In the first part of this post, I focused on the officially sanctioned activities I've been participating in while I'm in Bath. Of course, those don't make a home on their own. The most memorable moments of the places I've called home have been the interactions I've had with people. Friends, teachers/professors, neighbors, they all play a role in making a place feel like home.
I mentioned the knitting circle and choir I joined, which have both exposed me to new people, but "home" isn't a once-a-week activity. "Home" is stopping for coffee or grabbing a bite to eat. It's going on an adventure and knowing exactly where you're going back to when it's all said and done. Some of my favorite moments this semester have been creating a home within the program by getting out and hanging out with people. There have been a few stand-out moments, to which this post is dedicated.
1. Galentine's Day
To those of you unfamiliar with Galentine's Day, it happens on February 13, the day before Valentine's Day. While the 14th is about going out with your significant other, the day before is a chance to leave the boys behind and go out with all the girls. Because our program is almost all girls (we have 47 girls and only 6 boys) we decided that this would be a wonderful decision. However, we didn't realize it was Galentine's Day until midmorning! After our first tutorial session on Thursday morning, the ladies of the education programme (there are 7 of us total) went out for tea with Andrew Butterworth, which was when we made this important discovery. As we walked back to Nelson House, we quickly formed a plan to gather as many of the girls as possible for dinner that night. We spoke to our student helpers to find a restaurant that could hold as many of us as were interested in going, and Hadley called ahead to let them know we would be bringing a decent sized group. In the end, 16 ladies turned up for a wonderful night of girls-only bonding over dinner.
2. Sally Lunn's and Bath Abbey Tower Tour
You may have noticed that there was no post this week about my visit to St. Andrews. (If not, guess what? There was no post this week about my visit to St. Andrews!) That was because this week, the students were on holiday for half term, aka they got a week off. All of a sudden, we had a day to spend doing whatever it was that pleased us. Megan, Hadley and I decided to grab lunch at Sally Lunn's, a local favorite, and then take our obligatory tour of the Bath Abbey Tower. We all indulged in the famous Sally Lunn's Buns as part of our lunches, which were absolutely delicious. We just barely missed the noon tower tour (they leave once an hour), but we were able to get our tickets for the following tour without any trouble. At 1, we started to ascend the 212 steps winding up the tower, which I have to admit was a bit dizzying. We stopped in a few rooms along the way, including the ringing room and the bell chamber, before we reached the top of the tower. Even though I'm not the biggest fan of heights, I had to admit that the view was absolutely incredible. There was something really wonderful about being able to look out and see the city of Bath beneath us.
3. Sushi Night
This Thursday, a group of us piled into Yen Sushi to grab a bite to eat. This was particularly exciting for me, since I had never actually eaten sushi before. I sat near a few more experienced sushi-eaters, who advised me to start with something where I knew all the ingredients, so I stuck to salmon-based sushi for the evening, which I found that I enjoyed. This particular sushi bar was unique in that we were able to pick what we wanted from a conveyor belt instead of ordering, though we could also request specific items if we didn't see them. Different colored plates indicated the prices of the items, and at the end of the night, our bill was determined by the plates sitting before us.
4. Pudding Club
Last semester, Lucie (one of our wonderful student helpers) created a Pudding Club in which everyone could come, bring a dessert, and spend a little time eating and chatting before the week began. Because it was a smashing success, she decided to bring it back this semester, and we started with a theme of "chocolate". Our flat whipped up a pan of brownies and a batch of black bean-chocolate cupcakes, both of which were delicious. The brownies, in fact, were so delicious that we won the prize of "best dessert" for the week! By the end of tasting everything, however, we all went into a bit of a chocolate coma and waited to eat dinner until about 9 o'clock. 100% worth it.
Classes start up again tomorrow morning, so it's just about time for bed. Cheers!
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