Still Waiting For It To Sink In

Hello everybody! Since a lot of people wanted me to keep them updated on my adventures here, I figured a blog would be the easiest manner of doing so. I've only been here a few days, but it feels so much longer...I probably should start at the beginning, shouldn't I?

So, after an hour delay at Dulles, the other fellow Readingites and I began our journey. The flight to Reykjavik wasn't to bad since we had personal televisions and could choose movies or tv episodes to watch. Our layover in Iceland was made nonexistent by our delay, which I regret. It looked so beautiful from the sky at 6 AM (their time). I think I slept five minutes total. We arrived at Heathrow mid-morning and after some slight confusion, made it to our bus. On our way to Reading we passed Windsor Castle, but all we could see was the tower tips. From the bus station we took cabs, which are very roomie, to our new home, 141 Whiteknights Road.

Dr. Franke, the program director, greeted us, as did our house mother, Gill. My roommate Rachel and I then preceded to our room, located in the Wibbly Wobbly Corridor. The corridor is very twisty and hilly with a very short ceiling. Seriously, I barely have to raise my arms to touch it. The room itself is very nice, with its own sink, a large window, and a small couch. The rest of the house is really nice too with parts of it built in the 1700s, but it is somewhat of a maze.  The garden is beautiful with its ivy and roses.

After we got a little settled and ate some wonderful dinner Gill and Lex, one of Gill's friends that often hangs out with us, we all went out to explore Reading. From there we walked through town to pub called the Nag's Head. It was very nice and homey, but not being a drinker meant I got a little bored (I did try someone's coffee flavored ale, but definitely not my thing). Everyone else had fun though and from there we went to one of the places every Readingite must go, a pub called the Purple Turtle. Inside, poor Lauren got hit on by one very drunk Scottish guy and another semi drunk one. Still, it was slightly amusing. Overall, a one time visit I think. Rachel, Lanely, Lauren and I called it an early night, thus ending our first half day in England.

Sunday, our first day, began with a tour of Reading University's Whiteknights campus. It use to be part of a manor house, but now the really nice house is for staff only. The campus is so big! I mean, it's probably because I'm comparing it to Randolph, but there's even a lake! The campus is absolutely beautiful though. When we returned from our tour, we got a full lunch, with roasted potatoes, vegetables, cabbage, pork, and chicken. Again, everything was delicious, but now we're mostly on our own for food. Thank goodness I can cook.

Today was another tour of Reading (which is a town, not a city even though it should be). It's so chock full of history, it's amazing. The ruins of Reading abbey, founding by Henry I, a son of William the Conqueror, sit right in the middle of town. The cemetery's a little sad in a beautiful way. There's also a church right by the ruins that used to be a Anglican church but but Fate's ironic hand is now a Roman Catholic church. It gave me a chuckle. When the tour ended, we explored by ourselves. Rachel and I got our mobiles and Cornish pasties for lunch. My corned beef pasty was so good! I also tried a Dr.Pepper, but it's definitely not the same. I think they use sugar here versus corn syrup.

Anyway, here's some impressions. It's an amazing place. You can go from a bustling road with loud cars and stores with all the modern conveniences to a quiet street garden where you could be anytime in seconds. The diversity is also amazing. Just down the street is a Chinese restaurant, an Indian restaurant, and an English chip shop, side by side. I'll explore those soon; I do have a year after all.
Even though I've been here almost two and a half days, it still doesn't feel real. Maybe once I start being around British people more and classes start it'll sink in.

This probably isn't the best blog update, but I'll get better, promise. Until then, hope you're all doing well. ^^