A new home from home

Well, just 7 months after I heard I was coming here, I finally am: in Edinburgh! It's been of course slightly hectic! I flew out of London on Friday, arrived in Glasgow in the weekend lapping up some of the Commonwealth Games (hearing a whole stadium shout "Scccaaawwwtttt-luuuunnnnnd" is not something to forget!), catching up with old friends, having haggis and potato scones for breakfast (apparently that's how an English breakfast becomes a Scottish one?) and then by Sunday evening I was here in my new home :D

I was apprehensive, about the room I'd seen once, the new housemates half of whom I hadn't yet met, the hospital I'd also laid eyes on only once, the place I had visited just a handful of times. But it's all panned out really far better than I could have asked for!

For starters, my housemates (despite heated discussions over Whatsapp regarding who was taking which room for what price) are all very agreeable and already I can see the support that undoubtedly we will each rely on when we really start work, is blossoming. Tomorrow will be our first house meal out :)

The flat itself is also situated in a wonderful part of Edinburgh (Bruntsfield) - peppered with quaint cafes, two ice cream parlours a stone's throw away and the sorts of restaurants which you know must only serve home-made food - all my kind of thing! ;) And also lots of lovely shops you wouldn't find on a drab English high street.

Yesterday we all met the 190 or so doctors starting here for the first time. It felt remarkably like being at your first day of school except already there were many cliques! Of course all the Scottish universities had a cohort of representatives as expected, and I was relieved that I at least knew my housemates!

Then today was our first day at the hospital at which I will be spending a good part of 8 months this year working at. It's not too fancy, not too big and not too small and importantly whilst slightly disorganised people seemed friendly enough! I also met my fellow juniors who will be working along side me and they were all lovely :) It makes me slightly less dread the two 87.5hour weeks I have ahead of me!

This afternoon I had some time to cook for the first time in a while, and also move about the furniture in my room. I always find I feel much more at home once I've added a spot of me to a room - and it's true, it now feels like mine :) There are two tartan (of course) throws on the bed, but union jack bunting on my fireplace... my desk looks out towards my only narrow but tall window, and a few photos sparsely colour the walls. In a few weeks, when my parents kindly bring up the rest of my belongings that wouldn't fit into a suitcase (queue bike, kitchen utensils, printer, the list goes on...) I'm sure this room will resemble the tip of a room I very almost left in London! Then it'll definitely feel like my own ;)