I don't even know...

Well, yet again I find myself writing after an extremely jam packed weekend. I can hardly even remember what happened during the week. Surely nothing exciting (just school work). But anyways, this weekend I jetted of to Wales for a few days with some friends. We left Thursday night, and headed to London by train, where we caught a coach bus to Wales. It was a three hour ride, but luckily the bus was pretty empty so we got to sprawl out. I'm pretty sure we were the loudest people on the bus, and i'm not sure the other passengers appreciated it but oh well. Now, you may be asking why we bussed, and didn't just catch another train. The answer is simple. To catch a train from London to Cardiff was 90 pounds (180 dollars), plus another 20 pounds to get from the castle to London. To take the bus, was 5 pounds each way (so 10 total).  So we figured that we would rather save 80 pounds, and stay in a decent hostel and eat good food (for once). So we didn't arrive to Cardiff until about 11pm, and just to make things interesting, I lost the piece of paper with directions to the hostel and our reservation number. Luckily, it was only a few minutes away from the bus stop (so right in the centre of the city) and the hostel people were so friendly so it didn't matter that I lost the reservation number. The hostel was so nice, and homey, but I felt bad because when we went to our room our random other roommates were already in bed and we weren't exactly quiet. 

Anyways, the next day we devoted to sightseeing. We bought tickets for a hop on hop off tour bus which was really cool. And i bought a flag to add to my room's collection! Our first stop was at the Museum of Natural Science, or something like that, which we only went to because it was free. But i'm really glad we did go because it was super cool. They had a bunch of life sized replicas of animals, and skeletons of a baby blue whale and turtle and other cool stuff. We spent a good two hours here and then hopped on the bus to our next stop, Mermaid Quay. IT was so beautiful, and reminded me so much of Steveston. It was right on the water, with wonderful restaurants (oh fish and chips, how i missed thee). So we just walked up and down the boardwalk and got ice cream, and then took a water taxi back to the other end of town, near our hostel. Then, that night we chilled on our hostel patio, and went out to a pub/club/place, i'm not too sure what to call it. But it was awesome they had a live cover band which was really good. We met some cool Welsh students but there was lots of cougars on the prowl... 

Anyways the next day, we split up. Me and a few others went to a cheese festival at Cardiff Castle. Seriously, i've never had/seen so much cheese in my life. It was SOOO GOOD. I didn't realize how bad the cheese here was until I ate this. My favourite was a cranberry cheese. So good. There was also fudge, clotted cream, and ice cream among other things. it was pretty cool. We also wandered around the castle a bit which was cool, but to be honest castles are getting to be pretty passe.. haha. After this, we met up and went to a cute hole-in-the-wall italian place which was also amazing. I forgot what REAL food tastes like. From here we just wandered around  and looked at some stores, while the boys had to leave to catch their bus (they were going to take an earlier one) but they missed it! So we met up with them, and went and relaxed in the park behind Cardiff Castle. Luckily, they got on our bus so it all kinda worked out for the best anyways. After sleep the whole bus ride, and then another train back, we arrived back at Bader Hall just in time for the party to begin.

Today, I had a field study for Geography again. We went to Ashdown Forest, also known as the 100 acre woods, also known at the home of Winnie the Pooh! It was pretty cool, but a lot of walking, and not a whole lot of learning (not that I minded). Again, I think I got a sunburn, it was so hot out! 

So now, I find myself trying to catch up as my weekend draws to a close. Theres a pub quiz tonight but I will probably have to skip out on that to finish my reading.

Hope this finds you all in good health (I know I'm one of the few people here thats not sick!)

Love and Miss you!

sunburn+ england... who would've thought?!

Well, as i mentioned in my last post I had quite an eventful weekend planned, and its still only saturday! Thursday night was the bartender of the campus pub, The HEadless Drummer, Ian's birthday so that was quite an event. I am currently on the "Wall of Youth" because Im still 17 though.. haha. Friday, me and Alison (my neighbour) woke up at 6 in the morning, to try and guarantee one of the extra spots on a field study to london- So we were the first people to breakfast, and no one showed up the entire time we were eating. We got worried that the buses has already arrived or something, so we left only to find about 25 starving students waiting outside. None of them had bothered to try the door, the just assumed it was locked! Anyways, we ended up getting seats on the bus thank goodness. When we arrived, we went to St. Paul's Cathedral, which is absolutely BEAUTIFUL. it was completely worth paying the entrance fee. Every inch of that building is covered with intricate and elaborate carving or mosaics or painting or sculpture. We went to the crypt and up the Whispering Gallery. You can stand across the balcony of the Dome and whisper, and people an hear you from across 32 m. We tested this out, it worked! So then we climbed up to the very top, so we were on top of the dome (523 spiral steps!) and the view was unreal. We could see all of london. After catching our breath, we trekked back down and found some lunch (it was so nice to eat REAL food for once!). From there we made our way to the British Museum. We were so proud that we didn't get lost on the tube, we didn't even have to ask for help, even though we had to stare at the tube map for probably about 15 minutes. But nevermind, we figured it out. Once we were in the British museum, which is also an amazingly beautiful building, we headed up to the Egyptian room and we also looked at the African and Japan and Money rooms. The latter was quite a task to find, we got lost numerous times. There was a really cool exhibit on the lifespan of a person in relation to the amount of pills they take. The average human takes 14,000 pills in a lifetime, pretty crazy. After walking for what seemed like forever, we found a bank machine(YAY!) and got on the bus to go home where i enjoyed a much needed nap. Today, I had a geography field study. We went to Hope Gap, and hiked down to the beach which looks across at the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs. It was soo cool. We had to look at specific areas and the differences in the life, which was slightly tedious but pretty cool. It was like a beach, but instead of sand, it was all jagged rock. Luckily, and I'm not sure how, no one fell. From Here we went to Cuckmere valley, a man-made river that has a built in dike separating it. Here we took more samples, and got to do a Pooh Stick test (For all you Winnie the Pooh fans you'll know this one!) We were so lucky to have such beautiful weather, but i guess the wind was deceiving because now I have a sunburn on not only my face, but a bit on my arms, even though i was wearing a long sleeve shirt- Who would've thought? 

Miss you all lots. I was reminded of home today when we walked past some Lily of the Valley and it smelled like home. 

You know you've settled in when you start to call a 15by15 room home...

Well hello. Much has happened since I last wrote. I am in the midst of my second week of school and already have lots of reading. And I have a presentation to do in Geography but I'm not too worried about it (yet). Geography and Economics are probably my favorite classes, mainly because of the teachers. Although I like Psych too because the teacher hands out the slides and regularly lets us out 30 minutes early. So last weekend all the students here went to London on Friday and went for a bus tour. It was really cool but frustrating because we couldnt really take pictures or get a good look at anything but we got to see a lot more things. Then we went to Globe Theatre and saw "The Merry Wives of Windsor". We had standing room tickets and I was in the very front, literally leaning on the stage. The play was so good though, I didnt even mind standing for an hour and a half. Then afterwards, we were supposed to go back to school with the bus but a bunch of us planned to stay overnight in a hostel. After getting lost a couple times and succeeding in looking like COMPLETE tourists. (think about 15 teenagers all huddled around a map pointing in different directions all wearing backpacks)  we finally found our hostel. Luckily, my skepticism was proved wrong. The hostel was great, the people working there were good. They helped us work out a deal for going out that night too which was good. I felt kinda bad for the one random lady that was sharing a room with us because there was 7 girls that got home really late (she was already sleeping) and we were just generally loud and noisy because we were always rushed. So our night in London was a success, although again we got lost numerous times, and my feet hurt so much by the end of the night im not sure how I was even able to walk. Collapsing on my bed that night was the best feeling. The next day we woke up relatively early and began our day. Some of the others that spent the night headed home, but we wanted to spend as much time as we could. So we went to Covent Garden and Harrods to do some shopping and eating, and then later to Hyde Park for a nap. It was so beautiful we were so lucky, the sun was shining it was almost tan-worthy weather. Then we went to Kensington Gardens and walked along the boardwalk, and then got lost again. I think we walked for about 8 hours straight that day. Finally we ended up at Victoria station, absolutely exhausted, and sweaty, and dirty and thoroughly enjoyed the chance to sit for a good hour. 

So that sums up my first London experience, I might be going again on Friday (tagging along on a field study) to hopefully go to the British Museum and maybe St. Paul's cathedral. My other future plans include a field study this Saturday to Beachy Head for a Geography Field study and then spending the say in Brighton on Sunday. The next weekend I have booked a bus ride to go to Cardiff in Wales for the weekend. So rather than weekends being a time to catch up on homework, we race to get everything done during the week so we can get out of this cowfield when we have the chance! 

Besides reading and travelling we try to find other ways to entertain ourselves around here. We did a floor scavenger hunt, and we have daily pilates and step classes run by an upper year and circuit training and aerobics run by one of the teachers. Also we play soccer just about every night in the miniscule gym. Also there is tons to explore here. In the courtyard of the res there is a toilet bench (yes , made of toilets) that i discovered while looking for a place to read. There is also a grass bed way back in the gardens. And I'm sure there are many other oddities to find around this place...

But, World Religions is calling me, so I must bid you adieu (my shakespeare finger puppet is influencing my speech apparently). Until next time.

The plot thickens...

Well.. I certainly have had a very interesting last few days. Friday and Saturday consisted of more getting to know people and organizing all my stuff. We had one beautiful day of sunshine in there and i got to explore the gardens. Check my pictures on facebook! This place is unbelievable. Then on Saturday we went on a tour of the local area. We went to pevensey castle, which is even older than this one and we got to walk around there. It was really cool, the grass was BRIGHT green, thanks to all the rain i suppose. From there we went to Birling Gap, one of the most popular places to commit suicide in the UK. The view was unreal. It was also incredibly windy here, but also beautiful. We walked up to the top, where theres a lighthouse and looked down at rolling hills scattered with sheep and brush. Stereotypical english landscape basically. Then we went to Brighton, and I rushed to go get a cell phone and it WORKED! YAY. Email me if you want to call me and I will give you my number. I also got a V-Shaped pillow and a blanket because I have been FREEZING every night thus far. Now I will finally be warm and comfy. Then we went to the University of Sussex to check out the library and that was the end of our tour. Later that evening we had Opening Ceremonies which gave us an opportunity to mingle more with fellow students but also to meet some of the teachers. I met my geography teacher, and he seems AMAZING. He has to be at least 70, but so passionate. I had quite a lengthy chat with him about how he came to be here and other things. I also met my philosophy teacher, and i am thinking of dropping that course. He was that bad. Just kidding, I just think I might take Art History instead. We`ll see. Then, a catastrophe. My laptop shutdown. And I mean like really shutdown. So after a lengthy panic attack and many phone calls. (Ive almost used all of my £20 credit) and a chat with the resident IT guy here, I had to make a trip to Hove. (which is just past brighton). So... I cancelled my trip to ASDA where I was planning on getting toiletries and whatnot, and hopped on a minibus (a bus system through the school that provides us with free transport to set locations) to Polegate train station with Nigel the very friendly driver. From there I bought a ticket to Hove, and asked where to go. But the tellers accent was so thick, I got on the wrong train. Luckily, it just took me in the wrong direction one stop, so I hopped on teh train going the other way and was on my way. After some transfers, and a guided walk (the man at RH computers is very kind) I was told I may lose all my data on my computer. Devastating. But, Ill wait and see how this cookie crumbles. I rushed back to the train station, realized Id lost my pass, so I had to buy a new one and JUST missed the train to Brighton so I had to wait for the next one. From polegate I took a taxi from a very very friendly driver (So far everyone here is very friendly) in a VERY nice Audi. It was probably the most comfortable ride ever in a taxi that Ive had. But anyways, I must get off to my first class, Geography! YAY.

Love and Miss you all
Mel

I figure me writing so often now makes up for how I probs wont write much when i have school work to do...

K so this might seem a bit ridiculous, three days of blogging in a row but i keep finding myself with spare time so yeah.. this is how i occupy that. Today, the heavens opened. It rained soooo hard, I have never seen so much water in my life! We had to do a lot more paperwork today which was kinda boring, but then me and some others skipped the optional tours and just wandered around the castle. It was so cool... The courtyard is beautiful, and the staircases are narrow and windy, and the doorframes are perfect sized.. for me. Then later I found myself at the resident pub, that seems to be that place to be at night (and the only place really) but it closes at 11 so we had a little dorm party in one of our common rooms. It was really good I'm meeting like 30 people every day, but i can never remember all of theyre names at once. But today I met a 16 year old girl from Lebanon, and a girl from South Africa, and theres TONS of people from the Vancouver area, its pretty sweet. I think tomorrow were going to head into Eastbourne for the night, this castle is extremely isolated so I really want to get out.

Anyhoo.. I need to sleep, i'm running on empty.

<3

And so it continues to begin...

Well.. it has been an extremely long day. It is.. 8:45 Vancouver time, 4:45 here. And I've slept maybe an hour, but somehow I don't feel too tired. The flight was okay, besides my luggage being overweight... But I was sitting with other people from my program which was good. Then from Heathrow ( where I almost ran over a baby with the lugagge carts, luckily i avoided that one) we took a 2 hour bus ride to the beautiful Herstmonceux castle, and seriously, no picture can do it justice. It literally took my breath away. I havent actually gone inside it yet, because I have been setting up my dorm in Bader Hall, possibly the most confusing building I've ever been in. Growing up in Richmond has seriously deprived me of basements, and now I have like....10 or something stupid like that. We had a tour btu that  just confused me more. I'm planning on just wandering around until I figure it out. I met my roommate too, she's very nice, and the room's are really nice too, roomier than I expected. 

So for the next couple days I just have orientation events, and clases start on Monday. 

Lotsa Love. 

Mel

And so it all begins..

Well, I find myself waiting... staring at my luggage. I swear it's staring back. My flight is in 5 hours.. scary right?! Just wanted to take this opportunity to say goodbye to everyone, and ask to keep in touch. 

PLEASE email me @ melaniemcphail@hotmail.com or on here if you'd like. 

Or you can mail me at 

Melanie McPhail

International Study Centre- Bader Hall Room D87

Herstmonceux Castle

Hailsham, East sussex

United Kingdon

BN27 1RN

As soon as I get settled in I will give you the low down on my living situation.. and my roommate :S

Adios...