Sorry there's been so long between updates, I've been swamped. Just trying to get access to my clothes for classes (I needed my heavier sweaters) was a whole day ordeal of reorganizing the room like a sliding puzzle to get to things. It's great to at least be like 1/3 of the way there with the room.
I've been in orientation with the other international students all day friday, then all this week, my department is doing an orientation/intro lectures for all the new students. It's been loooooong days, with lots of mostly boring lectures about the university, the structure of the program, rules about grading and assignments, etc etc. But the reception last night was at the Great North Museum, which was gorgeous! I loved the exhibits and it was small, but so well done, and we all had it to ourselves for the night.
I got home around 9, and was so completely exhausted, I pretty much just passed out. It was freezing and raining hard all day for monday and tuesday, but even the locals say this is freakishly wild weather for Newcastle this time of year, so at least it's not like this allll the time.
Today I actually managed to make the bedroom a bit more useable, but it's still like a minefield of junk, really.
And I made bentos for myself and for Michael, since I was making one for myself. I have a field trip tomorrow. Have to meet at the bus stop at the museum at 930, we drive, I think about an hour, to the Beamish Outdoor Museum in Durham, and then spend the whole day, outside there, and then back on a bus and back to campus for "5ish". I don't mind that, really, except that it's been SO rainy for so long, parts of the city are flooded and it's almost certain that the exhibit will be at best very muddy. I really reaaaallly wish I had packed my wellies, but they were too bulky. I might try to find some cheap ones, but of course by the time I get them the floods will probably have stopped. :P
Anyway, this museum trip should be pretty cool, I like the historically accurate recreations, but I'm trying to layer as many clothes on as possible, in defense for like 9 hours outside in the very very cold. xP
I've talked to a few of classmates some, and they seem really nice. I think there are 4 other Americans on the course. I think about half the class is international, though, from all over.
We've already got some work we have to take home, and we're expected to be doing reading for the course. I think I'm going to try to find a book or two that I think will be really useful for me from the reading list (they're like suggested reading lists, not required books like back home) and try to find them for the kindle. I looked before, spent hours looking while we were in Northern Ireland, but not a lot were on kindle, because they're mostly so obscure and niche specific. But I figure I can at least try to start reading on the kindle until I can use the library, otherwise this reading list would be exceedingly expensive.
Although it even seems difficult to find some of them in the library, but some of the classes have a hundred or more books listed for the recommended reading, and it's not in any order, so really I just want to look something that seems like it would fill some gap in my knowledge. Or at least be interesting. :) I want to start that reading asap.
Oh and I've unpacked 2 of the 4 suitcases! I actually feel accomplished, because we've basically got no more space left, and I still have 2 suitcases to unpack, although one is a lot of winter hats, scarves, gloves, coat liners, thermals, etc, so I don't know, maybe I can just keep that in that and live out of it for the coldest months.
I've been notified that my loan has gone through, by the way, and I'm trying to find a checkbook company to ship to the UK. The phone is working, by the way. It's 07717577262. Although, I haven't really mastered using the phone yet. And it's Michael's old phone because I couldn't get mine unlocked.
This week is absolutely packed, and with the terrible weather, and trying to make the room liveable and trying to sort of finances, and visa stuff, looking for jobs, academic advising, etc, etc, etc. It just never ends. Plus of course the required welcome/intro/rules/etc lectures every day, except tomorrow, with the field trip.
It seems like the classes are going to be pretty intense, too, but at least some look interesting and they all definitely seem useful. I like the professors so far, no one's too hard to understand. And the director of the program is American! Which is cool, she's been really helpful with academic advising about my degree and with general like questions about some differences between lecture set up here and back home. So, that's good.
:P And I'm super excited about getting my robe finally, because we're trying not to use the heat and it's SO cold. I'm wearing it over jeans, wool socks, 2 shirts and a sweater, and I'm finally feeling warm, except my face. My nose is approximately -2 degrees. xP
Sorry all that was jumbled, but I'm about to go to sleep. I've got to get up extremely early tomorrow. Lots of love! <3

So... more updates, sooner, I promise!