Wednesday, 1-31-96
11:08 PM London
5:08 PM E-Town
Well, after almost a month here in London, I feel pretty nearly where I belong… I was gonna say “pretty nearly perfectly happy,” to quote Anne of Green Gables… but what is perfect?!
Well, I went to the Canoe Polo trials & decided not to try out for the team, but just start out as a member of the club! Julie was a real sweetheart & kept apologizing for it being so structured & me not being able to just get in & try kayaking around & all. She made me promise to come back next Wed. to get in & learn how to play. She said after that we’d all go for a beer at the ULU pub! ☺︎ She was so nice & we really hit it off! She is a 1st yr. student & lives in a dorm. I forget which school she is at. She said she admired my guts in calling her & showing up by myself tonight! We spoke of the experiences of being abroad & she told me of other Americans she knew last term that hung out in clicks & complained all the time about how they missed their school & how great things were back home… I do remember she is originally from Birmingham. I brought up Camp America & she said she was interested & heard of it & wanted to do it, but already had a job for this summer. I hope I get to know Julie better…. She & some of the other gals I met seemed really down to earth! The ladies’ team captain seemed a bit high on herself, but Julie even commented on her attitude prob.! Nick from Pembridge showed up. I had told him about it & that there was a guys’ team. But he opted to wait to “test the water,” so to speak, till next Wed. also!
On the way home on the tube Nick & I had a really great chat about everything & everyone under the sun! Speaking of sun… it actually came out today! And a very beautiful day it was!
This morning we want to Westminster Abbey w/ my History of London class! We got to go on the “Super Tour!” And super it was! Super long & somewhat super tedious due to our Super Tour, Tour Guide! Though it is an amazing place, w/ lots of great history, famous people — among the 3,500 people — buried there, & fantastic architecture… this guy just took a lot away from the experience. I will go back, no doubt.
This afternoon I took a nap to rest up for my evening of “Growing in Faith” & “Canoe Polo.” I actually had this bizarre dream about Jason Priestly! Yikes! Holy randomness! I can’t remember ever thinking about that “Beverly Hills 90210” dude/star much in my conscious life, so where my sub-conscious picked him out from is beyond me…
“Growing in Faith” this evening was especially great! I am starting to feel really comfortable expressing myself there… I ask questions, participate in the discussion, & spiritually am learning a lot! Wow! This one bloke, Jack, who is a pre-law student heckles Fr. Tim a lot & seems to have similar views as I do about “the church.” I also talked for a short time afterwards w/ a girl name Sara, who is studying at LSE (London School of Economics). Then before heading over to ULU, I stopped to tell Fr. Tim my name was Kathleen & not Catherine…
A stellar day for “the British Experience” as Butler ISA staff would say!
Oh, update on Dave Heron… Jodi has been out w/ him & informed me this evening that they talked about me! Whatever, the fantasy goes on… It was in the “good Catholic girl/boy” drinking at “Belushi’s” context & at 1st she said he was unclear of who she was talking about cuz she calls me Kathy & he calls me Kathleen. She said he said I was “sweet” or something?!
Well, no field trip in Architecture tomorrow… So I’ll actually be a Birkbeck! I plan to bring my lunch, e-mail after class, & then head over to Covent Garden. I am gonna window shop & then meet Lori at the Dr. Marten Dept. Store at Covent Garden. We may both invest in some authentic “Docs” — “made in England” & then go to dinner in the Covent Garden area…
Then I may go out w/ Lauren tomorrow night & crash again at Cleveland Square… But who knows?! When in London, “ya never can tell!!!” ☺︎
CHEERS! ☺︎
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Note from Present Day Kathy: I am still proud of myself for seeking out new experiences and trying to meet people in London who weren’t just fellow Americans also studying abroad, during that semester, from joining the Canoe Polo Club to going to mass and events (such as Growing in Faith) at Newman House. I definitely gave having a “British Experience” in the UK my all!
Its interesting to see how my friendships developed throughout the course of my time there, especially knowing in retrospect who I grew the closest to and those I didn’t end up spending as much time with.
I don’t have much more to share from 22 years later, about this entry, but am glad that I felt I was in a such a good place a month in to my experience studying abroad!
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Reminder: Unless I’ve been given permission to use people’s actual names, in most cases I’ve removed or replaced the names of the real people who were part of my journey/experience there, in effort to protect and respect their identities/privacy in my London Semester Journal entries. I will also not share details that I think and feel are too personal for anyone I interacted with, my loved ones, and me.
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Here’s the back story of My London Semester Journals from 1996, including what prompted me to revisit and decide to share them here in 2018. And here’s a list a list of the entries, which I will update as I share them.
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