As of Wednesday I'd officially completed my year as a USM student. Since then has been the mixture of
-relief that work is done
-frustration of packing, sorting things for third year abroad, making sure I'm organised etc
-stress of everything that comes with a year ending, let alone one abroad.

A friend took Anna and I shooting in the woods on Thursday, which was loud and not easy. I tried one shot and it blasted me backwards haha!

A lot of people have left or are leaving tomorrow, I've said many goodbyes in the past few years and I've fallen into the routine of sucking in all the emotion and just hugging someone as if I'll see them in a couple of months. Maybe it's the British in me not wishing to express any sort of feeling. It'll probably hit me at some point and I'll be a watery mess. But I am excited about my last year at Keele! But I have also started having nightmares about waitressing.

Looking forward: I don't return to England for a month and between then and now I am camping in Florida, going to Vegas, Los Angeles then finishing in New York... so a road of adventure.

Looking back: my year spent at Southern Miss has been beyond all my expectations. I've gained so much and changed in so many ways, I can't even begin to explain. In addition to learning a lot about myself and what I've been taught in classes, I've learnt a enormous amount about British culture and what it means to be Southern. Life in Mississippi has been great, interesting, weird... and I've gotten two different perspectives of college living on and off campus. I would strongly recommend studying abroad to anyone, it's the best opportunity I've ever had and something I will remember and talk about forever...

Some pictures of my favourite memories

I've been so busy the past couple of weeks, we've all agreed there has been a dramatic shift in classes this semester, more enjoyable but tougher workload. I have been up to fun stuff too though

A week and a half ago was the Superbowl which was an interesting experience. The game itself was pretty boring but the adverts were fun (they really should be considering the companies are spending millions for half a minute) it was a funny experience, we watched it in Mugshots-a sports bar with an Orwellian amount of TV screens- and people really hooted and cheered at the commercials. I felt very British. I also ate a lotta food. Being off the meal plan has given me back an appetite.

just TVs within a couple of metres

Hattiesburg also had its own Mardi Gras parade pass through on Thursday. It was much more family orientated than I imagine New Orleans to be... I caught a bead necklace with my ear. Well, one was thrown and I was busy taking a photo and it landed on my ear, but I still think skill is required there.

It was actually a lot busier than I expected it to be! I'm not sure if I have it in me to go to New Orleans this Mardi Gras weekend... I know it's a one-time-chance thing but NOLA is messy-crazy on a regular weekday morning, every time I've been there it has been mental. I imagine Mardi Gras would be as shambolic as going through an antique shop on a skateboard, backwards, wearing a suit of armor, holding a fish tank. I'm happy to have a 4 day weekend though :D

Next Tuesday I will be celebrating pancake day. It's one of my favourite days, or at least it was until I found out that while Britain hosts a day of fun by eating pancakes prior to the 40 days and nights of lent, the rest of the world throws carnivals and parades. England, the land of not pushing the boat out.

I also came across some American Cadbury's items in Walmart. The packaging concerned me a great deal and if I saw them in a shop in England I'd imagine them to be fake.

American creme egg Left, British (I bought some with me) Right)

surplus stock from the 80s?

Anyways I'm having a lot of fun still. This semester is turning out to be very different to the previous but still very, maybe even MORE enjoyable! I'm already jealous of the students coming from Keele here next year.

second week

• The work load this semester is very big! I'm doing more per class than what seems the entire load of last semester. Hopefully I'll manage it ok but it appears holiday mode is completely over. All my classes this term have discussions in them which I'm happy about, as I've said before, the main thing I miss from British Uni are the seminars. My nerdtastic class 'Philosophy through Science Fiction' is very Doctor Who orientated which is quite surreal, I'm surprised at how popular it is over here.
• There's a fresh batch of international students that we've met. We had a pizza evening last week and also met some people going abroad next year. There was pizza with whole cloves of garlic on it which is the kind of thing I imagine my older brother would cook when he's had a bit to drink and is hungry.
• I've been trying out different classes at the gym since I've been back. I tried yoga which I think is overrated and only felt 'in touch with my body' when we spent a few minutes in the 'corpse position' (pretty self explanatory). I also turned up to a class called 'Stretch, Tone and Balance' where I was welcomed by the instructor but also warned that the rest of the group would be a little older. I was expecting people who've just had kids to people my mums age... when they turned up it was too late to leave and they were OAPs. It was rather awkward, but exercise is exercise I guess?
• There have been massive thunderstorms lately, in the middle of the night. It's very hard to sleep through torrential rain and lightening clashing right above you :| today I'm a zombie.
• This week has marked the annoyance that many internationals have felt when Americans describe spaghetti as 'noodles'. Sybs got chicken noodle soup and was almost angry when it transpired the noodles were spaghetti. Noodles apparently describe all types of long stringy egg/flour based goods.
• Here is me with a car unnecessarily big. I do not know the owner of the car but if they don't match the scale of the automobile, I'd be disappointed

back in the 'burg

After leaving my friend Claire's London apartment at 7am GMT and arriving in Hattiesburg at 2am CT- 24+hours of traveling- I'm happy not to get on a plane again for a while!

This semester Sybs and I have moved into an apartment. Technically it's 'off campus' but it's actually closer to where my classes are than when I lived in dorms... and considerably cheaper! $575 shared between two each month and water is included. That's at least 1/3 less than what I would pay in England! It's also nice to have a room to myself, windows that open and not to have the rather revolting meal plan forced upon me.

I'm quite please at how we managed to decorate the place, it came unfurnished but Walmart supplied us with a cheap sofa bed and lamp, plus some wall stickers were on sale in Barnes & Noble. Quite minimalistic, we decided it was vaguely 60s in style and I felt this was an excuse to dance the twist.

my bedroom view- we have a pool!

Shopping for food has been a bit tricky, one thing that is clear from the grocery aisles in Walmart is that Americans like their meals quick and convenient- 'Just Add ______' kinda thing. Fresh goods weren't so great; I bought a squash (which the cashier had to ask what kind of vegetable it was) and an avocado, both of which were overpriced and appeared to be wood disguised as food.

Classes started yesterday, I think I've got a good bunch- Vietnam War, Politics & Protests, Intellectual & Cultural History of America and Philosophy through Science Fiction. One of my assignment options is to start or join a political movement... I've got over-passionate about projects in the past so I think I should probably avoid that as I imagine it might reflect strangely on my university back home if they hear I chained myself to something. I think Philosophy through Sci-Fi may blow my mind a bit.

So I've been here less than a week, settled well and everything is going good!

tidbits

 

1. I got $25 in dining dollars for taking part in a survey on Eagle Dining. We have spent as lot of time in Starbucks this week as a result. They're playing Christmas music already, which feels even more peculiar because we're all still wearing summer clothes.

2. We're starting to get small town claustrophobia and finding the inability to drive annoying. Up until this semester I have never at any point felt the need to learn to drive in my life and now I feel trapped and tempted to get in a car and see how easy it is. The bus is fine by day but stops running at 5pm. The one taxi firm in Hattiesburg runs sporadically, costs money and the cars smell of homeless people. A lot of people say 'Hey, if ever need a ride just ask' but it's not British to ask and I'm sure many of them are just being polite. I can't believe I'm wishing I could drive! The only thing to this point that has encouraged me is a) the prospect of a zombie outbreak and b)so I can steer around singing Gary Numan- Cars.

3. It's Thanksgiving break so the whole country is off- I'm going to Boston/Connecticut, yeeep! I'm a bit anxious about the cold though.

New Orleans

For the second time in a fortnight we went to New Orleans. On this occasion, it wasn't for Halloween (though we still saw a couple of people in fancy dress) and we didn't go out for the party (though we still saw many drunk people. At noon.).

When we arrived we got the most amazing Po Boys from this small little place at the outskirts of anywhere. I can't remember what the place was called but it was the best sandwich I've eaten since arriving here- bread actually tasted like bread, rather than some odd dry American brioche! I had beef, it was a dream.

We then looked around a cemetery. An interesting experience and more of the Southern Gothic. However creepy it sounds, it's an interesting cultural experience, seeing graveyards in other countries, places and religions.

We had a nosy around the Garden District; lovely posh houses, including the home of Anne Rice! I would like to live in one of these homes if anyone fancies buying me one?

 

A nice, free thing to do is the free ferry ride, it was quick but the views are just as great as from the steamboat.

The French Quarter is the part of New Orleans I'm most familiar with as I stayed there when I went on holiday (the Hotel Monteleone, where Truman Capote and Harper Lee use to drink in its carousel bar) it was particularly vibrant this Saturday with people getting their fortunes read and selling art in Jackson Square. 

 We ate Beignets at Cafe du Monde, so tasty. 

From the French Quarter we wandered into Bourbon Street, which is a difficult place to describe; A strip that is an odd hybrid of Vegas, the red light district of Paris and a British student village with amazing live music coming out of every venue, a lot of people wearing little clothing and a craving for hand sanitizer after you leave it.

 There were a couple of topless painted ladies holding signs saying 'Tits for Tips', which when I looked away I was facing the Cathedral. This was all at 4 in the afternoon, with our tutor. Surreal. 

  Anyway, I think I maybe content with never visiting Bourbon St. again as I've been a few times and it is a bit of a smelly, disordered tourist trap... I sense that New Orleans is probably full of amazing bars and venues outside the street and it would be interesting to explore these places.

We stayed in the Holiday Inn which had a pretty amazing view

The next day we went to a plantation house but it was $20 to look around so we just took sneaky pictures outside it, hohoho. These photos AND MORE are available on my flickr page!

So there's New Orleans, in all it's sober glory. It is a beautiful city and very different to a lot of other places in the South and in America. It has a really interesting history which really visible.

It kinda sucks that we missed the last Football game this weekend (there's one at Thanksgiving but I'm away and I don't think anyone is tailgating) Golden Eagles are now ranked 20th!

The differences

Here's me in front of the University. I took scenic photographs for the first time since I arrived here this week

I don't want to be a party pooper but I keep seeing 'Happy Guy Fawkes Day!' and 'Celebrate Bonfire Day!' randomly over the internet etc. and I want to establish that it's Bonfire NIGHT, Americans. And hands off our holiday! It's ironic that usually I am bored every 5th of November; eventually get annoyed with the fireworks and how rubbish they are and how they go on for days/weeks/months either side of the day, but this year I feel like I'm missing out.

On that note, this week has marked the closest I've come to being homesick. I've been so lucky in having met and befriended such amazing people since I've arrived and having so much to see and do that I literally haven't been bored in three months. But I found out that chocolate Advent Calendars are a European tradition and that really threw me off! For what I understand, a few people are aware of their existence here and some posh shops sell them, but for the most part, most haven't a clue what they are.

There really is a tremendous amount of less obvious differences between the USA and UK. I haven't met a single American that has seen or even heard of Bugsy Malone. Film nor school production. It's a musical, prohibition-era gangster film starring children with guns that shoot cream, starring tweenage Scott Baio and Jodie Foster, what more could you want? I don't know how this has managed to come up in so many conversations, but it has! And I'm not sure why I'm feeling the need to spread this news but IT SURPRISED ME.

The biggest difference definitely is how people dress. The only people who wear baseball caps in England are criminals and if any student ever wore one to a lecture, they would be ridiculed by the lecturer and made to take it off. I think people do generally express themselves more through clothing in the UK and I kinda feel conscious sometimes that I'm wearing things a little less conventional here. But when I dressed up for the gym one day in a baggy T shirt and shorts, my room mate Sybs said, with strong conviction, 'You're dressed American! You look 'orrible!'. I'm happy wearing my odd British clothes.

A real thing that is causing difficulties is my strong accent which is often a little too British for everyone to understand. I know my French friends have had trouble understanding me and Sybs, spent the first few days nodding and smiling to everything I said- but a lot of Americans also have to get me to repeat things and I've found myself at times talking in a ridiculous Keira Knightley-esq diction to actually communicate with people. Below makes me laugh and expresses a lot.





The other British people haven't had such problems, although the other person from Kent was talking loudly at a party and someone asked me what language he was speaking, haha. Maybe it's the Kent accent? I don't know? But my 'bonus bucks' (credit on my student card to be spent on campus) has been dwindled at Starbucks and there's something about how I say the name 'Maddie' when they take my order, that doesn't easily register...

I quite like Mattie, maybe I'll keep it.

This isn't even a real name..

Just writing noises now

I'm not actually offended by this all, nor even particularly irritated. I know when I return to England for Christmas break I'm going to be fed up that my accent is no longer special and soon get bored of all the things I'm missing slightly and will be eager to return for Spring Semester.

And American chocolate is so bad that even if Advent Calendars were big here, I'm not sure that I would buy one.