My first and second week of school

Enrolling into courses at Warwick was definitely a hair-pulling experience… Here in England, they don't believe in technological efficiency… everything is done in person, not online, and you have to literally fill out 10 different contracts just to take one course…

I almost had a near breakdown because I couldn't get into a course that I needed to fulfill my requirement for York, but I managed to gather myself together… and go on with my day…

So, that was my first week of School.. I know most of you guys have been in school for quite awhile now… WEll, i've just started…

and the school terms are really weird here… i have my first term for 10 weeks, then i get 4 weeks of christmas break.. then i have another 10 weeks of school, then i get 5 weeks of easter break.. then i have another 10 weeks of school, but this time i don't really take any courses… i jsut have exams.. so i'm not sure how that works out, if i just do nothing everyday and only go for my exams, because technically i don't have any classes… strange…

this term, i am taking 4 courses;

1) Frech Social History 1814–1914
2) 'Race', Difference and the inclusive society
3) Equality and Diversity
4) operational research for strategic planning

my first two courses run for 2 terms, and my last two courses only last a term… and for most of my classes, i have "non-assessed" assignments, meaning i have to write them but THEY DONT GET MARKED!! then i get to choose either between, 1×3 hour exam or
1×4500 word essay AND 1×2 hour exam…

first of all, it's weird that I get to CHOOSE the way i am evaluated for my course, but i think i'm going to pick 3 hour exam, because i am not too fond of writing essays…

and for each course, i have a lecture and a seminar… each class is very small, no more than 25–30…. and my seminar classes are even smaller, it's about 8–10 people crammed in a small office talking to the professor about the course… which is very intimate and challenging, because you HAVE to have something intelligent to say each seminar since there are so few people… There's much more interaction between the students and the profs here…

I am also taking a spanish course on the side as my leisure course… i paid 52 pounds for 2 terms and it's just for fun… so far, it's been good, the teacher only speaks in spanish.. hopefully when i go back my spanish will be improved..

What i find very difficult is, finding the time to prepare a meal and eating it… especially in the morning when i am running, i just grab a bagel or some crackers and cheese… then when i get back from my classes, i actually have to cook my meal if i want to eat… so many times i was tempted to just starve, but i forced myself to make something, ANYTHING… so far, i've just been baking chicken nuggets and potatoes… because it's the easies thing to make… i've tried frying some weird British bacon which looks like ham, and have burnt them both times… my scrambled egg did not taste nor look very good… but i have to admit, my spaghetti sauce was rather tasty… i've eaten it twice already cause i made enough sauce to last me couple meals..
tomorrow, i'm going to 'TESCO'(thanx), it's like walmart with grocery, with my flatmate, Ceri after class… i 've learned not to buy too much at once because it takes quite awhile to walk back from the store to my res…

I joined 'Chamber music society' this week because i wanted to start playing piano again.. and i figured it'll keep me busy.. i might join choir as well.. i really miss singing and playing piano… I am going to also look for a volunteer position with Ceri tomorrow so that i can actually meet people outside of my university…

I know this entry is getting rather long , so pace yourself while reading it i guess.. but i'm almost done.. i just wanted to tell you bit about my flatmates…

in my flat, i have 4 other people living with me.. we each have a room of our own, and we share the kitchen, the shower and the bathroom.. we are all in our 3rd year of university, so we're all about the same age… Ceri, whom i talk to the most, is from London, she's my age… and she's really really really friendly and we get along rather well… then there's Jyoti(?!), she's also very nice, but we haven't really done anything together yet… then we have two guys, Hasan and i still haven't figured out the other guys' name.. they are both indian and they like to cook indian food in the kitchen.. so you can tell when they've been cooking.. they are also very nice, but they mostly just stay in their rooms..

whew… i think that's pretty much updated my life here at Warwick…

I'm still looking for a church, i haven't found one to go to as of yet… i should be going to a church this sunday with Sue I…

okok, i'm really leaving…
if you want to know anything else, just email me at jiniechoi@gmail.com
i miss you guys very much!!!
i'll be getting my cell phone working very soon, and my address in case you guys are wondering is:

93E Redfern
University of Warwick
Coventry CV4 7AL
United Kingdom

k, i'm OUT!!

: 05 Oct 2004 22:52 |  Tags: Warwick Updates |  Comments (1) |  Report a problem