Hello all! It has been 5 days since I left the states and a lot has happened. I left the country Friday flying out of JFK to London and ending in Aberdeen early Saturday morning. I flew British Airways and they were great! The seats were comfy and the crew were very pleasant. After my flights, the University of Aberdeen had a welcome committee and bus to take us to campus. We were given a welcome package filled with things such as Scottish soda called "IRN BRU" (like Fanta), pickled onions, and papers that would help us get involved and get around campus. To the left is a photo of me in front of King's College Chapel. It is right across the street from my hall.
The Saturday I arrived, I wandered around the city of Aberdeen. I found Morrison's, a small grocery store near campus. It was useful to get everything that I left in the states. I then got lost trying to find the Vodafone store, a popular phone carrier here. I went in the complete wrong direction and ended up taking a nice walk near the ocean. I eventually found Vodafone and bought myself a SIM card. I recommend buying a SIM card if you are ever abroad for an extended period of time. You can get monthly pay-as-you-go plans that allow you to use it to the best of the ability. After getting my phone to work, I ended up taking a taxi back to my hall since I traveled far from campus. Taxis are decently cheap here, as they do not accept tips and the rates are low.
Sunday I spent checking out the local food places. The meal plan Aberdeen supplies is not as great as Bowling Green's. We have breakfast Monday-Saturday from 7:30am to 9:30am on the ground floor dining hall attached to Starbucks. As far as I can tell the Starbucks that we have breakfast in is rarely open. They offer the usual breakfast that an American would have. Dinner is offered in the Hub, a building like the Student Union, from 5pm to 6:30pm. That is across campus from myself but it is not a far walk. Dinner consists of mostly Scottish foods. They do offer other foods like Subway, a salad bar, and a pizza shop but you have to pay to eat at those places in the Hub. Sundays there is only brunch offered in the Starbucks from 11:30am-1pm. On my first Sunday, I went and ate at the Bobbin, a local pub that many of the college students go to. I also checked out two different coffee shops that are located close by. To the left is a photo of the courtyard farther into the city. There are many restaurants right in this area.
Monday, all the study abroad and international students had orientation. It took most of the day for us as we had a lot to discuss. It was great to go to this because I finally got to meet everyone I had been talking to on the Aberdeen Facebook page during the summer. Everyone is very excited to be here and were very welcoming. There were many guest speakers at orientation that told us about the town, about the university, and almost everything in between. To the right is the gate that I walk through to get anywhere on campus.
Tuesday, I registered for classes. I will take Business Finance, Supply Chain Management, and International Economics. These three courses that will transfer back and help my educational track back at Bowling Green. I have not found out the times yet but I will soon. Hopefully they will be at times that allow me to travel often. Today I also went shopping and hanging out with some of the international students. We went to Union Square, the large shopping street in Aberdeen. It is located on the top of the hill, as Aberdeen is located on a large slope overlooking the North Sea. Everything is made out of granite here (and the city is properly named "The Granite City") and the locals constantly say that the city is dull due to the grey rock everywhere. Anyone in the states would disagree. It is a beautiful medieval architecture filled city and I look forward to exploring it more. To the left is a photo of the pathway I take to get to the business building. Much of the campus and the rest of the city looks like the photos in this blog post.
Tomorrow I plan on attending the "Socities Fayre" which will allow me to explore options of different clubs and activities. Many of these organizations offer trips and excursions around the Scotland area. I look forward to traveling while here. One of the known excursions already that many of the other international students have talked about going on is a school sponsored trip to Loch Ness. We would spend the day in the Inverness area. Later in the week many of the international students want to go to the Dunnottar Castle, about 30 minutes south of campus.
I will update again soon! I hope to keep exploring, keep making friends, and keep learning about Scotland and their culture.