Slow Motion Dancing.

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Lilac Festival.

    Back on the blogging bandwagon permanently now, I promise. A large part of why I so embarrassingly failed at blogging the past few weeks has been due to the start of the summer classes. Adjusting to such a sudden change in routine has always been difficult for me and I finally feel like I'm at the point where I can juggle classes, blogging and have some form of a social life. So, apologies for the delays, folks, but here goes..

May 2014.

Lilac Festival.

    If you ever research Rochester and its annual events, the two ever dominant are the International Jazz Festival (which I will, hopefully, be attending later this month) and the Lilac Festival. The Lilac Festival is a family and environmentally friendly festival that celebrates all that Rochester and surrounding areas have to offer. The event itself is held at Highland Park, which is a picturesque setting filled with gardens, rolling hills, open spaces and, quite obviously, all things lilac. All events feature impressive arrays of foods and drinks as well as talented performers from across the globe. There are still events going on in the area linked to the Lilac Festival. If you can, do not miss this opportunity to see some fantastic musicians.

Lilac Festival

Highland Park; Buddies

    The Lilac Festival is a necessity for anyone in the Rochester area. The highlights for me were definitely Rusted Root and corn dogs (I would eat these daily). Note to the mother: We must find these or at least ingredients to make these when I'm back in the homeland!

More blog posts on a regular (-ish) basis from now on!

    A good time had with friends (yup). Excellent music (yup). New food discovery (instantly adored).

ALSO, check out this blog full of excellent by a pal of mine (you won't regret it!) - nchikey.blogspot.co.uk. 

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Rochester Weather.

Rochester Weather.

May 2014.

You light a candle and the flame freezes.

    The school I am currently attending is located in Rochester, New York. Roughly a 6-hour drive north of New York City, the city is famed for it's spring Lilac Festival and internationally renowned Jazz Festival, as well as it's weather. Rochester is situated near Lake Ontario, and the wind contributes to multiple fairly chilly days. Having been here since January, I can quite comfortably say that I have seen more snow than ever before and there have, so far, been less than a week's worth of blue skies.
    As I have frequently heard, Rochester's weather is "so bipolar", in the sense that one day it may be 15 degrees and the next may be 60+ (and yes, Americans use Fahrenheit, which makes no sense). I have quickly learnt to cherish the rare moments of sun, but have also found many comforts in the cold (fuzzy socks, anyone?).
   At the moment, I believe it is Spring but the seasons here blend seamlessly into one another making it impossible to tell. Recently, there have been a few thunderstorms after full days of nice temperatures. Contrary to the masses of twitter posts from girls "petrified of the thunder and lightning", these really aren't that bad and provide quite a nice alternative to the snow.
   When the sun does decide to show it's face, it is humid to say the least. On multiple occasions, my hair has ended up looking like a lion's mane mixed with Rihanna's 2011 perm - a bad combination, I assure you.
   Overall, I think the weather in Rochester is good. I'm definitely not saying that I haven't resented walking over to classes in over 10 inches of snow, but it certainly makes a pleasant change from the dreary, bland, miserable weather in England.
   Snow (Plenty). Boots (A necessity). Sun (Getting there.. slowly).

Blue skies emerging.

The trees are whistling for dogs.

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MCC Instrumental Music Concert.

MCC Instrumental Music Concert.

May 2014.

Student-Led Brass Ensemble; MCC Jazz Combo

    A big part of my education has, and always will be, music. Monroe Community College has an excellent music program and encourages a wide variety of extracurricular clubs and groups. I am currently part of the Jazz Ensemble at MCC playing baritone saxophone. The latest music concert, held in the theatre at MCC, was on May 7th. The evening was full of instrumental ensembles, both classical and jazz, and featured a guitar solo from one of the program's finest. As well as the MCC students rocking out, we were joined by a host of special guests including Doug Stone and Clay Jenkins, who kindly played alongside the MCC Jazz Ensemble. Google these guys, well worth a listen.

    In typical musician fashion, the fun continued long after the concert ended with Buffalo Wild Wings being the venue of choice for many. 

    Music (Yeah). Friends (Yeah). Drinks (Well..)

Prof. Nyerges getting a wee bit too into 'Anthropologie'

Cheeky solos from MCC Jazz Combo

'The Nearness of You' feat. Caroline Fish

Kyle Lee - Classical Guitar; Brass Ensemble; MCC Students watching the pros; Pro Drummer Chris Teal

Don't worry if you missed out on this one! There are multiple concerts every semester and a vocal concert next Wednesday in Building 4, MCC at 19:30!

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To New York and Beyond.

The Mother; Snowy View; Saxophones

To New York and Beyond.

January 2014.

    So, the time came to travel to America. Thankfully, the mother agreed to accompany me over the pond. She had never been to America before so we decided to explore New York City before venturing up to Rochester later on in the trip.
    The main stress for me with travelling was getting my saxophones over safely. After tying down all of the keys on each instrument and slapping fragile tape all over them, they were good to go.
    Making sure to limit the amount of clothing I was taking, the arduous task of packing my suitcase began. Evidently, taking my whole wardrobe would be an issue, but, moving to America during the worst winter ever meant the 23kg luggage allowance was definitely going to be a problem.
    We arrived at Birmingham Airport at ridiculous o'clock in the morning, ate, warily checked in our luggage and boarded the airplane which would be the start of the craziest adventure of my life so far.
    Suitcase (Packed). Saxophone (Ready). Airplane (Boarded).

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The Backstory.

New York City - Broadway

The Backstory.

September 2013.

    A large collection of negative experiences meant that I finally decided I needed to move on and accelerate my life in a direction that I wanted it to go in. An ultimate goal of mine (and many others, I'm sure) was to live and study abroad, specifically America. The US is an excellent place to pursue studies, especially for a Brit, for various reasons.

- We all speak the same language (a definite plus).

- The culture isn't drastically different.

- (To be really boring) The academics provide excellent flexibility and allow you to begin studies as an 'undeclared' major meaning if you (like me) have no idea, or a couple of different ideas, you can start classes without it being detrimental.

- OPT. I can't express my excitement for this enough. After completion of a degree, you can complete one year of Optional Practical Training (a job) within the US, wherever you want. The only catch is that the work has to relate to your field of study.
    Once I decided that I definitely wanted to pursue this crazy adventure, a lot of research was needed. Where was I going to study? How does all of this work?
    Quite early on in my research, it was clear to me that a community college was the best way to go. They are cheaper (being the main attraction) and, often, share professors with the four-year institutions. 
    I had my heart set, instantly, on studying in New York. Looking at community colleges within New York state, I came up with a  shortlist of colleges that checked all of the boxes on my 'need' list and fulfilled quite a few on my 'want' list. The biggest 'need' was accommodation, which many colleges lack. 
    To cut a (very) long story short, I settled on Monroe Community College in Rochester, New York. This school seemed to fit my needs the best and the admissions staff were excellent with answering any queries I had.
    Application (Sent). Accepted (Yay!). Nerves (Well and truly set in).

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