Sunday (21st November)

It was still uncertain today whether Maurice and I could go to the new Harry Potter film, along with the other boarders. However, when I went to breakfast at ten o'clock today I found the person in charge of the trip and asked him if we could go. Fortunately we could, and I texted Maurice telling him we could go. However, because Maurice wouldn’t be able to get to Reed’s on time, he decided that he would go straight to the cinema. The problem was that I didn’t know which cinema we were going to and by the time I had found out which one, it was too late for Maurice to get there in time. Despite that, the film was very enjoyable. I thought it wasn't as good as some of the other ones, but it wasn't bad. We returned at around four o'clock, and I had dinner at six. After dinner I did some homework and did some studying for important tests. After that I went to bed, the weekend had finished.

Saturday (20 November)

I woke up today thinking I had breakfast at 10 O'clock, so I leisurely got up at 9:45 only to find out when I was ready to leave the house at 10 that breakfast was at half nine! After having some food to compensate for the lack of breakfast I changed for my rugby match which was at 11:30. The match was against St. John's Leatherhead which, apparently, is a very good team, so we knew we wouldn’t be able to win. Eventually we lost, despite a lot of big chances on our side. I had two really good tackles and one really nice run, so I was thrilled! After rugby I decided to go to Guildford to meet up with Maurice, which was fun and I bought a football. When I got back I played with the football a little bit and played a bit of pool. I then went back to the Close and to bed.

18 + 19 November

The final two days of school 'till the weekend. They were quite a lot of fun. I didn't really do that much, just had a nice relaxed two days of school. Our pooltable is coming on nicely; we've nearly finished the door! We also had a nice/funny/eventful big break on friday. Friday is from now on also my favourite day for lunches; because it is pretty much only junk food (but I do always take fruit with that!). We're also finally showing our business teachers that we are actually good at it; we played als teacher and taught the class for a little while (which was a lot of fun). We also taught the students some dutch phrases which was pretty funny. Chemistry is becoming very hard to understand, but we will try our best. I also had a really fun football match on friday with a lot of different people and I hope I'll do that more often. But for now: finally weekend!

15,16 and 17 November

This weekend was loads of fun and I was sad Monday had arrived. These three school days were also pretty fun though. We have made excellent progress with our DT project. However on Wednesday we made a very silly mistake (hard to explain). We also forgot to make our prep twice however we handed it in the next time so it was all fine. I also had rugby today which was a lot of fun again. We finally had a very serious one and a half hour training. I think I did quite well and I am looking forward to the match against a big rival of Reed's on Saturday. We also have to find out if we want to go on the Sunday trip which is going to the Harry Potter movie. But I think I will go with Maurice some other time. We also had a big Dutch test on Tuesday which went quite well and today (Wednesday) I am learning for a Maths test which will be quite hard.

14 november

I could have a really nice lie in today (I really deserved it, I think!). I had a nice brunch at 10 o'clock; English style! (baked beans, sausages, etc.) I then had to decide whether to go to a rugby match (Wasps vs. Bath) or go to Guildford with Maurice. Eventually I chose the rugby match, because Maurice wouldn't arrive till 3. Before I went to the rugby match I had some nice chats with people in Holland on MSN! We left Reed’s to go to the rugby match at 1 o'clock. The game was loads of fun, even though it was really cold. It was so cold you could see huge clouds of steam coming from the players each time they were in a scrum. The match ended in 18-16 and after the match had finished, we rushed back to Reed’s so that we wouldn't arrive late for chapel. When we arrived everyone had a quick bite to eat and I went to chapel with Maurice. After the remembrance mass in the chapel, Maurice went back home and I did some homework and went to bed at 10:30. A very nice Sunday!

13 november

Today it was finally weekend! I had already made plans with Maurice to go to Guildford (a small town near Cobham) by train. However, it seemed that finding the train was hard enough! After asking a few people, we finally found the train. Just before we got onto the train (and were still looking for it) we got a call from Steve (Maurice's hostfather) who said he had two extra tickets for a football match and we could join him! After we had visited Guildford we took the train to Woking and met up with Steve. We then took another train and the Underground and arrived at 'Boleyn Ground'. The match (West Ham-Blackpool) ended in 0-0, however, it was still a fun match and a nice experience. After we had left Boleyn Ground and had managed to wedge ourselves into the Underground we arrived at Woking train station and had some dinner at KFC. Maurice and Steve then left and I was on my own to get home. I had managed to find out which train I needed and bought a ticket. After about 40 minutes I arrived back at Cobham and Mr. Balls drove me from the station back to Reed's. Conclusion: a very fun Saturday!

12 november

Today was pretty much the same as all the other days. Woke up, had breakfast and went to class. I had 3 hours of DT (Design and Technology) today, so Maurice and I were really psyched to start our pool table. At the end of DT it was looking really good and is actually starting to resemble a pool table! I also heard that I have a rugby match tomorrow, which should be a lot of fun. There was also fireworks (Remembrance Day to remember the fallen soldiers of WW I) and a big bonfire tonight, which was also fun to watch! After the bonfire I did some homework and went on the computer. The weekend is finally here!

11 november

It was another nice day at Reed's today, only today it looked like there was a tropical storm here! (very windy). Maurice and I were a bit late for breakfast today, which meant no English breakfast, only some cereal. We had our ANT test today, so I had studied hard yesterday and also studied a lot in my free period. I also asked Ben (who does swimming) if I could join swimming practice and he said that was o.k. and during 8th period we had our ANT test, which went fine. However, it went on quite long, so I'd missed swimming training, too bad! So Maurice and I walked back to my room discussing the test. Maurice then left for skiing and I went on the computer. I then had some pizza for dinner and did some homework. After I felt I'd done enough homework I went back to the prep room and went back on the computer. At 10 o'clock the prep room closed and I went back to my room and to bed.

10 November

I pretty much had the same routine as yesterday, waking up around seven  and then having my breakfast with Maurice. After I’d had breakfast, I started walking to tutor class when suddenly my pants started vibrating, it was my phone. I was wondering who was calling me, probably my mum again. It turned out it was Caroline calling me during her KCV lesson to see how I was doing. I talked to pretty much the whole class, including Ms. Salomonson! After tutor class I also had chapel, which was fine, not very interesting though. We then had the usual subjects, including DT where Maurice and I started building our pool table! After lunch break we had a talk with Mr. Clapp about what sports we want to do during Games, a class in which you do a sport of your choice. I did rugby and Maurice did hockey.  After rugby training, which was a lot of fun, I had a look at Maurice’s hockey match, their hockey skills are very good and  I then went back to my room.  At 5:30 I had dinner where I ate Toad in the hole (couldn’t identify what it was exactly, it looked like it was two sausages with pastry around it). I then made some homework, went on the computer and went to bed.

2nd day at Reed's

I woke up again at 7:30 and got dressed for a nice day of English school. I walked to the school looking smart in my suit and wearing a tie. I met up with Maurice in the cafeteria and had a nice bowl of coco pops. After breakfast I had tutor class, where I knew a few nice people from the previous day.  I then had my usual subjects. These were all a lot of fun and very interesting too, especially DT where Maurice and I are building a small pool table. Chemistry is also quite nice only it is quite hard compared to chemistry in Holland. We also had a free period in which I could chat with some people from Holland and catch up with all of them, (which I finally found out how to do because nearly all of the sites are blocked).  After school I hung out with Maurice for a short while in my room and then went to rugby practice. It was loads of fun, it just took a while before I got the hang of it again,  it had been a long time since I’d played rugby. When I came back from practice, Maurice had to leave to go home and I started making some homework. After I’d finished my homework I went to the prep room to chat with some people from Holland, and at 10 o’clock I went to bed. It was nice day again and I´m finally going to bed at decent times.

1st school day at Reeds (9 November)

I woke up at 7:20 and left The Close (the name of my boarding house) at 7:50. I walked to the cafeteria with some of the South African gap year students and met up with Maurice there. After we had had a small English breakfast we left and went to find our tutor and get our timetable. We couldn’t find our tutor, but we finally got our timetable and left for assembly. After that, I went to experience the classes I had chosen; Science, Chemistry, Design and Technology and Business Studies. I finally found my tutor and went to General Studies (in Dutch studieles) and met two really nice guys, one of which was a really good swimmer whom I'll ask if I can join the school's swim trainings. I also met the person in charge of the rugby squad, who told me he would like to have me on the team. This is going to be a lot of fun, seeing I did lots of rugby in Ireland. I also saw some people playing football or training and I'll see if I might be able to participate. All in all a very good first day at Reeds!

2nd Day in England (8 November)

We had all had a good night’s sleep and woke up at around 8:30. We were very hungry and we all enjoyed a big English breakfast, bacon, eggs, beans etc. I was in the mood for a nice English breakfast, since I hadn’t had one in ages, however it was quite disappointing, it was pretty much the same as yesterday and the quality wasn’t great unfortunately. Before we went to Reed’s,we made a little shopping trip to Sainsbury’s, a big chain of English supermarkets, so that my family could enjoy some nice English things when they were back in Holland, such as; cheddar, polo’s and cheerios and we must not forget traditional English custard. After that we left to go to Reed’s. It was very quiet and empty when we arrived. After Maurice had also arrived we got the big tour from Mrs. Lams, the Dutch teacher at Reed’s. She is a very kind woman. It all looked really nice and exactly the same as when I visited 2 years ago. I then got to see my room that I would be living in for the next 6 weeks, and also met the housemaster, Mr. Balls, who was very nice and friendly. After I had unpacked I had a nice dinch in the pub, which was delightful. I then said goodbye to my parents and brother and sister. I had finally arrived at Reed’s.

Aankomst in Engeland (7 November)

I arrived at the Premier Inn at around 8 o'clock. I met up with Maurice who had just had his dinner there, apparently it was typical English pub food. We were all hungry and my family and I all had some dinner in the same pub. I had fish and chips which was...typically English, fatty, greasy and a big portion. After our dinner we had some drinks and desserts with Maurice and his family and afterwards we went to bed.