27 September 2006 Thoughts

I haven’t been too keen on writing because I have had a rough few days. When I first got on the plane, I told myself I would keep a diary or something & write in it everyday. Well, whatever. I should know better. I hate keeping journals, diaries, whatnot. Just not my thing. So instead, I thought I would start a blog that I could update whenever I felt like & post pics & such. Plus people could read it whenever they wanted & I wouldn’t have to send updates all the time. Call me lazy, but it works for me! And I don’t have to remember everyone’s email address each time. So if you are reading this & you want to send me a note, go for it. This just hits a lot more people & they can read it whenever they want.

So, I promise I will update this at least once a week, hopefully more. Kinda depends on how classes go & any other activities I find myself involved.

What has been going on you ask? Well, lots. I flew in on Sunday (the 24th, I think) early in the morning. My plane out of Washington, Dulles to Heathrow landed an HOUR early because of tail winds thanks to those storms that hit the US the day before I left. Hey, whatever works! Customs only took an hour – thank God it didn’t take the 3 that it did when Mom & I came over in June. Omar Obeidat was waiting for me at the airport at 6:30am, like he said, & drove me to Swansea. Paid 130 pounds for it, but it was worth it in my opinion! I got to sleep the entire way! And it rained. And I didn’t have to worry about taxis or train connections or buses or anything of that sort. I literally got door to door service. He even helped carry my heavy luggage up the stairs! (Weighed in at 44 lbs. and 49 lbs!)

So I live in the Student Village on the backside, which is actually quite nice because it is quiet, but kinda boring because I haven’t met many people. There is a little path I can take that cuts through the buildings to the Spar & the Super’s office, as well as the bus stop. I am living in an 8 bedroom flat with 4 other people. We are not sure if anyone else will move in or not. Anyway, there is Frederich from Germany. He is 23 & is fluent in 4 languages! German, French, Spanish, & English. Those are the classes he will be taking this year. He has been an RA, though the Germans do not call them that, back home, so he is used to managing a house of 140 guys, their finances, & their alcohol. We have dubbed him the RA of our house. J I am the next in age at 22 & act very much the mother. J I clean the kitchen, went to the Super’s office when the 2nd floor toilet was leaking, & translated for some. Matthew is next at 22, though he is 3 semesters away from graduating undergrad (I think he partied too hard in the beginning). He is from San Francisco & is anti-American. He can act very snobby, but whatever. I hardly ever see him, though I have seen him more today than I have since I moved in! I believe he is doing business administration. His girlfriend is studying in Nice, France, currently, so he plans on visiting her in the next few weeks. Alice is 21 & from Lyons, France. She is in the Geography department here. Her English is quite good though she is not very confident in it, but I think with time she will feel better. We have been hanging out some – going into town & to the university. I helped translate some things in town for her. She is just a kind soul & is always concerned about others. Lan is the last of us & is from China. We are not sure how old she is or what department she is in (found out she is in Translation). Her English is so-so & she is not very friendly, especially if she is around other Chinese. That’s okay though. Between the 5 of us, we have 2 floors with the girls on the 2nd & the guys on the bottom. We share a kitchen (complete with microwave, fridge, freezer, & oven) & 2 bathrooms (one with a shower & one with a tub).

Who have I met? Well, aside from my housemates, there has been Mary from Alabama & Suzanne from San Fran. Mary is a riot. She is in international politics & is required to spend a year in the country she is specializing in. Her area is Europe, so here she is! Through her, I met Suzanne from California. Suzanne is an undergrad English major, so we have been discussed the organization, or lack thereof, of our department. As of right now, I have not met any other postgraduate students! Oh well … I’ll survive.

On Thursday, I FINALLY get to register for classes, which means I will FINALLY have internet & email access. Going into town everyday & using the internet café, Crossfire, is getting pricey! Plus it means I have to go into town! ;-) I do go into town a lot because there is nothing much to do right now. I am really bored, so I have read some books (I recommend the Sweet Potato Queen books – hysterical! Thanks, Jennifer!) & have just started reading Toni Morrison’s Beloved which is becoming very interesting. Picked up 2 other books today at the WHSmith store I found in town.

The weather here has been nice, up until today when it started sprinkling. Now, at 7:40 it is pitch black out & raining. Heard a Welshman say that now that it has started raining & is cloudy, we won’t see the sun for a few months. L That makes me sad! I like the sun!

Oh, today & tomorrow is the “Fresher’s Fayre” which is when all the clubs & organizations set up booths & recruit. I met some girls with the equestrian team & I am seriously thinking about joining. I figure I might as well get to ride a horse sometimes! So here goes! I’ll have to learn to jump & ride hunt seat (AAAHHH!) but I think I can manage. They were quite excited that I have been riding for almost 18 years. I hope I get to compete with them! I think I could do quite well in dressage since I have such a strong background in equitation. Apparently their trainer is a 24-year-old guy that they is a riot. And he always has positive things to say! Only the team captain has her own horse, but she does not even ride her horse often, so I’m not really sure how this works. Mom is going to send me my riding jods & boots. If I think I like this & will stick with it, I might invest in some actual hunt seat attire. They said I could ride in jeans, but I just can’t do that because it will rub the skin off of my knees & that is painful & not something I want to do!

I have also thought about joining the surf club, though I have no clue how to surf! I want to learn though! Not sure if I will follow through with it, but we’ll see.

Can’t think of anything else right now … my room is really small – smaller than my Transy dorm room. Maybe the size of my bathroom at home? It has an ugly brown patterned carpet, but whatever. It’s just carpet & if you spill something on it, you can’t tell. Right?

I’m getting over my homesickness now that I am getting out & about the town & I register for classes tomorrow. I think I was just really bored & didn’t have any way to entertain myself. I’m not one to go out to the bars & their party themes just aren’t exactly my cup of tea – Detention Monday & Porn Star Party Wednesdays. I mean really, we are how old? Can we at least act our ages?! Alice agrees with me on this topic at least – neither of us are big partiers.

Can’t think of anything else to write, especially since I am already at 2 pages & that is a lot! Like I said, I will try to update often & post some pics so everyone can see what it’s like over here.

And for those of you who are wondering … no, I have not met any hot single Welshmen yet, but Cynda, I’ll keep looking for you. But I get first dibs. ;-)