The Adventure Begins!

Well, I suppose all my friends and family know I've arrived in Bath safely by this point, but as it seems a staple of these sorts of things I'll say it anyway -- I've arrived!

The journey here was thankfully underwhelming. The security struggles I so feared at BWI were non-existent -- no line, so I just walked right through, and on the other side was my terminal. Easy-peasy. No delays on my flight either, which went smoothly despite the turbulence and my inability to sleep for more than an hour. (As a side note, I've discovered I actually don't mind turbulence on an airplane. As long as the pilot doesn't come on the intercom to say we're crashing into the sea, I find the rocking to be a little relaxing. Oh well, we all have our quirks.) On the plane, I watched the second Percy Jackson movie, had a decent pasta meal, considered saying 'yes' to wine with dinner (but didn't), and had a not-so-decent breakfast croissant. And then, one hour ahead of schedule (how did the pilot do that? I, for one, was amazed.) we landed at Heathrow.

The concierge we had arranged for was there right when I got off the plane. It's exactly how it looks in movies: he had a sign with "Katie Urbanski" on it and I so desperately wanted to take a picture but I also didn't want to freak him out, as he was sort of my lifeline at that point. I felt a little prissy, having someone escort me around to where I needed to be, but Heathrow is basically a very tiny country, at least from my jet-lagged point of view, and this guy knew it backwards and forwards. We had to take a shuttle to get to the bus station at a different terminal, and it was excitingly futuristic. Imagine the shape and speed of the trains in The Hunger Games and you'll know why I was fascinated.

Photo of me and my concierge on the shuttle (See, he is also still taking it in.)

 

 

Because my flight was so early, I had a full FOUR HOURS to wait in the bus station until my bus to Bath would leave, and despite the concierge's suggestion I was not about to take a nap in that place. Luckily, my mother, who was not disoriented from travel (though she was somehow texting at 3 a.m.) just reminded me to amend my ticket for an earlier bus, which I did for just £5 (my first official British purchase!). By 8:30, I was off to Bath and too excited to stop looking out the window in amazement (see above photo). 

In Bath, I was surprisingly not too stressed out about finding the group I was supposed to meet up with from the bus station. For one thing, the meetup point was just down the street from the station. For another, there were so many adorable older British couples around that I knew I wouldn't have a problem asking for help. But actually, I just found someone else from my program and we walked the two minutes to the train station where we were intercepted by our student helpers. From there we were taken to our houses, with much huffing and puffing (2 suitcases + cobblestone = BAD IDEA. Not looking forward to that return journey). 

My house is called Nunes House (pronounced NOO-nez). It has a flat on each floor for four total, and I am on the second. It's right next to the River Avon; the front faces the river and Bath Rugby ground (rugby is a big deal in Bath, moreso than soccer) and the side faces the river as well. So, grand views all around. There's also a boat of some sort that's always docked outside my bedroom window. It's called The Penny Lane, which I took to be a good omen.

My bedroom is pretty neat. My section is lofted a bit, which is only annoying because when the door is open it blocks my way down. I'm sure I'll be sick of it by the end of the semester, but right now I appreciate my little private cove. I don't have pictures right now, because my side of the room is still kind of a mess and I have internet standards. I'll post some soon though!

For the past two days some girls from my house and I have gone out several times, just walking around and exploring Bath. It's really, really beautiful. There are so many nooks and crannies, so I'm really excited to be able to find my way around like a pro. The trick (for me at least) is to keep in mind where I last saw Bath Abbey, which you really can't miss. For the past few times we've gone out, I have not anticipated taking a camera, like a fool. So here are some crappy iPhone pictures of the abbey from the back.

To be fair, it's hard to take a crappy picture of this.

Our house is very close to the abbey, and once I find where the top is facing I know exactly where I am. The problem with that is there is so much of Bath that isn't anywhere near it, so once we start branching out more I'll have to abandon that method for actual knowledge. I am very bad with directions, so it should take a few outings.

Orientation started today, and even though I hate orientations this one hasn't been so bad. All the staff are so nice you can't help but appreciate listening to them. Tomorrow my internship tutor will teach me the bus system and take me to the Bath Cats and Dogs Home where I'm an intern this semester. I'm pretty nervous for that, but my tutor (whose name is Andrew Butterworth, by the way, let that sink in) is so charmingly kind and British that I'm sure it won't be a problem. Just remembering where to get off the next time without him will be nerve-wracking...

Also, tonight my housemates and I were supposed to meet some girls from another house for dinner. However, even after asking locals for directions we couldn't find the place. Since it was raining (hard) and we were starving, we decided to take a local guy's advice and try a pub across the street. We ordered food and drinks and I had my first legal alcoholic beverage -- a cider called Stowford Press. Put that in the baby book, Ma!

Sorry this post has been so long and so pictureless. I'm going to work on taking more photos soon, especially when we go exploring other parts of the city.