Freshers Week: Accommodation

The accommodation at University that I was allocated wasn't my first choice when I applied but I am very happy with where I am. I am in a flat with 4 other people. We each have our own bedroom and share the bathroom and kitchen areas. Our flat is in Lewes Court in Block 1.

The Front Door

My first impressions of my new home were: my bedroom is bigger than I expected, the sink area in my room is huge with a big mirror, we actually have a bath in the bathroom, there's a lot of storage in both my bedroom and the kitchen. There was only a few very minor things that we had issues with, such as I have a very creaky bed and the drain was blocked in the shower when we moved in.
Before moving in I wasn't sure exactly what the shared bathroom comprised of. In the flat there is a room with a bath, toilet and sink, a separate toilet and separate shower room. They are just basic bathroom facilities although I would've liked a better shower. The main thing that annoys me about the shower now, is that you can't move the shower head at all. I have been quite surprised that sharing the bathroom is so easy, as whenever I go to use it it's always available. The one thing that's not convenient though is not being able to keep personal things in the bathrooms, and so having to take a wash bag and towel etc. with you when using the shower.
We also have the kitchen communal area. There is more storage in the kitchen than I thought we would have, the hardest part is diving the storage up equally between all the flat members. I didn't want to feel like I was taking all the space, but I think we've all claimed our own areas for storage in the kitchen. Whether that be one of the drawers, a cupboard, or one of the shelves in a cupboard. There are two fridge freezers in which we have each taken a shelf and drawer. The two things we don't like in that room are how wobbly/unstable the chairs are and the fact that we can't keep the door open as it's alarmed. Not being able to keep the door open makes it feel like that room is being shut off from the rest of the flat. There's also two sofas in the communal room but we feel like we'd like to make it more homely in there by adding cushions on the sofa and pictures on the walls. That way we'd be more likely to spend more time in there.

(Photos to be added, once my room looks nice!)

Fresher's Week: Moving Into Uni

Saturday the 15th of September 2012, the day that I moved into University. After having very little sleep I was up early in the morning. We put all my boxes and bags into the car and left home at 8:30. It took us about 6 hours to get up to the University as we arrived at around 13:30. First thing I did when I got to the University was go to the reception for Lewes Court to collect my flat/room keys. Below are photos of what my room looked like when I arrived (except the mirror on the desk) and of most of the stuff I'd brought with me.

I went for a drink with my Dad and Sally after unloading everything from the car. We went to East Slope Bar and it was really great weather that day too! We also got burgers from a BBQ outside one of the restaurants. After that they left me at my new home, as they needed to go find somewhere to stay for the night. I was sad to see them go and felt quite alone at that moment.

Driving: taking the test!

On the 14th of August I took my driving theory test, and passed it! I was so happy when I found out I'd passed, as I honestly thought I'd failed it. There was a couple of questions on the multiple choice part where I didn't have a clue, but in the hazard perception part of the test I got a message come up on the screen saying that I had scored 0 on a video clip due to an inappropriate number of clicks. So after that I didn't have much hope. I walked up to the desk to collect my results. He said to me "Smile" and pointed to the words on the certificate saying 'Congratulations, you've passed!'. I was so happy with that!

After that I waited until after I'd got my A Level results and found out when and which University I'll be starting at, before I attempted booking my practical driving test. And I mean attempted, as when I came to book it there were no dates before the 24th September, and I was starting Uni on the 15th. That left me no choice but to book the earliest date possible and keep checking for cancellations to change it. I thought I wasn't going to be able to take the test before I go, and would have to continue learning and take the test another time or another place. But luckily a couple of days ago a cancellation came up and I managed to get my test booked for the 12th September, just three days before I will be moving away. I'm not sure that I feel ready to take the test but my driving instructor seems to think that I'll be OK, so I guess I'll have to trust him. I will so happy if I pass the test on Wednesday, to have got it out the way and having my driving license to use when I may need it in the future.

Dream Car

OMG! I so want this car, love it! A ladybird beetle, so cool.

Lots of Walking!

This post should've gone up a week ago, but better late than never! The week before last my Auntie and Uncle came to visit. The evening that they arrived we all went out for a meal at our local pub, The Mounts Bay. Even my brother joined us, and they do really great food there.
The following day we went for a walk around The Lizard ending up at The Lizard point, the most southerly place on mainland UK. And because it's a Cornish thing to do we sat at the cafe on The Lizard point and had cream teas.

Later that afternoon we walked down to the harbour in Mullion as my brother was down there with his friends and needed to be told to come home for dinner. He goes down to the harbour as him and his friends like jumping of the end and that's what they'd spent the whole afternoon doing! My brother's one of the people stood in wetsuits at the end of the harbour in the photo below.

The next day I actually had a driving lesson so I didn't do anything exciting. But on the Thursday we went for another walk to Kynance Cove, near The Lizard. It's beautiful place to see and definitely a bit of a tourist attraction around here.

That afternoon after we'd been back a while and had lunch, we went for another walk around the village in Mullion and then down to Polurrian beach.

It was great to see my Auntie and Uncle, as they hadn't been down to Cornwall for many years. I really enjoyed talking to them while they were down, and hope to see them again soon.

For more photos go to: beanyjanephotography.blogspot.com