I hate having to get euros out. I hate having to try and figure out how much I'm going to spend while I'm on holiday, (let alone trying to work out how much a year abroad is going to cost me) and I hate that I have to walk round with sometimes quite a lot of cash!

That's why I'm so thankful for the travel card. Specifically Caxton FX. I've yet to physically use the car yet but I already absolutely love it. It works like a debit card and means you can purchase things, pay for dinner and withdraw cash all in the country of travel, without paying a single charge fee! AMAZING!

I found it on thirdyearabroad.com (check their website out - they're great) and I cannot explain how excited I was. I'd been stressing about how I was going to try and manage my money while I'm in Milan. I didn't want to have to open a bank account and try and tackle the language barriers that come with it, but yet, I didn't want to have a couple thousand euros sat in my apartment. This is the perfect solution. My plan is to receive all my money in my UK bank account and then simply transfer it onto the Caxton card and then use it as and when! Sounds simple, huh? At least, that's what I'm hoping for.

I'm off to Munich in a month so I'm planning on giving the card a trial run out there to make sure it works exactly how I want it to. As well as the card, I'm considering also taking a few euros in cash, just in case! Especially for when I get to the airport and have to negotiate the trains/metro/bus/ATM machine. No thank you.

I'll check back in and let you know my feelings on the card once I've whipped it out for a trial run, but, until then, a presto!

When I get on that plane in September and start my journey to Milan, I'm not just going to Milan. No way. I'm going EVERYWHERE. Or at least, I want to. My plan is to use my time (and the lovely money we get from Erasmus+) to travel. I've made a list of where I want to go, including Amsterdam, Barcelona and Berlin, and I've even started looking into flights and hotels so I can start budgeting my money so I don't go spending it all in Sephora. However, that's inevitable. It's going to happen one way or another. Sephora is the mothership. 

That's the beauty of a year abroad. You get to see new places, experience new things and meet new people, all of which are unlikely to have happened whilst staying at uni in the UK. Or at least, that's what I'm hoping. Who knows if that'll actually happen. 
I'm happy to go off travelling by myself, but if I tell that to my mum... She just gives me 'The Look'. You know the one? The one where she doesn't have to say anything, and yet, she's said everything. I've told her I'll be fine. Staying in hotels in central areas, not talking to strangers, and not telling the guy I meet at the airport exactly where I'm staying a la Taken. 

I'm excited. I can't wait to actually be able to travel. Yes, I've been on holidays and trips, but I've never travelled. Again, going back to my favourite motto, 'as long as you've got money and a passport, you can go anywhere in the world'. That's what I remember every time I'm on the way to the airport and my brain's running a million miles a minute trying to remember if I packed my toothbrush, my make-up, enough clothes etc. But, what I've learnt over the years, is that all these things are material. You can buy them anywhere in the world. Well, most places. You might struggle in the Sahara Desert but I'm not planning on going there yet so we'll leave that topic for another day.

I've already got a trip lined up to Munich (my friend's just moved there for a year so I'll definitely be making the most of that), and like I mentioned before, I've got a few places on my radar. I'll be keeping my eyes open for any good deals I spot (my favourite website is Expedia, they have everything on there) and I'm also going to have a look at dabbling in a bit of inter-railing through Italy. I mean when in Rome hey?

So, if you've got any advice on where to go and what to do, let me know in the comments below, or tweet me @meeeglucia!

Arrivederci amici,

Packing. It's the bane of every traveller, holidaymaker and business person's life. Will all my things fit? Will I be within the weight limit? Will I even be able to lift it up? Usually, my answer to all these questions is no. I usually do a trial pack about a week to two weeks before I go on a trip to make sure I've got everything I need and that all the clothing I want to take with me is washed and ironed ready to go (even though it comes out looking like a dishcloth at the other end). Obviously, I can't really do a trial pack of my trip abroad. I'm going for ten months. I've got to try and fit my life into three cases! (me, mum & dad). However, I'm going to do my best to only fill two, but this is going to prove very, very difficult. 

Ever since I knew I could go abroad in my third year at Uni, I've been planning - making endless lists, Pinterest boards and searching the web for tips and tricks. 
If you can't already tell from the background, I'm off to MILAN. Yes, Milan. One of the major fashion capitals. I've never been to Milan. I was meant to visit back in 2013 with a few friends during a trip to Venice, but after a nightmare day of being robbed and suffering severe sunstroke the day before, we decided against it. I don't know why my mum was so worried about us...

Anyway, I've been looking at pictures of the Duomo as well as trying to figure out what I should wear (it is Milan after all, darling) but I've also been doing the 'important' things i.e. trying to get my Codice Fiscale sorted (National Insurance Number in the UK or Social Security Number in the US), picking my courses and desperately trying to find somewhere to live, which is proving to be the most difficult aspect. I'm not picky... just selective. When it comes to bags and jewellery, I have expensive taste, but I never knew that would radiate across into my taste for apartments. Lord help me (and my overdraft). 
I've found a couple of places that I would deem acceptable - in other words, no ant infested kitchens a la Cuba 2009 - but they are at the pricier end of my budget. My parents don't help either, dad's all 'the living area's nice but the room's a bit bland', to which I agree with until mum pipes up 'but look at the entrance way, it's gorgeous. Go for it!'. HELP. 

The other day I got round to making my course selections (a mixture of finance and business) and I'm rather happy with them. At the minute anyway. I'm hoping I'm not going to be in for a horrible surprise when I get there. Currently, I'm up to date with all the admin tasks I needed to do for both my home Uni and my new host Uni in Milan. So last on my list at the minute is to sort of applying for my Codice Fiscale.

You need a Codice Fiscale to be identified as residing in Italy, regardless of whether you're a national or a student moving over for 10 months i.e. ME. From what I've found research wise, I can send an application to the Italian Embassy in London along with a utility bill and copy of my passport and receive my Codice Fiscale before I even board the plane. I'm still yet to do that. As much as I love to plan, I also love to procrastinate. Well, that's a paradox. 

So, while I procrastinate for a little longer and try and satisfy my expensive taste with something a little more budget friendly, I'll leave you with this. Is it possible to be an avid planner yet experienced procrastinator all at the same time? Let me know!

Also, if you've got any tips or words of wisdom for setting off into the big wide world, let me know in the comments below!

Baci Baci,

Today I had the pleasure of dealing with both my Uni and Student Finance in order to try and resolve some issues that have arisen regarding the most vital aspect of my trip abroad - MONEY. 

Nobody likes to talk about it and everybody likes to ignore it, but the truth is, money makes the world go round. My dad's very wise friend once said, 'as long as you've got money and a passport, you can go anywhere in the world'. A motto which I have adopted but am currently unable to fulfil. 

My uni offers a wonderful opportunity for students to claim a little bit of extra cash for certain trips, in this case it's a healthy 500 squid. However, they like to make these things nice and difficult for you, as if we don't currently have enough on our plates. They need a breakdown of all the Student Finance you're getting for the next academic year, so like any student desperate for a bit of money, I sent this off the second it popped up on my SF account. This is when it all starts to go downhill. The little lady behind the computer at my university sends me an email back saying they cannot except my breakdown as it's in the wrong format (WHAT?!). She sends me an attachment of what it should look like which is exactly how mine looked for 2014/2015, but not 2015/2016. Eeek. 

I get on the phone to SF and explain my situation to which they tell me they've decided to change their formats (typical) and therefore the breakdown I have, is correct. Try telling that to the little lady behind the computer! She's having none of it. I go back to her to tell her what SF have told me and she tells me she's going to investigate a little further and get back to me. pfft. A little while later I get a phone call from her telling me that if I go to the SF office (as in the one in bleeding Darlington, about 3 hours away from my home) they'll be able to help me there. HA! So, I get back on the phone to SF (can you see where this is going yet?) and tell them what Little Lady has told me, and the guy then puts me on hold (for no longer than two minutes - this is their favourite saying at SF) to go and speak to the Head Office. He comes back to me in around 1 minute 47 seconds and tells me they HAVE changed the format of the breakdown and that the old one is now completely extinct. Dead as a Dodo. 

So my last phone call of the day is back to the Little Lady. I tell her what SF have just told me and she seems stumped. I don't think she ever phoned them. So she tells me she has to talk to her 'supervisors' and she'll get back to me. Right. 

So at the minute, I'm currently in limbo whilst I wait for a response from Little Lady and her supervisors. I'll keep you updated with the outcome so make sure you check back for more! In the meantime, Ciao for now!