My first ever experience at York after months of anticipation and careful planning? Dragging four 50-pound suitcases through a chunky layer of snow. Just great. Of course I arrived in England during the so-called Big Freeze. To those of you who are thinking of studying abroad, let me tell you something: No matter how much you research life in a different country, you won’t ever be fully prepared. But that’s the fun of it.
Let me introduce myself: My name is Mika, and I’m an American student studying abroad at York for the spring and summer terms. I hail from the University of California- Los Angeles, more commonly known as UCLA.
Prior to arriving in England, I assumed life here wouldn’t be that different, seeing as much of the U.S. was once a possession of the Crown and we all speak English. And thanks to films like Bridget Jones’ Diary, I had developed a few stereotypical ideas about the British – that their accents were to die for, that they drank a lot, and that their diets consisted largely of fish & chips and tea.
Having spent a month here, I’ve learnt things are not quite as I’ve expected. The most obvious example: that British English and American English are actually two distinct languages. Case in point-words like wicked, crisps, fit, and quid, which in American English translate to sweet, chips, hot, and bucks. One interesting occasion was when I walked past my housemate who asked me, “You all right?” For a minute I was completely taken aback – I had been sick the previous day but I hadn’t told him – how did he know? My confusion stemmed from the fact that in America, asking someone this would only occur if something bad had happened, in this case me being sick. In British English, on the other hand, this is simply a standard greeting. So in fact, no, my housemate hadn’t known I was sick. I must admit I still get a bit thrown off when people ask me this question.
Another thing to get used to: the fact that I can drink here. To the sorrow of young America, the drinking age is set at 21 in the U.S. and therefore neither my friends nor I can legally drink. And now I’m at a university with bars on campus? Strange indeed. The first time I bought a drink here was a bizarre experience. Everyone I’ve talked to back home is quite envious. I have found, however, that being from the U.S. is good for somethings. Since many York students have only experienced America through the mass media, I’ve received my fair share of questions about life in America and
thus can pretend not to be the ignorant one for two seconds. These questions most often revolve around L.A. and Hollywood in particular, whether I’ve seen celebrities (a few) and whether it really is sunny all the time (pretty much). I suppose I haven’t done much to break existing stereotypes, because I love the reaction I get when I can boast that I’ve worked a red carpet or two and interacted with the cast of Glee (here I go again). OK fine, it should be noted that Hollywood is not indicative of what the rest of the U.S. is like: Pretty much just take what you see on TV
and reduce the glamour by 100, and that’s life in the States.
I’ve only begun to scratch the surface of all the differences I’ve encountered living in the UK so far, but I’ll spare you until next time. This past month has been a whirlwind of excitement and adjustment, and I can’t wait to see what comes next. Maybe by next month I’ll actually be able to understand my professor’s accent. That would be sweet. I mean, wicked.