Brighton in July

Don't expect any updates until 2 July. I'm travelling in Sweden and Germany until then, and after that my STS Brighton group of 2010 have a reunion. Perhaps you'll get a report from that! Then I start calling my Brighton 2012 students, because it's not long now before we leave. Hope you are as excited as I am :-)

/Emma

Alright, you're thinking of what to bring and what bags to pack in now, right?

What to bring you find in the the ABC book. Swedes can find the list here. Danes and some Finns will probably understand it. You also find a packing list in the ABC-book - here's the Finnish version (page 9) and the Italian (page 9). I hope you all got your ABC books. It's one of many important things to remember.

When you've put all the important stuff, and all you favourite clothes, eau de toilets and dictionaries in your bag there will hopefully still be room for souveniers, gifts, clothes and other things you'll bring back from Brighton. You need to prepare for this by not stuffing your bag to it's limits on your way to Brighton. Paying overweight on your way home is expensive.

Baggage rules are a bit different depending on what airline you're flying with, but they all have some things in common. You are allowed to check in one big bag/trunk/suitcase and bring one small bag on board with you. In the smaller bag, all liquids (like shampoo, sun block, lipstick etc.) must be in small bottles/tubes of 100 ml or less. All 100 ml containers have to be put in a 1 liter zip bag (you get them for free at the airport). If you carry larger bottles in your hand luggage they will force you to throw it away in the security check at the airport. It's OK to bring large bottles in you checked in luggage though, and then I usually put them in separate plastic bags, since it might leak due to changes in air pressure during the flight.

Differences between airlines:

British Airways: Check-in bag up to 23 kg, hand baggage can be up to 56 cm x 45 cm x 25 cm and you must be able to put it in the overhead locker yourself (so the weight depends on your personal strength :-) ) You may also bring an additional bag, in the size of a laptop or purse into the cabin. If you're flying with British Airways the flight no. on your mypage starts with BA.

SAS: Check- in bag up to 23 kg, hand baggage 55 cm x 40 cm x 23 cm with a max weight of 8 kg. No additional bags. If you're flying with SAS the flight no. on you mypage starts with SK.

If any of you readers fly with another airline, just write your flight no. in comments and I'll add the baggage rules for you.

/Emma

Tomorrow my Swedish students in Linköping have their last day in school before summer break. I'll work for another week and then it's only three weeks before I meet my new students - you! I know that many of you are looking very much forward to the trip and wish you were in Brighton already, and I can assure you that more STS leaders than myself are feeling very eager to start this adventure as well.

I will keep on updating this blog for one more week, and then I take a little break to visit Germany. So prepare for less or no updates between 20 June and 1 July. Then I start blogging again and as soon as I get info about who my students are, I'll contact you. You can check out your mypage in the beginning of July and if you leader's name is Emma Holmquist, it's me. Otherwise it's one of my colleagues and we'll all be at your service, but always turn to you own leader first. We're there to make this your greatest summer ever.

/Emma

There are several STS related groups and events on Facebook. STS from each country usually has a FB page, from where you can find your country's Brighton event or Brighton group. On the Swedish STS Facebook page anyone can ask questions to the Swedish STS office, but sometimes I, other leaders or former students help out when we know the answers. There are similar pages for other countries as well.

In these groups/events/pages there are usually people from the same country going different dates and even to different course towns if it's the main STS FB page. I thought STS students from any country going 14 July-3 August could gather in one group since you will actually be meeting each other in Brighton and maybe want to chat with future friends from other countries. We have students from Denmark, Finland and Sweden so far, but we want you to join as well if you have Facebook. Otherwise we'll meet in Brighton anyway.

Get to know future friends and classmates from different countries going to Brighton 14 July by clicking here!

/Emma

The size and weight of your luggage, and how to pack liquids, is regulated by the airline you're travelling with. How you pack your bags and when, is a totally different matter:

There are different ways to pack. Some plan ahead, others  pack their bags last minute. Let me introduce three made up travellers. Which of them are you most like and what can you learn from the others? Whatever your style is I recommend all of you to read your packing list in the ABC book in advance. If you're unsure of what you need to prepare in advance check it out here.

Planning Paula

Why do you write this blog post now? In June? I finished my packing months ago, right after booking my trip. Nothing forgotten, underwear ironed, all liquids in bottles over 100 ml in my check-in suitcase, and all liquids in smaller bottles nicely put in a zipped 1 lit plastic bag (all bottles secured with tape, so they won't leak). Of course everything's got its own place and to remember where everything is I've listed it both alphabetically (ABC book (hand luggage), after sun lotion (check-in luggage), bikini (check-in luggage)...) and on a map of each bag (from top left to bottom right). The bags are measured and weighted, so now I just wait for my host family info so I can write their address in my ABC book, and on my membership card and luggage tags. Then I'm ready to go!

Last Minute Lisa

Why do you write this now? It's like forever til we go. I bought new shoes yesterday, I might bring them, we'll see. I'll probably put everything I want to pack on my bed the night before leaving (I hope mum remembers to wash it all). Then I'll just put everything I need for the first days in my hand luggage. You know, passport, ABC book, phone, wallet and my first change of clothes, maybe a magazine for the bus trip between Heathrow and Brighton. The rest goes in the check-in bag. How hard can it be? Planning ahead, hello? When you can just chill! If I forget something I buy it in Brighton. And anyway there's a packlist in the ABC book, so I don't have to plan it all myself.

Shopping Charlotte

I've bought this really cool suitcase with a matching cabin bag. There's not much in it, of course - yet! I've planned to shop most of what I need in England. My sister went to Bournemouth two years ago and she bought loads of nice, cheap stuff, which appearantly wasn't as cheap when she had to pay for overweight luggage on the airport on her way home. So, now I'll show my silly sister how it should be done. :-P Some things I bring to England of course: my passport, VISA card, European Health Insurance Card, £100 in cash, phone, camera, some clothes for the first days, toiletries, insurance papers and my ABC-book. I hope that'll be enough - then I'll fill my bags on North Laine, Churchill Square and Oxford Street (and on Tesco for shampoo, antiperspirant and stuff like that). Yay!

For the next weeks to come host families will appear on your mypage accounts. Don't worry if you don't get it until 2 weeks before departure. Everyone will get one, unless you've booked the Brighton Club trip departing 30 June.

As soon as you've got your host family's home address you might wonder where in Brighton it is. Google Maps can help you point it out, but the address also often includes what district you stay in. Most of the districts are not within walking distance from the town centre, but buses go frequently and we'll help you get bus passes when we've arrived.

Why don't you ask your host family what's special about their district when you contact them over phone, email or letter before departure. You could also try to find your district on this page. Scroll down a bit and you will probably find it. Otherwise, just mention the district in comments, and I'll gladly help you.

/Emma

Great! The month of the first STS departures is here. Even though my group don't travel until July it still feels a bit more "for real" when the earlier groups a getting properly prepared for their trips. I've even got my host family well in advance and I've heard that some of you have got yours as well. If you don't know yet, who your host family will be, don't worry. You should have got them two weeks before departure, so for some in my group it could actually be in the beginning of July.

There are a few common things students usually worries about before their first trip. One of them is how the host family will be. Other things could be if you'll get strange food, if it will be hard to make friends in the group or what happens if you get ill.

For now I will focus on host families, but I talk about other areas as well in later blog posts. There are almost always some suprises when you first see your English host family. What kind of suprises depends much on where you come from and what you're used to.

* Space - In Scandinavia we're used to bigger houses or apartments in general. House prices in England are higher than in Sweden for instance, so most familes can't afford the same luxury of space as many of us. Also take into account that the UK is half the size of Sweden, but with more than six times as many inhabitants. That means a Swede has twelve times more space per person!

* Bathrooms - you might not be used to carpets on the floor in your bathroom, but it's not uncommon in England. I've also experienced more bath tubs and fewer showers than in Sweden. In some homes you'll find two taps instead of one, one for hot water and one for cold. Don't be afraid to ask your host family how to use it. Sometimes they have a device that connects the two taps to one shower head

* Food - You easily take for granted that the food culture of your home country is "the right way to eat" and very alike what people eat in other countries. It can be quite different, though. Even though you'll probably get some vegatables, it might not be as central in English cooking as in Scandinavian. You might also get a breakfast with less fibers and more suger than you're used to. If you want to eat nutritious, you might see this as a problem, but then try to think about this as just three week of experiencing another food culture.

* Social interaction - How we talk to each other differs between families in our home countries, so you could of course experience differences between your own family and your English host family. If you're from a noisy family you might find a more quiet family a bit strange, or the other way around. Try to prepare yourself for anything and you will probably be suprised by how normal and friendly your hosts are, even though it maybe smells and sounds different than in your family.

As a conclusion, my best advice for all students is "try to be open for everything", be positive and look upon differences as something you can learn from and tell fun stories about to your friends when your back in your home country.

/Emma

I guess all of you have got access to your mypage by now. If you haven't got your user name and password yet, please contact your country office.

At mypage you can see when you fly from/back to your home country and with what airline. The first two letters in the flight number shows what airline you'll be flying with. I'm travelling with SAS from Gothenburg on flight SK523, and SK stands for Scandinavian Airlines. If your travelling with British Airways your flight number starts with "BA". You need to know this, first, because the bagage rules can differ slightly and second, because you need to register APIS on the the airline webpage before the trip. You have got info about this from STS, but I will also go through the details when we're closer to departure.

The most important piece of information on mypage is actually your own name. Check that STS spells your name exactly the same way as in your passport, or you might get trouble when passing customs.

You also get info about your leader. You'll meet your leader in Brighton at the latest, because sometimes students in the same group travel from different airports and the leader can only be on one of the planes. In that case you travel with another STS leader. The leader will get in touch with you before the trip and you will also get the leader's email. The phone number on mypage is usually for an English mobile phone. The leaders start using them in Brighton and then we'll be there for you day and, if needed, night as well.

Your host family's phone number/adress may already be visible on mypage or you'll get it at least 2 weeks before departure. If your curious search for your host family's address on Google Maps and maybe you get a glimps of their houses. I also recommend you to send an email/postcard or call your host family in advance. You tend to get a bit calmer when you know a bit more about whom you'll be visiting

If you have questions about anything, please comment here, call your country office or ask us on Facebook. Where here to help.

Link to mypage Sweden

Link to STS Sweden on Facebook, and the Brighton event
Link to STS Denmark on Facebook, and the Brighton group
Link to STS Finland on Facebook, and the Brighton event
Link to STS Norway on Facebook, and the Brighton event

/Emma

It's only 51 days until departure for those of you going 14 July. Yay! That means some deadlines are approaching. I'll link every deadline to Swedish websites. If you're from other countries - contact your country office if you miss any of the documents or need some other help.

* If you want Pocket Money Service from STS, that should have been ordered before the last payment slips were sent out. For those of you, who forgot to order it - check with your country office whether this is still possible to get. Your last payment should be completed 4 June.

* If you want the STS insurance, t-shirt or Explorer Pass - check with your country office as well. Officially, the deadline has been passed, but it's always worth asking.

* Your parental agreement has to be signed and sent in 4 June, which is in eleven days from today. For those of you going other dates it's simply forty days in advance. Make sure you read it through carefully, cause when your parent signs it he/she confirms that both of you fully understand and accept the rules, that he/she will let us take care of you for those three weeks and that you both have read the ABC-book, among other important things. If you missed this deadline, contact your country office and send it in as soon as possible!

* Check your passport. It needs to be valid until 3 months after your return to your home country and it can't be damaged in any way (if you're not Swedish, check the rules with your country office). If you need to order a new passport, visit your police office at least a week before you need to pick it up. If you forget or lose your passport less than 5 days before departure you can get a temporary passport for 980:- here.

* Make two copies of your passport. Leave one with your parents and give the other copy to your leader at the airport. In case you lose your passport, the copies will make it easier to solve the problem.  Make the copies well in advance, cause if you do it last minute, it's easier than you think to forget your original passport in the copy machine.

* Check your European Health Insurance Card (EU-kort). If you don't have this blue card, or if it's not valid until your back to your home country, please order a new one well in advance. This card will let you pay the same price for health care as Englishmen do, in case you need to visit a nurse or a doctor. Swedes going with me can order it from Försäkringskassan 29 June at the lastest. At least ten days before departure, if you're  going other dates.

* Check your insurance. If you don't have the STS Insurance, check with your insurance company what they'll cover in case something happens to you or your things during the stay in the UK. Do this at least a few days before departure in case you need to change anything.

* Register you APIS on the airline website. STS gives you all the instructions here, and for us going to Brighton it's enough doing it the day before, but you can do this as soon as you get your PNR on mypage 25-30 days before departure.

* Exchange money. You can usually do this at the airport, but if you have an early flight, it's better to do it a few days in advance. More tips about money can be found here.

* Sign page 57 in the ABC-book. Do this in advance so you can hand it in to your leader at the airport. You parent needs to sign his/her permission for you to participate in more adventurous activities in case the opportunity appears.

I recommend you Swedes to read the checklist on sts.se and to read all documents that apply to you. To prepare well gives you a safer trip, prepares you mentally, and you'll have more time for having fun.

/Emma

Brighton has been the home of many artists and musicians. You might have heard of Fat Boy Slim, Nick Cave, Peter André or Dusty Springfield. Want to get to know Brighton from a musical perspective? On this Spotify play list you'll find everything from singer/songerwriter and folk music to dance music and pure rock. The thing in common is that the songs are about Brighton and/or performed by Brighton artists. What's your favourite?