Leeds Castle

The university sponsored a trip to Leeds castle today, which turned out to be an awesome trip. It took about 40 minutes to get there by bus, much better than the 2 hours it took me to get to Dover the other day. The grounds of Leeds Castle were really gorgeous. There were tons of acres of grass and little hills and flowers. And tons of ducks! They had, I kid you not, a duckery. A duckery! That's what the sign said and everything.

The castle itself wasn't bad, but it was rather modern; it has been remodeled and updated several times over the centuries, so a lot of the interior doesn't look very castle-y anymore. Plus, there were about a hundred other people from the group crammed in there too, and we did the awkward slow-shuffle-forward for the whole tour. Though I have to say that the outside of the castle was still really impressive, and I got lots of pictures of it reflected in the water surrounding it.

After taking the tour through the inside of the castle, we got to roam around the grounds on our own. I saw vineyards, stumbled my way through a hedge maze, went into an underground grotto lit up with technicolor lights, and even watched a falconry demonstration. I got a few short video clips from the falconry demonstration too.

Leeds Castle

Falconry Demonstration

Dover Castle

I visited Dover Castle today. It took a while to get there by bus (about two hours, what with the waiting and the transfer) but it was fun. And on the upside, I'm becoming quite the pro at the bus system here. The reason I went was that I was looking into volunteering at the archaeology society there, where they do repacking and storing of archaeological and historical collections dating from Roman times all the way through the Cold War era. The collections they had stored were interesting, but I'm not sure if I can handle the two-hour-each-way journey on a regular basis.

After I talked to the assistant curator, I got a chance to look around the castle grounds, which were gorgeous. I also got to take a tour of the "Secret Wartime Tunnels," which are tunnels that were used during WWII (among other times; they originally date back to the war with Napoleon, I think) to house military personnel and even an underground hospital. Very cool, very creepy. Supposedly the repeater room down there is haunted, but I didn't see anything. I also went into another set of tunnels dating back to the medieval period; those were really dark and full of spiders. I got to explore the castle's Keep, which was built by King Henry II and is known as "the Key to England" because it's so exposed geographically and yet has never been conquered. The views from the top of the castle walls were incredible!

And thanks to the fabulous digital camera my parents got me, I have lots of pictures to share!

Dover Castle

Canterbury Cathedral

Today I got to visit the Canterbury Cathedral and take a guided tour. The university bussed us down there and paid for the tour, so everything was free. (Hooray!) And believe you me, the Cathedral is an awesome place. The outside alone is absolutely gorgeous. They're actually doing work on it right now (to replace the roof I think) but I still managed to get some great pictures.

The inside of the Cathedral was equally amazing. Lots of stained glass and soaring archways. When I first walked in, I didn't realize how big it was because you can't see the whole thing in one shot. But then the tour guide started taking us around and I began to realize just how humongous the place is. There are tons of little chapels and alcoves off the main nave. Also, the crypts underneath are spooky, but reeeaally cool. Apparently, St. Thomas isn't really buried in the Cathedral like many people think. They say his body was cremated and his ashes scattered either to the water or wind. However, Edward the Black Prince is buried there, and I got a few pictures of his tomb (which had a really cool replica of him in his armor all laid out).

After the tour, we were on our own to get back to the campus. That was fine by me, because I decided I'd just wander around for a bit and see what was around. So I bought a cappuccino and started walking. It was really fun walking down little side streets and seeing all the cafes and shops and things. Luckily, there are lots of tourists in Canterbury so I didn't feel like such a sore thumb. After a while, I eventually found my way back to a bus stop. I only had to stop and ask for directions once--progress!

Here's the album I put together of pictures from the Cathedral. Check 'em out!

Canterbury Cathedral

Settling In

Well, a few days have passed and I'm glad to say that things are going extremely well. So far I've met lots of people from countries all around the globe, including France, Germany, Austria, Cypress, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Britain (of course) and more. Even though introducing myself to new people is at times horribly awkward, it's always worth it in the end.

This morning I went to a few international students' orientation meetings which, while they weren't exactly riveting, were certainly informative. Plus, finding my way to the meetings also provided me the opportunity to get lost several more times, but I'm beginning to learn that that's often the best way to explore the campus. Tonight I went to the international students' dinner, which was great fun. I got to meet more people, and there was great food and even a Bollywood dancing presentation.

And on an especially awesome note, I found out today that I have classes only 3 days a week, and no class starts before 11:00 a.m. How cool is that? I'm anticipating a lot of individual work, though. This term my two classes are Greek and Roman Medicine, and Museums: Our National Heritage. I'm hoping they'll be pretty interesting.

No pictures for you today, but hopefully there will be lots tomorrow, as I'm going on a tour of the Canterbury Cathedral tomorrow afternoon. 'Til then!

Day One

Well, I made it! I left the house yesterday at 3:00 p.m. and arrived at Kent's campus today at about 12:30 p.m. I think it really hit me on the plane ride over that yes, I really am going to be studying in another country for 10 months. And it was difficult at first, adjusting to the new campus and the new people. But I think I've made some good progress so far, however small--I figured out the bus routes and went down to the city centre (look, English spelling!) to buy some bedding for my room, and I don't get quite as confused now when people say they're "at uni." The driving on the left side of the road thing still freaks me out occasionally, though.

I got a chance to walk a little ways into campus, and it's very pretty, with lots of trees and greenery. Plus, they have signs that point you in the direction of certain buildings, which was very helpful. So today and tomorrow are all about getting settled in my room and having a look around campus. And of course, getting rid of the jet lag. Overall, it's been tiring but really exciting!

Here are a couple pictures of my room. It's actually much more spacious than I thought it would be!