Staycation

Orientation week has come to a close and the hours until the real fun begins can be counted almost on one hand. Living in St. Kitts for the past week has been a perfect vacation or staycation I should say since I am living here. Over this past week out class of about 120 primarily from the US, Canada, and Puerto Rico have had the opportunity to slowly ease into island life and become familiar to the campus. The campus itself is a beautiful, modern, and right on the ocean. Many of the class rooms look directly out to the ocean from the cliff that we are situated on.

-The UMHS Campus-

During orientation we had the privilege of each personally meeting the new Dean of the school as well as small group tours of the campus by President Ross. The hands on presence of all faculty at the school is impressive. It is obvious that they are concerned about our success and want nothing but the best for us and are willing to go out of their way to make sure it happens. One of the highlights of orientation was the hurricane lecture, where we were advised on what to do if a storm ever comes acros St. Kitts. Hopefully this wont happen during my time here, as a true hurricane has not hit St. Kitts since 1999, that being said we are only half way through hurricane season so we still have some ways to go.

This last week also allowed us more time to explore the beaches and towns of St. Kitts. From exploring the capital Basseterre (the capitol) to the rain forests there is much to do on the island. A few days ago a group of 4 students and President Ross went zip linning in the rain forrest. Five different zip lines through canopies and across ravines defiantly got our adrenaline pumping.

Yesterday was the Presidents Beach Party Bash, which is basically a welcome to the island day of water sports, volleyball, food, and of course open bar. What a blast it was to just hang out on the beautiful beaches of St. Kitts, hang out, use jet skis, see wild monkeys, and play some volleyball. Although hanging out here has been great it is on everyones mind the work that is to come and I am looking forward to getting started with the primary reason I am here. Getting in the groove and hitting the books A great end to a great orientation. Now the real work begins. For the first semester I will be taking anatomy, histology, and cell biology, and can not wait to dive right in tomorrow.

-Frigate Bay-