We have friends...

Hi friends & family!

Sorry for not updating sooner...since mom left Zainah and I have been out and about running errands and making friends. We're actually managing quite well sans-parents, which is reassuring. On Sunday after mom left, we went wandering around the city centre trying to find out where everyone chills in the evenings...oddly enough we ended up at this restaurant/bar called Varsity and met a fellow Canadian working there! His name is Dan and he's from North York and I guess you could say we hit the jackpot because he knows EVERYONE! He told us about a costume party (called Fancy Dress here) that the medical students were holding on Tuesday. So we decided to go (wearing costumes we brought for Halloween!) and met so many of Dan's friends...some Brits and some Canadians, all really friendly and accomodating people.

The social culture here isn't much different than what you'd see in Toronto...except that Zainah and I felt sort of old with all the 'freshers' around (that's slang for first year students). And the thing I can't stand the most is how limp British people's hands are when you shake them! There is nothing worse than shaking a limp hand...remember that people! What's probably going to take some getting used to is the demeanor of Brits in general. It's hard to explain, but they give off this vibe as if they're really unimpressed by you, kind of like a cold shoulder. But the truth is, Brits are just like that. You'll find the occassional exception of course, but for the most part people here just aren't as friendly as North Americans. It's rather ironic that we're in the land of manners yet they lack the most basic of courtesies. The music here is alright. They play a lot of Cheese, which is nostalgic 80's and 90's music (think YMCA, Play that funky music white boy...your favourite song dad ;) ).

This week campus hosted a welcome programme for international students which included lectures on adjusting to British culture and how to find part time work...and they also had tours of the city and social events in the evenings. We checked out a couple of the lectures, but it feels like everything is catered to undergrads moreso than postgraduate students. There's nothing 'new' we learned at the sessions that friends haven't already told us (or that we've figured out on our own). I'm starting to feel more antsy about classes...I feel like I've been out of school too long and my brain is turning to 'mush' - I need to get back into academics or read a textbook or write an essay soon!

Come to think of it...we did learn something new at the seminar today on the British education system. Apparently here the grading only goes upto 80 (but that's considered an extremely high mark - only about 3-5% of students are within that range, also known as graduating with distinction). A good mark is a 70 - that's like an A (graduating with merit)...so mom, dad, if I tell you I got a 70 on my paper, you should be very happy!

Hmmm I don't really have anything else to report on at the moment. I've uploaded a short video to give you a better idea of our neighborhood - hope it works for you all!

Oh and for mom and all the mom-ish people who are wondering: the house is still clean (we clean every saturday), we've been cooking good, healthy meals and dressing warm on chilly days...we don't make eye contact with creepy looking guys and we lock our doors all the time...and Z and I take our vitamins every morning - thanks for getting those mom. :)

Missing you all lots - feel free to post comments - so long as they're kosher I'll approve them...

Love Always,

Div