Day Eleven: An Uneventful Day

This morning, I was feeling adventurous and decided to take my morning exercise in a new direction, towards the opposite end of town.  Mom, I know you’re not happy to read this, but I was by myself and I had no idea where I was going.  But it was fun.  I discovered a store called Sainsbury’s, which is basically a grocery store similar to Tesco.  I also ran into a cricket park (a large field where the British sport “cricket” is played).  I came back around 10am and then ran to Aldi – YES, THERE’S AN ALDI IN CANTERBURY<3 – to grab some food for the weekend.

What would I do without you?!

Tomorrow, I get to visit the Rochester Castle and Fort Amherst.  I can’t wait to post some awesome pictures! 

Guys, I finally cooked something today and it was hard.  Like I mention in the “About Me” section, I am horrible at cooking and baking, but I love to consume food so… that tends to be a bit of a problem.  But today I went confidently in the direction of my dreams and COOKED CHICKEN.  Wahooo!  It was pretty good, and so far I haven’t keeled over and died, so I think I may have cooked it properly.  Be amazed.  I share a kitchen with a guy who loves to cook and he is always creating something yummy.  This is very intimidating for someone like me, who makes cereal for two out of her three meals each day.  I managed to burn two finger tips on the darn stove top, but hey, at least I have proof that I actually tried. 

I had my first British piano lesson today!  Not gonna lie, it was really scary.  My instructor is this stone-faced, middle-aged man who barely smiled the entire thirty minutes I spent with him.  When I told him I don’t study music back home, he just sort of stared at me.  I could practically hear him thinking so, you’re here because….? But I’m not really worried.  He’ll warm up to me yet. :]  I played some Joplin and a Debussy for him. After working on those two pieces a bit, we scheduled another lesson and he asked me if I was looking to perform while I’m here.  I told him I was, in as informal a setting as possible.  That was the only thing that got him to smile, haha.  I’m excited to see how this goes.  I’ll be taking lessons every other week.

Lastly, our Modern Britain class taught the tutor (Martin) the word “frienemy.”  He is fascinated by this new word, and he told us he was trying to use it in conversation throughout the week.  This basically made my day.  That is all.

Here's some fun pictures from our girl's night of snacking, chatting, and painting nails... :)

P.S. On Saturday, I get to see the London Symphony Orchestra in an open rehearsal!!!! AHHHH.  I’m dying.

Cheers!

– K

BRITISH WORDS OF THE DAY:

All right?- A common way of saying, “Hello, how are you?”

How are you finding it? – Basically “How do you like it?” or “How is it?”

Day Nine and Ten: Cathedrals, Classes, and British Toilets

On Tuesday I took a tour of the Canterbury Cathedral.  It’s taken me a full 24 hours to recover from the beauty of this place.  Here are a few pictures that do not even come close to capturing the majesty of this 1400 year-old structure…

As I walked around inside the cathedral, I tried to imagine how the early Christians might have felt.  This building would have been the largest structure that the peasants and pilgrims would have ever seen.  The Nave of the cathedral has large, vaulted ceilings with pillars soaring high into the air.  This was the spot where the pilgrims would have gathered in the medieval period.  The Crypt is a quiet chamber that is similar to a basement.  It is the oldest part of the cathedral (the 11^th century, if you can think that far back).  It was especially chilling to walk around inside the Crypt because it has some of the country’s oldest Christian paintings on the walls.  The Trinity Chapel is where King Henry IV and Edward, Prince of Wales, are entombed.  There are so many dead people just hanging out in this cathedral – it’s ridiculous. 

On a lighter note, I have started two out of my four classes.  I am enjoying everything about this British University system!  Class meets once a week for two hours – one hour of lecture and one hour of discussion/seminar, generally.  This format makes a lot of sense to me (when compared to our American system) mainly because the class time is extremely structured and there is an entire hour for discussion.  As an English major, I value discussion.  Without class discussion, how does the tutor know the student understands the material?  But, I digress.

Martin, my tutor for the class “Modern Britain,” does not hesitate to share his political views with the class.  He told us at our first meeting, “Anyone who uses Wikipedia will be shot… that, and Fox news.  What rubbish.”  Geez, tell me how you really feel.  However, this Martin guy is pretty hilarious, sometimes without meaning to be.  For example, today we were discussing America’s national debt.  Martin made a remark that resonated with me:  “You’re told that debt as a student is a bad thing, yet your country is billions of dollars in debt.  Explain that to me!” For being so liberal, he sure hates to see America spending money it doesn’t have.

My second tutor, Steve, is a young man working on his PhD.  Today was our first meeting and he lectured on Chaucer (say “Chaw-sah” with a British accent… fun) and The Canterbury Tales.  This poor guy is the most awkward person in the world.  Yet, I really enjoyed his lecturing.  He kept trying to insert sarcastic jokes about the Black Plague, but no one in the class so much as cracked a smile.  I had to keep my smile to myself, I was definitely entertained.  :] 

Although the Brits do many things differently than Americans at University, one thing that seems pretty universal is the activities fair.  For those who don’t know, a college activities fair is basically a time for all of the societies, clubs, and extracurriculars to set up information booths and pass out free candy to bribe – I mean, recruit students to join.  These fairs are 98% awkward and 2% effective.  Most students go for the free food.  It’s always crowded and hard to hear.  And usually, the one club you actually want to be part of runs out of free pizza before you make it to their info table.  Classic. 

Anyway, while at the CCCU activities fair this morning, I signed up for a few interesting societies, like music society, performing arts society, film society, and the Christian Union.  Some random lady tried to recruit me for the Student Socialist Group, but I narrowly avoided that.   I don’t think she realized I am American.  TEAM CAPITALISM.

When people back in the States ask me where I’m from, I generally tell them, “Oh, the Chicago land area” or sometimes I’ll just say “Chicago land.”  I’ve learned real fast that I can’t say that while I’m here in England.  The conversation inevitably goes something like this:

            Me: “Hi, I’m Kristin.  Where are you from?”

            New Friend: “I’m Chris, from Ireland.  Where are you from?”

            Me:  “Oh, Chicago land.  It’s in the States.”

            New Friend:  “Chicago-land?  …Is that a theme park or something?”

            Me:   “……”

And finally, something needs to be said about British toilets.  And British bathrooms in general.  Allow me to be blunt:  you get one and ONLY ONE flush.  In other words, if you are dropping a deuce, you had better make sure it all disappears with that one flush.  Or else the next person will hate you (I may have learned that the hard way…  But I won’t go into detail).  Also, the flushing mechanism thingy is weird.  And the Brits (at least, the residents of Canterbury) don’t believe in hot water.  It’s actually quite depressing.  I haven’t had a warm shower in almost a week.  Guess it’s time to suck it up and assimilate. 

Here's some pictures from our trip to Richborough Roman Fort and Fort Amherst Tunnel...enjoy!

 Inside the tunnel

 No comment...

 Chillin at the castle wall!

How cool is this view?!

Cheers!

– K

BRITISH WORD OF THE DAY:

Queue - a line; EVERYONE LOVES WAITING IN LINES.

Day Eight: Settling In

I’ve now lived in Canterbury for over a week!  Hallelujah!  Now that I’m somewhat settled in, I can successfully navigate my way around town and CCCU campus.  This might be a certifiable miracle, considering my awful sense of direction.  The past week has been amazing in terms of my overall mood and ability to adapt to my new surroundings.  I have been very fortunate in that my accommodation (my apartment building) is right in the center of everything:  the city centre and library are minutes away, the campus itself is about seven minutes away, and the Student Union/coffee shop is practically next door.  Most of the Americans live on Parham Road, which is on the complete opposite side of Canterbury, and a thirty minute walk from campus!  That’s quite a hike for us Americans, who are used to taking cars and buses everywhere. 

Don't let the crazy map fool you!  Canterbury is easy to navigate because you can spot the cathedral from anywhere.  It's the perfect marker to find your way around. 

Canterbury is similar to Naperville (my home institution’s city) because it is very quaint and everything is within walking distance.  Also, I like to think Canterbury is similar to Naperville because both places are just an hour away from major cities (London and Chicago).  Most of the tourist shops here are filled to capacity with London souvenirs, despite the fact that this is not actually London.  The same is true back home; many shops in Naperville and the surrounding area carry touristy Chicago items.  

 Naperville's downtown area with lots of window-shops

Canterbury's city centre lined with shops and tourists

*Side note:  Chris, one of my new friends from Northern Ireland, says that in Europe and the UK, the presence of a cathedral is what determines whether the area is called a town or a city.  If there’s a cathedral, it’s a city.  If there’s no cathedral, it’s a town.  This label has nothing to do with population.  It’s all based on the presence of a cathedral.  Interesting!*

There’s lots to do here – a scenic river walk area, cute (expensive) little window-shops and cafes, and a coffee shop on every corner (one of two British favorites: Starbucks or Costa).  However, most businesses close by seven on the weekdays and by four on Sunday.  If you’re lucky, you’ll find a Starbucks open past seven on Saturday.  I’m hard-pressed to find a cheap café where I can hangout and read, study, etc.  It’s times like these that I miss the Boilerhouse at NCC (even though BoHo coffee is mediocre at best). 

I’ve been on a bit of a high this past week.  Everything is going just perfectly and I’m very happy with the way this new life of mine is turning out.  However, I am bracing myself for the low that is sure to follow this.  Before leaving home, we were told about the dramatic ups and downs that usually plague the first few weeks of a study abroad students’ experience.  I am determined to avoid the lows, but in case I suddenly become really homesick, I am mentally preparing myself for it. 

Today was beautiful, weather-wise.  THE SUN CAME OUT.  Like, it actually peeked out from behind the clouds, then, later in the afternoon, it burst through the clouds and the entire town was aglow.  I hate to be so cheesy, but it was magical.  It was almost humid.  Certainly not Chicago humidity, but definitely the warmest day I’ve seen since my arrival in this rainy place.   

Not the best quality photo, but THE SUN.

After a quick visit to campus to pick up some paperwork from Doug’s office, I sat out on the lawn and stared to read The Canterbury Tales (for the second time this year).  I hate to admit it, but I really hated the Tales the first time through (Sorry, Dr. Eaton!).  I know, I know, I’m an awful English Lit. major.  Maybe it’s because I’m IN Canterbury, but after reading through The Miller’s Tale earlier today, I was actually enjoying myself.  Ha!  Funny how that works. 

Enjoying some Starbucks coffee whilst re-reading an old enemy (new friend?)

While I was sitting there reading, some random foreign dude came up to me and asked me where the Centre for Sport is located.  Judging from his thick accent, he was definitely not English.  I couldn’t tell where he was from, but I could tell that he was trying to hit on me.  I guess flirting is the same in every language, heh. Awkward. 

 The state-of-the-art library that I can use for the next three months... YAY!!!

Three floors of books. So. Many. Books.... mine, all mine.

Anyway, nothing too exciting happened today.  Tomorrow I get to tour the Canterbury Cathedral… finally!  I am definitely looking forward to that.  Also, there is a “Vintage Fayre” at the Student Union with free giveaways and FOOD.  You best believe I’m going to that.  At 7:30, the CU has its first meeting in the chapel.  I’m interested to see if this meeting is similar to Focus, our inter-denominational student-led worship service back home.  And hopefully, I will get plugged into a Bible study once I find a church. 

And lastly, dear reader, I leave you with these pictures of the magnificent Canterbury Cathedral!

Cheers!

 – K

BRITISH WORDS OF THE DAY

module - course or class

wellies - rain boots; Wellingtons

Day Six and Seven: Updates and Adventures

Yesterday was a whirlwind of excitement.  We went sightseeing in Broadstairs, a town right along the southeast coast, near Dover.  England is beautiful beyond words.  I am in love with Canterbury and now Broadstairs as well.  Although I want to record my sight-seeing adventures, I’m afraid that my writing will not do these incredible places justice.  I don’t want to diminish the natural beauty of these places in my attempt to describe them, so I will keep the description to a minimum and try to include more pictures. 

We travelled to the Richborough Roman Fort and Kent beaches today.  The Roman fort was a lot larger than I expected.  There was a tiny museum inside the lodge on the site of the fort, but I spent most of my time exploring the huge wall and the surrounding ruins.  Apparently, the coast line used to be right next to this Roman fort, but because of the changing tides, the shore is now a few miles further. 

I took some fun pictures, too!  We have some pretty awesome people in our group. :]

 

THE ROMANS BUILT THIS. 

THIS IS SO COOL.

The beach at Broadstairs was brilliant.  We had so much fun wandering the beach and taking pictures on the shoreline.  Our tour guide and friend Doug took us on a walking tour out of town and into the countryside.  That was about four miles both ways; however, a few of us ended up walking even further because Doug told us about a castle that was on the highest point of the coast and walked us there and back to town. 

 The town of Broadstairs

 Beautiful coast line

 A British lighthouse

 Entrance to the beach!

 Dipped my feet into the English Channel

 We L-O-V-E England!

On a clear day, it’s possible to see the shores of France on the other side of the English Channel.  Unfortunately, we couldn’t.  But the view was beautiful all the same!   After the tour and all that walking, we broke off into groups and explored the town of Broadstairs.  My group and I found a quaint little café on the beach and had afternoon tea and dessert together!  Now that’s what you call good, clean, British fun.

Following our little tea party, my friends and I went out on the beach to people watch and generally just take in the spectacular view.  As the evening went on, it gradually became colder.  At dinner time, we hopped on the train back to Canterbury.  Because I was exhausted from an entire week of nonstop activities and staying up late, I about passed out once we returned to Vernon.

That said, I don’t regret staying up late to experience fun things like quiz night at the Student Union, eating out at local pubs, or going on a ghost tour of Canterbury.  I’m still tired after a full night of rest, but I want to do everything that there is to do while I’m here.  Who knows when/if I’ll be back?

 New friends!  Tessa, Sadie, Josephine, myself, and Kaitlyn

 Quiz night at the Student Union

I’ve met so many interesting people from all over the globe, literally.  Everyone at CCCU International has been so kind and welcoming.  Honestly, meeting all of these great people has been the best part of my trip so far.  They are just like me, completely clueless about the University and some barely know English, but we bond so easily because we are all unfamiliar with Canterbury and English culture.  I have new friends from France, Nigeria, Slovakia, Holland, Sweden, Ireland, and Iowa. :)   

Everyone involved with CCCU’s Christian Union has been so helpful and friendly!  They are going to be my closest set of friends, I can already tell.  On Friday night, a few NCC friends went with me to a British tea party sponsored by the CU (Christian Union) and we met some cool people.  The Brits were asking us to say certain phrases in our best British accents and we were asking them to show us their best American accents.  Talk about hilarious.  We ended up staying there super late, just talking and making fun of each other’s accents (in a good-natured way, of course).  Then we discussed differences in our cultures and even talked about American politics.  Our conversations were fun and interesting.  Then, the CU officers walked us home!  They are seriously the kindest people ever. I can’t wait to get to know them.

Today I visited Canterbury Baptist Church, which meets in the CCCU campus chapel because their building is being renovated.  I met up with a lot of the same students I met at the tea party.  While I was singing during the worship portion of the service, it suddenly struck me that these people love God just like I do.  That’s a silly observation; it’s a church – of course they love God!  Yet I felt strangely at home as I sang familiar hymns and praise songs with these unfamiliar people. 

After the service, I met the two sweetest British ladies who basically told me they would be my honorary grandmas while I was here.  They made me feel so welcome!  What a blessing to meet these ladies.  There was a light lunch after the service, and then I mingled for quite a while, my new British grandmas introducing me to various people in the congregation. 

Later, I practiced piano for an hour or so and then went shopping at Tesco, a grocery store in the city centre.  Now, after some reading for class and checking my emails, I plan on taking a refreshing nap and then going to the chaplain’s new student welcome at 6… there’s free pizza!  Somehow, I doubt it will be as good as Chicago pizza, but I’m still willing to give it a shot.  :)

-- K

BRITISH WORDS OF THE DAY:

quid - slang for pounds; the British equivalent of "bucks"

brown sauce - a mixture of BBQ and A1 sauce; used on breakfast food, sausages, and meats

jacket potato - a baked potato with the skin still attached