Blogs from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States, North America
May 23rd 2012
I think I have packed up everything I'd like to bring. Spent quite a bit more money at REI than I had previously planned, and definitely spent more money on over the counter and prescription medicines. This smooth looking backpack is 50L and the plan is to carry on the plane over there. I took it on board on a dry run to Memphis earlier this month and seemed to fit above the seats without problem.... read more
Day 2 & 3 - Travelling Virginia and North Carolina
Published: October 10th 2011North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel Hill
October 9th 2011
Yesterday, we left Pennsylvania and travelled to Newport News, Va, just outside of Norfolk. We traveled across the Blue Ridge Mountains. We had an uneventful day, except for when we stopped for gas (again). Joe was driving, and when he arrived at the station which was very busy, he did not see the line of cars waiting for the pumps. He pulled in at the pump just as a lady was pulling out. You can just imagine what the other people waiting in line were saying... I got out to pump gas and heard a lady saying "Didn't you see the line?" Anyway, I just did my duty of pumping gas... Today, we drove down to the Outer Banks of North Carolina. It was a beautiful. We drove to Nags Head, walked on the beach and ... read more
One day to go
Published: September 10th 2011North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel Hill
September 10th 2011
The World Cup has now kicked off and the Tier II nations are putting up a great showing. Tonga, Japan and Romania all gave their opponents some indigestion and a few headaches. i was on the edge of my seat watching Scotland struggle against a very determined Romanian pack but we thankfully pulled it out of the bag in the last 10 minutes with two well worked tries. England also struggled against Argentina and were behind before the very talented Ben Youngs found some space and scored the decisive try to give England a win. couple of big games tonight with Australia taking on Italy and the biggest game of the tournament so far when Wales take on South Africa. Iain and i fly out of RDU tomorrow afternoon and arrive in Auckland Tuesday afternoon via ... read more
New Zeland Rugby World Cup 2011
Published: May 7th 2011North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel Hill
May 6th 2011
Iain and I are heading to New Zealand on Sept 11th 2011 for the Rugby World Cup. We come back home on October 10th. Can't wait!... read more
University of North Carolina
Published: April 25th 2011North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel Hill
April 23rd 2011
University of North Carolina - 18 April to 21 April 2011 All incoming Freshman students enter Arts and Sciences and stay in this college for up to two years or until they declare their major. UNC has around 16,000 UG and Graduate students. Advising happens in a range of locations across UNC. The Undergraduate Academic Advising Centre provides advice to undecided students as well as all Freshman. Students enrol into General Education subjects in year one. Student advisers in Arts and Sciences have a case load of around 600 students. There are 26-27 full time advisers. There are also some faculty advisers, but this has decreased somewhat over the past few years. There are some part-time departmental advisers who work in the Undergraduate Advising Centre, particularly in the bigger schools (Business). Departmental advisers can be faculty ... read more
March 11th 2011
Drive U Never Want to Take After 2800 miles of driving over 7 days pulling a trailer, we are ready to stay in one location for a day or 2. However before the adventures, it is necessary to briefly comment on the driving drudgery. Day 1 – was over 2 hours behind schedule due to a repair of HoW (House on Wheels) that was only supposed to take 10 minutes. Day 2 – CA desert and high gas prices ($4.29) made this trip difficult. Original destination was Flagstaff, but Dennis had a brain check and we ended up in a Wal-mart parking lot in Winslow, AZ. Day 3 – Had to be in Albuquerque, NM by 3:00 for a 15K service appointment on TT (Trusty Tundra). Stayed at an overpriced KOA, but got batteries (HoW, human, ... read more
March 11th 2011
Chapel Hill, NC We left Winston-Salem under cloudy skies and light sprinkle which soon turned into rain. Driving east on I-40, the rain lifted, but showers persisted. However, in Chapel Hill at the farm of Martha and Carl, the showers had stopped and a walk around the 60 acres added a bit of exercise to the bodies of the dynamic duo. Later we visited the Duke Campus and spent a few moments in the "go back machine" reliving Emily's 3 years as a masters student. First was finding our way through the “new” (lots of changes in 40+ years) campus and a heavy downpour. Finding a parking spot was a top priority especially with rain still falling, but the rain stopped and we parked next to the center of the religious studies program. The Chapel is ... read more
college :UNC
Published: September 2nd 2010North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel HillSeptember 2nd 2010
Today was the day to check out the UNC campus!!! The thing I have always been waiting for!! We started by checking out the fields, my favorite place on campus. We did all this before our regular tour happened with a real guide. Her name was Dominique and she was a junior on campus. She brought us to a classroom, a library, and also a fitness center. We also walked in to the cafeteria which had a large variety of food. There are over 20,000 students there and they usually only let in 14% of out of state students. The average SAT test score is 1400. My mom says that's high. It is in the perfect location for a college since it has restaurants within walking distance so you don't have to waste gas driving everywhere. ... read more
Start of a new Journey
Published: September 1st 2010North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel HillSeptember 1st 2010
We landed in NC this morning very tired. We picked up are rental car from BUDGET and headed towards our hotel. We are staying at the Sheraton Inn in Chapel Hill. Mom and I were both very tired so we decided to take a power nap for 5 hours. By the time we woke up it was time to go explore the city of Chapel Hill and its restaurants. We parked our car in a parking lot and walked down Franklin Street, it is the busiest street or i should say main street of any other city. We found a cold stone and decided to be italians and have dessert before the main course. We asked our icecream maker where the best southern food was and she said Crook's Corner which is very good. Only .6 ... read more
Day 39 to 44 Chapel Hill, North Carolina Go Heels!
Published: August 29th 2009North America » United States » North Carolina » Chapel Hill
August 29th 2009
For the last few days of the trip, we were settling Vanessa in at school in Chapel Hill, North Carolina. When we first arrived at her apartment building, we were horrified because the building was poorly designed and there was absolutely no security at the entrance to the building. There were little places where people could just hide behind and just mug you because you didn’t see them there. But we found her a nice apartment in another building, and it was a lot safer. Now she is living there with her two close friends. While we were there, we also hung out with my Aunt Amy, Uncle Joaquin, and constantly growing cousin Iago, who is so cute! Once we ate cupcakes at a cupcakery called Bliss. They sell about six different kinds of cupcakes including ... read more
