Life in Edinburgh....

So I know its been forever since my last post. So many things have happened and I've had very busy and crazy weeks. I guess I'll start off from where I left before. Well of course I got my Visa or else I wouldn't be in Scotland, but before I left about 1.5 weeks before my flight I got into a car

accident. I hydroplaned on the highway and hit a tree.Luckily I wasn't injured too bad just a cut on the back of my head which had to have 9 staples toclose it, I couldn't open my jaw all the way and then of course a few bruises and scratches. I was very lucky. After that I did't have that great of a week in the US. I spent most of the week in bed and barely doing anything besides going to the doctor to get radiographs and then an MRI to find out that my jaw was fine and would heal on it's own. Thank God for insurance! Once I found out my jaw should be fine I was a lot less stressed about headingto a foreign country while I was still injured. I went out one last time with my best friend Jessica and Shawn which was awesome and we just hung out and had some drinks.

The day of my flight I was kinda nervous. It was strange, I wasn't really sad that day probably because I was more excited. I think the day before was when it hit me that I was leaving for awhile. Friends and family were over for my nephew's birthday, and when Shawn went to leave my eyes watered up since I knew the next time I saw him I'd be saying goodbye. I said goodbye to Shawn and my dad at the airport, and then my mom and I were off to Newark then Scotland.

We arrived a Edinburgh airport and I was soo cold. It was beautiful and more than I could imagine. It was also very different since it was a big city. It was hard to get used to especially city life and some of the places looked sketchy but thats how citys are especially when you've never been to one. Flat hunting was a pain, but I found one a few days before my mom left. It a large studio flat so def not like a dorm room. I like where I live a lot its close

to the grocery stores and about a 20 min walk through the Meadows to get to school. My second day here I finally got to climb up to Arthur's Seat. I had been looking forward to this since I found out I was going to

school there. It was a beautiful day and also rained a bit, but nothing like Florida rain. The rain here is more of a mist or drizzle, and when it rains"hard" it is still not bad. I saw swans, 2 rabbits, and slugs all on the way up. I really need to do it again. There are so many paths that my mom and I went up a few hard ones and when we finally found the "stairs" up it was raining and my mom stayed there so I had to go up alone. The View was definitely worth the climb up on slippery rocks. I'm glad I didn't

give up and stop climbing.

My mom's final day in Edinburgh we decided to go to the castle.

It's so beautiful and I still can't believe that I live in a city that has

a castle lol. I love looking at it as I walk past, and and I usually

take a picture since everyday is different. The castle is so big and

it's crazy that it has survived all this time.

Well it's getting late. I will have to do another post talking about class and life as a Dick Vet Student. My friends, Shawn and I are going on a roadtrip in like 6 hrs. We are headed to the highlands since we have a 4 day weekend so I'll try and write some at the B&B if they have wireless. Ok good night!

The Final Weeks in the US

So the summer's almost finished..it's gone by so fast. Well since my last post I went to Texas and had a great time with my family. I got to go to my god brother's wedding which was beautiful. Such a perfect day besides the heat. I forgot how hot it could get in TX. After my TX trip I haven't really been doing much. I've been going to Clearwater Beach most weekends with my boyfriend and sometimes his family and just hanging out. I guess I should relax while I can, since once school starts i'm going to be very busy.

I also started to run. I am so not a runner, but for almost 3 wks I've been running(well jogging lol) everyday. If it is raining I'll have to do the elliptical instead, but I am starting to get used to it being my daily routine. I only go out for about 30 mins sometimes more. This past week I was able to jog about 42 mins without stopping! For me that was amazing even though I only ran a little over 3 miles. I'm hoping to get my time for 3 miles (which is ~5K) to be 30mins which is about average for runners. I am hoping to keep up the running once I move to Edinburgh as well. Maybe I will find a running buddy, and we can run around Holyrood Park! That'd be great.

On the subject of the big move, I have a little over 3wks left before I move. My mom is going to fly with me and help me find a flat and get settled. I haven't gotten my plane ticket yet, but I'm planning on leaving Sept. 5th. I also haven't finished my Visa yet. I am waiting on my transcripts from UF to come in...hopefully today. Once I get that then I can send out my application. It's such a stressful process, but I should get it easily. I am more worried about my boyfriend getting his Visa, but hopefully the Visa people will be nice and not give us any problems. I also have been obsessively looking up flats in Edinburgh. I know I shouldn't be looking now since the flats most likely will be taken by the time I get there, but I can't help it. Plus I like seeing the different apartments and hoping I can get a nice one for cheap.

Ok well I have to go check the mail! Hopefully I'll get that transcript lol. oh yeah I also forgot to tell you guys I got a stethoscope! I am very excited and have been trying to use it on my cat, but he's not cooperating since he keeps purring. I'll have to catch him off guard one day lol.

It's been a crazy summer so far...

So I know it's been awhile, and I still haven't gotten much figured out about the big move in Sept. As of right now I plan on flying to Scotland a week before orientation with my aunt and uncle. During that week, I will hopefully find a flat and get settled in. It's not a lot of time, but i'm sure we will get everything done. I am so glad they can go with me or else I don't know how i'd get through the big move. I love them and thank them for helping me through this.

On another note, I did graduate from UF with my Master's in Science. Since graduation I haven't been doing much. I started off my summer in Miami to visit a friend who was visiting for a week and to see my family. I had a lot of fun especially being able to see my cousins. Most of the summer i've been living in Gainesville and working very few hours in a lab at UF, but in about three weeks I'll be moving make to Brandon with my parents. I'm almost dreading the move since I won't really have my own space and because I will actually have to start organizing for the move. Its gonna be a long 2 months figuring it all out.

Memorial weekend was a weekend to remember. I went down to Clearwater with my friend to my boyfriend's sister's beach house. That Sat we went to a Rays game and one of the players threw me a ball and I caught it! They all said he threw it to me since I was dark skinned like him lol. I was just excited so it was fun. After the game, they had a Hall and Oates concert which was also a lot of fun but also funny to watch the people rock out in the crowd. We spent most of the weekend hanging out on the beach with friends and my bf's family which I love. They are just so generous and fun. Then Mon night was the backstreet boys concert! My bf got me tickets for me and my two friends (Jen and Carly) which were 3rd row seats. Once we got inside we were soo excited to see how close we really were, and we found out that we could stand up and get in front row. Needless to say I was in heaven for that night. I know BSB is not well known anymore, but they still make amazing music and I loved them since 4th grade so it was definitely a dream come true. I even got to hold hands with all of them and they sang to us. We got a few great pics from our camera phones that I'll have to try and attach later.

It's been a late night for me since I was finishing up some packing for my trip to Texas. My family and I are driving to Texas for a wedding. I am very excited since I love visiting my family there and since that was were I was born. I haven't been there in a couple years so it will be interesting to see how much the town has grown and changed. It always brings back memories of my childhood of being on my godparents farm and playing with the goats and chasing the guinea fowl...which I still do everytime I visit lol. I guess thats were my love of animals first started, and I'll always be chasing after or playing with some type of animal. This trip came at the perfect time since I will get to see my hometown one more time before I move away for 5 yrs. It is were my life first began and remembering where I came from keeps me grounded and makes me who I am, and now I have another new life journey to look forward to in about 3 months which will also shape who I am in the future.

Well it's late so I better try and get to bed because tomorrow and Friday will be very long days since the trip is about 15hrs or more depending on stops and such. We plan on leaving in the afternoon or early evening but knowing my family...we run on Cuban time so I'm guessing we will leave later than expected.

I'm Headed to Scotland!

So I finally found out ...after I called UF and had to wait almost an hr..that i was rejected from UF's vet school. So I am definitely headed to Edinburgh for the 5 year veterinary program. I am very excited to finally know what I am doing for school. Though I am a little nervous about moving so far away. I think my dad probably was the most surprised about this outcome. I think he thought I'd definitely get into UF especially since I had "connections", but I guess those didn't come through. I think he's more scared of me moving to a different country and not being able to be near my family, but i'll be ok. My boyfriend, Shawn, is going to move with me so at least I won't be completely alone, and I have also made friends with two other girls in the program(who i've never met in person lol).

I think going to the UK for 5 yrs will definitely change me and allow me to grow in ways I wouldn't have if I stayed here at UF. I've been at UF for 5 yrs now, and another 4 yrs would have been the same thing just with different classes. I'm so excited to travel and meet new people. I also heard that the classes are amazing and there is a lot of hands on experiences. Now I just need to finalize everything and get my official welcome packet.

YAY I'm going to be a Dick Vet!!!! *

*University of Edinburgh's vet school is the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies so everyone calls them Dick Vets lol i know it's silly but awesome.

The Waiting Continues

So I know it's been awhile so I wanted to update everyone on whats been going on. I did hear back from UF, and I got an interview which was very exciting. The interview went well I think but I could have done better. I felt that no matter how much I prepared I was still going to be nervous. I did have some good answers and hope I sounded confident in my answers, and I even got the interviewers to laugh a few times so I hope that means they liked me enough to let me in. It's crazy how two people can decide your fate that will affect you for the rest of your life. So now I'm waiting to see the results of the interview. UF said we should hear back on or around April 1st, which is also my birthday. Well today is the day and no letter yet. My roomie got her acceptance letter so I'm kinda mad. I got my interview letter 5 days after she got hers so I was so stressed out, and I do not want to go through that again but of course UF likes to stress me out. So hopefully I will hear good news tom, and if I don't get in at least I have a backup plan and will be heading to Scotland. It'd wouldn't be a bad thing if I ended up in Scotland mainly because of all the hands on experience and the ability to travel Europe, but I know staying at UF is the better path for me mainly because of the cost, being close to family, and they have a better wildlife and exotics program. So if I don't get a letter tom i will definitely be calling the vet school. Ugh I hate the waiting.

Well on a happier note I will be graduating from my Master's program a semester early. So yay for graduation in May. I just need to get my act together and finish my projects and make sure I keep my grades up.

OK so i'll probably write tom and write where I'll be headed for school in the fall, unless i don't get a letter lol. UF or Scotland? IDK but no matter where I go I know I'll survive and be happy.

Update on Vet School

I finally got my rejection letter from Western today. I was kind of expecting it, although I do believe I should have gotten an interview. I have so much experience and my grades are around the average or greater for students that are accepted so I don't know what happened. Anyways, I am sort of relieved since now I won't have to spend money to fly out to Cali, and I would have gone to Edinburgh over Western so it would have been a waste. I wouldn't want to take up an interview spot that a person who really wants it needs.

I am also glad that I didn't get into Western since now I can drop my extra undergraduate class. Western requires a sociology class, which no other vet school does, so now I can drop it and focus on my 14 graduate credits. I am going to talk to my Grad Coordinator tomorrow to see how to drop it, if I can add on 3 research credit, and possibly graduate in May rather than August. I'll let you know what he says.

I guess things really do happen for a reason even if we don't understand it at the time.

I'm officially going to vet school!!!

This is my first blog so we will see how this goes. I will probably be using this blog as a way to vent my frustrations, and to let people see what vet students go through to become doctors. I am currently doing a Master's of Science degree in the Animal Sciences Dept. at the University of Florida. This is my second year applying for vet school, and although I got an interview at UF last year I unfortunately did not get in. This application cycle felt as though I was headed down that same path. I was even about to submit an application to a Caribbean vet school as a backup. By chance, not even a month ago, I found out that this school in Scotland was taking late applications for the fall. So I got my stuff together and applied three days later....

...and surprisingly, this past monday I found out that I was accepted in the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh, Scotland. I am very excited to know that I will be starting my journey to becoming a vet this fall. I am awaiting interview invites from UF and Western. I should hear by Friday for Western and mid February for UF, but if I don't get an interview then I am headed to Scotland for five years. If I do end up getting accepted to Florida, I will have a hard decision to make. I always thought that I would end up at UF since I did my undergrad and now my master's, but now that I have the opportunity to go abroad I'm not sure what I will do. I guess I should not worry about that until I actually get an interview and acceptance to UF, but I can't help but think about that decision. I also think about the cost of going abroad. Edinburgh would cost about $175,000 just for tuition and at UF I would have in-state tuition which is considerably cheaper. I'm definitely going to make a pros and cons list if I do get accepted. I'm trying to find out as much info as I can about Scotland and the school, and it seems that everything I find makes me want to go even more. Maybe it's the idea of living in the UK and being able to explore Europe. The adventure of going abroad, and the opportunities and experiences I could have just excites me. Since I have been at UF for almost 5 yrs I feel that I have explored most of Gainesville so the vet school isn't this new thing that excites me as much as Edinburgh. Ugh so many things to think about. Hopefully I will know soon about UF and Western, and then I will really have to figure out what I want.