With Epiphany term looming, I thought I’d share a few things I learned during my first term at Durham:
- Freshers’ Week is NOTHING like Firstweek at UBC. Get ready to not sleep, not be sober, sleep through breakfast (and lunch…), be almost exclusively in fancy dress, and completely ignore the fact that you came to uni to study for a week.
- Freshers’ flu stays for life. It’s December and I’m still coughing. It’s okay though because I genuinely don’t remember what it feels like to not be ill.
- Speaking of Freshers’ flu, if you say you’re feeling/have been sick all day, people assume you’ve been throwing up. To all you Canadians out there, just say you’ve been ill. It’ll save you a lot of awkward conversations.
- It is possible to drink a bottle of wine in sub-40 minutes without being sick, and if you’re in Castle, you’ll end up doing this many more times than anyone ever should. Ever.
- After drinking said bottle of wine (and more in the Undie), you no longer feel the blistering cold of the North.
- Tea breaks are the best kind of breaks.
- Mince pies are the best invention ever (especially the Tesco all butter pastry ones). Why are these not more popular in Canada!?
- Cadbury’s chocolate is soooo much better in the UK, and will get you through any all-nighter.
- You can’t buy a towel in Durham. They just don’t sell them. I didn’t pack one because I wanted to save on space and assumed I could just buy one there, but I assumed wrong. If you decide to go study in Durham, bring a towel with you from home because otherwise you’re either going have to air-dry or take a quick trip to Newcastle.
- University College, otherwise known as Castle, is the best college at Durham. I don’t think this needs an explanation…
See you in the New Year.
