Jacki's University of Delaware Blog

London Eye, Oh My!

I wrote out an entire blog about an hour ago and as it was loading to Tumblr, the website froze and my entire blog went away, except for one picture.  Our internet at the hotel is spotty like that…anyway, I had another amazing and busy day in London.  And I promise that I won’t say that again, because I am pretty sure that every day will be an amazing and busy day here in London.

I started my day bright and early this morning by going to the London Eye with my friends.  The London Eye is a gigantic ferris wheel (but don’t EVER call it a ferris wheel to the locals… they don’t like that very much) where you get into a large “pod” and slowly raise up to the top of the wheel, and on the way see the entire city of London.  The view from the top is absolutely incredible.  I could see everything.  If anyone reading this is planning a trip to London, and the wheel is running when you’re here, definitely pay the 15 pounds to ride the London Eye. It is SO worth it!

We got to the Eye early this morning because we knew we had class at 1pm this afternoon, and since we were done with the ride by 9:45am, we decided we would take our time, take in the sights of the city and walk back to the hotel.  We walked past Big Ben, the Westminster Abbey, through Piccadilly Circus, and went to see the changing of the guard.  Where else could you take a morning stroll and see all of those incredible pieces of history?! It was truly amazing.

We got so carried away during our walk that time flew by and we didn’t realize it was just about lunch time.  Instead of going back to the hotel before going to class, we stopped at a small restaurant known for their fish and chips (even though I don’t eat fish…I got a turkey sandwich).  Lunch was good!  I learned that “yellow mustard” in London is 100% different than “yellow mustard” in America.  I loaded my sandwich with mustard, bit into it and my sinuses cleared…it tasted like I was eating straight horse radish.  Definitely a surprise! Now I know…

After lunch, we went to our first day of class.  Our classes are in a beautiful building right down the street from our hotel in a small room that most definitely does not look like a classroom.  It is beautiful! I will take a picture of the classroom on Monday and post it on here.  We went over our final class schedule and I could not be more excited about taking classes here…there are so many opportunities to talk to very influential people in the music world.  One of the coolest things, I think, is that whenever we have a guest speaker come and talk to us, we also have the opportunity to join them for dinner after their lecture.  It will give us the opportunity to ask questions and get to know our lecturers in a more casual environment.  We are going to so many incredible concerts, and oh my gosh, there are just so many amazing opportunities for all of us studying here in London. 

Happy Weekend! =)  

class cancelled…NOT SATISFIED!

So on Tuesdays and Thursdays I have Accounting at 8:30am.  Let me tell you…any class before 9am is difficult to wake up for. This morning I woke up at 7:25, got breakfast and then got to class around 8:25.  I walked in the room and found out that class was cancelled. My teacher’s car had broken down and was able to send the “class cancelled” e-mail 7 minutes before class was supposed to start. Usually class being cancelled is great news…but not when you are already there. I could be sleeping! Okay, off my soap box…

The end of Sophomore year

I sign up for classes today, which is always an experience.  I have all of my classes chosen already so hopefully it won’t be too bad.  I just can’t believe I am going to be a Junior in college next year! Time is flying by so fast it is frightening.

All of my classes are still going full throttle even though classes end in less than a month. My professors are all trying to fit in their last minute lesson plans and projects, especially in my music classes.  In Music History I have an assignment due on Monday about 14th/15th century music, and in Harmony I have to compose a graphic score and turn it in next week.  In college you don’t slow down toward the end like in high school! You are learning until the very last day of classes.

Other than going to class, I have been doing a lot with SAI. This past weekend we had a Girl Scout Day, where we helped Girl Scouts earn their music badge. We were at the Girl Scout building, which is conveniently close to campus, from 8am until 3pm on Saturday. Talk about a long day!!  The day went very well, and the girls loved it.  After Girl Scout Day, we walked to the Field House and sang the National Anthem for Relay For Life. It was very eventful.  Let’s just say I slept VERY well that night…

You can’t be serious…

You will have no idea how fast time can fly by until you are in college.  I sat down this afternoon and mapped out all of the classes that I need to take between now and when I graduate. I have taken more than half of the classes I need already…WATCH OUT WORLD!! Here I come =) ….faster than I ever thought possible.