Aeroplane Adventures

Travelling alone can be a frightening and nerve-racking experience for the best of us. Passport? Visa? Boarding pass? So many things to remember, so many things you end up wishing you’d left at home.

Though most children want the safety of a mother figure holding their hand during take-off and landing, I learnt from a young age that my mother preferred instead to squeeze with tremendous strength the arm rest bars either side of her seat, whilst taking deeper than deep breaths and closing her eyes shut as tight as possible to wish herself away to some foreign destination!

You meet the strangest people on flights; lone rangers travelling the world, young mummy’s and their tiny tots, crazy family’s attempting the yearly excursion abroad and grouchy businessmen turning their noses up at anyone in economy class. On my journey back to the UK I had to take two flights, changing at Atlanta. The first flight was possibly the most stressful flight I’ve ever undergone; with under an hour to get from the domestic terminal to the international one, it was going to be a close call, but to make things worse, the first flight was 45 minutes delayed! (Leaving me with practically no time at all to make my connection).This meant teeth gritting facial expressions on my behalf – not to mention the swollen hands obtained from crushing them with my bony bum.  

The 6’ 5’’ Basketball player I ended up sitting next to, proved to be a light hearted distraction to the disaster at stake if I missed my flight home on Christmas Eve. The conversation went like this:

Stranger: ‘So you’re an English Literature Major?’

Me: ‘I am indeed’

Stranger: ‘Who’s your favourite author then?’

Me: ‘Well I love Jane Austen – I’m definitely an Austen kind of girl!’

Stranger: ‘Oh really? My name’s Austin….’

CRINGE

Lucky I managed to clamber onto the flight to London right at the last minute. Greeted by my Dad at Heathrow, the past 24 hours felt like the longest in my life, but it was all worth it to surprise the rest of my family who weren’t expecting my arrival. The look on my mum’s face when I walked in was absolutely priceless. My simple ‘Surprise! Merry Christmas Mum!’ turned into endless sobbing and confusion - needless to say my mother refused to let me out of eye-sight all day. After living across the other side of the world for 4 ½ months I’m happy to be home for Christmas surrounded by the people I love. Bring on the New Year! Bring on Semester 2 at USC!

Need Oxygen?

Colorado. Known for the Denver Broncos, the Rocky Mountains, Pikes Peak, Mesa Verde National Park, Gold mining and ghost towns, rejecting the Olympics and of course the wide array of outdoor activities, including; skiing, snow-mobiling, trout fishing and elk hunting. 

Before heading back to dreary London for the Christmas holidays I was kindly invited to stay in Denver, Colorado, with a friend who was on my Swim team back in Kent last year. Sarah, hospitable and lovely as ever, ensured that my stay in Colorado was one I wouldn’t forget with a jam-packed, fun-filled timetable, bursting with activities ranging from spinning down a tubing hill on the side of a mountain to kicking back and slurping frozen strawberry margaritas.

As I flew into Denver International Airport the sun was setting and the sky lit up in the most beautiful blood orange colour outlining the mountains. Talk about picturesque! This glimpse of landscape was only a peek at what was to come.

Known as the ‘mile high city’ (as Denver really is a mile above sea level!) I was pretty much forced by Sarah to down large quantities of water in order to help my body adjust to the higher altitude. After I acclimatised to the somewhat colder weather than sunny South Carolina, the adventures began with trips to the Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Coors Brewery and the Denver Zoo lights.  With my body adjusting to the thinner and dryer air, we decided to take a weekend trip up to the mountains – the White River National Forest. Staying in a cosy ‘condo’ ski chalet, it was the perfect get away from hectic finals week and exam stress. The mountains were covered in snow and we woke to fresh fallen powder – a perfect ‘white Christmas’ scene. Tubing, a sleigh ride, peppermint schnapps hot chocolate and Rocky Mountain oysters (aka bull testicles) made for a memorable trip filled with laughter and good company. 

Frolicking in the snow

Tubing on Copper Mountain, Colorado.

Two Timer

While everyone is studying (cramming) for finals, I thought I would share a video of my group’s final project for our Film and TV Acting class this semester. Please take into consideration that this is an amateur production – student written, student directed, student acted and student produced! Although this may not qualify for a BAFTA award or be an Oscar nominating performance, we had great fun producing it and I’ve loved the experience of learning a new skill in front of the camera.

Enjoy!

Brit's Perspective

When Oscar Wilde said ‘America and Britain are a single country divided by a common language’ he really wasn’t joking! With my first semester at USC coming to an end I think it’s important to remember not just the things I’ve learnt but actually what I have taught…

British people speak English, and no, just because I’m from England does not mean that I know your friend from France. I haven’t been to Paris, the capital of England - there’s no such thing! No, I’m not Australian. England isn’t near Europe, it’s in it. Wales isn’t a town in England. Scotland isn’t either. And it doesn’t rain ALL the time. Cheers means thank you. Yes, we have cell phones, MacDonald’s and black people in the UK! We also have the internet and Facebook; we do not live in the dark ages! Yes, we drive cars in England, not all of us have 4x4’s though. Just because I have blonde hair doesn’t mean all British girls are blonde. Half past four is not 2pm. I don’t have a favourite ‘soccer’ team, and no, I don’t know your friend’s Great Uncle who moved to Manchester in 95. A playsuit is a romper. Sorry for putting an ‘x’ at the end of my text messages, they’re kisses, as a term of affection! When I ask you; ‘are you alright’ I’m just being friendly and asking about your day, I don’t need to hear about the last time you had a check-up with the doctor. We drink tea with milk, and biscuits are for dunking not pouring gravy over.  We also drink coffee. For us, the point of a party is to get drunk as quickly as possible - the colour of the cups isn’t that important. No, we’re not all religious and I haven’t met the Queen. I don’t know how the baby is getting on (and by that I mean Kate and Will’s). And yes, we like Obama.

I’ve been grilled with all sorts of odd questions about England this past semester and met so many people who don’t even own a passport! So US of A I hope you’ve enjoyed reading my blogs the past couple of months, maybe I’ve enlightened your opinion, or at least, given you a different perspective!

Thanksgiving

‘Does England have Thanksgiving’

‘No’

‘But you have Christmas though, right?’

For my first ever Thanksgiving holiday I was fortunate to experience it in true American style as I was kindly hosted by the Tripp family in Kentucky. With mountains of food piled up to my eye balls, stepping onto the scales is going to be a painful experience!

Filling the long drive from South Carolina with snapchat videos and karaoke singing, I’m sure Lindsay and I would make a tuneful international duet! With no idea what Thanksgiving was all about, Lindsay ensured that I did all the stereotypical American things including watching ‘A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving’ and of course the Macys Thanksgiving parade in New York. Thousands of people prance down 34^th street as part of the parade, children with perfect white teeth, dance around ginormous floats dressed as pretty much anything; santas, elves, munchkins from ‘The Wizard of Oz’, clowns and cartoon characters. Whilst hundreds of adults hold onto giant balloons including; Buzz Lightyear, Ronald McDonald and figures from Sesame Street.  With Gavin DeGraw and songs from ‘The Sound of Music’ blasting through the TV I couldn’t help but sing along, thus receiving a compliment from Mommy Tripp; ‘Alice sounds like she should be on Broadway!’ (Oh I wish!) The parade continued with kids who look way too young for a career in the music industry belting out Christmas songs and waving frantically at the camera whilst Miss America Nina Davuluri ironically passes by standing on top of the Drake’s Cakes float. Who ever heard of Beauty queens and carbs?

But carbs are basically what Thanksgiving is all about. Pumpkin pie, mashed potatoes, turkey, stuffing and green bean casserole dominated the dining room table as we sat down and said our thanks for being so fortunate to enjoy this food. Lindsay and I even attempted some baking ourselves, which was a lot more difficult than we originally anticipated! Anyone who has tasted my little sister’s baking knows she’s a fantastic cook – especially when it comes to Victoria Sponge and Millionaire Shortbread! So with my sister’s recipe to hand, we decided to attempt the Millionaire Shortbread, but we had a few minor issues to overcome…. Firstly, we didn’t have the right ingredients, the Tripp’s had never even heard of Golden Caster Sugar or Golden Syrup so we had to try and find American equivalents! Furthermore, all the measurements were in grams, which completely baffled my American chef. When I asked where the scales were I was just laughed at! It turns out in the States they measure in volume, not weight and so we had to convert everything into ‘cups’. Eventually we sussed out the recipe and the sugar coated shortbread was a success, alongside Lindsay’s infamous home-made cinnamon buns (which were my personal favourites).

This holiday couldn’t have come at a better time. As my first semester at USC draws to an end it allowed me to reflect on the truly amazing opportunity I’ve been given to study abroad. At the dinner table on Thanksgiving Day everyone wrote things down that they were grateful for on small pieces of card, then drew them out from a bowl and guessed who had said what. Apart from Lindsay’s comical brother adding ‘The Queen – God save her’ to the list, it was pretty easy to work out which card was mine. But, instead of giving a long list of all the things I’m thankful for (there’s so much!) I’ll just say how thankful I am to my parents for giving me the chance to see the world from a new perspective. I’m also incredibly thankful for the friends I’ve made State side and, of course, for being invited back to the lovely Tripp household to celebrate my first ever Thanksgiving holiday.

Tigerburn

Within the first week of arriving in Columbia I was taught that I must hate Clemson, USC’s rival University. Although hate is a strong word, when they rep the nasty combination of orange and purple as their school colours it’s easy to see why they’re disliked!

Every year the USC Football team go up against Clemson in what’s arguably the biggest game of the season. Prior to the game it is tradition for the students at South Carolina to burn a tiger, which represents the Clemson team. This ritual is called the ‘Tigerburn’ and dates back to 1902 when the Gamecock mascot first made its appearance. Tonight with the temperature dropping below a brisk ten degrees, it was a chance to wrap up and watch the display. Similar to the Brits Bonfire night where we remember Guy Fawkes and the Gunpowder Plot, there were fireworks and of course a massive bonfire – but this time it was in the shape of a tiger!

At the 1902 game Carolina defeated Clemson and a full-blown riot broke out. Apparently, (according to the website at least) during that first Gamecock game, Carolina fans were flaunting a poster which had an image of the Gamecock mascot standing on top of a tiger, holding its tail as if he was ‘steering’ or directing it. Obviously, the Clemson fans weren’t very happy with this poster and told the Carolina students that ‘if you bring this poster, which is insulting to us, to the big parade on Friday, you’re going to be in trouble.’ Naturally, the USC students brought the poster to the parade.

Rumour has it that a fight broke out between the two teams so in order to calm the situation both sides agreed to burn the poster. Every year Carolina plays Clemson, and each time the two Universities burn an object that represents the other. The annual Carolina-Clemson football game alternates between both teams' home stadiums, and this year we’re playing on home turf, so I’ll get to witness the rivalry in its full glory! Go Cocks!

12 Years a Slave

There are not a lot of things that make me speechless, but coming out of the cinema after seeing Steve McQueen’s '12 Years a Slave’, no words were needed to explain my utter sadness at what I had just sat through. Its films like these that make me truly question the justice of mankind.

The Professor from my ‘Postmodern Blackness in African American Lit’ class urged everyone to go and see this latest slave narrative film. '12 Years a Slave’ cleverly depicts history’s impact on masses of African-Americans through one person’s nightmare. Based on a true story of a single man’s fight for freedom and survival, this film had me in tears from the offset. But it wasn’t the violins playing at my heart strings which set the water works in motion, it was the fact that this truthful depiction of slavery really did happen, and it happened in the very State I chose to come to University in. Different from other pre-Civil War United States films, the violence was utterly painful to watch. The whipping scenes were unbelievably agonising as McQueen chose to focus on the character’s distressed faces rather than their mutilated flesh.

Unlike ‘Djano Unchained’ McQueen focuses on still, powerful images and patiently draws them out rather than using fast-paced, action scenes. Spoiler alert! - Arguably the most powerful image throughout the film, and one I couldn’t stop thinking about upon leaving the cinema, was the protagonist hanging with a noose tightly strung around his neck whilst he struggles to keep his toes touching the ground. With this shot being the focus of the scene, you then see other slaves moving around in the background going about their daily duties. It’s hard not to yell out ‘help him!’ when sitting in a theatre where everyone is unknowingly holding their breath and willing him to hold on. This lingering image is one that will surely stay with you! I recommend everyone who is old enough to understand to go and experience McQueen’s thought provoking film for yourself.

Reality Check

Coming from one of the safest places in the South East of England in which to study, (In 2011 Canterbury was actually named the safest student city in England and Wales) one of the first things that struck me as totally bizarre were the metallic, outlandish Emergency buttons that dominate the campus every corner you take.  Warned never to walk alone on campus or downtown, I immediately felt a little insecure and questioned where my parents had sent me to study!

But safety is considered with the upmost importance on campus, hence why there are emergency buttons strategically dotted around so that if you can get the attention of the USC Police almost instantly.  Simply push the red button and you’re directly connected to the Police, allowing the dispatcher to know your exact location. We were even told during an orientation that if you are being chased and you cannot stop, simply press the call boxes as you run past and police officers will be able to identify the pattern and the direction you’re going in.

It’s safe to say that we have nothing along these lines back at home! Yes we have a ‘Campus Watch’ system where you can get security to walk you back to your dorm late at night if you’re alone but these emergency buttons really seemed to be the cherry on top of the cake.

I’ve never been a fan of horror films, they tend to make me really jumpy and give me graphic nightmares for weeks on end, so I usually avoid them at all costs! However, I always feel a sense of relief when I realise that these films are usually set in some American corn-field or old barn across the other side of the world. This tends to reassure me and allows me to sleep safely tucked up in my bed a million miles away. But now I can’t really play that card. I’m in America where scary things happen, so there’s no use pretending!

Last month, I got a major reality check when a first year student was shot on a night out in town. The freshman, only 18 years old, was hit by a random bullet whilst waiting for a taxi down in Five Points. The shooting resulted in her being permanently paralysed from the hips down, after a 40-caliber bullet was lodged in her spine. This event made me realise how far away I am from home! And America still has the right to bear arms? My heart goes out to the young girl and her family; I cannot image how traumatic it must have been. But the scary thing is that it could have happened to anyone, any student; International or American, it could have been one of my friends, it could have been me. She was merely a bystander to someone else’s aggression, simply waiting for a taxi at the end of the night. If that’s not scary, I don’t know what it!

I'm Schmacked: The University of South Carolina

West End to ‘Benson Theatre’

A show set in a Brothel? Risqué numbers? Sultry voices and Sexy costumes?

Sounds very Musical Theatre!

After being in RENT’s infamous ‘contact’ scene last year back at The University of Kent I thought this would be nothing I couldn’t handle. Black lacy lingerie, smoky eyes and character shoes have become a necessity for any Musical Theatre showcase I’ve been in, especially if I’ve been cast in numbers from Chicago or Sweet Charity! My friends within the Musical Theatre Society at Kent are my closest friends at Uni; it’s safe to say that I am missing each and every one of them!  I knew that the American equivalent couldn’t be too different - surely the people would be just as over-dramatic and charismatic? One’s thing for sure, being cast in a show is a definite way to meet new people and make friends. So in the middle of a strange new city on the other side of the world I knew that I would have to put myself out there. Back in August I decided to bite the bullet and audition to be in the Autumn production – a showcase called ‘Off Off Brothel’ put on by the University of South Carolina’s Musical Theatre group; ‘Off Off Broadway’.  Interestingly, this showcase was raising awareness and money for the Polaris Project, an organisation against sex trafficking. The aim was to open the eyes of the viewers to an important social issue whilst also showing the audience a bit of hidden talent lurking around the USC campus.

I was cast in two musical numbers with a few solo parts and I even got some lines. I’m not sure how to describe my character without being brutally blunt and putting it down in black and white; the character I played was called Gigi, also known as the head prostitute! Classic! Typecast much? Bet they only cast me because of my accent!

It turns out the show was a huge success. Not only did the society raise lots of money for the Polaris Project but I got to meet some amazing, like-minded people and have a wail of a time rehearsing and performing. Although I’m still catching up on sleep from the dress and tech runs which lasted until ridiculous o’clock in the morning!

I’m hoping to audition for the Spring Musical next term; ‘Legally Blonde’, which I’m sure will be tremendous amounts of fun. But for now, I’m happy to have left my mark on USC’s ‘Off Off Broadway’! This was purely down to the fact that I was nominated to lead the vocal warm-up one night of the show, so I decided to teach the cast the song ‘I like the flowers, I like the daffodils, I like the mountains, I like the rolling hills and I like the fire-side when the lights are low, singing a do-wap a do-wap a do-wap-a’ which we do back at home as part of a round. Turns out these Yankies absolutely loved the song and have been singing it non-stop backstage during the shows trying to imitate my British accent. Which as you can imagine, is hilarious!  I wonder how many of them actually know what a daffodil is though?

Daddy's Girl

Last weekend my Dad visited Columbia for a few days after a business trip to the States. Naturally, I took him to the many exciting sites that Columbia has to offer, including; The State House, the Congaree River Walk and the infamous William Brice Football Stadium.

Fresh from the land where chips are crisps and gym memberships cost up to a months rent, I was excited to see his reaction to campus life in America. Of course he thought the food was amazing as stuffed croissants, waffles covered in maple syrup and whipped cream, burgers the size of Frisbees’, Charbroiled Ribeye steaks, and French fries were on the menu all weekend long. Watching him was like pressing re-wind on life’s remote control as I got to see his jaw drop and eyes widen at all the same things that seemed strange and exciting to me when I first arrived.

For the Homecoming game against Mississippi State I bought two tickets in the lower deck section so that my Dad could get a real feel for College Football. Decked out in a garnet USC t-shirt with a Bloody Mary before midday, Dad was ready to embrace the wall of noise which exudes from the Stadium. With weather matching that of a beautiful mid-summer’s day back at home, I couldn’t quite believe that we are now in November! Both of us caught the sun, and I can safely say that it’s the first time I’ve been sunburnt in ‘Winter’. But I’m not complaining! These warmer climates are definitely welcomed!

Having my Dad visit made me realise how lucky I am to get the opportunity to study abroad. The school spirit here never fails to amaze me. I have met some incredible, interesting and diverse people in the past three months, and I’ve made friendships which will last a lifetime. Time is doing a really weird thing where it feels like I’ve been here forever but at the same time it’s going really quickly. Soon enough it will be Christmas and I’ll have to start thinking about plans for when I return to London in the summer! My alter ego is screaming 'please not adult life yet!'

Overall, it was a short but much needed visit, and having a piece of home has definitely helped me get over the mid-term blues. Southern hospitality was out in full force over the weekend, while I’m still not used to being addressed as ‘Ma’am’, Dad certainly enjoyed being referred to as ‘Sir’. The people really are as sweet as the tea… well, at least most of them are… One exception to the rule was some rude guy in his SUV imagining he was ‘King of the Vista’. After the Football game, I wanted to take my Dad out to the Blue Marlin restaurant in town for dinner, but as it was the weekend parking spots were scarce. After driving around the block a couple of times, I saw a parked car put on its reversing lights and told Dad to indicate for the space. But low and behold, some absolute douche of a guy in a massive 4x4 comes up parallel to our car, rolls down his window and proceeds to talk at my Dad telling him that the space is his. I would continue by listing the stream of bad-mouth words that came to mind, but I’m not sure my blog is the most appropriate place to do so. Anyway, classy as ever, my Dad told the boy to ‘show some American hospitality’ and swiftly reversed straight into the space that we had previously been indicating for. Well you know what they say about guys who drive massive trucks, they do it for an ego boost, the bigger the truck the smaller the…

Homecoming

Last week was ‘Homecoming’ – a completely American concept which I’m still trying to wrap my brains around. Dance competitions, Beauty pageant competitions for Homecoming Queen and King, Poster competitions, and various other art-based comps consumed the campus whilst USC went mad over this year’s theme; ‘The United States of Carolina’ – how original!

I’ve asked so many students ‘what exactly is Homecoming?’ and apart from being laughed at for looking so lost, no one was able to give me the straight up definition I wanted. Basically it’s a week-long event with parades and showcases ending in a home Football game aimed at welcoming second, third and fourth year students back ‘home’.

The main event is arguably the annual showcase where the Homecoming King and Queen are elected from five male and female nominees. These students are made to perform one talent, usually in the form of singing or dancing; they also have to get their ‘swagger’ on by walking down the catwalk in their formal dress and answer a random question drawn from a hat that looks like it’s from the set of Harry Potter. You can be sure that these students will make you feel bad about yourself! Even if you’re the Captain of a sports team and an active member of the debating society at University, these students have done far more by contributing significantly to both their College and communities. The winners were both fourth year students belonging to Fraternities and Sororities (surprise surprise!) What seemed to be just a popularity contest at first, with a ‘pick the pretty Marilyn Monroe girl – she’ll look good in the parade’ attitude, instead, these students actually helped to highlight the array of astonishing achievements that we all can achieve. By putting the Homecoming candidates in the harsh spotlight on the stage, their accomplishments could help encourage other students to get more involved with extra-curricular activities and explore vast the world the awaits just outside of the State border.

But Homecoming wasn’t rainbows and flowers for everyone, for some students at USC the school spirit and extra-curricular fun clearly got too much after Saturdays’ Homecoming win! Home before midnight, my flat mate struggled to support her drunken friend away from the parties and into bed. Naturally, I helped play ‘Mom’ and spent the early hours of the morning holding back the hair for the poor girl who passed out on our bathroom floor! She got to know our toilet very well indeed… I knew all those years of Lifeguard training would come in handy one day! Putting a randomer in the recovery position to avoid choking sick wasn’t exactly how I planned to spend my Saturday night but it was an experience I’m sure all of us students have been through. Oh student life! It seems that I cannot escape drunken foolery even on the other side of the pond!

Halloween the ‘Mean Girls’ way

‘Halloween is the one night a year when girls can dress like a total slut and no other girls can say anything about it.’

However, I beg to differ. Halloween = scary. Halloween = zombies, witches, black cats, skeletons, vampires, devils and corpse brides. But in America, Halloween costumes don’t necessarily need to have a scare factor, you can simply be a school girl without being a walking-dead school girl covered in fake blood, in fact you might as well be a slutty school girl, because let’s face it, no one really cares. The less you wear the better! Whilst the days of ‘trick or treating’ are just fond memories from my childhood, pumpkin carving and dressing up to the nines are still all the rage. This past week I’ve been to two Halloween parties, and I must admit I did submit to cat ears and whiskers, but mainly because I didn’t want to spend $50 on a slut costume and I already have a wardrobe full of black clothing, so Cat Woman seemed like an easy and cheap choice! I also wasn’t feeling quite as daring as Lindsay Lohan is in ‘Mean Girls’ and decided dressing up like a corpse bride wasn’t really my thing and I didn’t want to have people continually asking me ‘Why are you dressed so scary?’

There were plenty of girls who wanted to dress like Regina, Gretchen and Karen though…. One girl was dressed up as ‘Buzz lightyear’ from Toystory, but instead of going to infinity and beyond and wearing an astronaut bodysuit with wings, she simply wore miniature white hotpants and a crop top/bra with a Buzz lightyear logo showing off her tiny tummy and leaving very little to the imagination. Halloween is a chance for ‘normal’ girls to push their assets up to their chin and fully embrace their slutty doppelganger for a night of alcohol induced madness. At home, one very practical reason for abstaining from ‘Slaggy Halloween’ is the simple fact that it’s too cold! But with South Carolina’s mild temperatures, wearing only the vital necessities of bra and knickers allows girls to get away with pretty much anything without anyone batting an eye-lid! Don’t get me wrong, I love fancy dress! I just liked Halloween when playing pranks, lighting bonfires, telling ghost stories, eating too much chocolate and scarring ourselves with the weegie board was also an acceptable way of celebrating!

Freshman 15

‘Oooh heaven is a place on earth… where chocolate is calorie free and cake keeps you slim!’

I’m not quite sure how I’ve avoided the topic of food for so long on my blog seeing as America is renowned for its fast food, deep-fried everything and larger than large portions. So with my cheeks getting chubbier every day and my belly being the furthest away from attaining a six pack than it’s ever been, I thought it was about time to delve into my American eating habits.

My Dad warned me that the portions of food out here would be larger than at home and that when he worked at Camp America centuries ago he’d managed to put on a lot of weight in just one summer. So really there is no hope - I’m not here for summer, I’m here for a whole year, and I’m a chocoholic (aka I have a sweet tooth). Chocolate to me is a tempting treat that, the moment I give in to it, heads straight for my bum and upper thighs – I’ve heard people compare chocolate to men, but the general belief is that chocolate is more satisfying! Nevertheless, I am determined not to gain the infamous ‘freshman 15’ (even though I’m actually a Junior) and go home lighter and leaner than before.

However, with that said, yesterday something very drastic happened which made me realise I’m probably eating way too much. It was the end of class, so naturally I stood up from my chair, ready to leave, and the top button on my high waisted disco pants popped right off! Luckily I was wearing a cardigan so I could quickly hide the fact that my trousers were falling apart, but it was a little embarrassing. I’m going to put it down to the fact that the button must have been faulty because I’ve been swim training 2-3 times per week and making use of the Strom gym facilities, but perhaps my eating to exercise ratio isn’t quite even! I was taught at a very young age that leaving left-overs on your plate is rude, and that in order to have dessert you had to finish your main. So with these table manners drilled into me, I find it hard to leave half a meal sitting on my plate going cold and end up thinking ‘challenge accepted’ pretty much every time I sit down to eat.

Over the past two years at University I’ve been self-catered, whilst I tried to let the inner Delia Smith and Jamie Oliver take over in the kitchen, I ended up living off cereal, beans on toast, mountains of pasta and stodgy jacket-potatoes. So this year I’ve handed in my pots and pans and traded them for 10 meals per week at the student union. Pros of the meal plan include; I’m never really hungry or worrying about when I’m going to have time to prepare a meal, the swipes can be used pretty much everywhere on campus and the cost of a meal at the Russell House is usually cheaper than any other restaurant. But, healthy? I’m going to go with ‘No’. Some days I find myself queuing up to use my dinner meal swipe on a ginormous sprinkle covered ice-cream cone with strawberries and M&Ms mixed in. I swear the same guy always serves me as well, so he obviously just thinks I’m ‘that British girl living off ice-cream’. But I’m not alone! I can name at least one obese student in 3 out of my 4 classes this term, and I bet you they’re not fighting an on-going battle with the medicine ball in the gym!

 Here are my top 5 best and weirdest things I’ve been eating since arriving in the USA:

   1)REESE'S Mini Peanut Butter Cups – I think I maybe addicted, so this could actually be a serious problem, but I’m not sure how I’ve gone 21 years without them. Basically peanut butter covered in chocolate, these have become my go-to for stress eating. Although I’m a Galaxy girl at heart, with no Diary Milk in sight, these have become my new chocoholic obsession.

   2) Pawley’s Burgers – There’s a restaurant in town which does half price burgers on a Tuesday. Naturally, being in America there are at least 10 different burgers you can choose from, each bigger than the last. I can honestly say that I was still full at lunch time the next day!

   3) Cheesecake from ‘The Cheesecake Factory’ – Yum! You are absolutely spoilt for choice; Tiramisu Cheesecake, Pina Coloda Cheesecake, Snickers, Cherry, Pumkin, Lemon, Peppermint, Carrot Cake….. and I could go on! The list is endless! I opted for the White Chocolate Raspberry Truffle Cheesecake and it was one of those ‘moment on the lips, forever on the hips’ occasions.

   4) Boiled Peanut – Probably the most vile thing I’ve tried so far, and of course they happen to be the official State snack of South Carolina.  If you're from South Carolina, you almost certainly grew up snacking on boiled peanuts and drinking sweet tea. But if you're not, don’t panic, you haven’t been missing out on anything! Boiled peanuts are soggy, salty, mushy things that taste more like weird soya beans than crunchy nuts; I think I’ll stick to my KP Dry Roasted Peanuts next time.

   5) Cookie Dough – I seem to have got into a very bad habit of buying a packet of ready-made cookie dough with the good intension to make cookies for my flat-mates but instead, I end up microwaving a couple squares at a time so they’re half melted and just eating it straight out the bowl. Ooopsie. What was that about Freshman 15?

Surviving Mid-Terms

Exams have never been one of my strong suits; the pressure to perform well under a limited period of time reinforced by an overbearing ticking clock just isn’t my cup of tea. So when I found out that America seem to enjoy testing their students even more than British institutions I was a little horrified. More exams? Not what I signed up for.  

Social life? Forget it.

Food? Only if cookie dough counts as one of your ‘five a day’.

Sleep? Well that’s just a good ten hours of your time wasted.

College life is all about maintaining that important balance between the 3 ‘S’ words: studying, sleeping and socialising. But it appears the stress of tests, essays and projects all due at the same time is too much for some students to handle.

Earlier this week I decided it was probably a good idea to get a couple hours of cramming in before one of my mid-term exams. I set up my laptop in the quiet group study area of the library, notes and highlighter at the ready, surrounded by piles of novels, and I began to get my geek on. I knew that my fellow classmates took these exams pretty seriously, but I didn’t quite realise the extent to how far people pushed themselves for just a small exam in the middle of the semester. A guy came and sat opposite me at the table and instead of unloading brick-like books from his rucksack, he proceeded to rest his head in his arms and fall asleep. ‘Wow’ I thought, this guy really was taking studying to the extreme. When he came to a little later, I decided to ask him if he was unable to find somewhere a little more comfortable than a wooden chair and table in the middle of the library for a snooze. Either he had trouble understanding my accent, which is apparently quite easy to misinterpret, or he thought I was mad. Clearly the library was a perfect place to nap, it’s warm and quiet. But it got me thinking, this guy was evidently exhausted from sleep deprivation - just one out of hundreds of students that continually choose studying (or partying) over sleep. But how healthy really is this lifestyle? Constant stress and lack of sleep makes me irritable and short tempered, but the guy I met in the library seemed totally transformed into a sleep walking zombie. He nearly tripped over my laptop lead as I advised him that a strong black coffee would probably help. I vote that the week of mid-term exams should be renamed to 'zombie week' instead. Students aimlessly walk around with their eyes stuck to their iphones anyway, so the connection to zombies doesn't seem that far fetched. Life, or at least life outside of the classroom, appears to be draining all energy from them, there's only one thing on their mind - must pass exam. If you survive without bags under your eyes or an emotional breakdown, congratulations and welcome to the post-apocalyptic world.

Old Kentucky Home

You know you’re road tripping in America when the satnav says ‘continue on interstate for the next 200 miles’……

Last week was fall-break, which means two things; first, I have made it alive to the half-way mark of my first semester at USC and second, that I got to go cross country to the ‘Bluegrass State’ aka ‘my old Kentucky home’.  Known for its thoroughbred horses, horse racing, tobacco and college basketball, I was fortunate enough to be invited to stay with my American self; Lindsey. After the 7 and ½ drive from Columbia I was happy that she didn’t want to throttle me after putting up with my chatterbox mouth and karaoke singing for 500 miles. But we made it, eventually, and spent the long weekend gorging ourselves on home-made cooking and copious amounts of REESE'S Mini Peanut Butter Cups. Yum! There are so many details I could bore you all with, so instead of telling you an intricate hourly account of everything we got up to, I’ll pick some of my favourite moments.

Before I came on my year abroad, I knew that it would be the people I meet and the memories I make that would make this year unforgettable. If you had predicted that I’d be spending my October break in Kentucky betting, hopelessly may I add, at the races, I probably wouldn’t have believed you. But with the sun shining gloriously, I attended my first ever horse race at Keeneland. It almost seems a little ironic, after living so close to Ascot, Windsor for over 13 years that I had to go across the globe to enjoy the thoroughbred racing industry. Pretty Fall dresses, strawberry margaritas, and $2 bets; my day at the races was certainly one to remember. Although I’m not quite sure I understand all the terminology; who beat who, who had the mount, and how to make well educated guesses, I had enormous amounts of fun putting my money on the horses with the most outrageous names. My favourites included ‘Lovesmelovesmenot’ and ‘Kitchen Police’. But don’t worry Mum, I didn’t spend all my pocket money and I’m not addicted to gambling just yet, I think I’ll need to win a little more than six bucks to get hooked!

The rest of my break was filled with cheesecake, calves, mountain hikes and roasted marshmallows over a bonfire on a starry night. Kentucky, it was a pleasure; 2 States down, 48 to go!

Pet Shop Boys

With the leaves starting to fall, the temperature slowly getting cooler and days getting shorter, it’s finally beginning to feel like Autumn (or ‘Fall’ as the American’s call it!) But before jeans become the staple item in my wardrobe and, dare I even mention, coats and scarf's, I wanted to take a moment to appreciate how lovely campus is on a beautiful day. As I previously mentioned in my very first blog post, this year I’m lucky enough to get to live on the Historic Horseshoe, which is the centre and hub of campus. When the sun is shining you can rest assure that every bench on the Horseshoe will be in use and a colourful array of picnic blankets will be scattered across the grassy area with students studying, listening to music, playing games or just chilling with friends. Definitely a much nicer way to spend a couple of hours in between classes with a fresh breeze running through your hair than stuck in the gloomy Templeman Library on Kent’s campus that just breathes stress and exam anxiety!

The Horseshoe not only appeals to students in need of a break, but it also attracts the canine lover’s amongst us. That’s right, dog walking central! It turns out that students at USC are allowed to have pets in off-campus accommodation, so naturally a large percentage of upperclassmen own cute, fluffy dogs. It all seemed a little bizarre at first; in the UK students can barely afford the weekly food shop at Tesco’s, let alone fending for and actually being responsible for another living thing which needs constant attention and care. And even if you could afford to keep a pet, I’m yet to see a student house or flat up for rent in Canterbury which says ‘animals are welcome’ on the lease agreement. Student Landlords have enough trouble with the humans, let alone bringing pets into the equation!

But the boys here who own dogs certainly have the right idea; they are total ‘chick magnets’. I’ll be sitting outside on my perfectly positioned rug doing a spot of reading or chatting with the girls and out of the blue, a ball or some form of ‘go fetch’ item will not-so-subtly land on my blanket, and along comes a fluffy husky or a cute chocolate lab bounding at full speed ahead straight for me! You don’t even get a heads up, all of a sudden leaves and grass are everywhere and some wet, slimy tongue is trying mouth to mouth before its owner strolls over, claiming he’s ‘sorry’. But I know the truth, he’s not really sorry, in fact he’s not in the slightest bit apologetic. I have no doubt that he intentionally threw the ball over in my direction in the first place. Total con! Getting the poor dog to be your side kick and doing all the hard work for you! I wonder if it ever occurred to these guys that they could probably afford to skip all the gimmicks and just talk to a girl? Maybe not…. Talking is clearly no fun at all. Instead, getting hit in the forehead with a saliva ridden, slobbery tennis ball, is such a turn on!

Water for Elephants

The South Carolina State Fair is one of the biggest attractions for the general public that Columbia holds every year. Organised in 1869 the State Fair combines a mixture of livestock competitions with entertainment, appealing to both rural and urban crowds of all ages. After hearing numerous people rave about how much fun it is, I decided to go check it out. Like the funfair's at home the grounds were lit up with Ferris wheels, dodgems and roller-coasters. There were candy floss stools and competitions to win enormous cuddly toys alongside various other lucky-dip and betting games. But there was one thing that really stood out as different, and no it wasn’t the fried goodies! Although trying fried cookie dough and fried Oreos was definitely a novelty, it wasn’t the Southern food that shocked me.

It was the elephant.

Plodding around a tiny penned-in area was a ginormous elephant giving rides to children for $5 apiece. Words actually failed me for a few moments whilst the image I was witnessing began to sink in. Sure, I’ve seen elephants at the zoo, but they have huge outside areas to roam around in, fit with large grass paddocks, pools, mud wallows, dust baths and all sorts of other facilities close to their natural habitat. In the UK it is illegal to have exotic animals at travelling circuses, so when I saw this beautiful elephant trapped, being used as nothing more than a money making machine, my heart went out to it. For me, there is no place in today’s society where it’s acceptable to use wild animals for our own entertainment purposes. I’m not a huge animal rights activist or anything, but I couldn’t help but think about that poor elephant when I got back to my apartment. I cannot see how being transported from one place to the next and being made to perform in loud and unfamiliar surroundings is healthy for them. Some people may argue that by having elephants at these types of fairs, the general public get to see an animal that they might not have the chance to see in the wild. But I think if you want to learn about elephants, or educate your children about them, one of the worst ways you can do it is to let your kids ride one at a fair or see one dressed up and performing at a circus.

‘Now, say you're a bird.’ ‘If you're a bird, I'm a bird’.

Anyone who knows me well knows that I am a huge Nicholas Sparks fan. I get super soppy over any kind of romance so The Notebook and Dear John go down as two of my favourite films. Any film with Rachel McAdams or Amanda Seyfried in it has got to be good; girls want to be them, guys want to date them. And don’t get me started on the god that is Channing Tatum! Apart from the fact that I love a good chick flick, these films have a slight downside because they have forever skewed my vision on what the perfect man should be like, giving myself and every other girl unrealistic hopes since 2004. I am led to believe that true love will probably start at first sight, almost certainly in the middle of summer at the beach or a fair or even a book store. This man will know I’m ‘the one’ and will go to every effort to get to know me and pursue me persistently. There will always be a romantic soundtrack playing in the background at every important moment in our relationship and at some point I will be kissed in the rain, danced with in the middle of the street and written 365 letters. High expectations? Nah!

The fairy tales that Nicholas Sparks and Disney have provided for every girl searching for her Prince Charming have left me wondering where my Ryan Gosling is? Perhaps he’s still building the house of my dreams fitted with blue shutters and a veranda that surrounds the outside…. When I first found out that I would be studying at The University of South Carolina last December I was very quick to discover that a majority of Nicholas Sparks’ films were set in South Carolina, and ever since I have been longing to visit Charleston. Charleston is a city on the east coast, about an hour and a half drive away from Columbia, full to the brim with history, both charming and beautiful. This weekend I finally got round to taking a road trip to the coast, and I was not disappointed!

Despite a slight hiccup with transport issues and not getting much sleep in the hostel, my weekend consisted of exploring the city, visiting museums, eating way too much food, going on a ghost tour, and even tanning on the beach! The weather was perfect; blue skies and glorious sunshine. The beaches that appear in the film Dear John are all filmed around Charleston; John (Channing Tatum) and Savannah (Amanda Seyfried) first meet on the Isle of Palms fishing pier, and Folly Beach and Sullivans Island are also used for various beach scenes. I was in my element! Not to mention the fact that the main street in Charleston, Kings Street, is where Noah and Allie in The Notebook lie watching the traffic lights change colour, but it’s also where the historic American Theatre is located where Allie and Noah watch a film, and where The William Aiken House is situated which was used for the wedding dress fitting scene.

I will definitely be taking a trip back to Charleston soon as there were so many places I wanted to visit but didn’t have time, including the old plantation houses and the slave market. Charleston is full of rich American History, apparently around one third of African American slaves came through Charleston, SC, during the slave trade and original slave houses still stand at Boone Hall Plantation in Mt. Pleasant (which is the plantation used in The Notebook as Allie’s house). My year abroad so far is proving to be very insightful, opening my eyes to many different perspectives. Now all I need is to open my eyes to a Channing Tatum look alike and everything will be perfect!

I shagged six guys last night…

‘Do you want to shag?’

The first time a guy asked me this I couldn’t help but burst out in a fit of girlish giggling laughter. ‘Did he just ask me what I thought he did?’ was my first confused question. Apparently yes he did, but not in quite the same way as I thought. Instead of asking me up to his bedroom to ‘get it on’ he was actually asking me to dance! It turns out the word SHAGGING has very different meanings in the Deep South than back at home in old England.

Oxford English Dictionary Definition: A dance popular esp. in the U.S. in the 1930s and 1940s, and characterised by vigorous hopping from one foot to the other. (rather than… well you know… sex!)

Readers, you should know that when it comes to dancing I am no pirouetting guru. I in fact consider myself to have the terrible ‘two left feet’ syndrome, unless of course, after a bottle of wine and Beyoncé is playing, then I am fearless! I have not swing danced with any ostentatious named jiving expert before. I have never ever line danced. In fact, I have never really danced at all! Unless you count ballet lessons till around the age of 5, but all I can remember from those was some rule about good toes and naughty toes and pink leotards! Nevertheless, I wasn’t going to miss out on an opportunity to learn how to shag, so I went out, eyes as wide as a deer in headlights, to a bar called Jillians, where they hold weekly shag nights. My face had fear written all over it. The bar was rammed with students paired boy girl shagging their way to the music. I suddenly felt very unprepared, these kids had been born and bred shagging all their lives as the ‘Carolina Shag’ is actually the State dance. I knew I was going to be hopeless but I was going to enjoy being hopeless all the same! Not only did I have the pressure of learning this partner, holding sweaty hands jiggle, I also had to master the synchronised dances that everyone breaks out into as if it were a pre-planned flash mob. American’s love a good line dance as much as they appear to love twerking (see previous post). At one point I found myself right in the middle of a complicated line dance with no idea whether I was meant to be stepping to the right, wiggling my butt or clapping my hands, but god it was fun, or rather funny, at least for the people watching me thinking ‘she has no clue!’ My favourites so far include ‘The Wobble’ and ‘The Cupid Shuffle’, not to sound big headed or anything but I believe I’ve got the latter dance down to a ‘T’! (Although it probably was the easiest one…)

It turns out that an evening of Southern Gents patiently showing me the ropes was tremendous amounts of fun, better yet; zero alcohol was consumed so there was no false confidence needed. However, I’m still only learning so it’s going to take a while for me to become an expert shagger, perhaps I should do some practice in the bedroom…

Bible Belt

One of the biggest culture shocks I’ve had since arriving in South Carolina is how religious everyone is here. The South-Eastern part of the States sure isn’t referred to as the ‘bible belt’ for nothing! I have to be really careful to watch my tongue and say ‘Oh my gosh!’ instead of ‘Oh my God!’! On a Sunday, campus is eerily quiet, and this is mainly because a large percentage of the students are at Church. Back at home, I’ve spent the majority of my undergraduate years rehearsing for shows on a Sunday, and before University I spent almost every Sunday out sailing with my Dad and swim training. But here, Sunday truly is the day of rest. Since being in SC, I’ve heard some weird laws that are specifically for Sundays. Such as; it is illegal to sell musical instruments or any alcoholic beverages on a Sunday, (unless you own a private club) and ‘Dance halls’ are not allowed to operate. Strange huh? Another law I’ve heard, although I’m not sure how true it is, is that it’s perfectly legal to beat your wife on the court house steps on Sundays…

What’s shocked me the most is the backward 50s style relationships that religious college age students have. Some Christian couples here actually make up set rules to ensure that they are not ‘inappropriate’ with one another and break the sacred ‘no sex before marriage’ law. For example, some couples set themselves a curfew where they’re not allowed to be together after midnight. I cannot imagine any of my friends in relationships at home watching the clock and having to put a time limit on when they can be together. My immediate response to this rule was; ‘does she turn into a pumpkin after midnight or something?’ Surely whatever they can do after midnight they can also do at two o’clock in the afternoon…… Another rule, which reminds me of films made in the 50s is the ‘one person must have two feet on the floor when cuddling on the sofa’…… What?! I’m not sure what my face was doing when I was told this (probably frowning!) but I had to try immensely hard to keep my big gob shut and try and respect that this is all in the name of religion.

I decided that the best thing to do was to actually attend a ceremony and see what all the fuss was about. First impressions were about the exterior of the building. When I think of the word Church I associate it with gothic style architecture, stone walls, stain-glassed windows, a tall steeple and a scary, haunted graveyard. But the building couldn’t have been more different. With white pillars on the outside it looked a little Greek, and it was very simple and modern on the inside. The service I attended was called the ‘gathering’ after the definition of ‘church’ from the Bible. It was very modern, fit with a live band and electric guitars, feeling more like a concert to begin with than a Church service. I was really impressed with the public speaker, he made everything very relatable for a young audience and it was easy to see why so many college students enjoyed listening to him. Although I haven’t been brought up in any religious way and find the concept of an ethereal person above the clouds a little strange, I’m glad that I was able to go and see things from a different perspective and gain insight on what it truly means to be a Southern Christian.

Hallelujah and Amen.

From Canterbury Cathedral to Gatherings at Midtown, SC.

Twerk like Miley Cyrus

After Miley Cyrus’ raunchy performance at the VMA’s last month, I think it’s fair to say that everyone on the planet with access to the internet now knows what the word ‘Twerk’ means. But before arriving in the States I had never actually heard the word used before. Call me old fashioned but when I was confronted with some guy at a house party asking me to twerk, I just looked at him with utter bemusement. I had no idea what he was talking about. To those readers who are still a little confused, I am talking about the dance move which seems most popular here; dry-humping.

I’m not going to lie, but I was a little outraged to find that at a house party, where all the lights are on and people are just having casual conversations sitting on sofa’s that apparently it’s ‘normal’ for girls to grind on guys in the middle of the sitting room. This was another ‘I have to close my mouth to stop catching flies and gaping in shock’ moment.

It is fair to say that the nightlife and parties here are very different to back home. I can’t imagine walking into The University of Kent’s Student Union club ‘Venue’ to find only couples on the dance floor getting it on. When I go out with my girlfriends at home we dance in groups, handbag in the middle of the circle style, free-styling and singing at the top of our voices. There is never a need to have a guy permanently stuck to our hips to have fun. So I guess we now all have Miley to thank for introducing the world to the twerking dance craze.

Even the clubs are different here, if you can call them that! Downtown is filled with small bars where you can easily hop from one to the next, there’s no Oceana or Vodka Revolution here! Perhaps it’s because I’m not in a big city like LA or Chicago but in Five Point’s, Columbia, SC going out has a whole different meaning. Sure, there’s the standard drunk character’s you meet in every bar; the Fresher who’s had too much to drink and throwing up in the toilet, the sleazy guy in the corner trying to look you up and down, the cute one that will never come over and introduce himself, the pushy girl who elbows her way in front of you to get to the bar, and the emotional one sitting in the corner crying over her ex. But with the drinking age limit being 21 instead of 18 it’s as if the girls here have never seen boys before and therefore tend to go crazy Miley-style when they’re finally allowed out. However, I prefer classy to crazy, so I’m going to stick with my ‘hands to myself’ dancing for now!

Refuse to Lose - Volleyball is the new Netball

If you were to ask an American about Netball, chances are they have no idea what you’re talking about. I’ve tried explaining the sport a couple of times, but it hasn’t really come off very well. ‘So it’s like Basketball, but you can’t move with the ball, or slam dunk, or go in certain areas of the court?’ Kind of makes it sound a little dull! But at Universities across the UK Netball is probably one of the most popular sports that girls can play. Here, netball dresses are swapped for tight shorts, hoops are exchanged for a high net, ankle straps are replaced with knee pads and Volleyball is crowned the number one team sport for girls.

Last night I went along to the Coliseum to watch the girls Gamecock vs Presbyterian College match. With seating stands either side of the court I tried to imagine this type of crowd at one of Kent’s first team Netball Premier League matches, and I came to the conclusion that there are more Gamecock fans attending Volleyball than Netball get at our yearly Varsity rival with Christ Church. Fit with dancing cheerleaders wearing huge bright garnet bows in their hair and enough make-up on to scare a small child, cheering on ‘Go cocks!’ from the side lines made me really value the school spirit here. Not to mention the fact that the USC marching band took up a single stand to support the girls with their drums and trombones. Tunes included the National Anthem (of course) and the infamous ‘Gamecocks Fight Song’.

Like the Netball girls at home, the USC Volleyball girls were also really tall, super fit and had a real sense of unity. Numerous high fives were dealt after every point was scored and you could see that playing on this team was like being a part of a family. It was a really exciting game, fit with nachos and a free t-shirt, USC ending up winning 3-0. Whilst I would like to say that I’d be fab at Volleyball, I think my Netball instincts would get the better of me and I would end up catching the ball rather than fist pumping it up into the air. So unless a game of Volleyball is just for a bit of beach fun on holiday, it’s probably best I leave this one to the professionals!

Shoes speak louder than words

The fashion in South Carolina has come as a bit of a shock to my high-street filled suitcase and I keep on getting the dress code wrong time and time again. Although I’m no Carrie Bradshaw or Vogue journalist, like most other girls on this planet, I like to shop, a lot! I’m the kind of girl who will always be complaining about having a wardrobe full of clothes but nothing to wear! Though I don’t tend to count shopping as cardio I think I’m already starting to get Topshop withdrawal symptoms, and my nearest one is over a ten hour drive away in New York. Help me!

I’m no fashionista but I know my basics when it comes to clothes and accessories; avoid double denim, orange is a hideous colour (and also the colour of our rival University – Clemson!), navy blue and black is never a good idea and whoever said that money can't buy happiness doesn't know where to go shopping….

So here is my guide to the top ten fashion crimes that guys and girls commit every day on the USC campus:

   1) ‘Norts’ – Also known as loose fitting nike shorts. Apparently you aren’t a true Carolina girl if you don’t own a pair. Available in every luminous colour you can dream of these would be fab for the gym or working out but no, deceptively, these are the most stylish item in a girls' wardrobe and everyone lives in them.         

   2) The baggy t-shirt look – To go alongside with the ‘norts’ oversized t-shirts are left, right and centre. Forget a fitted shirt or anything that actually makes you look like you have a waist. In the South when girls do casual they mean dress for class as if you’re having a hung-over day lazing on the sofa.

   3) Jack Rodgers – Two words immediately come to mind when I think of these sandals: hideous and expensive. These uncomfortable looking sandals cost $110 and are the must have item of every Sorority girls ‘closet’. If they were a little prettier maybe I could understand, but spending that much money on a pair of flip flops when everyone else already owns a pair just cries boring to me!

    4)  Cowboy boots – I’m not going to lie, I do love a good pair of cowboy boots, but there is a time and a place. Dressing up like a cowgirl? Perfect! Pretending you’re in Footloose? Great! Wearing them to class with denim shorts that seem to be missing half the material? Trashy! Come on girls, if they’re not for a fancy dress event, I don’t think they’re very acceptable.

   5)  Flat caps and visors – When I was younger my parents went to all sorts of trouble to make me wear a sun hat in the hot summer months, but here it’s like a second skin. Flat cap central! Both boys and girls wear them (even in class may I add!) and apparently it’s ‘cool’.

   6)  ‘Fratire’ – By this term I mean what the Fraternity boys wear. You can tell them apart just from looking at them. Boat shoes, Polo Ralph Lauren shirts, khaki ‘pants’ accessorised with a pair of Ray Bans or Oakleys. Easy to spot? I think so!

   7)  Chubbies shorts– This is the ultimate Fraternity clothing brand. Described on the website as ‘Comfortable, flexible, aerodynamic and most of all utterly Radical, Chubbies are everything a short should be and more’. Apparently your thighs will thank you?

   8)  Sunglasses Neck Strap – The only time I have ever seen anyone wear a sunglasses neck strap at home has been my Dad when he’s out sailing. So first of all, if my Dad uses them, they’re probably not the most fashionable thing to be seen wearing, and secondly, he uses them for sport so his sunglasses don’t fall off into the water, not just for everyday use! I just don’t get it! The boys here all have them, but why? In case a huge gust of wind comes along and blows them off your face? We humans do have noses you know….

   9)  Backpacks – I used a rucksack throughout Secondary school but since turning 16 the only time I’ve found a use for one has been for my Swim Kit. Walking between classes I seem to be floating amongst hundreds of backpacks, and there I am with my DKNY handbag looking a little out of place. At school having a rucksack was something you could be picked on for, but the tables are turned here, rucksacks are in and handbags out.

  10) Cocks merchandise – If you haven’t gathered by now, the USC mascot is a Cockerel, fittingly named ‘Cocky’ and our athletics teams are called the ‘Gamecocks’. This invites everyone to splash out on tshirts with the word ‘COCKS’ in large bold letters to show how proud they are to be a Gamecock. I still can’t help but slightly cringe every time I see someone repping one of these, it may be the standard thing to do here but I definitely could not get away with wearing anything like that at home.

There you have it, my attempt at being a college fashionista. As you can imagine, I stick out like a saw thumb in my high waisted denim shorts, floaty skirts, chiffon blouses and flowery dresses. But, at least for now, I’m going to stick with Topshop and refuse to conform!

It's a Greek kinda life

The whole Greek system here fascinates me.  I’ve previously written a post on the madness that was Sorority Bid day but I can’t just stop at that. So expect to see at least a few more posts on Frat and Sorority life here in Columbia.

The big question I have is ‘why’?

Why do so many girls and guys put themselves through recruitment to join, what seems to me, elite sister and brotherhood? Don’t these people already have real brothers or sisters? Unless you’re an only child, I think it would be weird to refer to anyone but my family as my sisters or brothers. I guess that’s the point. Being a part of these groups is like having a second family. But with that said I will bet 100 bucks that at least one person decided to go through recruitment just because their childhood friends were going to sign up too. That’s right – followers. Nothing but sheep. They couldn’t possibly be left out. But surely there’s a very realistic chance that you wouldn’t even be placed in the same Sorority as your friends. So why? So you don’t have to put yourself out there in Fresher’s week and actually make friends with people who have the same interests as you because you’d already have this ready-made clique of friends? I don’t know if I’m missing the point and I’m only seeing them on a face-value kind of way. Never judge a book by it’s cover ehh? Well first impressions can be very influential. Apart from the ‘Legally Blonde’ movie I didn’t have any idea what Sorority life was like, my first impressions were that these girls only ever dress in over sized t-shirts with different phrases written all over them and thought that because they were Sorority girls they automatically had a right to date any Fraternity boy they took a fancy to.

I desperately wanted to be proved wrong. I wanted someone to explain to me that above all these shallow reasons there was some deeper meaning.  I’ve heard all the hype around Sororities and that all they’re renowned for is partying and nasty hazing initiations. But deep down I know that isn’t true. Otherwise the grades you get in high school wouldn’t mean a thing. It would be like needing a C in your A Level’s to get into Oxford. To get into a Sorority you have to be high flying academically (as well as socially) and the support systems within Sororities are huge. I know because I’ve witnessed it.

The only way I was going to battle stereotypes was to see these girls beyond skin deep and actually have a sneak into their lives. Luckily for me, I have met one of the friendliest and down to earth Sorority girls here at USC and she invited me to attend her ADPi welcome bbq.

Walking through Greek Village my eyes felt like they were growing larger and larger with every house I passed. Mansions with tall white columns and stone lions, fitted with Southern rocking chairs on the porches in front of large green lawns. ‘What is this place?’ I thought. Students in the UK seem to live in squalor with mould growing on the wall and heating that never works compared to this life of luxury. The ADPi house was beautiful. I think I was walking around with my jaw dragging along behind me. I couldn’t get over the fact that students actually got to live here. Home to 35 girls this mansion included an industrial sized kitchen and dining area, a formal library, a plush TV room, further study rooms, and the biggest bathroom I have ever seen. More like the back stage dressing room of a famous actress fit for a princess than for supposedly skint students. They have their very own chefs and even a ‘house mom’ who watches over the girls. I’m not sure you could get much further from student accommodation in England!

So now I’m even more confused about this whole Greek system. Pretty girls, who wear oversized t- shirts, are always smiling and laughing, never seen without a backpack on their back, always willing to lend a hand, raise money for the disadvantaged, maintain 100% in every class, probably apart of some sports team or extra-curricular group on campus AND they get to live in a mansion! Where am I?