Home from Home

I made a trip back home to London last weekend and began to think about the idea of home. What makes somewhere feel like home? My room in Aarhus is beginning to feel more like home but I don't feel settled just yet. 

Flying back into London in the pouring rain and traveling on the underground made me feel like I'd come home. For some reason I can appreciate British rain more than I can Danish rain because it feels more familiar. Danish rain makes getting to lectures on my bike much more difficult, though the Danes seem to have fully equipped themselves for such weather and just get on with it. This week saw me attempt to get to lectures in the pouring rain and in record time, due to the fact that I left too late, only for the chain to come off my bike leaving me with no choice but to run the rest of the way. I turned up completely soaking wet with oil all over my hands and sweating profusely, not the best impression to give to your lecturer when the only seats left are those in the front row.

When I got into London on Friday it was pouring with rain but I felt almost comforted by the normality of it. It only became a problem when I was on the way to the theatre with my boyfriend and I realised that I'd got the address wrong. We were on the wrong side of the river with limited time to get to the show. We had to rush to the West End and it was too windy to use my umbrella meaning that we turned up at the theatre soaking wet. Well what did I expect? It seems that it doesn't matter where I am, I nearly always get lost, get the address wrong or become hindered on my way somewhere. Needless to say my boyfriend thought it was hilarious that I'd got it wrong yet again and we had to rush, but it was a trip to see 'War Horse' for his birthday so he let it go eventually.

Traveling through London to Twickenham also felt like home because of the sheer politeness of everyone on the tube. It reminded me of the twitter account '@VeryBritishProblems'. I witnessed the perfect embodiment of this when I was waiting in the queue to use the toilet at Waterloo station. There was a woman trying to come out and there was another woman blocking her way. The poor woman proceeded to say 'excuse me', 'excuse me please' in the quietest voice she could, whilst getting more and more frustrated. Eventually the woman who was obstructing her path noticed this woman's existence and annoyance and apologised. I don't think this situation would happen in any other country. It's these little things which I miss. Although we seem to make life difficult for ourselves in the UK, I feel lost in Denmark without the 'pleases', 'thank yous', polite smiles, opening doors for others and having doors held open for me.

On Friday I had a record day as I managed to meet up with one of my best friends in her lunch break, meet my family for lunch and meet my boyfriend for the evening. It was so nice to catch up with so many people in one day. It was also really nice because I realised that in the time I've been away I've actually managed to keep up to date with most of my loved ones and perhaps more so than when I was living in Southampton. Home is definitely where the heart is. It's only when you're at home, in the company of those you love that you can completely relax.

I feel very lucky that I was able to go home last week and feel a whole new appreciation for the fact that I'm not that far from home, because many of my coursemates have told me that they will not be going home until 2015, when we finish. I think for them the process of making Aarhus their home is a lot more important. That's not to say that I haven't begun to do that too.

Risskov forest

In the past week I've thought about how long it took for me to feel at home in Southampton. It's not quite the same because I spent three years there and in hindsight I tend to only think of the good times but I think I settled in quicker than I have here. One thing that really helped was the Students' Union building, the real hub of student community and activity. They just don't have that here at Aarhus University. We don't have a central space with cafes and facilities for students here. There's the University park, the Studenterhus (Students' House) and cafes at the State Library and International Centre but there is not a concourse or variety of societies and facilities. The Danish equivalent is perhaps their faculty Friday bars which are based in their faculty buildings and have their own character. I am really missing mingling with people from different subjects and taking part in student led activities. The Students' Union at Southampton felt like home to me.

Here in Aarhus I have begun to make close friendships and we have been organising our own activities like baking or making dinner together and we have even participated in Swing dance nights around the city. I think many of us like to keep busy so in the absence of activities organised by the University we have been making Aarhus homely in other ways.

Chocolate yoghurt cake :)

In a bid to keep myself active and to relieve stress I am running more. I went for a run in Risskov forest today, which is up the road from my halls. I used to run a lot so when I go out and run it feels like an extension of me and whilst I run I can make sense of both my surroundings and my feelings. Also this is the first time in three years that I've had so much free time, enough to actually be able to go running and focus on myself a bit more. I should probably make the most of it. 

I know that living abroad has both ups and downs, it can feel very lonely at times but equally I am surrounded by so many coursemates with whom I have a lot in common. I have a lot of work to do and it sometimes feels very difficult but equally I have a lot of time and so should do the things that make me happy like baking and running (not at the same time).

Coffee and Cake with friends

Living in a new place, making new friendships and working hard is difficult because it means that I have to reassess my values and my identity to some extent. This course is full of the people who were just like me at their universities- the ones who took opportunities and worked hard. I have to figure out where I fit in. It's been one huge learning curve so far and I'm sure that it will continue to test me. There are times that I really miss home but I have to remind myself that I am doing this because it's different and is supposed to be a challenge.