Then was my most dreaded exam – Japanese. I’m pleased to say that a few group revision sessions with my course friends really paid off. Yesterday was the final assessment for my Key Issues in Development unit, which involved writing 2 mini-essays under exam conditions.

So yes, it has been stressful, but the one thing I’ve fortunately always been good at is managing stress. Of course, I could save myself a whole load of pressure if I wasn’t always leaving it so close to the deadline.

In my First year everything was handed in right up to the deadline. This year most things have been a bit of a last-minute panic. So I’m promising myself that next year, my final year, I won’t rush things. I especially don’t want to rush my dissertation, and I plan to make a start on that early in the summer. But that will come after I have completed my last two exams. At least I have a good week to revise before my next test. The only annoying thing is that I seem to have succumbed to a slight cold, no doubt as a result of cramming hard this week.

Oh, if you’re interested in what the units mentioned above have entailed this year, fear not! I shall be giving you a run-down of all my Second Year units in my next post, so stay tuned. And seriously, don’t leave all your revision to the last minute!

Last week on Later Live With Jools Holland (who I saw live in December and reviewed for the Galleon), I was struck by the band Pheonix and their catchily powerful song ‘Entertainment’. The video is excellent and features a dramatic Korean storyline (though I’m not quite sure why). I also really like their song ‘Consolation Prizes’.

I’m also eagerly awaiting the release of Daft Punk’s new album, Random Access Memories, in late May. The current single from the album ‘Get Lucky’ is a real disco treat and will definitely be my soundtrack to the summer. What strangely links both Daft Punk and Phoenix is that they are French groups, and also that ‘Get Lucky’ starts with the line “like the legend of the phoenix”.

I also took a look at my blogs from last year, and I was hit by a sudden sense of maturity. Back then I was but a Fresher! How different it all seems being a Second Year student!

I really feel pleased that I lived up to my commitment this year to give new things a go: I hosted my own radio show on Pure FM, wrote a couple of articles for the student newspaper The Galleon, and I did a fair amount of socialising with my friends from the Japanese Society. I also worked for the University as a Student Mentor in a local school and was involved in another school-based project. And somehow I managed to fit in a lot of studying. I’m very proud of what I’ve achieved.

It made me think of when I was at the pub quite a while ago, chatting with my Geology-studying friend. At the time, he was telling me about his own Second Year experience which seemed so distant to me at the time. And now I find myself having nearly completed my own Second Year (and my friend on his way to a PhD no less). Has the time really gone that quickly?

At times the constant focus on getting all the work done made it feel like I was living on another plane of existence. But now all the big essays have been handed in. I’ve done a Japanese speaking exam and delivered a great group presentation about an Argentinian political party. And that brings a sense of relief. The only thing left now is my dissertation proposal. Luckily, this is not marked, but of course I want to do a decent piece of work, as this will help me focus my research over summer. That needs to be handed in tomorrow… so I really should start writing it!

Yesterday I was elected as the Secretary of the newly formed ‘Japanese Language and Culture Society’. Yay! Though to be honest I don’t really like the title ‘Secretary’, (so if anyone asks, I’m the Vice-President!) Whatever you call me, it’s really cool just to have a position on the committee of an official Society. If you’re interested in joining us, come and find us! We really want new members!

So now we’ve finally reached that imaginary light at the end of the tunnel – tomorrow is the last day of classes for my Second Year. But of course the year’s not really finished yet. There will be exams and more essays to be done for the assessment period in May. So I guess April will not be a total holiday, but at least the pressure will be off for a while!

Have a great Easter!

It might seem strangely ironic coming from a University student, but the greatest thing I’ve learned so far is the truth of this statement!

Reading Richard’s recent post ‘Friends will be Friends’ really got me thinking.

You see, like my fellow blogger, I had never really ‘met’ anyone who was not British before. Sure, I had been on holiday to foreign lands. But all the friends I had ever had were British. It seemed likely to continue that way for ever.

Yet, one of the best things about University for me has been meeting new people, people who in my average life I would never have had reason to meet. By joining societies, learning a new language and participating in extracurricular activities, I now have friends from far-flung corners of my own country, as well as a variety of places in Europe, Africa and Asia.

People will tell you that University is all about studying, gaining ‘life skills’ or just getting the certificate to improve your prospects of employment. Certainly these were the main reasons in my mind when I convinced myself to give a University degree a second chance. In fact, they’re all good things about University.

But if you look a little deeper, you start to realise that University provides a meeting ground for a wide range of individuals, with different backgrounds, beliefs and abilities. If you make the effort to join a society, take up a sport or learn a language, you will find that you encounter an amazing array of new people. People who, under normal circumstances, you may never have met.

In the future, the friends I have made here will allow me to have new experiences, visit new places, and learn new things. I’ve really enjoyed studying the Americas in my course. But the best thing I will take away with me will be the friends I have made, the happy memories they have provided, and some fantastic opportunities for the future.

At that time, a group of Japanese students joined us in our Japanese classes for a few weeks, and some photographs were taken. I didn’t think much of it at the time. Other things were on my mind.

Twelve months later, and the Japanese have once again been and left town. I took a look at the fresh snaps taken this year, and I started to reminisce about the images from one year ago.

Looking back at myself, not only do I see a change in my clothes and haircut, but I sense an even greater change has taken place below the surface. That was Blake 20.0, and now I’m Blake 21.0. It’s a weird feeling, but it feels good that I have changed.

That past time seems cloudy, hazy – more like a dream. It makes me think about all the things that were my concerns then. Many of them are probably the same – getting assignments finished, making plans for the summer, and feeling like there isn’t enough time to relax. Even if the situations are similar, the way I react to them is undoubtedly different, because of all I’ve learned during the year.

Yet I was further surprised as I scrolled through the year-old photos. I saw the faces of people who I now meet on a regular basis – in Japanese class, and socially (such as at our recent visit to London). At the time, these people were unknown to me – just faces in the crowd, strangers. Now, I am lucky enough to call some of those people my friends. So I realise that new friends are all around us, even if we don’t know it.

It makes me think of the future. When I look at my current photographs in one year’s time, how much will I have changed again? Will I still remember who I was, how I was feeling and all my concerns about the present? What about in ten years, or in fifty years?

And what about those faces in the photographs – will they still be my friends, or will they have returned to the realm of obscurity from which they came? Time keeps moving on.

I had considered starting my own blog for a while before I came to University (though of course I never got round to it), so being a part of the blogging team has been a great pleasure. I’ve very much enjoyed expressing my own opinions and feelings about University.

It’s not always easy to find real opinions about University if you don’t know anyone who’s gone before. This was the case for me. Many of the concerns and misconceptions I had about uni stemmed from the fact that I had no-one to ask. It was this which made me want to become a blogger – I wanted to give others an honest impression of my experiences at University.

I’ve also found that blogging has provided a great way for me to record my own journey. Looking back at my previous posts, I can see how my own experience has developed.

More bloggers means more things to read about, which gives an even broader overview of life at University. Which is of course an excellent thing. I certainly look forward to learning more about my blogging comrades.

We then browsed a few shops, before descending once again for a Tube ride to Piccadilly Circus to find Japan Centre. After scoffing a hot and spicy Japanese chicken dish, there wasn’t much time to take a look because we were once again navigating the Underground system to make it to the Saddler’s Wells theatre. We arrived with little time to spare, and caught a performance of “The Shogun and the English Samurai” at 7.30pm.

The theatre was packed out, and being sat right at the very back we still had an excellent view of the production – though it was unbelievable how high above the stage we were! The play was mostly in Japanese (with English titles), and there were moments of hilarity and sadness, as well as samurai battles and great oriental music. It was definitely worth it.

By the time this had finished at 10.45pm, it was a mad dash back to Victoria to nab the last National Express coach back to Porty.

Even arriving home in the early hours of the morning, I was still buzzing. I had a great time! You can’t beat an excellent day out with a group of friends.

As it happens, both my appointments were cancelled, which is of course a little sad. But at the same time I am relieved to have a day all to myself. At least I’m up and ready, and I have the day ahead of me to be productive, to scratch off a couple of items on my ‘to-do list’.

Snow causes disruption to our lives, and that’s exactly why I like it. It makes the day feel special, a little different. Routine is good, but a few days of snow provides an excuse to stay at home, to be different. Trains are cancelled, schools are closed, and people are delayed. A snow day is a day on which we can be late, and not worry because we know that everyone else is affected in the same way.

When you wake up in the morning to find your world covered in a cool frosting of white, it’s a reminder that things don’t always go to plan. A practical joke from nature to tell us that all the meetings and assignments and stresses of life can wait for the ice to melt. Today is a snow day, so relax for a change!

However, I have decided to do a PGCE teaching qualification after graduation, as teaching has always been a career I have considered.

Though I thought I’d never say it, I have even entertained the idea of doing a Masters at some point as well!

So although I have completed half my time of my Undergraduate Degree, I think I will be spending more time at University than I had ever contemplated.