O, Canadaaaa

When people ask how our year abroad is going, I think it’s safe to say all of us exchange students reply with a simple “good thanks!”, with maybe a quick update on the weather if you’re lucky (hint: it’s always bloody freezing). So, in order to kick-start this blog back into action, I thought I’d give you all the reality of what it’s really like to be an English student from University of Leeds stumbling around Canada, lost, confused, and in a perpetual state of overexcitement…

The Good

Good rhymes with food, and that’s not a coincidence. Poutine. Perogies. Maple Syrup (Maple everything, actually, even baked beans, a product I can’t ever see myself complaining about – see letter to Heinz below). Beaver Tails. Cotton Candy icecream. Donuts. There’s so much good food in Canada it’s hard to talk about much else, but here’s just a few more highlights: 

 Working the accent. People are a lot more generous when you’re a ‘posh’ English bird. The only downside to this is that the guy at Tim Horton’s always looks shocked when I ask for coffee, stating “you don’t want tea and scooooones instead?” in an awful parody of my accent. The upside is us English speakers (and a good Canadian friend of mine who does a great fake) have got multiple free drinks for acting confused and extraordinarily British in clubs, saving lots of time and money queuing at the bar ourselves (high score: 7 free shots).

     The YOLO effect. Yes, I do hate myself for saying that, and, like all of us who have sunk into this trap, I used to just say it as a mockery of those who did, and now I’ve gone and become one of them. But this year is just pass/fail, and that means YOLO is said on a daily basis. Go out for dinner every other night? Why not. Spontaneous night out with an 8:30 start the next day? Go for it. Quick trip to Montreal for the weekend? YOLO, my friend, is the answer you are looking for.

The Bad

Culture shock. Something we all mocked at the start, but actually manifested in me as embarrassingly, melodramatically, and unnecessarily screaming at anything and everything. Luckily this only lasted the first few days, but unfortunately meant that everyone’s first impression of me was some girlish weirdo who was everything-phobic for no good reason.

Good food in Canada didn’t come without its sacrifices. Say goodbye to decent cheese, chocolate, a good cuppa tea and cheap alcohol. Lambrini, I miss you, you are so fiendishly cheap and tasty.

Under-estimating the cold on a trip to Algonquin during Fall break. My good friend Madie and I almost lost our nips that week. Big shout out to our team leader Jon Reed, who waited until the end of the freezin’ trip to casually mention he had hand and foot warmers the whole time.

   The Just Plain Ugly

Making friends with new people, then discovering that those new people like board games. Playing Risk for four hours on end, a joyless game ending with bitter resentment, broken friendships, and Risk-induced hysteria for those players such as me who were out after the first hour but stupidly stayed for all four. I realise that many people don't share this opinion, but the nob who said "a bit of competition never hurt anybody" was clearly a champ, because when people start losing, a friendly board  game can get very ugly. 

      Goodbyes (mainly because everyone looks ugly when they cry, even the hot one in Bridesmaids). Even if they do love board games and drive me slightly insane with week-long fights over a second-hand stuffed monkey from Value Village (don’t get me started), the people I’ve met so far are irreplaceable, just like the ones back home, and splitting off to go our separate ways at the end of the year is something I for one am dreading (and may possibly cope with by writing another, soppier blog article when the time comes).

So, to conclude, life in Canada is pretty incredible so far, as even the bad times have turned out to be hilarious bonding experiences. Besides, what kind of student really needs sleep (or nips) anyway, eh?

4Talent: Acting and Presenting

I know what you’re thinking. I don’t want to be an actor or presenter! Everyone who’s read this blog, or any of my stuff, knows by now that I want to be a writer. However, applications opened at a time when the phrase YOLO was echoing down every hall at uni, so I thought I may aswell apply, as I loved the last 4Talent day.  I knew that I would never ever get it, my experience being limited to that one time I jazz danced on Smile with Reggie and Fearne (yes, I am cringing as I type this).

Yet by some twist of fate I was somehow accepted. And by another, equally twisted turn of fate, one  of the workshops offered on the 4talent day was ‘Comedy Sketch Writing’, along with the terrifying ‘Introduction to Acting’ and ‘Television Presenting’. So I found myself sitting, yawning, on a five hour Megabus heading from Leeds to London, possibly heading towards disaster – I envisioned myself being accidentally placed in the Acting workshop, having to do some sort of mad improvisational performances in front of some very serious, smirking actors who could tell I was just an amateur that had blindly stumbled in by accident.

However, despite me being overdramatic (ironic, I know), the day was a blast from start to finish. Upon arrival, we were given one half of a pair on a label, an ‘ice-breaking’ activity. I got given roll. And therefore instantly embarrassed myself by, instead of thinking of media-esque partnerships (it was rock, of course), my stomach took over my brain as I exclaimed ‘Oh, am I looking for sausage?’ Tragic.

Yet an hour later I had forgotten all about this euphemism, as I was sat gawking three rows back from the beautiful Zawe Ashton, who plays one of the best characters of all time, Vod from Fresh Meat. Telling us about her former roles, which primarily consisted of prostitutes and crack whores, and how her dad’s raised eyebrow gave her the incentive to strive for more, I just sat there dumbfounded that she was actually in the same room as me. I half expected her to do something Vodlike: jump on the nearest table and release a stream of fake blood from her knickers, or light a spliff in the middle of her talk, but she was completely normal (if amazing and hilarious and inspiring are listed next to normal in the dictionary).

The day followed just as magically, with a workshop with two brilliant comedy sketch writers who taught us the tricks of the trade, and engaged us in some hilarious activities which proved that anyone who has ever been in an awkward or ridiculous situation can probably make a sketch out of it.

At the end of the day we were in for another treat: multiple famous people! There were actors from Run, Mogadishu, Hollyoaks, and Skins, and many other t.v. shows which I forgot to take note of in my excitement (and whilst hastily trying to take sneaky photos of them...what?). Being a bit of a loser, I could think of nothing intelligent to ask them, and their hilarity intimidated me, so I just hid at the back and let the real actors amongst us ask all the clever questions.

Overall, it was a bloody brilliant day. Other highlights include a talk from the casting director of Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, and some very useful advice from a top agent. Whilst the idea of acting still terrifies me, I admire those who strive to do it, as I didn’t realise what hard work it actually is. Good luck to all you aspiring actors and presenters, and hopefully I’ll be writing your lines in the future!