Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Expanding my vocab

Well, as I stated before I am living with two Australian girls. So, needless to say, I am learning some new sayings/words. I thought I would share them all with you. I will continually add as I hear more. Also, the vocab I am learning from the British or Europeans.

**Note: if you ever meet an Australian, ask them to say squirrel. They say it funny! They actually pronounce the i, where as we don't.

Australian
Mozzies = mosquitoes
Bogan = redneck, hillbilly, wigga, trailer trash, etc.
Stop grizzling = stop complaining
Going off like a bucket of prawns in the sun = going really well
Giving me the shits = annoying me
Full as a fat girl’s sock = stuffed full
Devo = devastated
Servo = service (gas) station
Dero = derelict, which also means abandoned
Bangers and mash = sausage and mashed potato
Heaps = loads
Bits = Like I love you to bits. They say bits a lot.  
Bathers or togs or cosi = swimsuit
Quilt = comforter
Biccie = bisquit
Sheila = woman
Bloke = man
Blugder = lazy person
Bodgy/Dodgy/Shonky = bad
Dunny or brick shit house = toilet
You’re built like a brick shit house = really strong
Bored shitless = really really bored
Brekkie = breakfast
Sparkie = electrician
Chook = chicken
Cutting their lunch = stealing someone’s girlfriend/boyfriend
Stubbie = beer bottle
Mad as a cut snake = angry
Spat the dummy = hissy fit
Dag = weirdo
Dead set = true
You got tickets on yourself = you’re conceited
You little bugger = you little shit
Dill = idiot
To dob on someone = tattle tale
Doovalacky = thingamajiggy
Stunned mullet = senseless fish
Durry = cigarette
On your bike = get lost
Dole bludger = person who lives off welfare
Did you see her Tasmania = …..well Tasmania devils live down south….
Earbashing = talkative
Fuck me dead = oh my gosh!
Flat out like a lizard drinking = really busy
Feral = hick
Gobsmacked = surprised
See you round like a rissole = see you later
Give it a burl = give it a go
Buggered = tired
Got a few kangaroos lose in the top paddock = you’re crazy
Larrikin = prankster
Shit a brick = wow!
Happy as larry = very happy
To have a lend of someone = taking advantage of someone’s gullibility
Mongrel = despicable person
Piece of piss = easy
Shit for brains = stupid
Pigs arse! = yah right
Let fluffy off the chain = farted
Pommie = English person
Porky = lie
Possie = position
On the piss = drinking
Every man and his dog = everyone
He is blotto = completely wasted
Rat bag = terror
Give us a gander = give me a look
On her rags = on her period
Ridgy-Didge = genuine
Drongo = idiot
She’ll be right mate! = she okay
Slow coach = slow poke
Rock up = to arrive
Sanger = sandwich
Shark biscuit = a new surfer
Hit the turps = go drinking
Dog’s breakfast = a mess
Two bob short of a pound = slow stupid
You’ve got a wog = sick
Yakka = work
He hasn’t got a brass razoo/hasn’t got two sticks to rub together = he’s dirt poor
Zed = Z
His bloods worth bottling = he’s really good
Bush bash = country (offroad) driving
Budgie smugglers = speedos ßBAHAHAHA
You’ve got buckleys = no chance
To have a blue = fight
Mean as cats piss = nasty!
Aggro = aggravated
Big smoke = the city
Billabong = water hole
Bottle = liquor store
Bust = broke
Full as a boot = really drunk
Get stuffed = go away
Grose = very good
Go for broke = risk everything
Hard yacka = hard worker
Go ass up = messed up real bad
Hooroo = good bye
Jumbuck = sheep
Larrikin = mischievous guy
Oldies = parents
A polly = politician
Rack off = go away
You little ripper/ you little beauty = great, terrific
She’ll be apples = all is well
Strine = British Australian
Ta = thank you
Having a yarn = reading a story
Ankle biter = child

British
Going out on the lash = out drinking
Slammer = jail
Chav or chaver = uneducated, babies really young, etc.
Well fit = very attractive
Naff = bad
Canny = mixture of very and good/pretty
Bent = gay
Necking = kissing
Brown sauce = barbeque
Shag = sex
Fringe = bangs (like hair bangs)
Mince = ground beef
Quid = like bucks, slang for pounds (British currency)
Snogging = kissing
Fag = cig

European/Australian
Mobile = cell

Monday, October 18, 2010

The Start of Something New

After spending a month with my old friend Isabella and her mom and brother in Basel Switzerland, I embarked upon a new culture: England. I left Basel by train by myself (!) September 17th as Isabella and her mom, Barbara saw me off. It was the coolest thing ever, sitting on the train all stressed out , and Isa automatically made me feel happy when she started running beside the train so I could smile, laugh, and wave goodbye to her for a bit longer. Awe, I miss my Swiss family! Switzerland was a good time, I enjoyed it very much. I got to Zurich about 2 ½ hours before my flight left, but had a lot of complications because I had no idea which gate my flight was leaving from—my ticket was blank on that spot. Waiting, watching the board, waiting, watching the board, finally its 45 min til my flight is supposed to leave and I’m freaking out. So I finally go ask someone at the information desk, found after much wandering with all my heavy luggage, but it got all figured out and it was fine. Then, after arriving in London-Heathrow so I could catch a connecting flight to Newcastle, I decided I hate this airport and it’s much too complicated. Luckily, I was in the same terminal for my connecting flight but if you ever need to change terminals you have to allow a few hours layover. Also, some connecting flights leave from a different London airport all together; thank goodness I didn’t have to deal with that! While at Heathrow, I had to go through security two times! Even though I’d already been through it in Zurich! Plus, they took my picture. Plus, I was asked so many times to show my boarding pass and my passport and I had my things manually checked ANOTHER two times! Apparently I look like a terrorist?
So I arrive in the small Newcastle airport and am greeted by two girls from my university. They send me over to a desk where other exchange students arriving that day are also waiting. Then, in groups or 3-4 people, they send us to our accommodations at the University of Sunderland. I went in a cab with two Germans. We chatted a bit, but really my mind was focused on not getting sick. I was all sweaty from the stress and nerves and I was also riding backwards in the taxi van…..AND they drive on the wrong side of the road! When I got to Clanny House, my uni accommodations for three months, we all went to the receptionist desk to check in and get our key. Well, I had to que (British English for waiting in line) for a really long time and then finally it was my turn. Well, my Swiss family didn’t have a working printer so I didn’t have my accommodations contract printed off so I just wrote all the info down and figured that showing my passport would work fine. Apparently not! So they made me wait for another hour and a half before they finally allowed me in their office to pull my contract up from my email and print it. Then, they didn’t even keep the thing! I was so mad! But it all worked out okay. A nice young man whose job is like a resident assistant, helped me carry my things to my flat (British English for apartment). And thus began my new lifestyle in England.
When I first arrived, I went into the kitchen. There I met two of my flatmates: Christina and Birthe, both girls who go to the same university in Germany. They were so nice! When they found out I was an American, they were super excited! Apparently they hate British accents and in school, they learn British English. They loved my accent and loved American words! So I have promised them to teach them the American ways. They’re so cute, I was shocked, but it just makes me laugh. And from there I met my other flatmates. There is Justin from Vancouver, Canada. Helen from Kentucky, U.S.A. Jasmin and Emma from Adelaide, Australia. One guy and 6 girls. We get along great; I really love my flatmates—couldn’t have asked for better ones!
Now, I must describe my flat. There are a total of four floors. The first floor includes my room and the kitchen/lounge. The kitchen includes four chairs with a coffee table, and then a kitchen with a bar and three stools. There are two fridges, except they’re rather narrow and more than half of each is freezer space. It included an old school toaster and a microwave. The oven is really small and is actually divided in two: half grill and half oven. The four stove tops take forever to heat up. We all like to hang out here pretty much every evening.  My room includes a single bed, two separate windows, a desk with a chair, a four drawer dresser, 3 book shelves on the walls, a wardrobe, and a sink. The sink is weird because the there are two separate fossets for warm and cold. There is also a heater that will only turn on for two hours tops before turning off. Each time I turn it on, it makes all these old heater sounds and clicks and then goes BANG after a few minutes! Like Uncle Bucks’ car in the movie. I still haven’t gotten use to it and I jump every time.  The second floor includes the Jasmin and Helen’s rooms, a toilet room with a teeny tiny sink, and another room with a shower, sink and a closet with cleaning utilities like the mop, broom and vacuum. The third floor is Emma’s room and the German girls’ room (they share) along with another toilet room. The fourth floor is Justin’s room, a shower room, a toilet room, and another empty bedroom. We are supposed to have another flatmate, but he/she STILL hasn’t arrived!
The University of Sunderland is made up of two different campuses. There is St. Peters on the river and the City Campus. Clanny House is like a 20-25 min. walk from the City Campus and 40-45 to St. Peters. There is a free shuttle bus that runs between all the accommodations and campuses, but it only sits 17 so sometimes you may que for a long time. Of course, all my classes are at St. Peters so I usually take the metro if the bus is full and I’m running behind. Basically, I always leave an hour before my class actually starts. The University is very “green.” Everyone recycles. Recycle bins are everywhere! And there are signs to do so in all of our flats too.
This semester I am taking three classes: Principles of Marketing, Introduction to Media and Culture and the Animated Film. Their university system is much different than back home. Here, three classes is the norm for loaded classes. It equals 15 credit hours to my home university (12 is full time at Wichita State). Marketing is the only class that actually has to do with my major, the other two are just for fun. Surprisingly, Marketing is my favorite class! I love my lecturer! And yes, they don’t call them professors, but lecturers. Each class (they call them modules here), has a lecture, just like your typical university class in the states. Everyone must attend this lecture. Then, we are separated into workshop/lab/seminar groups, which are a more intimate classroom setting and often led by someone different than who led the lecture. Because of this difference in the education system, I still have to have a class schedule on me at all times to make sure I am going to the right classes. On Mondays is my culture lecture for an hour, followed by a culture seminar led by a different lecturer. The seminars are basically splitting us up into groups of no more than 25 to go over and discuss what was learned in the lecture. It involves a lot of classroom participating and public speaking on the student’s part. Mondays I also have my one hour lecture for Marketing. Tuesdays I have my workshop for Marketing for two hours; I took the workshop led by the same lecturer who does our lecture classes because he’s just so awesome. On Tuesday evenings, I have a three hour screen section in the media center cinema for my Animated Film class. Wednesdays is my one hour lecture and one hour seminar for the media part of my Intro to Media and Culture class. Again, led by different people. I also have a two hour workshop for my Animated Film class where we discuss the makings of the animated film and the hidden meanings behind them. Thursday and Fridays, since I am one lucky son-of-a-gun, I have free! So, even though I’m only taking three classes, I’m actually all over campus for a good part of the day Monday through Wednesdays.
I haven’t really explored much of Sunderland yet. I have absolutely no sense of direction and I’m just happy I know how to get around as much as I do! There’s a big shopping area nearby the main campus, so if I ever need anything, that’s where I go! I’ve been to the beach, since Sunderland is right on the coast, but that’s about it so far for the local things. I plan to eventually attend a soccer (football!) game as well, since Sunderland does have a team. So far I really like Sunderland though, but as my flatmate described it, “it’s mordor” when you compare it to other places I’ve seen in the UK. LOL
German flatmates Christina and Birthe before going out

Helen, Emma, and Jas hanging out at the Sunderland beach....before they got wet!

The waves were crazy wild!

Jasmin, Helen, Emma and Justin. Hanging out a pub in Edinburgh

Monday, October 11, 2010

The three W’s: Weather, Words and what you Wear

                 I supposed the first thing I should mention about my new life in England is the weather, the usual thing that first comes to mind when discussing the UK. And yes, it’s true. The weather is bloody awful but it’s not as bad as I imagined. Now Sunderland is in the north east of England, just a bit south of the boarder of Scotland. It’s right on the coast; I see seagulls all the time.  But the sun….well, what sun? I can’t see it. It’s basically always cloudy here. Of course, I am here during the fall season so I can’t speak for the rest of the year, but so far the sun has only come out to play a few times now. Yes, it does rain a lot, but it’s more like a on and off sprinkle. That, I can handle. With the sun trying to get through the wall of clouds at times, it can be warm in the sun. But it’s chilly in the shade. Basically, you must always carry an umbrella, jacket, and sunglasses on you at all times. A bit of a pain if you ask me. On a sad note though, it’s really cold at night. The first night I was here I turned on the heater!
                Another thing is the accents. I generally understand everyone except when they speak really fast or use their slang. For example, I hear people refer to chavs. I had no idea what they were so I asked. Apparently they are a working class youth that is associated with aggression, poor education and have “common” taste in clothing and lifestyle. And, depending on where you’re from, you’ll say it as charver. So these chavs are kind of like the bunt of every joke really. British also call pants as trousers, sweaters are jumpers, cells are mobiles, fries are chips, chips are crisps, duvets are comforters, and the list goes on. You will also hear them say cheers a lot. It can mean what we know as cheers when drinking, but commonly used as a way of saying thank you or good bye. My favorite encounter so far was when I held the door open for this decent looking British bloke and he said, “cheers, love” I about died!! Loved it! The British also spell things differently, but it’s quite close to the American spelling so it’s not hard to figure out. There’s colour, flavour, neighbour, favourite, centre (center), tyre (tire), fayre (fair), and so forth. Europeans learn British English, not American English so they also learn these spellings and use of words, but they do know American slang from our Hollywood movies.
                I hate to touch clothing style since I don’t really have much of one back home anyways but I will say a bit about it. Europeans, for one, do NOT wear sweats out in public like Americans do. They always look nice. Even if it’s for a short walk to the gas station to get a can of soda, they will look nice doing it. The main fad I’ve really seen is girls wearing skinny jeans or leggings/tights with boots, flats, converse or sandals (NOT flip flops!). They also don’t wear t-shirts or tennis shoes. Everything is generally fitted. Here I’ve seen locals wearing belly showing shirts, which is absolutely ridiculous considering how cold I think it is, but I’ve also heard that people outside the area makes fun of these people so I’m glad to hear it’s not a normal thing in the UK. I can’t really say much for guys. I can’t really tell the difference except for no sweats as I’ve said before. Less casualness about them, they’re more retro I think. But really, as usual, guys can get away with whatever really without standing out too much.

Sunday, October 10, 2010

A few pictures from Switzerland

Vineyard in Basel. Vineyards could be seen everywhere on the hills in Switzerland
Touching the tip of the Matterhorn mountain peak

Kissing the Swiss cow in Zermatt

The first bridge to cross the Rhine River. Taken in Basel.

The WTO center is in Geneva

Standing in front of the Jet d'Eau in Geneva

I sprout water!

In front of the monument that represents where three countries meet: Germany, France and Switzerland

America: a protective bubble that keeps us ignorant and naïve of the rest of the world

So I am currently in Sunderland England right now and have already started school, but since I’m a little behind on my blog I’m going to say some more about things I learned in Switzerland and then I’ll update later about my first few days in England later. FYI, the following information isn’t organized very well, just random information.
As I said many times, Switzerland is really expensive. Let me emphasize that one more time to make sure you understood me: Switzerland is really expensive.
Okay, now that you know that Switzerland is really expensive, I may continue. One thing I found really different was how the trash service worked. Now, we pay the trash service once a month and they usually come by once a week to take out all of our trash. In Switzerland, you pay PER bag. You fill a standard sized trash bag, put a label on it, and are charged per bag. Obviously, that will add up to a lot of money if you are not wary of the amount of waste you go through. They also stress recycling, which will also help save you in taking out the trash (aka spend more money). When wanting to get rid of big things, someone comes by two times a year to retrieve such trash….or maybe it was metal? Anyways, my point is that you have to be extremely careful with the amount of trash you go through and you can’t just get rid of things. So, being a country girl, I had asked my Swiss mom “Well, why can’t you just have a community trash burning tin if it costs so much?” Well, apparently Switzerland is also regulating the amounts of carbon dioxide that is released into the air. Burning your trash is against the law because Switzerland is so environmentally friendly. Interesting huh? Now, I’m so aware of how easily I fill up my trash can and I feel so terrible about it. I waste so easily and do not think anything of it. I know Americans are pushing for recycling and that is something we do at my parent’s house, but still. We fill up the trashcan pretty fast regardless. Another thing to mention, they do not have garbage disposals in their sinks, so they cannot cheat the system that way either.
There’s also regular (annually, biannually, etc.) checkups on cars and chimneys so make sure they are also not excess emissions of carbon dioxide in those. None of those big pickup gas eaters will be found in Switzerland. All cars are as small and compact as possible, depending on the need per family. Even if the family does have a car, it probably is not used daily. Bikes, walking, or public transportation (tram, bus, train or even taxi) is the most efficient way to travel.
Bathrooms. If you are ever in Switzerland and are in the search for one, it can be found by looking for the two letters WC. And from there, they are of course labeled by the usual gender separation by the male and female pictures.
Back home in the states, we call it “military time.” But in Europe, time is usually always listed on the 24 hour scale. There is no PM, it is 13:00. You will notice this most especially on public transportation time listings. Sadly, I have to admit that even being a military brat, I still have to subtract any time existing in the PM by 12 so I know what time it is.
A few times I would wake up early in the morning or had time to myself while Isa was in a sport practice, so I would take a walk around the neighborhood. Usually only walks that involved as few turns as possible, because we all know how directionally challenged I am. My favorite part was going to this forest hill next to the flower field and listen to the clanking sounds of the bells tied up around the necks of goats. I couldn’t ever see them, just hear. But I loved it! It always made me think of Heidi! Anyhow, back to my point, on my walks I would be by myself and often see other individual walkers on my path. As part of the culture I was brought up in, usually such circumstances would incline me to say hello or smile and nod at such said stranger. I would do so and they would simply: 1)ignore me and continue to stare straight ahead and continue on their way 2)give an awkward hello that came out like pulling teeth 3)the stranger would give me a puzzled look followed by an expression that screamed, “who the hell is this person?!” I learned fast it was not part of the culture to do such things. It’s hard to fight the natural impulse, but I really didn’t want something ELSE to label me as an obvious foreigner.
Fast food, if you think about it, can easily be a symbol of the US whether Americans like it or not. It represents how we are always on the go and are always in need of shortcuts. Also, we eat it a lot. In other words though, we enjoy our conveniences and anything that makes life easier. This is also represented on items such as….well let’s say the bagel cutters contraptions. Instead of simple taking a knife doing it by our own hands, we made up an invention where you place a bagel in a box thing and push down the handle to cut the bagel in two perfect halves. OR the bagel already came precut! We simply never do things ourselves from scratch; we have all these ways to make processes faster and easier on us. But back to fast food, Swiss people do not normally go out for meals. It costs too much! Not only that, if you forgot an ingredient for your casserole you were making at 9 at night, too bad so sad! The stores will already be closed! They are no Wal Mart stores conveniently open 24/7 for such needs.
Now, Switzerland is absolutely gorgeous! It really, really is. But, in my opinion, if you ever want to go with the whole family (spouse and kids), I recommend not. Well, unless you have a ton of money to waste, then go ahead. Switzerland is notorious for their very good public transportation system. You go anywhere quite easily, which is very appealing for tourists. What’s the catch? It also cost a lot. We were in Basel which is at the very top north of Switzerland where France and Germany meet and traveling down to Zermatt along the south boarder near Italy. For one person, a round trip was 218 CHF (Swiss francs). Well, I don’t remember the price, but I just looked it up online and that was what it was listed at. Thanks goodness Switzerland is small otherwise a tourist would be broke after trying to see all of this beautiful country! If you DO ever visit the lovely Swiss land, I encourage you get a foreigner’s flexi pass. There are many options but I choose the 3 day one. This allows me to pick any 3 days in a month’s period to travel anywhere on public transportation without paying extra. All the other days, I would only pay ½ fares. Downside was I always had to carry the pass and my passport around in order to get these deals, otherwise I would get a hefty fee from the controller. The pass cost me about 250 CHF if I remember correctly, and saved me a lot in the long running!
                Europeans are also much more open about changing in public. I remember when my family visited Europe in 2001, we went to a public pool in Germany. The changing room was not separated by genders. Despite being only 11 at the time, I still insisted on privacy and my sister hold up a towel while I changed to block me from others’ view while I changed. This, more then anything, drew everyone’s attention at my odd behavior. Isa’s softball team would also just change from their day clothing to practice outfit right there on the field. The men’s baseball team too. Cups and all Isa told me. It’s just part of the European culture to be more open about such things.
                On that note, I would like to add that the one thing I really WILL NOT miss from being in that part of Europe is greeting/saying farewell to people by the kisses on the cheeks. Depending on where you’re from, its either 2 or 3 kisses. In Switzerland, it was 3. It was so unnatural for me and felt weird to be kissing people I just met on the cheeks not once, but THREE times!