First Day of Classes

Had a really awesome day today. Started the day bright and early with a nine o'clock Physiology class. I think i'm really going to enjoy it, the topics all seem really interesting and I'm hoping that my Physiology class from U of A will come in handy. The class which was created and is still taught by the Dean of Arts and Sciences at the University, focuses on systems in the body rather then just what happens at a cellular level -awesome. The prof is a very opinionated older American gentleman with a lot of personality and it seems like he knows what he's doing.

Next on the schedule was Microbiology, this class is going to be a ton of work but again sounds similar to the class I took at U of A so hopefully shouldn't be unmanageable. There is a lengthy lab involved but sounds like it will be interesting and somewhat fun.

English -Reading Comprehension? Why do I have to take this? Spent the first class doing a diagnostic read a story and answer questions. I'm hoping for easy marks but you never know.. if I don't do well on the diagnostic I'll know why I'm taking it ;)

Social Science and Medicine -a course on sociology. What is sociology? Hmm.. i'll answer that after wednesdays class I suppose. Sounds interesting but involved a ton of paper writing. I guess its kind of a blessing in disguise because if it weren't for this class I would not be writing anything this term and all my creative word work from last term would be lost.

Took some time off in the evening and drove over to the beach for a swim. I got to try out my amazing new ipod adapter which allows me to swim laps while listening to music. I'm not going to lie... best invention EVER!! It was pretty fun to swim, listen to music and watch the starfish on the bottom while I swim past.. A quick trip to the grocery store all covered in sand and water was next, where I couldn't find lettuce, tomatoes, eggs or chicken which is what I had on my grocery list. I'll have to check back tomorrow -gotta love first week of classes, when all the students clean out the grocery and do nothing but eat and socialize/study.

Sunday

Classes start tomorrow -I can't believe summer is over... Went out with friends last night and had a school barbeque this evening. I am so excited to see all my classmates tomorrow and see how everyone's summer went and where they travelled to. Early start tomorrow so I am off to bed. Nine o'clock Physiology...

Saturday -Cruise day!

So now that all the heavy lifting and unpacking is out of the way, I had a chance to explore the island a bit and visit with friends. Met a new friend through my friend Linnea who I met last term. Both are from Sweden, both are named Linnea and both are super fun. So went with Linnea on the Rum Runner Orientation Cruise. Here are some pictures of the tour...
Walking the plank off the boat..
Steel drum band -amazing!
Really neat boat
Really cool boat
pretty flowers
Linnea and I on the bus
Friends from class
the Rum Runner
sailboats in the bay
the water is SO CLEAR!

Friday

OOOoo.. I have my room all set up. Here's a tour:

Thursday

Wow.. it has been a whirlwind of activity since arriving. First of all I cannot believe how hot it is here -so much warmer than last term, you can't do anything without dripping in sweat. Spent the majority of last night moving into the room and transporting all my boxes of debris from friend Melanie's apt to campus. Luckily the car works still -I was really concerned the last couple of weeks that it would. Thanks to Dad and Grandpa for all the advice on what fluid levels to check and where before starting it! So now I have to unpack and find some groceries and find out who else is here already! Miss you guys tons!

Wednesday, Aug 14/08 AM

MMM breakfast was delicious.. eggs and sausage, a muffin and orange juice. I took the shuttle back to the airport with no difficulty and the driver took me straight to the terminal which was a treat. I'd booked this leg of the trip with Air Jamaica and was worried it might be pretty sketchy when I first arrived. The terminal was a madhouse and in true carribean style very slow with EVERYTHING.. checkin, security and loading took forever. The plane left an hour late but I think that was probably due to huge airport traffic. That is where things got really good though, I got to take both pieces of luggage without having to pay extra and apparently if you have a first class ticket you are allowed unlimited luggage. One of the kids had 9 bags to himself -WOW! Best part was that I recognized some of the kids at the airport and ran into my friend Josh. Made some new aquaintances too.. the plane from NY to Grenada

new friends...

Tuesday August 12/2008 -PM

Just arrived in New York and have settled into a hotel for the night. Pretty excited to be in the big city even though I won't have much time to check out the sights. All my luggage has made it so far and I found the hotel shuttle after taking the sky train around the massive airport -I cannot believe how huge it is!! So I'm feeling uber spoiled having my own room, a comfy bed, shower and my last dose of american tv shows before the island tomorrow. Everyone I've met so far have really obvious accents, very long and drawn out words FUN! I also met a really cool girl on the plane, she's a makeup artist for MAC cosmetics (my favorite!) and is on her way to New York for a course. This hotel even has breakfast in the morning and I'm getting excited to reconnect with friends. G'night and sleep tight!