Homestays vs. Apartments

Muswell Hill, London.

For those of you who decide to spend a semester studying abroad, you will eventually be faced with the decision of where you are going to live. This is a very important decision as you will be there for about 3-4 months (depending on your program). There are two options: living in an apartment or living with a host family in whatever country you are in. Now I know many people have this preconceived notion that living with a homestay family gives you no privacy and strict rules given by your host parents. I'm here to tell you that none of this is true. In my own personal experience, deciding to do a homestay was one of the best decisions I ever made. Like many of you, I wanted my study abroad experience to make me more independent and give me a sense of being on my own. But I also wanted to gain a perspective of British Culture. Naturally, I was torn. When I went to the London Semester Informational meeting, the student assistants gave me a much better idea of what it really was like to live with the families on a day to day basis. With their advice and after much consideration, I stuck with my gut and decided to choose the homestay. Throughout the process your school should give you a personality test to match you with a roommate and family. Some questions for example would be: "Are you allergic to pets?" "Do you prefer a family with children or no children?" "Are you a morning person?" etc. Before you leave, your school should send you some information about your family as well as your roommate, for example: how many kids they have, where they are located, what their interests are, etc. They take the time to make sure that the place you will be living in will be comfortable for you. I received my family's address about two weeks before I got on the plane to London. I immediately typed the address into Google maps and found my house. I was in love. (Thank God for technology, right?) When I got to London, my roomate and I took a cab to our house and found our host dad outside waiting for us. Immediately upon arrival I knew that this was the right decision. Our parents were so helpful in getting us settled in and cooked us dinner our first night in London. They showed us where the local grocery store was and even the local tube station. We then talked the night away about America and London and what plans we had for the future. It was wonderful. We also got breakfast five days a week throughout the semester (cereal, toast, coffee, etc.) as well as they will occasionally ask you to dinner depending on the family. Our family was very kind to ask us to eat dinner with them every once in a while when they knew we hadn't been to the store yet or just to simply socialize with us. Now we were very fortunate as our family had two sons our age who offered to show us around the city as well as the cool spots in Muswell Hill, the little town our house resided in. Throughout the course of the semester we became very close with the the brothers and one of them even went on our trip to Paris with us! I felt very blessed to be able to be so close to my host family. Every night when I came home they would ask us how our days were or give us advice on what sights to see on our trips that weekend. I am so grateful to this day for their generosity and kindness.

 Now one thing many people wonder is how strict the homestay parents are. Obviously you should be respectful and quiet when you are coming home late after a night out. But they never once will tell you to be home at a certain time or anything like that. They know you are there to enjoy the city and all it has to offer as well as make memories with your friends. They are very lenient as long as you respect them. If I ever wanted to stay at my friends apartment closer into the city, all I did was let them know that I would be gone so they didn't worry. They give you as much space and responsibility that you would get at an apartment. Now, I don't want to discourage any of you from doing an apartment if that is what you want. By all means do it! They are usually very nice, and you also have a roomate. They are centrally located, usually about a 15 minute walk from the university! You will definitely feel more of a sense of being on your own. . The purpose of this post is not to condemn apartments, but to open all of your eyes to the pro's of living with a host family. It made my stay in London that much more special. I grew very fond of my family and still email them on occasion. Now whenever I return, I have someone to visit with and talk to. If you are on the fence about choosing between a host family or an apartment, I strongly urge you to consider the benefits and memories you can make within a homestay. I know I will always cherish the time I spent with my family. It always made missing home a little bit easier..

xx, Miranda Lopez