tour of manchester

i'm really, really missing joey right now. it just feels incomplete without him curled up next to me.

that being said, the rest of my week has been amazing. i've been thinking a lot about my courses and am very excited to begin. i've even finished my first homework assignment! yesterday my friend HT and i went to the manchester museum to have a look around. she has (unwittingly) agreed to go to any museum i visit. she's an undergrad but is 90% sure she wants to do museum studies as a grad student, so it was a fun trip. the museum itself is amazing and includes a hodge-podge of just about everything, from greek pottery (yessss!!) to live poison dart frogs and emerald boas.... i'm still not sure how it is all tied together. all i know is that it would be an amazing thing to be a part of! anyway, we got tea afterward and hung out at the museum cafe. another fun find: the cafe serves hot soup and bread and butter for cheap! yay!

i spent a lot of the rest of the day working on my room. it's done now (all the pictures are hung up), so as soon as i can (probably tomorrow), i'll post a video tour. it's really comfortable now, so much so that i don't mind just hanging out in here. the purple blanket helps (N's going-away present).

today was massive fun. i woke up kind of early (i was up to the wee hours exposing my british friend to butch cassidy and the sundance kid) with the intention of getting my student card and a bus pass. when i got to the place on campus, they told me that it wasn't my allotted time to register (even though i am already registered and PAID FOR), and that no, even though i just needed a student card, i needed to come back during my allotted time (last monday). cheers, university.

things got better though, because i then met my friend MP at the whitworth gallery for some company while browsing the american art exhibition. most of it was lithographs, etchings, and woodcuts. i was even able to explain the joys of john brown! it's an incredible gallery though, i can't wait to go back. by the end of the meander, i was craving soup (have been for a few days), so MP suggested a place up in the northern quarter. i've been dying to go there, it's the artsy/vintage-y part of town (think bucktown/kirkwood/the village except way cooler), so of course i agreed. anyone that comes to visit is now getting dragged to this part of town. just a warning. we were a bit late for most places (everything usually closes at 5), but we made it to a cute little basement cafe just before they stopped serving food. i am so happy we made it! i had my first pie: "heidi" pie, with carrots, onions, goat cheese, and lots of other good stuff. i'm still not hungry almost 6 hours later.

from there, we walked..... and walked... and walked. we went all around the northern quarter, then past the ferris wheel, town hall, tallest building, piccadilly gardens, best jazz club, best wine bar, the canals, an amazing library (houses the oldest known piece of the new testament), and even to lincoln square (so i wouldn't feel so homesick, as MP put it... aw). we crossed streets 3-4 times. this is not a big deal in the states, but it's damn scary in manc. luckily, MP is a native manc so he knows where he's going (thank goodness). we ended up back at the cinema from a couple days ago, and from there took the bus back. oh, and i also got a lamp (for 5 pounds... the lady gave me a 30% student discount even without my damn student card).

after all that, my feet are still a bit sore but i feel much more attached to this city. i still love almost everything about it, and am constantly learning new favorite things. today i learned that the architecture is amazing, as long as you look up. now, i'm going to go curl up in my joey-less bed and try not to think about how much i miss my orange tiger.

a note about food

since its about dinner time here, i can't think of much else. i did want to make a note of the food selection here: although i haven't had any fish and chips yet, there is a place a block or so away that has come highly recommended (which is good news, since i don't want any dodgy fish&chips). there are, however, many many choices of fried chicken. so far i've seen krispy fried chicken, krunchy fried chicken, florida fried chicken, kansas fried chicken, and of course, kentucky fried chicken. now i must be off to do my toast and tomato soup.

first day on campus

today was, as the title suggests, my first official day on campus. i did orientation ('induction') with both the school of arts, histories and cultures and the museum studies department. we even got our course reading packets, which is very exciting. i also got to meet most of the faculty, with the exception of the professor that i most want to study with (he is on research leave in greece for this semester). i met a few of the students, and i think the year is looking very promising.

i also have been in manchester for almost an entire week now, and really enjoy it. the city is amazing. it is to london as chicago is to new york: more industrial, but with a very distinct identity and culture. the area i'm in is very pretty, with trees and everything! i even have a sainsbury's a block away, which is very helpful. my dorm is livable as well and i'll post pictures as soon as i get it all figured out... it's still a mess and i need a hamper.

i have two flatmates so far, one guy and one girl. the guy (S) is a dental student from pakistan (most recently saudi arabia), and the girl (M) is an HR student from kazakhstan. i was quite worried for a couple days because i thought it was just going to be S and me, and he has wasted no time in hitting on me. that would've shaped up to be a very uncomfortable year. so, as you can imagine, i breathed a sigh of relief when M moved in a couple hours ago!

i've already made a few friends here that i'm very excited about: they are all in their second year, and live together (a flat of 6 girls). i went to theirs last night for dinner, and we are going for a drink tonight in a few minutes. it's a relief to have fallen in with a great group of people so quickly.

i've been eating lots of cereal and sandwiches, and had beans on toast for dinner tonight. love the menu options over here! but now i should head out and get some cleaning done before i leave for the pub. hope life is going well for you all, much love from manc!

body ache

hello from manc!! joy of the day (among other things): cheese and onion sandwich in my tummy! i think i might try to live off that for the rest of my life.

so, to catch you up on the last few days:
sunday i spent another day in london with A and R. we walked around a festival on the thames and had lunch at a japanese/thai place called Wagamama. after that, we walked. a lot. we went past parliament, westminster, big ben, and trafalgar square. we walked around the national portrait gallery, and back to the river festival. we also got tea and cakes in covent garden. it was a great trip around london. and for all you HP fans out there, i got to see this |
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on monday, i headed straight to the british museum. i kind of knew where i was going, but i more or less just got off the tube stop and wandered... always a good idea. it's a wonderful building, with a center part and an outer part. i was only interested in seeing the greek vases on this visit, and it was a complete success. see below for my own personal heaven.














i made it all the way to the parthenon room (aka stolen elgin marble) before em got there and we decided it was time for tea. i also got a mozzarella and pesto sandwich--yum! we got to sit for a bit and chat, something we haven't done for 8 years. we then headed down to portobello street to have a look around the shops. em guessed right, it's my favorite place thus far! it's just lined with antique shops, i can't wait to get back for a longer look. we then headed to em's for a bit, just to have some chocolate and rest our legs. i got back to the house in time to pack and get all set for my move to manc.
i can safely say that after tuesday's experience, i never want to move ever again. carrying three very heavy bags around london is not something i ever want to repeat. bleh... suffice it to say that i missed my first bus and am so, so sore today. on the plus side, i got to see my new home from the back of a cab.
today i woke up a bit late and took a bus to the university. i went to get a bank account, but because of so many new students moving in and crowding the banks, i just made an appointment for tomorrow. i hopped on the next bus and took it up to the city center. after walking around for a bit longer than i'd like, i stumbled on the shopping area. i do miss target, but primark will do just fine! i got sheets and a duvet for very cheap, so hopefully i'll get to use them tomorrow night. i'm starting to get a little nervous about moving in, i don't think the university is very organized for move-in days.

so, now i'm watching a program on the BBC called the hairy chefs or something like that. yesterday i watched a program that taught me how to kill a crab and then gut it as well as how to kill my own salmon. yuck. i think i'll probably pack and then watch a movie this evening... sainsbury's is right down the road, so that's a relief. i'll hopefully be able to report on my new dorm tomorrow!

airport to harrod's

the transition from one plane to the next was seamless, and it was a beautifully sunny day in dublin. i ended up with a window seat on the next flight as well, and spent a majority of the 50-min flight staring out of the window at the british countryside sliding away underneath me. i was able to get through to the passport lines relatively smoothly, although the 40-lb carryon was beginning to get to me. and then--silly me-- i picked the wrong line. apparently i did not have to wait in the 30 minute "Non-EU Citizens and UK Visa Holders" line. i can't believe i thought that was the line i was supposed to be in! i got all the way up to the customs agent before she told me that no, since i came from dublin, i had to go through the "Republic of Ireland" line. silly me thinking i was a US citizen and UK visa holder!

N's older sister, hereafter known as R, picked me up at the airport and helped me load the baggage into the car. and then--i will never forget this kindness-- she handed me an orange juice and a chocolate pastry that she had picked up for my breakfast! we had a wonderful, traffic-free drive through the english countryside to N's parents' house. his mum cooked chicken and salad for us and i got to take a shower (hooray)!

after eating and visiting a bit, N's younger sister, hereafter known as A, and i took a train into london to go make-up and phone shopping (only the latter for me). we dropped into some very good stores (UNIQLO and Zara) before heading to the zenith of all stores: Harrod's. A and i found some amazing things, tried our best to get lost, and eventually decided that we deserved some Godiva chocolates for not drooling on the jewelry counter. such gorgeous shinies! we've both decided to get antique key necklaces following our run-in with a Tiffany's stand (vintage stores, here i come).

then came the phone shopping. the store was packed and the sales person had to run my card three times (he messed up twice), but i did get a phone with 200 free international minutes (yay for spotting ads in train stops-- i knew my compulsive ad-reading was bound to pay off sometime)... so let me know if you want my phone number. it's actually a very cool phone, too. not quite my blackjack, but it's cute.

we got back in time for A to make it to her party. N's parents were also headed out, so they ordered chinese food for me and told me to make some tea and eat some chocolates. i did just that, and am now finished with catching you up my whereabouts. i'm going to bed.

38K

now that i'm all set up with a cup of tea cooling on my windowsill and a terry pratchett book at the ready, i thought i should fill you in on my last day in chicago and my first day here. in case you're the overly-worried type, you can stop worrying-- i am safe, healthy, and ready to sleep (but surprisingly not dead beat yet). now to the stories, but i must warn you that my brain feels a little bit fuzzy, so these may not be entirely coherent.

i woke up surprisingly chipper on friday, although N probably wishes i had slept a few more minutes. i got all my laundry done and finished packing. scones from Whole Foods rounded out the morning, and i only had one small breakdown when the boy told me how proud he was of me (i almost made it thru the rest of the days sans tears). we packed everything into a taxi and headed out of the traffic-stunted city to the airport. our cabbie even wished me luck and said that i will "truly enjoy myself"... apparently i looked terrified.

we managed all four heavy bags through the check-in line. the lady at the counter was very kind, but after finding out i booked my tickets in july, she said "oh i'm sorry, you can only take one bag" to which i said "WHAT????"... apparently she realized that her mis-phrase had caused some minor distress, and restated by saying "you will be charged $50/ea for any additional bags." that calmed me down until the machine declined my card! so after running to the nearest ATM and back, we loaded the bags on the scale. two were overweight, so N and i hastily packed everything heavy into the extra bag i made him bring (thank goodness for that). we then checked that bag, too, and grabbed some lunch. N left and i then made my suddenly lonely way through security.

sitting in the terminal was uneventful except for listening to the AirFrance passenger and the little irish kiddies ("aw MUM lookit is wee face"--speaking about about a stuffed toy). boarding the plane was another story entirely. the plane seats are as follows:

(AB-DEFG-JK)

i got to my seat (38K) to find an older couple already taking the row! i politely asked which seat they were in, stating that i believed they may possibly be in my seat. they were in the right seat, of course! this was seat 37F&G, wasn't it? after pointing to the middle two seats and laughing mercilessly (in my head), i settled into my beloved 38K, window seat with two windows! and then, right behind me, came another voice saying "could i have the window seat?" i turned to deny this request, only to realize it was the lady in 37K who also misread the rows. damn these irish airlines and their confusing rows! but i eventually won out, majorly, because i had the whole row to myself! victory at last!! and i thus endured the trans-atlantic flight with minimal discomfort and was even able to sleep for a whole three hours.

and that concluded my last day in the states.

also, i cried during takeoff. luckily, i don't think anyone noticed.

photos on the wall

with my great idea to tape photos all over my dorm wall, i've also decided to crop them to a square and goof around with photoshop. album here. now to figure out someplace that will print square pictures....

my new email address

hello from iowa methodist health center. mom and i are visiting gran this week, and she is back in the hospital following her last chemo session. it's nice to get to spend this time with the fam out here, although it'd be nice to do so under better conditions.

anyway, i got part of my class schedule today. i say part because i only have class on mondays and tuesdays, so i certainly hope there's more! i also got my new email address, but please keep using the one you all know (unless you really want to contact me at school).

here it is:

erika.kvam@postgraduate.manchester.ac.uk

i still have trouble grasping the fact that i'll be leaving in about 10 days and i won't be back for at least a year. i hope you're saving up to come visit.