First Week of School

This last week I started the fall semester at the University of Ulster. My first class of the year was accounting for engineers. When I tell most people that I'm taking such a class, they look at me like I'm barbequing a kitten. This may be because it sounds like two horrible things mashed together. I'm sure it won't be a thriller by any means, but I'll bet it will be useful in the long run.

Also on Monday, I discovered the BAR IN THE SUB. This still amazes me, but I was told wrong about the prices. I was expecting to pay about a pound for a drink, but everything is the same price as any pub, between 2 and 3 pounds per drink. I guess that'll help me stay out of the place.

I have no classes on Tuesdays and only a one hour seminar on Wednesdays. This is for the Politics of the Two Irish States class, which has a lecture on Friday. Tuesday was not without excitement. I walked to a Tesco supermarket with two other Americans. We grossly underestimated the distance, and walked for an hour and a half each way. At least the sun was shining.

My third class is an engineering analysis class on Thursdays. I attended two hours of lecture and an hour of tutorial in the morning. This was plenty of math for one day, but I was surprised by a classmate later in the day when he told me that there was another three hour session in the afternoon, not just another section of the same material. Six hours of math in one day sounds like a lot, and it will be. Good thing it's only once a week.

The most obvious difference between classes here and at MSU is the scheduling. American classes tend to be shorter but meet more often during the week. This makes for easier sessions but longer days if you wind up with classes at different ends of the schoolday, as I often do. Classes here meet once a week but for longer sessions. It's nice to have class done all in one shot, but the lectures will feel very long.

On Tuesday, I attended a band night sponsored by the campus christian union. People from the union, some internationals, and freshmen got together. It was a good place to meet some locals. Several internationals also attended the iCafe dinner put on by the same union on Wednesday.

To conclude this long post, I've more or less met all of my flatmates. I've visited with three of them, and the four of us get along well so far. The fifth guy though, is elusive. I've had one official sighting, but only hellos were exchanged. The others have also had similar experiences, and it is generally agreed that he always seems to be in a hurry.