Today was my last exam of the semester as well as my last scholarly endeavor for a little over a month. I turned in a take home final for my British Society class last week, turned in a 10 page paper for Science and Society yesterday, and sat for my first/last Scottish exam this afternoon. The take home final consisted of two short essays and was probably the easiest thing i have done all term. The paper for Science and Society was actually quite interesting, but slightly existential and philosophical so it was hard to keep a grasp on. But this ecology exam had every ability to actually kill me. I taught myself more in the course of two straight days of revision than i did all semester thanks to online lectures from the biology department at Yale, so if i pass i owe it all to the Bulldogs. I made a 35 page study guide and at one point didnt move from my desk for 6 straight hours...gross. Ecology was made all the more stressful by the fact that one exam (3 short essays) determine 60% of my term grade. In reflection, i think i did rather well, so it probably (hopefully! cross your fingers!) saved my grade. But i'll have to wait until february (approximately) to find out how i did.
Now that im done with finals, it should be all parties and celebrations, right? No. i think im probably the only person on campus who is already done (exams stretch until the 17th- or even until january for students whose exams were canceled on monday due to snow). Tonight im having dinner with my flatmates because it's Celine's last night here- she goes home to norway tomorrow.
I'll probably spend my extra free time cleaning and preparing my room for Anna's visit; she gets here on the 13th. I'll probably bake tomorrow too- i need to use that left over can of pumpkin puree from thanksgiving.
Once Anna gets here we will almost immediately leave again: Paris until the 18th (because i got snowed out last weekend, anna agreed to switch our plans around so i can try again). Which, unfortunately, means i will miss most of the IFSA kids celebrating the end of exams and also their group flight home. Fortunately Barbara will be in town until the 20th so i will get to see her before she leaves. The parents will arrive here on the 17th and will stay through christmas and return home on the 26th. The next day, Anna and i will travel to the homeland (Ireland) and then head back to the states, her to Santa Clara, i to the good old WA just in time for New Years celebrations :)
I then will have a week or so before i head back to Redlands, move into the new house, and start classes.
The next month will be a whirlwind of fun and family and friends, but i cant believe its already time to think about going home. It feels like we all just got here; its pretty surreal that i have been living in Scotland 3 months (it will be closer to 4 by the time i leave).
One last thing before i stop boring whoever still reads these: i am officially disenchanted with snow- mostly because it screwed up my travel plans, but more recently because it turns into ice- its actually impossible to get anywhere without slipping. Ive now fallen in two of the most populated areas of the city- on one of the main streets just after a class ended and yesterday outside of the library in the middle of exams. Awesome, thanks snow.
Welp, as always,
CHEERS!
Thursday, December 9, 2010
Friday, December 3, 2010
Pictures: Thanksgiving, London, Edinburgh Christmas
The Frozen North- Traveling Nightmares
Classes officially ended last Friday signifying the start of exams, but also signifying the start of traveling! Last weekend i took a trip to London and met up with Rachel and Lauren who are studying in Milan. It was great! We saw just about everything touristy- Big Ben, Parliament, Abbey Road, Covent Garden, Tate Modern, St Pauls. It was great to hang out with Rachel and Lauren and trounce around Londy. The fun started to fade at about 430 am on Monday morning when i recieved a text from EasyJet saying my flight had been canceled due to inclement weather. Perfect. I was already in the cab on the way to the train station (that would take us to Gatwick), so i figured i would just show up and get put on the next flight. And that is exactly what happened, except the next flight wasnt for approximately 15 hours (it was currently 630 am and the next flight to edinburgh wasnt until 730 pm). And here began my day inside Gatwick. After attempting to find a train from london to edinburgh, which would have cost around 150 quid, i bought a book and some breakfast bars and found a place to nap. Somehow, with much help from The Lost Symbol and a few more naps, i made it to 5pm. At that point i headed upstairs to check on the status of my flight, just as the women at the ticket counter had told me too ( i was becoming a regular guest by now). Just as they are telling me that they are still unsure, a large group of people come clamoring over saying that our flight was canceled. Again, perfect. Thankfully, i had heard through a number of people that the Glasgow airport was open, so i asked about flights going to glasgow. There was one flight left that evening with two seats left. The girl in front of me in line got the first and i got the second (aka the last). As we were getting booked, another woman was informing everyone else in line that they had booked 30 hotel rooms and would pay for food for up to two days. A flight, a bus, a train, and 6 hours later i made it back to Edinburgh. And to think, i used to like snow.
Fastforward to today, friday. After another four days of snow, airports are still backed up and Edinburgh is still a major struggle, but i attempted to get to Paris this morning. I even got as far as getting on the plane (after waking up at 5am to leave for the airport at 6am) and sitting on it for two hours waiting for the de-icing crew before that flight was canceled. Long story short, they ran out of de-icing fluid...really.
Now i am working on booking flights for when my sister gets here and this process is proving just as difficult as each of my recent experiences with airlines. Some malfunction with the ryanair website is keeping us from booking anything, and of course the call center closes at 5pm and the only other help line to call charges a pound a minute.
Moral of the story: I hate snow, i hate airports/airlines, and i think im getting an ulcer.
Fastforward to today, friday. After another four days of snow, airports are still backed up and Edinburgh is still a major struggle, but i attempted to get to Paris this morning. I even got as far as getting on the plane (after waking up at 5am to leave for the airport at 6am) and sitting on it for two hours waiting for the de-icing crew before that flight was canceled. Long story short, they ran out of de-icing fluid...really.
Now i am working on booking flights for when my sister gets here and this process is proving just as difficult as each of my recent experiences with airlines. Some malfunction with the ryanair website is keeping us from booking anything, and of course the call center closes at 5pm and the only other help line to call charges a pound a minute.
Moral of the story: I hate snow, i hate airports/airlines, and i think im getting an ulcer.
Sunday, November 21, 2010
Its Christmas time in the city
Technically i can say this because there is no Thanksgiving here in Scotland; meaning that Christmas tunes have been played sporadically over the last month or so. But you can definitely tell that winter is upon us here. The temperature has dropped drastically, it rains a lot more frequently (there is also SNOW on the forecast for later this week!), people are beginning to revise (review) for finals and write final papers, but most importantly- the Edinburgh Christmas festival is being set up over in Princes Street Gardens. As of now, i can see a ferris wheel, other rides (swings!!), lights being strung all around town, and a few trees being put up. Within the next few days everything will be finished (skating rink included) and the Lighting Ceremony will take place- November 25th i believe. And i am also planning on doing a charity run around Princes Street Gardens with a few friends, the 10 quid entry fee includes a santa suit to run in and keep :) Obviously im really looking forward to this, and dont worry- there WILL be photographic evidence. I guess Thanksgiving is this week too, IFSA is throwing us American's a Scottish Thanksgiving at a local restaurant on Wednesday. Although, there is no turkey on the menu...hmm, but ill survive. I am just excited to see everyone from the program and fill the void of family with some friends. Also, my friends Suzy and Barbara are going to help me attempt to cook a thanksgiving dinner on Thursday- i never thought i would be tackling my first thanksgiving dinner this early in life.
Aside from the holiday festivities, my classes are now almost over. The last week of classes is this week. I cant believe that its almost over! i feel like im just getting the hang of all of them. The term is a full two weeks shorter here than at Redlands. But we do get an entire week for revision rather than the three-day weekend UR gives us. My revision week isnt exactly going to serve that purpose as i have my first final (take home for British Scociety) from December 1st-2nd. Luckily that was scheduled exactly when it was because i have a trip to london this weekend and i get back on roughly a day and a half to prepare myself for the final and then leave again on the 3rd for Paris. I am so excited for Paris, ive wanted to see it since i started taking french in 7th grade (but i definitely did not trust my french skills-or serious lack thereof- enough to study abroad there). I am going to stay with a girl that goes to school with my best friend from high school. Immediately following my return from Paris, i have my final paper due in Science and Society and then the next day i sit for my Ecology exam. So, by 430 pm on the 9th i will be done with the "Study" part of Study Abroad. It is going to be a whirlwind, but im ready.
This weekend i had the pleasure of hosting one of my best friends from Redlands here in Edinburgh. We toured campus a little bit and then went to my favorite Scottish restaurant, Deacon Brodie's, and i introduced her to Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties. She said they were good but probably could never eat haggis again once she found out what was in it- i guess sheep's intestines freak some people out? That evening we went out to my favorite little club, the Hive, and danced the night away. The next morning we woke up early and toured the Palace at Hollyrood. I have been before but it is a really cool place. I'll put up pictures once i can borrow a camera cord. After that we went to another one of my favorite restaurants near my flat- The City Restaurant, toasties and soup was a nice warm break from the rain that pelted us ALL weekend. After lunch we experienced the Scotch Whisky Experience where we learned about the different sorts of whisky made in Scotland. We also got to sample some at the end of the tour, and i have to say-not really my thing. Then i took rachel to the Greyfriar's Cemetery where there is a headstone that any Harry Potter fan would enjoy- Tom Riddle. It just made us a little more excited to see the new movie next weekend in London. For dinner last night we went to an Indian place that i had never been to before, it was delicious. Then we went to a local pub for a bit. This morning we toured the castle before rachel had to catch a bus to the airport. It was a quick visit but i am very glad i could hone my tour giving skills before the parents get here in a month :)
Well, i should probably continue to write my Ecology lab report that is due tomorrow, i will be so excited when it is done!
Happy Thanksgiving- eat some turkey for me!
Aside from the holiday festivities, my classes are now almost over. The last week of classes is this week. I cant believe that its almost over! i feel like im just getting the hang of all of them. The term is a full two weeks shorter here than at Redlands. But we do get an entire week for revision rather than the three-day weekend UR gives us. My revision week isnt exactly going to serve that purpose as i have my first final (take home for British Scociety) from December 1st-2nd. Luckily that was scheduled exactly when it was because i have a trip to london this weekend and i get back on roughly a day and a half to prepare myself for the final and then leave again on the 3rd for Paris. I am so excited for Paris, ive wanted to see it since i started taking french in 7th grade (but i definitely did not trust my french skills-or serious lack thereof- enough to study abroad there). I am going to stay with a girl that goes to school with my best friend from high school. Immediately following my return from Paris, i have my final paper due in Science and Society and then the next day i sit for my Ecology exam. So, by 430 pm on the 9th i will be done with the "Study" part of Study Abroad. It is going to be a whirlwind, but im ready.
This weekend i had the pleasure of hosting one of my best friends from Redlands here in Edinburgh. We toured campus a little bit and then went to my favorite Scottish restaurant, Deacon Brodie's, and i introduced her to Haggis, Neeps, and Tatties. She said they were good but probably could never eat haggis again once she found out what was in it- i guess sheep's intestines freak some people out? That evening we went out to my favorite little club, the Hive, and danced the night away. The next morning we woke up early and toured the Palace at Hollyrood. I have been before but it is a really cool place. I'll put up pictures once i can borrow a camera cord. After that we went to another one of my favorite restaurants near my flat- The City Restaurant, toasties and soup was a nice warm break from the rain that pelted us ALL weekend. After lunch we experienced the Scotch Whisky Experience where we learned about the different sorts of whisky made in Scotland. We also got to sample some at the end of the tour, and i have to say-not really my thing. Then i took rachel to the Greyfriar's Cemetery where there is a headstone that any Harry Potter fan would enjoy- Tom Riddle. It just made us a little more excited to see the new movie next weekend in London. For dinner last night we went to an Indian place that i had never been to before, it was delicious. Then we went to a local pub for a bit. This morning we toured the castle before rachel had to catch a bus to the airport. It was a quick visit but i am very glad i could hone my tour giving skills before the parents get here in a month :)
Well, i should probably continue to write my Ecology lab report that is due tomorrow, i will be so excited when it is done!
Happy Thanksgiving- eat some turkey for me!
Wednesday, November 3, 2010
A Month in the Life
Its been a month since my last post and instead of traveling, i have been living the life of a typical Edinburgh student. Going to class, spending late nights reading and studying, going out at night, and soaking up all that is Edinburgh. I am currently half way through week 7 of 10 and i have turned in two papers and taken one exam. I have two papers left before finals start and luckily all of my finals will be done by December 9th even though finals can be scheduled up until the 17th. This will probably equate to a lot of stress in the first week of December, but it will also give me more time to travel with my sister when she gets here on the 13th.
It has been starting to get dark pretty early since daylight savings time. My evening class is now a walk in the dark both ways- how depressing. The daylight hours have dropped to around 9 and its started to get rather rainy. I guess this is what ive been missing during Tacoma winters these past two years and i cant say im not glad to reside normally in southern california.
I have been trying to culturally educate myself here outside of classes. Suzy, Barb, and I went to see Spam-A-Lot at one of the local theaters, which was great. I think i am finally starting to understand British humor. We also got really cheap tickets to go see this streetdance performance, Blaze. It was actually pretty cool.
The one bit of traveling i have done is a quick over-night visit to St Andrew to help celebrate a friend's birthday- the big 21. Its obviously not a big deal over here, as kids can drink at 18, so we wanted to make a big deal of it. And i believe we did. Quesadillas, margaritas, and guacamole. I also got to go to coffee with a friend from pre-school that is attending St Andrew for all four years and see her flat. It's such a cute little town and i did not see the golf course, so im planning a return trip before i leave.
Last weekend was halloween or should i say, halloweekend. Just as in the US, the Scots go out at least three nights. I only made it out for two because i am a baby when it comes to getting enough sleep on school nights. But i still had a lot of fun dressing up and hanging out with my flatmates one night and a bunch of kids from the program on the other night.
This week has been pretty stressful already, dealing with class registration for the spring and also a pretty large housing dilemma has sprung up which is resulting in quite a few angry phone calls back to the states. I will be so relieved when all of this gets sorted out.
Well, this evening, Barbara has friends in town so we are going to walk around and show them the sights and then go on a ghost tour in the underground vaults. I have already done this tour when i was here two years ago, but im sure i will still be scared.
haha this update probably has not been nearly as fun as the past ones, but hopefully things will liven up soon. Rachel Haag will be making her Scottish debut on the weekend of the 19th and the following weekend we are going to London together and then the following weekend we are meeting up again in Paris. Im not sure if i will survive this much Rachel; wild things are bound to happen around this one.
Until next time :)
It has been starting to get dark pretty early since daylight savings time. My evening class is now a walk in the dark both ways- how depressing. The daylight hours have dropped to around 9 and its started to get rather rainy. I guess this is what ive been missing during Tacoma winters these past two years and i cant say im not glad to reside normally in southern california.
I have been trying to culturally educate myself here outside of classes. Suzy, Barb, and I went to see Spam-A-Lot at one of the local theaters, which was great. I think i am finally starting to understand British humor. We also got really cheap tickets to go see this streetdance performance, Blaze. It was actually pretty cool.
The one bit of traveling i have done is a quick over-night visit to St Andrew to help celebrate a friend's birthday- the big 21. Its obviously not a big deal over here, as kids can drink at 18, so we wanted to make a big deal of it. And i believe we did. Quesadillas, margaritas, and guacamole. I also got to go to coffee with a friend from pre-school that is attending St Andrew for all four years and see her flat. It's such a cute little town and i did not see the golf course, so im planning a return trip before i leave.
Last weekend was halloween or should i say, halloweekend. Just as in the US, the Scots go out at least three nights. I only made it out for two because i am a baby when it comes to getting enough sleep on school nights. But i still had a lot of fun dressing up and hanging out with my flatmates one night and a bunch of kids from the program on the other night.
This week has been pretty stressful already, dealing with class registration for the spring and also a pretty large housing dilemma has sprung up which is resulting in quite a few angry phone calls back to the states. I will be so relieved when all of this gets sorted out.
Well, this evening, Barbara has friends in town so we are going to walk around and show them the sights and then go on a ghost tour in the underground vaults. I have already done this tour when i was here two years ago, but im sure i will still be scared.
haha this update probably has not been nearly as fun as the past ones, but hopefully things will liven up soon. Rachel Haag will be making her Scottish debut on the weekend of the 19th and the following weekend we are going to London together and then the following weekend we are meeting up again in Paris. Im not sure if i will survive this much Rachel; wild things are bound to happen around this one.
Until next time :)
Monday, October 11, 2010
Oktoberfest and Inverness
I haven't done an update in awhile, i could say that i have been busy but, besides the weekends, i generally just sit around trying to do reading and watching a lot of british television shows (if you are my parents, please disregard that last part). I think that was probably signifying the end of the "honeymoon"phase of the study abroad experience; generally people get really homesick but i did not, i just got really lazy. I was also fighting a mean german cold i must have acquired at some point between chugging steins and getting unwelcome kisses from bald, fat, and drunk italian men at Oktoberfest. Although the sexual harassment does not sound like a good time, Oktoberfest was amazing. It was everything i could have hoped and dreamed; beer, beer, food, and more beer. I was joined in my german shenanigans by Suzy and Barbara. We skipped our friday classes (again, disregard that part mom and dad), and hopped a flight to Memmigen West (located about an hour and a half and 20 quid from Munich). Once we landed we boarded a bus that took us to the city- you could start the weekend out with a beer for 2 euro, and of course we did. We arrived in the city with absolutely no clue where our hotel was, although we did have an address- the street names and numbers meant nothing to us. We asked our kind bus driver how to get to it and he pointed us in the direction of the train station and told us to take the U2 (the underground), seemed easy enough. No. Apparently there are multiple levels of this train station and living up to the "Stupid American" stereotype that was far too complex for us. So we had to ask. Upon finding the stop we boarded our train- turns out we were about 25 minutes from the city center and those minutes seemed to only multiply when we sat down next to three Portuguese men who stared at us and tried to initiate conversation in another language. They probably meant no harm but because of the language barrier and the awkward staring, we were creeped out. We arrived at the hotel and then went in search of food, offering us another experience with the language barrier. The only thing remotely near our hotel was a mall with a food court and even there the only thing we could order (even by pointing and gesturing) was pizza. For the evening we ventured back to the city center and wandered around- purchasing souvenirs and food for breakfast (including champagne and orange juice). After being hit on in about four more languages, we headed back to the hotel. Waking up at 530 am was made slightly easier with the help of chocolate chip muffins, mimosas, and powdered cappuccinos- breakfast of champions. We then treked back to the city center and to the Hofbrauhaus tent. After standing outside, squished like sardines for an hour, we were finally let into the tent. There we met some American Marines stationed in Italy and hung out with them for awhile. They were not really our style so we decided to wander around. Amazingly, after barely escaping the women's bathrooms with my life, i ran into a friend of my sisters from Santa Clara who directed me to "the Santa Clara section" where i found a bunch more SCU people that i'd met through my sister. There were even some tears shed from the sight of "Anna Callaghan's sister!!". It was great to see some familiar faces, i even ran into a few Redlands kids too. It was nuts to run into people i knew that far from home. After a hard 10 hours in the tent, i couldnt feel my legs, Barbara couldnt speak, and we were all deathly hungry. We bought some crepes and Suz and i went for a ride on the swings and then we boarded the underground for our hotel. After showers and recapping the day, we passed out for approximately 12 hours. The next day we reversed our trek into Munich and boarded our flight back to Edinburgh.
This weekend the IFSA-Butler program treated us all to a sightseeing trip up to the Scottish Highlands where we saw waterfalls, the Jacobite Express aka the Hogwarts Express :), the site of the Battle of Culloden (the defeat of the Jacobites by the Government Army and the ultimate end of the clan system), a sheepdog farm- probably the cutest place ive ever been, the Glenfiddich Whiskey Distillery, Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, and the mountains of Glencoe. It was a whirlwind and it wasnt until i got home and looked on a map that i saw how much of the highlands we'd seen. I also experienced my first hostel, first sweet toffee pudding, kopparberg pear cider, and sheep feeding. Its great to spend time with all of the people from the program and get out of the city for a little bit, the fresh air is a nice change.
Now its back to the grind, for real this time. I have an Ecology write up due on friday- 600 words and worth 20% of my grade, joy.
We might go up to St. Andrews to hang out with some other girls from the program on Thursday, only if my write up is done though :)
Cheers, here are some pictures from the Highlands trip.
This weekend the IFSA-Butler program treated us all to a sightseeing trip up to the Scottish Highlands where we saw waterfalls, the Jacobite Express aka the Hogwarts Express :), the site of the Battle of Culloden (the defeat of the Jacobites by the Government Army and the ultimate end of the clan system), a sheepdog farm- probably the cutest place ive ever been, the Glenfiddich Whiskey Distillery, Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, and the mountains of Glencoe. It was a whirlwind and it wasnt until i got home and looked on a map that i saw how much of the highlands we'd seen. I also experienced my first hostel, first sweet toffee pudding, kopparberg pear cider, and sheep feeding. Its great to spend time with all of the people from the program and get out of the city for a little bit, the fresh air is a nice change.
Now its back to the grind, for real this time. I have an Ecology write up due on friday- 600 words and worth 20% of my grade, joy.
We might go up to St. Andrews to hang out with some other girls from the program on Thursday, only if my write up is done though :)
Sunday, September 26, 2010
No Kids at Home, Chickens are Dead.
So, this weekend was my homestay which took place in a little village called Bassenthwaite. It was amazing, but before i delve into that i'll regale you with tales from my first week of classes.
Good news: I found my Pharmacology class. Bad news: Its basically an applied chemistry class. shoot me. i think im going to switch out of it (just as i did my molecular genetics course). I need something that will transfer as an upper division biology credit back to redlands, but is not terribly difficult or time consuming, is that really asking too much? Probably. I tried my first problem set this weekend and couldnt even get the first answer. So, hopefully i get that all figured out. And, like i said, i switched out of genetics for a much more reasonable class; Population and Community Ecology. Pretty simple. yay.
Lacrosse is going well. Still dont know what team's we have all made and still dont have a stick to call my own :(
We went out on Tuesday night (dont worry mom and dad, i only have one class on wednesdays and its 50 minutes long) and found a really good little place called Bar Kohl which serves fruity, frilly drinks and has the longest menu i've ever seen of shooters. I finally settled on an Appleberry cocktail and a Landmine shooter; first taste of absinthe- not too shabby.
Anyways, back to the homestay. I stayed with two other IFSA kids; Callie and Leo. Both are really great and we got along really well. There was never an awkward moment with our host parents Brian and Ann. They live on a pretty decent sized piece of land in the Lake District of England (Northwest). The closest "cities"-still pretty small- are Penrith and Carlisle. We drove about two and a half hours from Edinburgh to Penrith where we met our host families. From there we drove about 30 minutes to the small village of Bassenthwaite where Brian and Ann live. None of us had eaten since lunch so by our 9 o clock arrival at the house, we were pretty hungry. Of course, our new host parents had a huge meal prepared for us. Roasted chicken and baked potatoes and wine :) We stayed up until about 1130 talking and getting to know each other- even us IFSA kids did not really know each other at this point. The next morning we had a nice little breakfast of cereal, fruit, toast, and lots and lots of tea. After breakfast Brian and Ann took us on a hike up our first fell (hill); there are 214 fells in the lake district- all named and mapped. We kind of cheated though, there was a car park about 3/4 of the way up, so we walked up from there. It was gorgeous! We walked right by some sheep grazing on the fell. From the top, you could see the entire town of Keswick and at least two or three lakes. We got a nice couple to take a picture of our whole "family" and when i locate my camera cord i will share it with you all. From the fell, we drive about fifteen minutes to the Castlerigg Stone Circle- kind of like a mini Stonehenge. It is a beautiful place, the stones were strategically placed to mirror the surrounding fells. From what we were told, many big name poets, writers, and painters have drawn inspiration from that spot. From there we ventured into Keswick, this is probably the largest nearby town and where Brian and Ann's children went to school. They split off from us and let us adventure on our own. There were a lot of sportswear stores because everyone there is into 'fellwalking'-Northface and Patagonia galore! This made me feel like i was home- i even saw someone wearing a Seahawks jersey! haha. After buying a few postcards, we met up with Brian for lunch, as Ann was still shopping :) He treated us to the best fish and chips i have ever had- well, i guess its the only fish and chips i have ever had. I guess the most legitimate fish and chips meal comes in paper and you eat the chips with a little plastic or wooden fork; personally i just attacked it with my hands. So greasy and so good! we ate on the edge of Derwent Water, one of the lakes. People can rent paddle boats and row around the lake or take a boat tour around it, but that was kind of expensive and we were all nearing a food coma so we headed back to the house for tea and some studying. For the evening, Brian and Ann had dinner plans with some friends in Cockermouth- no joke. So we just walked around the town and ended up at a pub called the Black Bull- we each had a pint of locally brewed Jennings and had some really good conversation. We then grabbed some crappy Chinese food and met with Brian and Ann at the place they ate at. They werent quite finished so Callie, Leo, and I had a few more drinks and just hung out. The atmosphere at this place was really fun. We finally left around 1130. Callie, Leo, and I stayed up a little bit later chatting some more and eating Cadbury Flakes ( theyre supposed to go in ice cream, but if you know anything about me and chocolate... we ate them plain) and chatting. This morning we had the best English breakfast ever, complete with Cumberland sausage, a tower of toast, tea, and black pudding- which i did try. Black pudding is not as bad as the reputation it gets. It just tasted like dense sausage. I sort of enjoyed it. After breakfast Brian took us to the Aira Force waterfall. After that we headed back to Penrith to catch the buss back to Scotland, but not before another stop for tea- where Brian actually got a beer. The drinking culture in the UK is alive and well as we could see.
So, i know that this was a really interesting commentary of my homestay, but this is mainly so i can remember what happened, so much easier than keeping a diary.
Well, hopefully pictures will be uploaded shortly. Wish me luck in finding my camera cord and on my second week of classes!
CHEERS!
Good news: I found my Pharmacology class. Bad news: Its basically an applied chemistry class. shoot me. i think im going to switch out of it (just as i did my molecular genetics course). I need something that will transfer as an upper division biology credit back to redlands, but is not terribly difficult or time consuming, is that really asking too much? Probably. I tried my first problem set this weekend and couldnt even get the first answer. So, hopefully i get that all figured out. And, like i said, i switched out of genetics for a much more reasonable class; Population and Community Ecology. Pretty simple. yay.
Lacrosse is going well. Still dont know what team's we have all made and still dont have a stick to call my own :(
We went out on Tuesday night (dont worry mom and dad, i only have one class on wednesdays and its 50 minutes long) and found a really good little place called Bar Kohl which serves fruity, frilly drinks and has the longest menu i've ever seen of shooters. I finally settled on an Appleberry cocktail and a Landmine shooter; first taste of absinthe- not too shabby.
Anyways, back to the homestay. I stayed with two other IFSA kids; Callie and Leo. Both are really great and we got along really well. There was never an awkward moment with our host parents Brian and Ann. They live on a pretty decent sized piece of land in the Lake District of England (Northwest). The closest "cities"-still pretty small- are Penrith and Carlisle. We drove about two and a half hours from Edinburgh to Penrith where we met our host families. From there we drove about 30 minutes to the small village of Bassenthwaite where Brian and Ann live. None of us had eaten since lunch so by our 9 o clock arrival at the house, we were pretty hungry. Of course, our new host parents had a huge meal prepared for us. Roasted chicken and baked potatoes and wine :) We stayed up until about 1130 talking and getting to know each other- even us IFSA kids did not really know each other at this point. The next morning we had a nice little breakfast of cereal, fruit, toast, and lots and lots of tea. After breakfast Brian and Ann took us on a hike up our first fell (hill); there are 214 fells in the lake district- all named and mapped. We kind of cheated though, there was a car park about 3/4 of the way up, so we walked up from there. It was gorgeous! We walked right by some sheep grazing on the fell. From the top, you could see the entire town of Keswick and at least two or three lakes. We got a nice couple to take a picture of our whole "family" and when i locate my camera cord i will share it with you all. From the fell, we drive about fifteen minutes to the Castlerigg Stone Circle- kind of like a mini Stonehenge. It is a beautiful place, the stones were strategically placed to mirror the surrounding fells. From what we were told, many big name poets, writers, and painters have drawn inspiration from that spot. From there we ventured into Keswick, this is probably the largest nearby town and where Brian and Ann's children went to school. They split off from us and let us adventure on our own. There were a lot of sportswear stores because everyone there is into 'fellwalking'-Northface and Patagonia galore! This made me feel like i was home- i even saw someone wearing a Seahawks jersey! haha. After buying a few postcards, we met up with Brian for lunch, as Ann was still shopping :) He treated us to the best fish and chips i have ever had- well, i guess its the only fish and chips i have ever had. I guess the most legitimate fish and chips meal comes in paper and you eat the chips with a little plastic or wooden fork; personally i just attacked it with my hands. So greasy and so good! we ate on the edge of Derwent Water, one of the lakes. People can rent paddle boats and row around the lake or take a boat tour around it, but that was kind of expensive and we were all nearing a food coma so we headed back to the house for tea and some studying. For the evening, Brian and Ann had dinner plans with some friends in Cockermouth- no joke. So we just walked around the town and ended up at a pub called the Black Bull- we each had a pint of locally brewed Jennings and had some really good conversation. We then grabbed some crappy Chinese food and met with Brian and Ann at the place they ate at. They werent quite finished so Callie, Leo, and I had a few more drinks and just hung out. The atmosphere at this place was really fun. We finally left around 1130. Callie, Leo, and I stayed up a little bit later chatting some more and eating Cadbury Flakes ( theyre supposed to go in ice cream, but if you know anything about me and chocolate... we ate them plain) and chatting. This morning we had the best English breakfast ever, complete with Cumberland sausage, a tower of toast, tea, and black pudding- which i did try. Black pudding is not as bad as the reputation it gets. It just tasted like dense sausage. I sort of enjoyed it. After breakfast Brian took us to the Aira Force waterfall. After that we headed back to Penrith to catch the buss back to Scotland, but not before another stop for tea- where Brian actually got a beer. The drinking culture in the UK is alive and well as we could see.
So, i know that this was a really interesting commentary of my homestay, but this is mainly so i can remember what happened, so much easier than keeping a diary.
Well, hopefully pictures will be uploaded shortly. Wish me luck in finding my camera cord and on my second week of classes!
CHEERS!
Monday, September 20, 2010
First days of Classes
So, ive been here in Edinburgh for almost two weeks, and only now does school actually start. Its weird to be back on the grind, these last few weeks have been crazy- sleeping in until noon unless registeration pulled me out of bed at 7, trying a new (err well not really) pub every night. I have already had two lacrosse practices, well i guess they were tryouts but they dont feel that way.
I had my British Society class this morning and eberyone else and i spent the first 15 minutes of class just trying to find it. Of course they had changed not only the room, but the building as well, at the last minute. It is a mostly first year course, so today was spent going over university expectations and guidlines. The class was only 50 minutes which was quite refreshing- it felt like high school again. Then i went on a mission to Princes Street to find cleats for practice this evening annnnd i came home with a purse-typical.
My second class was a pretty huge fail. The start time and location has been different every time i looked at them and after walking around for more than an hour i decided to call it quits and send an angry email to someone and figure out where the class actually is and try again on thursday. I then went and found cleats with the two other american girls who are also playing lacrosse. Now im going to eat and be totally antisocial and try to forget about missing my first pharmacology lecture.
CHEERS!
I had my British Society class this morning and eberyone else and i spent the first 15 minutes of class just trying to find it. Of course they had changed not only the room, but the building as well, at the last minute. It is a mostly first year course, so today was spent going over university expectations and guidlines. The class was only 50 minutes which was quite refreshing- it felt like high school again. Then i went on a mission to Princes Street to find cleats for practice this evening annnnd i came home with a purse-typical.
My second class was a pretty huge fail. The start time and location has been different every time i looked at them and after walking around for more than an hour i decided to call it quits and send an angry email to someone and figure out where the class actually is and try again on thursday. I then went and found cleats with the two other american girls who are also playing lacrosse. Now im going to eat and be totally antisocial and try to forget about missing my first pharmacology lecture.
CHEERS!
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Reflections on my first week in the Auld Reekie
hey all,
i cant believe it has already been a week since i left home. Time has flown by, but the flight from SeaTac seems like it was years ago! I am all settled into my flat after a trip to IKEA, Pound Saver, and (of course) the Fresher's Week poster sale. I, obviously, had to get a poster version of the Beatles' Abbey Road cover, a map of the world so i can finally do the thing where you put pins in the places you've been, and a picture of the golden gate bridge to remind me of home (sort of). My flatmates are all first years, meaning that they are 17 or 18, which is a little weird, but they are all really nice and easy to get along with. Two of them are from Dundee, which is about an hour away, and one is from north of Inverness, which is in the highlands. The fifth roommate is a 20-year old, first year from Norway. She's really fun to talk to and she loves talking to Americans because she studied abroad in Texas when she was in high school. Ive hung out with Suz and Barbara's flammates more than my own at this point though- one is from England (first year) and one is from Canada( third year, study abroad). But tonight im having people over to my place so that we can all get to know my flatmates as well.
The other night we went to a dance called a Ceilidh (pronounced: somewhere between Kay-lee and Keh-lay). It is a traditional Scottish dance that is coming back into style. It reminded me a lot of square dancing but very fast and the music was way better haha. There was a band- a guy playing the fiddle and a guy playing the flute. I wasnt going to try it until an orientation mentor dragged me out and tried to teach me- i probably made a fool of myself but i told him i was American and he understood. There was one dance that was a lot easier that i could manage- a lot of spinning around people haha. It was a great experience though.
Today has been the most eventful yet. I woke up at around 730 so that i could get ready in time to walk the 40 minute walk (ugh) down to the King's Buildings (Science and Engineering) for my program induction, basically they talked a little bit about the Bio department and then introduced us to our DoS (director of studies- pretty much like an academic advisor). We then each got to meet with our DoS (mine is actually American!) and matriculate (register for classes). My schedule does not look terrible; i only have to walk down to King's twice a week i think- although ill probably figure out how to take the shuttle once it starts to get cold. Today can not make up its mind about being sunny or rainy; it will rain for ten minutes pretty hard and then stop and be hot and sunny. I was afraid id have to walk back from my meetings in the rain (of course i didnt have a hood), but as soon as i stepped outside it was sunny and so warm i had to take my jacket off.
Here's my schedule:
British Society (1650-1880)- 10:00-10:50 MWTh
Pharmacology 3- 2:00-5:00 MTh
Molecular Genetics 3- Lecture: 9:00-9:50 TF, Lab: 10:00-12:00 TF
I am actually really excited to start classes (not just because we have/get to wear white lab coats in lab) because i really want to meet more Scottish people my age. Because it is Fresher's Week, we havent really met anyone our own age-especially anyone who we're going to see consistently.
Also today, my friend and i walked over to the gym-which is super big and super nice; the redlands gym is a dump compared to it. We got memberships; they were actually quite pricey but i keep forgetting that i probably wont want to run outside once it gets colder or if its raining. I almost went on a run for the first time since i left the states yesterday but they sideways rain deterred me- dang :) but the girl i got the membership with plays lacrosse at CMS and we both are going to try and play here- so we can be teammates before we return to California and become arch rivals again. The sports fair is tomorrow so hopefully we can get more information there.
well, im sure youre bored and ready to be done with this, and if you made it to this point without quitting i am very impressed.
CHEERS!
Here are a few pictures:
i cant believe it has already been a week since i left home. Time has flown by, but the flight from SeaTac seems like it was years ago! I am all settled into my flat after a trip to IKEA, Pound Saver, and (of course) the Fresher's Week poster sale. I, obviously, had to get a poster version of the Beatles' Abbey Road cover, a map of the world so i can finally do the thing where you put pins in the places you've been, and a picture of the golden gate bridge to remind me of home (sort of). My flatmates are all first years, meaning that they are 17 or 18, which is a little weird, but they are all really nice and easy to get along with. Two of them are from Dundee, which is about an hour away, and one is from north of Inverness, which is in the highlands. The fifth roommate is a 20-year old, first year from Norway. She's really fun to talk to and she loves talking to Americans because she studied abroad in Texas when she was in high school. Ive hung out with Suz and Barbara's flammates more than my own at this point though- one is from England (first year) and one is from Canada( third year, study abroad). But tonight im having people over to my place so that we can all get to know my flatmates as well.
The other night we went to a dance called a Ceilidh (pronounced: somewhere between Kay-lee and Keh-lay). It is a traditional Scottish dance that is coming back into style. It reminded me a lot of square dancing but very fast and the music was way better haha. There was a band- a guy playing the fiddle and a guy playing the flute. I wasnt going to try it until an orientation mentor dragged me out and tried to teach me- i probably made a fool of myself but i told him i was American and he understood. There was one dance that was a lot easier that i could manage- a lot of spinning around people haha. It was a great experience though.
Today has been the most eventful yet. I woke up at around 730 so that i could get ready in time to walk the 40 minute walk (ugh) down to the King's Buildings (Science and Engineering) for my program induction, basically they talked a little bit about the Bio department and then introduced us to our DoS (director of studies- pretty much like an academic advisor). We then each got to meet with our DoS (mine is actually American!) and matriculate (register for classes). My schedule does not look terrible; i only have to walk down to King's twice a week i think- although ill probably figure out how to take the shuttle once it starts to get cold. Today can not make up its mind about being sunny or rainy; it will rain for ten minutes pretty hard and then stop and be hot and sunny. I was afraid id have to walk back from my meetings in the rain (of course i didnt have a hood), but as soon as i stepped outside it was sunny and so warm i had to take my jacket off.
Here's my schedule:
British Society (1650-1880)- 10:00-10:50 MWTh
Pharmacology 3- 2:00-5:00 MTh
Molecular Genetics 3- Lecture: 9:00-9:50 TF, Lab: 10:00-12:00 TF
I am actually really excited to start classes (not just because we have/get to wear white lab coats in lab) because i really want to meet more Scottish people my age. Because it is Fresher's Week, we havent really met anyone our own age-especially anyone who we're going to see consistently.
Also today, my friend and i walked over to the gym-which is super big and super nice; the redlands gym is a dump compared to it. We got memberships; they were actually quite pricey but i keep forgetting that i probably wont want to run outside once it gets colder or if its raining. I almost went on a run for the first time since i left the states yesterday but they sideways rain deterred me- dang :) but the girl i got the membership with plays lacrosse at CMS and we both are going to try and play here- so we can be teammates before we return to California and become arch rivals again. The sports fair is tomorrow so hopefully we can get more information there.
well, im sure youre bored and ready to be done with this, and if you made it to this point without quitting i am very impressed.
CHEERS!
Here are a few pictures:
From the Ceilidh- Traditional Scottish Dance
Friday, September 10, 2010
PICTURES!
welp i found my camera cord so here are some highlights:
Royal Mile
View from my hotel window of Edinburgh Castle
Out at Biddy's (Suzie Me Katie)
A view of the city from Calton Hill
Royal Mile
View from my hotel window of Edinburgh Castle
Out at Biddy's (Suzie Me Katie)
A view of the city from Calton Hill
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
First Day in the UK
hello all,
so i have officially been gone from Tacoma for 24 whole hours! its crazy how fast that went. First i hopped on a 5 hour flight from SeaTac to Newark, caught a glimpse of the empire state building and the statue of liberty during our decent, and arrived in Newark for a 4 and a half hour layover. It wasnt too bad because i took the IFSA Butler group flight which gathered us all in a lounge to meet before we left. The next flight left Newark at 8pm local time (5pm west coast time) and got us into Edinburgh at 7 am local time (11pm west coast time), i was super excited to have a window seat because i'd gotten stuck with a middle from SeaTac, but i boarded to find out that there was actually no window in the row i was in...typical. When we landed the program chartered a bus to take all of us who took the group flight to the orientation hotel- everyone who is studying in Scotland has orientation in Edinburgh so there are quite a few of us here. The rooms were not set to be ready until 230 pm, meaning we had 8 hours to kill before we could shower, nap, or even change out of our gross airplane clothes. So a group of 7 other kids and i decided to explore a little bit, and explore we did. We walked up to Edinburgh Castle, down the Royal Mile, and pretty much everywhere else ( i even found the same hotel i staying in when i came here two years ago with band- still across the street from Erogenous Zone although it is now called Zone Eros). The architecture is so beautiful, everything is so old! i took some pictures, but i cannot seem to locate my camera cord to upload them, so hopefully i didnt leave that at home :( Also, we adventured to find phones and got a pretty good deal- its actually cheaper to call the US than it is the UK, which doesnt make any sense. we finally got to our room about an hour ago and i randomly got paired with one of the girls ive been walking around with all day. The view is awesome, we can see up to the castle from our window. We have a group dinner in two hours so i think im going to take a power nap so i can attempt to go out tonight to this pub across the street called Biddy's.
ill hopefully post pictures soon!
so i have officially been gone from Tacoma for 24 whole hours! its crazy how fast that went. First i hopped on a 5 hour flight from SeaTac to Newark, caught a glimpse of the empire state building and the statue of liberty during our decent, and arrived in Newark for a 4 and a half hour layover. It wasnt too bad because i took the IFSA Butler group flight which gathered us all in a lounge to meet before we left. The next flight left Newark at 8pm local time (5pm west coast time) and got us into Edinburgh at 7 am local time (11pm west coast time), i was super excited to have a window seat because i'd gotten stuck with a middle from SeaTac, but i boarded to find out that there was actually no window in the row i was in...typical. When we landed the program chartered a bus to take all of us who took the group flight to the orientation hotel- everyone who is studying in Scotland has orientation in Edinburgh so there are quite a few of us here. The rooms were not set to be ready until 230 pm, meaning we had 8 hours to kill before we could shower, nap, or even change out of our gross airplane clothes. So a group of 7 other kids and i decided to explore a little bit, and explore we did. We walked up to Edinburgh Castle, down the Royal Mile, and pretty much everywhere else ( i even found the same hotel i staying in when i came here two years ago with band- still across the street from Erogenous Zone although it is now called Zone Eros). The architecture is so beautiful, everything is so old! i took some pictures, but i cannot seem to locate my camera cord to upload them, so hopefully i didnt leave that at home :( Also, we adventured to find phones and got a pretty good deal- its actually cheaper to call the US than it is the UK, which doesnt make any sense. we finally got to our room about an hour ago and i randomly got paired with one of the girls ive been walking around with all day. The view is awesome, we can see up to the castle from our window. We have a group dinner in two hours so i think im going to take a power nap so i can attempt to go out tonight to this pub across the street called Biddy's.
ill hopefully post pictures soon!
Monday, September 6, 2010
Tomorrow comes to take me away
so i havent even left for scotland (although i do depart in exactly 23 hours and 17 minutes...not that im counting) and i have stuff to share.
yesterday i got back from the dave matthews concert at the gorge, let me tell you... absolutely epic. such a gorgeous place made even more gorgeous with the presence of all of my high school friends. if you havent experienced dave matthews at the gorge, definitely put it on your to do list. basically a huge tailgate party. everyone drinking and having a good time. i forget who said this but they said that dave matthews should win the nobel peace prize for getting all of these different kinds of people (Huskies, Cougars, AND Ducks) together without utter chaos ensuing. the concert itself was absolutely amazing, he played "stay or leave" AND "why i am" and even though i didnt get to hear "crash", i am pretty satisfied. and now to get all sentimental: i am always really happy that all of my best friends from high school still make the effort to put time aside to do things like this together. as some people drift apart from their high school friends once they leave for college (especially when that college is over 1,000 miles away from most of them) this group has held strong and i really appreciate that. This weekend is going to make it a little harder to leave.
buttt i am still really excited to get to edinburgh and meet the rest of the people from my program.
Now I have quite the interesting story for you all: So, i got back from the gorge yesterday and checked my email and i found out that i had to confirm my housing, so i log onto my account for university of edinburgh and start going through the steps or whatever and what do i stumble upon... the name of the tenant assigned to the housing is "Mr Blair Callaghan". welp, at the time i dont really think its too big of a deal because thats the only place that has come up so far, and does it really matter? wellll not until i mention it to my family and my lovely sister says "youre probably in an all guys flat" do i start to freak out. so i start thinking...and it is highly likely that what she said is true...i have only found one flatmate and he is definitely male and they did say that they normally allocate flats based on gender. shit! sharing a flat with 11 other girls would be one thing but 11 guys, im not so sure about that, my mom said that the good news is that my messy habits will be the norm.but i emailed my program director(who of course will be out of the office until tomorrow aka the day i leave for scotland!) and the housing people at the school who still havent responded. awesome. hopefully it all gets settled before i move in on the 11th.
welp, its time to get all nostalgic on my last run in tacoma until january. oh yeah, and i should probably start packing.
Sunday, August 29, 2010
8 days :)
Officially 8 days and 10 hours until i leave for edinburgh. Now that my days at the PDZA gift shop are over (i thought this day would never come!), one would think that i would have plenty of time to shop, pack, and say goodbyes...but no. i still have a family vacation, a trip to the gorge, and a family BBQ to attend in this rather short amount of time. My free time at this point adds up to about a day and a half or so. Not that im complaining about these activities though, i am glad i get to spend a few days relaxing with my family at Sun Mountain, galavanting around the Dave Matthews Band concert with all my best friends from high school, or eating an ungodly amount of food with my relatives at the beach. I still have a lot to do before my adventure can begin; obviously lots of shopping to do. Packing for the UK will be slightly different than packing for school in Southern California; im going to have to talk myself out of most of my sandals and tank tops :( And also, my worst fears have been realized, ive been told that people in Edinburgh, generally, do not wear hooded sweatshirts outside of there homes and wear sweat pants even less. I guess that the girls dress to the nines to go out as well; heels, tight skirts, and big hair (not really how we roll in redlands). So, obviously, a whole new wardrobe is absolutely necessary.
As soon as Kali leaves, in 2 days for Barcelona, i will be the last of my friends to leave for abroad. E has been in South Africa since mid-July, Lauren left for Tanzania on the 26th and Rachel left for Milan today. Its going to be a rough week listening to everyones stories while im sitting at home, but im really excited to hear about all of the different adventures, none of these countries are ready for whats about to hit them. These girls can terrorize an entire university even when we decide to err on the side of moderation, i cant imagine what will go down when they can get into bars and clubs legally.
Well, i should probably start packing for Sun Mountain.
cool first blog right?
As soon as Kali leaves, in 2 days for Barcelona, i will be the last of my friends to leave for abroad. E has been in South Africa since mid-July, Lauren left for Tanzania on the 26th and Rachel left for Milan today. Its going to be a rough week listening to everyones stories while im sitting at home, but im really excited to hear about all of the different adventures, none of these countries are ready for whats about to hit them. These girls can terrorize an entire university even when we decide to err on the side of moderation, i cant imagine what will go down when they can get into bars and clubs legally.
Well, i should probably start packing for Sun Mountain.
cool first blog right?
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