Back in Scotland

The second year in Dundee began somewhat surprisingly – not in a bad way, just with a bit of a surprise. There was no rain whatsoever during the first week after we arrived! That’s not very common, so everybody (myself included) indulged in the weather and spent as much time outside as possible – you’d find just a few diehards in the library. But the enthusiasm waned as soon as the typical Scottish grey and rain came, and we students could finally focus on studying. (But honestly, when the weather isn’t distracting you, something else will, fairly soon.)

As for my studies, for the first semester I chose International Relations, and I have to admit that this is by far my favorite subject in 15 years of studying. Our lecturer is tops, and is able to explain everything in a human and understandable manner. I’m not exaggerating to say that I can’t wait for the lectures. It’s similar with a seminar where my schoolmates and I have already declared war (fictitious of course). I go on with Spanish with the same teachers as last year – both of our teachers are native speakers, so I’m as happy as I could be. I took one exam in speaking, and we’re preparing for another. My third module is history, called Modern Europe (though the name is quite confusing, as it’s about Europe in the 15th to 18th centuries, which is not quite “modern” for most non-historians), and it focuses on working with primary resources, involving the reading of many long, instructive and not very entertaining texts.

In my spare time, of which there isn’t that much when you subtract all the essays and reading, I mostly play tennis (or try to, anyway), even in very inclement weather. After some time, I started considering 10° C to be warm and mild rain to be “not that bad”. Then again, I have been running around the court wearing three layers of clothes, a scarf and gloves (well, one glove) from the beginning of November. All in all, I spend on average 6 hours on the court every week, and I think it has done me a world of good. And on top of that, I am going to go see the UK vs. Slovakia Davis Cup match with the university tennis team in February.

But February is still quite far away, and I’m in for difficult final exams in December. And then, hopefully, a smooth trip home.