On the 5th (Monday) I moved in to my house on campus. I say house, because that’s just what it looks like (see picture of my court). I’m sharing with three Canadians and my “Don” for my court. A “Don” is som
eone who looks after the court, organises meetings and events and is the first port of call with any issues. This has been really useful for me as so many things in Canada are different to England! We’re getting on really well and they’re all really nice people. After moving in and collecting my Brock ID card we had a court meeting where I got to meet many of the people who were sharing my court and have any questions answered by our Don. Then we had dinner in one of the cafeterias on campus, where the food was really nice, and got to meet more people from other courts. Then it was a quick change into something red (Brock’s colour!) and to the Tower Party (basically, a big party under a tower)! It was so much fun! After that full day I settled down under some blankets kindly donated to me by my housemate, resting on a towel pillow ready for the next day.
On the Tuesday there was a trip for International Students to Walmart to buy all the homely things which we needed. It’s amazing how much you think you need when you only stay in a place for 4 months! The International Office ran a Tea Social that afternoon for us all to get to know one another. I met people from all over the world. It is amazing the wide variety of people that you meet through the study abroad experience.
Wednesday morning brought International Students Orientation, where we got told all the important people who we should stay in contact with and where to go if we are poorly or having issues with our houses. I had a wander around campus after that to find out where all my classes are – Brock is massive in comparison to Keele when you’re trying to find classes. But I found them all (eventually) after going around one building at least three times. That afternoon brought the Prep Rally. It’s an event where everyone gathers together, there’s free st
uff thrown at us and everyone gets excited about the sport match we’re going to see. This prep rally was for the Rugby game that afternoon. When I got there, I realised how few Canadians knew the rules, so I educated a few on why the players were trying to get over the try line! Brock won 18-0. That evening there was “Sex-Ed with River Huson” show, which was one of the funniest things I have ever seen. If you get the chance to watch her – go!
The 8th brought my first lecture (9am is still as bad here as it was in England!) where I gained the syllabus for my “Fluvial Geomorphology” module. It looks really interesting, but I’m a little worried about the work load! That evening was the Condom Poker night, instead of chips we played with condoms. We just e
nded up getting loads of freebies, playing lots of blackjack and my housemates got married in a "white chapel" wedding, vegas style (as seen on the photo)!
Friday was definitely an amazing day. It was perfect weather for the beach and there was an international event at Port Dalhousie (pronounced Da-Lou-Sie) which is a beach next to Lake Niagara (see to the left!). It was beautiful. We went for a walk down the side of the harbour and then had a picnic beneath the sun. The perfect end to a hectic week.
The weekend was just as good as the week as I went to Niagara Falls with the International Department on the Saturday. It is really tourist centred. You never exp
ect it until you are there. We went on the “Maid Of The Mist”, a boat journey into the centre of the Canadian falls, where my feet got soaked! The photo taken to the right is the American falls. We then explored the other attractions. I’ve already decided that I want to go back in winter, so hopefully I will have time for it! After Niagara Falls we to Niagara-On-The-Lake, which is a beautiful town situated next to Lake Niagara (See photo below). There were horse and cart rides and wonderful parks to sit in with an ice-cream. Sunday was equally as busy as I took part in “Res Summer Games”. It's a big, fun sporting event wh
ere each residence and then each individual court/block compete against one another. There were dressing up relays, inflatable obstacle courses, water balloon throwing… So many things that I can’t even name them all. They gave away vouchers for ice cream, iPods and docking stations and tickets for an ice hockey game! It was crazy, but so so so much fun!
Orientation Week was super fun and I made so many new friends, it’s like a second shot at being a Fresher (and we all remember how much fun that was!).
This week has been more chilled, just getting back into a routine of lectures and work for lectures. I’ve been exploring the bus network (as bus transport is free!) and finding my way around. We had a mocktail evening on the 14th where each court made their own mocktail and it was judged on taste as well as the appearance of the court members who presented it (so we all looked super nice!) and the decoration of the table. There was free pizza too!
I think that’s everything. I’m going to Toronto on Saturday so I’m super excited about that! See you in a fortnight!
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