Rowing on the River Cam

In the fine tradition of Cambridge, I decided to head out to the river to learn more about rowing and all that. Jenny and I got up really early (as you can see) to meet a group at 7:00am to walk the half hour to the boat house. Not being a morning person, I dread the early mornings, but as I crossed the bridge over the river Cam, a feeling of excitement came over me. There is something great about being on the water in the morning - peacefulness, reflection, quietness. When we got to the boat house we were tasked to carry the 8-man boat out of the house, raise it to our shoulders, head and then turn it over into the river. Those with the oars on the water got in first while the others held the boat. The second group crawled in and locked in the oars, all the while listening to the cox for instructions. The whole thing seemed so proper and required such teamwork that it fit me really well and I wanted to go rowing immediately. Unfortunately they didn't let us, we just had to get out and let the next group have a try, but it was a nice teaser as to what to expect. We next tried our the "erg" machines, which are rowing machines, and were shown how to properly row as to not go backwards. The coaches are really nice and supportive, so I didn't feel like an idiot since it was my first time. The photos show people from my college, Hughes Hall. Jenny is wearing our college scarf, which shows our colors. :)

Introducing the Housemates

The most amazing part of my Cambridge experience so far is meeting my housemates. The first photo is of Margita from Croatia who is getting her Masters in Education. (Many have told her she looks like Britnany Spears before she went crazy. :)) The second photo is us dolled up for the Black and White BOP, which is essentially an ackward English dance party. Christine to my right is from Hong Kong, but lived in Sydney for many years. She is getting her masters in music education. Next to her is the lovely Jenny from Northern Ireland. She is getting a masters in Environmental Design & Architecture and is absolutely charming in every way. Photo 3 is the only photo I have of the beautiful & sophisticated Elizabeth from Montreal, French Canada. She is studying law and has already been practicing for 6 years or so.

We all arrived with 3 days of one another and are all here for 1 year or less, so we automatically bonded like elementary school girls on the first day of class. We shared the nervousness about meeting one another, so it seemed there was a sign of relief when we all met each other and found out no one was too eccentric or anti-social. Really, almost everyone I have met here is friendly, even if a little nerdy like those Math & Physics guys. :)

I have found time to "chat to" (talk with) all of them and appreciate each of them so much. Margita is a sweetly naive, yet overall joyful person. Christine is the oldest but has a youthful spirit about her since she is ~5 ft tall. She plays piano very well, so I look forward to a concert. Elizabeth reminds me of myself in many ways, reserved, mature, yet very interested in people and open to ideas. She is my neighbor here downstairs in our house. Jenny (from the Block as she's been nicknamed) is the youngest at 24 and very bubbly and fun. She has gone out nearly every night with all her new friends. She is warm and very easy to talk to, which seems like a trait of the Irish. (I have another new Irish friend as well, named Avril.)

Many of the Freshers as they call us have taken advantage of Induction Week to spend as much time their new friends as possible, as it seems we will be absolutely swamped with work for the 8 short weeks of term. The only time we will see each other is at meals and the famed Formal Halls where we come dressed fancy with our gowns and have a 5 course meal. Thankfully most people are "keen" (excited to) come to these events and make the most of their year at Cambridge. I an very keen indeed mate! More photos of friends to come!

Tea Time

So I thought I would start the tour of the kitchen over a cup of tea with you. I'm starting to see why people drink tea so much here, it is a tea kind of day, more cold and rainy than I've seen it since I've arrived. (As you can tell from the picture I am quite exhausted from all my activities.) I found this set of 3 brown and white tea cups and saucers made in England at the Charity Shop (Thrift Store) for 1 pound. They are something nice to bring back with me. :) Jenn Lawson, if you read this, know that I bought Yorkshire Tea in memory of our tea times in Scotland. I also got those Hob Nob "digestives" (cookies) that are soooo good. I love the sweets!

As you can see, our kitchen is a nice black and white theme with blue accents. We don't have any utensils or cookware, so the housemates and slowly acquiring things as we go. Overall it is a good kitchen for what we need it for. We are all headed to the famous Cambridge Blue Pub for dinner tonight as Hughes Hall doesn't serve food on Sunday evenings. The pub is a popular friendly neighborhood gathering place that has food and rowing things all over the walls. Jennifer took me there a year ago and now its about 10 houses down from where I live!

For those Mini Fans out there

I thought I would take a break from the tour of the house to show you the fun cars that are on my street. (Matt, that grey one has your name written all over it!)

Today was great - Matriculation Photo with 200+ Freshers (instead of Freshman) and I got a "mobile" phone. I also was invited by a couple who lived in SLO, Nicki and Eric Appeal, to their nice house at Jesus College for dinner. I was invited along with two American couples from the Presbyterian Church they attended to enjoy a homemade Indian meal. It was so nice to fellowship with Christians and talk about really important things concerning the election and the economy openly. I really appreciated the time - thanks Nicki! I am going to visit Calvary Chapel Cambridge tomorrow with the Appeals and see how it is. The pastor, Joey Rosek is from New Jersey and is a great teacher, so I look forward to it. Next on the list: buy a perfect bike for Cambridge with a wicker basket!

The House

When I opened the door to my room, I exclaimed "You are kidding me!?" because it was so big! It must have formally been the living room because as you can see there is a nice bay window and fire place with fancy tiles that I believe is operable. The room is 3 times as big as the one I was looking to rent, so plenty of room for visitors!
(Mom, thought you would appreciate some pictures of the detail of the crown molding around the room and light fixture. :) Oh so very English.)
I did some furniture arranging, so the desk is now by the heater because of the wired internet connection and the chair is by the window. I'm going to see if any of the other girls don't want one of their chairs so I can have two with a small table for visitors for tea. More of the rest of the house in my next post - this blog thing only let me add these 5 photos.

My first days

Here's my story by photos:

Photo 1 & 2: The view of Parker's Piece as I stepped off the bus in Cambridge. It was a beautiful day for England, sunny with some cloud and a little bit of rain. I walked across ~ 200 yards to the B&B I stayed in for the first night, a cute place called the Regency Hotel right next to the church steeple in the first photo.

This is me ready for my first day of school, nervous & excited for orientation!
My house! When I met with the accomodations lady called the "Domestic Bursar" she told me that a girl was unable to come to Cambridge, so I got a large room in a house with all girls. The room behind the bay window is mine!

So what's behind the door?

Warm Welcome to Cambridge

Just a quick note to say I arrived safely, was placed in an awesome house with great housemates, and am blown away by how faithful God is to me. This experience has been all I thought it would be and more. The people are so interesting! I met people from Mexico, Brazil, New Zealand, Croatia, Canada, Uganda, and Nigeria today. I will post pictures as soon as I get my laptop online. Thank you to everyone who prayed for my journey, it went so smoothly. More to come!