First Weeks of Conquest

I AM HERE Exeter!! About time is all I can say! Exeter is located about 4 hours by bus away from London and it is such an endearing quaint town! When you arrive at the airport, whether it is Heathrow or Gatwick, I suggest that you do not call your folks there. The international phone companies charge you insurmountable amounts to call the United States. Since there is a phone in your room, you can just top up online and call them then. Or, you could always Skype call or use Gmail to call the US for free! During Welcome Week, there are a lot of things planned for freshers–equivalent to freshman—and international students. Since I am not a freshman, I probably did ¼ of the society tasters. However, remember to do everything with free food because you will be in a self-catered hall. This means you will be cooking for yourself or mooching off the other internationals in your flat. You can no longer show up at the Cafe or the Sadler Center and have a meal produced within three minutes. Only catered halls have that option and most people in catered halls do not even eat there because it is pricey. This type of living forces you to grow up a little. You have to plan your meals, make a list or two for grocery shopping, and discover your talents in the kitchen. How self-sufficient you really can be is tested and you will be surprised at your abilities.

At the University of Exeter, all the students who are studying abroad for a semester are placed in the same dorm. There are Germans, Italians, Spanish, Swiss, Swedish, Australians, Chinese, Japanese, South Koreans, and Americans all in the same block of flats. A plethora of languages, customs, and lifestyles make the study abroad experience even more interesting. I have learned so much about different cultures already that I think I am learning more outside of class than in it. For instance, I learned that Australians do not live in the middle of the continent because it is too hot. The coasts are the most populated areas and they also have underground houses called dugouts for protection from the sun. That is just a snippet of the things I am learning about. I am sure there is so much more to come and I am soaking it all up like a sponge.

Cheers,

EXE traveller