Oh hey, London!
This first week has flown by, and Susie and I have not been particularly diligent in blogging… but, from here on out we promise to be better about actually writing. So, here’s the first week in a nutshell:
Arrived in a state of extreme exhaustion due to not sleeping on the plane, but took a nice 30 minute floor nap at the hotel because they couldn’t check us into our rooms yet. I had Arcadia orientation on Tuesday and Wednesday, part of which consisted of a scavenger hunt around London. We guesstimated our total amount of walking at 12 miles that day (yikes), but we got to briefly check out a ton of different places. Some of the highlights were Trafalgar Square, Covent Garden, Westminster Abbey, and St. Paul’s Cathedral. We had our first run-in with the tube during the scavenger hunt, and it’s really a great system. Besides the Shanghai Metro, it’s the best form of public transportation I’ve ever experienced (thanks a lot, DC…). My friends and I are planning to do a Circle Line Pub Crawl…more on that to come.
friends at Trafalgar square
St. Paul's Cathedral
More St. Paul's
Ze Tube
On Thursday I took the train from London Paddington to Malvern for a weekend homestay. My host family was great, and Malvern was a nice escape from the business of London. Because the homestay was so short, I didn’t get too much of a chance to explore, but we did walk around the town center and Malvern hills a bit, and I also got to go to a local pub with my host parents Della and Tim. My favorite thing thus far has easily been the pubs. There is really no American equivalent, and it’s a really relaxed, fun way to socialize, see the locals in their “natural habitat” and try some great beers.
Exhibit A: Pub chillin'
(note: I can now play darts. see dart board behind me)
When I returned to London on Saturday, our family friends Mike and Maureen Thomas who live outside of London helped me to gather my bearings and get some crucial things for my room (i.e. bedding, so that I’m not stuck in the same situation as Ayenat, who is currently using a pile of sweaters as a pillow. Hi Aye!). Later that afternoon I met up with Ayenat in our dorm. In addition to sweaters as pillows, she’s also currently plagued by the need to finish finals because Princeton runs on an extremely strange exam schedule. Thanks to UVa for not doing this. We met Susie and her friend Sarah from King’s College (and also Lafayette) for dinner near King’s Cross. We went to a pub and grabbed some appetizers and beer. Susie and I tried an interesting ale called Discovery, which according to the bartender had some hints of grapefruit. Who knew beer could have a hint of grapefruit? Welcome to London.
Reunited and it feels so good.
Susie, I see you lurkin'
Sunday Ayenat and I had our SOAS orientation. SOAS (the School for Oriental and African Studies) is located in Russell Square, with an additional campus in Vernon Square. Orientation took up most of the day, but the highlight was that we got to meet a lot of other students who were coming to SOAS for the spring semester.
Our escuela
Finally, we’re at the present. Yesterday was our first day of classes, and I had Government and Politics of China. At this point it looks like my schedule will be this politics course, a Chinese language course, Economic Development of Modern China, and Chinese Ethnography. I can only expect that I’ll return to the US completely Chinese. Look forward to that, friends. Classes in London seem fairly similar to classes in the US, with the exception that very few people use laptops in class here, and almost everyone looks nice for class. People wearing sweats do not exist. After classes, Ayenat and I wandered around (adventuring is fast becoming one of our favorite pastimes) in our neighborhood. She finally procured a phone, which will certainly save us some confusion in meeting up to walk to classes, etc. We met up with two new friends, Taylor and Shweta, for dinner at an all you can eat Indian buffet (for only 3.95). The food was awesome, and we will most definitely be returning there, most likely on a weekly basis due to the fact that a) it’s cheap and b) it’s veg friendly (both Shweta and I are vegetarians).
Today I had my Chinese Ethnography class, which seems to be centered on food in China (hey, dad, moo shu pork!). More specifically it’s how food production has developed over time, and the effects of that development on Chinese culture, environment, etc. Seems like it should be a pretty interesting class…anything centered on food can’t be bad, right?
Later today, I have my first Chinese language class. Hoping they placed me in the right level so I can understand what’s going on. At least if I don’t it will be immediately evident that I’m in way over my head. Then tonight we have a happy hour with other SOAS students, so I’m definitely looking forward to that!
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