Weird Things About This Place

So, I have been here for about a week now and have had two full days of classes so far. I thought it was about time to inform all of you about some of the weird things about school in London. Some good, some a little less than good. Most good though, really, I'm not just saying that.

(1) Most of my classes meet once a week. And I have 4 classes, so unless I change my classes (which I may) I have 4 class sessions all week and one optional tutorial (aka discussion section). So far no classes on Friday and none on Monday until 2. Some of my classes are 3 hours long but it really doesn't feel all too bad because... leading to number...

(2) I get breaks in the middle of my classes. In my infectious diseases in developing countries class we literally stopped for tea. My professor said lets break for tea and everyone went to the cafe downstairs. It felt really stereotypical but in a really good way.

(3) Our student union has bars, like school sponsored, alcoholic beverage selling bars. And they have drinks for 1 pound.

(4) Students go out on Monday nights. But not so much on Thursday nights.

(5) You don't buy textbooks but you have about 5 times as much reading.

(6) Everything, food and gym memberships and coffee, are all cheaper on-campus. This makes sense to me but its definitely different than GW.

(7) Class meetings end in March, we have the month of April off, and May and June are only exams.

(8) Some of my classes have like 8 lecturers. Its an Intro course so I guess they're trying to cover all of the basics, but who do you get in touch with? Who's office hours do you go to?

Thats all I can really think of right now, but thats just the weird things about the school system. Once I figure out everything more, I'll let you in on all the weird language and cultural difference.

Room Pics as Promised!!

Yesterday I said I would post some pictures of my room as soon as I finished unpacking and today I finally found clothes hangers so its all done! And as promised, here are some pictures. And take it in because i doubt my room will ever be this clean and organized again.

The bed half of the room....

Isn't my new bedding cute? And notice my painting from kenya on the dresser... And yes that is my suitcase at the end of my bed with a lace table runner draped over it ...

And here is the other half of the room...

Desk, chair, sink, bright blue door, you know the usual suspects (and a new red coat because I left my peacoat in Marietta)

And now for the kitchen...

The bright blue paint appears again. I've decided I'm a fan of it. It brings a little caribbean to cloudy, rainy England.

I have a bathroom too but bathroom pictures seem kind of weird to me. I have a sink, a toilet, and a shower like every other bathroom. Nothing fancy but it works and seems to have hot water most of the time so I'm happy!

And if you haven't already, read my former post because this is just kind of a boring picture post.

Arrived in London! My Pride Has Not...

I'm here! and finally. That was probably the single most ridiculous travel experience I have ever had and that's saying a lot. So sadly I must admit that this time I have to blame myself rather than the airlines or other incompetent passengers, etc.

First of all, I had been waiting to hear from UCL about housing since the 'middle of December' which is when I was told I would be informed if I had somewhere to live or not. Jan 4 rolls around (the day I leave) and I still haven't heard anything. I look at my address information listed on UCL's version of Blackboard and it vaguely says "Schafer House" with no room number or anything. Then I kept reading these emails about having to confirm housing and pay the deposit prior to arrival which I obviously didn't do because I hadn't received my formal offer so I didn't have the paperwork or anything. So, this is probably not my smartest decision, but I decided to hop on the plane to London with no idea where I would be living. And on the way to the airport is where the fun started...

As many of you know, I'm not always the most organized person in the world and I have a really convenient habit of forgetting things. And usually important things. Generally I'll forget deodorant or pajamas or underwear or something like that when I travel. Important, no doubt, but it can be bought. This time I decided to forget all of the paperwork necessary to get my Visa once I got to Heathrow... and realized while in the heart of downtown Atlanta, around 6 PM, in traffic. Probably the most annoying time ever because you're not at the airport yet so you feel like you should turn around... But of course time was not my friend. Oh and to top it off I forgot my coat on my way to one of London's coldest winters ever. Sitting on the kitchen bar so i wouldn't forget it. I give myself far too much credit.

Well, my mom and I came up with a somewhat genius plan. When she got home she would scan all the documents to my email and then when I got off the flight I would cry, get them to let me into a business class computer center or whatever those things are and print them off. We even had it down to how and when I would tell the flight attendants my situation and everything. It was the perfect plan. But do those things ever work out as you plan them, really?

I get to the check-in desk and things start getting better. I don't have to pay for any of my luggage and with a little rearranging nothing was over the weight limit. Then there is no line at security (a miracle of the most unexpected kind in the infamous Atlanta airport). Then there is a money exchange near my gate so I get some pounds etc. so all looks well.

The flight goes by smooth enough, I don't sleep very well and there is this odd old british man who keeps smiling at me but besides that no complaints. I watched the social network and they put lemon in my diet coke :) (Kelsey, if you read this I was thinking of you when he asked if I wanted lemon hehe it may be a sign that you were supposed to be in London this semester)

Then I get to the airport and there is no business center before immigration so that I can print my documents. And no one to ask so naturally I just go up to the immigration officer and explain my horrifyingly embarrassing situation which of course makes him give me the "you silly American girl face" but politely helps me anyway. Then with people line up behind me I plop my laptop on the counter and pull up the email attachments one by one. And somehow with a laugh he lets me into the country.

Then I get my bags, walk through customs without showing them anything (what's the point of customs if all you do is walk through it with no checks?) and once I'm sitting outside at the terminal I realize I still don't have anywhere to stay. And no phone. So I'm emailing my parents who are talking to housing while I wheel around my bags on a cart and look like a paranoid homeless person when I freak out that someone stole my wallet when it was at the top of my carry-on. I think it should be said that I'm generally a laid-back person. Most of the time I'm even unreactive to a fault. The lack of sleep and build-up of stress had really turned me in to a crazed maniac.

Then my parents call say that they talked to the residences office and they gave them the name of the place I'm staying I just need to go in and sign a form accepting the offer. Relief! Well, somewhat. I still had 2 bags and 2 carry-ons to drag around and 2 addresses to find that say only the street name and no number. Luckily however I got the nicest cab driver in the world I'm certain. He takes me to campus stays with me while I find where I need to go (and actually he was the one who eventually found where I need to go) and helps me with all of my bags. The only bad part of the cab ride was that it cost 90 pounds. For you US folks, please google convert that. It's quite a fun number.

Once I found my room, however, I must say its worth it. I have my own bed room with a big window and a sink and mirror and then share a bathroom and kitchen with one other girl. Its really a beautiful room, especially after I bought all of my bedding and started to put my stuff away (which is still in the process in case you were wondering)

And now I'm finally getting settled in and went to get groceries so I could break my 36 hour soy latte fast...

Let's just hope that all of my registration stuff in the next couple of days runs a little more smoothely. Oh and after already spending up my prepaid minutes I have decided that international calls are not in my budget so please send me your skype information if you want to keep in touch :)

Much love,

E