, presentations with every project, field trips, exams, ... it never ends! It feels like high school, there is attendance taken in almost every class, they micro manage you a lot. I have the pleasure of taking quite interesting classes, but generally the system requires you to take a bit of everything until declaring your major. Thank god I don't have to do that!
Daily life	I live in the beautiful city cente of Edinburgh and the campus is around 40 bus minutes away. I have classes maybe around 8-10 hours a week but attentance is not really taken, so it could be much less. Therefore, I have time to find a job, chill, meet friends, do other stuff. It feels much more relaxed and independent. It gives you time to "have a life" that does not just revolve around uni.	It feels like school is my main priority here. It probably should be like that anyways, but let's be honest. Student life should also be fun. Living on campus and having so much work, I always (try to) finish my uni work and then do other stuff. What makes life hard as an exchange student in the US is not having a car. You are pretty mich stuck on campus. The bus system in Austin is fairly okay but does not help when you want go somewhere off the route. I have accepted this and built my life around my friends here, doing stuff with them and then going out on the weekends with them. Doing stuff on my own is not part of my life here, which is very strange in a way.
Exams	I hate exams and I find them really hard. Studying for it is not so much about learning dates and facts but about understanding the relevant issues and developing a critical standpoint.	Here, most exams are multiple choice. So you don't really need to understand anything but just study until you know everything from the top of hour head. SO so different from home and not really my preference either.
Atmosphere & Community	QMU has it quite hard. The newly built campus is outside of Edinburgh and even though we have a Student Union with a bar and events and so on, very few of the students are actually taking part. Living on campus is mostly for freshers so they are almost the only ones on campus when classes are finished for the day. You wouldn't just meet up on campus if you live in town, which makes it really hard for any sense of community to develop.	This point is very dependent on the different schools, but community is a big thing here. The US is full of campus Universities, with no big city around. Everything revolves around campus life, the bigger schools have their own police, shops and so on. Creating a community is one of the main priorities here, with campus events, school mascots and obviously sport teams, school pride, getting T-shirts for every event... typical American. I love it, it makes it so much easier to meet people and be part of something.

just breathe

I am so happy here that it scares me. Life is so easy here, so good and fun. I love all my people here, I have no difficulties with the Uni work, I love exploring this country and I love to learn that I really don't need that much alone time. Nothing feels better than walking to class with the sun shining in your face, a warm breeze in your hair, meeting lovely people you know everywhere on campus, the beautiful Austin skyline always in the background... the weekends are full of parties, good food and hanging out. And  still I can't stop thinking about the end of the semester- I also still don't have a clue what I will do in my free time in May. Annoying!

Last weekend we danced the night away at The Ranch on West 6th, went to a crazy cliche co-op party at UT (the other massive school here in Austin), enjoyed the almost 30 degree summer weather and celebrated Homecoming here at St. Edward's- with a casino night, basketball games and other activities.

lovelovelove

Gosh, today was/is such a good day!

My social media class was great today, we did a sort of scavenger hunt which is all about St. Ed's! Click on the hashtags to see the tweets or just see this post, I stole some of the prettiest.

#JRLWeb or #COMM3309

Also can I just mention how good I got at YOGAAAAAA??????? My favorite part of the day- walking back from Yoga across the most beautiful campus. 

SO MUCH LOVE AND SUNSHINE!

so see ya'll on Monday, I am off to New Orleans tomorrow!

semester abroad ³³²³

(blue pins is where I have been)

Another update regarding my semester abroad. There are 3 universities in the States that I am considering (also because we can nominate up to three choices on our application) The uni with the free accommodation (Slippery Rock) is still in the game somehow, but I think I might have set my heart on Texas. It is a privat catholic university and I did a looooot of research and came to the conclusion that the whole catholic thing is not that big of a deal (I am not catholic). Nothing is being forced on students anyway and it seems to be a lovely university that also looks like modern Hogwarts (score!).
Now there are obviously still so many steps to take until this thing becomes reality, but I am psyched!
Fingers crossed xxx