hello, leeds.

I’ve finally made it to Leeds.  Technically, my arrival in Leeds was hours ago but who’s really counting?  The flight from Vancouver to Manchester was only 9 hours in length but it felt like an eternity.  Crying children and extremely limited space - yeah, it wasn’t the greatest.  I’ve never been that squished on a flight before and I’ve even got bruises on my knees.  I landed around 9am in Manchester and after sorting out my way to Leeds, I was off.  

Driving on the highway or “motorway” was quite scenic.  There was many farms and green pastures, reminding me of the typical English countryside you see in many films.  As I neared the city of Leeds, more and more quaint houses began to appear.  And as the houses grew in numbers, so did the number of streets.  It seemed quite confusing to be driving in the city, as there are so many roundabouts, bus lanes and confusing signs in addition to driving on the opposite side of the road.  I couldn’t even see any street signs so that made it even more confusing!

I don’t move into my residence for a few more days, which will give me a little time to get a few necessities for my accommodation.  Judging by the comments in my residence’s Facebook group, it’s pretty clear that the residence I’m in isn’t the greatest.  Apparently, it’s a little on the shabbier side and the bathrooms and kitchens are very old.  Hopefully my time there won’t be that terrible!  

As for the weather, it’s about 5-10 degrees colder than Vancouver but it hasn’t been as awful as I’ve been expecting.  There’s been a tiny bit of sunshine, short spurts of light rain, and quite a bit of strong wind.  Nothing too bad that I can’t handle yet.

It’s past 1AM right now so I’m going to try and get some sleep…