Hello from Leeds!

I survived my journey of 4.5 hours to Toronto, 7 hours to London, and 5.5 hours by bus to Leeds! 

There were just a few minor incidents...

• Speed walking from the domestic terminal to the international terminal of Pearson Airport because my flight was a bit delayed
• Reclaiming my original seat for the Toronto to London flight - no way was I spending 7 hours next to a stranger!
• Wheeling two 40 pound bags through Heathrow Airport to get to the coach station
• Taking my excessively large bags up and down stairs and through various doors to get to my residence room in the basement

The University of Leeds campus is really nice.
It's got a mix of new and old buildings, which gives it a lot of character and is a nice change from the 1970s concrete boxes at UW.

 

I'm living in an old Victorian apartment that has been converted into a residence, it's really cool and I like it a lot. I'm in the basement of the building and it's a bit of maze to get to my room, but I don't mind.  I really like my residence and my hallmates and everything is just grand!

This is my room... 

(It used to be a double room, so it's HUGE!)

Oh! And when I arrived there was a welcome kit waiting for me on my desk:

You can't really see it, but look at the baaaby bottle of Tabasco sauce (close to the left, in front of the Go Fast! energy drink). When I saw it, I thought of my Dad - he would use up that baby bottle in one bite!

This week has been crazy busy - unpacking, moving in, attending International Student meetings and events, meeting new people, etc. - but it's been great!
I've met some other International Students - there are a lot from Canada (including the 15 of us from UW), America (not very exciting), and Australia (much more exciting).

Classes start next week, but I'll try to post again soon :)