Brighton: Here I am!

Brighton Pier

My first impression of Brighton is that I am going to love living here!  They say first impressions are often deceiving but in this case I’m pretty sure my first impression is spot on.

Getting to Brighton from Vancouver was surprisingly easy. 

My friend/coworker Aly helped me finish packing and cleaning up before driving me to the airport.  Then before I knew it I had dropped off my bags and was through security.  When that happens it always makes me wonder why I bother to turn up hours in advance.  I got myself a fruit smoothie, found a plug by a comfy chair, put my feet up and watched an episode of The Carrie Diaries – a new show which is a prequel to Sex and the City, it’s decently girly and enjoyable for now.

The flight was slightly delayed which was somewhat annoying since I had been so early.  Although when boarded I was quite impressed with just how big the plane was.  There were two levels and the first class/business class areas I walked by looked deliciously comfortable.  I was only like a little jealous when I squished into my window seat and the person in front of me decided to fully recline their seat leaving me with practically no space.  Despite that I managed to sleep for roughly 4 of the 9 hours of flying time and watched the newest film version of Anna Karenina.

Once I got off the plane in Heathrow I went to the washroom to put my contacts in and freshen up.  Thus allowing me to feel a little more alive by the time I got to customs.  The customs officer was the first British person I spoke to and for the most part I totally understood his mumbling British accent.  Well except when he asked me how I was planning to support myself while I was here and I thought he said spoil myself.  Yeah that was kind of awkward.

After customs I got to baggage claim to see my backpack just coming out.  By the time I got my backpack on a cart my suitcase had arrived and I was on my way.  Finding my way to the coach buses - like the PCL or Greyhound - was fairly straightforward.   I had purchased a ticket online the day before and had given myself plenty of time so I ended up waiting for about half an hour.  The coach was delightfully spacious after the cramped plane.

I switched buses at the Gatwick airport and arrived in Brighton by about 5:30pm.  My friend and fellow uOttawa exchange student, Nicole met me at the coach station, which was basically a parking lot.  Nicole spent the Fall semester here in Brighton and graciously offered to help me catch a bus to my residence and show me around the city.  She also gave me a bunch of stuff since she is leaving today.

Coincidentally we met the other two uOttawa girls here on exchange, Melissa and Justine, on the bus coming back from getting groceries.  They arrived early Friday morning and I was impressed they had already moved in and found the grocery store on their own.

The residence I’m staying in here is called Paddock Field.  It is apparently one of the nicest halls of residence but it is a little ways outside of the city center.  It is right next to the sports complex and playing fields and nearby there are some nice looking hills that have trails where you can go hiking.  I’m looking forward to checking those out in the coming week or so.

I ended up on the same floor as Melissa and Justine is staying the hall just next door.  My room is pretty decent.  I have my own ensuite and a nice view.  My only complaint is the bed is kind of tiny and the heating turns off after 2 hours so if you leave for the day your room will be freezing when you get back.

When we first arrived at my hall we met two British guys, Nick and Neil, who are friends with Nicole and a French girl, Virginie.  It was great to meet people right away.  It left no room for feeling alone, which is quite typical when moving to a new place.

Since I had no food yet we – the four Canadians – went into town for dinner/drinks.  Nicole showed us how to take the train, which is faster than the bus but can be more expensive.  After trying a couple pubs, that were full due to it being a Friday night, we ended up at the Pump House - a quaint little pub.  The food was delicious and the two girls from Quebec tried a ginger beer called Crabbys.  Melissa let me have a sip of hers.  It was quite good.

We got back to halls around 11pm and at that point I was pretty exhausted, which was good since we had plans to meet up mid-morning so Nicole could give us a tour of Brighton.

First thing we did on our tour was go to a phone store.  I brought my iPhone with me so all I needed was a SIM card but the two other needed to by phones.  For £20 I got unlimited data for 6 months.  I thought this also included texting and calls but I think I was mistaken because my phone says I have no credit.  They said it may take up to 24hours for credit to show up but texting still isn’t working.  On the bright side I still have internet so I can Facebook chat, Skype and use a chatting app called WhatsApp.

If you want to text with me for free on WhatsApp send me a message or email and I’ll send you my British cell number.

Our tour from there on out basically consisted of us wandering around the city going to various stores people needed to go to and places Nicole thought we should see.  It was beautiful weather given it is winter, sunny and not super cold.  It was nice to walk around getting a feel for the city.

The few snapshots I took will give you a sense of our tour..

We met up with Nicole’s friends Sophie and Florentina for lunch around 2pm.  They were lovely.  They are both Dutch and are studying here for the year.

After lunch Justine, Melissa and I parted ways with Nicole as she had a goodbye dinner with a friend.  By the time I got back to halls I was pretty wiped so I had a brief nap and then spent my evening unpacking and Skyping with my parents and my Aunt Babs.

Around 10pm a party started up in the communal kitchen of my flat.  I really enjoyed meeting the other people in my flat and those from upstairs and the hall next door.  My hall and the one next door are mainly International students but there are some Brits as well.  I had a really good time getting to know everyone.

The part I didn’t really enjoy is when around 2:30am or so when I finally decided to retire for the night the party continued.  My room is directly beside the kitchen and the noise prevented me from falling asleep.  The last time I remember checking my clock was at 4:50am and the party hadn’t died down yet.  Needless to say I was pretty tired when I got up at 11am to go for groceries with Melissa and Justine.

We went to a store called Sainsbury’s.  The store was rather large and had quite a selection.  I was pleased to find an ample amount of gluten free products.  I’m not Celiac but I have a sensitivity to wheat so it’s nice to have other options.  Gluten-free products may be slightly more expensive but they are healthier for me.  I’ve decided that while I’m in Brighton and not travelling elsewhere I’m going to try and eat reasonably healthy.

The real challenge with grocery shopping was trying to avoid refrigerated items.  The fridge space in our kitchen is abysmal.  There are two small fridges and two small freezers to be divided between 8 people.  I would’ve liked one mini fridge and mini freezer each or at least ½ of both, not ¼.  It’s ridiculous.  Looks like I’ll be getting groceries every other day..  But hey that could be a good thing.

My afternoon/evening since returning from the store has been pretty low-key.  Put away my purchases, made a sandwich, read a book for a while, finished unpacking, made tacos for Melissa and I, and then sat down and wrote this blog post.

I think I need to learn how to write shorter posts because I’m just realizing how long this is.  Oh well. A lot has happened in the last 72 hours.  I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about my arrival despite the length J

Brighton or Bust

Tonight I will be leaving for Brighton, England.  Surprisingly I have finished packing and weighing my luggage.  Being done with time to spare and both bags under the weight limit is not a common occurrence for me.  I almost don’t know what to do with myself.  Ok that’s a lie - I still need to tidy up/clean, vacuum and do one final load of laundry.  I think I can accomplish that in the next 5 hours.

For various reasons I’m finding this departure the hardest one yet.  Strange eh?  You’d think that going away would be easier for 22(almost 23)-year-old going to England for 5 months than for say a 15-year-old headed to France for a year.  Nope.

My mom says that it probably has something to do with the fact that I’m that much closer to being home permanently.  I agree.  I'm looking forward to settling down and not constantly being in a state of leaving.  But I'm also a little anxious.  Once I finish this semester I will no longer be a student.  I will officially be a “grown-up” and will have to start my “career.”

Personally I think a big part of why going away this time is harder is due to how much closer I’ve gotten to my siblings.  We are at an age when we are all friends now.  My three older siblings, Will, Barb and Kathryn, live in Victoria and I’ve been living with my younger siblings, except Ashley who is up in Fort St. John.  It has been nice to hang out with them these past 9 months. But with going to Brighton they will no longer be only a ferry ride away; an easy visit for a BC Ferries employee with a pass; or just upstairs.  I will miss them.

I’m will miss all my family!  Thankfully I was able to see almost all of my extended family before I left.

Last Saturday we had a goodbye/early-birthday party for me.  My Mom’s side of the family travelled over from the Island so we had both sides of the family together.  I felt pretty special having everyone gather together because of me.

Check out some pictures from that night below..

Well I guess I'd better get back to my cleaning.  Don't want to leave things a mess for my parents.  I love them too much to do that!

Leaving

At the end of the month I will be boarding a plane to England to spend the next 5 months studying at the University of Brighton.  I'm stoked!!

Two and half weeks stand between me and my departure and  I have officially entered that awkward period of time when I see people don’t know whether or not I’ll have a chance to see them again before leaving. 

On the one hand I want to say goodbye just in case it is the last time I see that person but on the other it is weird if I end up seeing that person again, sometimes even multiple times, and then have to say goodbye to them all over again.

I don’t know if this is a common occurrence or if it is just me. Maybe I’m just not very good at goodbyes.  Yep that's probably it.

So if I accidentally don’t say goodbye to you or if I end up saying goodbye to you multiple times… I’m sorry.  It isn’t intentional.  I'm just awkward when it comes to goodbyes.

Anyways, that is all I have to share for now.  I figure since I’m leaving soon I should get in the habit of blogging again so I can keep everyone up-to-date with my exchange, a.k.a. my English adventure.  I kind of stopped writing all together once returning to BC last Spring.  Whoops!

Road Trip Day 7: Calgary to HOME!!!

The final day of our road trip was the longest driving day of the whole trip. To give you an idea of how long it was: we left Calgary at 7:30am (6:30am BC time) and dropped Cam and Sarah off in Kitsilano at 8:40pm. Barb and I got back to Tsawwassen by 9:15pm, emptied Stan with the help of my younger siblings, returned Stan at YVR airport, and got back home by 10:30ish. To say I was exhausted after all that would be an understatement.

In some ways it was a good thing that it was such a long day though because by the end I was so sick of being in a van.  There is no way that I could’ve survived another day of driving.  That is not to say that I didn’t really enjoyed my road trip.  I did.  I had an amazing time.  I’m just glad to be home now.

It is crazy how much has happened already in the day and half that I have been home.  I took my little sister Ashley to an interview at BC Ferries, had lunch at my Aunt’s house, drove my little brother Tyler around town to hand out resumes, made pizza for dinner and nearly burned down the house, played cards at my Gran’s house, and finally took a trip to the hospital at 12:45am because the lady who has been watching my younger siblings, Debbie, fell into a sliding glass door and sliced her arm open.  And that was just one day in the Johnson household..

Now back to summarizing the last day of our road trip.

Sarah took the first driving shift. She drove from Calgary to Canmore. We hadn't driven very long when the Rockies came into view. To see the mountains rising up in the distance I can't tell you how happy that made me. It was like I was struck with this overwhelming sense of that's home. The next thought I had was "I love mountains." I voiced this thought so many times throughout the day I'm pretty sure I started to annoy my travel companions. What can I say I really do love mountains. I feel like I belong in or near mountains. They make me happy.

Little rainy...

In Canmore we stopped for a coffee/bathroom break. Cam and Sarah are something of coffee connoisseurs so Cam looked up a place to find "good" coffee. I'm not a coffee person. I only drink it when it has a ton of milk and sugar.  The place we went to had gluten free options, which was pretty cool.  I got an orange raspberry muffin and a yogurt parfait.  It was delicious!

Coffee break in Canmore

Breakfast.. Yum!

From there Cam drove us as far as Golden with a stop at Lake Louise.  I’m pretty sure I have been to Lake Louise as a child but I hardly remember it.  I was slightly disappointed that the lake still had ice on it.  I wanted to see the green/blue water it is famous for.  Either way it was a nice stop and we got some good pictures.

  

I got pretty excited when I noticed on the GPS that we were crossing the border into BC.  I love my home province.  It fully deserves the name "Beautiful British Columbia!"

BC!!!

Just before we reached Golden the highway seemed to have been built in the middle of a rock, like somebody had decided that rather than go around the rock/mountain they would just blast right through.  It was a pretty odd sight.

Once we made it to Golden we stopped for some food.  In front of the DQ were these bears.  Sam and Cam decided it would be fun to climb them.  It wasn’t until after they had climbed them and posed for pictures that we noticed the sign, “Warning, bear unstable keep off.”

Sarah got a phone call while she was on the bear..

Only noticed this sign after the photo session.. Whoops!

Barb took the next driving shift.  She drove from Golden to Salmon Arm.  This was probably my favourite leg of the journey for two reasons.  First because the scenery was stunning and second because Barb and I sang along to some good music while Cam and Sarah were tuned out in the back.

Pic of the day!

The one scary part about this leg of the driving is for most of it the lines on the road were practically invisible.  Barb did a wonderful job driving despite that.  But I was ready to write a letter to the province, basically saying how dangerous it was and that they should do something about it.  As I was formulating the letter in my head we encountered a paint spray truck that came by and re-painted the lines.  

Barb and I were complaining about the severe lack of painted lines on the road and then we came across this!

It was cool to see.  I had always wondered how they painted the lines on the road.  We definitely felt safer after that, when we could see the middle line clearly.

With the lines there I focused less on the road and more on the scenery.  I know I’ve said this a few times already but BC is just so beautiful.  I had fun trying to capture BC’s beauty but I feel like I fell short.

Look left, rainy, grey grossness!  Look right, sunny, beautifulness!

Sarah drove the next leg from Salmon Arm to Merritt.  What I liked about this portion of the drive is the bright colours – lovely blue sky with white fluffy clouds, rich green hills and dark blue lakes.

In Merritt Cam directed us to a coffee shop he really liked.  While there I took a picture of Stan because when I talked to my Aunt earlier in the day she mentioned that I never posted a picture of him.  Unacceptable.

Stan the van!

Cam drove next, from Merritt to Abbotsford.  From Merritt on I took fewer photos because it is the part of the drive that I am most familiar with.

It was during this part of the drive that I developed a slight headache from hunger and minor dehydration.  These factors are hard to control while in a moving vehicle for hours and hours.  For one I was sick of the snack food we had in the van – I had been eating the same stuff for a week. And for two it is really hard to stay hydrated without having to stop every hour to use the washroom.  We stopped for some food in Hope, which definitely helped with the headache.

We decided to do our final fill-up at the Costco in Abbotsford.  Gas was 122.9/L there, which was more than it was in Calgary but significantly cheaper than Vancouver.

Barb drove the final leg of the day.  We decided to drop Sarah and Cam in Kits first before heading to Tsawwassen.  So we ended up continuing on Hwy 1 long past Abbotsford.  Barb and I found this part of the drive interesting because we’ve never driven on Hwy 1 past Langley.  We would always exit at Langley to get home.

This route took us right past downtown and Science World (I know it has been renamed but I will always remember it as Science World).

It was strange dropping Sarah and Cam off.  After spending a week together in a van it seemed weird that we were parting ways.

I was really glad when Barb and I got home.  My younger siblings – Ashley, Cody, Amanda and Tyler – were there ready and waiting to help us unload the van so that we could quickly be back on the road to return it.  While we unloaded the dogs, Lucy, Safari and Keisha were running around like crazy, excited to have us home.

We bribed the girls with ice cream so they would join us on the drive to the airport.  Amanda went with Barb in the van and Ashley came with me in my car.  My car... that is still strange to say.  I bought my brother’s car a couple months ago but wasn’t able to drive it until now, obviously.

It felt so good to be behind the wheel rather than the passenger seat.  Sure it was awesome to be chauffeured across the country but I really like driving.

We returned Stan, grabbed some treats from McDonald’s and called it a night.  That was the end of my trip from Ottawa to Vancouver.  It was a wonderful trip.  I really think that everyone should drive across the country once in his or her lifetime.

I realized the other day that in the last month I have been to 7 provinces.  How cool is that?  I was in Nova Scotia for Easter Break, Quebec to see Montreal for a day and a few museum visits in Hull, and then the 5 provinces we drove through – Ontario, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.

Now all I have left to visit in Canada is Newfoundland & Labrador and the three territories – Yukon, Nunavut and the Northwest Territories.  I’ll get there one day!