002: Freshers' week

Welcome back to week 2 of Knovel! If you’re new, you can catch up on the first edition here (and if you stumbled upon this newsletter serendipitously, here’s a quick elevator pitch).

Durham’s colleges

Some background info before we dive back in: If you weren’t aware, Durham University has a collegiate system. I’m a member of St. John’s College.

My reasons for choosing John’s were largely practical — optimal location, free laundry, complimentary formals (more on those in a later issue) — but what I really wanted was a tight-knit community. John’s delivered on all counts.

My window from Cranmer (the brick building on the left) looks onto Library Lawn. Weather permitting, these picnic tables make for a great place to write.

You can compare Durham’s colleges, to some extent, to the houses in Harry Potter. Like Hogwarts, your academic activities are facilitated by the larger university, but nearly everything else is housed in college. I live in one of the college’s (lovely) buildings, eat with fellow Johnians, and participate in college sports and societies — specifically table tennis and badminton.

Side note: Speaking of Harry Potter, did you know that Durham Cathedral was used as a filming location for the first two movies?

Arriving at St. John’s

Now, where did we leave off?

It was only a 45 minute drive to Durham from Newcastle Airport. I took the opportunity to gaze out onto the English countryside, marveling at the sheep. The grass seemed greener somehow; I suppose the frequent rain is good for something.

Before I knew it, we had arrived at St. John’s. My taxi driver very kindly went to retrieve my suitcases from the trunk (or if you’d prefer the English term, the “boot”) and brought them up the steps of Haughton House. I thanked him and bid him farewell, regretting that I didn’t have any cash — well, pounds anyway — to tip him with.

Haughton House, the home of St. John’s College reception.

I checked in with John’s reception, who provided me with my student ID and room key. Two freps (freshers’ representatives, a team of older students who help out during freshers’ week) volunteered to help with my luggage and show me to my room.

Since I was flying alone, I packed quite tightly. I had one large suitcase, a carry-on, and a backpack. Amusingly, the freps selected the latter two bags (i.e. the lighter ones), and we made our way down the cobblestone street toward my building, Cranmer Hall.

As it turns out, lugging a suitcase up 3 flights of stairs (while wearing a mask) can be rather strenuous. Either that or, and I’ll fully admit it, I’m out of shape.

The freps informed me that lunch was currently on, then left me to unpack. I was alone again.

I will say, I was pleasantly surprised by my room. It was sizable, larger than I expected, and had a nice view overlooking the lawn. Most UK universities have single rooms, so I (luckily) don’t have a roommate.

The first order of business, as any sensible person who had just spent the last 12 hours traveling would agree, was to collapse on the bed. I did so, promptly, and found it extraordinarily difficult to get up afterwards.

Fortunately (or unfortunately, my jet-lagged brain lamented), my stomach insisted on having lunch. The only issue being: I had no idea where the dining hall was.

I heard voices in the corridor, and after some internal debate, I decided that I should open the door and introduce myself. I did so, meeting two of my corridor mates in the process.

Their names were Tom and Oliver, the two most quintessentially British names I could imagine. I was so amused by this that, after chatting for a bit and returning to my room, I realized I had forgotten to ask where I might find lunch.

I found it eventually, with the help of a girl I met on the stairs. Amy had already gone to lunch, but she offered to walk me to the dining hall regardless. In an effort to be social, I sat with a group of girls, all of whom (I learned in the course of our conversation) were from Hong Kong.

Freshers’ week

Freshers’ week, for me at least, proceeded in a similar manner to that first day. Slowly, I met everyone else on my corridor. Meals felt a bit like speed dating — you sat with someone new each time, went through the ‘script’: What’s your name? What are you studying? Where are you from?, and so on. And, for the most part, you never sat with the same people twice.

There were a few conversations that I really enjoyed, but I didn’t really click with anyone. That is, until Thursday, September 30.

By then, I had devised a bit of a strategy for meal times. It was best to go alone, then strike up a conversation in the queue (if there was one). Otherwise, you’d have to scope out the tables; parties of two were generally your best bet. Any less and you’d have to contribute half the conversation. Any more and, well, they were probably a group already.

Crucially, you also had to pay attention to their plates. There’s nothing worse than sitting down, “Hi, what’s your name?” already on your tongue, only to find that they had just finished their meal and needed to dash. Or worse yet, oblige them to wait as you wolfed down your food, awkwardly attempting to make conversation in the meantime.

Let’s just say, on that fateful Thursday, the strategy worked. Splendidly.

I sat with two girls, Edie and Hermione. Aside from meeting the aforementioned criteria, Edie immediately reminded me of one of my favorite YouTubers, Ruby Granger, which I found oddly comforting.

Hermione left once she finished, but Edie and I kept talking. The conversation just flowed, in a way that none of the earlier ones had. Within the first two minutes of our conversation, I knew: I had just met one of my closest uni friends.

And then something magical happened. Samara (another girl Edie had met) sat down, and somehow the conversation got even better. We clicked.

The next day, Samara introduced us to Veronica, Miriam, and Hannah at dinner. A few of us went to a nearby sitting room afterwards, and the ensuing conversation was all over the place (in the very best of ways). I loved every minute of it. We covered every topic imaginable, from affirmative action to Hogwarts houses, even Prince Harry and Meghan Markle.

In all honesty, I was more homesick those first few days than I had anticipated. But thanks to the people here, the close friends I’ve made, I think I’ve settled in quite nicely.

That was two months ago. We’ve since gone and signed a house together, but that’s a story for another time.

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Thanks for reading this far, and I’ll be back in your inbox with the next issue soon! As always, a reply (even just to say how you’re doing) is always appreciated.

See you soon!
Kaylyn

P.S. This week is our last week of term, which means I’ll be flying home soon! Just need to get through the 3 essays I have due before then :)