When in England

Blog Entry #1 reporting from Greatham, England

As soon as the plane touched English earth, my heart began to race in a way it never has before. I am in London and despite how displaced I am, something feels right here....An air of excitement seems to surround me, and as the passengers grab their luggage, I can feel the anticipation binding us all together. My feet and hands are nicely swollen from the 12 hours of air travel and I hear a young child behind me tell his mother that his hand is tired of being alive. I chuckle to myself at his lovely little British accent.

An hour later I leave baggage claim and step out onto the airport drive. A smile breaks my face like a pebble tossed into a pool of water as I marvel at the cars traveling along the opposite side of the road I am used to. One short bus ride and I am on the train to Woking Station, my first stop before reaching Greatham where I will be spending the next few months in the South of England. I feel totally adventurous and totally alone. It is odd to be in a different time and place, completely unknown by anyone around. I am invisible, just another face in the crowd. It seems as if it is not until someone calls me by name, I am no more than a backdrop for someone else's story.

Upon arriving at the Manor House, I am aghast at the Victorian architecture which adorns this place. I feel like Peter, Susan, Edmond, and Lucy in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, mystified by grandeur. It is near 4pm and I am invited to tea where I meet a few other students who I will be staying with this term.

(For continued reading...see blog post #2 @ http://kimberlondon.blogspot.com/2010/10/when-in-england_23.html)