"I Love Americans!"

Hello family and friends!

I arrived in England safely and have been here for three days, but it feels like two weeks. The English are extremely friendly and I have heard, "I love Americans!" four times already. It's nice to have praise and excitement everytime an English student or staff member hears one of us American students speak. Very different, but we're eating it up. There are no huge cultural differences to note yet; however, I'm sure as the days go on with all of the English students arriving, there will be a new one daily.

Ormskirk is a beautiful market town and the safest city in England, which is reassuring for me, and I'm sure you as well. So far, there have been many trips into town because it only takes about ten minutes to walk there and it has many pubs, shops, and exciting, fun-loving locals. Football (soccer) is all the rage here with the Uni students and most of them are in the Student Union right now watching a match. At the S.U., alcohol is served almost any time of the day and there is a club in the back, separate from the eating area--much different than the Eagles Nest back home. We have also been warned that the alcohol is twice as strong here than in the States; but, if you don't drink, then it's not a problem and it's also a lot cheaper. I'll save the money I don't spend on alcohol on trendy English fashion statements so I can bring them back and start new fads.

So far, I have visited Conway, Wales--an adorably quaint town about two hours from here. All of us American students traveled together on a Coach that the school provided and spent the day there. A huge castle sits at the corner of town and the whole village is surrounded by castle walls. All the streets are cobblestone and there are many shops with intricate detailing around the windows and roofs. It looked like a scene from a Disney movie. Right outside one of the castle walls is a waterfront where many people were fishing for crabs. Since it was a tourist sight, there were also many families who brought dogs on their trip. It reminded me of home to see the little puppies, which was nice.

"Take an umbrella." I probably heard that twelve times before I left for England. I did bring one; however, it has not rained yet. The beginning of school should be sunny, though. We're all still optomistic about our studies and this school year. Once the exams come, then the rain is sure to follow.

I have more than enough photos to upload; however, I forgot to bring my connector to the library. I plan to blog nearly everyday, though, so photos will be coming soon. This is the first time in three days that I've had Internet access, so typing alone is a real treat.

Peace.