I've officially been living in England for about a month now! As the title of this post implies, it's finally beginning to feel normal. The first few weeks I was here, I was extremely conscious of my accent, but I think I've gotten used to sticking out. A lot of people are usually just interested in knowing where I'm from. It's still difficult adjusting to the different words, but I'm trying my best. A part of me just feels like I'm making fun of the way British people talk if I try to incorporate the words into my own speech. My lab partner recently assured me that most people don't even notice, so it's probably okay.
Other things that have begun to feel normal include the money (even though having coins for one and two pounds still makes my wallet feel way too heavy and still seem unnecessary), walking everywhere (as well as biking everywhere), and driving on the wrong side of the road (well, not me personally driving). Granted, I still would never, ever want to drive here. There's so many one-way streets and twisty roads that I'm pretty sure I would cause an accident within five minutes. They should've adapted the block system.
One thing I haven't gotten used to is the disconnect I now feel with events that happen in America, especially in regards to the election. Even after watching the presidential debate, it's been difficult focusing on what's been happening (Fun fact though, I voted and you should too!). Especially now that I'm concentrating on school work, I feel like I don't have time to keep up with current US events. Every once in a while my tablet "pings" and lets me know when a new gun-related terror occurs, which is mostly just sad. And I don't think I'll get used to seeing all of the pictures on Facebook of my friends going to football games, or enjoying a night out at my favorite bar in Mt. Pleasant any time soon. Some aspects of living here are harder than others, but moving on is a just a fact of life.
But I'm liking this new normal. I'm still getting used to living on my own, but that's changing too. I have new friends to get to know better and have adventures with. I'm digging into the tough (but fun!) work of getting my master's. While this isn't my normal yet, I definitely feel like I'm getting there.
Wednesday, September 28, 2016
Tuesday, September 13, 2016
First Day of School!
Well, technically second now. But I got distracted yesterday and didn't get a chance to write a post!
So far, so good. Which is pretty easy to say for just having one day of school down. Though it is slightly weird, because this first week is something they call induction week. If I had to boil it down to anything, it's like syllabus week back home, but if you only had one class to learn about. For example, yesterday they told us all about the structure of the program. Today we will be learning about library services. Tomorrow is our first lab session, just to make sure we can function properly in a lab. I would assume Thursday and Friday would be more about services the university offers, but I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that they will be feeding us lunch on Friday, which is pretty sweet. All in all, I thought we were going to dive right in. But amazingly I have a lot of free time this week, which will be nice to spend with some of the new friends I made!
As a reminder, I am getting my MSc (Master of Science) in Cancer Cell and Molecular Biology (CCMB). This is actually one of the most popular courses the department offers, which isn't really surprising to me. You can find thousands of masters programs in cell and molecular biology, but I'm pretty sure this is the only one that specifically focuses on cancer. I think that's pretty neat. When all is said and done, I think there are about 15 of us in the program. Maybe 20, because I'm not great at estimating things like this.
One of the things I really enjoyed about meeting these people is the sheer diversity in the group. It's definitely something I haven't really seen so far in my education. Surprisingly, there's another American in the group. He's from Virginia, so everyone probably thinks his accent is cooler, but whatever. There's a couple of girls from Turkey, one I met from Saudi Arabia, one from India, and of course a few from around the UK. Everyone was extremely friendly, and I think we'll all get along well. I'm really looking forward to getting to know them and learn more about their individual cultures.
Just a few notes about the program itself, because I'm continually amazed that they condense a masters in just a year. All in all, it does round out to about a year. But the vast majority of that is the project period, which is when we get to work full-time in a lab and just shovel out a dissertation (which may not sound exciting to most people, but I'm super pumped). The first three months, however, is us getting knowledge shoved down our throats. Lectures only take place on Mondays, which sounds awesome, but some days lectures go from 9am to 5pm without a break. The rest of the week is spent in a lab, working on different lab techniques and practicing for the real-deal that comes in January. It's very intense, with papers counting for the majority of our grade, and there's not really a break until we get to the end of November. In that respect, it is quite intimidating. But I love to be busy, I love to learn, and I'm totally ready for whatever is thrown at me.
I think this year is going to be the most unique year so far in my education. The structure of the program is vastly different from anything I've experienced thus far. I guess that's the main point of the Fulbright award. Whatever I learn here, I can take back with me and encourage others to join in an educational exchange program. That's pretty exciting!
So far, so good. Which is pretty easy to say for just having one day of school down. Though it is slightly weird, because this first week is something they call induction week. If I had to boil it down to anything, it's like syllabus week back home, but if you only had one class to learn about. For example, yesterday they told us all about the structure of the program. Today we will be learning about library services. Tomorrow is our first lab session, just to make sure we can function properly in a lab. I would assume Thursday and Friday would be more about services the university offers, but I'm not entirely sure. All I know is that they will be feeding us lunch on Friday, which is pretty sweet. All in all, I thought we were going to dive right in. But amazingly I have a lot of free time this week, which will be nice to spend with some of the new friends I made!
As a reminder, I am getting my MSc (Master of Science) in Cancer Cell and Molecular Biology (CCMB). This is actually one of the most popular courses the department offers, which isn't really surprising to me. You can find thousands of masters programs in cell and molecular biology, but I'm pretty sure this is the only one that specifically focuses on cancer. I think that's pretty neat. When all is said and done, I think there are about 15 of us in the program. Maybe 20, because I'm not great at estimating things like this.
One of the things I really enjoyed about meeting these people is the sheer diversity in the group. It's definitely something I haven't really seen so far in my education. Surprisingly, there's another American in the group. He's from Virginia, so everyone probably thinks his accent is cooler, but whatever. There's a couple of girls from Turkey, one I met from Saudi Arabia, one from India, and of course a few from around the UK. Everyone was extremely friendly, and I think we'll all get along well. I'm really looking forward to getting to know them and learn more about their individual cultures.
Just a few notes about the program itself, because I'm continually amazed that they condense a masters in just a year. All in all, it does round out to about a year. But the vast majority of that is the project period, which is when we get to work full-time in a lab and just shovel out a dissertation (which may not sound exciting to most people, but I'm super pumped). The first three months, however, is us getting knowledge shoved down our throats. Lectures only take place on Mondays, which sounds awesome, but some days lectures go from 9am to 5pm without a break. The rest of the week is spent in a lab, working on different lab techniques and practicing for the real-deal that comes in January. It's very intense, with papers counting for the majority of our grade, and there's not really a break until we get to the end of November. In that respect, it is quite intimidating. But I love to be busy, I love to learn, and I'm totally ready for whatever is thrown at me.
I think this year is going to be the most unique year so far in my education. The structure of the program is vastly different from anything I've experienced thus far. I guess that's the main point of the Fulbright award. Whatever I learn here, I can take back with me and encourage others to join in an educational exchange program. That's pretty exciting!
Saturday, September 3, 2016
First Impressions
This is my third full day living in the lovely city of Leicester, so I thought it was about time to write down some of my first impressions of the city. I feel like I've been walking non-stop since I got here. Turns out it takes a lot of effort to move in to a new place on a different continent, especially when you don't really have any form of wheeled transportation. Or don't understand the bus system at all yet.
But anyway, since I've been walking so much I am getting to know the city fairly well. At least the area surrounding my flat, the city center, and the area around the university. I've only been on the campus once so far, so I'll save my first impressions of that for when I spend more time there.
I'm going to do my best to compare this city to some in the US, so if you haven't visited these places I apologize in advance. If we say London is like New York, so far I'd describe Leicester as an English Chicago. It feels like a fairly big city like Chicago, but size-wise I would say is probably close to a Grand Rapids, if Grand Rapids had no tall buildings and had a castle. As a side note, I don't know why I was surprised to find a castle in Leicester. They're everywhere in England.
All in all Leicester is a much bigger city than I had originally anticipated. To be honest, when I first got to my apartment complex I was a bit disappointed by the appearance. It didn't look "English-y", if you know what I'm getting at. There's quite a bit of trash on the street around my building, and some of the sidewalks that lead into the nearby park look particularly sketchy, and I definitely think I'll stay away from those at night.
But of course, first impressions are not always entirely accurate. The city center of Leicester, where I've spent the better part of the past two days, is wonderful. It's about a 20 minute walk from where I live, and as long as you don't get lost (like I did), the walk is really pleasant. Depending on the route I take, I can walk right by the castle! There's a huge shopping center called Highcross right smack dab in the middle of the city, where you can find anything you're looking for. The area surrounding the shopping center is filled with even more shops, along with plenty of pubs and restaurants, which I will look forward to exploring more when I find some friends to come with me! The city center was definitely "English-y" enough for my taste too!
Unfortunately, the city center is quite far. I'm hoping to find a bike in the near future, but for now I don't fancy walking a mile every time I want to go eat or I need something. So heading in the opposite direction, I found another busy street called Narborough, where you can also find anything you're looking for. While exploring, I stumbled upon a bargain shop, which is where I ended up buying most of my kitchen stuff for a very cheap price. It's also where I found a delicious Indian restaurant that you can be sure I'll be going back to quite often.
As if this street didn't have enough to offer, I found out that this year, it was named the most diverse street in Britain, with over 200 shops with owners from 23 different countries. Go figure.
That's pretty much what I've been doing over the past few days. Exploring a new city is always fun to me, especially when you can't completely rely on Google maps to get you anywhere. So far I'm impressed by what Leicester has to offer, and I can only imagine that I'll discover more as the weeks go by.
But anyway, since I've been walking so much I am getting to know the city fairly well. At least the area surrounding my flat, the city center, and the area around the university. I've only been on the campus once so far, so I'll save my first impressions of that for when I spend more time there.
I'm going to do my best to compare this city to some in the US, so if you haven't visited these places I apologize in advance. If we say London is like New York, so far I'd describe Leicester as an English Chicago. It feels like a fairly big city like Chicago, but size-wise I would say is probably close to a Grand Rapids, if Grand Rapids had no tall buildings and had a castle. As a side note, I don't know why I was surprised to find a castle in Leicester. They're everywhere in England.
All in all Leicester is a much bigger city than I had originally anticipated. To be honest, when I first got to my apartment complex I was a bit disappointed by the appearance. It didn't look "English-y", if you know what I'm getting at. There's quite a bit of trash on the street around my building, and some of the sidewalks that lead into the nearby park look particularly sketchy, and I definitely think I'll stay away from those at night.
But of course, first impressions are not always entirely accurate. The city center of Leicester, where I've spent the better part of the past two days, is wonderful. It's about a 20 minute walk from where I live, and as long as you don't get lost (like I did), the walk is really pleasant. Depending on the route I take, I can walk right by the castle! There's a huge shopping center called Highcross right smack dab in the middle of the city, where you can find anything you're looking for. The area surrounding the shopping center is filled with even more shops, along with plenty of pubs and restaurants, which I will look forward to exploring more when I find some friends to come with me! The city center was definitely "English-y" enough for my taste too!
Unfortunately, the city center is quite far. I'm hoping to find a bike in the near future, but for now I don't fancy walking a mile every time I want to go eat or I need something. So heading in the opposite direction, I found another busy street called Narborough, where you can also find anything you're looking for. While exploring, I stumbled upon a bargain shop, which is where I ended up buying most of my kitchen stuff for a very cheap price. It's also where I found a delicious Indian restaurant that you can be sure I'll be going back to quite often.
As if this street didn't have enough to offer, I found out that this year, it was named the most diverse street in Britain, with over 200 shops with owners from 23 different countries. Go figure.
That's pretty much what I've been doing over the past few days. Exploring a new city is always fun to me, especially when you can't completely rely on Google maps to get you anywhere. So far I'm impressed by what Leicester has to offer, and I can only imagine that I'll discover more as the weeks go by.
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