Megan’s abroad in London, England, until Dec. 13.

Let me announce something that will be a recurring theme in many of my posts: I love British accents. I have for as long as I can remember. So, it’s awesome to live in a country where everyone has one. The beauty of a British accent is that it can sound completely different in different parts of the country, and make you sound smarter, more attractive or just more endearing than you are on your own.

I’ve spent this weekend in Bagshot, Surrey, a small village about an hour away from London. The program I’m with places us in a homestay for three days between orientation and moving into the dorms. I’m staying at a home with the Tregear family, which consists of Robin, his wife Crissy and their three kids. Along for the weekend is Alex Ivker, another student on my program who just happens to be a Communication junior at Northwestern. We actually hadn’t met until we got into the car with Robin — not exactly shocking, given the size of NU and the fact that there are 13 Wildcats headed to Goldsmiths alone. Alex is a theater major, and I’m sure she’s studying people around her to perfect her British accent.

Robin originally comes from Cornwall, the southernmost tip of the British Isles, and his accent is absolutely amazing. The best way I can describe it is the sound of an average British person trying to do a Cockney accent. It reminds me of books I’ve read that try to create British accents in print, using apostrophes to indicate dropped consonants. Like, “Can you come ‘ere for a quick bit? Just came in from the gah-den an’ picked some fresh tom-ah-toes an’ some courgette.” (Courgette is their word for zucchini. Don’t ask me why. But Robin is a chef by trade, so the courgette was delicious.)

You can contrast Robin’s accent with that of Michael, another host parent who took our group on a tour of Windsor Castle on Friday. His accent was slightly similar, but it had a tinge of upper-class to it, making everything he said sound extremely authoritative. He could have told me that the castle holds the world’s last living fire-breathing dragon and I’d believe him.

It’s been nice to spend a few days outside of London, and not just to get a new sampling of accents to mimic. London is so international and touristy that it’s very similar to a city like New York, but it’s in Surrey where I’ve had a real taste of what English people are like. They’re cordial, polite, and very food-centered. And when they talk, they gain my eternal love.

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