Yep, I'm a slacker...

Um, yeah, so I am horrible at updating. I really (kind of) have an excuse though! Pretty much nothing happened at the beginning of the week to even talk about, and then I was so incredibly busy the rest of the week I just didn't have a chance to really get on my computer and do much correspondence at all. Anyway, I apologize.

Monday:
I didn't do anything too exciting. I took the tube for the first time and it was really easy. And, since the last underground I rode on was in New York, I was astounded by how clean it is. It might just be the area I am in, but there really isn't much trash to speak of and not many 'undesirables' down there. I think a lot of that has to do with the crackdown on the tube since the bus and tube bombings. There are a lot of armed transportation cops around too.

I also tried my first shot at grocery shopping. I finally understood the story my mom told me about how the change in cultures when we moved to Saudi hit her like an avalanche the first time she went grocery shopping over there. It got me here. The first place I tried was in a less reputable area than where I am staying and it was cramped, crowded, small, and that made it even tougher when I was trying to understand what half the labels I was reading meant. I almost had a meltdown when I couldn't find white bread. Sad, but true.

Later I tried a supermarket much closer to where I live and it was completely different. The closest thing I can think of in the US was like going to Slone's. It was a lot less busy, more open, and I had a much easier time trying to figure out what I was doing. They also have really cheap cornish pasties that can be heated up just in a microwave, perfect for insanely broke college students!

Tuesday:
I literally did nothing. I watched TV and cross stitched, and missed practically everyone.

Wednesday:
This was kind of the start of school. I had orientation with the Institute. There are tons of archaeology grad students, a couple hundred easy. My department itself only has about fifteen, and all of us are girls except for one guy. It's also quite American heavy, we make up over a third of the program. The head of my program seems really nice too. I think she'll be great to work with.

I am a little nervous that I am in over my head. Everyone besides me went to better universities, or have been working in this field for years, or already have masters degrees in other things. So I kind of stay quiet lol. There have been moments when I think they let me in on accident, but I'm sure they knew what they were doing, and I will try my hardest, even if it kills me.

That night the Institute and professors threw us a party. It was on the top floor of our building, and the view was killer. I still can't wrap my mind around the fact that there was massive amounts of alcohol (red wine, white wine, beers, and OMG Strongbow :D ) provided by the Institute for us to drink while hanging out with our professors. Kind of different from the Bible belt, that's for sure!

I made a few friends in my department and actually went out to a pub after the party for dinner with a couple of them. So I'm slowly getting there. We didn't finish with dinner until after 8, and it was already dark. I was only a block away from the tube though and it was a well lit area, so I wasn't worried. Well, I wasn't worried until I got down to the station and found out my line was suspended for safety reasons. I kept the panicking to a minimum and was able to follow some incredibly convoluted and quickly provided directions to find my way home using two different tube lines and making a transfer (much better than my other option - walking two miles in 50 degree, rainy, dark). It was a pretty proud moment for me lol. And as a reward, I got home to a care package from my mom and stepdad, full of ketchup packets and crystal light. I can't explain how much that meant to me. THANKS MOM, I LOVE YOU :D

Thursday:
We got together early in the morning to meet each other in our program more in depth. I hatehate talking about myself in front of a group of people I don't know. But it could have been worse. I got to see the conservation lab I'll be working in next year, and I absolutely can. not. wait. It is so cool and I'll even have my own work station.

After that I took a tour of the Petrie Museum of Egyptology. There is so much cool stuff in there. There's the oldest known piece of linen, tons of pottery, jewelry, tons cat sculptures(!), a head (which you can see here, but don't click if you are easily disturbed, but if you ARE into that stuff, all the human remains, including a mummified toe, can be found on their site). And the coolest thing of all? If I need to use any of the items for school I can have nearly any of them taken out so I can look at them better.

Today:
I went to another general grad student orientation, which I knew I should have just skipped since it was virtually the same as the international graduate student orientation. I also took a tour of the archaeology library, it looks about the same as any other library, but the amount of resources I have available is really quite astounding. I also took a tour of the Institute's collections and they are very impressive. I might get to work with some of them for my essays and dissertation, or I can volunteer to work with them just for the experience.

Today was also the first day that I got to experience true London weather first hand and not from my window. It was in the mid-5o's and raining. I went to take the tube home from school and Paddington station had been closed for security reasons, ugh. So I navigated the tricky bus routes and took a double decker home. It wasn't nearly as difficult as I had worried and I only got slightly more wet.

Tomorrow I am going to Stonehenge bright and early. I'm kind of excited, I haven't been there in going on 15 years. I will take tons of pictures to share with everyone and I'll try to update sooner next time! Take care everyone!