Finding our way around

Our first couple of days here were spent mostly noticing things that were different from home.  The way the traffic doesn’t actually all stop when the green man says it’s your turn to cross the road, the enormous butterflies, the fact that tax is added on afterwards to food and drink so it’s no good trying to get the right money ready, amongst others.  I find it amazing that after a week or so these things have become quite normal.  We’re not locals yet but we’re settling in fast.

During the last week we have been part of International student orientation; meeting students from all over the world who are beginning their courses at Duke this year.  Some of them have come on from other Universities in the States but for many it is their first taste of America.  My favourite moment came when we were all gathered together in the big science auditorium and the head of International house called out the names of countries represented by new students.  When your country was called, you had to stand up and wave and everybody clapped.  When our turn came to stand up, we could only see one other person standing, Henri from South London, who we had met the day before at the Visa office. It sounds corny but there was a real atmosphere of excitement and welcome.  After this part of the orientation we were immediately accosted by a young man from Italy who was desperate to know if we’d brought any Marmite with us, as it was his favourite and it can’t be obtained over here.  Alas not.

Many of the students we met were from China and when we said we were from England their first comment was, “ah yes, Harry Potter”.  When we told them that we lived moments from the cathedral where some of Harry Potter was filmed, their excitement grew.  So you can imagine the delight on their faces, when Pete showed them pictures on his phone taken from the top of the cathedral which show the cloisters.  We then had to spend the next few minutes making sure they understood that it was Durham cathedral, not Hogwarts.

Debs B

You know you're in America when...

(No. 2) You can buy cut price cassocks in the mall.