OWL & going green

I've spent the day in the University Club working. The university has a campus wide Oxford Wireless LAN (OWL) that you can access from most buildings and areas (including parts of the Uni Park). Its really interesting to further note the Oxford mindset of clearing up after yourself. I've commented in an earlier post that students do not clean after themselves after party nights. Same seems to go for lecturers and staff it seems. The place is a self-clear area, but it seems there are many who believe someone else will do it if left.

This rant comes after the concert in Hyde Park on Sunday. There were minimal bins in the concert area, but they were available. However people seemed to just leave all the left over beer bottles right where they finished them. I would hate to be a cleaner afterwards. It makes you wonder if all the British are brought up like that? Especially in a nation trying to be forward thinking and go green.

A last note on the green issue, shops have in the last month started pushing "enviro friendly" bags and making customers pay for plastic bags. Sound familiar? Apparently SA isn't as backwards as we thought. Anyone coming to the UK should note that enviro friendly bags are the new fashion accessory. Its like an instant good impression.

Learner punter

I have finally been punting in Oxford. I highly recommend it to any person who can get free punts from a college (its mighty expensive otherwise). I had a lesson on the fly teaching me and a few others to navigate the rivers (and trees). Sean learnt to duck out of the way of trees. We stopped for lunch in a field (or meadow...). Punting seems to take a lot longer than originally estimated. Started at noon and got back around 6pm. Very fun experience.

Oxford @night

I walked home tonight from movies. I was appalled by the dirt collected after a night out in Oxford. It seems a prerequisite to leave the bar/club drunk, not tipsy, not happy, drunk. Most people seem to stagger (with help) to a late night takeaway vendor and eat to satisfy those late night munchies and just discard the containers as they go. There seem to be a lack of bins and a mindset of cleaning up after themselves. I think the students here think there is always someone who will pick up after them. It makes the normally pretty street look like rubbish fills.

Police, protests and education

I was walking home today when I passed an animal rights protest happening in front of the science buildings. This isn't unusual apparently. There is a controversial new lab being built to test drugs on animals for cancer etc. The unusual thing was the ratio of people to police. It was 2 protesters to 1 police officer. The police officers even had cameras to record the event. Now i think that is overkill, obviously the miscreants of Oxford are not providing the police with enough work :)

On to my next discovery, the school and uni education system in the UK. At 16 you can leave school with O-levels, and learn a trade of sorts. Alternatively you can do your A-levels which is the equivalent of maybe halfway into our first yr at uni. Now this is when things get weird. At uni you pick a stream and stick with it, no dual majors in different faculties, the guys here were very confused how people managed lectures all over the city when they did business and science subjects. It just isn't done. No tailor-made degree programs here. I suddenly was very happy to have gone to UCT. The next is the exams. Turns out you write prelims at the end of first yr and then finals at the end of third yr. Prelims don't count and most courses only count the final exam, so the whole degree rests on 2 weeks worth of exams. That SUCKS.

Lunch with a side of innuendo

I had lunch today at La Piaza Tapas Bar. Interesting selection of dishes. Nice to see Matthew again and I have found a lady who can compete with Ant in the innuendo stakes. Not sure if that is a good or bad thing :) Off to Norwich in the morning (4am start). I will remember my camera this time.

Oxford from above

If anyone has the chance to be in Oxford on a nice clear day (I know these are rare) I recommend doing the Tower view from St Marys behind the Radcliffe Camera. It costs 3gbp, but it is really worth it. Rob Garlick and I trekked up the twirly never ending stairs to see it for ourselves. Too bad I forgot my camera. I might go again and get pictures.

UCT ppl in the strangest places

For those of you have ever thought it is a small world, I was beginning to doubt it. I hadn't randomly bumped into someone I knew since arriving in the UK, until today. For the CS crowd, I bumped into Matthew West on the way back from lunch in Oxford. He apparently works at the Maths Institute.

Do you think if we spread the UCT crowd around the world we could stage a coup and move for world domination? I think there are enough of us to create a well ordered plan.

I have a random question and the person who answers it logically gets chocolate/beer/wine when I get back. In the sci-fi genre, why are all the planets ruled as a single nation versus like Earth which is made up of individual countries. Do you think it is easier to write an idealised scenario?

Freud's

For those of you who appreciate the irony, I went to a cocktail bar/restaurant in a converted church over the weekend: Freud. Due to a clash of accents, mine and the waiters, my order was a bit different from what i thought i ordered for lunch. nm. Ordered a Lady Boy cocktail. Rose tequila and grenadine and stuff. Lily has a picture on her phone. The thing looked like pink froth.

Shiny medals

I partnered a dancer from OUDC today for a medal test: Silver Latin. There is video footage, not sure how good, but I might post it once I get it.

It is interesting how UCT differs from Oxford. At UCT we encourage family to come watch and make a day out of it. Oxford just gets on with it. You show up, fill out some forms and dance. There aren't extra practice classes beforehand, most people start thinking about doing a medal the week before. Melvin the guy I partnered worked out a routine last night!

This is the real difference over here. Dances are taught in routines and steps are added to the routine and built up over the year. I have come to appreciate Maureen's methods of learning a move and then the different ways of putting everything together, it creates a very free way to dance.

hell on wheels

Its official, the bicycles in Oxford are worse than the taxis in CT. They don't seem to care that there are pedestrian lights or people in the way. I nearly got ridden over by an over sixties lady today. One thing I have to applaud though is the girls who manage to cycle in heels. Some of the shoes I can't even keep on my feet when I'm on solid ground and they whiz through Oxford happily.

On a happier note, I was introduced to G&D Ice Cream Cafe. Now its not quite up to Hout Bay ice cream, nothing really is, but its got After Eight flavour and all these different toppings; fudge, hot choc fudge sauce, maple syrup, jelly bear, smarties, choc sprinkles. It is a true dieters nightmare. Thank goodness I don't have to worry about that :)

At the moment I am downloading the initial 20gb of data of 240gb due for Tuesday. 300kb/s beats SA hands down.

Rain go away

Its pissing with rain outside, has been all day. My supervisor sent me a message about something at uni and had to reply I was still in PJs and trying to work up the effort to bundle up and walk to varsity. He called it a Snoopy day - drink tea and stare out of the window - seems apt. I braved the weather and arrived here to be told they are forecasting floods in Oxford. charming.

Fashion accessories

One thing you notice in Oxford are the bicycles and prams (strollers over here). The prams seem to be a new fashion accessory or so I am told. The come with fancy all weather covers and shock absorbers and attachments to fit onto the front of bicycles. Apparently England is experiencing a baby-boom and hence all the prams. If I see one again, I'll attach a picture.

Turns out my luck has run out. It has started raining, just in time to get lunch outside. Oh well.

Two Fat Ladies

Tuesday was admin day. I hate admin, but Oxford seems to have made the process infinitely simpler than UCT. The sun is shining, but for how long is anyone's guess. I've registered my laptop and will receive my Oxford Uni Card soon. Now begins the interesting times, getting my data.

One thing I have noticed in Oxford is the size of the people. Everyone seems skinny or slim. Very few seems overweight. I have a theory: all the walking keeps the weight off, but it could just be the British in general.

There is currently a cricket match occurring on the pitch outside my window. Nice looking guys in whites. Hmmm....

Brain overload

Monday started with a bang. Had a research meeting at 9.30. Now for the people that know me, this is super early and I am generally not processing much yet. Imagine my surprise when I'm asked to speak about my thesis first! Turns out the stuff I planned to do while I am here isn't what they think I should do, so I am officially in the deep-end with new data, new techniques and new place. (pic is of the atmospheric physics building)

The rest of the meeting was focused around the Microsoft project UCT is collaborating in and the logistics and politics surrounding it. Have to love how the researchers talk about terrabytes of data as if its normal amount to produce.

Most of the technical stuff went over my head, but I have noted a few things. PhD students tend to be older, like 25ish minimum. weird.

Lunch was at the University Club(equivalent to UCT Club). Meals for 3gbp. Starter for 2gbp. Not bad price or quality food.

As a side note, the building on the left is the Science library. How cool is that. Science gets its own library, not like UCT where we have a section.

Blisters in the Sun

My trip to Oxford was plagued by tubeworks. Turns out the tube people were doing maintenance on the line to Victoria (my bus collection point). After frantically reading maps to get there on time, we took the tube to Green Park (I think) and then the bus and then a 5 minute walk to the bus station. In future I will check the maintenance schedule prior to departure.

The bus trip itself was uneventful. The scenery looks like the trip out on the N1 to Paarl, except the architecture is different. Bus arrived in Gloucester Green late and then I had to walk across Oxford to get to the tourist bureau and pick up a map and on to my res room. I eventually got to Holywell Manor (turns out it is actually 3 buildings, I'm in Dellal.) My room is on the top floor, 4 rooms on the floor. Pics are the view from my window.

I dropped my stuff and proceeded to walk Oxford, much to my feets' displeasure. I have blisters on the balls of my feet. Next time I'll wear takkies instead of boots. Found the equivalent of Super sandwich off campus. Haven't found a decent supermarket yet. That is Monday's challenge.

I realised a few weeks ago that going away for 8 weeks means, no dancing. That was unacceptable. I have now officially joined the Oxford Uni Dancesport Club and been to my first class and social. This is a note to the ballroom people. Our socials are much cooler, there is no theme, its only 2 hours and the music is still CD operated by the instructor :( Met a few people, I realise now what the American couple in bronze felt like with us all being a clique and almost zero way in to it. Its a very closed group. I also managed to destroy my heels (an ongoing fight, but I only had them done the week before I left). I also discovered the coolest invention: HEEL PROTECTORS. They are these plastic covers to go over your heels so they don't wear done and damage your shoes. I am so investing in a pair. If they work, everyone at dancing is getting them as presents (that is if they don't cost a fortune). Next stop research meeting. bleh.