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Published: February 16th 2007
As I wonder if anyone actually got freaked out by that title, I’ll just say it was only a choir performance at the community prison Wednesday night. Still, we had to go through a ton of security, and I saw a side of England most tourists don’t plan for. The concert was actually kind of boring, if I can be so bold, since we only sang a few songs and the rest were solos and duets in varying degrees of talent. I kind of wish I hadn’t gotten roped into this choir. The people in it are the only unfriendly British I've met (or NOT met) since they pretty much ignore me, and if I want to meet someone, I have to go up to them and make a point of introducing myself. Not that I expected everyone to be SUPER friendly, but you'd think they'd at least say "hi" to the new girl, right? Plus, they aren't very good - not that I'm snobby, it's just the truth. I figure I can quietly drop out after the Plymouth trip, since I’m filling a needed hole.
Wednesday night finally got exciting when we decided to celebrate Valentine’s Day (or should I say, Singles Appreciation Day) at the weekly “bop” in the Student Union. I guess Wednesday nights are the only good night to go to the activities held by the SU, and I certainly had a good time! It was basically a dance - the theme was Heaven and Hell - in which they played music we Americans actually KNEW and could dance/sing to in relative ease. The theme extended to the decorations and the outfits of most British girls, who wore tacky angel/devil garb.
Almost all of the people I was with got very drunk (there’s two bars that sell very cheap alcohol at the SU) though I only had one drink (WKD in a bottle, it’s blue vodka) and spent the rest of the night making sure Mary got home in one piece! We met more Brits, of course, and basically had an uproarious night full of dancing. Most of the guys I saw there turned out to be gay, which was a disappointment. When it was getting time to leave, I realized Mary and I were the only Americans left, so I went to collect our coats, only to find them missing! A panicked 15 minutes later (Mary wasn’t too concerned, though I didn’t want to lose my passport, student ID, money and keys, not to mention her cell phone and camera) the security helped us find them upstairs, where they had been moved. I decided this was our cue to leave, so I got Mary back and fell, exhausted, into bed.
Thursday was pretty uneventful. I finally met with Gary, my “personal tutor,” who is a faculty member in the English department. Our meeting gave me a weird vibe, and I was happy to get out of there. I can’t quite put my finger on it…he kept getting too close for comfort, and said some strange things, like how he’s my “guardian angel” if I ever need help on this campus, etc. Maybe I’m just being paranoid. He said we’re supposed to meet once more, halfway through the term, and again before I leave.
Good news: I asked about the duration of classes, and he said we only attend classes for the first 12 weeks of term. Weeks 13-15 are for “assessments,” when I probably don’t have to go to class, and only have to go to one pre-assigned time for each class, which will probably be in Weeks 13 or 14. It’s good news because now I can have my mom come a week early and stay in the dorm with me (free lodging and food for us - I did pre-pay for those nights) so I can show her around Winchester and everything nearby. After that, we plan to tour UK and Ireland for two weeks, and fly home together on June 30. I’m so excited!!
Thursday night, we also mapped out our travel plans for the month-long spring break. Here’s what we came up with:
Week 1: Travel with Mary, Victoria and Betsy to Italy - I think we're going north-south. Venice, Florence, Rome, then Pasedona, which is near Naples. While in Florence, we'll probably do a day trip in Pisa. We're spending 2 days in Florence and 3 in Rome, I think. Victoria's travel agent is going to help us sort out the travel plans, which is great. It's a friend of her mom's, and she knows we're on a budget and will keep things cheap for us. Victoria wants to stay in nicer places, if possible - she said her travel agent found lots of hotels and B&Bs that are the same or just a little more than hostels. Plus, hostels are rather dirty in Italy, I've heard.
Week 2: Fly to Greece - and MARY'S PARENTS ARE LETTING US USE HER TIMESHARE!!! So we get to stay at a RESORT on Cyprus, for FREE, which is an island on the far east end of the Greek Islands. It's just south of Turkey. We'll probably spend either the beginning or the end of that trip in Athens, doing the tourist thing. But I'm really excited to explore this little island! Hopefully it won't be as tourist-y, and it's a beautiful resort that we can do things like waterski or windsurf, downhill ski (there's mountains!), shopping, nightclubs etc. I'm so excited! Are you jealous, yet?
Week 3: Victoria is going to Spain to spend time with family living there, and Betsy is going to travel with her friend in Sweden. Mary and I really want to do Germany, and possibly another country, like Austria or Switzerland. We're trying to convince Matt to come with us, too. This week is a little up in the air...
Week 4: Mary is going back to UK to travel with a friend she has visiting. I'm trying to coordinate something with my friend Theresa, who is studying abroad in Spain, to meet up and travel in Spain with her. Otherwise, Betsy will be free this week, so we could possibly meet up, too. I'm not freaking out...yet...
I’m so happy that we finally have this tentatively planned out - I was getting worried. Today, we’re just waiting on Victoria’s travel agent and Mary’s mom, so we can double-check the feasibility of our plans. Then I’ll look into possibly getting a Eurail pass, for those second two weeks of break, and figuring out what exactly I’m doing those weeks.
For the rest of the night, we watched Mean Girls and went to bed late.
My Friday (today) will be pretty slow. Most of the Americans went to Southampton to shop for the day. Several of the girls are even getting tattoos and haircuts - not for me! A few went to Bath, which is a place I definitely want to spend a day trip…but not this weekend, cause we’re going to LONDON tomorrow! Have I mentioned that, yet?
Well, Mary, Betsy, Maddie and I have booked bus tickets from Winchester to Victoria Station in London, where we will get on the Original London Sightseeing Tour, with tickets good for two days. On that double-decker, we’ll see all the famous sights, with the option of getting on and off whenever we please. We’ve also booked a hostel for the night, so we have a chance to go out into the city and enjoy the nightlife, before heading back late Sunday afternoon. I’m so excited! London’s expensive, I know, but I just HAVE to do this - it’s so close!
Cheers for now…I’m signing off until after my London trip.
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Kristal Donahue
non-member comment
Hey
Emily it sounds like your spring break is going to be a blast. and yes i am jealous. if i had to choose between austria and switzerland i would pick switzerland, i loved it there the mountains are amazing, but both are great you would enjoy either. and i am so excited for you to get to go to london. i LOVED it so much. i even told my parents that if i ever have the money to buy a vacation home i want one in either london or switzerland. i can't wait to read your trip about london to see what you did and how you liked it.