The most exciting part of the trip was going to a foreign country by myself for the first time in my life. Although I went along with other seven girls, we had no "adults" to look after us, so we were on our own.
I stayed with a host family instead of going to the student residence; one of the purposes of the trip was getting to know English people deeper, ask everything I had always wanted to know about them, and this was my best opportunity to fulfill my curiosity.
Luckily, I was hosted by a very friendly couple who treated me like one of their children and made me feel truly comfortable. However, I must say, they made me realize the first aspect about English people I feared so much; however friendly, English are really cold (no hugs, kisses, or signs of affection to strangers).
My first day to school was already a mess. I didn't hear the alarm clock and woke up late, so I was bound to arrive late to my first class in the country known for its punctuality. I took a bus and had the misfortune of meeting the most rude bus driver; he couldn't tell me where to get down properly and wasn't really friendly. That made me think over the possibility of renting a bike instead. However, it's worth mentioning that all passengers in the bus (who were obviously English) were really kind and helped me sort out my problem. English hospitality showed up every day, as one day my bike chain came off and a man voluntarily offered to fix it -- such a sweetheart!!!! If you have any doubts don't hesitate to ask for help to an English person. . .
At the language school, the course was what I was least worried about; my interest was to meet other people and share good times with them.
Considering the city is crowded with students, it's important to highlight the benefits of taking an International Student Identity Card with you, which entitles you to several discounts to museums, pubs, nightclubs, etc.
One of the strangest aspects about Cambridge to me was the fact that pubs close at 11pm sharp and nightclubs will just remain open ‘til 2am.
A negative aspect about pubs and nightclubs is they are very strict when it comes to letting you in. We were once discriminated in a nightclub for being South Americans and not looking the age our student card claimed we were. And it usually happened on Fridays (don't know why) that we would have problems to go into pubs with our student cards; they would want us to show our passports (not really comfortable if you think you can't afford losing that one!!!).
For international students, one of the best choices for nightclubs has to be Ballare. Located in the city centre, right opposite the bank. Thursdays becomes international student's night and you'll meet everyone from every foreign country. Music is pretty varied (in Spanish, English, etc) and the place is quite pretty. On Mondays international nights take place in "Life" at Hobson St. The music there turned out to be kind of weird and not so many people go there, so it's not a strong point. An interesting pub to visit is Pure, in Regent St, if you want to hear some music from your country, as they'll play your CDs. Again, if it's not Friday. . .
As to what is worth trying, I must admit I never got used to English food. . . When going to pubs, if you still haven't tried it, Smirnoff Ice is a must!!!! Enjoy it while you can if, like me, you can't find it in your own country afterwards. Another tip concerning pubs, it's considered to be really rude going to a pub and not having something to drink!!!
For people from Argentina, Uruguay, and every other country where you have REAL dulce de leche, dulce de leche ice cream offered at Baskin Robbins at the Grafton Centre is a joke!!!! That's not even close to dulce de leche, no matter how bad you are missing it!!!!!
Coming back to accommodation, English host families are a good choice if you really want to experience life with a family. But make sure they'll be home when you are -- one of my friends never saw her family!!!!!! The negative point about this kind of accommodation is the houses are often far away from the city centre (15-20 minutes by bike; 35-40 minutes walk) and becomes really inconvenient for going out at night. Remember the crazy English weather that can surprise you with rain, snow, or any other uncomfortable situation in the middle of your trip to school (as it happened to me). However, English host families are really convenient for those who are really focused on improving their command of the language.
Another option is staying at a Residence (I just know Tripos Court). There you'll have to cook for yourself, as well as cleaning your bedroom, washing your clothes, etc. The strong point is that you are surrounded by students and it makes it easy to make friends and have fun.
An interesting tip if you are not used to snow and are looking forward to experiencing it in Cambridge is the snow fights that take place after lunchtime in King's College!!!! They're great fun!!!!!
Just a few blocks away from this college is a little store where you often find interesting sales, that's if you are interested in buying shirts, polars, etc.
If you are planning to make a short trip to London from this city the best option should be the train; it gets to London in almost an hour, and you can opt for an individual ticket that costs around 20 pounds (return ticket) and includes access to the subway (check the zone). If you can gather four friends for the trip, you'll get a return ticket for about nine pounds each. This one doesn't include access to subway.