These are my housemates, L to R: Nick who is from South Carolina, Veronica who goes exploring with me and is from Indiana, and me. This photo was taken the day we met.

Comfortable in England

Hello everyone. Last week’s article was very long, so I will shorten it up this week and tell you about some everyday things.

Next week is Reading Week, which means that I have class on Thursday and then I am free for ten whole days :) After coming back from Paris last week, I have realized that I am in the right place. I am confident in my decision to come to England rather than a few of the other countries and locations I was looking into.

During Reading Week, instead of going to Italy because it is so expensive for our flight and accommodations, Veronica and I have ordered tickets to see the onstage play Chicago on Halloween night. If the weather is nice, we plan on heading to the London Zoo and Aquarium earlier that day. Then on Thursday we are going to a beauty shop/spa for a girl’s day and night out. We were suckered into becoming special guests (VIPs) to this big expensive salon where we’ll end up paying fifty-five pounds for everything; I know what you’re thinking, that’s still $110. However, you can’t even get your hair trimmed here for less than $70. So, really, it isn’t bad. They are giving us all this special stuff and getting us into a London club for free, but I’ll tell you more about that later.

The Christmas shopping and season have begun here and it is not even Halloween yet. Bentall’s, the large shopping mall in Kingston, has decorations up already and every shop has Christmas gift stuff out. I do believe that having Christmas all around me for the next two months is going to make me homesick. I am very sad to be missing Thanksgiving. It is the one day of the year I can eat as much as I want (well I do this anyway) and not feel guilty about it. Then there’s Black Friday (the great shopping day after Thanksgiving), which very well could be one of my favorite days of the year. A few of my relatives and I have made it a holiday in itself with all of our own little traditions.

Yesterday was a very rough Monday; I started my day with four hours of sleep, because I was quite hyper the night before and could not get to bed. That is not what made it a crazy day, though. It was the fact that I had seven hours of the same class all day that made it drag on and be extremely boring.

Veronica and I have found that we are in love with Kornwells Pasties. Chicken and vegetable could be the best pasty you’ll ever eat :) We have been making frequent visits to the Odeon movie theatre in Kingston. It’s very expensive, but better than some other options.  Even with our student discounts we still pay about $11.

This past weekend Veronica and I went into Central London and then to Cambden for some “Christmas” shopping. I didn’t come home with one Christmas present for anyone; except for myself, I must admit. How can I describe Cambden? It is a place of open or free markets. You do not set your purse or belongings down or show that you have anything expensive on you—that is for sure. Also I have found that if you try not to talk and give your American accent away, you get a better price. I love bartering with the people and making them drop their prices. It’s a fun place to go and spend the day shopping, but watch out for the type of shopping that takes place on the bridges. We were walking across one the other day and noticed a bit of dealing going on that we wanted no part of.

Folks, I’m sorry to break it to you, but our weather is still pretty nice. It has been raining a lot, but that’s England for you. It is still staying pretty warm, though, and I am always comfy in a zip-up sweatshirt and jeans. Whereas, I believe, you are all in your winter jackets and snow boots already.

It’s always funny meeting people because they always ask why we’re here and what we’re studying. Veronica has resorted to lying about her major because she gets a lot of nonsense about coming from the United States to England to study English. I believe last night she was into politics, which may also be a bad idea to bring up here, but that’s Veronica. As for me, I just say premedicine and everyone understands and lets the subject go. We have been having a few problems at our house lately. Every main appliance appears to be breaking on us, which is not fun when you think about it. Also, our landlady has been acting a bit strange—her mind and memory have been letting her down a tad lately.

Have a great week,