See you in July

That's right, I'll see you in July because apparently, if I listen to my professors and former students, I probably won't have much of a life outside of school for the next 9 months. Monday and Tuesday we had our Induction into the African Studies program here at Oxford and they were successful in scaring all of us into thinking that this was going to be a lot of work. The program is very different than US programs. We are only officially graded on four elements: Three final exams and your thesis. Also, if you get over 70 on any paper/test that is considered great. And it is normal to get 60s and even a few 50s. Anything below a 50 is a fail. On the first day we received our reading lists of what we are supposed to read before classes and be prepared to discuss....can you save overwhelming! We're talking 15 articles/books per week, per class! Thankfully former students came in and advised us to not try to read everything. Do what you can and then read summaries/reviews of the rest (except anything that is relevant to your thesis or a final exam you need to read). By the end of the day we are all pumped to start reading/scared that it was going to be painful. I asked the last question of the day to the former students, "So is it worth the pain?" They all said yes, which was re-assuring.

I am definitely a minority (for once in my life). I am the only American but there is a Canadian. They refer to us both as North Americans, which is funny because we don't think of ourselves that way very often.

My next task is to start reading and to pick a thesis topic. The thesis topic is going to be hard because we have received various pieces of advice from all over. All I know for sure is that I want to do something that is current, utilizes my Portuguese, and can help me get a job in a more international relations/foreign affairs role after graduation. I have about 4 weeks to submit my thesis title, so please feel free to suggest topics (perhaps Who will win the 2010 World Cup in South Africa? I'm sure I could do some kind of statistical analysis of the odds).

Everything else is the same here. Janie is in love with a website that allows her to watch all the American TV shows...and it even skips the commercials. We also got a 703 area code number to make it easier for people in the states to call us. E-mail us if you don't have it yet.

Lastly, we are excited to have friends already committed to come and visit us in December. Let us know if any of you are interested, we know a great flat in Oxford that is cheap where you can stay!

Cheers! (Almost said Cheerio...OK not really)