Week 14

© James Kenvin

James Kenvin checks in weekly from his study abroad semester in London; catch up with him every Wednesday on Trazee Travel.

We missed Thanksgiving. In London, it went so quickly from Halloween costumes to Christmas decorations, we almost forgot about the great holiday in between that lets us reflect on all we’re thankful for, be with family and, most importantly, eat like there’s no tomorrow. Most of us in the program had class or had to work at our internship that Thursday, so we decided to have a belated Thanksgiving dinner that weekend. We all got together and each brought something to add to the meal. We had all the essentials: turkey, stuffing, cranberry sauce and the ability to pretend we weren’t celebrating this holiday in the country our forefathers ran away from.

As we performed the Thanksgiving ritual of stuffing ourselves and politely complimenting everyone’s cooking, I couldn’t help but think of all of us as a family. We decided to go around and talk about what we’re all thankful for and for most of us it was that we got to share this experience abroad with one another. When I first signed on to study abroad, I knew I wanted a to go to a program where I didn’t know any of the other students and I’m so happy I did. I knew I wanted to meet new people, but I didn’t realize all of the friendships I would make with some of the most amazing people. Although it’s up to you to make your time abroad worthwhile, making connections with those joining you on the journey makes it infinitely better.