Exploring

Yesterday was orientation, and we received all kinds of information on where to shop and eat, how the term will go, and who/what our resources are. As an APU student, I'm studying through something called OPUS (Oxford Programme for Undergraduate Studies). The way this program works in the Fall is that for the month of September we go through a lecture series, with about 7-8 lectures each week from various Oxford faculty. During this time we write some papers, go on some field trips, and become acclimated to Oxford. The first week of October, we begin Michaelmas term (Fall Quarter, essentially). That's when the rest of the Oxford students arrive, along with the very hard work of tutorials. For those of you who don't know, Oxford, while it has some seminar classes, uses the tutorial system, where students meet one-on-one each week with their tutor (professor) to discuss the paper they have written for that week.

Last night, I could not sleep at all. By 1am, I got up and washed a bunch of dishes, read a magazine, and watched the first half of Breakfast at Tiffany's. I finally went to sleep around 3:30am. My alarm went off at 9, but I turned it off and went back to sleep.
Next thing I know, I'm waking up and looking at a clock that says 3:35. Yes, it was 3:35 in the afternoon (I confirmed with one of my roommates). And the APU students were meeting at the train station at 4pm for a bus tour. I threw on jeans and a t-shirt and ran out the door. Thankfully, Oxford has an excellent bus system, and even directionally-challenged American Jennifer can navigate it. Paying is another thing, however, since I can't decipher the coins without reading them yet. I got on a bus to the station, spent about five minutes digging the correct change out of my wallet, and made it just in time. The tour was fabulous. We got a map of the city, and our tickets are good for 24 hours. It's a hop on/hop off tour, so tomorrow I'm going to get on again and do some exploring. I cannot believe how beautiful the colleges are here. From the outside, the architecture is gorgeous, but that's nothing compared to the vast gardens and lawns inside. They say the easiest way to recognize a tourist is by hearing them say, "Where's Oxford campus; I want to see the university campus." There's no such thing. Oxford is made up of 38 separate colleges. They all share the University administration which examines students, confers degrees, and keeps the Bodleian Library up and running. The Colleges, however, admit the students and teach the classes. They're each beautiful and unique, and I can't wait to walk through a few tomorrow.

After the tour, we went to a pizza place and then to our APU Faculty Advisor's flat for dessert. It was really lovely. To get there, we walked along the canal that connects to the Thames, and past Port Meadow. Port Meadow is an enormous expanse of grass where the law permits any Englishman to graze their cattle and horses. It has a path through it where people run or bicycle.

It's becoming very difficult to keep an American accent. The more I'm around the British the easier it is to slip into it without thinking. We'll see if I sound different when I come home.

Signing off now; hopefully I'll sleep tonight!