I'm sitting here in my new bedroom in Larkfield, looking out the window at lecture halls and people walking by for orientation. Mine doesn't start until Wednesday morning, which explains why I'm not out there at the moment. I'm currently experiencing mixed emotions. I can't wait to actually get stuck in to my course, but at the same time I'm trying to deal with the overwhelming apprehension at the prospect of living away from home - even though, technically speaking, as I'm in Dublin, I already am home.
The weekend was a blur of packing and last-minute shopping. To say I was nervous on the drive up yesterday afternoon would be a massive understatement. I was gripped with a brief but very real moment of terror the minute my parents left and I was on my own in a quiet apartment, but I've kind of adjusted now. First impressions? The campus is a nice size (although I'm counting on getting lost for a while) and very modern. I immediately fell in love with The Hub (that's the Students' Union building). The bar is lovely and it just looks like such a nice place.
As for Larkfield itself, it's not as bad as I was expecting it to be. The rooms aren't quite as enclosed as people would have you believe and it's clean and comfortable. I've seen far worse! My bed is comfortable, though I did wake up this morning with a pain in my leg, which I always seem to get whenever I sleep in a single bed! Spoiled or what!
My only complaint is the size of the kitchen. It's true, you can barely fit two people in there. I haven't tried cooking yet, but I hope it works out okay!
I haven't seen all that much of my flatmate, but she seems pretty nice. As far as friend-making goes, I've been unsuccessful so far. There was a rave for first years in the courtyard of Larkfield last night, but although I hung around there for a while and spoke to a few people briefly, I didn't exactly click with anyone. Plenty of time I suppose. I'm not a party animal anyway, so I expect that my friendships will come through my course as well as clubs and societies.
The good news is I'm meeting up with a couple of people from my course in The Hub at lunchtime on Wednesday, before we meet the rest of our group properly. That should be a good chance to get to know some people.
My orientation finishes up on Thursday evening at six, so I might go back home for the weekend before lectures start depending on if there's anything happening or not. I don't know how true it is, but I've heard that the campus is extremely quiet from Friday to Sunday evenings due to people going home for the weekends, not to mention the fact that the bar isn't open. I'll see how it goes.
More updates on university life as it progresses!
No comments:
Post a Comment