Katie is a member of the University Honors Program and a junior majoring in political science with a religious studies minor. As part of SMU-in-Britain, she will be studying in the International Relations department at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland, where her courses will include "Human Rights in Theory and Practice" and "Politics of China."From Georgia to Scotland
My adventure began in the Atlanta, GA airport on September 19 and has not ceased since.
While waiting to board the plane I met an American girl just like myself who has been studying in Bombay, India for the past two years. I then boarded my plane and sat next to a man from Saudi Arabia who has been studying in the United States for the past two years.
After barely making it on my plane from JFK to Edinburgh I went in and out of a daze as I crossed the ocean to a whole new world. Imagine Scotland in your head. I was expecting to see rolling green pastures, castle ruins, small villages with cobblestone streets, and the sea. Well, that is exactly what it is like. St. Andrews is the picturesque town that one would imagine it to be.
While here I have learned that there are some major differences between St. Andrews and SMU. The most shocking to me was the fact that at all of the dorm meetings the Resident Advisors, or Wardens as they are called here, function as bartenders and the pubs are the social hubs of the school. I was completely dumbfounded coming from the dry campus of SMU.
The second most shocking thing I have found about being abroad is that you walk everywhere, and when I say everywhere I mean everywhere. I bought a bike in order to try to expedite my travels around town, but my fear of riding it on round-a-bouts is somewhat hindering that prospect.
The best part by far has been meeting so many great people from all over the world! I have everything from new American friends to friends from Germany, Egypt, and Malta!