I arrived par avion.
My french is not so good.
The people at the Canadian border said I won’t be able to work during my exchange; my heart breaks into a million pieces.

Customs takes a bit longer than I wanted it to, so I missed my lift from the airport.
Instead I met two girls from another university and they gave me directions to my campus.
I get off at the wrong stop. (one too early).
A girl jumps off the bus and drags me back on, SAVED.
*This is a good start, what nice people they have here in Canada*
-This will be a recurring theme for this exchange I feel.

The translation of “ON” in French is difficult.

So I get to uOttawa, its late. Maybe 11.30.
I ask a nice girl, wandering along with her boyfriend for directions
“Do you go to Ottawa U? Where’s the sign-in desk?”

She happily pointed me in the right direction.
I arrive at the desk, get my key from a chipper young woman and a guy that sounded like he had a cold.
I then walked around for a little bit to find my student accommodation.
I quickly get lost, meet some french students that are in health and nutrition: they are selling sausages and burgers and chips. I make the easy joke. “First years huh?”
They are impressed by my wit.
I stand around growing more and more awkward.
A young man comes over, he’s french. He talks about how all the Frenchyz add an ‘H’ to their words when its unnecessary but subtract the ‘H’ when its H-Important.
‘Appy to meet you’.
I laughed, asked for directions and left.
Again I was lost.
I asked many people for directions.
I met a girl named Holly.
She held my hand; took me back to the sign-in.
The woman had told me my room number 135A, but not the building.
Maybe it was my fault. Jet lag + it was late, and I was tussling with the problem of eating a sausage from “health” students. It had more wrinkles than I did. Ick.

I found my apartment.
I listened at all 4 of the doors. The last thing you want to do as a new housemate is barge in on your new housemates at 1am. So I listened-
I did some deduction. Room D was getting re-painted.
So I figured room A was opposite or parallel but NOT diagonally across.
So I made an educated gamble.
Correct!
The room had no bedsheets. -Crap!-
So I throw down all my clothes and created a basic nest.
What a lovely night’s rest I had.

The next day I freshened up.
It was 11am when I finally rose from my slumber.
No food though. Eeee-gads.

Met my housies!
Edouard and Laurent.
Both French.
Ed sails and is from Normandy.
Laurent is from the south, I forget where. I call him “Law”

So we went and did some food shopping.
Then I went and did some bed sheets shopping.
Then we went out and met some other people – A heap of girls.
For dinner.
It was nice, a little overwhelming. Because there was like 8 of them.
And it was just me and my two housemates, and we’d only met that day.
We all ate and had one drink.

I went to the bathroom and got a profound nosebleed.
I felt like, if I was older and more unhealthy I would have had a brain aneurysm and died. Plenty of time for that when i’m older.
Fucking flying, what a cop out. The world is so large. Vast one might say.
Unexplored, unique and vibrant. Diverse! But yeah, cop out. Headache, ghostly white.
Nothing a cold class of water, lots of nose pinching, a tissue and patience can’t fix. (just a bad moment in time, it will pass)

After that we visited a games house. It was rad.
We all played Cards Against Humanity. It was good. (as the bible would say).
I had a coffee, went home, absolutely charging now – which was annoying.
It was about 4am when I finally packed it in for the day.
I’d made my bed, written some poetry, drawn some cartoons and done some diary stuff.
The boys bid me goodnight as soon as we got in.
These first few days sure have been expensive.
Taking a heavy toll. But that’s ok.

I need to buy a bike. That would be rad.
I got my bus pass today, that was 300 dollars. Which is crazy.
Meh.

Yesterday I woke up late which was no surprise.
We had made plans to meet up with the girls again.
I got my student card and asked some key questions, my room is coming together slowly. Additionally;I feel like I wasn’t prepared for this warm weather off the bat. Not to worry, roll with thy punches. I’ll try to go for a run every day to make the most of the pleasant sunshine.

5pm came around. I’d gone for a walk and bought some kitchen stuff. Utensils etc.
Needs must! All around Reidu street Riedu? I forget. I’ll check that: AH! RIDEAU street. Nailed it.

Anyway so then, we met up with the girls again.
We went to the baseball and watch Ottawa vs Quebec. It was a dearby(?) maybe not. Perhaps just your ordinary rivalry. Anyway Ottawa lost, it was sad.
I had a coffee, to get change for the bus and perk up a bit.
I found myself feeling like an extra (not the main character) in my own life.
It was abstract. Bizarre.
Totally unlike me, to feel things revolving outside of my control or care.
I was stagnant, defeated, boring and stuck. I was on pause; playing the silent, unsuspecting fan perfectly. Basically invalid. Weird.

Before the game, band with bad hair, strange mascott and chocolate cookies.
Marvelous.
During: people competed for a pizza, by celebrating and making the most sound. TOTAL ABSTRACTION – Circumstantially off-putting and crazed.
After the game, fireworks to the soundtrack of Lord of the Rings.
Stranger still. But I was transfixed. Such beauty. Mesmerized. (Z = USA)?

Circumstance changes to circumstanTially. Why the ‘t’? Why not a ‘c’?

Today I woke up early, got my bus pass, signed up for ARTS 101 week and shook hands with the new Prime Minister – which should be one word right?

Its a liaison! (weird spelling there)

I had the nerve to ask his name “Jacques” I suppose was his answer. A nice enough fellow. Considerate and well-to-do. Its all about who you know.

“I am 25. I wonder if I could be president”.
all you can eat bread buffet was on, I chatted to some political science students in tie-dye t-shirts and organised to go to an event this evening.

Might go for a jog now.
Anyway that’s the news at 3:20pm Ottawa time.
Long weekend this weekend.
All about the disorientation and growing comfortable.
Now I run to buy a soccerball.
Wish me luck.