By student Maggie Goble, about her experience in the London Learning Abroad program
I have always wanted to go to London. You can ask anyone in my family and they’ll tell you for just how long I have wanted to go. Everything about the city seemed incredible to me: the art, the museums, the history — even just the fact that roses can bloom like that made my desert-grown heart ache to know what it would be like. The idea of simply experiencing the rain-soaked lights on the Thames was, yes, romanticized in my brain but nonetheless magical. This idea I had of London — this dream of being there — was why, while sitting on that plane, watching the mountains I love so much gradually fade into the blue sky, I started to tear up. Though I can blame quite a bit on nerves and lack of sleep, I will admit that most of the tears stemmed from the sudden and powerful realization that this plane was taking me to somewhere I had always wanted to go. The realization that the minute the wheels of that plane hit the Heathrow tarmac I could finally say I had been to London.
Of course, there was much more to London than Heathrow Airport, though that was an exciting if somewhat stressful first stop. The first few days of being in London felt like a whirlwind. Our professors, Tim Slover and Jane England, made sure we got to know our way around; where our classroom was, how to navigate the London Underground, what places had the best fish and chips. I remember that first day, hauling my luggage to the flats, thinking I will never know how to get back to the tube station through this long winding maze of London streets. By the last day, I couldn’t remember how in the world I thought that walk was far.
One of the most amazing things about London is just how much art there is and just how affordable. Seeing art pieces I learned about in Art History in person was an experience I will never forget. Standing in front of one of my favorite paintings, “Sunflowers” by Vincent van Gogh, I couldn’t wrap my head around what I was actually seeing, a feeling I got again while sitting and watching Sir Ian Mckellan perform in Player Kings and again watching Much Ado About Nothing at the Globe Theatre.
The theatre in London was unlike anything I had ever experienced before, and thanks to Tim and Jane it was an even richer experience than I could have had had I seen those same shows outside the program. Every show we saw as a class, and we went to prepared and engaged. I saw plays not just as a lover of theatre but as a student of it. I learned to see theatre from a place of observation rather than judgment. I saw performances that inspired me as an actor, words that made me ache to write, productions that reminded me why I love theatre so much.
The Hills of California, Operation Mincemeat, and Underdog were just a few of the productions that we saw that not only inspired me as an artist but truly affected me as a person.
A memory that sticks out to me about living in London comes from the last week we were there. It was early in the morning on a free day, meaning we didn’t have class or an optional activity. Normally this meant I would go and see a show on the West End, maybe visit a museum, or — if I was feeling a bit lonely or homesick–spend time in the common room of our flat playing games and talking. This particular morning, however, I just wanted a cup of coffee, a cinnamon roll, and to experience London. Ironically, that was the day one of the baristas asked me about home. They asked where in America I was from. I told them Utah.
“So you have mountains,” she said.
“Yes.”
“They must be beautiful,” the other barista commented.
“Yes, they are.”
“Utah must be very different from London, I’m guessing.”
I laughed. “Much easier to tell which direction I’m going with the mountains.”
And it hit me. I knew how to get to the coffee shop. I knew how to get to the station. To the museum. To the flat. Even to the West End if I wanted. I didn’t know all of London, but I was getting to know it. And I loved it. So when the baristas asked me, “Do you miss home?” I said,
“More than anything.” But I added, “I know I’ll miss London too.”
If someone were to ask me if they should go on the London Learning Abroad program I don’t think I would be able to answer “yes!” fast enough. Because it’s not just about seeing London, it’s learning about London. While London on its own is wonderful, having people with you that are eager to learn and professors that are excited to teach makes all the difference. So yes, I can say I have been to London; but after six weeks and several incredible life changing experiences later, thanks to Tim and Jane and everyone on the trip, I can say that I have truly learned about it too.
