March 19, 1999
|blank|Spring has finally sprung. When I first arrived in the UK, it was really cold. It snowed a couple of times. But now, I'm sitting around in my tshirt and jeans, and the sun has not only been shining, but actually warm! Some of the trees are blooming, as are the daffodils everywhere. When I look out my window, more often than not, the rabbit family that has a burrow just across the drainage ditch is out and about, nibbling the grass. It hasn't rained in days, and the skies are blue. It's amazing.
|blank|I'm not the only one who's noticed, either. My fellow students (those who are still around, anyway) have taken to eating lunch outside, and some of the famous British reserve has even thawed a little. It's wonderful.
|blank|And the timing is perfect: my Spring break starts this week, and classes don't resume until April 14, so I have plenty of time to wander around and enjoy the great weather.
|blank|It's nice to have time to relax. I've been spending my days on break kicking around, relaxing, and catching up on the sleep I lost while trying to get everything set for the end of the term. See, during the term, I wrote three essays of 1500 words each. For the end of the term, I had to rewrite two, and resubmit them. My entire grade will be based on my Tutor's evaluation of those two papers (with, I think, my participation in Seminar counting for a little bit).
|blank|But things aren't all fun and games; I got the reading list for next term last week, and it's terrifying. Fourteen pages long and a bazillion books. Fortunately, most of them are books I think I'll enjoy. I hit the library Tuesday and picked a few up, like the nerd I am, so I'll have a little head start when the term begins.
|blank|Well, that's it for this week, folks. In closing, let me bring you the voices of my fellow international students (we've congregated for food and the Blues Brothers). When asked their opinions about Spring Break, they said:
Eleni (Cyprus): (lauging) It's too long.
Chiara (Italy): It's too long, and it's bad (that it's long).
Jon (Georgia, USA): I think it's f*cking beautiful. Where else can you go to school, and over a break travel a continent and come back and not miss a thing?
Chris (UK): What's bad about it: exams afterwards. What's good: not doing the revision. [revision is what the British call studying]
Francesca (Italy): I think it's too boring and too long. I think it's a waste of time.
