It's all uphill from here

First day of term started off on a very chaotic note, with me running up a steep hill wearing my black pumps and a skirt, trying my best to make it on time to my very first lecture at Wits. Unfortunately, my friends and I had underestimated the traffic situation that morning, and all ended up being half an hour late for our first class. Great way to start of the year, right? I walked in late, along with quite a few other students who seemed to be just a flustered and out of breath as me, and to my surprise, there was no teacher to give us a harsh glare and demand a 200 word essay of the importance of being punctual. Rather, there were about 400 people looking down at the lecturer, who was speaking through a microphone and who wasn't at all phased by our untimely entrance. That's when I realised that varsity was going to be very different from high school. There would be no-one to baby us and tell us what to do. We were on our own.

Week one at Wits has flown by, and I can honestly say it's been a mind blowing experience, I've enjoyed almost every minute - even the 2 hour long maths lectures weren't that bad! But varsity has definitely given me a huge culture shock. It's nothing like I expected. I love the independence, diversity, interesting lectures, and freedom of fashion(some people take that freedom a tad too far I might add - high heels and dresses that should be shirts on campus...no, just no.) Wits has so much on offer, it's HUGE and every day I discover something new on campus, usually when I get lost (which happens very often...) or when I have to run around collecting lecture notes and checking notice boards during the breaks. I've met a lot of new people and made a bunch of new friends. A word of advice for first years, don't hesitate to introduce yourself to people in your lectures. Having a social life is just as important as your academics, its all about balance!

When people say the workload in varsity is hectic, they aren't kidding. My textbooks are enormous, and dragging them around in my bag all day is a workout on its own, not to mention walking from all the way from east to west campus every hour, up tons of stairs and gravel paths - no need for a gym contract if you go to Wits, ladies! I've been told that if you don't start working from the first day, revising lecture notes when you get home and working on assignments, you'll never make it through first semester. So I've made it a priority to do some studying every night, which has proved to be quite tough, especially since I have a part time waitressing job to attend to every night as well. But with a little help from my good friend caffeine, I'm making it through!

Right now I've never been so grateful for the weekend. I'm going to catch up on the three S's- sleeping, studying, and shopping. My shoes have been ruined from walking around so much! And on Monday, I'll be more than ready to face another week on campus. I can't wait!