Author Archives: jxm5220

White Cliffs and Smooth Seas

Somehow, the time is whirling by, and I’ve been here for about three and half weeks! It’s been a packed and exciting time, and I’ve gotten to take a few day-trips around the area: to Dover Castle, Whitstable, and even to London for a long weekend (so that’s not technically a day-trip, but you get the idea)! I’ve noticed quite a few differences in the school system here as well, but I’ll expand on those later. For now, I’ll focus on the oh-so-English-y places I’ve seen–starting with Dover Castle.

An orientation trip with the university took the international students to Dover Castle, an impressive, sprawling fortress by the seaside and the white cliffs of Dover. The weather so far has been wonderful in general, and only the occasional cloud obscured the sea-sky. Seagulls were everywhere, and I could see the ferry headed toward France. (If I lied to myself, I could see the Eiffel Tower. Totally wishful thinking.) My favorite part of the castle was the view of the sea, of course, the glittering smoothness of it.

The castle itself consisted of long passageways–usually steep and underground–arrow-loops, a church, canons, and a battlement. Standing on the roof and gazing around, you can see miles and miles of rolling green and brown hills, along with the sea. Although the place is a little cozier now with a light lunch caf� shop and some carpeting in places, living in the castle would have been, for me, probably cold and hard…and there were so many steps everywhere! I had to keep reminding myself that the lucky ones lived in the castle. And it was lavish in places–just very dark and cold with stone. It was also extremely windy so that every picture of me turned out less than perfectly, haha. Such is England!

It was nice too to go there with a group of people and get to know them better. In fact, seeing Dover made me want to visit another nearby coastal town: Whitstable. I’ll blog about that next time! Until then, cheers!

Location: Dover, UK

Settling In

I’ve been in Canterbury since Wednesday afternoon, and I’m just now starting to feel less confused when I step outside my door. Truthfully, the first couple days after I arrived were tough: jet lag, combined with unpacking, a room to myself (when I’m used to a usually-present roommate), and a general lack of food made things seem bleak at first. I personally always skipped over this transitional part of my study abroad experience when I’d think about it–fast-forwarding to when I knew the town, had made close friends, and just generally felt at peace with life and my location. But real life wasn’t like that, but after four days, I already feel more comfortable and more settled.

Getting off a rather empty campus–as nice as this campus is–and going into town really helped me feel part of a group and come to terms with my new home…and of course, it was amazing seeing the town! After catching a double-decker bus from the Uni.,I could see the town in the distance.

I saw High Street, the main cobblestone road in Canterbury. It’s beautiful–very British, compact and cute. A large tower and walls, built by the Romans, surround the city and mark the entrance to High Street. Beyond that, it’s a little maze of shops, pubs, cafes, street venders, and even carnival rides–with the looming outline of the Cathedral always in the distance.

Today, some friends and I actually got to see the Cathedral itself. Since I’ve already seen Westminster Abbey, I assumed this would be smaller. It wasn’t. The ceilings were ridiculously high, the stained glass bursting with stories and color and light, and the walls dark and dank as ever. The outside of the Cathedral is just as breathtaking as the inside.

It’s been a good four days of getting acquainted with new people and a new place, but tomorrow classes start! I’m ready.

Location: Canterbury, UK

“Whenever I Get Gloomy About the State of the World, I Think of the Arrivals Gate at Heathrow Airport.”

Well, in exactly a week, I’ll be boarding a plane to Heathrow. This still doesn’t seem real to me, and even now I’m chilling at my house–still procrastinating–much like I’ve been doing this whole break. But that needs to end, and packing needs to start! Like most people studying abroad maybe, most of my Christmas presents consisted of travel-sized items, adapters for abroad, fuzzy socks, and gift cards, so even though I tried to focus on break and not think about the troublesome logistics of my upcoming travel before I had to, the reminder was always there. And now, it’s time.

So, here is a just a short list of what’s on my plate this week:

–Food. I just got a bunch of books from the library about inexpensive, gluten-free cooking. This will be my first-time ever cooking for myself, so hopefully I’ll be able to navigate the grocery stores and the oven well enough. I’m going to try a few recipes and copy the good ones so I’m not starting out completely clueless when I get there. I’ll be mostly clueless.

–Getting together paperwork. I need to print out a bunch of emails, acceptance letters, and get bank statements. In fact, I’m most worried about getting my visa when I arrive and having everything go smoothly–I’ve never travelled alone internationally (or nationally actually) before, and I just want to find the right line! But I’m definitely going to focus on details now and make sure I have everything so when the time comes, I’m ready.

–Packing actual items. I made a list! It’s long, but I’ve checked it more than twice. I’ve measured my luggage…now I just have to make some tough choices: how many pairs of jeans do I pack? (Maybe 3?) Are bringing rain boots worth it? (Probably not.) Is bringing Juno worth it? (Definitely.) I’m trying to pack as lightly as possible, but I do want to bring little tastes of home. I’m thinking of bringing some old letters from friends, of course pictures, and a few favorite books. But, of course, that all depends on whether my suitcase zips or not.

There’s my super-abbreviated list of to-dos. As much as I don’t like details, it will be worth all the packing, phone calls, and re-packing when I finally reach my destination–Heathrow Airport, London, England.

Location: State College, Pennsylvania

My Own Canterbury Tales

My name is Julianne McCobin, and after waiting years to study abroad, I’m finally doing it. When I say “years,” I’m serious; my ninth grade IM name was “londonbound.” So, the fact that I’m poring over travel books, have a British email, and am adding to my packing list daily never ceases to amaze me. And although I’m not going to London specifically, I will be a mere fifty-minute train ride away, in Canterbury, one of the most well-known and historic English towns.

Here, I will be studying at the University of Kent–officially dubbed “The UK’s European University”–where I hope to take art and English classes. I’m still choosing my classes (which they call “modules”), but I’m hoping to get into an Art Aesthetics class, a Post-War European Cinemas class, and a seminar English class on Victorian Terror.

As you can probably tell, I’m beyond excited to get to campus and see my room–I requested a house or flat that I’d share with about five other students. This means I’ll have a kitchen (and no meal plan), so I’m going to have to learn how to cook pretty quickly. I’ll keep you updated on how that goes. Hopefully, this is what the view outside my window will look like:

Okay, so maybe that’s not exactly what my room will be facing, but that is a view of the Canterbury Cathedral from campus. It looks so quintessentially British–maybe because of the overcastness? Regardless, I love it. (As a side note, there were sunnier pictures, but I liked these better. )

And so, while I can’t believe it’s almost time to go globetrotting, I’m excited. I’ve been waiting for this for so long, and soon, I will experience international travel, living in another country, and a daunting dose of personal independence. But most of all, I’m looking forward to all the new people I’ll meet and all the cities that I’ll get to see on my own personal pilgrimage to Canterbury and through Europe. And the best part? Soon, I’ll have my own Canterbury tales to share. It’s going to be amazing.