Week 3 Impressions by Diana Freeburg

It has been 2 weeks since we got here. Part of me feels like this is the makings of an epic adventure, but the other part of me feels like I am on an extended 5th grade field trip, bus rides and chaperones included. To convince myself that this trip is the former, and not the latter, I have been trying to seize every opportunity to go out into the city and embarrass myself.

I arrived not fully knowing what to tell people about where I was going to be staying and learning, and I still don’t have a good answer to the “where are you studying” question that is invariably asked when you tell a local that you are studying here.

Luckily, one of the first things that happened on this trip was Sasha’s 21st birthday, which culminated in a pub crawl that forever bonded the individuals on this trip. British bar patrons and bartenders could not hide their disgust for our group of American students rolling fifteen deep and being rowdy as all hell. We really weren’t concerned about them though, we were just getting over our first day nerves and starting to enjoy ourselves. It has been a tremendous cultural adjustment, but I think the group has really learned to embrace British pub culture and the club nightlife that was so much easier to justify before classes started. The pubs and bars really are the best places to meet British people--the girls on our trip have especially had good luck.

A more challenging adjustment has been to the small living spaces, and for many of us, the reintroduction of a roommate. Our kitchen is so small that even trying to make toast when there are more than two people in there is a trial of one's patience. I have taken to eating a diet of mostly fruit, cheese, and funny British biscuits, as to avoid using the kitchen.

British biscuits that are, by the way, from the most fun place to shop in the whole world. Sainsbury’s is the big, cheap, grocery store nearest us and Julia and I go there about every 3rd day. We have spent a lot of time puzzling over what “salad cream” is or “brown sauce” or why on earth there is such an extensive selection of tiny yogurts. I enjoy grocery shopping in Oregon quite a bit, so it seems obvious that putting a British spin on it would make it that much more fun. Now we know where most things are in the store, which to me, is a good indicator that we are not simple tourists. I think to say that we are “living here” is a bit of a stretch, but these little bits of familiarity we are forming give me a sense of satisfaction, satisfaction that I’m not getting from sitting on tour busses and walking around in a giant amoeba of American students.

All in all, everything here is divine and I am totally jazzed to be a part of this group. I love that we went to Stonehenge and Bath together, two audio tours in one day. Our surroundings are inspiring, the energy in our group is palpable, and I cannot wait for what is to come.