Britain is one of those safe options — English-speaking, seen on TV enough to be familiar yet new, and close to Europe for travel. London had always seemed like the centre of the world, so when I started seriously considering studying abroad, England was the obvious destination. But where in particular? I was scrolling through the partner universities and googling pictures of Liverpool and Leeds, places I’d heard of, when Dad suggested Norwich. “Norwich?” I said, “Where’s that?!” Now, after living for months in old Norridge (as the locals pronounce it), I know I couldn’t have chosen a better place. Going somewhere you’ve never heard of before is awesome.
Norwich: A city full of hidden gems
Norwich, though rather unknown to us Kiwis, is full of hidden gems. It’s an official UNESCO City of Literature with lots of famous authors, its colourful market in the centre of town was voted best in the UK in 2019, and it’s packed with quirky bars, cafes, and vintage shops not unlike Wellington.
Its history dates back to Celtic times, and most impressively, it’s got the most medieval buildings in the world. A thousand-year-old castle, a giant cathedral, flint halls, dozens of stained-glass windowed churches, twisting cobbled lanes, wonky Tudor inns and Victorian brick row houses are scattered absolutely everywhere. There’s so many old buildings that lots have been repurposed, with antique stores in ancient churches and restaurants in medieval wine cellars. Being surrounded with so many things older than your whole country is constantly mind-blowing. Coming from New Zealand, it’s a total fairytale. The movie Stardust was filmed there in the cute Elm Hill neighbourhood, and strolling around the place in real life is just like a dream.
Life at the University of East Anglia (UEA)
Talking of film sets, the University of East Anglia (UEA) has another claim to fame with its futuristic Salisbury Centre. It was used as the Avengers HQ in one of the movies, and I bet heaps of students secretly love walking past Captain America’s base every day. For the non-Marvel fans like me, it’s cooler on the inside with its art gallery and cafe, full of everything from Aztec carvings to Monet paintings. Tons of people go to UEA to study art history and take advantage of the amazing stuff right on campus.
UEA is decidedly different in style to the old buildings in Norwich city — it was built in the 60’s and is an interesting brutalist block of concrete, sprawling over fields and woods where bunnies and squirrels roam. Lots of first-years live in the classic Ziggurats, glass pyramids right next to the uni’s lake. It was real nice to have parks and a sports centre on campus, where locals come with kids and dogs. Taking a walk in Elizabethan-era gardens or heading to yoga was a good way to chill out in between the dazzling schedule of events, classes, and club meets on every day. Not to mention music — UEA has its own concert venue with famous artists playing every other weekend.
Exploring Norfolk and beyond
What I really appreciated about Norwich is that it’s kinda in the middle of nowhere. The city sits out in the endless flat fields and broads (lakes) of Norfolk, out of the way on the eastern corner of England. Because it’s a bit far away it attracts very few tourists, which gives it a great authentic vibe. So, unlike if I’d chosen to go to the urban metropolises of Liverpool or Leeds, I got to live in a real ye-olden-days English city.
Norwich is super charming, and though it’s the capital of Norfolk it’s got more of a town feel, being quite smaller than Wellington. And despite being off the beaten track, public transport in England means you’re only an hour or so away from London by train. It’s easy and fairly cheap to get around and I was off exploring every other weekend.
There’s no need to fear the semi-isolated-ness of the countryside, especially considering the uni campus is full of people from all over the world. Even going on the local bus you’ll hear conversations in every imaginable language, and be able to make friends with students from even more places you’ve never heard of.
An experience you’ll never regret
Best of all, Norwich’s relative obscurity means no competition to get into the uni. I applied for exchange, hoping that I’d get it as my first choice, and was told that I was already guaranteed a place. Nice! So when it’s your turn to weigh up exchange options, go for the random place, the never-heard-of-before city. The excitement of discovering something completely new and unexpected was my favourite part of studying abroad, and it’s — cliche alert! — an experience you’ll never regret.