Sigma Pi

It has been a hectic few weeks since my last post. At the end of last term after all the exams and parties were over I flew over to New Jersey on the East Coast to stay with an American friend who was on exchange at Nottingham when I was a fresher. It was a quick 3 day trip but we packed loads in, sampled the delight of Jersey's pasta pizza, had a cheeky dabble on the blackjack tables in Atlantic City's casinos (East Coast Vegas) and spent a morning in the Bronx and an afternoon in Manhattan two VERY different parts of NYC. After all that I flew back to London for Xmas and quickly found myself in Blackpool, quite the classy jet setter I know.
After the usual NYE antics I once again found myself back at Heathrow bound for Corvallis, and luckily only a 24 hour journey this time. My roommate went back to LA pretty early at the start of this term so I found myself with little reason to stay in the dorms so got myself 'rushing' a fraternity. This basically means when you go over to the frat house and get to know everyone if you are thinking about joining. Once you like them and they like you, you receive a bid to 'pledge' to the fraternity, (very long winded process I know, the frats aren't quite as simple as a bunch of guys in a house partying). When you pledge (which i have now done) you have a little ceremony which is a very cultish experience and pledge you life and soul away to the frat which in my case is called Sigma Pi. The whole process hasn't finished yet though, during my pledge ship I have to learn about the frat and its history before i can be fully initiated as a full member which wont happen for me until next term. Its a very fascinating incite into the Greek culture of American Unis, and of course great fun as well. After this I am off to an athletes and housewives party with a sorority (house full of 50 odd girls). More to follow.

A new year brings a new semester!

Settling in to a new semester has been a lot more straightforward and less stressful this time around due to knowing the ropes at UF (also I luckily didn't have the worry of snow affecting my return flight!). We were warned that the weather was expected to get colder for January and February however we have been blessed so far with week long warm spells preparing us for the summer heat that will arrive in a few weeks.

Having been rather shocked with the quantity of workload I had to undertake last semester, I have chosen my modules wisely this semester ranging from modules on rock 'n' roll to ethical issues in American sport. Also, I have taken the opportunity to do an individual research module to allow me to do some useful research on my chosen dissertation topic as I have found my uni to be full of endless sources and articles.

Aside from work, so far this semester I have just been having fun getting to know the new exchange students. At UF in particular, we have a substantial amount of Australians which meant last week we celebrated Australian day - basically a day full of drink and BBQ's but a fun day none the less! Also, Tampa hosted Gasparilla 2011 last weekend. Gasparilla is a smaller version of Mardis Gras and a parade dedicated to pirates. It only lasts the one day but it is still atmospheric and a fun day out for whatever age you are!

America is currently football crazy with the Superbowl coming up this Sunday. Everywhere has superbowl themed events and food! The gymnastics season has also started at UF which is a very enjoyable event to see (however this may be due to me being a female!) and athletics will be starting up soon as well so although the football season may be over there are still lots of other sports to see!