Surprise Dinner Party

So yesterday, after running errands in city center with my roommate Kristin and friends Nicole, Betsey and Christine, Kristin and I came home to our apartment to make dinner.  She had invited about 5 friends over for dinner, and invited me to eat with them which was SO nice of her, so of course I said yes.  I was chatting with Kristin and four of her friends, from China, Portugal and India nonetheless so quite a diverse group, and we were waiting on just one person, her friend Sneha.  So the pasta and salad we had made was just about finished when Sneha arrived....with 6 other friends we weren't expecting! She brought 2 of her friends who, like her, were from India and three of the vet students in the masters program at our University from Italy who she had just met.  Right as Kristin and I were whispering about how to make enough food, the pulled grocery bags out of their backpacks, these unexpected guests were cooking for us! So they got to work in our kitchen making a delicious risotto with pear and blue cheese, and a delicious, spicy Indian chicken dish, all while sharing some wine they had brought, and recipe tips for us all.  All of the food was SO delicious and by the end of the night we were all too full for dessert.  Everyone stayed until about 10 or 10:30, teaching us how to play poker while helping us to clean up the kitchen.  Before they left, all 13 of us were exchanging numbers and making plans of the next time we would do a big group dinner. It was definitely not the sunday night I was expecting, it was much more fun, friendly and filling that I could have even imagined.

Today was my first day of classes.  I had one class today, Scottish Literature, which is at 10am Mondays Wednesdays with a discussion that I have not been assigned yet. For the week this is what my schedule looks like as of now:

Monday: 10 am Scottish Literature

Tuesday: 10 am  Literature discussion  

Wednesday: 10 am Scottish Literature, 2-4pm Exploring Scottish Culture

Thursday: 4pm-6pm Bagpiping

Friday: 10am-1pm Black and White Photography

So the classes I ended up taking are all very focused on the Scottish culture, since I figured, where else can I take anything like these? My class today was super interesting, we learned all about the different books we will be reading and the papers and projects that will be due throughout the semester.  It is a class of about 100 people, but we will be broken up into smaller discussion groups once a week.  After class I met up with a few of my friends and we headed over to check out the gym and the bookstore.  I didn't buy any books yet, but will probably go back soon to get what I need.  I will also be headed back to the gym tomorrow to return my completed paperwork and hopefully get started in some kickboxing classes they have to counteract all of the potatoes and fried food they seem to love over here in Scotland. After these errands and exploring campus a little, my friend Sam came back to my apartment for lunch before he headed off to his class.  Then at 5:30 I met up with Sam and Ian, the two boys here from BC with my at Glasgow, and headed to Peperino's, an Italian restaurant to meet with our advisor from BC, Rhona.  Rhona is about 27, and works with all 150 international students, but especially closely with the three of us since BC gives her money to run a program with us.  So she took us out to dinner tonight to discuss our trips for the rest of the semester.  Over the pasta and pizza we got for dinner, we chatted about what we would do with the money BC gave our program.  We decided on: a weekend trip to the highlands of Scotland, a football game (the boys requested a Rangers game), trips to local museums and attractions, a distillery tour and a traditional Scottish dinner out at the end of the year. I am beyond excited for all of these trips.  After the dinner we said goodbye to Rhona, and the three of us headed to a near by pub to get a pint and watch the football game that was on TV.  We stayed there for quite a while and discussed our weeks plans.  I didn't really know Sam or Ian before coming to Glasgow, but we have hit it off quite well.  They tease me a lot, and often call themselves "the brothers I never wished I had", but its all in good fun and its really nice to have two people I have some ties with here with me as I settle in.

So thats it for this entry so far, its getting late and I am going to head to bed.  Tomorrow is a day full of errands and other fun things, and then we will see how the rest of my second week in Scotland goes:)