And so it begins

September 15, 2009 (I haven't had internet until now, so I wrote several of these entries and just saved them until I could post.  That's why the date is different.)

Well, I’m here.  And I love it!  It took me forever to finally arrive, but once I did, I knew I had made the right choice.  I even liked the bus ride from the airport.  The town of Reading is lovely.  Reading is a real city, in that there are not a lot of touristy things to do, but it’s also pretty.  There’s a park in the middle of the city; the Thames River that runs through town; and charming, old, red brick buildings everywhere.  I think it will be the perfect place to have a truly British experience.  Now I just need to wander around and get my bearings.  When I arrived at my house and met my roommate, I felt so relieved.  Her name is Kim and she is fabulous.  Her accent is classy and so is her carriage.  She is from Suffolk, in the East, and is studying philosophy.  Right away she made me feel welcome and comfortable.  I think we’ll be good friends.  I also think she’s as relieved as I am about our future together under the same roof.  Once the introductions were completed, I proceeded to unpack and had a moment’s-worth of pause as it set in that I was, in fact, living in England.  It passed quickly, though, so I feel hopeful that I won’t be too homesick.  I did find a letter from my dad nestled in my luggage that was very sweet and managed to make me cry just a bit.  Oh yeah, one thing I have to mention is that I have a wardrobe; an honest to goodness wardrobe.  It even has an old-fashioned key to lock it.  I believe there is a passage to another world in the back, but I haven’t had time to check that out completely.  After I got everything sorted (which I have concluded means taken care of) Kim and Harry (her boyfriend,) and I went to the Tesco and I bought some cheese and onion flavored crisps (chips,) a huge loaf of fresh bread, some English mustard (which is certified by the Queen no less,) and some yogurt with mix-ins that I’m told is quite delicious.  So I’m set.  Later that night after dinner at Harry’s family’s house, I fell blissfully to sleep, thinking, “I successfully completed my first day in England. I totally got this.”