And there goes half a semester

I can't recall when exactly I arrived in the United Kingdom to begin my semester-long exchange programme, but I do know that it was sometime in late January. This means that I've been living here in the UK for 3 months already, therefore I've another 2 months left before I leave. Or to put it another way, my time here is more than halfway done.

The UK is a popular destination for many students all over the world who want to study abroad. My motivations for picking the UK are largely personal: my parents did some of their studies there, and I had once visited the country as a child and had a good time. What surprised some people about my going over to the UK for exchange is the city in the UK I lived in. Leeds is by no means a small town or minor city, but it is not as well-known as London, Manchester and Liverpool. Several people I know have never even heard of it. As for the university I go to, the University of Leeds, it has some international renown but is definitely not so prestigious as to be in the Oxford-Cambridge-London School of Economics league. Looking back, I do wonder why I picked this University in particular, and why I was so eager to get a place. The reason I gave back then was because I was really interested in their School of Politics and International Studies, which is funny because in the end, I did not take any modules from that School.

Don't get me wrong, I don't mean to suggest that I regret coming to the University of Leeds. On the contrary, I have had a great time studying in this University and living in Leeds. It's just that I find it interesting that my initial reason for coming here does not hold any more, which begs the question, why an I here in Leeds? Perhaps it does not really matter, for ultimately the purpose of my coming to the UK on exchange is to experience British life and culture more deeply than a tourist would. If so then which British city might not be so important, for as different as they may be in terms of size, economic importance, richness in history etc, they are all essentially British in character. Leeds is one of many British cities, but one that will always be special to me not just because I studied and lived there for a while, but also Leeds is the starting point of my journey to discover British life and culture.

Sadly, it seems that I won't have much time left to do so. Hence, I am determined that for this Easter holiday, I will immerse myself as deeply in the UK as I can. It's a good time to do so, especially since Prince William's wedding is drawing closer and to mark the historical occasion, people celebrating all things British. So, I will be eating as big a variety of British food as I can, learning to prepare some British dishes, travelling to the British countryside ... and ultimately will be there at the Royal Wedding to celebrate with everyone else. Six months is too short to thoroughly know a country, but considering how my time here will be coming to an end soon and how now is the best time to explore the various aspects of British life, I am determined to make good use of my holidays. Let the Easter project begin!