Right so I've had all my classes. Latin at 9:30 on Monday and Tuesday and Sources and Source Crit Tuesday at 3:30. That's it. Oh no wait, I have a private tutorial with my adviser this semester and with Alex Woolf (!!!) next semester because my thesis topic is so far out of left field there aren't any classes that pertain to it. Because that's not intimidating at all.

Latin Prof (who has yet to introduce himself so I don't know his name) teaches in a traditional Scottish kilt. Every day. No lie. Knife in the sock and everything. I really don't get that... I mean, what if you fall? I don't imagine a dirk through your foot would be a lot of fun for anyone. Whatever. It's massively entertaining; he's about fifty five, completely bald and rolls all his 'r's. Every single one. It's hard to understand. He also thinks we're all REALLY dumb, because he kept asking us questions (such as how does one tell time in the Middle Ages) and no one got it right. He's also RACING through this language. I've had two classes and I'm supposed to know one conjugation and two declensions. I've got them up in dry erase on my mirror so I have to look at them all the time; I've got the conjugation and one of the declensions... i need to get the other one by Monday. Problem is (for me anyway), he's not giving homework. Now I know that doesn't really sound like a problem, but I'm NEVER going to learn this language without drill. So if he doesn't assign anything on Monday I'm just going to do the drill from the last two chapters and ask him to look it over for me.

I've got the prep done for Sources. It's due 6 October. That's 6 days away. I also have half the book read for my tutorial. I'm pretty sure he's not expecting me to have the whole thing done but I will. And then some. I really hate to say this because It's going to come around and bite me in the butt (probably really soon) but I really don't have enough to do. Like at all. I'll be done by the end of the day tomorrow more likely than not. End of the day Friday at the very latest. Oh well.

So I went to this polo match on the West Sands (one of the two beaches of which I'm in walking distance) on Sunday. Took about an hour to get there from my apartment, much to my surprise and that of the friend I went with. We made it, finally, and watched for about an hour and a half. I still only have a vague idea of how the game is played. But it was a pretty good time. We also saw wind surfers crash. Sounds bad, but it's really very entertaining. No one got hurt, of course.

I need to hit the Library again tomorrow to get some more books to read... they don't use the Dewy Decimal system here so I'm a bit lost, but then I also don't really mind wandering around a library. So it works out.

Would someone from HSV forward me Isabel's email address? I tried emailing her and it got kicked back. Thanks!

That's all I've got for now. Cheers!

I'm ALIVE!!!

And posting, which is nice.

So I made it here all in one piece more or less. My luggage- my new beautiful teal luggage- got mangled, possibly beyond repair, but I and my stuff made it. Got here after a very long bus ride from the airport on Saturday mid-morning and unpacked a bit, then went off exploring. We had to go to what was supposed to be something akin to an RAs meeting, but ended up being a social with free booze (and thus drunk and obnoxious freshers), so a friend (I have friends!!) and I went to see the "city" at night. We ended up walking out on the pier, which was probably not a terribly wise thing to do in the dark but whatever.

Sunday, we were trying to find this Scottish Country Dance thinger, but got lost and went shopping for the stuff we didn't manage to get the day before instead. We then sat in Costa for about two hours, which was fantastic and amazing and I wish they had them in the States, before coming back and attempting to sleep.

Yesterday, we had a welcome thing at 2 and managed to get phones before that. We went down to the beach and saw the end of the sandcastle building contest for the freshers, walked across the Old Course (which is a Big Deal, apparently, but you couldn't prove it by me) and then I went to bed, because I felt like crap.

Today, at the ungodly hour of nine in the morning, we had a meeting of postgrads and student services, which was completely unnecessary and far too early for people who aren't in the right time zone. We then sat in Costa for another two hours, trying to wake up and figuring out how out shiny new phones work, before really grocery shopping and more exploring. I found Medieval, but the Old Class Library (at which I have to be tomorrow at 11:30) is eluding me. The door that's meant to go there, according to the sign in Medieval, was locked with spider webs on it, so I can't imagine that's it... Oh well. I'll just get there REALLY early and ask someone.... find someone to ask.

It's chilly and windy and it looks like Oxford and I love it.

Cheers!

Shopping complete. Or at least as complete as it's going to get. If there's anything I forgot, I'll pick it up when I get there. There's got to be a Boots in town. Or something. Probably.

Got luggage because it was on ridiculous sale- more than half off for four pieces of that nifty luggage that rolls around in full circles- whilst I was walking around the mall killing time this afternoon. Also got contacts, so I won't be blind while I'm trying to study.

Still haven't got an exact address; I imagine they'll let me know which apartment when I get to the building. It'd be pretty crappy if they didn't.

That's all for now... :)

Blog Fail...

... and I haven't even left the country yet. Go figure.

So most of my shopping is done; I'm going out again tomorrow for the stuff I forgot today and (hopefully) I'll be fully packed by the weekend. Which is good, because this will be the last weekend with the girls. We're going for pedis and mass amounts of the world's best Chinese and then out... somewhere. Good times will be had, I'm sure.

8 days. That's not a long time.