Author: Bryson Lee | Major: Accounting and Finance | Semester: Summer 2025

Took a trip to Windsor! Found out where some of the royals are!

I started my May intersession with my first international flight into London Heathrow Airport. I spent the following two weeks close to the heart of London. I chose this new study abroad as I always had an interest in visiting the United Kingdom and especially hearing how London was a big financial district for the world. During this trip, I got the opportunity to visit many businesses and gain a new perspective on how a business could operate in different scenarios. I’ve always had an interest in owning my own business and this program gave me valuable insight into everything I would need to know, but also a deeper understanding of how my current interests could be used across the world. I also loved the idea of this study abroad being a little over two weeks long, as I can get valuable experience while also utilizing the rest of the summer on other academic or professional opportunities.

While abroad, we visited multiple companies and had insightful conversations with different leaders within the companies. Upon arrival, I quickly learned how to navigate London’s most intricate modes of transportation. As a native Arkansan, I learned that the train, or tube, system is phenomenal compared to a normal bus system. While London doesn’t seem big on a map, there are many places to visit that would take ages if you were to walk, so the trains were a life saver and an enjoyable task to master when you are trying to go on personal adventures. Furthermore, on the business side we analyzed and offered solutions to a few problems for a local fashion company relating to global tariffs and price issue along with supply chain problems. On a more personal note, I enjoyed the conversation I had with the car rental company, Turo. As I have vaguely heard of the company and what they strive to do before the meeting, I was able to learn their history, purpose and their goals for the future. The conversation really sparked the idea of how purposeful it could be to find something that is causing waste in our society and give it a new purpose to help others and the world at the same time. For example, in London there isn’t enough space for everyone to have cars, but Turo has given everyone the ability to use a car when they need to. Turo really pushed the idea of how cars sit unused for most of their life, and by being able to rent them out, you can get more use out of the car before it ends up in a junkyard. Turo also went into detail about their pricing model and their ideas for growth across the world. This gave a lot of insight into how you would offer features and keep innovating its resources while also creating a more seamless experience for everyone involved. I also enjoyed visiting the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development located in Canary Wharf. Specifically, learning about the projects they take on and the impact they make across the globe for the communities they strive to help succeed. This development bank strives to make sure the economies and companies they help are sustainable and will be successful and they focus heavily on areas that are struggling. Furthermore, the EBRD is made up of many individuals from countries across the world, all in the same building. I thought this part was extremely interesting as you get to work and learn from people with very different backgrounds, and during lunchtime they are all able to sit around and learn from each other, which I think is fascinating.

Focusing on my more personal experiences while in London, I would like to talk about my time at Windsor Castle, and spending time in the district of Soho. Starting off with Windsor Castle, it was an early morning train ride through the countryside. I enjoyed seeing other parts of the United Kingdom and once I arrived, the town that surrounded Windsor Castle, Berkshire, was a sight to see. The castle itself has many great attractions to see, such as the changing of the guards, Queen Mary’s Dolls’ House and my favorite part, St George’s Hall which is lined with the coat of arms from Knights of the Order. Once you leave Windsor Castle, you could spend a whole day seeing the various shops and stopping at different bakeries or restaurants with types of food from across the world. In Soho, I started to branch out food-wise by trying foods that would typically be out of my comfort zone. I decided to take input from the friends I made on this study abroad for what food was the best. London is a great place to walk around and see all the different stores they offer and being able to notice the different products from the same companies that are also in the United States. In Soho and many other parts of London, it is a melting pot of different cultures. When I walked around, I could find a new place to eat and shop each day during my trip if I wanted to. I specifically remember visiting an amazing Korean barbeque place while also enjoying Soho’s famous fish and chips spot. I would love to go back to London as the culture and society as a whole felt very welcoming and there is so much more to experience and learn that I want to bring back to the United States to use in my own life, personally and professionally.