A week in London.

As part of my MA in Film Distribution and Marketing we visited London for the week and met up with loads of different companies. Now you need to know two things before I move on:

1. If you want to work in film distribution/marketing in the UK, the only place to be is London.
2. I have been pretty much telling everyone how I don't want to move to London.

The point of this week was to see all these people in different companies and jobs, from home entertainment to sales to exhibition, and ask them loads of questions. Some companies were studios such as 20th Century Fox or Universal, some were independent distributors such as Soda Pictures or Altitude. We also visited a lab that processes film and Pinewood Studios, where they are currently shooting the new Star Wars. To say this week was 'cool' is a huge understatement. It was AWESOME to see these influential people and hear them talk about their jobs. You pick up and learn things that you couldn't do by just googling the company.
And guess what? I think some of the confusion about life has been slightly lifted. I have a clearer idea about what job I want to go for. I mean, HOW GOOD IS THAT?  (It is international sales, just fyi)
Also about what I said before, my aversion towards living in London has decreased. Slightly.
Baby steps here.

So after convincing myself that I want to try and work in Germany, I have now opened up a whole new can of worms. Working in the UK is back in the game. AAH!

USEFUL FOR LIVING ABROAD: #1 TransferWise

This is the start of a series I wanna call 'Useful services for living abroad'.

Starting with TransferWise, which I unfortunately only discovered last year but pretty much changed the way I transfer money. FOR THE BETTER.

For the past four and a half years, I transferred money between Germany and the UK for at least once a month.  During my semester abroad in Texas, I did the same between Germany and the US. Sooooo many times I was frustrated by the amount I received and the fees I had to pay.

For every SEPA transfer that came in from my German account, my Scottish Bank RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland) charges me 7 freaking quid. Everytime, no matter how small of large the sum of money. Additionally, the exchange rate was horrible and I felt sad everytime I had to make this transfer. Let's not talk about transferring money from the UK to Germany, because apparently that would at least cost £35 in fees. Ridiculous, to say the least.

For my MA here in Birmingham I pay quite a lot of tuition, something that I didn't have to pay in Scotland. So not only was I looking at transferring money each month but also transferring a lot of money. I did not want to lose money to a horrible exchange rate and started googling for alternatives. I stumbled upon TransferWise. This project has been backed up by Richard Branson and was developed by the founders of Skype. After more research I conidered them safe to use and went ahead and transferred some money from my German account to my UK one. It is not only super fast (2 days, maximum!) but also safe and transparent. I can see the fees they charge me (about 1 or 2€, depending on the amount) and the exchange rate. Instead of an annoying bank transfer, I can use a kind of direct debit (Sofortüberweisung for the Germans) and it works perfectly.

This video explains how you do the transfer. When you have made the transfer, you can track the progress of it and you also receive status updates via email if you like. I wish I had known about this service before, it would have saved me sooo much money. Actually really depressing to think about it. That's why I have made it my mission to share this with everyone who transfers money abroad. 

If you like this service and might make us of it, sign up here: https://transferwise.com/

By signing up through this link you will receive a free first transfer (if it's under £$€3000). Signing up is obviously free. And for transparency, yes, for every three people that sign up through my link and make a transfer, I receive £100. But even if I didn't, I would still tell the whole world about it.

This is a company I have full faith in and I hope they will get much much bigger, so that eventually everyone will know about this.
Let me know if you have any questions :)

10 things you should know before moving to Edinburgh...

If you (lucky bastard) are thinking about moving to Edinburgh, here is a list of things you should know and consider before doing so. But let me tell you, each negative aspect is outweighed by ten positive things. 

1. Your uniform includes wellies and a rain coat (oh and you gotta get over your hair looking good)

2. You will have to try haggis. You will LOVE it, sooner or later.

3. The combination of wind and single glazed windows creates a beautiful symphony of draft. Get used to it.

4. Cancel all plans you have for August, because it is FRINGE TIME.

5. Shona at Benefit will give you the BEST eyebrows. Promise.

6. You gotta learn how to Ceilidh. Fear not, your best bet is a Friday night at the Ghillie Dhu.

7. Your friends and non friends will use you as a hotel because you simply live in the most beautiful city

8. Going to the Highlands is a must (in every season!) and they will make you weep.

9. Most greasy food places close before the clubs close. That is annoying, but there is always that corner shop on North Bridge that plays party music and sells samosas.

10. It is the most beautiful city of all and moving anywhere else will ruin your life.

How I got into a UK university

I cannot believe that I started this blog when I got into university. Let's go back to that point. I technically took a second gap year after my Au Pair year, cause I was still confused about life and everything. I did apply to universities that year but the courses I got into were just not right and I did not want to study something random and not like it. It was quite a horrible year, all I wanted was to be back in America, and not be stuck at home with my parents. Back then, someone was urging me to just do another course that is similar...like culture or whatnot- so I wouldn't end up with a gap on my resumee.
Utter bullshit, let me tell you. Until now, no one has EVER looked at my CV and asked me what I have done that year. And I would rather have a little work experience than a dropped uni course on there. So just don't listen to anyone, if your gut tells you something else. Most of the time, you know what's good for you. And I am not a quitter. I probably would have complete that degree while hating it. And that what not have gotten me anywhere.

Just like every other person, I wanted to do something "with media". Getting into university in Germany seemed ridiculously complicated if you didn't graduate top of the class in high school. Then I looked in to studying film but that was either in film schools in Bavaria or impossible to get into grade-wise. Meeeeh!

Eventually I got into the idea of studying abroad. First I was obsessed with Ireland, but then the application process seemed random and complicated and then I found that the UK has an actually straightforward process. It's called UCAS and has pros and cons. What I LOVE about it is that the unis don't just look into your grades but at your motivational letter. This gives people a chance that really wanna do something but don't have the most amazing grades. The cons is that you can only apply to 5 unis, so you have to pick them carefully. I eventually applied to four English unis and one Scottish one. Can you guess which one accepted me?

Not gonna lie, the English unis all rejected me. I think the research I did on those unis was not the best. Honestly, I had no idea what kind of unis I applied to. I am so so glad that they did reject me though, because studying in Scotland is pretty much free and in England you have to pay a bijillion pounds a year. Biig factor that I somehow forgot to include in my thoughts? 

As you see, I got incredibly lucky with my application. I obviously did some things right but then some of them were not good enough. (I just wish I could have found a blog where someone told me what to do- haha)

This was my weird journey to university and I always tell people that it was fate that I ended up in Scotland. Random thing- when I was about 15 I bought a travel guide for Scotland. My friend asked me if I was planning to go to Scotland anytime soon, and I just said 'one day'- The travel bug only really hit me after my Au Pair year, but even though I wasn't specifically thinking that I wanted to move to Scotland. It was more a case of "I hate Germany and feel so out of place" and "I need to study in English cause I cannot deal with German". I consider myself really lucky that everything worked out the way it did, and my years in Scotland were just the best.

xxx

Why I am excited to move to Birmingham

Now that I got in to BCU and will actually seriously move to Birmingham in the fall, it is terrifying to think about all the things I need to do. Figure out storage over the summer, finding a new flat (!!!!!!), getting all my stuff there, settling down once again. Every new place obviously also has its perks, and here are some about Birmingham. First of all, the train to London only takes about two hours, so that is really exciting! Seeing some of my English friends on a more regular basis is something I really look forward to.

A big part is obviously discovering fun new restaurants, bars and pubs. Buzzfeed is a surprisingly good guide for new and exciting things, such as 18 Cocktails Every Brummie Must Try, 19 Birmingham Brunches You Must Try Before You Die and this one about street food.

How yummy does all of this look? I wanna eat everything.right.meow.

And as much as I will be missing the Highlands and the beautiful Scottish landscape, there are other pretty places in the UK. Birmingham is not really that close to a coast, but not too far away from beautiful Welsh beaches.

And one of my favorite areas that is quite close to Birmingham is the Cotswolds. I mean, look at this! Cannot wait to go and see this for myself.

How beautiful is this?

So yes, I am also a little excited to move there.

Why I don't plan on going back to Germany (at the moment)

At the moment, with Uni coming to a close and all of that, so many people ask me if I am going back home to Germany. Um, no.

I think people don't realise how much studying abroad changes you. And I don't mean just a semester abroad but a whole degree. I have been living here for four years- it has been the first place I have stayed for such a long time other than Germany and it feels like my home. The guy from the shop next door knows me too well, I don't even wanna mention my eyebrow lady, I know all the short cuts and bus routes, tourists think you are a local and ask you for directions, you always meet people you know on the street... it doesn't just feel like my home, it truly is.

Germany obviously still feels like home, too: My small home town is the place where I will always know people, where the bank employees recognize me, and I have made lifelong memories here. It feels good to be home once in a while, and it feels special. My mum makes a fuss, everyone I meet is asking me about my plans for my life and you have that weird status of being that cool kid back in town. But I guess that only works if you leave again at one point, and that is fine with me. I also don't have the urge to move to a bigger German city either, because.. there is no one that I fancy living in. I dislike Berlin, Hamburg and Munich are too posh and all the other places... meh, I am not convinced.

I feel out of synch with German culture at times, because I have learned to love Scottish and American culture so much. I love greeting everyone with 'how r u', having nice talks with shop assistants, making friends at the bus stop with random strangers and ordering tap water for free. In my mind, all of these things seem impossible in Germany. It probably really isn't that impossible, but my heart just wouldn't be all there if I moved back to Germany.

And if I have learned one thing, then it is that one: Wherever you go, go with all your heart.

So I guess that's what I'm doing. For now.

And maybe one day, my heart will lead me back to Germany.

How to get strong eyebrow game

We all need eyebrows, don't we? Otherwise we would look like this...Not so cool.

About two years ago, I heard about the Benefit Brow Bar and when it came to John Lewis here in Edinburgh, I had to try it out. Benefit waxes and tints eyebrows and creates a shape that suits your face. They are like magicians, I am telling you. They can bring out the best shape the way you never could do it yourself. Thanks to a beautician in my village in Germany, my eyebrows have not been horrible per se. But I plucked them myself and it's one of those dangerous activities- "just one more hair, then I will stop"- and all of the sudden you end up with something like this.

This is a little video I found on YouTube to show you what they do.

Now I sadly don't have a glorious before and after picture of my eyebrows, but I guess these come close:

It's not just me, look at other results from the Benefit Brow Bar: x and x and x   So I started going to Benefit regularly now, about every six weeks or so. I used to get them tinted too but rarely do so anymore. My eyebrows are naturally really dark and I barely see a difference, so I just get them waxed. Ever since, I have turned about five of my friends in to benefit-believers and we never looked back! I cannot stress enough how amazing they are, every time they just make you eyebrows look so much cleaner, more defined and more out there. In the UK, it's 11£ for just the wax and 18£ for a wax and tint. Not super cheap, but definitely worth it!

The Harry Potter Guide to Scotland

My Harry Potter obsession experiences several highs over these past years: When I was in New York for the premiere of the last film, I thought Emma Watson waved at me and I awkwardly waved back (I stood in a crowd and obviously she was waving at everyone in a nice gesture- ugh), then visiting the exhibition that was touring in New York that summer.. and I bought the super expensive Marauders Map..haha. And then of course when Julia and I finally visited the HP studios near London.. aw man, all moments I will never forget.
However, living in Edinburgh and seeing JK Rowling's inspiration for this story every single day is a treat that is one of a kind.  There are many stories about where she wrote (Elephant House) and where she apparently hangs out now (the cafe on top of Harvey Nichols), but visiting the places that are used in the film is incredibly cool. So here is a mixture of things: Places she apparently visited, real places used in the films and places she got her inspiration from.

This loch is used as the 'Hogwarts lake' several times. It felt super familiar when we were there, so funny!

This picture might not be the best one, but this spot with the waterfall has been used as the back drop in the Goblet of Fire, when Harry is battling the dragon.

 

Aawww I think we all know this one. The actual train does not run all year round- it only starts around May.

The Elephant House is not part of the actual movies but rumor has it that JK Rowling was writing part of the books here, in that cafe. The view you get of the castle is actually really nice, so who knows?

Close to the Elephant House is Greyfriars Kirkyard. I love it because its just a proper old graveyard and the tombstones are quite scary. A lot of the names from the series appear here, Riddle, McGongall and Potter... Worth a visit despite all of this! Next to it is George Heriot's School, which is an incredible building and apparently an inspiration for Hogwarts.

The beauty of the Lake District

I think I have mentioned before that I work as a tour guide and sometimes accompany bus tours in to either the Highlands or to the Lake District. As much as I love the beautiful raw nature of the Highlands, the Lake District is not close behind.The three hour drive down from Edinburgh to Windermere is stunning and I am lucky that I sit next to the driver and have the freedom to just stare out the window through the massive front window. Never mind if going in winter or spring or fall, the landscape never fails to take my breath away and really all I wanna do is get out of the bus and run around in the fields. I was lucky enough to grow up with a lot of fields around my house, but the part of Germany I'm from is reaaaally flat. So the Lake District is massively fascinating to me with all these hills and rivers and stone walls and cute sheep... so proper English and so painfully beautiful. And just because I can't take great pictures on these bus tours, I have found some nice ones on Flickr that are pretty much exactly what I am talking about.

So if any one needs some travel inspiration, here you go!

Let's start fresh.

Numbers wise, my 2014 consisted of: 8 books (plus all of the Harry Potter series), 86 films, uncountable hours of TV series, 13 flights, 3 concerts or so, 112 new friends according to Facebook, account balance 0£€¥,  money spent on priceless moments: a lot, but who cares.

Let's start fresh, right now.

Right now I am sitting at a Manchester airport hotel. I will spent five more hours in this lovely lobby thanks to RyanAir, who decided to delay my flight for five hours due to winds (although every other flight left on time!). So we had to go to another airport, fly from there, arrive in Manchester way too late to get a train somewhere or do anything, really. So checking into a hotel was the only thing I could do. And because I don't want to pay another 100£ for a train up to Edinburgh, I will be taking the bus like other poor students. Which will get me in to Edinburgh around 28hours later than plannes. BLURGH!!!!!

But hey, it could be worse. So to make this post a bit more cheerful, here are four things I'm slightly obsessed with at the moment.

1. The Lizzie Bennet Diaries. I've only discovered this while researching for my dissertation,  and   started watching it hesitantly but I'm already on episode 50 finished. I just can't stop.  Some episodes are slightly cringy but a lot of them are really good. And Lydia Bennett is my spirit animal.  Forever. What it is, you ask? A transmedia adaptation of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice.Totally contemporary with vlogs and shit.  

2. My new teeth.  OK this is silly but I finally went to the ever-so-feared dentist and got my stupid teeth fixed (after eating two gummy bears my teeth started hurting so much I had to stop. Oops- definitely a sign to go to the dentist ASAP!). So I'm brushing and flossing the shit out of them now so cavities will not be in my vocabulary anymore.  I swear. 

3. My dissertation.  I'm still not sure what my angle is and how exactly I am going to write what I have in mind, but I every day I am thankful that I can write about film and other fun things. (Did I mention I am writing about the Hunger Games films? )

4. Studying Abroad. When I was hanging out at the airport yesterday, I overheard a few people talking about studying abroad (did I join in? Naaah ah, I am the creeper pretending to read haha) in the UK. In a way this is why I started this blog- I wanted to share all my experiences with people who might want to do the same thing. When I was thinking about working at camp in America, it was seriously difficult to find a proper review from someone. Same with studying abroad. And I mean proper reviews that inspire you and help you with those annoying questions of funding etc, written by someone relatable. So someone that inspired me and reminded me to write more about this is my friend Ilinca, who appeared in this video recently (Sorry, it's in German).
Isn't she cute?

PS: #5 of this list will forever go to Taylor Swift. I remember giving a presentation about her brand image about two years ago. Jesus, that presentation would be totally different today, wouldn't it? I find her incredibly fascinating and she is growing in to some role model, man.