first day of class

Hello hello! Updating from the Selwyn computer lab, since I was trying to print some documents, but I can't figure out how to use the printer, so until I figure that out I figured I'd update. (No pictures sorry, my camera battery died and it's recharging right now.)

Last night I finally found the USC contingent. I already knew Lindsay and Emilio, and met Corbin (who I'd talked with online prior to the trip) along with Kevin, Katherine, Rex, Jeff, Meredith, Ning, and Tammy. Luckily, I ran into them while with the Floridians, so they got to meet each other right away. We went to the bar before and after dinner and the assimilation of the two groups happened much more naturally than I could have hoped for, which makes me really happy- I didn't want to abandon the FL-ians, but didn't want to blow off the SCers either, so it really is the best of both worlds this way! A bunch of us from both groups went to a club last night in town called Revolution, as we figured it would be the best night to do it before we have any real class obligations. Needless to say, we stayed out rather late. I lost my jacket and it was raining when we left, so the walk/run back was rather unfortunate. Luckily (and randomly) some girls that my friend met at the bar called him last night and mentioned picking up the jacket offhand, so he'll be able to get that back for me, haha.

I didn't get much sleep last night, but still didn't have a problem getting up early and was ready for class! My A block, Imperialism in the Ancient World, is great, I really like the professor and I think the material's going to be fascinating. It really piqued my intellectual curiosity and makes me consider taking some Classics courses once I'm back at USC... it's probably to late for me to consider a double major, but possibly a minor? Anyway, I'm going to really enjoy that one. My B block, A History of the Scientific Revolution, is also interesting, but I think the professor slightly rubbed me the wrong way- he was a little bit condescending during lecture, but he doesn't seem too bad, I'm willing to give him another chance. Thankfully I also find the material interesting, so hopefully I will also like this class. I was able to meet people in each of my classes, and Tammy from USC is actually in A with me, which was a pleasant surprise because I'd looked at the roster earlier and thought I didn't share classes with anyone from SC. But some people I know have already started their research, or even writing their papers, which is kind of pushing me to get on top of that.

After class I had lunch at the Buttery (basically the Cambridge equivalent of Trojan Grounds) with John, Taylor and Jessica, and then went into town with USC kids, including Emilio and Lindsay, and Nick came along as well. I bought a replacement travel umbrella (for £5, i cringed but had to bite the bucket since I seriously could not locate the one i brought with me ANYWHERE!) and then due to some miscommunication, I and a couple others were separated from the main group, but we all found our way back to Selwyn and straightened it out then, haha. So now I'm just killing a little bit of time before we all meet up for dinner again, and afterwards we'll either go to the bar again or maybe attend the evening lecture (or perhaps both). One thing's for sure, it'll definitely be an earlier night for me- I need to catch up on sleep!

I'm also trying to be conservative about money, as I feel like I spent way too much yesterday (£6 for lunch, and probably about £8 combined at the bar and club). Today lunch + umbrella = £8, so I'm allotting myself £5 for drinks tonight (enough for a pint and one other drink should I choose to have another). I just made my hostel reservation for the place I'm staying in London with Thea, which will cost me £68 for three nights (which is actually super reasonable). However, the Chunnel prices have gone up since I've last looked at them, so I'll be spending at least $20 more than I'd anticipated on that. But I'm going grocery shopping with Lindsay tomorrow after class, and I figure that'll be cheaper than buying lunch everyday at the Buttery. Plus, I think I'll finally be able to meet up with Khushboo in town!!