Freshers Week

This past week has been freshers week, which is basically orientation for all new students, but the fun kind, not the meetings, lectures, and icebreakers kind. The week started off with a ceilidh (traditional scottish dance party), and although several English girls were trying to sneak up on one of the Scottish boys to find out the answer to the infamous Do-they-wear-anything-under-the-kilt question, they were unsuccessful in catching him off guard, and the question still remains. Then the well known electronica group Pendulum played at one of the student unions, and they ROCKED! Ten minutes in, someone was already bleeding from the forehead and people were crowd surfing. Always a sign of a good show. And I was right up front! Then a few more themed parties, a formal, and a couple of club nights later, I was at a massive foam party!! That was obviously a blast. And all these events were enjoyed in the company of some fabulous people who live around my dorm building. We've got a nice little group together and we do communal shopping and cook family dinners together. It's pretty freakin precious, I won't lie to you.

So theoretically this is the end of the carefree fun since classes start this week. But I don't have class until Wednesday so I'm just gonna pretend it's still the weekend for another couple of days.

Amusing things about life in the U.K.

1.) Every time someone leaves their dog in the passenger seat of their car while running into a shop, I see the dog on the left side of the car and think for a second that it's driving.

2.) What we know as English muffins are just called muffins, and what we just call muffins are called... yup, American muffins.

3.) People take shots through their eyeballs! That's right, as in straight vodka to the eye. Apparently it gets you drunk faster. I seriously worry about the people who participate in this activity. 

Java Java Java

Maybe it's because I've cut way back on the caffeine lately, or maybe it's because Scots tend to put more shots in their lattes, but whatever the reason may be, I am extraordinarily caffeinated right now. I needed a pick me up, so I went to a nice little coffee shop I've taken to, and ordered a soy vanilla latte with duh duh duh... and extra shot! Ahhhhhhh!!!! Yea so I'm feeling a lot like George of the Jungle right now (Brendan Fraser style) after he got into the instant coffee grounds, or Tweek from South Park. Anyywhhoooooo, I went to this groovy pub last night with live tradition Scottish music, which was AWESOME! I've decided to join one of the two student unions here on campus, so I'll have access to a lot of shows, concerts, and night club events, which I figure will give me enough exercise that I won't have to pay 40 POUNDS to join the campus gym. I mean what's that about? 

The Scottish students are arriving now so the dorms are more lively and less full of old people. (My dorm is used as a hostel during the summer) And it turns out the pub I found which serves vegan food is a total hipster bar (Go figure). So that's kinda cute.

Goals for the semester:

1. Meet someone named Muireall.

2. Have a dance party in the rain.

3. Manage to live solely on banana and nutella sandwiches.

PICTURES!!

Just a little taste of the part of the city I see every day. I'm pretty sure anyone can see this link, facebook or not.

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2017874&id=1337910115&l=69a53bd723

Bigslope

I may have found a new favorite place. Ever. It’s called Bigslope. It’s a little pub in the basement of some other building and it plays awesome music, i.e. Architecture in Helsinki, Of Montreal, Broken Social Scene, Crystal Castles, and Deerhoof, annnnddd it serves Zubrowka, a lovely Polish buffalo grass vodka that is not readily available in the states, and this fabulous drink called an After Eight. Much like its namesake candy, it has a minty flavor, along with Kalhua and Bailey’s Irish Cream. Sooooooo when I die and I go to that magical A.C. Moore/ Barnes and Noble in the sky, there may have to be a Bigslope attached to it.

 

Except now I just ate dinner at a pub called the 78 that serves ALL VEGAN FOOD!! Nowhere does it say the word vegan, but everything is healthy and without animal product. I would eat there for every meal if I could afford it.

 

Anyway, today was my first day of orientation. I got soaking wet and kind of lost on the way there, but I rather enjoyed it. It seemed to be exactly what should happen to an unprepared slacker on her first day at a foreign university.

 

Life lessons learned today:

-Don’t complain on an empty stomach. (It only makes you EXTRA whiney.)

-In Glasgow, pedestrians NEVER have the right of way, even when they technically have the right of way. Cars are bigger and faster, and they know it.

-Bring your orientation booklet with you so you know what room you’re supposed to go to, and don’t end up with a bunch of Swedes doing registration.

My first day in the U.K.

Well, it’s my first day in Glasgow. Actually it’s my second, but considering the fact that I spent all of yesterday sleeping, I’m counting today as my first. I met my roommate, Wei, this morning. She’s from China originally, but is on exchange from the University of Denver. She seems very nice and she even brought me a gift from China, a beautifully handcrafted doll.

Wei went on her initial Glasgow adventure this morning as I was sleeping, and came back with a report of freezing cold wind and rude people. She said a couple people walked right into her without a care. However, on my venture out into the city, I discovered something vital. In the U.S., people tend to drift to the right side of the sidewalk to avoid collision with oncoming pedestrians. When I did this, I almost ran into a few individuals, because they were all drifting to the left. Makes sense. So as long as you stick to the left, you should be okay. 

            Today is Sunday. And around here, that means everything is actually closed. I managed to find a small grocer where I could get some tooth paste, and a small organic foods shop where I found [drumroll……] a vegan sandwich! The woman who owned the shop was very nice and expressed that it is very difficult to be vegan in Glasgow, but it’s possible. She even mentioned a couple pubs that serve vegan food but just don’t advertise the fact that it’s vegan. 

So I'm hoping to keep this vegan thing going, and if I find any secrets or tips that might be helpful for other vegans, I'll be sure to share them! Love and miss everyone at home!