No I Will Not Wear A Lanyard Around My Neck, Thank You.doc

Dear Emily was such a trooper to rise with me at the unfathomable time of 6:30am (think 12:30am in Canada) to catch my morning train en route to the University of Warwick. Upon entering the train at Rennes, a young French woman was sprawled across both seats. Presented with the option of either waking her up or finding another seat I mustered all my courage and pronounced my best "Excusé-moi" to which she jolted upright surprised to be awoken (with such a confident command I am sure). She stuck around for a bit but then found another seat - I think she was looking to sprawl out again sans Canadian boy listening to his ipod.

I waved to Emily from the train and began my journey. Her and Cynthia really rolled out the red carpet for me and we did a variety of special French things: staying out late at night bars and boxes alike, chilling in the afternoon on patios when everyone 'should' be working, visiting the local markets, eating baguettes and cheese, and of course savouring a variety of wines. It was hard to say goodbye to my former Torontonian roomate, but I know that we'll see each other soon (Christmas in the sun?) and that Cynthia and her will put their stamp on France. The small goodbye really was the end of my initial gallivanting in Europe, spent soaking up 5 wonderful days of French culture, before pressing on to a completely intimidating Masters program where the other students and professors really do embody the idea of academic excellence.

To say the trip from Rennes to Warwick was long and exhausting is an understatement. I don't merely want to recount the details of the trip to whine about the travel but rather to give you an idea of the accessibility of the European transport system. As foreign a place as it is, it seems that the transport structures are designed around being able to get from A to B comfortably and on time. It may fly in the face of the 'chillness' of the French culture but the professionalism of the European transport system is something I've been impressed with thus far. For posterity's sake, picture this: 2hrs 30mins train from Rennes to Paris, 40 minute Metro ride in Paris to change stations, 1 hour wait in Paris, 2hrs 45 mins train from Paris to London (delayed by the Chunnel), 1 hour Metro ride in London, and finally a 2hour Shuttle from Heathrow to Warwick.

Needless to say I slept on the shuttle to my new home surrounded by a bus full of International students. I chatted with 4 very excited Spanish Erasmus students on the shuttle (Erasmus GAP students are extremely different from those in my program and are on a year of exchange from their home EU university) who said they prayed before they left that "Warwick brought the party, large styles". I assured them that they shouldn't worry. It's been odd to join the excitement of a variety of International students making their way to a school in the UK where, for many of them, Warwick is their first time away from friends, family, and the comforts of their home lives. It cannot help but remind me of my humble beginnings at Queen's U five years ago now (yikes), where the first Queen's student I laid eyes on during move in was a sweater-set wearing, tupperware box toting Megan Deeks, but it's also a reminder of how far I've come. Back then the Orientation events were pretty much a no-brainer - a chance to have a few drinks away from home and also meet a group of new students in a similar position. But now the program induction during the mornings has been so exhausting that the evening events seem like more of a chance for the new undergrads and the EU GAP students to party like one should in their Frosh Week. Been there, done that.

Case in point - as with any frosh week we received the lanyards attached to keys and ID cards that serve two purposes. One, and most practically, is that the lanyard provides a handy-dandy way to keep young students organized; you are less likely to lose valuable items if they're attached to a shoelace around your neck. Two, and most importantly, the lanyard identifies said student as new, possibly lost, impressionable, and someone who should be pitied; you are less likely to look cool if you wear a shoelace around your neck. Feeling like a sheep being tagged in a flock, I happily received my lanyard and placed it in my pocket (I was ready for any opposition that may have come my way) It just so happens that at dinner that evening I was informed by an Orientation leader that it would be a good idea to wear said lanyard around my neck. I replied that this was technically my third university orientation and I would not be wearing the lanyard; instead of opposition she seemed to understand. What was shared was a moment of recognition that only a fellow upper-year would understand: lanyards are for first-years and traffic cops with whistles.

The dinner that night was also kind of funny (with maturity comes the knowledge that a story like this is funny rather than a failure at making friends which an actual frosh might have stressed over) So instead of sitting alone at dinner I decided to sit with another guy who was sitting alone at a five seater table - I figure why not try to make someone's night and start conversing with a friendly face in a foreign land. His name was Vlad from Russia and we pleasantly chatted about the weather (obvi), skiing, and what courses we were taking. I felt great for befriending someone who was eating alone. As the meal progressed his fellow Russian comrades, as if staggered in three minute intervals, joined the table one by one and the discussion continued. The table filled up - four Russians and a lone Canadian trying to keep up - and the other member of their group approached the table, probably wondering who this red baseball capped boy was at the centre of their social circle with no seat available. I offered to give the seat up, obviously they were all friends, but we made room in the end. They lamented that the meal did not include access to vodka. Needless to say, dinner was a hilarious introduction to International Orientation week.

Over the course of the 30 or so hours I have been on campus I've made friends with the students in my program, all coming from a variety of continents, and I met one Canadian when registering for a bank on campus. She's from Aurora which she tells me is close to Toronto (but not the good old GTA!) and is studying International Relations. It was nice to meet someone I could share my thoughts with who understood my Canadian perspective, but it has also been encouraging to meet a diverse group of students each with cultures different from my Western centered perspective. The Brit students have been more than welcoming, my Aussie friend is a fun hipster who is attempting to overcome massive jet leg, the students from Singapore speak of an educational system completely different from our own, and a few of the older students are on their way to becoming extremely accomplished scholars. To give you an idea, I arrived today for the Induction program and they have a 'telematic' setup between the 36 students studying in the program - this is basically cameras, microphones, and a computer system linking three universities (mine in the UK, and the others in Finland and Holland) in real time. So a professor in Finland, for example, gives a lecture and students see it in both the UK and Holland. Having come from universities where technology was just sufficient (think projectors, powerpoint, and a button to lower and raise the overhead screen) this new international conference call is really impressive. It feels as if both space and time, since the three sites share three different time zones, are being collapsed for the purpose of study. It's like SKYPE for the classroom!

My residence room is pretty typical but features a few perks: it was built two years ago so everything is new, it is close to a large pond with geese (and their fecal matter everywhere), a floor to ceiling dresser to hold the many clothes I brought, and (drumroll please) my own en-suite bathroom with the BEST shower pressure I've ever had. Erin, and others, this will come as a shock since the pressure at 8VINE was beyond sufficient, but I actually had to turn the pressure to a lower setting to avoid burning my skin. While I've gone through the typical "what am I doing, why am I here?!" phase of arriving at my destination, I figure things can only go up. We continue the program's 'induction' period until Friday afternoon, which includes a presentation from each student concerning their chosen 'keyword' (I've already received compliments on the originality of my choice!) I applied to the campus bar to work a few hours a week and they responded the same day asking if I'd like to staff events now - I think I'll have to decline for the first two weeks to get settled but hopefully I'll have a QP-esque job if everything works out with my student visa (Buffalo Chicken wraps, anyone?) We visit Birmingham tomorrow night (England's 2nd largest city) to see a play. Until then....

Doc's Prescription for the Day: In honour of Erin Rochelle Schachter's 24th birthday (on the 24 of September) drink a glass of champagne for this milestone of ironic birthdayisms. My champagne birthday was when I was 9 (Oct.9) and I'm certain it was ginger ale I was drinking instead. Happy Birthday, my dear.