Some parting advice from your friendly neighborhood study abroad student.
Things I’ll Miss about England: a Comprehensive List
- The smell of the air after rain
- Walkers Cheese & Onion crisps
- DIGESTIVES.
- The hustle and bustle of Churchill Square
- The Brighton Marina
- The Lanes and all the little shops within it
- COSTA coffeehouses, and more specifically, their seasonal Salted Caramel Cream latte.
- tea shoppes
- Chocolate chip cookies from The C0-Operative
- Being a stone’s throw away from Baker Street, the home of the Great Consulting Detective
- cobblestone streets
- peaceful train rides to Victoria
- Sitting at the top front seats on a double-decker bus
- the feeling of being free and alive in a place unlike your own.
London in my lungs
It’s been ages since my last post, but between having two visitors stay with me on-and-off and having to submit four complete essays by this past week, I’ve been in a whirlwind!
Riley and Danielle came to visit, which was lovely. I have missed Ry terribly, and it was great having a piece of Wheaton with me for a few days. To recount all the places we visited would take ages, but we spent a bulk of our time in London these past couple of weeks. I finally visited 221B Baker Street, the infamous home of Mister Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Watson! I went back two more times; I loved it there so much. It was only £8 to get into the museum where you can actually explore Holmes and Watson’s flat!
Me and Ry in front of 221B!
I have decided that I really like taking the Underground. At first glance, the map seems extremely overwhelming, but in fact the Tube is very orderly. If you know me, you know I like orderly things. Within a day’s time (starting out with Riley’s impeccable sense of direction, of course) I was able to navigate all around London entirely on my own. It’s very easy once you get the hang of it!
Other places I’ve visited this month include Shakespeare’s Globe (complete with a tour, on which Danielle and I got points for being the only ones in the group to know that Doctor Who was filmed there–we got to stand exactly where David Tennant stood! Fun fact the tour guide told us: he got married to Georgia Moffett there), the Tower of London, Piccadilly Circus, Leicester Square, and Trafalgar Square. These are all typical tourist-y spots, but what I do recommend is within those places, finding hole-in-the-wall restaurants and pubs that are family-run. Those are the places to get the best food and drink.
The Tower of London
The interior of the New Globe Theatre!
Another major highlight was seeing the play MOJO in Piccadilly. I’d been dying to see it because of its all-star cast, including Colin Morgan (from Merlin) Rupert Grint (Harry Potter), Ben Winshaw (Brideshead Revisited, Skyfall), and Brendan Coyle (Downton Abbey). The play was absolutely phenomenal. I was also able to make some links with what I’ve been learning this semester in my Tragedy seminar. I’ve learned so much at Sussex Uni and to be able to apply it in real life makes it even more rewarding. After the play we waited at the stagedoor. I was inches away from Rupert Grint, and actually got to meet Brendan Coyle (“MISTAH BAAATES” from Downton!). He was very subtly sassy and lovely. It was his birthday that day.
Brendan Coyle!
MOJO on the West End
Tayma and I also got together to see an interactive sing-a-long showing of White Christmas, a classic Bing Crosby film, in Leicester Square. We were given props to act out some of the scenes with, and it was so much fun. It truly put me in the Christmas spirit!
Yesterday was also very fun–went into Brighton with Gabi for some last-minute Christmas shopping and we ended up finding this adorable place in the Lanes called That Little Tea Shop in the Lanes. I recommend anyone who is planning on visiting the Brighton area to go there; afternoon tea for two is just £13.50 and it includes tea & clotted cream, scones, sandwiches and a gingerbread biscuit! Clotted cream is a very ‘UK’ thing, and anyone I’ve asked about it simply can’t explain the taste–and honestly, neither can I! It’s sort of like if Whipped Cream and butter had a baby, but better. If and when you go to the UK, readers, tea and clotted cream is a must!
London is lovely, but in truth, I could probably never live there. I have loved living in Brighton–it reminds me quite a bit of a combination of Boston and Providence, both of which I am familiar with because they are home to me. London is constantly bustling. It is very industrial, very fast-paced–much like NYC. While it is an amazing place to visit, full of history, I much prefer being in a smaller city, because I find it is easier to connect with and explore and make one’s own.
I am officially leaving on 18th December, but I’ll most likely make one more post after this one. I can’t believe how fast time has flown by, but I am definitely ready to go home and see my family, friends, and most importantly my dog. Hope everyone is enjoying their Christmas season so far! Cheers!
Of Castles & Colosseums
To sum up the past two weeks or so, I once again must say that I feel truly, truly blessed to be here. Some days are harder than others, being so far from home. While I have met some lovely people here, it is often difficult to find in them the deep understanding and connections that I’ve made with my friends at Wheaton, whom I miss very much.
Two weekends ago I took an adventure with Molly to Arundel Castle! It is a medieval castle located in West Sussex; it took about an hour and a half to get there by train–and boy, was it worth it. That was the last weekend it was open to the public for the season. Molly and I got to walk through the castle, and walk along the battlements. Here is the castle itself:
And here is just one of the amazing views I captured from the battlements:
The town of Arundel is absolutely gorgeous. It reminds me a bit of the “little town” scene at the beginning of Disney’s Beauty and the Beast (minus the bit where that takes place in France, obviously). It’s very quaint, full of various shops and restaurants. Molly and I ate at The Red Lion, wherein I finally ate my first English fish & chips! Say what you want about English food, but you cannot beat their chips (french fries), no matter where you go. We went to an antique shop and I bought loads of Christmas presents for my family, lots of trinkets and rarities. We also stopped by a thrift book shop where I purchased a Star Trek book and a copy of Le Morte D’ Arthur by Sir Thomas Mallory, an affordable version of which I’ve been trying to find for ages. I spent about 10 quid in total on both of them–needless to say I was happy about that!
The following weekend, my family arrived from the US! I got to take them around some of the basic tourist sites of London like Buckingham Palace and the London Eye, which they seemed to enjoy. I was very happy to see them, especially because we took a three-day trip to trace back our roots in none other than Italia herself! While our ancestors trace back typically to the north in places like Napoli, we decided to go to Rome and see the amazing sites. Admittedly, I did feel a little out of my element. I took Italian my freshman year at Wheaton, but it did not prepare me for immersing myself into an entirely different culture and language for three whole days. There is no experience quite like it. Being in England, I realized, I have it easy–people speak the same language as I do, even if the colloquialisms and slang are slightly altered. In Italy, I was entirely surrounded by another culture–a beautiful one, but a very different one (for example–most restaurants don’t open for dinner until 7 or 8pm! And most shops close at 9! Crazy, right? Certainly not like American restaurant & shop hours at all!). I tried to wear the locket with my Gramma’s picture in it everywhere we went in those three days. I felt that she and Papa should be with us. I know they would have loved Italy.
I also got to try limoncello for the first time. It is very strong but very good. A true Italian spirit:
As if that wasn’t enough excitement for a lifetime, this past weekend was the final Study Abroad group trip organized by Sussex Uni–to the Harry Potter studio! If this isn’t the definition of a surreal experience–to be able to go behind the scenes of something that essentially shaped your childhood–then I don’t know what is. Molly and I, plus forty-odd other Sussex students from all over the world, got to see the intricate sets of Harry Potter’s Cupboard under the Stairs, the Great Hall of Hogwarts…It was absolutely phenomenal. I almost cried at points, just thinking about how I grew up in what has been deemed the “Potter Generation” and how I was now able to walk the very places Harry, Ron and Hermione once did.
I could go on and on about how wonderful these last few weeks have been, but that would take hours. This coming weekend I am going with Tayma and Madison to see the 50th Anniversary Special of Doctor Who, released in theatres only here in the UK!
Best wishes to everyone at home and all my friends abroad who are reading this. I miss you all, and I can’t believe I’m heading back to the U.S. of A in less than a month!
xoxo
Jenna
Too Spooky 4 U
Yesterday was Halloween! As the holiday approached, I found myself reminded of that skit from A Bit of Fry and Laurie drawing attention to the fact that it’s an American holiday. Whether or not trick-or-treating is as popular here as it is back home, students on campus seemed to have a great enthusiasm for celebrating Halloween. Molly and I met up with Tayma and her housemates at their place, and we got pizza and danced around to 90’s music, which was certainly a blast. Molly dressed up as a Pumpkin, and I was John Watson from BBC Sherlock. Here’s what my costume looked like (it costed me a grand total of 13 quid. I did not want to spend too much money–whether you’re prepared for it or not, it is expensive living on your own!):
Tayma was a “dead” (albeit classy) Marilyn Monroe; Madison dressed as the Terminator with some pretty fantastic make-up, Uljana was Wednesday Addams complete with dark braids, and Judi made an excellent Grumpy Cat! Tayma, Madison, Molly and I were quite the spectacle in our costumes when we headed into town to meet two of my friends from SherlockSoc, Gabi and Naomi. Gabi was the Sherlock to my Watson, and Naomi was Sam Winchester from Supernatural. We all headed to a pub Gabi knew about called The Globe which is near the seafront–it’s decorated with shelves and shelves of books with a very Shakespearean feel; I loved it.
After that we all sort of split off. Gabi and Naomi and I went to this club called Oxygen. It was small but cute and featured a wallpaper right out of the backdrop of Sherlock and Watson’s Baker Street flat on Sherlock, which was totally appropriate for our costumes.
Highlights of the night include:
- an entire (entire!) bus of inebriated university students singing Britney Spears’ “Hit Me Baby One More Time” as we were taken into the city. The driver was not amused.
- the DJ at The Globe dressed as a ghostly Shakespeare, droppin’ the base.
- a bunch of guys dressed as all the Teletubbies.
- two people at Oxygen who had actually made an entire cardboard Titanic costume. The girls working at the bar sang a rendition of “My Heart Will Go On” to them and I believe they got free drinks.
- the fact that Naomi and I sang the entirety of “La Vie Boheme” from Rent on the bus ride home–she knew all the lyrics. Usually the only person I’m singing that song with who knows all the words is my sister! Quite impressive and quite fun.
All in all, a great night! Plans are in the works to visit Arundel Castle which is only open for visiting until Sunday, so hopefully Molly and I will be heading there!
I hope everyone had a lovely and safe Halloween. 🙂
xoxo
Jenna
“Life is…beautiful.”
The title of my post is a quote from one of my favorite historical TV dramas, The Tudors. Reportedly they were the last words of King Henry VIII’s fifth wife, Catherine Howard. This weekend was another fabulous few days! On Friday night I had a massive craving for pizza, so I went over to Tayma’s and we all ordered in and had a Glee night which was very fun. Yesterday I met a few lovely people from Sussex Uni Sherlock Society to see Benedict Cumberbatch’s new film, The Fifth Estate. The film itself wasn’t that good, but Benedict was great in it, and it was nice to go into Brighton last night, anyway.
Today was the International Students’ trip to…Hampton Court Palace, home of the Tudors! As a European history nerd, I was in absolute heaven.
I felt like a Queen today! Not the kind that gets beheaded (at least I hope not…)
The weather was a bit cloudy and rainy on-and-off, as you can see in the pictures. That did not deter Tayma, Madison and I, however, as we embarked on our journey through the palace! The grounds are huge–it was impossible to see absolutely everything in the time allotted, but what I did get to see was phenomenal. The structure of the place, the architecture–everything was so intricate, and there was so much history within those walls. There were also many costumed actors and actresses walking around in 16th century garb and saying things like, “Good day, my lady.” They hosted interactive exhibitions. I attended one in which I was “part of” Queen Elizabeth’s privy council and got to witness a council meeting! Afterwards Tayma and I explored the palace on our own, taking a plethora of goofy pictures and having a marvelous time in general. We did get rained on while frolicking through the gardens (yes, frolicking. There were some ballet leaps as well), but otherwise, the experience was unforgettable.
The Gardens
The sun peeked through just a bit here, at least
The beautiful, detailed ceiling paintings in one of the palace stairways.
Me and Tayma, cheesin’ it up in the Gardens!
Long live the King!
The Chapel Garden.
He’s certainly no Jonathan Rhys Meyers, but he knows he’s boss.
All in all, a very busy, very good weekend. I honestly have no idea when I’m going to fit in getting work done in the next month or so, between Halloween, my parents coming to visit, some fantastic movie releases (can you say Thor 2, Catching Fire and Doctor Who 50th, anybody?)…I suppose taking advantage of exploring what I can while I’m here is my main goal, though. So I’m gonna keep doing it!
Much love,
Jenna xoxo
Appreciating the Little Things.
My Thursdays start quite early (considering all my other days start as early as 2PM!). At ten minutes to 9:00AM I’m headed to my first seminar of the day, “The Art of Short Fiction.” But I love heading to class on Thursday mornings. Today I trekked to the Arts Cafe and grabbed a vanilla chai latte before making my way back to the academic building, and I love the sort of peace that’s blanketed over the campus just as the sun is peaking through England’s endless clouds, welcoming the morning. There’s still the bustle of people moving about, but it’s a lot more subdued than it is in the afternoon. It’s like that little moment of each week belongs to me, and I try to cherish it.
Yesterday I got to Skype with my best friend from home, Jaky, who I miss very much. I’ve been effectively keeping in touch with most of my friends at home which I’m really grateful for. To those of you who are looking for apps that will text/call over WiFi: check out Tango! It’s very similar to Viber, but less complicated if you switch SIM cards on your phone (this led to a mishap with Viber for me, and long story short, I’m no longer using it). I found out about Tango through a friend named Amani who lives in a studio flat adjacent to mine. She talks to her family in Saudi Arabia with Tango, and recommended it to me, so I’m extending this knowledge to all of you travelers or to-be study abroad students!
Speaking of family–mine is officially coming to visit in November! I’m so excited to see them and can’t wait to show them London and Brighton and the awesome stuff I’ve been up to. It’s because of them that I’m here, and I try not to forget that.
This last week or so has been a bit slow mostly because I’ve been doing so much writing! Taking four English modules is certainly a challenge. In about a week and a half, there is a ‘reading period’ wherein students are given a few days to write up any mid-term assessments and hand them in. So I’ve tried to get a head-start with all of my assignments.
Assessments in the UK (and in Europe in general) are much different from in the US. For one, there aren’t typically little or ‘short’ graded assignments sprinkled without the semester here. Typically you write one or two papers and those papers make up your grade. For example, for my ‘Writing and the Great War’ class, my first paper is worth 30% of my grade and the second is worth 70%. Participation isn’t even factored in! It’s very strange. Furthermore, you submit all your assessed work formally at the School Office, and anonymously to prevent bias on the part of the tutor. I think that’s a pretty fair system, but all my life I’ve been told to put my name on every piece of paper I ever handed in for a grade, so it’s certainly something new! Despite all this, I am learning quite a lot. My classes are challenging me intellectually and encouraging me to participate–even if I’m the one with the accent in the room.
This weekend, I will possibly be seeing Selin who is visiting her friend from home that is currently studying in London. On Sunday, I’m taking another International Students Trip to Hampton Court Palace, home of the Tudors! Talk soon!
xoxo
Jenna
‘English’ English: A Very Brief Guide
It’s been almost exactly a month since I arrived in the UK! It has gone by quite fast, and yet it feels as though I’ve been away from home forever. I have grown to really like it here; I have learned quite a lot about British culture and have explored a number of exciting places even in the first four weeks. I feel very, very fortunate to have been given this opportunity!
Here are a few words and phrases that I’ve picked up on which, if you say the American equivalent while here in England, might cause a bit of confusion or a few odd looks in your direction. Hope they’re useful!
- wellies = rain boots
- biscuits = the kinds of crunchy cookies you’d get in packages at the supermarket.
- ‘pop off to’, ‘pop round’ = ‘go to’/’stop by’
- crisps = potato chips
- chips = french fries (think: chipped potatoes, which is their full name)
- prawns = shrimp
- lift = elevator
- modules = classes
- bar = place where alcohol and food is available (usually)
- bin = trashcan
- mate = friend (I know, I know. Pretty obvious but I figured I’d include it anyway)
- sweets = candy
- ‘All right?’ = ‘How are you’/’What’s up’/this phrase doesn’t actually have a proper meaning according to sources (I’m looking at you, Matt); the typical response is ‘Not too bad, and yourself?’ or to respond ‘All right?’ in kind.
- ‘gone off’ = spoiled (as in food)
- ‘pissed’ = drunk (lol)
- shop = store
- tube = subway/London Underground
These don’t apply to every situation always, but I hope they were a bit of help, anyway!
I’m planning on having a quiet weekend, since this past weekend was so crazy! I’ve got a lot of coursework ahead of me…Reading Week is coming up, which is the equivalent of Midterms at home. Oh, boy.
xoxo
Jenna
Stonehenge and Bath
After I turned nineteen, I got a tattoo that reads Rent‘s mantra: “No day but today.” I feel as though being in England these last few weeks, I am finally living up to what I have inked behind my left shoulder. I’m living in the moment. And it’s turning out brilliantly. There are a number of trips that are organized through the International Students Office at Sussex Uni that I would recommend, if you come to the school to study abroad, that you take advantage of! This trip to Stonehenge was about two hours by bus, with an additional hour to travel into Bath. (If you are curious or planning a trip–by train it would cost approximately 50 pounds), and three hours back to Falmer.
Stonehenge is beautiful. People told me it was a bit disappointing; on the contrary I thought it was breathtaking. I took a bunch of shots like these because I was just in awe of the beautiful sight.
Bath is a gorgeous city. It had a bit of an Italian feel. I absolutely loved it! Molly and I met up with Tayma, Madison, Uljana, and Judi and explored the city after touring the Roman Baths! Then we went to the Courtyard Cafe, which was delicious, especially after not eating all day. There is so much history in Bath–it was impossible in the time allotted to see everything, so I would love to go again!
I feel so lucky to be able to experience these beautiful places with some lovely people. Can’t wait to see what the next few weeks have in store for me!
Much, much love
Jenna
Remember that one time I met Billie Piper?
Today was London Film & Comic Con at the Kensington Olympia Exhibition Centre! I found out about it through a lovely, very friendly and very sweet acquaintance through Doctor Who Society, Rachel, who works at these kinds of events. Tayma, her housemate Madison (whose birthday was today!), and my new friend Sarah accompanied me on this wacky adventure. It was my first comic con ever; quite small compared to SDCC or Cardiff, but probably one of my favorite experiences EVER!
Look at our excited little faces.
Everyone was dressed to the nines in elaborate costumes. Some cosplays I saw included: Welcome to Night Vale (Cecil and Carlos, who I really wanted to take a picture with, but they were hard to track down!), multiple Deadpools & Spidermen, X-Men, Thor, Sailor Moon, too many Captain Kirks and Picards to even count, and Dead!Robb Stark (complete with decapitated wolf head). One of my personal favorites was the one and only Merlin I saw!:
He got really in-character.
There was a ton of nerdy merchandise; all of us were in absolute heaven. I bought a vintage Star Trek pillowcase (pillow included), 3 vintage comics (two Star Trek, one Iron Man), and some small, cute glossy posters for me and my friends/family.
The most important thing about conventions, of course, is seeing the special guests. Alexander Vlahos from Merlin was there although I didn’t get to see him. ): However…we waited in a queue for Billie Piper (Doctor Who, Secret Diary of a Call-Girl), aaaannnd…
I MET BILLIE TOO-GORGEOUS-FOR-WORDS PIPER! She was such a sweetheart. The conversation was short (the massive queue moved quite fast, which was a good thing), and basically went like:
ME: HI!
BILLIE: Hello, how are you?
ME: I’m good, how are you?
BILLIE: I’m great!
[photo is taken]
ME: Thank you so much; you’re amazing!
BILLIE: Aw, thank you so much, darling!
And then she sort of ran her hand down my arm (in a non-creepy way) and SHE WAS SUCH. A SWEETHEART. And she called me ‘darling.’ Rose Tyler called me ‘darling’; can’t beat that, now, can I?
I had an absolutely brilliant time. It was also a great way to get to know the friends I’ve met here so far. They are lovely people and despite the fact that we were all running on 3 to 5 hours of sleep (we partied hard for Madison’s birthday at The Haunt the night before), we made the most of our visit to LFCC!
Tomorrow…Stonehenge and Bath!
Brighton Lights 