Dear Cecilia,

Canterbury is such a mix. My first morning in the main city center, surrounded by medieval and Tudor townhouses, I thought I heard horse hooves on the cobble stones behind me, but it was just the rolling wheels of a suitcase: another tourist passing. Huma's family gets the Hangover on TV but amazes at M&M's, a rare candy for London. Meanwhile a white haired gentleman in a three piece suit strolls out of McDonalds... juxtapositions like that abound.

Similarly, I spend my day time waking slowly, reading, contemplating time and space, and finding footpaths in the woods. While at night, the campus hosts tons of bar parties for freshmen (freshers) and foreign exchange students so that we all can meet and jive before classes begin next week. Suddenly metaphysical reflections are tossed in the "rubbish bin" and its all "Do I look cute?" and "Is he going to kiss me?" and I am thrown back into some pubescent state of mind.

What can I say about it as a whole? There are too many disjointed pieces for a summation. I'm thankful to be here, and sad that its only for one term. I can't say that I miss home yet. But it's only been a week that I've been away, so I suspect I will have many phases.

Take care, Woman.

Reach for the stars,

SJ