ParentNet

The past week has been a very hectic and exciting week for me. I have started all of my classes and I have also starting working at Barcadia, a late night cocktail bar in Kingston.

The courses here are pretty different from the courses I am used to taking at Michigan Tech. Because the semester is shorter, the lecture periods are much longer. For example my molecular genetics course has a three hour lecture on Tuesday and then another two hour lecture on Friday.

There is also anywhere from two to four professors for each course. The courses seem to be split into different subtopics with a different professor teaching each one. In my advanced physiology course there is one professor who does lectures covering cardiovascular physiology, one that lectures on sensory physiology, and then another who does all the practicals. There is also a module leader who is the head of the course and writes and grades all of the exams. So far I am not sure which teaching method I will prefer. It seems harder to get a feel for the type of exams your professor will give if you don’t have them in lecture everyday; however, it may be beneficial to have someone specialized lecturing on each different topic.

The courses so far have definitely made me appreciate Michigan Tech and some of the professors at MTU. I miss Dr. Murthy’s biochemistry lectures and the fact that professors at Tech are so approachable and willing to help. It seems like most of the professors here have very limited office hours and are not as welcoming to students coming to their office.

Besides being busy with school I have also been busy working some long hours at my new job. Barcadia is a late night bar with DJs every night, student specials, and some pretty awesome drinks. The bar is open until 3 am every night and after cleaning I don’t get home until around 4 am so it makes waking up for that 9 am class a little difficult but it is a fun job and I work with some really nice people. There is a dress code to get in, nothing too fancy but no shorts or tennis shoes. I had a little laugh about this because I know there would never be a dress code at any bar back in Houghton. I was actually talking to a friend from home about how people in Houghton don’t care as much about dressing up and wearing expensive clothes. I have to admit it is slightly intimidating being around people who dress up for everything when I feel like my clothes are a little plain. On the other hand I love how in London as far as clothes, hair ect. anything goes. There is such a diversity of people which is a great difference from Houghton where I feel like anyone different stands out a lot.

Along with school and work there always has to be a little play right? I’ve been hanging out with the same group of American girls that I had met from my study abroad orientation seminar. We all had a dinner party one night in clapham junction and have been exploring central London together. On Sunday our British friend Tom took Megan, Cate, and I to Camden town, an area in central London known for its alternative, punk, and goth culture. One of my favorite bands, the Clash, recorded demos for their album London Calling in Camden town. We also went to primrose hill which overlooks all of central London.

For the upcoming week I have my second week of classes, more working at Barcadia, and most importantly my first polo lesson! Thursday morning I will be taking a lesson and hopefully I will be on my way to Polo superstardom shortly thereafter.

I’ll let you all know how that works out for me

Best

Lauren