Wrote this some weeks ago...forgot to post...

Finally in International House (IH for short) and everything is so different!

For starters, orientation week (o-week for short) is pretty full-on, what with the crazy dancing and the silly chants (“You live in a donut! You live in a donut! You live in a doNUUTTTTTTT!!!) and the late night parties and all. Went to bad well past midnight for 3 days straight and I can’t even think properly now…yawn.

~*Saturday*~

Was sent to IH by Mom and Uncle for the enrolment, and they left after lunch while we ‘freshers’ were all herded in front of a giant inflatable human foosball…err…thing. After a couple of entertaining sessions, we split into little groups (Mine’s ‘Confooscious’) each headed by an o-weeker and proceeded to ice-breakers. Unraveling human knots is sooooooo much fun! But the biggie is yet to follow

Fast forward to 11p.m. – ROOM CRAM!!!!

What this rather strange and unusual activity entails is this: 100 + freshers being shut into a tiny tiny room (with all doors and windows closed) and being made to yell weirded chants at the top of their voices (and occasionally being squirted by water guns). It lasted a full hour, and about 20 minutes in rivulets of sweat were running down everyone’s forehead. Some people dripped sweat, some flicked sweat on other poor people…The aim was to get the room and walls covered with sweat! Very gross if you think about it, but after it became clear that there was no escape, I just gave up and gave it a go. And you know what? It was great!!!

~*Sunday*~

Whole morning of seminars…blah…then we went shopping! Somehow all of us managed to fit onto a single tram and off we headed to ‘Savers’ at Barkley Square. It was stocked with some of the ugliest and most outrageous outfits I’ve ever seen! The aim was to create and outfit of the poorest taste possible, in preparation for POOR TASTE PARTAY!!!

Party night. Everyone turned up looking gorgeously ugly, and all had heaps of fun. The party lasted 4 hours, with dancing and talking being the main objective. My feet hurt after 3 hours of straight dancing and my throat was parched, but it was totally awesome.

~*Monday*~

Skipped some IH activities to go to Uni and when I got back it was about time for dinner. After dinner - yes you guessed it - another party!

This time, instead of wearing shockingly hideous outfits, we all dug out our cocktail dresses, put on make-up, and endeavored to look as nice as possible (all the more important after the embarrassment of last night). Funny how everyone seems older in formal wear.

At first it was just talking. Then it was talking. And then more talking. Just when I decided that it was too boring and attempted to leave, the music pumped up! And of course I stayed…until midnight…again.

~*Tuesday*~
Uni host programme ~

Met heaps of people in my course, which is pretty great. Shamim’s also in my group, but we probably won’t be in the same stream because there are 12 different ones (I think).

To my surprise, I met no one from Tintern! Come on, I mean, how is that possible?

Tuesday afternoon and I’m pretty dead, severely lacking in sleep and having taken a 2-hour long English diagnostic test, completely stuffed. And just to make it worse, my muscles were so sore they absolutely killed.

Went back to IH and got the shock of my life – disgustingly runny brown stuff covered the pavements, and it was rank! Turned out that the rest of the unlucky freshers just went through a particularly tough initiation…hehe.

At night, another party: The Bush Dance.

We had a live band that doubled as dance instructor and it was absolutely rockin’. People stomped, twisted, leapt, skipped, and flew all around the place, and the whole event went on for 1 ½ hour longer than expected.

So once again, I’m tired.