In Christchurch

My flight to LAX went fairly smoothly, so I shall say no more about it. When I was waiting in the airport, I saw actor Sam Elliot get off a plane (pic of Elliot here: http://www.imdb.com/media/rm1938528256/nm0000385), which I thought was cool. As I was getting into the line for the flight to Auckland, I encountered a lot of people who were also coming here to Christchurch, which was pretty cool. Apparently, there's at least one other program bringing American students here, becasue I met some guys from Ohio who were in that program.

The flight to Auckland was enjoyable if long. I was sitting next to a guy who had the latest by Ann Coulter, but I didn't comment on it, even tho I was slightly tempted to. I saw 2 movies: "Rachel Getting Married" and "The Wrestler," both of whom I would enthusiatically reccomend to those who read this blog. I also saw a few episodes of the British show Little Britain, which was pretty awesome, and featured Anthony Stewart Head as the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom.

At Customs I hit a hiccup. For some reason, my student visa wasn't in the Immigration people's database, so they had to go off with my passport and do something to make sure it was OK. Anyways, I got through it all, went through customs, and checked my bags back in. I encountered 2 fellow IESers on my way: Reggie from Honduras, and Alise from New York. Auckland was almost tropically hot, although overcast.

The flight from Auckland to Christchurch was unremarkable. When I got off the plane, there were 2 taxi drivers waiting for all of us IESers on that particular flight. One looked vaguely like Grandaddy Jim, the other like Terry Pratchett. I was in Terry Pratchett's cab. I also received a folder from International Student Services, where I learned that I could use the internet here at International Student Services.

Christchurch right now is almost exactly like Oregon in Mid-October or April: rainy and overcast. I almost feel like home.

When we got to UC, we were taken to the "New Common Room," where we checked in, got our keys, had our pictures taken, and got our linen packs, which apparently IES bought for us. We also got T shirts and book bags. I was shown to my building (there are a whole series of apartment buildings in semi-alphabetical order. I'm in H) by a very nice young man whose accent I had trouble understanding, and met a young woman who was visiting her brother, who is apparently a flatmate of mine. She was Malaysian, so it appears I have a Malaysian flatmate.

After settling in as best I could, I decided to set forth across campus to reach this place. UC is HUGE, much bigger than UPS. I got lost quite a few times, but I got here eventually. I also encounter the University Bookstore, which is big and has an enormous and varied selection. The Terry Pratchett books made me consider briefly staying here permanently, but I decided against it.

Whilst here, I've been checking my email. The internet is a little funky, so I hope that I can get my own internet to work soon. I shall attempt to post more about my adventures in the future, and hopefully even be able to skype you guys.

Bye for now, and I love you all,

David