First Week

The first week is over, and the fact that I haven't written anything is a testament to how busy it was.

I guess I anticipated the program to be intense, as it's a masters in only a year. The workload - lots of reading and 1-2 assignments a week - feels heavy right now, but maybe it's just because I've been out of school for so long. It's been a struggle everyday to stay on top of the reading. I can't imagine how it is for the students whose first language isn't English. I have infinite respect for them!

Every day we have a 75-minute lecture, which is followed by a 75-minute seminar. The lectures have been interesting, ranging from "What is conflict?" to questioning whether peace is possible under the nation-state system. The seminars have been very engaging. We are in small groups of about 20, and each day there is some sort of group activity that we have to do. We always have to speak in front of the class, which in spite of the fact that I've been a teacher and performed songs in front of people, it makes me nervous. But, I try to not let my heart pounding in my chest stop me from speaking. It's good for me, I'm sure.

I've been teaching yoga, too. Last week I taught two classes, and they went well. I'm excited that teaching yoga will be a regular part of my life here.

There is a music club getting underway, so that piece of the puzzle should be in place soon, too.

This weekend mostly involved staying on top of reading and working on the first assignment. Alistair and I had a date to the local pizza shop on Saturday night, which was surprisingly good and not too expensive. We'll definitely do it again.

The highlight was finding the local swimming hole, which is along the UPEACE road, about a 20 minute walk from our apartment. We went with our neighbors. There's this nice waterfall and you can go swimming in the river. We did learn, the hard way, that there are these little wormy things that live on the rocks, and if you sit on a rock, you will get these little wormy things all over you. So, best not to sit, better to swim. We now know for next time.

Well, off to sleep to get ready for 7am yoga!