Friday

Last day of orientation. Today we had a tour of campus in the rain, during which the tour guide pointed out all the spots that would have been really helpful to know a few days ago, and which I am already familiar with because of those days. We also got to see the Sports Centre, which was good because we're meeting behind it on Sunday to go to Cambridge.

After the tour, I was talking to a girl I met during the tour who also lives in the North Towers. This was very exciting, because all the people I had met the day before lived somewhere else, and when we all met in Lecture Hall 3 today, they all sat somewhere else. Apparantly they bonded with other people overnight and want nothing to do with someone who doesn't live with them. Anyway, her name is Iowonna, or possibly Iwonna... or something... and she's from Poland. She was friends with two Italian girls and a French girl, whose names I didn't really catch. Anyway, we all went and ate lunch together, which was nice because A: it's the first meal I haven't had to eat alone and B: it was not granola bars. Huzzah for another sandwich!

Next we had library tours, so I arranged with the girls to go grocery shopping afterwards. The library tour was very helpful. They don't employ the Dewey decimal system per ce... it's sort of different, but I think I can manage to find a book there.

They also have a really peculiar lift in the library, called the paternoster lift. It's a continuous elevator sort of thing... and you kind of just have to hop in and out as it comes level with the floor you want... and i took the stairs : P

Pictures of all these things will be forthcoming. Tomorrow is a free day and I am taking my camera exploring.

So next we went grocery shopping. Tesco is, indeed a ten-fifteen minute walk. A ten to fifteen minute walk downhill, which is fine, except that it means that when you go back you need to go uphill with bags of groceries. I'm getting so much exercise. And now I have butter, a loaf of bread, storage containers for leftovers, paper towels, laundry detergent, pasta, rice, and garlic salt. I shouldn't have to eat granola bars again for a good while.

Unfortunately, they do not have drier sheets over here. Trying to explain the concept of one to the girls was pretty difficult, because I guess they don't have them in France, Italy, or Poland either. I asked what they put in the driers to prevent static (except they didn't know that word, so I got to describe that too, which was fun) and they said they just hung their clothes... hmm. I would gladly hang my clothes, because laundry is expensive here, but there is nowhere to hang them. So my parents are mailing me some drier sheets : P

We got back, and I unpacked the groceries and sat down to enjoy my internet ^.^ I got to talk to all my friends again, and had a long phone call with dad that didn't cost anything. We worked out the plan for June - they are probably going to come a week or so earlier, since my finals will be over so much sooner than I thought. That means I'll get to come home for good a week or so earlier, too.

I've gotten my first assignment for Cultural Ideology in Film, and much to my dismay I recognize one of the authors from Post-Colonial Lit last semester. Ah well. I'm still trying to get the hang of this whole "reading list" thing. What if I don't read enough? Or read the wrong thing? Do all my other classes expect me to start reading right away too, or is it just this film class? No way to know. I think I will be happy if I come away with Bs this semester. I mean, if Purdue told me to do these things and write some essays, I'd know exactly how to go about it, but I have no idea what these professors expect of me. I suppose I'll find out... but probably not in time to save my GPA.

Anyway, people should be moving back into the flat this weekend, so it'll be less empty. Not sure how I feel about that. On the one hand, I do feel rather isolated all alone up here. On the other hand, it's really quiet and I never have to wait for the shower. And I know some of my flatmates are male, so that could get annoying. We'll see.