One Week Down

Well, I've officially completed my first week of classes. It's different to the UK, I'll tell you that.

Before we arrived, we were warned that there was a lot of work. We were told that the work was easier than what's expected at home, but there's a lot of it. This is absolutely true. Five days of classes in and I'm already drowning in reading. I'm sure to somebody used to this kind of work load would look at the amount of reading I have and laugh at my stressing. But the fact of it is, it's so much more than what I'm used to.

Let's be honest - the study schedule of a typical British uni year is sitting tight in lectures, doing a bit of background reading for your seminars, then leaving the bulk of reading/cramming until the week of your essay or exam. It's not the right way to do it, but it's certainly the most popular. And there's absolutely no way you could get away with that over here. There's required reading for every class ad if you don't do it, you really do feel like an idiot as everybody jumps on each question the lecturer asks. Everybody is so involved with their studies here, it's quite inspiring. Daunting, but inspiring.Maybe that's because class participation is a chunk of your final grade, but whatever it is, it certainly works to get people involved.

To get on top of all this work, I've bought myself a little planner. I feel like I'm back at secondary school, but I honestly think that's the only way I'll remember to do it all. I'm just going to have to get used to doing a little bit of work every day. Luckily, I have quite large gaps in my time table, and I'm finished for the day by 10am on Mondays and Fridays. So I have the time to do the work, it's just getting the motivation to do it that's going to be the tricky part. Still, hopefully I'll get into the habit and bring it back to Swansea for my final year. What an optimistic hope.

And of course, with the end of my first week of classes came the first weekend of the semester. Not really sure what to do with ourselves, Ashleigh (the girl I came with from Swansea - we're easy to remember since there are two of us) Grace (our new Scottish friend) and I were invited to a fraternity house party, which turned out to be a pretty chilled evening that broke almost every stereotype I had in my head about frat boys. The vast majority of them were lovely guys. One of them? Not so great. But I'll talk about him another time. The rest of the weekend has been spent flicking between reading and procrastinating, with a few meals and a quick trip Uptown in between.

I have officially had my first Target trip which, I have to say, I was irrationally excited for. I wish I had more time and money to spend there this afternoon. I also wish I could take 99% of the homewear and ship it off to my bedroom at home. I wanted SO MUCH. I foresee many a Target trip this next ten months. I'll apologise to my bank account in advance.

So now that a little spell of procrastination is done, I suppose I'd better get back to reading. Hopefully I'll get used to it soon enough!

First Impressions

I've been at UNM for almost a whole week now, long enough to really establish a first impression on the location, people and general college life. I have to say, I'm really impressed. Considering UNM didn't have a place on my list of desired Year Abroad locations, I'm glad I was put here.

Having spoken to some locals, both staff, student and other, I've heard that Albuquerque isn't exactly a social hub of the U.S. For the people who live here, there isn't a great deal to do because, as they put it, 'we've done it all before'. But I don't think that will be the case for me. In the grand scheme of things, on the spectrum of eternity, 10 months really isn't a very long time. I'm confident that there'll be enough sights to see and people or places to visit to keep my occupied in my free time here. I already have my eye on a few possible trips and activities, so hopefully I'll get to do them all.

99% of the people I've encountered here have been great. Obviously, there's a problem with intimidating passers by, but isn't that a problem anywhere you go? Thus far, the good have outweighed the bad. Earlier in the week, I visited a great organisation called the ISI, which is a Christian organisation who help international students by providing short-term host families, free lunches for two weeks or so, and free second-hand furniture for those living in unfurnished apartments off campus. Whilst I was there, somebody kindly offered to take my friend and I to Walmart to pick up all the bits we needed, which was very much appreciated - thank you, Dillon!

Much like any new place, the campus itself has been a bit of a problem to get to grips with. It's huge, or at least a lot bigger than what I'm used to at Swansea. That, and all the buildings seem to look the same - big, square and brown. It's a lovely campus though, once you've figured how to get around.

The only real culture shock I've experienced so far is the food. Don't get me wrong, I'm hardly a health buff when it comes to food, I just crave vegetables out here. There really is only so many variations of burger (or something similar) and chips a person can find appealing. Especially when the portion sizes could feed a small family back home. Honestly, I'd kill for a Sunday roast, and it's only been two weeks since my last. The struggle is real on that one.

But over all, my first impressions have all been positive. I've definitely set out on the right foot to enjoy this year. So far, so good, UNM!

A Ticket For One: Travelling Alone

Without a doubt, the thing I dreaded most about the whole year abroad experience was the travelling. In my head, I'd built it up to be this absolute ordeal, in which I'd have at least four meltdowns. As it turns out, flying alone really isn't that bad. I wouldn't say it was enjoyable, but it certainly wasn't bad.

The first stop was Heathrow. Luckily, I had both parents and my little brother in tow, so the check in process (which, in my opinion, is the most stressful part of any airport experience) was pretty much done for me. I then had the hard part - the good byes. Some how, I managed to keep it together as all three of them shamelessly wept. Here's a tip - don't look back. Once you've said so long, don't turn around and look at them all weepy and hugging, because THAT will make you cry.

I didn't have a great deal of time to kill at Heathrow, which was fortunate for me as I really didn't have the money for all the make up I'd undoubtedly NEED to buy if I looked at it for long enough. I boarded fairly quickly and with minimal fuss, and I was away.

I flew with Delta for both the long-haul and the connection flight. I have to say, I really couldn't fault them. The crew were wonderful, the seats were pretty comfortable as economy flights go, the food was great (unless you hate cheese - So. Much. Cheese.), and the entertainment system was the best I've seen on a plane to date. There were a few technical issues with some film/tv show viewings, mine included, but there was a large selection of music to pick and choose from to make playlists. I was happy as Larry. I'd recommend Delta to anybody going to America for next year's year abroad, or for any other reason.

Atlanta Airport was probably the worst part of the journey. The airport itself, or what I experienced of it, didn't have the greatest of organisation. Of the 20+ kiosks at immigration, only three of them were occupied by staff, so the queue to get through was so much longer than it needed to be. Fortunately, flights were slightly delayed due to thunderstorms. If all had been on time, it would have been a tight squeeze to get to the gate for the next flight at a comfortable time. Fortunately, though, I made it.

Arriving at the university campus was slightly daunting. It was pitch black, and about 5am in my brain's time zone so I had no sense of orientation whatsoever, but I had a brilliant taxi driver who hunted a friendly face down to take me to where I needed to be.

All of that, all on my own, and not one single melt-down. A pat on the back well deserved, I'd say. I think the trick is honestly just to pretend you know what you're doing. Just pretend you're a sophisticated individual (even when you're really really not) on a well-planned and highly successful trip. That's what got me through, anyway!

Welcome to State Side and Stranded

So here's the plan. 

Now that exams and results are out of the way, I've been given the green light to do something a little bit different for the third year of my university experience. In just a few short days, I'll be embarking on a 10-month trip to the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque to dabble in American history, politics and literature. Though I should make one thing clear - contrary to the implication of the title, this was actually my idea. I'll be stranded by request. God help me.

Besides unimaginable heat and some laugh-worthy sunburn, I've no idea what to expect. I'm aware the campus is going to be bigger than what I'm used to at Swansea, but just how big? How different are their classes to the ones I've sat before now? What will it be like sharing a room with somebody? Am I going to find somewhere decent to watch the Rugby World Cup? These are the burning questions that I have no answers to just yet. I'll be playing it by ear and (whenever I remember to)  jotting down my findings on this blog. I want something like this not only to share with people back home (and anybody else it may interest), but also to look back on myself. I can imagine it being a pretty spectacular year of my life, and I want to document it as best as I can.

I don't have a set plan for the content of this, either. It could range from gushing over all the wonderful things I'm doing, giving some kind of advice based on my own experiences, or moping about how much I want to fly all my friends and family over to pick me up if I fall down. I might even throw some pictures in if I'm feeling artsy. Who needs plans anyway?

So here it is. The study abroad blog.