First few days in England

Arrival: Saturday, June 30th

Last time I flew to England, the flight went like this:

Sleep.

Sleep.

Sleep.

AAAAAAAAAAGH!!!

The angel-faced little girl behind me, bored after many hours on the plane, had crawled under the seat and grabbed my ankles.

This time was much better.  And I was lucky enough to be picked up at the airport by my relatives, so I didn’t have to mess with trains in my jet-lagged, zombie-like state.

By the way, this was a useful checklist when I was packing (though if you’re bound for England I doubt you’ll want to take shorts or a swimsuit!): http://thestudyabroadblog.com/study-abroad-packing-list-2-2/

First day of the Pembroke-King's Programme: Sunday, July 1st

I couldn’t check into the Pembroke-King’s Programme until the afternoon, so I spent the morning with my relatives in Dedham.  We walked along the Stour to Flatford Mill, an area much beloved by the famous painter John Constable.  In case anyone had forgotten how beautiful the English countryside is, some reminders:

 

Then I arrived in Cambridge and settled into a very comfortable room in Pembroke College. 

I must admit to some nerves about beginning the programme.  I didn’t know a single one of the other students, and I had never been so far from home for so long.  But the nerves evaporated when I met loads of interesting people at the welcome dinner. 

I was also thrilled that the dinner was held in the King’s College dining hall, which is VERY impressive, with stained glass and portraits of King's alumni on the walls.  King’s College was founded in 1441 by King Henry VI and supported by the next two King Henrys.  Its alumni include Robert Walpole, E. M. Forster, Alan Turing, and John Maynard Keynes.  Not bad, huh? :)

An interesting observation: after a few minutes with my English relatives or anyone else with an English accent, I start to sound, while not English, definitely less American.  In fact, when I was in a conversation with an American and an English student, my accent switched back and forth depending on who I was addressing.  The weirdest part was that it took me a long time to notice what I was doing.

Orientation: Monday, July 2nd

This far from the equator, dawn comes early in the summer, so I woke up before 6 am.  I was too excited to go back to sleep, so I explored Pembroke College.  This college was established in 1347, and boasts Edmund Spenser and William Pitt among its alumni.  In my opinion it’s the most beautiful college.  (And I get to live here!  Eeee!)

What I see when I walk out the front door.  This building houses the Pembroke Library, where I go to study.

The day was mostly full of orientation sessions.  Everyone in the programme went to a morning welcome session at the Cambridge Union Society, toured Pembroke and King’s Colleges, and attended orientation at the Pembroke and King’s College libraries.

First day of classes and first Formal Hall: Tuesday, July 3rd

Today I began my classes.  I’m taking “The Marriage of Spirit and Matter Through the Study of Drawing and Painting,” “The Behavioural Ecology of Animals and Humans,” and the “Supervision in Creative Writing,” in which I get to work one-on-one with an author (who happens to be this guy).

In the evening was the first Formal Hall, a traditional three-course candlelit dinner in the Pembroke dining hall.  This particular dinner included roast beef, Yorkshire pudding, and (to the excitement of this American twenty-year-old) wine.

Other traditional British food eaten to date: toad in the hole, fish and chips, Cornish pasty.  And don’t even get me started on the amount of tea I have consumed.

A little sunshine: Wednesday, July 4th

After a couple of cloudy days, at last I saw a little sunshine!  I went to the open air market in the center of Cambridge for lunch.  It was great fun strolling past stalls selling fruit, vegetables, pastries, fish, books, hats, scarves, and just about anything else you could think of.

 I also went to Evensong at King’s College Chapel in the evening.

Tips for where to buy things in Cambridge:

--Mobile phone: Carphone Warehouse (or Phones 4U) on Market St.

--UK to US plug adaptor: Maplin Electronics on Regent St.

--Groceries: Sainsbury’s on Sidney St. (across from Sidney Sussex College)