Wow, it has taken me quite a while to write this blog post! I keep re-starting it because I feel like there's no good way to begin to tell you how amazing my time has been in these short 17 days, but I'll try!
When I landed in the London airport, I was greeted by smiling first and second years, who were all super excited to meet everyone. Then, we got on the bus and had a THREE HOUR BUS RIDE. I could barely stand the wait of being in the UK and not being able to see the castle yet. When we finally got to the school, there were second years standing all around the bus in their national costumes, which usually consisted of fun clothing, face paint, pots and pans to bang, and their country's flag. We then had to say our names, houses, and countries into a megaphone. It was the most terrifying and amazing way to begin the UWC experience! I may or may not have tripped and fallen into one of my second year's arms when I got out of the bus. Yikes, I'm really glad I never do anything embarrassing...
The second years sweetly helped everyone get their things into their dorms, which was extremely lucky for me because I had three large suitcases and two carry-ons that I needed to bring up a flight of stairs. All of our second years from our home states, dorm buddies, etc. left welcoming notes on our beds with lots of candy and nice things, and it was all such a lovely way to start the year. I came down from my room into the day room, a room where everyone can hang out that's meant for socializing, after unpacking, and we played hilarious games.
The next morning, there was a delicious breakfast in our house day room, where we had yogurt, fruit, bagels, salmon spread, etc. We had some initiation activities throughout the day, which included a maths test to tell us whether or not we were allowed to take higher level maths. However, the fun and important stuff began when we went to camp. They gave us a large, trash-sized, plastic bag for us to put everything we needed for three days, and then we were off on a three-hour bus ride.
When we got the campsite, a scary, for lack of a better word, second year came onto the bus, and she screamed, "Go get your bags, stand in line, don't talk or make noise, and don't laugh. If you do, you'll have to do pushups." I definitely witnessed someone who had to drop down and give her ten. I had a mini heart attack because I was so afraid that's what all of camp would be like, but, thankfully, it wasn't like that at all. It was amazingly fun!
We walked inside, set down our bags, and were instructed to sit down. Fun music played, and the second years' smiles were all back. They laughed, danced, and put on a show for us. We were then given time to settle into our rooms and meet our roommates. Throughout camp, we had six activities that we did with the same group. The activities were: walking, coasteering (where we got to dive off of a cliff and climb around the rocks on the coastline. We even got to swim in a cave! This was my favorite activity by far!), surfing, kayaking, environmental work, and games. All of the activities were incredible, and it was the experience of a lifetime. On top of this, at night, we also had a talent show and a different show where everyone sang their national anthems. The United States went first with this because, obviously, we're the best. Just kidding. But there really are so many stereotypes about us. I have had to tell a lot of people that not everyone in the United States likes Trump and watches Fox news. THIS IS WHAT THE WORLD THINKS OF US, GUYS.
Throughout all of camp, they only played a couple of songs on repeat, which I don't understand the point of... the only explanation I can think of is brainwashing. Which explains why we were also deprived of sleep. It worked. We all came back loving UWC.
When we got back to the school, we had to go to initiation for faculties and all of the classes we could take. I ended up choosing higher level economics, global politics, English language and literature, and standard level maths, Spanish B, and chemistry.
The faculty choices are extra amazing. You can choose from being in outdoor, social justice, global, or environmental faculty. Within social justice, we were introduced to music therapy, in which music is used to help autistic children and elderly people with dementia. I was so inspired afterward, and, thankfully, I was selected to participate.
UWC has been absolutely amazing thus far. We started school on Friday, but on top of that, I went to our first social, went late night swimming, and stayed up late many nights talking about the world with people from all over. It has all been so beautiful and fun. I'll definitely keep you posted about everything, especially music therapy, activities, and classes!
Here are some pictures:
When I landed in the London airport, I was greeted by smiling first and second years, who were all super excited to meet everyone. Then, we got on the bus and had a THREE HOUR BUS RIDE. I could barely stand the wait of being in the UK and not being able to see the castle yet. When we finally got to the school, there were second years standing all around the bus in their national costumes, which usually consisted of fun clothing, face paint, pots and pans to bang, and their country's flag. We then had to say our names, houses, and countries into a megaphone. It was the most terrifying and amazing way to begin the UWC experience! I may or may not have tripped and fallen into one of my second year's arms when I got out of the bus. Yikes, I'm really glad I never do anything embarrassing...
The second years sweetly helped everyone get their things into their dorms, which was extremely lucky for me because I had three large suitcases and two carry-ons that I needed to bring up a flight of stairs. All of our second years from our home states, dorm buddies, etc. left welcoming notes on our beds with lots of candy and nice things, and it was all such a lovely way to start the year. I came down from my room into the day room, a room where everyone can hang out that's meant for socializing, after unpacking, and we played hilarious games.
The next morning, there was a delicious breakfast in our house day room, where we had yogurt, fruit, bagels, salmon spread, etc. We had some initiation activities throughout the day, which included a maths test to tell us whether or not we were allowed to take higher level maths. However, the fun and important stuff began when we went to camp. They gave us a large, trash-sized, plastic bag for us to put everything we needed for three days, and then we were off on a three-hour bus ride.
When we got the campsite, a scary, for lack of a better word, second year came onto the bus, and she screamed, "Go get your bags, stand in line, don't talk or make noise, and don't laugh. If you do, you'll have to do pushups." I definitely witnessed someone who had to drop down and give her ten. I had a mini heart attack because I was so afraid that's what all of camp would be like, but, thankfully, it wasn't like that at all. It was amazingly fun!
We walked inside, set down our bags, and were instructed to sit down. Fun music played, and the second years' smiles were all back. They laughed, danced, and put on a show for us. We were then given time to settle into our rooms and meet our roommates. Throughout camp, we had six activities that we did with the same group. The activities were: walking, coasteering (where we got to dive off of a cliff and climb around the rocks on the coastline. We even got to swim in a cave! This was my favorite activity by far!), surfing, kayaking, environmental work, and games. All of the activities were incredible, and it was the experience of a lifetime. On top of this, at night, we also had a talent show and a different show where everyone sang their national anthems. The United States went first with this because, obviously, we're the best. Just kidding. But there really are so many stereotypes about us. I have had to tell a lot of people that not everyone in the United States likes Trump and watches Fox news. THIS IS WHAT THE WORLD THINKS OF US, GUYS.
Throughout all of camp, they only played a couple of songs on repeat, which I don't understand the point of... the only explanation I can think of is brainwashing. Which explains why we were also deprived of sleep. It worked. We all came back loving UWC.
When we got back to the school, we had to go to initiation for faculties and all of the classes we could take. I ended up choosing higher level economics, global politics, English language and literature, and standard level maths, Spanish B, and chemistry.
The faculty choices are extra amazing. You can choose from being in outdoor, social justice, global, or environmental faculty. Within social justice, we were introduced to music therapy, in which music is used to help autistic children and elderly people with dementia. I was so inspired afterward, and, thankfully, I was selected to participate.
UWC has been absolutely amazing thus far. We started school on Friday, but on top of that, I went to our first social, went late night swimming, and stayed up late many nights talking about the world with people from all over. It has all been so beautiful and fun. I'll definitely keep you posted about everything, especially music therapy, activities, and classes!
Here are some pictures:
This is the castle
From coasteering at camp (I actually made friends wearing this helmet, surprisingly!)
The seafront outside of the castle
The view is absolutely gorgeous here
In front of the castle
This is the picture of the view! I can't get over how beautiful it is!
Until next time!
