Is it seriously still snowing?!

They lied to me! They said it rarely snows and it's been snowing for 3 days straight!!

So last night...

The international girls went to The Watering Hole, which is the Hillhead Halls pub/club whatever you want to call it. When we got there, there were not many people down there. We went to the bar and hung around until we figured out what drinks we wanted. Trey had talked a lot about the WKD, similiar to Smirnoff. I didn't see anyone getting those so I waited a while. Colleen got a coke and whiskey, which surprisingly, I liked a lot. Maybe because the coke was flat? I don't know. A couple other girls, got some beer, but I'm still not a fan of that. Connie got a Strombow Cider, which I really liked. Then I finally got my WKD blue, and it tasted like a blue jollyrancher/ blue ICEE. We all tasted each others drinks (obviously) and just hung out and got to know each other. We eventually moved to a back corner and just talked some more. Caitlin (crazy crazy girl on my hall) and Meg and some more of her friends came in and talked and hung out. Caitlin had snuck some Strombow in, so me and Suzanne drank some more of that. Suzanne drank about the whole glass and I had half a glass. It was so much fun to just sit there and mingle with girls from the States and from Scotland and just laugh and talk about stuff. Caitlin told us about a girl who used to live on the hall who would have sex with her boyfriend every night. They called her... shagging girl? They used to sit outside and listen to them, awkward much. But it made for a great laugh. They eventually left after they begged us to go out with them to the clubs, but we weren't feeling up for that. When they left we went into the bar area again with Rebecca and met 2 guys. Paul was from Belfast and the other one was from Scotland. Paul was hilarious, the other one reminded me of a rat. He was just super nasty and drunk. He stood next to me the whole time and tried to talk to me... but seeing as he was drunk and Scottish, I couldn't understand a word he said... maybe something about a party with him... Just say no! They told us some interesting stories about hot tubs, showers with best friends girlfriends and God knows what else. We got out of there as soon as we can... which was about 30 minutes after talking with them. They weren't kidding when they said Scots drink! I didn't have my camera last night... so I'm waiting for the pics from Grace.

It took me FOREVER to go to bed last night... which I guess I'm still jet lagged and feeling more like going to bed when I should at home which is around 3 a.m here. Which sucks. But oh well, it should get better soon.

Today we went to Sunday Brunch. It is a typical Scottish breakfast... sausage, ham/bacon, eggs (more like boiled eggs mashed up), toast, and lots of other stuff that I have NO IDEA what it was... But I tried all of it. The best part was the toast.. haha! Anyway, over time I'll probably like it more? We all went on a tour of Aberdeen today. It was free for international students. I sat beside Liz and we talked and just listened to the tour guide.





Aberdeen is the 3rd largest city in Scotland. It is an industrial city, on the coast and it has 2 rivers (Dee and Don) running through it. Mostly oil, boats, etc that bring in the most people. The buildings are all made out of grey granite, and it sparkles in the sunlight (sound familiar lol). It is very pretty. Most houses have different color doors, bright blue, red, green, it's awesome. The Uni of Aberdeen was established in 1495, freakin old! So most of its buildings are also old. Which is cool to think about. Honestly, if you want to know about Aberdeen... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aberdeen that will tell you everything we learned today. It was really cool to learn more about the city that I will soon call home.

When we came back from the tour, we tried to get something to eat, but everything closes at 4:30 or earlier on Sundays. So we came back to Hillhead and thankfully the store was open. Me, Liz and Katie got Ritz crackers, cheese, chicken breast, yogurt, Irn Bru (orange colored, bubblegum flavored soda) and sat on the floor and ate dinner in my room. We got to know each other and told stories about what home is like. I was talking to Liz about being homesick, and shes been feeling homesick as well and she said one thing I've learned from studying abroad before is... it's not the place that makes it home, it's the people. And I definitely am beginning to understand that. The international girls and even some of the Scottish girls are beginning to make this place feel like home.

I spent most of the evening figuring out my class schedule/ syllabus/ time/ etc. I feel way more organized now. I'm still waiting for one more tutorial and lab to be filled. I also have 2 papers to write. Intro to Gospels 2000 words, Knowledge and Mind 1500 words. They aren't due till April, so hopefully I can get working on those soon! I hung up more stuff around my room to make it colorful and someone was throwing away a pillow/ pillowcase so I washed the pillowcase and took the pillow so now I have 3 pillows :)

Tomorrow... my plan is to go to bfast with Liz and head into campus with her. Then buy our ceilidh tickets and she has class at 10. Stacey is going to take me to go pick up some groceries/other items I need since she has a car. She is a LIFESAVER! So I'm really happy about that. Hopefully, I can get some more planning down and figure out the rest of my classes as well.

For more pictures, look on facebook.

got my bedding!

So, I finally got my bedding around 10 or 11 last night. But before that... We met several other international students. Liz from Washington state, Connie from Illinois, Susan from Illinois, Katie from Wisconsin and Colleen from Illinois. So we all hung out and tried to figure out what we wanted for dinner. We went to the shop and the hillhead centre but they didn't have much that I was interested in. So we decided to order a pizza. We tried Pizza Hut, but they didn't deliver. So we ordered online at Heavenly Pizza... We found a deal for 2 pizzas for 10 pounds. We then went to the tv lounge in Adam Smith house and waited for the pizza. While we were waiting, Rob, a first year, came in to talk to us. He was really nice and told us about classes and the party scene here. He then had 5 friends join him, so we all hung out and talked. It was pretty cool. Two hours later our pizza finally showed up. Apparently, the snow slowed them down. So the guy gave us 2 medium size pizzas for free! We ate our pizza and then gave the rest to the guys. By that time it was 9 so we decided to go shower and just hang out. There was a big party in the Watering Hole which is their pub/club at Hillhead. But I was tired and wanted to decorate my room. I came up to my room and talked to Caitlin, my neighbor who had a friend from Edinburgh up. So she gave me some more stuff to decorate my room with. She also invited us out for tonight. Around 11, my bedding arrived to my room and I made my bed and hung up pictures and added some life to this room. I skyped with my parents and Trey before I went to bed. I got into bed around 1... but it took me FOREVER to fall asleep... which sucked. I think I finally got to sleep around 3. I hope tonight is a better rest.

Today... we had orientation at 9:30 on campus. I was up at 8:30 for that. Molly Prather kinda explained what was going on today and all that jazz. We went to the Hub and had tea and coffee and talked with other students. We all got a bus ticket for the Aberdeen bus tour tomorrow. I finally met Clair and Sydney from Clemson, so I talked to them and got to know them some because we came back to our rooms before our registration time. I took about a 45 minute nap and skyped with mom and Trey. We then left for our registration. The way they register here was definitely confusing, I definitely like Clemson so much better. I am currently signed up for 4 classes. Anatomy 2, Knowledge and Mind, Intro to the Gospels, and Sociology 2. I'm not sure if the soc class will transfer to Clemson... so I gotta check on that. But I figured out my schedule and I will have a lab for Anatomy on Monday's for about 4 or 5 weeks out of the semester, all my classes on Tuesday/Thursday afternoons and then one on friday. I haven't signed up for my lab or my tutorials or anything. Hopefully I'll get that soon. I feel way better now that I have my classes figured out and now I know when Trey will get here and all that jazz! I'm going out tonight. Don't know what I'm doing yet.. so I'll get back to you on that!

My first full day and a half in Scotland

So I'm not going to lie. I am definitely homesick. Once I arrived, I definitely cried because this is so unfamiliar and it's strange. I talked to my parents and Trey some so that was nice. The sun set around 4 or so, but it didn't get dark until around 5. My light didn't come on until around 3, which is really annoying. I contacted Stacey, a girl who studied in Clemson last semester. I asked her what was fun to do and so she said that there was a cinema and pubs and stuff. I asked her where all that stuff was, so she decided to catch a ride to Hillhead and met me here. We walked down to the pub, The Bobbin and it was slammed packed with students who had just finished exams and stuff. So we had to wait to get a seat. I ordered Fish and Chips they were good. I wasn't that hungry. And Stacey paid for my meal and my sprite, which definitely tasted weird as well. After that we found a mini tesco store and I got a couple of apples, juice (which I have to add water too because it's so concentrated here) and then cotton balls all for 2.87 pounds, woo! We walked to her apartment because she wanted to get me a couple of glasses to drink out of. We tried to find bus 20 to take me back to Hillhead but we could never find it, but I did get to see the campus at night which was pretty. We ended up walking down to the city centre and she told me how to get back to Hillhead. I got lost because I made the wrong turn. If I had paid attention to the signs I would have gotten back. I had a minor freak out so I called Dad and he calmed me down and I finally got on the right track. It definitely is freezing cold. But I got back to my room and I talked to Lindsey some, it was nice to talk to her and hear about how she aced that anatomy exam :) Then I took a shower because I was all sweaty and needed to calm down. Once I got back from that I talked to my parents some more on skype, which really helped because they make me laugh. I skyped with Trey when I finished with my parents and we talked until I went to bed around 1. I didn't have any bed sheets last night.... so I luckily had my blanket and then I had makeshift pillows with towels and a fluffy jacket of mine. I woke up around 8:30 am to the construction workers who are doing the bathrooms. I really hope they get done soon so that I don't have to walk downstairs and junk to get my shower and use the bathroom. I fell asleep and woke up again at 10 and got ready for my day. I talked to mom and dad and trey some on skype and around 12 Grace and i went to see if our bedsheets had arrived, and they hadn't.. so we decided to catch bus 20 and head to the main campus. It was difficult figuring out how much to pay and such so I paid 1.50 (10 pences) more than needed but oh well for both Grace and I. We got off at the uni at The Hub, the student center. And they have 2 food courts, one with subway and one with more of a mealplan type food. We walked into the AUSA office and talked to one of the guys about Refresher's Week and got a pamphlet. He was really nice and funny. We went upstairs and got a map and talked to a girl about how to get around the campus and such. We then went exploring. We found the meeting area for tomorrow mornings meeting and the place where we have registration, a chapel, several more dorms, and other buildings from the campus. I have way more pictures on facebook. We went to the pub for lunch. I had a hamburger and chips with a Fosters beer... not my favorite thing ever but oh well. After that, we went to Tescos because Grace wanted to buy some things and I got a few snacks, Dr. Pepper, doritos and special k snack bites. We tried to figure out where a bus 20 stop was but it was very confusing. And the snow wasn't helping. So we went back to The Hub and talked to that guy from AUSA who gave us directions on how to walk back or take a bus. I didn't want to take a bus because I didn't want to spend anymore money. So we took the walk through Seaton Park. It was a way shorter walk than from last night, but they suggest people to not walk through the park at night. That's probably the way I'll walk to classes and such throughout the day. We checked back in with the post office and we didn't have our uni-box yet... so I came back to the room. One of the girls on my flat is moving out... so she gave me her duvet and a pillow and wall art. So maybe I can buy some pins and hang up the pictures that I have and make this place a little more homey. I should be getting my bedding soon, they said after 6. I don't know what's going on tonight... but hopefully something so I don't just sit here all night.

I'm Here!

So I got to Charlotte around 1 yesterday afternoon, and it was very hard to say bye to my parents. When I was going through security, one of the policemen pulled me aside and tried to calm me down, and gave me tissues. It was really sweet. Then the guy I was standing behind was asking me if I had missed my flight and I told him that I was studying abroad and that it was hard to leave something familiar for 6 months. He was really nice and told me to have a few pints once I got to Aberdeen and all my worries will go away. Sounds Scottish right? Anyway, the flight to Newark was chock full of business dudes coming back from a conference or something. When we flew into Newark, I could see the New York skyline and the statue of liberty. I find it cool that the last thing I saw of the US and the first thing I'll see when I return will be the statue of liberty. Anywho, once we landed in Newark about an hour early, I met up with Grace. We took our turns watching the luggage and walking around and such. The flight to Manchester wasn't too terrible. They served us dinner about an hour into it. I had penne pasta with mini meatballs, a salad, water, a roll and milano cookies. It was alright for airplane food. I watched Love Happens (freakin sad movie) while I ate dinner. I fell asleep to Fame, as soon as one of the many babies on the airplane finally shut its mouth. But then we hit some really bad turbulence. It lasted about an hour, no lie. I was praying the ENTIRE TIME. But after that I couldn't go back to sleep so I watched Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, and fell asleep again. By that time, they were serving us breakfast which was a croissant and fruit. It was yummy. We landed at 7 and Grace and I headed to find out where and when our next flight was. We got to transfers, and the guy told us where to go and sent us through customs. It was surprisingly easy until I freaked out because I forgot where my computer charger was and could have sworn it was on the plane. The guy had to search my bookbag, for what I don't know... but one of the ladies was nice enough to call the airline and asked if they found anything, and they hadn't. So I checked my luggage, and there it was... freakin me moving things around before we left Newark. Anyway, Grace had to get her visa, so I waited with her as the guy questioned her about if she was going to work, if I was going to work, what we were doing here. It was kinda ridiculous. Once we got through, we had to get a boarding pass printed but the lady had no idea where the gate was. So we wondered around and then they finally posted our gate. We had to board outside because the plane was so tiny, but that's okay. I was the first person to board and got to meet the pilot and stuff. They served us a croissant sandwich with cheese and tomatoes and coffee or tea. I decided on coffee, but it was a big mistake. I either needed like 5 cups of sugar or it was just plain bitter. The flight took like 30 minutes in all, and we landed in a rainy, cold Aberdeen. We went and got our baggage and it was all there and met Louise a student at Aberdeen. She directed us to a taxi and the taxi took us to Hillhead. Aberdeen is quite a cute city. I hope I can get out and explore soon, but I have no idea how long it would take me to get there. We checked in at the Centre of Hillhead and got our keys. We are on the top floor (4th) of Adam Smith... and they didn't have any lofts (elevators) so we had to carry our luggage up the stairs. It was funny to say the least. We were both expecting our uni-box to be there, and they weren't so we'll be sheetless tonight. I tried to get as settled as I could as the realization that I was in Scotland, and I'd be here for the next 5 months sunk in... I got to skype with mom and dad before they left for work. Grace and I went to check with the mail guys to see if we had anything and they said we didn't. We checked out the store that's here in Hillhead as well, and they had some good stuff, but nothing that I wanted to purchase yet. We came back and Grace slept and I unpacked and got to talk to Trey. Internet here is iffy but it's wifi. Hopefully we'll be getting some food and go walk around soon. It has stopped raining for now and I can see some blue sky peak through. I'm definitely a little bit homesick and can't wait until I see a familiar face (Trey). I'm settled in, but I definitely can't wait until I get my bed sheets and then can hang pictures on the wall.

This was an incredibly long entry, but thanks for the prayers and the support through all this. They are definitely appreciated!

If you want to track my flight...

FLIGHT INFORMATION

Wed, 27JAN10 CO337 L CHARLOTTE
(CLT) 3:05PM NEWARK EWR
(EWR) 5:10PM 737-700

Wed, 27JAN10 CO20 L NEWARK EWR
(EWR) 7:35PM MANCHESTER
(MAN) 7:30AM (28JAN) 757-200 Dinner

Thu, 28JAN10 CO88751 L MANCHESTER
(MAN) 8:55AM ABERDEEN GB
(ABZ) 10:10AM

the bold is my flight number. I am flying continental. I will arrive in Manchester 2:30 AM SC time and then Aberdeen 5:10 AM SC time. Please keep my travels in your prayers! Thanks!

See ya in August Clemson

So I went to Clemson on Thursday and Friday to spend some time with my friends before I left. It was so hard to say bye :-( I definitely realized that life continues whether you are there or not. I mean... of course I knew that but it was obvious when I went there for the first time in a month. I'm definitely going to miss Clemson but not the obnoxious drive (took me 3 hours... ugh!) I went to Furman on Friday to spend some time with Michelle and it was so much fun. I loved getting to hang out with her and Stephen and just hanging out before we both go over to Europe. So if I saw you this past week... I just want to say how thankful I am that I got to see you and that i love you and i am going to miss you!!

When I got home today I finished packing everything and we went to UPS and got it weighed and it was 49 pounds. Talk about lucky. However, I didn't have a lot of my toiletry items... which if they werent liquid they went into my carry on... But it feels a lot better that I am packed and ready to go... well almost. I'm starting to get nervous... but really excited. My neighbors brought me a video of scotland and omg it is so gorgeous. so so so so so pretty. This week will be spent with my family and my grandparents.

I can't believe it's almost time to leave!

Keeping in touch

So I will have my cell phone with me... however for every minute I talk it will be 99 cent. For every text received and sent it is $1. So my dad has asked for me to tell all my friends to not text or call my cell. I will have Skype, which I use all the time. So find me and add me!

Also, I have a magic jack so here is the number for that...803-391-7444

It's free for me to talk to you using the magic jack, I won't have my computer on all the time but if you have something to tell me that you don't want to tell me on facebook or skype you can call that number and leave a voicemail. When I have my computer on and you want to call and chat, give me a call!

I would recommend using facebook and skype the most to communicate with me. I won't always be at my computer but I do want to keep in touch with everything happening back in the US. And of course keep reading the blog!

Also, if you're into snail mail... or sending me packages of Chick-fil-a or brownies or something ;-) my address is...

Heather Hamby
Room T3
Adam Smith House
Hillhead Halls of Residence
Don Street
Old Aberdeen
AB24 1WU

8 days and counting!

So as the day approaches I'm getting super excited. Today I actually started packing. A few days ago, I laid out clothes that I thought would be good to bring. Then my mom and I went through it and asked would I really wear this and if so, how would I layer it. So I started actually putting things in the vacuum bags. I love those things. I got all my clothes and some extra toiletry items in the bags. I haven't sucked out all the air because my mom hasn't been home to look at the packing job. Haha. But I realized I have WAY TOO MUCH STUFF and I don't like that feeling. My dad and I are gonna take it to UPS or something to check out how much it weighs. I mean I still have 8 days to get it done but since I'm going to Clemson later this week, I want to get this done as soon as possible. I have had difficulties trying to find a pair of boots to wear when I go out... I've been to about 20 different stores, no lie. If they did have boots, they had a size too big or too small. It sucks.

Trey seems to be having a great time and that makes me really happy. This is going to be such a great experience for the both of us and I am so ready to get over there and start this thing!

It's been nice being at home though because it means I can hang out with friends that I haven't had the chance to see in a while. It's nice to catch up and see people before I leave.

Please continue praying for Trey and I!! Thanks :)

Trey's adventure

Although I can't speak for him exactly, I know what an interesting adventure he is having right now. He flew out of Columbia yesterday around 11:20 to Dallas. The plane was so tiny, luckily he signed up for the row of single seats so he had his own seat for the 2 hour and 45 minute flight. He arrived in Dallas and went directly to his next flight. He told me he really liked that airport, that it reminded him of a mall. He had McDonald's for lunch and bought a milkshake, haha. His flight from Dallas to London was about an hour and a half behind schedule. They were supposed to fly out 5:55 our time but didn't leave until 7:20ish. I was freaking out the entire night, and it was so hard. I hate saying goodbye, especially to someone I really love. He arrived in London around 4 am our time (9 am his time) and called me at 5:15 and he had gotten his visa. He did not call me from his cellphone (which was about to die, and he had left his charger in his checked luggage) but none of that matters because his cell phone doesn't work AT ALL in Europe. UGH. He told me on the flight over he barely slept maybe 2 or 3 hours. He also said that getting his visa was easier, and that was one thing he was really nervous about. And then he informed me that his flight to Edinburgh was canceled. Not sure why, I'm thinking not enough people had signed up for the flight. I fell asleep about an hour after I had talked to him... then like an hour too late I had gotten on my itouch to find that he had bought an hour of wifi and I freakin missed it. I was SO angry with myself. He said in his wall post on Facebook that there were only 5 people waiting for the bus to Edinburgh and that they had to wait until the bus filled up. This was around 8 am or so... our time. I haven't talked to him since so I am thinking he is on the bus for an 8 to 9 hour bus ride. I think this is a good thing though because maybe now he'll get some rest or heck he'll get to see some pretty amazing sights, at least that's what I am hoping for. The only thing I am scared about is him getting to Dundee. He planned for a bus to get him to Dundee around 8 their time so 3 our time. If it's an 8 to 10 hour trip, he may not make it in time.. but I know that God has His hand on all of this and He will keep my baby safe. My family and I are currently trying to get in touch with Dundee to let them know about Trey's situation so that they can be expecting him from a bus not a plane. Please keep praying for him and for safe travel. I will definitely let everyone know when he has finally reached Dundee. I probably won't calm down until then or until I can at least hear his voice or see him on Skype. Thank you so much for your prayers and support for both of us as we go on this journey!

On a better note... I should be receiving my visa in the next couple of days. They have confirmed it and supposedly are shipping it over night to me.