Hello. I'm a 21 year old female from the US and I'll be traveling to England next fall through Bunac to work. I've never been out of the country before. Any advice for a first-time, solo traveler? I'm a bit apprehensive about doing this all on my own, so any tips would be much appreciated!

Also, if there is anyone out there who has traveled through Bunac before, it would be great to hear about your experience!

Thanks in advance.

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To the Boards jeneliza, Great to have you!

Hmmmmm..... First time over seas huh? I will bet your pretty nervous, worried, curious, excited, and about 600 other emotions going through your head....Well I will bet every last person felt the same way on their first trip across the pond, wether its Europe, or South America or Asia, i doesn't matter...its the unknown that makes ya feel that way...Some advise??? Prep yourself as much as possible, since you'll be in England language is not really an issue, but if your gong to be traveling outside of UK ( which can cost as little as 2P if ya plan it right) brush up on some basic language skills, learn about the city you'll be in or around, England is a big place and with a little patients you'll be surf'n the London Undergorund in no time.

I have been to England 3 times, so I can help a bit in that dept if ya need it.

I will offer you this, if for some reason you start to get cold feet about the adventure your about to embark on, TALK TO SOMEONE! A suportive friend, bro/sis, or come on here and tell us whats wrong, we want to help! If your heart is telling you to do this thing, but your brain is not letting you enjoy the experience because of second thoughts, you need friends and peps who have been there...for the record, i was scared to death on my first trip :) But hey, you may not be, i dunno, just want you to know that we are here if ya need us to be.... B)

Welcome to the boards Jeneliza!

Yeah, I think that everyone on these boards were just as apprehensive as you are before we all took our first trips. Your trip should be a little easier, in my opinion, since you will be involved with a well know organization.
Once you're in England and working away, any nervousness that you may have had will probably turn into raw excitement. Just the trip over to a foreign land seems to be where all the hoopla is. Kinda like when you first start a new job, you're all excited and nervous about your performance because the pay will be good, than after the first day, or week, you're like, DAMN I can't believe that I'm getting paid to do this! And you look forward to going to work without a bit of apprehension.

Same thing with traveling. Happened on my first trip. Nervous at the airport, but when the plane landed in Paris, I was like, mannnnnnn, I can't believe that I'm in Europe, baby! That was waaaaaayyyyy too easy! You mean to say that all I had to do is buy a plane ticket, sacrifice 13 hours of my life on a plane, and bring spending cash? What a knucklehead! Why didn't I do this much earlier! Then it was like a mile a minute, I'm going here, I'm going there, can't miss that, yep definitely hitting Amsterdam. Barcelona... abolutely! Italy...crap! No time! F*#@! NOT ONE IOTA OF ANYTHING BUT BLISS! It's as easy as you driving through a bunch of states in the US. You don't think anything else, but Vegas baby! Or, whew! I'm going to Disneyland, then Universal, then hit the beach, then the Grand Canyon, then Mile High Stadium, and on up to Mt Rushmore, etc...

So the apprehension is normal, but this trip could be life altering...

Here's some quick reviews of people that worked with BUNAC- http://www.dooyoo.co.uk/cityguide_travel/travel/bunac/

And do as CD mentioned, talk to people, especially the people on this board. The more you talk about it, the more comfortable and anxious you will get about going overseas. It's happend to all of us ;)

Well I'm doing the opposite of you for the first time an I'm very nervous but also very excited (a Male 26 year old). I obviously live in England and can give you a few tips on life out here.

* If you need to get a cheap flight throughout the UK and europe, I recommend www.easyjet.co.uk.
* Dont bother coming any further north than Leeds, I live in Sunderland, near Newcastle at the top of England and boring but cheaper than down south.
* Drink lager not beer and by choice choose Carling extra cold, Stella or Labatts.
* Funky House music is larger than ever over here so expect it in the better nightclubs.
* Not everyone likes Americans (I do of course) so don't make a point of speaking loud like other American travellers do, it's quite annoying.
* I presume Bunac is a working agancy, but if you end up wanting to work a little afterwards, the easiest job to get is Call Centre work.

I'm heading to the US for 1 month then going over to Australia in February, anyway good look to ya chick!

xJCx ;)

Thanks, everyone, for the help and support! It definitely makes me feel better to hear about other people's experiences. Talking to people definitely helps. I find on an average day I go from being totally afraid to extremely excited about my upcoming trip, and I'm surprised at the amount of encouragement the random co-worker or classmate can give you. Right now I'm feeling excited, though, so that's good. I know as soon as I have to leave my family at the airport I'm going to be sweating it though!

SunsettLover, I hope you enjoy your time in the states!


xxx

Hey Jeneliza,

A fellow board member is doing the same thing with BUNAC in the UK and arrived ther about 3-4 weeks ago. I donn't think he has started his work program yet, but he can probably give you any information that you would like to know.

Here's a thread that he started a while back- Upstatecb and BUNAC. I believe he is in Manchester now.

Clcik on his name to send him an email or Private Message. Hope it helps!


ESL, hope you have a great time in the USA and Australia! We have members from both countries on these boards so let us know if you have any questions or need any suggestions!

Hey Jenelizzzza
It all true sexy go hard core