Report of the Week

Monday:

First day of classes, but I already talked about that, so let's move on. 

Tuesday:

Doctor Who society episode-watching party! Oh. Best thing ever. It's like going to Rocky Horror (the heckling, the fandom, the costumes/accessories...) but for Doctor Who. 'Tis a dream come true. 

Wednesday: 

No lectures :) I spent the day crossing things off my to-do list, like going out to the Community Hospital to fix my health forms. Apparently I forgot to sign somewhere and give them my student number. Before that I met up with Mrs. Minick (admissions lady I met at the College Fair last year) for coffee and that was lovely. I also went over to the School of English building and found out when my English tutorial (note: tutorial = small group discussion) was. Monday at 11 am. Not ideal, but whatever. My Wednesday freedom remains intact, which is good. I was worried about that when I filled out the tutorial form on Monday. I then spent the rest of the day finishing Wuthering Heights, the first book of the semester. It was such a beautiful day that I read outside, which helped ease the pain of having to read Wuthering Heights. I do not like that book. Pretty much all of the characters have some sort of mental illness and/or violent behaviour issues, and they all end up marrying each other, and it's just a mess. 

Thursday:

Instead of doing the smart thing, which was to walk to my 4:00 social anthropology class on the other side of town, I took the bus out there, because I was (am) sick, and didn't want to walk all the way out there carrying my huge bag. So I got on the correct bus, the number 92. When I got on, the driver said something about "golf course" I thought that he was talking about the stop that I get off at, the Old Course Hotel stop, so I said yes, got my ticket and sat down. The bus stopped at the stop before the Old Course Hotel stop, but then didn't stop at the Old Course Hotel stop. I wasn't worried at that point because I thought that he would stop soon after my stop. Well, he didn't. I ended up all the way in Leuchars, with only 20 minutes to spare. When I got off in Leuchars, the bus driver told me that he shouted at me to tell me to get off the bus, but I didn't hear him. Anyway, I managed to get a bus back into St Andrews, get off at the right stop, and get to my lecture...10 minutes late. The good thing is that all of the lectures this week have been "What is (insert subject here)?", so there hasn't been any substantive material yet. This coming week should pick up though...yay! I am a nerd and I want to learn! 

Friday:

The only lecture I have on Fridays is Social Anthropology, and on Fridays they show films, so today was a pretty light day as well. Before my lecture, I went out with Amanda, Harry, Charlotte, Miriam, Heather and Jamie for some ice cream, because it has been so warm and lovely here for the past week, and to stop at the stationery store to get a hole punch. Exciting, I know. After my lecture and dinner*, I went out to the Mermaids (performing arts group) party. I was excited to go to this party because I got the Mermaids announcements email, and in it there was an ad for a stage manager for As You Like It. I talked to the director at the party, and she said that she would love to talk to me more about it later. Who knows whether I will end up with the job, seeing as it's a big production and I'm just a first-year, but it's worth a shot. Sadly, my academic mum wasn't there; she is in Glasgow for the weekend. My academic did eventually turn up, but I didn't stay for too long after he arrived because I'm sick and therefore tired and in need of a lot of sleep. 

Speaking of, I am going to stop now and go to bed. 

Good night, 

--Rachael

*My group of friends and I have discovered that going down to dinner later spares you the pain of having to queue (stand in line) for so long for dinner. So we went down at about 6:15 (dinner starts at 5:45). The menu for tonight said that the mains were a) lamb pot pie b) turkey something-or-other and c) wild mushroom risotto. Seeing that there was risotto on the menu, I wasn't too worried. Well, turns out I should have been worried because there was no risotto left when we got to the entree station. Turns out the queue is so big at the beginning of dinner for a reason; otherwise all of the good food is gone! Anyways, so I was stuck with either lamb pot pie (which didn't even look like a pot pie) and the turkey thing which looked absolutely horrific. So I went with the lamb pot pie, solely because it had potatoes in it. But I did die a little bit inside. There wasn't even any dessert either. Usually there is a dessert, and a good one too, but tonight it was just like the fruit topping stuff that you might see served on top of ice cream, but with no ice cream. So I didn't get any of the "dessert" either. The only things I got to accompany my sad lamb "pot pie" were some carrots (steamed in Britain, therefore mushy and not very good) and carrot and coriander soup, which was the only good part of the meal. Unfortunately, I only have one Easy Mac left.

Sorting out my classes

Okay, so it's official. I have emailed my adviser and asked to switch to Modern History. It really is just impossible to get to the other side of town where the Linguistics class is right after my English class is over. I couldn't even do it today, when our english class consisted of only "Hi, welcome to English, fill out this form and then be on your way." Unfortunately, switching to Modern History means missing lunch. I will either have to figure out how to request a pack lunch from my hall or buy lunch everyday once English is over at 2:00. I guess this means I should start eating breakfast now. Good thing I stocked up on cereal.

--Rachael

PS. Why bother taking linguistics when there is Stephen Fry? See here, and here.

*Update: I am now in Modern History. Now I all I have to do is sign up for a tutorial and get a handbook.

The Union Ceilidh

was a bit disappointing, if I'm honest. There weren't as many people there as I thought there would have been, and the music wasn't as classic/traditional Celtic as I would have liked, and the directions were no better, maybe worse even, than those at the Sallie's ceilidh. Luckily, the Celtic society is having ceilidh lessons tomorrow.

Before that though...

me and my group of friends Charlotte, Harry, Sarah, Heather, Jamie, Miriam, Amanda and Christina attempted to make omelettes for dinner this evening. It didn't go too well. Some of the eggs from the frying pan fell down into the cooker (or some nether region of the oven/stovetop combo unit) and created a bunch of smoke, so we were really afraid that we would set off the fire alarm and everyone would hate us. We also I think shorted a circuit in the kitchen, so the toaster would spark when the toast popped out. It was a bit of a disaster. It's a good thing we tidied up really well.

 Tomorrow starts the first day of academics at St Andrews, while I am excited, I am terribly nervous (as well as confused) about how it is all going to work out. The linguistics module that I swapped for comparative literature is currently on the other side of town, right after my English class is over. If this is the case for the whole first semester, then I'm going to have to change my module...again...to modern history (although modern history this semester covers 1450-1770, so I don't know how that classifies as modern).

Hopefully I can talk to my adviser and sort this out.

I'm trying not to worry about it, but it really bothers me.

Anyway, I'm going to bed now because poor Amanda has her French class at 9 am tomorrow, and there's an aptitude test. Although in fairness, I am going to get up early as well to try and sort out some of these issues, and maybe clear off my desk, which looks like the result of an angry gorilla rampage.

Night all,
--Rachael

It's Saturday Night

and I can hear bagpipes from my room. Someone's having fun.

*Update: Apparently they got two pipe bands together from Leuchars and someplace else I can't remember to perform for this Swedish business conference.  ?  Who knows.

Way overdue, but a summary of the week's events.

Okay. Now that Amanda has finally gotten around to uploading the photos, here it goes.

Monday:
--Ceilidh (put on by Sallie's)

    --Amanda doesn't own a kilt, so she brought her uniform skirt as a kilt stand-in. For solidarity, I wore my uniform skirt too. I look gross in this picture, but whatever.
    --The ceilidh was quite difficult actually. The Sallie's common room wasn't entirely big enough to accommodate all of us spinning and kicking about, and they didn't teach the steps very well. They only gave you the directions once, and very quickly. So I didn't dance much. I plan on going either joining the Celtic society, or going to the Ceilidhs put on by the Celtic society so I can learn how to properly do the ceilidh dances, because they are quite fun and I enjoy them (and the music).

    --After the Ceilidh, these lovely people and I (top photo left to right: Christina, Amanda, Katie, Me ; bottom photo: Miriam, Amanda, Katie, Me) and some other people not pictured (named Charlotte, Harry, Becky, and Sarah) went out to the Union and hung out and had some drinks. From there we went to this wonderful place called the Toastie Bar. In Brit-speak (as well as Aussie-speak) a toastie is basically a grilled sandwich. The Toastie Bar is a little place in a hard to find alleyway that makes all manner of toasties for only 50p (50 pence) and it's open from 11 pm to 2 a (2:30 am on Fridays). Great late night snack. I wish it was open during the day too, though.

Tuesday
    --At 2:30, I went with some of the people who are involved in the Performing Arts group here at St Andy's, called Mermaids, and toured the student run theatre, and learned about theatre tech (lights, mainly)  and producing. I am looking forward to getting involved in backstage work again.
    --At 8:00, I went to the Westport Bar for the Mermaids social, where I learned that Stage Managers are in high demand here and where I got adopted. This probably sounds like a weird thing to say, so I'll explain. First year students are "adopted" by two third year students and those third year students become academic mum and dad to their adopted first year, and other first years they adopt. These academic mums and dads often advise and support their academic children. However, their real role comes into play during Raising Weekend, which is the third weekend in November. To explain Raisin Weekend, I will copy from the Student Association Guide to St Andrews.
           --"Raisin Weekend: Sunday ; On Sunday afternoon your mother should throw a Tea Party where you will be expected to play various party games. She will also give you your Raisin String in exchange for a bottle of wine, or if you are feeling traditional, a pound of raisins. She should tie in to your Raisin String small momentos which remind her of you! In the evening, you will move on to your Dad's party.
Raisin Weekend: Monday ; Your mother will cook breakfast for you and dress you up in costumes for the parade to the Quad (Sallie's Quad). Costumes can be as imaginative and ridiculous as your mother wishes. Once you're dressed up you head to your father's where you will get your raisin receipt in return for a bottle of wine. This is usually heavy and cumbersome and will have a Latin paragraph inscribed upon it. Once you have your receipt, you should head to the Quad where the foam fight will commence. Make sure you buy your shaving foam well in advance because everywhere in town will inevitably sell out.

So my academic parents are Charlie (short for Charlotte, I'm guessing. I don't know her real name) and Graham. Charlie is from Edinburgh and is part of the improv comedy group called Blind Mirth. She also directs shows and has been part of shows that have gone on to perform at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. I'm hoping I can get involved in a show that goes to the Fringe. I want to go to Fringe so badly. The only bad thing about Fringe is that it runs from the middle to the end of August, which is always when the family conspires to travel someplace cool and exciting. But it would be a great way to celebrate my birthday! My dad is from somewhere near Belfast in Northern Ireland, and I don't know that much about him yet, other than he is involved in Mermaids (acting, presumably) and he is pretty hilarious. The both of them together is even better. So I can't wait for Raisin Weekend to see what sort of fun things they have planned for me and my academic sister Matilda, who is from Copenhagen and is interested in either producing or doing costumes.

Wednesday
    --I met with my adviser, Dr Alex Davis of the English department, to discuss my modules (classes). Upon getting here, I discovered that my English class got moved from 11 to 1, which then made my English class and my Comparative Literature class at the same time. So I had to switch from Comparative Literature to Linguistics, which I'm not sure about. It feel like Linguistics is going to consist mostly of ESL students, and I also fear that it may be on the other side of town. This is a problem because Linguistics is at 2:00, so I would have no way to get to Linguistics since English is over at 2:00, and is on this side of town. So I've just sent an email to my adviser asking about this potential issue. I don't know if he'll get back to me because it's the weekend, but I hope so because otherwise Monday is going to be a problem. Unfortunately, I don't know what I would choose to take instead of Linguistics. Modern history maybe? ...I don't know.
    --I went to the English social at 8:00 at the Byre Theatre Bar, and ran into Charlie, as Blind Mirth were performing at the social. Because no one except me and Blind Mirth were at the Byre Theatre Bar at 8:00, we all went out for some food. My academic auntie, Emma, and Lauren (who may be my academic cousin, but I don't know) went for chips while Charlie, Steven, and some other guy whose name I can't remember went for noodles. In hindsight, I should have gone for noodles, but getting chips is a quintessential British culture experience, so I guess it wasn't too horrible. Plus my auntie Emma is pretty cool too. We returned to the Byre Bar and then Blind Mirth went on (I use that term loosely, since there was no stage to speak of) and I enjoyed their performance tremendously. I had never encountered acts like theirs before (even at Second City in Chicago) and they were all greatly funny (as an improv comedy troupe should be. The actual English social was really boring, but I did go with some people (named Holly, Calum [sp?] and Matthew) to get some pizza. It was not a very nutritious evening...

Thursday
    --I did nothing on Thursday. But that was good, because by this point I was tired...because of the things   that I've just described.

Friday
    --At 2:00 I went to the Opening Ceremony for the Faculty of Arts held in Younger Hall (literally right next to Sallie's). It was quite a spectacle. All of the professors, and the Principal and other official people processed in wearing their robes and we all had to sing this ancient Latin song. There were speeches from the President, and some other official person that I can't remember, and an English professor (Professor Robert Crawford) who I've heard is legendary. He is old and Scottish, and therefore quite funny. I hope I have a class with him sometime during my studies here.

Saturday
    --Finally got my iPhone! Yay!

    --At 2:00 (I guess this is a popular event time around here...) Sallie's put on their annual Fresher's BBQ, which was a lot of fun. The weather was spectacular today, warm, sunny, hardly windy (Dad tells me it's supposed to be like this all next week...the temperature might even get into the 70s!) so the BBQ was lots of fun. The BBQ was out on the front lawn (known as Sallie's Quad), so people were out playing croquet, football, UNO, life-size Jenga and enjoying some Pimm's (a fruit liqueur served with lemonade and actual fruit chunks in it. Quite delicious.) After some rounds of life-size Jenga, me and some friends (above left to right: Amanda, Miriam [can't see her very well because she's in the shade behind Amanda], Caroline, Jamie [wearing his silly hat], Harry [yes, another ginger Harry], Heather, Charlotte, Sarah, Sam [the IT guy], and Me) worked out how to spell out "Sallies" with the Jenga bricks. We were so impressed with our craftsmanship that we got the camera guy to come over and photograph our achievement. Sadly, though not surprisingly, our sculpture fell just after the photo was taken.
  --At approximately 4:30, Dad came round with the USB/Ethernet adapter thing (the middle man between the ethernet cable for the internet and my laptop) and the power cord for my laptop, and proper sheets for my bed. After that was sorted, we went to Zizzi's, the Italian restaurant on South street, only to find that they were completely booked. So we settled for fish and chips on Market street. Sadly, Dad and I ordered wrong :( We then walked back to Dad's car, which was parked all the way at the end of North street, and got his pillow (which I am now using) and then went back to my room where we put the proper sheets on the bed and I gave Dad the shortbread to take back home to Mum and Jenny and Mum's birthday present and card. With that, we shared a big goodbye hug and Dad left for the lovely Hilton at the Edinburgh Airport.

The only thing I have planned for tomorrow is the ceilidh put on by the Student Union. This ceilidh worries me because if I thought that the Sallie's ceilidh was cramped and hard to understand, then this one, with something like 600 people attending, will be even more cramped and hard to understand. I still plan to go because I like the music and I want to show off my kilt :)

That's all for now. Which is good because that was a lot.

--Rachael

A Photo Tour of St Andrews, Further Updates, and A Ceilidh (maybe)

Because today was such a lovely day (relatively sunny, not very windy or cold), and one of my friends asked me to get photos of the campus, I decided to go out for a walk at around 2:30 to enjoy the day and the scenery with my camera. St Andrews doesn't really have a "campus", but I took photos of University buildings, and other pretty buildings/sites around the town. I've uploaded the photos to Flickr so that everyone can access them.
Here's the link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/67703297@N03/sets/72157627582082771/
Hopefully that works.

In other news, some of the things that weren't going so well when I posted yesterday are starting to get resolved. Dad got a fitted sheet (the stretch-y one that goes over the mattress) and an empty duvet cover for my bed from the owner of the B&B he and Uncle Bud are staying at. He will pick up some proper sheets when he is in Aberdeen. Dad will also be getting a USB plug-in from the Apple store in Aberdeen (lots of shopping to do in Aberdeen) for my laptop that will allow me to plug the ethernet cable (the cable that connects me to the internet) into my computer so that I can finally get internet access in my room. Dad also came by this morning to assemble my IKEA shelf. He is my hero :) Also, I turned the dial up on the radiator in my room so hopefully that will make my room warmer.

More news: There is a ceilidh (a Scottish dance party consisting of traditional music & dance) tonight, and I think both Amanda and I are going. There are so many ceilidhs scheduled this week I don't know which ones to go to! I bought tickets for the ceilidh that's being put on by the Student Union, but maybe I should go to the one tonight so that I can learn how to do the actual ceilidh dance.


Hope you guys enjoy the photos as much as I enjoyed my walk in the rare sunshine,
--Rachael

Over 24 hours at St Andrews: A Status Report

Well, so far there are lots of things going well...and some going not-so-well.

Going well:
--I love it here. I have a fantastic view from my room (see photo at the bottom of the post), and it's my just dream come true. I feel like every other American in Europe, infinitely more sophisticated. I can't wait until school actually starts! :)
--My roommate (Amanda) and I get on really well.
--The foam last night was immense.
--Walking everywhere (including the 3-4 flights of stairs up to my room) will make me fit :)
--There is an extraordinarily cheap noodle shop here.
--Umbrella + imperviousness to rain = prepared for Scottish weather

Not going so well:
--My bedding pack from Target, which I though included sheets, in fact does not have sheets. Argos is completely sold out of sheets, so I'm now using an empty duvet cover that Amanda got from one of her friends that is a 2nd or 3rd year here.
--My IKEA shelf thing requires assembly, and I have no tools.
--I can't get internet in my room. Beanscene, a local coffee shop, has internet, but it's only for an hour at a time, and it's loud in there, so phone calls/Skype sessions are difficult. On the bright side, there should be wireless in hall in about a week or so.
--I can't get my iPhone until I get my debit card from RBS (Royal Bank of Scotland)
--Wearing high heels here is quite difficult, due to the cobblestone/similarly uneven streets. But I am determined because I am short and these shoes are cute!
--I am still just as awkward as ever at first meetings (i.e., the "speed friending" event last night in hall).
--I can't dance...I just jump up and down, which gets really tiring really quickly.
--It is quite cold in my room. I think the window next to my bed leaks (Mom knows what I mean when I use this seemingly odd terminology for a window)
--Fresher's week feels like a year long. I just want classes to start already!

Although it seems like there are far more things in the not-so-well category than the going well category, I really am loving it here, and the things in that category really are only minor hiccups. I wouldn't change anything. I am so happy and privileged to be here.

Love,

Rachael

The Time Has Come!

The walrus said to talk of many things. Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax-- Of cabbages--and kings--

NO, not that.

I am finally leaving for St. Andrews today! YESSSSS! I have been waiting for over 3 months, and now it's finally here! I cannot wait to get over there and start Freshers Week, and finally feed my brain some delicious nuggets of knowledge. Yes, believe it or not, I miss school. I miss homework. I miss learning! I haven't had classes, homework, or the like since May. For me, that is a ridiculously long time. Unfortunately, I still have to wait until the end of the month for that. Luckily Fresher's Week is there to pass the time :)

Speaking of Fresher's week, it is going to be immense! The first day of Fresher's Week starts off with a Foam Party. A party with foam. I can't think of a better way to start of my uni career than a dance party in a room filled with soapy bubbles.

There's also some great football matches...not that I really know or care that much about football, it's just that the games are between some of the biggest, best and most popular teams in the United Kingdom and I feel that I need to at least participate somewhat in this aspect of British culture.

And speaking of culture, there are probably 2-3 ceilidhs going on throughout Fresher's. For those not in the know, a ceilidh (pronounced kay-lee) is basically a Scottish dance party. It features Gaelic music and dancing, and kilts. I even have a kilt for these occasions (thanks Grandma Dorris!). Normally I am opposed to dancing, but between the ceilidhs and the foam parties and the balls (more on that in a bit), I figure I'm going to have to get over it and consider this part of the re-invention of myself.

This re-invention of myself includes a (mostly) new wardrobe, because I've worm a uniform for the past 12 years of my life and therefore have no idea how to dress myself like a normal person. Make-up, because I need to look nice (this isn't a girls' school anymore, people are going to judge me based on my appearance). And, this is the big one, being less shy and approaching/talking to people with confidence. Hopefully the two previously described factors will help make this last change successful. Although it's really all down to me on that one.

As promised, this is now where I talk about the balls that the University puts on. High schools have dances, St Andrews has balls. The Opening Ball is like their version of Homecoming. It's in early October, and I already have my ticket for it. As for a date, either the above re-inventions of myself will secure that, or it will be like high school and I will go with a bunch of (female) friends. There will be many balls throughout the year at St Andrews, so I'll have more chances to have a date.

Lastly, Fresher's will be the time when I communicate with all of you lovely people. I will be getting a new phone (an iPhone 4, I might add), so I'll need to catch up with all of you to make sure I have your correct phone numbers, and that you have my new one. I will also be on Skype, Facebook and here (Facebook is the most likely of the three, however). I am not a fan of Skype, but for the sake of cheap and easy international communication, I am resorting to using it. Keeping in mind that I almost never use Skype, bear with me as I learn how to use it as proficiently as everyone else my age.

I think that's everything for now. I'll keep this and Facebook updated once I get there and get settled in to my new life at St Andrews.

God that feels good to say.

--Rachael

PS. Not that many of you care, but I am not doing labels on my posts anymore. I can never figure out what to put in the box, and frankly, I can't be bothered.