Causewayside is not Cross Causeway....

... which is unfortunate. I had looked at a map when I was picking out my accommodation, but in my mind's eye I was seeing the latter with it's nearness to the city center and it's quiet cobblestone streets.... the former is quite different.

BUT! I have some pretty awesome flatmates. Tracy and Amber are from China. I need to ask them how to cook- their meals always smell so amazing. Ashley is from Saint Louis, but comes here by way of Thailand, Russia and Kazakhstan where she was a peace corps volunteer. What I think is interesting- and kind of sad- is that she had to travel 2 days by bus each way to send in her passport to apply for her visa and she still got here before me. Kris is a medical anthropologist from North Carolina. Her program is longer and she's hoping to get dual citizenship out of it (which you can apparently apply for if you study here for more than 18 months... hmmmm.....)

Missed a lot of the induction week stuff, either because I wasn't here yet or because I was jet lagged and half asleep. My visa finally arrived last week. But the date was wrong. So I sent it back and they were supposed to send it back and even though the envelope was covered in stickers saying 'SATURDAY DELIVERY' it didn't come till Monday morning. And then I packed like mad, forgot a bunch of stuff and brought more stuff than I should have, got on a plane Monday night and arrived in London at local noon. Wish I could say I woke up at Heathrow, but I didn't sleep at all on the flight, and more's the pity as I was tired enough to misread my onward ticket, missed my connecting flight and had to wait for another one to get me to Scotland.

But I got something out of freshers' week and have kind of figured out which classes to take. Was considering for a bit doing the taught vs the research degree (I hadn't known there was a choice), but ended up deciding on the latter, thanks to some imput from the professors here and from Brian (Dr Page in the geography dept) back at UCD. I start my classes next week, on Tuesday as Monday is a national holiday. My classes will be in 4 blocks between now and April. This first block will be the worst, probably, as I have somehow managed to have the most classes at once and because I seriously need to figure out my thesis topic. Originally I was thinking something along the lines of green energy in the developing world, which would be interesting but not at all my area of expertise. But then I wonder how much of an expert I am at anything. I'm now thinking something in environmental history in Scotland. I caught upon some information about the enclosure movement in Scotland/ the Highland Land Law Reform Association/ the Highland Clearances that was pretty fascinating, so if I can get a good start on that and figure out what some of my sources might be I may go in that direction.

It's been a pretty exhausting week and a pretty exhausting weekend so far. Went to a ceilidh last night! (a Scottish dance party) with the same band in the same place as the last time I was here three years ago (though I hear my old pub quiz is no more- how sad). I'm still feeling a bit sore and bruised from 'stripping the willow.' There were lots of guys in kilts, none of whom were apparently Scottish, curiously enough. One of them and his friends (also, none of whom were Scots) did ask me to come to lunch with them tomorrow though and offered to help me figure out my phone (I went and bought a rather fancy one with an mp3 player- that I can't figure out how to use). Today I spent the whole day shopping at the bargain stores as my room is boring and depressing (I'm thinking of turning it into a belly dancer's lair, and why not?), and as my accommodation-servces-issued bedding is scratchy (and why is it that no flat sheets apparently exist in this country?), and as we have no crockery or cutlery (but we have been allocated a handleless shovel- um, ok).

Anyway....

I'm tired and nervous and kind of hungry (my stomach is as far off as my circadian rhythm), but in any case....

I still love this city as much as ever if not more and am very happy to be here. On Monday, when I've the day off, should I find the time, I'm hoping to just stroll the Royal Mile and Holyrood Park, and climb up Calton Hill to take it all in again. -sigh- Edinburgh. :)