If I had to describe London weather in one word, it would be dreary. The climate in the British capital is very much what you’d expect: rainy, cloudy and moody. As a result, the student body at NYU London desperately seeks out warmer climates during spring break, which takes place from April 15 to 22 for the study away site.
Whether it’s the pristine beaches of Greece or the jagged cliffs of Croatia, you can expect nothing short of paradise for these students. Jacob Carrasco, a sophomore studying economics at CAS, is one of those students seeking refuge from the dreary weather who plans to head south.
“Valencia and Madrid were natural choices,” Carrasco said, “I decided to go to Spain because I felt confident I could get around after taking Spanish at NYU, and really wanted to go somewhere with warm temperatures, nice beaches, good art and lots of green space.”
While soaking up sun in Spain is hard to pass up, there are many other options to be considered — we’re talking trekking the ice caves in Iceland, exploring 19th century castles in Portugal and strolling through the art parks in Belgium. Even though the majority of students are seeking the sun, a good portion of the student body is considering less traditional spring break destinations.
Carys Fowler, a LS first-year spending her first year abroad, decided to veer away from the mainstream sun-filled escape trips and instead take a more unconventional route. She and her brother ultimately chose to spend the time off in Poland.
“He lives in Wales, and I’m trying to spend time with him before I go home because I don’t get to see him very often,” Fowler said. “We chose Poland because we have family ties there and it was a really good deal.”
Many students like Carys are traveling with family and friends. There are very few, if any, students going alone — in contrast to fall break when this was more the norm. Nina Kambili, a junior at GLS, is thinking about visiting friends from other schools.
“I studied in Dublin over the summer, so I wanted to go back,” Kambili said. “Also, one of my friends studies at Trinity College. Hopefully, I will check out some of the things I didn’t see around Dublin and maybe spend a little time in Northern Ireland.”
But for many students, including me, there is still a great deal of uncertainty — despite spring break being less than a month away.
“Honestly I am unsure what my plans are,” LS first-year Caroline Scheer said. “I’m just going to play it by ear. But it will definitely be somewhere warm and super fun.”
While there is no doubt that London will hold a special place in our hearts, the opportunity to leave the country and soak up some much-needed rays will be embraced.
Email By Kala Herh at [email protected]
