Halfway there!
From Tuscany Vineyards to Icelandic Glaciers…
Ah! 2 weeks late but I hope this will be worth the wait. The past month has been filled with more personal growth, travel, friend making and yes, school work. This is a late (and long) update since I was absolutely slammed by midterm season last week, with 3 long papers all due on Friday. Luckily I got them all done, yet didn’t have the energy or time to write this last week as I had to pack for my 5 days in Iceland with my class (more on that later).
I left you last as I was excited to embark on our first travel week which Sophie and I booked together which was 8 days in Italy. It feels like that was AGES ago! We started with 2 days in Milan, 2 in Florence/Pisa, then 4 in Rome. It was glorious. We flew over the stunning Swiss Alps to get into Milan, and when we stepped off the plane we were greeted with blue, sunny skies and gasped in awe at how beautiful the weather was. We started to say how this is our tropical vacation compared to gloomy Denmark. We met up with our friend Kate who is studying abroad there and she was a tremendous host, and has an amazing city to live in! Milan truly is the shopping capital of the world, but on brand for me, instead of going into Gucci or Versace, I bought stuff at H&M and urban outfitters… oops!
We were really impressed and grateful to have Kate with us as we started our trip because it was nice to have someone with us who spoke Italian! Kate is practically fluent and I was SO impressed by her. The three of us were able to really bond over our shared experiences of missing home and Hamilton.
We went on to Florence which was my favorite city of the three. Small, walkable, lots to see, nice rivers/canals etc. We did a sunset happy hour overlooking the city and of course went to see David before taking a train to Pisa for a day trip! The tower looked fake and not even real. I felt like I was looking at a green screen thanks to the incredibly blue skies, and bright green grass. I honestly think everyone should see the leaning tower of Pisa in their lifetime. SO worth it. I must admit that I was secretly hoping that it would fall over while we were there so I could go viral on CNN if we were to get interviewed to share our first hand accounts of the collapse. Unfortunately (or fortunately I guess lol) there was no CNN cameo for me.
In Rome, we truly ate (and drank) our way through the city and did all the touristy things: the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Roman Forum, and the Vatican. I also broke away by myself and took a wine tasting class with an Italian-American from Arizona who has been living in Italy for the past few years and the lesson ended up being 1–1 which was a nice surprise. I asked him so many questions and I learned so much (although after 7 glasses I don’t know how much information I was processing at that point, but I digress). We ended the whole trip with gelato for dinner in front of the Trevi fountain which was a great way to bid Italy adieu.
I definitely did not want to come back to Copenhagen after the trip and was bummed to say the least that the tropical high was over. It was weird to return “home” to Copenhagen but not to actual “home home.” Therapy has been going well when it comes to my grief and homesickness as I discussed last time, but my sessions sadly just aren’t frequent enough. I finished Untamed by Glennon Doyle (it was truly life changing and I need to reread and mark it up), and then went on to finish Brené Brown’s new book Atlas of the Heart. Atlas ended up being the final straw to convince me to apply to be a peer counselor at Hamilton for next year.
Peer Counselors are a branch of the counseling center at Hamilton and are a group of around 10 students who are selected and trained in counseling to eventually then have peer counseling sessions with fellow students who sign up to talk things through, an alternative to a traditional therapist. Brené’s words on empathy and compassion, and the value in going through adversity/diverse lived experiences and using what you’ve learned from those experiences to help others, really inspired me to do this. The application process was really thorough, but I had my former Asst. Director in the DC program write me a letter of recommendation which was AMAZING and I worked really hard on thoughtful application responses. I have an interview in the next few weeks so stay tuned! This would be in addition to my role as an RA which I have officially been rehired as! I will be living in a suite and pulled Kate (my friend we saw in Milan) to live next door to me!
So although the books helped me through the mental setbacks, it was still a tough month as St Patrick’s day came and went. Dad’s large role in the Irish Fest, and Uncle Mike’s birthday being the day after St Patty’s made it particularly tough. I guess what’s so hard is that the world still spins without them as symbolized by me going to Rome and being in Copenhagen through all of this, which isn’t the best feeling. The Irish Fest was cancelled this year due to Covid which is sad, but good for me, so I can be able to go next year and volunteer in Dad’s absence.
I had a few great phone calls with Rebekka (best friend from home) who always calls me first because she knows me too well and how I wont call, even though I should, so they were really nice and needed conversations.
What’s also been really helping me through the homesickness is whenever I catch myself having a glass of wine alone as I get ready to go out with friends, am on the train commuting, or anywhere and in a grumpy mood, I listen/watch Matt and Patti Clark’s “A Couple of Drinks with the Clarks.” I laugh so hard and smile throughout all of their shows. It’s hard to be homesick when I have family on demand ready to make me smile or keep me company whenever I need them. Little do they know their impact!
I also have discovered a new daily week-day podcast that started last month by radio host “Delilah” (Yes! That Delilah from Magic 103.1)The podcast is called “Hey it’s, Delilah” where each day there’s a ~10 min episode with a theme or topic and Delilah shares her thoughts on it, and then there is a montage of clips from callers from her radio show who call in about the topic and you get to hear their conversations. So it’s basically the best part of her shows at night, just in one podcast. Her soothing voice really brings me great comfort when I need it most, and reminds me of home and my childhood. The summertime car rides home at night from the lake as a kid, listening and falling asleep to Delilah’s show in the back seat before getting carried into bed from the car is something I’ll remember forever.
As I rely on these avenues for my strength to keep me going, I’ve continued to push myself and choose courage over comfort while here. One of the most wild experiences since I wrote last, is when I had to attend a “Sauna Gus Chamber” with the people in my dorm. I was SO nervous, mostly because I dislike saunas and feel like I can’t breathe fresh air, but also because of my body insecurities. However, I quickly found multiple people in my group who shared similar concerns, but we all knew this would end up being a “once in a lifetime abroad experience.” And that it was. It was basically a shed on the side of a bay, but inside, the website describes it as “Saunagus is aromatherapy in a sauna, where a gus master works with essential oils on the hot stone of the sauna and swings the scent of the oils and the heat around the sauna with a large manual fan, so that a pleasant relaxed atmosphere is created.” Pleasant and relaxed is THE LAST two adjectives I would use. My skin was practically melting off of my body. But luckily I was mentally prepared so I really leaned into the mental toughness side of it, and focused on my breathing and meditated! There were 3 sessions of 10 minutes with polar plunges to cool down in between. I think polar plunges or “winter bathing” as they call it in Denmark should be illegal. Its not pleasant, not even after 10 minutes of your skin being on fire and sweating out an entire water bottle in one session. But I survived, and felt physically amazing after, spiritually renewed, and proud of myself for doing it. Once again proving Glennon’s words that “we can do hard things.”
That week I went on to finish my papers and pack for Iceland! So this was another week off that we have but this time I travel with 2 faculty members and my professor with 21 classmates. I specifically chose Denmark for abroad so I could do this class and the week in Iceland, and it certainly lived up to my expectations. We stayed the first 2 days in Reykjavik, the capital, which is home to about 300k people. It was a step up from Watertown, but also not an overwhelmingly big city. It’s surrounded by beautiful mountains/scenery and filled with cute houses, stores, restaurants, etc. It was AWESOME. I LOVED it in Reykjavik. Much more my pace after being a big city boy in DC and now in Copenhagen. There’s just enough to do so you’re not bored, but also not too much so you’re overwhelmed. Of course, our activities surrounding climate change, geology, glaciers and volcanoes were also extremely fascinating and I enjoyed every second. We then did a 3 day tour of the south and wests coasts of Iceland, hiked the Vatnajökull glacier, went inside the Langjökull glacier (after a 45 minute ride on an 8 wheeler to get to the top, which was crazy! I felt like I was on another planet, and it’s complete whiteout so you just see white everywhere because you’re in a cloud and also thanks to the blowing snow, its a little creepy!) we also saw hot springs, and so many stunning waterfalls.
That makes it sound very academic, but of course the best part was the socializing with my new friends. In Reykjavik we made it our mission to try to go to all the best pubs/bars while we were there which was an absolute blast but came with a stiff price tag. These welfare state countries brag about their free healthcare yet charging $29 for a double rum and coke is just simply not okay!
Also during our independent time, my closest friends and I also went to “Sky Lagoon” which I don’t know how else to describe it other than I was in a massive peaceful heated infinity pool situation that overlooked the snowy mountains that had a swim up bar… yes it was INSANE and practically heaven.
During the days as a class, we laughed, napped, ate meals and rode the bus together which was truly a wild bonding experience. There’s something to be said for throwing 23 hungover college students on a glacier with a pair of crampons and hoping for the best LOL.
As for my goals from last time, I continue to book therapy appointments and go as frequent as her schedule allows, and always do my CPT homework. I have managed to become a responsible shopper in the grocery store after my stipend ran out, so major success there. I’ve also been more social in reaching out and initiating with people to study with or for potential weekend trips which has been really good and fun. As this officially marks a little over halfway done with abroad, I finally feel like I have a solid footing when it comes to really reliable friends, which is a relief.
My biggest takeaway is that after I graduate from Hamilton, studying or working in Reykjavik summer 2023 seems really appealing and feasible at the moment. Would love to go back ASAP. I’m so glad I went and had that opportunity.
Goals for next time are I need to get at least 1–2 more big trips on the books! Spain, Norway (for the Northern Lights), and/or France, I got my eyes on you! Also Mom and Gab come for a week starting April 9 and we are doing 2 days in Dublin! So I will have to have build a terrific itinerary while they’re here. Can’t wait for that crossover episode :)
Under 50 days left… time to continue to stay awkward, brave, and kind.
Yours truly as I choose courage over comfort,
Lelan
