Oops. How did I get this behind in updates? Must hurry up and try to catch up...
Day 8 (Tuesday, September 28, 2010):
It's seriously getting to a point where I can't remember what I did unless I look through my schedule book...and even then I'm not exactly sure! Well this day, I was supposed to have gone on a day trip with Alisha (we were thinking Bristol since it's close by), but due to scheduling (or "timetable" as they call it here) and class (or "modules") issues, we had to scrap that plan for another day. I ended up not going to the JOMEC enrolment session as advised not to by the assistant in the office...only to receive an email later saying that I "urgently" need to schedule an appointment with my "personal tutor" (an advisor as we'd call it in the States) as I had "failed to attend" the session on Tuesday. Oops? I had to take care of some "timetable conflict" (scheduling conflict) in the morning...and then Alisha, Alana and I checked out the Local Companies' Fair where we were bombarded with ads and flyers. I honestly can't remember what we did the rest of the day...this is kind of sad, I just checked my text messages and I remember now!
Alisha, Alana and I went to the Uni Hall Pub...where we were joined by Elmira, another American study abroad student that I had spoken to prior to coming here. We each had our first fish and chips (YAY) which was absolutely delicious!
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| First fish & chips...served with "spirals" (curly fries) and peas - photo credits to Alisha - I didn't take my camera |
Day 9 (Wednesday, September 29, 2010):
I had to take care of some module stuff again so I went to the JOMEC building to sort out some issues and sign-up for seminars (the equivalent of "discussions" or "recitations" in the States). I had a few hours to kill before my next event, and I ended up going to a cafe that has already become my favorite and writing a blog entry there. Around noon, I headed onto a CU event - the CU here in Cardiff hosts an International Cafe every Wednesday afternoon - a great place to meet new people and get to know other Internationals! I got to meet new people and chat up some people I had met last week, which was very nice. Afterwards, I got directions to a Korean/Japanese market near/on campus (we don't really have a campus) and I finally found it! I had been looking for it all week after passing near it by chance. Honestly, I stepped in and almost cried. I thought I wouldn't miss Korean food so much, but I really do crave it! AHH! I bought some non-smelly food for the sake of my flatmates (so pretty much just ramen) but I think I'm going to go back to buy some seaweed and gochujang to make bibimbab. I would love to have some spicy food!! I chatted with the nice Korean owners in Korean for a little bit - it was awesome just to be able to chat with adults in Korean again (I know, I know, despite the whole "I don't like Korean people" thing, it was still a taste of home just by encountering some Korean adults).
I got back to my dorm just to leave again to Tesco's with Kristin (seriously, I go there so often). She ended up buying some very needed groceries and I bought some food as well - on the way back, we ended up stealing a "trolley" (shopping cart) ;) Well, we had to insert a pound to get the trolley out in the first place, so it wasn't really stealing! I'm not exactly sure what Kristin did with the trolley afterwards, but it was funny to see everyone watch us as we rolled the trolley right into our dorm premises.
After Tesco's I headed over to meet up Izzy, one of the British friends I was able to make through CU. We were trying to figure out where to grab dinner and ended up settling at this Falafel place...where we encountered this super creepy guy who was hitting on Izzy so we ended up heading out. Then we tried sitting on the steps of the business school when a cat came upon us and both of us flipped out! That was quite a memorable meal!! Afterwards, we headed to the CU main meeting for a time of worship and meeting new people! After the CU meeting they had "open house", where CU members opened their houses up for tea...that was more mingling and very lovely :) I met really cool new people, and it's always very nice to be surrounded by native British people as opposed to other study abroad students (although I <3 my study abroad group)!
Day 10 (Thursday, September 30, 2010):
I realize that these entries are getting extremely long because I keep updating them in masses, but I still think it's important for me to update on a day-to-day recap method because this is really for me to capture my experiences abroad. I am so forgetful that it's ridiculous how much I don't remember - this way, I'll have it in writing!
On Thursday, I had my main JOMEC (my department here in Cardiff) meet-and-greet session that I had to attend. In the morning, Alisha and I headed out to grab a quick bite at the coffee store and then headed on to the Societies' Fayre. "Societies" pretty much are equivalent to "clubs" back in the US, but the main difference is that many societies require you to pay a fee to join. It's slightly more formal as there is an entire process to join a society whereas back at Penn, joining a club is as easy as attending meetings and getting on the listserv. I ended up signing up for the CU and the Korean Society (I am craving Korean bad SO badly) - everything else didn't seem to catch my eye. I then headed to a very quick 2nd year JOMEC session...
After the JOMEC session, I rejoined Alisha and Alana who were eating at an Italian restaurant in City Centre. I am becoming OBSESSED with Irish Coffee:
Such deliciousness. I am definitely going to miss being able to have Irish Coffee down the street!
We wandered around City Centre for a bit where I ended up doing some major shopping (sigh...). I bought a new pair of boots (I know, I know) but they ended up being a worthwhile investment as they're waterproof and comfortable! Those two characteristics are NECESSARY in the UK where we do so much walking and it's constantly raining.
After City Centre, we headed to Uni Hall, where Alana, Elmira and Dee Dee are staying (all Internationals) - we ended up at the Pub again where we played games!
Whew. I'll end tonight's updates for now here - up next is my weekend in London & some more traveling!
On a side note, I can't stand that there are people screaming out my window every single night. I really hate being woken up every night at 3am/4am by giggling girls. They literally party every single night here and while I am totally a proponent of partying MODERATELY, I seriously wonder if people here know how to have fun without drinking. But then again, we are living in a primarily freshmen-dominated dorm and freshmen are always annoying no matter where they are...it just takes a year or two for them to realize that they don't need to be partying every night - you can "live it up" in other ways. I'd much rather have a slow night in with a close group of friends than be out in a packed club with strangers. But I guess freshmen will be freshmen. Don't they get tired??? I guess I must be old now...hehe.
