A Saturday's Tale

A few days ago, I got a parcel from my mum! It cheered me up such a lot on an otherwise bland day.

I got useful stuff, a lovely card, and something to satisfy my sweet tooth...

Even the stamps made me happy!

On the other day on my way to Irish class, I decided to take a slightly different route than normally. And I'm so glad that I did, because I met this handsome creature:

I was childishly excited as I haven't seen a cat for over a month now! It made me realise how much I miss the cats back home, so I was happy when this one let me stroke it (and talk to it)!

That evening I also had something quite exciting to do as I went to the theatre.

I had a got a discounted ticket for The Winter's Tale by Shakespeare through the Give It a Go programme. The real tickets would have been over £20!

There are two theatres next to each other on the same square in the centre of Sheffield, the Crucible and Lyceum Theatre. This play was at the Crucible.

The play was good, even though I didn't understand everything they said! It was easy enough to follow though considering that I didn't know that well what the play was about.

After the play, there was a Q&A session with the director and actors for anyone who wanted to stay and ask questions. Being a thespian, of course I stayed! I didn't ask anything though, just listened. It was really interesting to see the actors as normal people. Apparently four of them were fresh out of drama school in their first paid acting job, including Young Shepherd (which was quite a big role)!

Yesterday I had dinner with some friends again! We had tasty wraps and chocolate cake for dessert.

Scandinavia was very well represented.

I've also just bought a ticket to an exchange student trip to Edinburgh in a few weeks. I thought about it for a while because of the prize and because I've been to Edinburgh once before, but I decided to do it anyway because the company will be great, and it will much cheaper than if I wanted to go on my own!

Sain kuluneella viikolla ihanan yllätyspaketin kotoa ja tapasin söpön kissan! Tuli ikävä omia pullukoita. Kävin myös sivistyneesti teatterissa katsomassa Shakespearea. Tänään hankin lipun vaihto-opiskelijoiden Edinburgh-reissulle, josta tulee varmasti hyvä!

shoes!

I only brought ballerina flats and canvas shoes with me from home, so I've been trying to find some "proper" shoes  that don't let water in if it should rain, heaven forbid. I know it's quite an unlikely event in England, but it never hurts to be prepared.

However, I'm really bad at buying sensible shoes. It doesn't take long for me to find ones that I like the look of, but the lining is never right or then they feel uncomfortable on. And then there's the price to consider, too. But it's gradually getting colder, so it's really about time I found some winter boots!

These are so warm and comfortable to wear that I liked them instantly. At first I was going to stay away from anything too suede-y, but these felt quite sturdy (and the tag also said 'water-proof'). I had a certain price limit I didn't want to go over, so I was really happy when I found these at TK Maxx for £20 cheaper than I was prepared to pay!

I also got cheap autumn-y ones at Shoe Zone that I can wear in the autumn before it gets too cold. For some reason I always get black boots.

I was so glad that I got both of them on the same day, because it's surprisingly annoying to buy shoes that have to last.

Then I found some books at a charity shop, which was good because I don't have anything to read here! I left all my books in Finland, which may have been a mistake!

I'm not sure if I've read The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo in English before, but I've read it at least twice in Finnish. The Mill on the Floss I don't know anything about. This morning I was reading a poem by this girl who's in my poetry class, and the poem referenced this book, and I really liked the poem. It was quite cool that I had never heard of the book before and then I saw it in the charity shop! It was only £1, so I decided to get it.

I have to show you what I got from the bank I have my English account in. You put your card in when you want to make a payment online, and then the reader gives you a code that you have to type on the website to identify your card. It's so cute! I have never used anything like it before. It reminds me of a calculator.

It's been such a nice and relaxing weekend. Next week there'll be more test runs of places to eat, and I'm going to see a play!

first times

Another week has gone by so quickly. I think I'm starting to settle in! It doesn't seem like a lot has been happening, but the little bits of life often go unnoticed.

Yesterday Anna from Sweden, Marie from Denmark, Julia from Germany, and I had dinner at a nearby pub called The York.

I pass several pubs (including this one) every day on my way to uni, but this was the first time I actually went in one of them. I have been occasionally thinking about pub food, though, so I guess it was about time...

I really wanted a pie, and the only option was Pie of the Day with chicken and mushroom, so I chose that. I love chicken pie, but mushrooms I've never liked, so I just picked them out, classy as ever. It came with mushy peas and chips, both of which were absolutely delicious. I couldn't finish my portion though! I'll never learn... But pie is so good!

Julia and Marie

Anna and I

It was a very nice evening!

Another thing that I pass every day without having ever visited it is a park called Weston Park and the museum that goes with it. There's just never been an appropriate moment for it yet. Today I had a good reason to go, though, since the homework for my poetry class was to visit a museum/park and "intensely observe" any object in there that we felt inspired by. A girl called Amber from my Irish class is also taking the poetry one (although she's in a different group), so we decided to go there together after Irish class today.

Look how intensely she's observing the statue!

I also found a nice painting in the same room, so we spent some time there writing our poems. It was also nice to see the museum, it was much more versatile than I thought! There were lots of stuffed animals.

It was such a nice sunny day today that I just had to keep stopping on my way home to take pictures.

I think the nice weather did something strange to me, because when I got back in the flat, I got a sudden urge to tidy up in the kitchen. I didn't even mind doing someone else's dishes! Hopefully I can apply the same state of mind to my own room...

The door of my room looks like this now, by the way.

Tulipas aika paljon eri asioita, vaikka tuntuukin, ettei ole paljoa tapahtunut viime aikoina. Ilmat alkavat kylmetä, vaikka tänään olikin aika lämmintä ja aurinkoista. Kävin eilen The York -nimisessä pubissa syömässä muutaman kaverin kanssa, ja oli kyllä tosi hyvää ja englantilaista ruokaa. Kävin ekaa kertaa myös melko läheisessä museossa/puistossa iirin tunneilta tutun Amberin kanssa kirjoittamassa runoja, heh. Olemme molemmat samalla runokurssilla, ja kotitehtävä hoitui siinä samalla. 

Leeds!

We decided on Leeds, which was actually really good because it was cheap (train there and back £10 versus £40 to Birmingham), easy (only 40 minutes on the fastest train), and lovely (see below)!

It was so nice to just decide at the train station which train to take and where. I haven't done that before!

The train was quite full when we got on, so two of us had to stand in the corridor. However, it wasn't long until we heard "Ladies, want to sit down?" We turned and saw two middle-aged-but-slightly-chavvy guys offering their seats to us. Ulrika said "You don't mind?" and they said "Yeah, we do, but go ahead anyway". So we did (and thanked them a lot)!

We didn't really have any plan on what we wanted to do -- the main thing was to visit a new place! The city centre was quite compact and it didn't take long to go from one place to another, which was a nice surprise since I think Leeds is one of the largest cities in England. We were happy just strolling, looking around, sitting down for coffee, and of course, shopping!

I got some useful stuff, like an Audrey Hepburn wall calendar for next year. Also a stapler, holepunch, hat, and mittens. Oh, and a jewellery box. And an umbrella (my £1 one broke and then I lost it too). I was also on the look for proper shoes for winter, because I only have canvas ones at the moment and they're not very warm/waterproof. I didn't find anything yet, but Sheffield is not too shabby shopping-wise, either.

We had late lunch/early dinner (or lunner) at Jamie Oliver's Italian restaurant. It was really nice! I got the best carbonara I've had so far!

All in all, I think the trip was very successful! There are a few places that I'd really like to visit during this year, so I imagine this sort of thing will happen more often. I could go to Leeds again too, though!

I had a great day, and it will be nice to have another day of weekend left, even if I have to do some work. But here's a sign for conclusion.

Tämän päivän vietin suurimmaksi osaksi Leedsissä, jonne junamatka kesti vain 40 minuuttia. Se on jonkin verran pohjoisempana kuin Sheffield. Tarkoituksena oli lähinnä kierrellä ja nähdä jokin uusi paikka, mikä tosiaankin tuli koettua! Meillä ei ollut mitään suunnitelmaa ehkä siksikin, että osa meistä luuli vielä tänä aamuna menevänsä tänään Birminghamiin. Mielestäni teimme kuitenkin täysin oikean valinnan, koska Leedsiin pääsi 30 puntaa halvemmalla. Birminghamiinkin olisi kuitenkin kiva mennä jossain vaiheessa, vaikka naapurikämpän brittityttö olikin toista mieltä. Jo melko lähistöllä on useampi paikka, jossa haluaisin käydä, kuten Nottingham ja York. Oli kyllä oikein mukava reissu, ja olen edelleen yli yhdeltätoista illalla jotakuinkin täynnä Jamie Oliverin carbonarasta. 

long/short

Yesterday it was exactly a month/four weeks since I first arrived in Sheffield. It feels like I've been here a much longer time though! And yet somehow a much shorter time. The wedding or the orientation week seem to have been so long ago, but Sheffield still feels new/not new. It's so complicated! Some things feel mundane, like walking to uni and back and buying groceries. But other things I know nothing about, like what's past Ranmoor in the other direction or how to get to the train station by bus. So there's still lots to learn about my new hometown, but I guess that's also exciting.

Anna, Marie, Anna's flatmate Ulrika, and I had dinner at Nando's tonight (never been there before!) and our plan was to join a pub crawl with some student group that Anna knew more about. It was going to start at Interval which is a cafe/pub at the Students' Union (in the photo!). Ulrika didn't join us, because she felt ill, but Anna, Marie, and I went. However, people didn't seem to be moving anywhere even after the hour they were supposed to spend at Interval, so we just stayed there chatting and had a nice time. Then we took a "Women's Minibus" home that took all of us right next to our buildings! It left at the Union, so it was perfect.

Tomorrow I'll have an early start (but not as early as last Saturday ;) ) because we'll be doing a day trip to some city! I think it was either Birmingham or Leeds, but we'll decide at the train station. I just spoke to a British girl who lives in the flat opposite us, and she said Birmingham wasn't worth it, so I guess we'll see tomorrow...

the past few days

As I think I said, I visited Oxford this weekend from Saturday morning until Monday morning. I got to see Charlie's new house, which was very cool and English! Unfortunately on the way there my camera had run out of battery, so for the first time in England so far, I spent two days photo-less. That's okay, though, because we didn't really go anywhere that would've required picture-taking (really, we watched Scrubs most of the time). I'll make sure my camera is charged for the next visit, though!

I just realised that I don't think of things as new so much anymore. I think that means that the life here has started to become more normal. Maybe that's why there's not something to write about every single day, because I don't feel like it should be something to write about. The classes and lectures starting last week have probably influenced it a lot. And still, it feels funny that this Thursday I'll have been in England "only" for a month!

On Friday, I took part in a ceilidh, which is "a traditional Gaelic social gathering" that "usually involves playing Gaelic folk music and dancing", says Wikipedia. This is the band we had, even though they haven't started playing yet! It was a lot of fun and such a good exercise, I danced for the whole 1.5 hours I was there and I was so exhausted afterwards! I also joined the Ceilidh Society, so I guess I'll do it in the future as well :)

Today I got a small clothes airer/rack at Argos. It's really convenient for small homes, because it folds flat and holds quite a lot of laundry. It cost £7.99, which isn't too bad, and if I can keep on using it instead of the launderette drier, it will save me some money after a while. I must've looked a bit silly walking around Sheffield with this under my arm today!

You can see a peek of the dotty duvet cover that Charlie lent me. I'm so excited to borrow it because it makes my room looks so much nicer than the grey one I've been using until now! It's so colourful :)

Viikonloppureissu Oxfordiin oli oikein mukava ja meni hyvin, vaikka kamerastani olikin loppunut akku jo menomatkalla! Eipä se tosin haitannut hirveästi, koska emme harrastaneet mitään turismia tällä kertaa. Arki täällä alkaa jo rullata, mitä koulun alkaminen on varmaankin edesauttanut. Tunnit ovat mukavan erilaisia ja pidän erityisesti iirin opiskelusta. Opettaja on siis puoliksi suomalainen, mutta ei osaa suomea ollenkaan. Runokurssi on aika vaikea (ja vähän pelottava), mutta toivottavasti se alkaa sujua paremmin ajan myötä. Ostin tänään pienen pyykinkuivaustelineen Argosista (Argoksesta?), joka on aika hauska kauppa: siellä ostettavat asiat valitaan puhelinluettelomaisesta kuvastosta, kirjoitetaan tuotteen numero muistiin ja annetaan kassalle, joka sitten kiikuttaa tuotteen kaupan varastosta. Mitään hyllyjä tai käytäviä siellä ei siis ole. Kuvasto on jotakuinkin 10-15 sentin paksuinen, joten aika iso valikoima siellä on. Tänään minulla oli vapaapäivä, mutta huomenna taas jatkuu!

longish update: school, vintage, cupcakes

It's almost the end of my first week of British education! All the classes seem interesting, and I really like how diverse my timetable is. On Mondays, I have a lecture on phonology and a seminar on creating poetry, Wednesdays is a phonology seminar, and Thursdays and Fridays I have one Irish seminar.

Almost everyone else in the phonology class have taken phonetics or something similar before and already know the terms we're using and can write IPA (phonetic alphabet), and I don't. It's a third-year class, though, so I'm not surprised. It just means that I have to learn some of it myself. Luckily I got this book at the English Society book sale today:

I don't need it for the class I'm taking, but it will give me the same information that everyone else already possesses. It's actually quite an interesting read anyway, so I'm glad I'll be able to keep the book.

The poetry class is something completely different. The teacher is a poet (though also a lecturer), like all the students as well, so it should be interesting at the very least. We're meant to write something every day, and every week we critique someone's poem in class. It'll be a bit scary, especially when I'm the one being reviewed, but I think I can do it. Already, I've done things I've never dared to do at home before.

I had my first Irish class today! There were only three of us, which actually made the atmosphere quite intimate and easy-going. The teacher is half-Finnish, but she said she doesn't speak any Finnish herself. Well, it's her loss ;)

What else have I been up to lately? Last weekend there was a vintage fair at the town hall, which was really cool!

I couldn't resist a few goodies... I also found a skirt and a pair of sunglasses.

I've also learnt a bit more about my surroundings and explored some places in Sheffield that I hadn't seen yet. I can find my way around pretty well already, which makes me feel more like a resident and less like a tourist. There's still so much to learn though! Crossing streets and telling coins apart have been some of the difficult things so far.

I've also done a couple more Give It a Go things: Irish dancing (fun!) and cupcake decorating.

Everyone got four cupcakes to work with! I've never done it before, so it was a lot of fun and somehow therapeutic.

(sorry about the product placement, it's not mine...)

It's been a long week and I feel quite worn out. Luckily I'll get to relax this weekend when I go to Oxford to visit Charlie until Monday morning! I'm really looking forward to that :)

Tällä viikolla alkoi varsinainen opiskelu ja on ollut mielenkiintoista! Fonologia on toistaiseksi vaikuttanut aika vaikealta, koska suurin osa kurssilaisista on jo opiskellut fonetiikkaa ja tuntee kaikki fonologian tunneilla käytetyt termit ja muut. Kurssin opettaja kuitenkin sanoi, että voisin opiskella joitain juttuja itsekseni, mikä sopiikin minulle hyvin. Löysin englannin ainejärjestön kirjakirppikseltä aika huokean kirjan, jota käytetään juuri sillä fonetiikan peruskurssilla, jonka muut ovat käyneet. Sitä voin sitten lueskella neljän tunnin bussimatkalla Oxfordiin lauantaina :) Town hallissa oli viime viikonloppuna vintage-myyjäiset, joilta tarttui mukaan muutamia kivoja. Tänään koristelin ensimmäistä kertaa elämässäni cupcakeja (en kyllä sano kuppikakuksi, vaikka mikä olisi) ja oli tosi kivaa!

quotes

"You look like Nicole Kidman" x1
"You look like Bree from Desperate Housewives" x1
"You look Irish" x1
"You sound English" x3
"You sound American" x2
"You sound Finnish" x1
"Siri? Like the iPhone app?" x20