Time flies...

Classes are about to begin, and I've already been in Scotland for two weeks! I guess it's true what they say... time flies when you're having fun!

The first week was "International Orientation". This consisted of, as previously stated, some boring meetings, but also a few bit more fun things. For instance, I had the opportunity to take a trip to Sterling Castle and Glengoyne Distillery!!!

Below are two pictures from Sterling Castle.

The castle was pretty neat, and as far as the history goes, in short it was in a vital position in Scotland and changed hands frequently between the English and Scottish.

I would say more, but I had a hard time hearing anything because our tour group was so large.

Glengoyne distillery was a whisky (people in the states would probably call it "Scotch") distillery that is apparently known for their fruitiness, and lack of smoke or peat. The older the whisky is, the more expensive it is. The whole concept reminds me a bit of wine... As in, I doubt I would be able to taste too much of a difference between 10 year old whisky and 40 year old whisky, but I most definitely would feel it in my pocketbook. I had the opportunity to taste a "wee dram" of Glengoyne's 10 year old whisky, and found that it tastes like... alcohol. It would be similar to me to having a glass of vodka... Don't quite see the point. But nevertheless, whisky is what the Scots are known for.

That brings up another thing... In addition to being known for whisky, Scotland also has it's very own soda that outsells all Coke and Pepsi products. Its called Irn Bru (pronounced iron brew), and tastes remarkably like bubble gum. Why it is orange, I have no idea. I have had Irn Bru twice now, and no diet Dr Pepper amazingly enough.

The other thing that happened during the "Orientation Week" that deserves mentioning was a city tour. We hopped on a charter bus for a 2 hour whirlwind tour of the city. Now, I will have to go visit all of these places on my own because a bus tour just does not suffice.



Now, moving on... the week after the Orientation Week was Freshers' week. Basically, think a freshman (here they are known as freshers) orientation, with parties put on by the student unions at night.

Another side note: the US Universities have student unions, but they are just buildings with various student services and places to eat. The student unions in the UK are a student body and a place. They have a voice on campus, they have different committees, throw themed parties, as well as host other events. Glasgow Uni is unique, because where most unis have one union, Glasgow has two. They are awfully competitive with one another, it reminds me a bit of fraternity rivalry. Technically you are only supposed to join one, but I am told there are ways around this. The two unions are:
-Queen Margaret Union, traditionally the girl's union, but now it has a bit more of a quirky reputation from what I gather. They also have a lot of cool gigs at their venue.
-Glasgow University Union, traditionally the male union. They remind me of the "popular kids"
Needless to say, people from both unions are very nice. Perhaps this is only because they want me to join theirs??

Anyhoo, so each day is filled with various events and each night, each union has a different party. Some highlights include: headphone disco at the QMU where you have a pair of headphones and get to choose between which two DJ's you want to listen to, jungle themed party at the GUU where some friends and I dressed up like lions with onesies, a T-shirt party where you sign everybody else's T-shirt (I ended up with a number written on my shirt among other things... but it was signed Amy) and various other nights. It was tons of fun.

Classes started today, so perhaps it is time I gave my liver a break... I'll save things about class for another post.

Thanks for reading!

A Quick Couple of Notes About Scotland

-Chips are called crisps

-French fries are called chips

-Pants refers to underwear

-Trousers refers to pants

-When dancing, there is no grinding

-there are no Lay's. Here they're called Walker's

-the weather is similar to Norman in that, if you don't like it, wait 5 minutes

-it never pours here, only drizzles

-there are 1 and 2 pound coins. This is quite annoying

-another way of saying pound is quid. As in, that costs 5 quid

-Mormon missionaries really are all over the world. I met some today

-I must resist the urge to take pictures of people in kilts

-Everyone knows where California is. Hardly anyone knows where Oklahoma is.

-it is important to distinguish between American football and football (soccer)

-Cheers is another way of saying thanks or goodbye

-People end text messages with an X. It's a friendly gesture. Sometimes, you'll do two or more Xs.


I gotta run! A real blog post is coming soon to a computer near you.

Cheers. X.

Where to begin...

So, where to begin...

The first moment I knew things were going to be different was in the airport, when I was already hearing many different accents. Mostly they were English, as my flight was to London. Immediately, I also observed how many people looked "European" or perhaps "British" is a better way to put it. I don't quite know how to describe it, but suffice to say that it is fairly easy to pick out Americans. The flight was relatively uneventful. I took half a sleeping pill and fell asleep as soon as I finished the meal. I think it freaked out the guy next to me a bit, how solidly I fell asleep. Anyways, I didn't use the bathroom the entire flight... that's right I can hold it for 9 hours. No problem.

When I got to London, I was surprised at how easy it was to get "Permission to Stay as a Student Visitor". I talked to an official about what I was doing in the UK, I didn't even have to show any documents, and he stamped my passport and let me through!

When I reached the gate for the connection to Glasgow, I was listening to two men talking behind me. I thought it might be English with an incredibly strong Scottish accent, but now I think perhaps it was Scots? (read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scots_language) Regardless, I enjoyed trying to discover what they were saying, but I pretty much understood none of it, which means it can't count as eavesdropping. :)

The flight was relatively uneventful, although it was a struggle to find the University shuttle that was supposed to take me to my flat. After a bit of a ride, we arrived at "Murano Street Student Village". My room is wonderful, but the hallway and the doors connecting the rooms are very prison-like. They're old and cinder blocks, painted plain white and the doors do not stay open... In addition, there is no common living area, or common room. Just a kitchen. And a bit of a sorry excuse for a kitchen.

Almost as soon as I got to my room, I heard my flatmate leaving his room. I immediately poked my head out, and met Carlos, who is from Madrid. Carlos wanted to shopping so we headed to the main office and asked where we should go. Conveniently, there is a Tesco (think Wal-Mart) just around the corner. After buying some food and realizing that I forgot to buy plenty of other important things, such as toilet paper, we walked the 15 or so minutes back to our flat. I was fairly exhausted from the plane flight and went to bed at 9 pm, only to wake up at 5 am and be unable to fall back asleep.

The next day was the first day of orientation and most of the people from my flat, including a guy from Boston, and a girl from Japan, headed to orientation. Carlos, as an Erasmus student, has his own orientation. In our orientation, it was mostly US folk, followed by Chinese, then Australians, New Zealanders, and various other Asian students.

We learned plenty of boring things, like how to register and enroll. That night, we went in search of a pub and ended up on Ashton Lane. The pubs were nice, but noticeably it was an older crowd. Nevertheless, we ordered a couple pints, and the guys from Boston insisted on ordering a couple shots. The people in the pub were quite friendly. One guy was telling us that we were in the nice part of town so drinks were perhaps the most expensive there than in all of Glasgow. Fantastic. Apparently the city center is most inexpensive, and more of a student hang out...

The few girls my age that I did see were dressed to the nines. They had on high heels, which I have no idea how they wear them on cobblestone, short skirts, tights and no jacket. The girls must have blood made of ice because I don't think I would be able to do it. I have come to be comfortable with the idea that I will most likely stand out when I go out... That doesn't bother me too much. A few German girls I have met are in agreement with me, so I believe it's more a British thing than a European one.

Anyhoo, today I have a tour of Stirling Castle and Glengoyne Distillery, and I have to run to get ready!

I haven't taken any pictures yet, but I will on this trip for sure, and try to post them. I must say, I love the international atmosphere and find myself avoiding other Americans because there are so many interesting people from other places to talk to... Already I feel like I will not be here as long as I desire, and the semester will go to fast.

Last day in the states!

A couple of years ago I went skydiving. I went solo, not tandem. I sat through about 4 hours of training, before I eased myself out of that airplane... and let go!

I learned that perhaps the most important part of all the equipment was the parachute, and insuring that it was packed correctly. With this mentality, I tackled the grave situation of packing for Glasgow.

Perhaps leaving for study abroad is less of a life-or-death issue, but I spent a good deal of time contemplating what I should pack, and finally, packing it. So I am officially packed! Amazingly enough, when I first packed everything, the weight of the luggage was only 40 lbs. The limit for British Airways, which I am flying on, is 50 lbs. So why not go for a bigger parachute to ease the descent after you jump out of the plane? Logically I packed more.

I have gone through the training, that I am sure, as I discovered when sky diving, does not adequately prepare you for the experience you are about to have. The OU study abroad office has supplied me with information regarding what to expect, including culture shock, money matters, and medical information. The University of Glasgow has sent me packets for the International Student Orientation, as well as the International Student Handbook. Nevertheless, the experience cannot be truly prepared for.

I had nervous thoughts and excitement in anticipation of jumping out of a plane, and I am feeling them now as I wait the last couple of hours before I head to the airport. I have great expectations for this semester, but also some fears, including: what if I didn't pack adequately (I don't want a parachute failure!), what if I have issues navigating the largest city in Scotland, and what if I have immense home sickness. I don't want to crash land!!! I am excited at the thought of experiencing "Fresher's Week" (more on this later), meeting new people, and learning about Scotland and the Scottish people.

As I discovered when sky diving, there is no way to describe the experience of flying through the air. The entire time I came down from that plane, I was laughing for joy with a huge smile of elation on my face.

The hardest part of the entire thing was getting out of that plane.

My parachutes packed, my training is completed. I am ready for the experience of a lifetime! All I've gotta do now, is jump!!!

Less than a month to go!!!

So, here I am sitting in California anticipating the adventure I'm about to undertake when I leave for the University of Glasgow. I have finally finished summer school in Norman, and I made the long road trip home in time to have a "bon voyage" party with my siblings.

For those of you who don't know, my sister, Breezy, and my brother, Jeff, will be spending the next year abroad. While I will only be gone for a semester, they will be out of here for an entire year! I must say, I am a little jealous, but I can't imagine graduating abroad so I decided I wanted to spend my final semester in what has become my home over the last three years, Norman!

Now, I know what many of you are thinking, what does "haggis" have to do with any of this. Wellll, let me tell you! Haggis is a Scottish cultural dish, the contents of which I care not to think about too much. Read more here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haggis. Now that I am finished with that extensive explanation, let me wrap up by saying I am so excited to leave!

Next I will blog about what I have learned about Glasgow and the University so far, and possibly there will be some moaning and groaning about what I can (and cannot) fit into my suitcases as I prepare for this wonderful adventure known as study abroad!