Sitting in my bedroom in the heart of
the English countryside (NOT Wales, however close those
mountains are), while the sun sets and cows moo their gentle moo outside my
window, it feels like the right time to actually properly, genuinely and
sincerely realise that this time next week (three days to be precise), the
scene before me shall be one of the slightest difference.
Well, make it a few thousand miles, an
ocean, and a whole new accent different.
Canada. The land of the Moose (indeed,
an animal whose namesake very nearly made it into the title of this blog…lucky
escape), the Bear and the Maple Tree. To me, they sound like three
crucial elements everyone needs on their year abroad to make it one to
remember…
To cover the basics if unknown… my time
in that part of the world shall be a year of studying the intricacies of the
Canadian legal system – fascinating, I’m sure – while living it up in the
country’s capital (Ottawa by the way. Not Vancouver. Not Toronto. Ottawa).
Alright I guess.
So, the first thought that comes to me
during this moment of deep pondering is the accent. I am one for loving a
well-spoken English accent. Thus, it is no lie that what nine months
spent in the midst of Canadian twangs shall do to corrupt my own is quite an
undeniable anxiety (if three months spent in the Deep South of the USA are
anything to go by anyway, it’s worrying).
Of course, to say this issue of the
beloved accent is the ultimate uncertainty over what will happen during my year
abroad is to place far too great a weight on this slight, in reality
peripheral, aspect of my fast approaching year away (particularly when I have
friends going to countries speaking other languages. I have total and utter
respect for you.) The larger concepts of such an adventure go much
deeper. How could they not. More than simply making a
potential employer go ‘oooh how interesting! I went to Canada once…’ and
promptly offer me the job on the spot. I wish.
What shall arise to challenge me and
force me to grow and learn is yet to be discovered. About myself,
other cultures etc etc, yes yes Exeter University, those are indeed the
meaningful reasons for which I am departing…of course not to just have an
exciting foreign adventure, a re-freshers year and pretty much as many holidays
I can fit in while I’m out there… And if I
happen to find time between my travelling, skiing, syrup eating, bear hunting
and befriending of Eskimos (Inuits, I know.), this blog shall be on the
receiving end of my tales.
Get excited.
