Les mots et les choses: An American in York

I had anticipated my arrival at York over the long summer months with a degree of anxious enthusiasm - only had I caught brief glimpses of the place in years past as a touring undergraduate. I remembered little, save the rain and wind when my group climbed Clifford's Tower, or the magnificent size of the Minster, bursting over all the shops like the head of a great sleeping giant. Otherwise, the city and its university remained largely allusive to me, and the thought of making it my home for the next three (to four, to five...) years over the course of my PhD coloured my excitement for adventure with a dose of trepidation. Questions like, would there be a Tesco near my flat? and where will I buy linens? mixed with, would I make friends? would I, buried in my books and research, ever leave my room?

On the first day of our departmental orientation at the History of Art Department (two days after my arrival - and yes, there is indeed a Tesco right around the corner!), I was surprised and pleased to find a great number of international students, many of which were American like me. We had all survived the long and arduous visa process, that 'flight across the pond,' and that first 24 hours in Britain when you nearly get hit by a car looking the wrong way before you cross the road.

Not only did I find a great deal of international students, however, but a large and enthusiastic research department - the largest for the History of Art in the United Kingdom! I was so thrilled to meet administrators Fiona and Stephanie (after months of anxious summer correspondence over visas and registration and the like), as well as a faculty, diverse in their interests as all the new research students. We all huddled together in a flurry of name-exchanging (and I admit, name-forgetting) and questions like, 'What is your research interest? Your supervisor?' I was quick to have any fears of meeting fellow art historians eased and abated.

Since the whirl of first-week inductions and welcome drinks, many have settled into lecture routines and are working out library schedules. I have found York, both its city centre and university campus, a great size for me. I have yet to discover all its secrets; it combines the bustle of a city with the comforts of town and has kept me more active than expected. When I am not hoarding books at the University Library, I wander the Shambles, the Museum gardens - in and out of book shops, cafes and restaurants (there are too many!), meeting new companions for a bite or two. For PhD students, I think the city provides a great opportunity to strike that much-strived-for 'balance' of our work-life and our 'life-life' over the coming years. This would, and might, pose a challenge for me. But I have a good feeling about this place, its people and university thus far. As summer greens are shed for autumnal golds, that 'dose of trepidation' has given way to sheer and unabated excitement for what is to come. York may have walls, but its gates are wide open!