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So I have successfully survived almost four weeks in London. Although the term successfully is used in it's loosest form possible. For many things it's just been one thing after another. First, we get to London, try to get our bank account open so we can get a cell phone. Can't do that because we need to be registered for classes. We didn't register for three weeks. Even after we did that, it would have taken another three weeks to get our bank card which meant that it would have been six weeks to get our cell phones. We ended up buying pay-as-you-go phones until we found HSBC which let us open an account early. Then we switched to our blackberries. Then two weeks after getting my blackberry, it got turned off. I called to find out why and apparently I have a £300 phone bill. How I got that, not sure. It ended up being an error at the store. And that is after the three other times I had to go into the store because my phone stopped working. Secondly, my loan money. I thought I was supposed to get it a lot earlier then I did. No big deal when I find out. Then, the day I am supposed to get it, Sallie Mae didn't realize it was labor day there but not here. So no check. Eventually I get it. Once I get it though and try to put it into my bank account. They freeze my account because the check was so large. Seriously?? I had to find paperwork to bring it to the bank and prove that I was allowed to put that money into my account and then they would unfreeze it. And to top everything else off, the other day, my laptop power-cord decided to melt. All of a sudden something smells bad and I touch the power-cord and it's burning. I pull it from my computer turn it over there is a hole melting in it. I love Apple though. They gave me a new power-cord for free.

Now that I have vented about all the bad stuff, although overall it's not that bad. It was just one thing after another and finally got to me. I had my first class today. It was Anthropology of Art. I think it's going to be a really fun class, especially because we will be talking about art, a lot. We had our lecture then our smaller seminar groups, which is where we do our discussions and ask questions. The lectures are really supposed to be just for listening. I am technically not registered for the class because the secretary in my major messed up when sending the information to the Anthropology department. So cross my fingers I can still get in since it is full. I will find out tomorrow I think.

Tomorrow's classes are my core classes for my major. They are my talking lecture, which is in the morning. To tell you the truth, I have to clue what those are. I will let you know once I find out. And then in the afternoon I have my Through the Lens class. Again not sure all the details but I will also let you know about that. The only probably I have about the school so far, is my commute. It's not long, like 20-30 minutes by bus. But if there is traffic, it's frustrating and it's boring. Not that big of a deal though. I only have class twice a week. Maybe a few other meeting times thrown in there. Trust me, although it doesn't sound like a lot of class, but at looking at the course schedule for the semester. I am gonna get my butt kicked. The way schooling works over here, is a lot of on your own. Which on one hand is cool but on the other not so much. I am going to need that on my own time though when I have to take my pictures and write my thesis so I can graduate. Getting an "A" over here is really hard too. I was told a teacher might only give out one "A" for the year. A WHOLE YEAR! It doesn't seem to hard to pass though. The way their percentages works give you a lot more leeway.

Work has been going well too. I am working for the same study abroad program I went on two years ago. I am working for my resident director. We have had two groups come in already and they are settled into their dorms and one group already started classes. It doesn't seem like a lot of work, just walking around with the students and showing them London. But I am exhausted by the end of the day and my feet are killing me. With the group I have gotten to go to Greenwich, Tower Hill, Parliament (inside), Buckingham Palace(inside) and upcoming events are: a play at the Globe Theater, Stonehenge and Salisbury (Lindsay, if you are reading this, I am pretty sure it's not like your school, but it would be cool if it was), York, Oxford and I get to see Hairspray at the end of the semester. These are the events that the program puts on. I got to see Wicked when I came. The beginning of the semester is a lot of work, but once the students get settled into the housing, we only seem them every other week give or take. The last group comes in tomorrow but I can't meet my boss to help her since I will be in classes.

But well, I guess that is it for now. I will let you know how the other two classes start and everything else that is going on here. Let me know if you have questions for me, because sometimes I don't know what to write. Miss you.