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!

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!