The First Weeks at Warwick

This is literally the first opportunity I've had to post an entry since I arrived in England (two weeks ago already!) - I have been so busy!
Mike and I landed at Heathrow in London, where Orientation leaders from Warwick were waiting to take us on a bus to campus. The ride took about two hours, and I was so excited to finally be at Warwick. The campus is really beautiful, much more relaxed and scenic than Madison, and the longest I ever have to walk to get anywhere is about 15 minutes. Our arrival marked the start of the Orientation Program (Programme??!) for international students, which was a 4-day introduction to campus and life in the UK. I have to admit, the first day I was super overwhelmed, to say the least. While so many things about Warwick have been awesome so far, the Orientation was less than impressive. Instead of a formal, warm welcoming, it was more of a seemingly endless series of standing in (pointless) lines and stumbling through a program that totally lacked any sort of organization. The staff were little to no help and really rude, shocking considering they were hired to welcome students who had never been to Warwick before. The first day, I think I stood in line for about a total of 5 hours (after a 9 hour flight and 2 hour bus ride) simply to receive my room key and some silly letter that confirms my student status (doesn't my presence here confirm that?!)

Bericote - my new home!

Then Mike and I dragged all of our luggage to my dorm, Westwood, which is the farthest away from central campus but also (I think) the most beautiful part of Warwick. My accommodation is great - certainly a step up from Sellery freshman year!! I have my own huge room and share a brand new kitchen with about 20 other people. Then only drag is that I also have to share a coed bathroom with that many people as well - yucky boys! When I first moved in there were hardly any other people in my building because only international students were permitted to move in early. It was so lonely the first few days!

Part of my gorgeous walk to campus!

Needless to say, I was pretty eager for Orientation to finish so I could fall into a normal swing for the term. I think that the Orientation was geared more towards international students who were in their first year of university, instead of exchange students. But oh well! I met some really nice people that week and had the chance to get to know campus before it became crowded with all of the domestic students. 

Our hotel outside of London for Helen's birthday

Pops, Nan, Mike and me for Helen's birthday

The first weekend, Mike and I went to London to celebrate Helen's birthday with the whole family. We stayed in this gorgeous hotel just outside of London for the weekend, and had the opportunity to take a walk throughout the grounds on Sunday morning. The previous night, we took the tube into London to see Les Miserables in Chinatown. Ahh, the show was so amazing! Almost as amazing as introducing Helen to Bubble Tea for the first time (yum yum!!) On Sunday afternoon, we drove to Oxford for a really nice lunch at a restaurant called the Old Parsonage. Oh my gosh, the food was wonderful. It was really nice to see Mike's family again, and I'm looking forward to getting to know them much better over the next year!

The arboretum at the hotel for Helen's birthday

Old Parsonage for Sunday lunch in Oxford

Happy birthday Helen!

Oxford

Oxford

When I returned to campus on Sunday night, everyone had moved in and I was so excited to meet my flatmates! Everyone on my floor is so nice - really sociable and friendly. To be honest, the whole building seems to hang out a lot, which is awesome. I even met a girl who went to school with Helen last year - what a small world! Everyone has been spending a lot of time hanging out and getting to know each other, and I think its going to be a fabulous year for Bericote! 

Monday was the first day of classes, and once again, Warwick was the epitome of organization! I didn't receive my class schedule until after my first lecture had already finished. Luckily, the lecture was understanding, and the rest of the week carried on as a typical first week of classes. It'll definitely be an adjustment, getting used to the English university academic system. There is no continuous assessment and all four of my classes last for the entire year. So, I won't really know how I'm doing until May, and my entire grade rests on one exam, or one exam and one paper - yikes! That makes me a little nervous, but I'm up for the challenge. I'll just have to be more diligent about studying independently. 

This weekend I headed to Loughborough to visit Mike and finally see his university and meet his friends for the first time. It has been such a great weekend - finally after two years together I get to see his life in the UK! Yesterday his dad came to visit and took us to lunch at this amazing Turkish restaurant called Tarboush. Oh my gosh, the food was phenomenal! It was also so nice to see Mike's dad again, especially since I haven't seen him since we first met two years ago. After lunch we went to several pubs and socialized well into the evening.

Mike and I at Tarboush in Loughborough

I can't believe I have already been here for two weeks - time is going by so quickly, and I don't think it will slow down any time soon! So far, I have definite plans to travel to France and Portugal with Mike's family, and I just booked a flight to visit Natalie in Bonn, Germany in March. But there are so many places on my travel wish list - its hard to narrow it down and prioritize! I definitely want to visit Lindsay in Seville in the spring, and I also think it'd be amazing to go to Istanbul, but we'll have to see how much of a beating my bank account can take.

That's all for now! Write more soon....