A Little Reflection

Hey everyone!  I've been home for almost a week and I could not be happier to be writing this post while sitting by the Christmas tree and listening to "You're a Mean One, Mr. Grinch" Pandora. I thought I'd do a little looking back on my semester in San Juan, Puerto Rico to wrap up this blog.

First of all, I want to say that I did in fact have an awesome time. I know a lot of my blog posts and tweets made it sound like I was miserable down there, but I have a tendency to vocalize the negatives more than the positives. Living in a "city" without a car was more than frustrating at times, but it taught me to have patience. It taught me to also appreciate my car, which is currently on its way to my mechanic. Figures that as soon as I get home, the check engine light goes on! Haha... well at least I know how to survive without a car now. Relying on trains, buses, and overly expensive cabs was something I don't miss, but not ever having to worry about a sober driver was awesome. We sure met some interesting people while using public transportation. Oh PR!

The beaches were by far my favorite part of the experience. They were absolutely beautiful.  We mostly went to Isla Verde. There was a great beach bar there and every time we went, the bar tender was surprised to see that we were still on the island! My parents and Paul stayed in Isla Verde when they came. I also liked Pinones, a beach where the locals went. I liked it there because there weren't any hotels and it was pretty and quiet. We went to Ocean Park on one of our last days. I wish we had gone there before, mostly because you can get there by taking a train then walking for about 20 minutes. I'd take walking two miles over waiting for the bus.

Old San Juan was also awesome. We went out there most of the time at night. There are tons of shops and restaurants there. The streets are cobblestone and the buildings were painted bright colors. So pretty! There are also two really cool Spanish forts there that were fun to explore. Most of the cruise ships dock in OSJ, so if anyone ever goes on a cruise, there's a good chance that you'll get to walk around there. I was disappointed in the Bacardi factory. Sure you get two free drinks, but the tour was all mock production, so we didn't get to see anything actually being made. I did get 2L of rum for $20 though! I can't complain about that.

One thing I wish was different about the experience was that we didn't get to interact with the students at the university that much. UPR was only a short walk or train ride away from our apartment, yet we only went there once as a group. We had class in the hospital or apartment with our own professor from UConn, so we were not affiliated with the university at all. I think that in the future, they may change this. I was initially nervous about studying abroad because I knew I would be with the same 13 people every day, but lucky it worked out.

Speaking of which, our group could not have been any better. I have never been good at keeping friends, and I feel like I have 13 new sisters after this semester. I really wasn't that close with anyone in the beginning of the semester, but friendships grew quickly. A bunch of us had been in the same orientation group when we were seniors in high school and I knew a few others from class, but I had never hung out with any of them on a regular basis. My apartment was crazy and so much fun. As my family knows, I can get manic and loud and maybe even annoying, but my roommates not only put up with me, but even joined in. We would play off of each other and laugh at things that probably no one else would find funny. ([{inside joke}]) - just to name a few of our highlights throughout the semester: sprinkle cheese, fourteen sisters, throw it on the ground, YOUR F****ING FAT!, Maria JUST came!, and of course, the wheelchair. I miss them already. I know that I will be friends with these people for along time, if not forever. A bunch of us even met for drinks two days after getting home- that's how much we missed each other! We all come from such different backgrounds and it was a great life experience to live in such close proximity with each and every one of them.

So, here I sit, finishing up my last blog entry. I am looking forward to going back to work at the hospital and my capstone semester at Uconn Health Center in OB. I have spent a lot of time with my family and Paulie and have eaten wings, pizza, Chinese food, and of course I've had my share of GOOD beer. It's been real, Medalla, but I don't ever need to drink you again.

Happy Holidays to everyone! It's been real!

Catamaran Cruise and Snorkeling

Hi Everyone!

Last Saturday, we went on the best excursion of the semester. We set sail out of Fajardo on a catamaran cruise to spend the day soaking up sun and snorkeling. I knew it was going to be as great day the moment we were greeted at the boat, called The Spread Eagle II, with pina coladas. There was an open bar but the drinks, although tasty, were weak so no one got too out of control.

Our first destination was a small island not inhabited by any humans off the coast of Puerto Rico. The water at the tiny beach was crystal clear and absolutely beautiful. We snorkeled around for about an hour and saw all types of tropical fish and even some sea urchins. The only other snorkeling experience I had before this was in St Martin and we mostly saw small fish, star fish, and urchins. After snorkeling, we relaxed in the water before heading back to the boat for lunch.

Our next destination was a coral reef near a different island off Puerto Rico. Apparently there is a vacation resort on this island- talk about remote! The coral reef was amazing... I literally felt like I was in an aquarium. I am kind of scared of sea creatures but luckily the biggest fish I was was only about a foot long. We saw all sorts of fish that I had only ever seen at pet stores or aquariums before. After snorkeling for a while, we put our gear back on the boat and jumped off the boat while taking pictures. We got some good ones! Swimming around without goggles or flippers felt so liberating. One of my roommates tried to do a fancy dive off the front of the boat, but wasn't too successful (AEB picture below). Naturally, when he slipped, I screamed, calling attention to people swimming around is. Oops! Sometimes I can't control my screams when things go wrong! 

I really appreciated the time that I had with my classmates this weekend. We have all gotten so close this semester. I have never had good luck with making friends, especially in college, so I am extremely thankful for the relationships that I've built over the last few months. Spending time with them and seeing my roommates every day is something that I will miss when I go home. 14 sisters <3

Psych Clinical

Hey!

I thought I'd take a few minutes to write about my week in psych clinical because it was probably one of the best weeks that I've had here.

On Wednesday, one of my classmates and I had the opportunity to go with a social worker to visit veterans in the community. We drove around in a sweet government care to Rio Piedres, Carolina, and some houses around the hospital. This service is for patients who have psych problems and need help with medication refills and things like being aware of the services in the community. The first patient we saw had a beautiful big black dog that really made me miss Emma! We went to several houses where no one was home, which seemed strange to me. When I was with the VNA in the Bloomfield area, the nurse was always sure to call all her patients in the morning to make sure they were there and prepared for her visit. I once again learned that things are done differently down here in PR. We went to another house that had dogs, more specifically five newborn puppies! They were so young that their eyes were still closed and they couldn't use their back legs. Bri and I just wanted to play with them instead of paying attention to the patient. The mother was obviously a young mutt who had probably escaped from her home and met a male dog who knocked her up. Spaying and neutering dogs is really a problem here in PR, especially the island of Vieques. If I had chosen to become a vet, I would try to devote time to come down and fix these dogs. Since I can't do that, when I'm ready to adopt a furry friend, I fully plan on adopting an island dog. One of my roommates adopted a dog from Turks and Caicos a few years ago and is very happy with her choice. I'm scared that those five puppies are just going to be released onto the streets :( Everyone go adopt an island dog now!!

The next day at clinical I was in the "Depot" clinic where we saw many schitzophrenic patients who were in to get their biweekly or monthly antipsychotic shot. I got to practice IM shots and psych assessments all morning. The nurse was beyond welcoming and took so much time to teach me all about what she does. Being able to spend the day with nurses like her is so refreshing because it's all too common for nurses to want nothing to do with students; it's as if they forgot that they were once in nursing school. Talk about nurses eating their young! The nurses down here have been more welcoming than any nurses I have dealt with back home, and that is something that I will truly miss. Even if the nurses aren't trained as well as American nurses, they have still taken so much time to teach us what they do know. That being said, we have learned a lot about what NOT to do from the VA hospital, for example uncapping a syringe with their mouth, not wearing gloves when drawing blood, and administering anti-hypertensive meds when the patient already has low blood pressure.

Well, I hope everyone is enjoying the cold weather back home. I can't wait to be able to wear jeans and boots and hoodies and sweaters and hats and gloves! 13 DAYS!! Two weeks from today I'll be laying in my pillow top queen size bed with my snuggle buddy, Emma. See everyone soon!

Thanksgiving Break

Hey everyone!  Sorry it's been so long. I've been busy with assignments and entertaining family and friends over break.

The weekend before break, we went mountain biking in part of the rainforest. I am a pretty experienced biker, but had never really biked off the beaten path. It was a really good workout and very scenic! My favorite part was riding to a "river" and swimming in the fresh water. Our professor didn't tell us to bring our bathing suits, so all of us jumped in while wearing our underwear... some people were classy enough to keep their shorts and t shirts on but I wasn't about to sit around in wet clothes for the rest of the day. A'int nobody got time for that! (Side note: Juan would not have let that happen! He would have been all over that shit and had us plan ahead to bring bathing suits and towels!) At the river, the guide used clay rocks to put Taino symbols on our faces and arms, making us Taino warriors! Needless to say, we were all pooped from the ride and all needed naps when we got back. It was one of my favorite excursions.

Thanksgiving break was very busy. Meg and Gosi flew in late saturday night and after greeting them with a water bottle full of Palo Veijo (cheap Puerto Rican rum), we went right to Brava, a night club in Isla Verde. Sunday, we went to Isla Verde with a few of my roommates and had some drinks on the beach while relaxing. I showed them Old San Juan on Monday, and we went to the beach again on Tuesday and Wednesday. It was so nice to see a couple familiar faces. I love all my roommates and friends down here, but I loved catching up with my friends from home. They enjoyed the island and had a hard time believing that I'm ready to go home. They only saw the vacation part of Puerto Rico... they didn't see the part where I have to sweat my ass off walking to the train station for clinical while wearing my gross uniform. We also had very good luck with the buses while they were here and they only got to experience waiting an hour an a half just go to go to the beach once. I don't regret coming here and I've really enjoyed by time, but I am 100% without a doubt ready to go home. 

The day after Meg and Gosi left was Thanksgiving. It was extremely hard for me to be away from my family and miss my mom's amazing New England thanksgiving, but once I got myself busy cooking in the kitchen, my mind was taken off of it. I made stuffing, my grandma's cranberry relish, and apple crisp. Everything was good except the apple crisp. Note to self: if you run out of stick margarine/butter, DO NOT substitute "butter spread" that comes in a tub for apple crisp. Everyone contributed something different and it was a success. Other than not being able to watch the Macy's parade, the day went a lot better than I had expected. 

The day after Thanksgiving, my parents arrived! Unfortunately, it was pouring, but luckily the waves were huge, which made my dad really happy. The two of us went in the water and rode some waves. The waves were unusually large for the whole time they were there, which meant lots of body surfing. We went into Old San Juan every night for dinner. My mom did an awesome job picking out restaurants. She even found a good pizza place! I've been deprived of pizza for the last there months. I am now in love with mojitos- I had one every day they were here. We went to El Morro, a Spanish fort in OJS which was really interesting. For the most part, the three of us enjoyed being beach bums at the beautiful Courtyard Marriot in Isla Verde (the same place Paul and I stayed). Today, before they left, my dad and I were doing some last minute body surfing. The tide was really strong and two people had to be saved because they got caught in the rip tide. While we were out in the water, we heard yelling and whistling  When I looked to the beach, my mom and another woman were pointing to a lady who was caught and couldn't get to the shore! We swam over and the lady was clearly in distress. I grabbed her hand and started to get pulled by the current too. I talked to the lady and told her to take deep breaths and that we would be okay. After fighting through the waves and current, my dad and I got her to shore. She was in a lot of distress but I think she was just emotionally exhausted and physically tired because she was larger and clearly out of shape. The poor lady was all alone and was very lucky that the two of us happened to be in the water, AND that we were strong swimmers. It felt good to save a life! Go figure, the first time I save a life I wasn't even doing anything nursing related! So, folks, I guess the moral of the story is to not swim alone and beware of the rip tide! I had an amazing time with my parents and was sad to see them go, but I'll be home in 16 short days!!!!!! 

Now the only thing left is two psych exams, a couple of papers, and packing up all our stuff! December 13th can't come soon enough! 

Spending Veterans Day with Vets (taken from the SON blog)

Buenos dias! 

Psych clinical has been going great. As everyone else has said, it’s a very different environment and pace from med-surg but the change is good. We spend a lot of time talking with the patients and have even put together a few group sessions and parties for them. Most recently, we helped the staff on the unit put together a Veterans Day party. During med-surg it was easy to forget that all of our patients were veterans, but it is quite evident in psych because many of the mental illnesses that the patients suffer from have to do with their time spent as a soldier. Almost all of the patients are Vietnam veterans and I have learned how much they went through from spending time in that treacherous environment.

After hearing all about the hardships of the war and post-war period, it was my honor and pleasure to help with the Veterans Day party. A lot of food was prepared, decorations were put up, music was put on, and games were played! The patients don’t have a whole lot of excitement during a typical day on the psych unit, so it’s always nice to give them something to do. We ate with them, colored in American flags, and talked with them. The patients love having us around because we always love talking to them! Spending time at the VA has really given me a new perspective and appreciation towards veterans. I see how much pain and suffering they have been put through. Some of them are still suffering from PTSD and depression over 50 years later. The average age of a Vietnam soldier was 19. That boggles my mind because I cannot imagine having someone younger than me be put through an experience like that. I am learning from the veterans every day and am exciting keep working with them for the rest of the semester.

Adios!

Paulie Comes to PR!

Hey everyone!!

Last weekend, I was lucky enough to have Paul come visit! He flew in on Thursday morning and we had a nice, relaxing weekend. We stayed at the Isla Verde Marriott and I thought I was in heaven. It was so nice and I can't wait to stay there again when my parents come after Thanksgiving.

On Thursday, we hung out on the beach and went out for a Puerto Rican dinner at a restaurant called Metropol. As a joke, all us super cool nursing students call it "metoprolol" which is, of course, an anti hypertensive med. Paul was impressed with the mofongo, rice and beans, and fried pork. I love that stuff too, but it's really heavy and fatty and artery-clogging, not to mention it makes you feel like absolute shit. After dinner, we hung out on the hammocks on the beach, which was also relaxing.

Unfortunately, I had class on Friday morning, but after that we went back to the Marriott to hang out. After soaking up some sun by the pool, we decided to venture off to Casa Bacardi, the Bacardi distillery. Getting there was a headache and I was sure that we were going to miss the last tour. I had never really been in a driving situation in Puerto Rico, but I quickly learned that the roads are not easy to navigate around. The maps on our phones didn't match up to the highway signs and everything is in a different language. Thankfully, we made it on time. The tour was pretty interesting and we got two free samples! Haha.. we got to try a few flavors that I had never had before: Wolf Berry rum and Bacardi Oakheart. The Oakheart reminded me of Southern Comfort, but better (SoCo is nasty... sorry siblings). The Wolf Berry was pretty good too. I bought 2 liters of rum at the gift shop for only $20! All semester I had been avoiding Bacardi because only the tourists drink it, but I couldn't resist that deal.

After the tour, we got back in the car and headed to Old San Juan for dinner. Getting there was also pretty stressful, but we made it. I took Paul to the Old Harbor Brewery for a beer and some wings, and he was impressed. I love that place, probably just because it's the only place in PR where I've found "real" beer. We went to a restaurant recommended by my weirdo roommate, Katie (LOVE YA), Vaca Brava but only wound up getting some appies because we were full from the wings. After dinner we hung out at the Marriott again.

Saturday was devoted to getting our bronze on by the beach then by the pool. I have always wanted to go to a swim up bar and lucky for me, the Marriott had one!! We spent a little too much time there and also enjoyed some of that Bacardi rum. Don't judge.. we were on vacation haha. While hanging out by the pool, we made friends with an iguana and even got some pictures with him!

Hanging out with Paul was so refreshing. I loved hanging out with him and beating his ass in cards (kind of...). Being away from Paul has been really hard but its nice to know that I have someone so awesome waiting for me when I get back :) It made me really excited to get home, but I'm still looking forward to the plans that we have for the rest of the semester, including a bike tour of the rain forest, a catamaran cruise, and of course my visitors- Meg and Gosi then mom and dad!! I'm going to enjoy the beach and sunshine for as long as possible. I do miss the cold weather, but I might as well take advantage of living in the tropics while I can!

Paul brought me some goodies, most importantly TayTay's new album! My roommates and I have all been listening to it non stop. After hearing samples of the singles that she had been releasing, I was disappointed but after listening to the CD I love it. Now if only the JoBros would hurry the hell up with their new album.

We have five weeks and two days left till we go back to the motherland!!! That means three and a half weeks of clinical, one week of Thanksgiving break, and a week of finals. It seems so close, yet so far away. There are things that I have loved and hated about this semester, but I'm sure that if I was home there would be plenty that I would love and hate about that too. Getting around the city is still a hassle and being cooped up in the apartment is annoying. Tonight since we don't have cable, we're streaming in the election results thanks to NBC.com. Everyone's tweets and facebook posts have been so mother effing annoying, but not as annoying as the "Puerto Rican Pride Parades" that have been passing through our neighborhood every night since we arrived. Basically, trucks that are sponsored by the candidates with massive speakers have been driving by our apartment. Last night there were so many of them up until at least midnight. Today has been even crazier and the nurses at the hospital told us not to go out tonight because things can get dangerous. I don't understand it. They don't even vote for the president here! I guess they are just really serious about selecting their governor.

Well I hope everyone survived the storm and is prepared for this so called Nor'Easter that's supposed to be hitting this week. I must admit, I'm jealous that you might get some snow!

Ponce

Hello friends!

Yesterday we had to be up at 7am to go to Ponce, a city on the south coast of the island. After listening to our tour guide lecture us for the ENTIRE hour and a half bus ride, we arrived. We were forced to go to an art museum and were lucky enough to take a guided tour. That pretty much solidified the fact that i really, truly hate art museums. I wish we could have gone to the Taino Indian museums or learned more about that instead. On top of the artwork being incredibly boring, the museum was freezing cold. I'm pretty sure i almost lost a few toes. After that, we had lunch at a beautiful restaurant in the middle of the city.  I had pork chops wrapped in bacon and some kind of yucca side-- both were delicious. I also treated myself to a cocktail that was only $10!! Haha.. so over priced, but at least i took the glass home as a souvenir, so it wasn't a total waste.

We had some free time to walk around the city, during which i came to the conclusion that Ponce is basically a smaller, shittier Old San Juan. The up side was that there were a few big souvenir shops with things that were way cheaper than in Old San Juan. For example, i got a few shot glasses for about $3, and in Old San Juan I would have had to pay $5 or $6. After doing a little shopping and getting some Gelato (I swear, since ice cream is so expensive down here, i'm having withdrawals!!), we were back on the bus.

We stopped at hot springs on the way home. I'm pretty sure everyone, including myself, thought they were going to be natural and in some secluded, wooded area but we couldn't have been more wrong. The place had two small pools. One was realllly hot.. about 115 degrees and the other was cooler, but still hot enough to be relaxing. I only lasted about five minutes in the really hot one, but was able to hang out in the other one for about a half an hour before we were loaded back on the bus.





As most people know, this was Halloween weekend, but i just couldnt bring myself to celebrate what is usually one of my favorite times of the year. First of all, it doesn't even feel like Halloween because it's so hot and muggy and the palm trees have yet to change colors (small joke). We went to a social at the UPR school of nursing, but it was super awkward.. there were about ten kids in small room. We didn't socialize with the other students and couldn't wait to leave. They did have a chocolate fountain, but even that was a fail. I was going to go out after that, but i was really tired and knew I'd have to be up early the next day for Ponce. The people who did go out said that nobody dressed up for Halloween! I thought Puerto Ricans celebrated everything! I have yet to see this be true. Oh well... I'll always have next year.

I keep hearing about Sandy and i hope everyone is prepared and stays safe! Paul is supposed to be flying down here Thursday morning, so i'm hoping and praying that everything will be cleared up by then. Hopefully you guys won't get another Irene or October snow storm. While you're all suffering without power, I'll be relaxing at the rooftop pool :) haha sorry, i couldn't resist.

Anyways, stay safe and I miss you all!! xoxo

Psych in PR

Our first week of psych has wrapped up! It was a relaxing week because nobody had any work to do. My textbook won’t be in till next week, which is a curse and a blessing because it means I can’t do any work this week and get to relax, but next week, I’ll have a lot of catching up to do.

Surprisingly, I don’t hate psych. We haven’t gotten too deep into the lecture material, but so far it’s been interesting. Even if I never go into psych, I will always have patients with psych disorders and issues so this material is really important. My first two days of clinical were great. The first day was at the Day Hospital, which is an intense outpatient program for people recently discharged from the inpatient unit. The group of up to 22 veterans meets Monday-Friday from 8-3. They have therapy with the RN and social worker and have activities during occupational therapy. OT was really cool to observe. I never realized that there was OTs who worked with mental health patients. The therapist interviews the patient and finds out what activities they loved to do before their mental illness took over their life and encourages the patients to participate in those activities again. Some of the things included painting, building a tool box, and drawing. The OT tweaks the environment so that if something goes wrong, it will happen in a controlled environment and she will help them deal with the problem. This whole concept was fascinating to me. Mental health problems are so serious and it’s comforting that there are such awesome people who devote their careers to help these people.

The next day, I was on the inpatient floor. I spent the morning passing meds with the RNs. That’s pretty much all they do here. After that, I visited OT again and then played dominos with some of the patients. It was so rewarding to make them smile and talk to them. Some of the patients were around my age, but the age ranged up to 85 years old. I am surprised by the set up of the unit. The patients don’t have a lot scheduled therapy or groups. It seems like the reason the patients are there is to basically simmer down until they are no longer a threat to themselves or others and they can be discharged to outpatient therapy. If I was on the unit, I’d go crazy! These patients need more of a schedule in their day, and we are going to hold group sessions for them throughout the semester. I’m really excited to talk to the patients more.

I hear that the foliage is at its peak right now and I’m so sad that I’m missing it! I will never take another day of cool weather for granted again. Today it’s 77 degrees and rainy and it’s so refreshing.

Back to psych for me! Hopefully I don’t catch any of the ailments … I’m already enough of a weirdo. Until next time! 

Past the halfway point!

Hello world! I'm sorry that i haven't written so long, but i was very busy with finals and then spending the weekend in paradise.

Other than Vieques, my life only consisted of finishing up the last week of med-surg clinical and studying my tan booty off for exams. I don't want to be cliche, but i can't believe we're finally done with med-surg. I passed! And i did a lot better than i probably would have done in Storrs because i was forced to go to every single class and  sit in a little room where we were under the close watch of our wonderful professor without being able to get distracted on my phone or laptop. (This unfortunatly meant that i didn't get to spend nearly as much time on tumblr, stumble upon, or pinterest as i normally would in a given semester. sad face.) This really encouraged me not to be hungover for class because i wouldn't have the opportunity to run down to the cafe in the bio building to get my usual hangover remedy- aka a ginger ale and cream cheese muffin or blueberry bagel. Oh well, i guess it was worth it! Anyways, we all did really well and it is such a relief to know that i never have to sit through another med-surg lecture again. I know med-surg is one of the toughest classes in nursing school, but after going through bio, anatomy and physiology, and neafsy, i didn't think it was that bad. I liked having it crammed into seven weeks instead of spread out over 14 because it kept everything really fresh in my mind.

Enough about school! Last night we got back from a magical getaway to the island of Vieques. After a not so smooth ferry ride, we couldn't wait to explore the island. On friday, we walked about ten minutes to a really nice beach and relaxed. While we were walking along the beach, we found a field of horses! It was amazing. There are so many wild horses around the island. That night, we had the amazing experience to go to the biobay. For those of you who don't know what that is, the little plankton that live in the bay glow when they are touched by anything that causes motion, whether it be the paddle of the kayak  your hand, or a fish swimming by. There are only a few of them in the world but i would suggest that anyone who has the chance should go see one. I wish i could have taken pictures, but we were told that they wouldn't have come out well. We were told to stay out of a certain part of the bay and not go swimming because there are shark nursery's!! Yikes!! Luckily we didn't see any, but i did see a pretty large fish swim by. Kayaking was also fun- i had never done that before. Overall, it was the highlight of the semester thus far.

On saturday, we rented "scooters." I put that in quotes because they were actually small motorcycles. I can't believe that after a short "training" period, the islanders who owned the little rental place let us go off around the island by ourselves. I had never been on any type of vehicle like that and it was so much fun driving. On straightaways, i would think i was going so fast and look down at the speedometer to find i was only going 35 mph. It was exhilarating and made me want to invest in a scooter one day when i grow up. All was going smoothly until we decided to go down a dirt road to find a beautiful beach. We found the beach and hung out there for a while, but long story short, one of the girls had a bad fall and wound up getting hurt :( She's such a trooper and said she would rent the scooters again anyways!! Looking back, the day was very dangerous and i would strongly recommend that if anyone rents scooters to stay on the paved roads.

That night, we had a delicious dinner at the hotel restaurant. I had BBQ ribs which really brought me back to summer nights at home. After dinner, we hung out and ventured out to the bars near the restaurant. Island life is so relaxed and fun. I wouldn't want to live on such a small island, or any island for that matter, but i did enjoy my time there. The best part is that along with all the stray dogs, everyone brings their dogs out at night. I made some furry friends! I can't wait to adopt an island dog when i'm older. There are so many dogs here who need homes.



The island was supposed to get hit by a tropical storm, so there was a chance that we would get to stay an extra night! Unfortunately, our wishes didn't come true and we were forced to return to reality as originally planned. Before leaving though we got to see another amazing beach. The water was crystal clear and the bluest i have ever seen. I also got to try fish tacos at a local bar for the first time. Delish!

So now, here I am again, back in San Juan. In my mind, before arriving to Puerto Rico, i hadn't pictures my life to be the way it is now. I though the whole island would be like vieques or even old san juan. I didn't expect our neighborhood to be run down and, for lack of better words, crappy. Don't get me wrong, I like it here a lot and am so glad i decided to study abroad, but the area we live in is very inconvenient. We have a walgreens and supermarket nearby, but other than that, getting anywhere except the hospital is a process. Like i said in a previous blog post, it can take up to two hours just to get to the beach or old san juan. It would be so much easier if we had a car, but i know that's not allowed. Doing things in a big group is also a process. I love all the students that i'm down here with, but doing something as simple as going to the beach or going out for the night can take an incredible amount of time. It sucks to have to split up, but a lot of the time, that's the only way to keep things as stress free as possible.

Speaking of stress free, our new psych professor's goal is to keep our stress to a minimum for the rest of the semester. I like her already! We had our first lecture with her today and it's so nice to have a change of pace. I know that psych will be tough to get through for me because it's so abstract and the material is very heavy. I am interested in the topic though because no matter what kind of nurse you are, you'll always patients with psych problems. I'm just hoping and praying that this part of the semester will be a lot less work than the first part. I want to take advantage of the next two months and really explore the island, including jet skiing, paddle boarding, zip lining, and having tropical drinks on the beach.

As usual, i'm missing everything fall about home. I would kill to be able to have 45 degree weather! I know everyone back home thinks i'm crazy for complaining, but the hot weather is just annoying. It's nice to be able to sit up by the pool and read, but i'd be okay with just doing that in the summer instead of year round. This trip has solidified that i could never stray too far from a place that has four seasons.

Well, until next time!

This hot weather is really getting old real fast

Hello world! I don't want to sound cliche but I really can't believe how fast the first part of the semester has gone by. This is our last week of med-surg classes and clinical and I couldn't be happier. Last week, I was with the charge nurse one day which was actually pretty busy. I got to give some flu shots, help with discharges, and see a "carresto"!! (The patient in the room across from the nurses station needed a rapid response. I wasn't able to be in the room during it because there were literally 20-30 residents in there. At least I got to see the aftermath-- an intubated patient being sent to the ICU.) I was also in the cardiac ICU. That was extremely frustrating because the nurse assumed that I didn't know how to do anything and taught me how to do a head to toe assessment, including how to listen to lung sounds!!!! How fascinating! It's not like I wasn't doing that all summer. I don't want to sound like a brat, but I literally have not been challenged once this semester and it is very frustrating.Thank God I'll be done on Thursday.

Other than the lack of excitement at clinical, life has been pretty good. We have all been buckling down and getting our "end of semester" work done. Instead of going to the beach, we've been finishing our final care plans, putting together our case studies, and studying. It's absolutly crazy that next Thursday, we'll be doing celebratory shots and packing for Vieques, the island where we're going to spend the weekend of October 13. I cannot wait!!

Today, I reached old lady status once again. In addition to always having tissues in my pockets, going to bed early, and knitting (haha that one's a joke), I now have a humidifier at my bedside. Constantly being in the AC really got to my upper respiratory tract and has kept me up coughing for the past five nights. After too many sleepless nights and fear of waking my roommate (shout out to Katie!) I decided I had to do something. Hopefully it works! Our lives are a constant cycle of sweating our asses off in the heat to freezing our asses off in the AC. There is absolutely no in-between.

I really really really hate that I'm missing fall. I haven't seen any pictures of foliage yet, but I know they'll start popping up on instagram and facebook. I'm starting to see more and more pumpkin beer, had pumpkin pancakes over the weekend, and have (still) been enjoying my pumpkin coffee, but it's just not the same. All you New Englanders-- savor the moments of stepping on crunchy leaves and waking up to crisp fall mornings. I envy all of you. Well on that note, it's back to work I go. I just spend two hours watching the hills on netflix, so I should probably put some time into my studies. Hugs from PR yall! :)

Taken from my blog for uconn school of nursing

Today my wonderful roommates, Professor McNulty, and Javi set out to Camuy Caverns to explore. I had never been to a cave before so needless to say, I was very excited. After about an hour and a half bus ride, we arrived on the beautiful premises. We watched a quick film about the caverns and began our journey. Walking into the caves was absolutely breathtaking. It’s was amazing to be in a place that has been forming over millions and millions of years. We were lucky enough to see a few bats and even learned that their feces are used as fertilizer to help the ecosystem of the cave grow. Who knew!? Puerto Rico is very proud of their natural wonders, including Camuy and El Yunque, the rainforest that we went to a few weeks ago. I can see why they are so proud: the palm trees, huge bamboo stalks, soft moss, and not to mention the views of the gorgeous beaches are sites
that attract people from all over the world.

Isle Verde has turned out to be my favorite beach so far on the island. The water is turquoise and the sand is so soft and clean. Pictures can’t even do it justice. The beach is only about a ten minute bus ride from our apartment but more times than not, we don’t catch the bus at the right time and have to wait for over an hour. The lack of bus schedule has probably been the most difficult part of living in San Juan. I had heard that the pace of life is slow here, but I still cannot get used to it. Even going to the supermarket is an ordeal because the cashiers take their time and even take personal phone calls while in the middle of the transaction. I miss being able to hop in my car and make a quick trip to Target, but I do have to say that I don’t miss filling up my gas tank every week!

The food in Puerto Rico is very tasty, but I can see why diabetes and hypertension are leading diseases on the island. My favorite is without a doubt chicken Mofongo- a delicacy made with fried plantains. A few weeks
ago I ordered a thin fried food that was about the size of a Frisbee. I had no idea what is was, but it was amazing. The next day Javi told me it was a codfish fritter! Most of the food down here is fried and has a lot of carbohydrates. The cafeteria at the hospital serves fried chicken and French fries around the clock and believe it or not, it is the norm to see people eating it for breakfast. Although I miss my mom’s Keurig coffee maker, Puerto Rican coffee is very strong and gets the job done. It is often mixed with hot milk, which adds a nice touch.

Exploring the island has been great and there is so much to see here. I can’t wait for Vieques, Ponce, and Culebra this semester! I am so thankful that we get to stay for almost four months.

I miss everyone back home and I hope everybody is doing well!

Hello New England!

Good evening! Tomorrow is my day off so I'm allowed to stay up past 10 tonight. I'll probably sleep in till 8:30 or 9 tomorrow! What a treat... seriously.

Clinical wasn't all that bad this week. I was on the general med-surg floor both days with the same nurse. I still can't get over how differently things are done here. The nurses don't even use stethoscopes, so you can imagine how much of an adjustment it is. For example, when checking to see if a feeding tube is in place, back home we put an air bubble through it and listen with our stethoscope to hear if it's properly placed, but here they just pop a bubble of air in and feel for the response. Every day I'm at the hospital, I am more and more grateful for my experience at Manchester over the summer. The staff is so welcoming here and does their best to accommodate us, but I still feel like we aren't getting a true med-surg nursing experience. I'm kind of happy that we only have two more weeks on the floor until we switch to psych.

Last night Javi and his girlfriend came over to teach us how to make an authentic Puerto Rican meal. He made fried plantains, rice, and beans, and they were absolutely delicious. I don't know if I've said this before, but it's very clear why almost all of the patients at the hospital have type two diabetes and hypertension. I know that if I lived here I'd already have diabetes for sure. Fried chicken is served at the hospital cafeteria all the time. When I go down for my morning coffee, I often see people eating it for breakfast. Speaking of which, Puerto Rican coffee is amazing. Although it's not flavored, it's really strong and warm milk is put in it. I know it's probably fatty, but I can't get enough of it. That being said, I do miss my mom's keurig and all the flavored coffee that we have at home. Thank God Aunt Jane sent me a bunch of pumpkin coffee, but I know that's not going to last forever (hint hint.. haha).

My roommates and I have been getting along very well. We get into silly moods a lot and pretty much act like five year olds. Taylor and I just sat here for about ten minutes earlier tonight making farting noises with our mouth and hands. I think having med-surg 24/7 is really getting to us.

Well, I should get some more work done while I can. Enjoy the crisp fall days for me!

Happy Sunday!

Good morning (or should I say good afternoon) from sunny San Juan!

Last night we dressed up in ridiculous outfits and went to the electric daisy concert. It's like day glow but it's 12 hours long and is more of a carnival with three stages and rides. We only went for a few hours but it was a lot of fun. Techno music isn't really my thing but it was still a lot of fun to dance with everyone. I managed to take another tumble and cut up my leg pretty bad. Katie and I went to the first aid station to get it cleaned up. It was empty in there, which is a good thing I guess. I probably would have been fine without going but we figured we'd give the EMTs something to do. I slept till 11 today and I'm having a little trouble finding the motivation to start studying. Puerto Rico is still a magical place where bad hangovers don't exist and I am so thankful for that. It must be something in the rum :)

All I have been doing for the past few weeks is med-surg, med-surg, and more med-surg. We've already had two exams and everyone in the class did well. I really believe that the format of class is helping us succeed. We are forced to go to class, can't use our laptops, and have to pay attention since there are only 14 of us in a little room. Mondays and Fridays are grueling, with class from 8:30-3:30 but like I said, it's improving everyone's grades. I also like only having med-surg. Even though I spend most of my time studying, I like only having to study for one class at a time. We also have leadership, but Juan (aka John, our professor) doesn't take it seriously and there is minimal work for it. I don't think any of us have opened leadership textbooks.


Overall, clinical has been a disappointment, but that's how it's always been. Being in the ER was boring. All the patients came in with chest pain and the triage nurse did vital signs and ECGs then assigned them to a doctor and nurse.  The other nurses gave meds. The nurses were really nice but they treated me like I was a freshman in nursing school, not a senior. For example, the nurse told me that when someone has hypotension they are at risk for falling so we need to get them into bed.... DUH! It's very frustrating to not be challenged. I don't think I have learned one thing since stepping foot on the hospital floor. I am so grateful for my internship over the summer because I learned so much on the med-surg floor by having a preceptor. One of the nurses last week was awesome and let me give all her meds with her but it wasn't anything I hadn't done before. I was thankful that she took me under her wing. Another problem with clinical is not being able to speak spanish. Most of the staff can speak english pretty well, but when the doctors and nurses are talking to each other and doing rounds, I have no idea what's going on. I'm not getting anything out of observing and feel like I'm not going to take much away from this experience. Clinical back in CT sucks most of the time too because the nurses usually aren't receptive to having us on the floor. Don't they remember that they were once in our position? I wish nursing school today was the same as when my mom went back in the 40s (hahaha kidding). The school was at the hospital and she got so much experience right from her first year. She said the college girls would come on the floor and would be so book smart but wouldn't know how to do anything. It's crazy that this time next year I'll be working in a hospital (hopefully) with peoples' lives in my hands! I kind of can't wait (Juanism)!

Well enough procrastinating. I didn't get much done yesterday so I can't afford to slack off again today.

Until next time!

Studying with a nice view

Good morning everyone!

Today is my day off so I figured I'd give a quick update.

Over the weekend we went to El Yunque Rainforest and it was awesome. I was disappointed that there weren't any animals other than lizards, but it was still beautiful. Some people saw a rabid mongoose, and I am not too upset that I missed it. Yikes!  The Puerto Rican parrot is almost extinct and there are only a few boa constrictors, but we weren't lucky enough to see them. My favorite part was swimming in La Mina Falls. The water was cold, but after going under it was easy to get used to. It was so strange to swim in freshwater.. we're all used to salty ocean water! I expected the rain forest to be really muggy and hot, but it was surprisingly cool. Our awesome tour guide warned us to be careful of the uneven pavement and slippery steps and sure enough, I was the idiot who fell. Luckily there was a railing to keep me from going too far, but I still managed to slice my leg open on the concrete steps and make a fool out of myself. At least a few people got a good laugh out of it. My mother was disappointed to hear that I didn't get it on video. I just can't seem to get over that non-stepdasicm (Karen Nealy reference). Anyways,  El Yunque is the smallest national park but it has more different species of vegetation than all other US national parks combined. It was really amazing to be in a palm tree forest all day. It really made me want to explore other rain forests in the future, especially the Amazon. Every day while I'm studying, I have an amazing view of the mountains and it was really nice to finally get to explore them.

Other than visiting El Yunque, my life has consisted of mostly work and not a lot of play. We have what I think will be the hardest exam this Friday- Cardiac. Instead of going to the beach on my day off, I'm sitting here writing flashcards, reading articles, and learning about ECG's :( Hopefully it will all pay off. Even the weekends are full of studying because we have an exam every Friday. Med-surg is intense and I will be relieved when it is over on October 11th. Yesterday we had class in the same little room in the hospital from 8:30-4. By the time we left, my head was exploding and all  I wanted to do was nap but I somehow found the motivation to get some stuff done.

Tomorrow, I get to go to the emergency room at clinical. I've heard that it's mostly elderly people who have fallen (and can't get up!) at home, but I'm really hoping that I get lucky with some exciting trauma.

Well, back to studying. I hope everyone is doing well at home. I keep seeing people tweet about the fall weather coming and I'm sad that I'm missing it.

Adios until next time!

Men and their power tools

Just wanted to say a quick hello from paradise!

Today I was in the OR at clinical and got to see a total hip replacement! I've always heard that orthopedic surgeons are brutal and rough and I would agree with that with no question. Seeing the power tools that were laid out on the sterile field was intimidating and hearing the braking of bones was intense but I loved every second of it. I wouldn't want to be a OR nurse but watching surgery is fascinating. Today I was thinking that maybe I'd go to school to be a surgical PA, but I change my mind about my future about every three weeks. I went from wanted to be a APRN, then a midwife, then just an RN, and now here I am not knowing where I'll end up.

Tomorrow we have our first med-surg exam. It's so nice living with all nursing majors because I can ask any one of my roommates if I have a question instead of having to text one of my friends or actually (God forbid) look it up myself. We have exams every Friday this semester which is going to get crazy. Instead of relaxing right after our exam, we'll have to go right back to studying.

There are a few things I'm starting to miss:
-fall season, including pumpkin coffee and lattes
-Uconn football games
-snuggling with my pup
-mom's home cooking (even though it's rare haha)
-good pizza!
-my biffles and of course paulie
-BBC steel rail and Naughy Nurse

Back to studying! At least I have the rain forest to look forward to this weekend :)

Busy Busy Busy

Good morning from sunny San Juan! The last week has been a busy whirlwind of schoolwork and fun. I'll start from last week.

Last Wednesday, I was on 5J again- our medical floor at the VA hospital. I had the same patient as Tuesday. It was very slow on the floor again so I took the time to work on my first care plan of senior year. After clinical, I went up to the rooftop pool to relax and get some reading done :) I am getting used to that perk and plan to utilize it as much as possible!


On Thursday a few of us went to Isla Verde because it was our day off. That beach is beautiful. I am encouraging everyone who comes to visit me to stay there. It's only a ten minute bus ride away from our apartment and pictures just don't do justice of how amazing it is. Halfway through the day, some of us decided to splurge on $8 drinks at a beach bar. It was definitely worth it! I got a margarita and then some kind of tropical drink and let me say those drinks were pretty strong! After swimming for a bit, the four of us passed out for a bit them decided it was time to go back to the apartment. After attempting to get some work done, showering, and eating, we decided to check out the night life at the university since school is back in session. Javi warned us that it would be bigger than spring weekend there and he was right. The streets were packed with students. We went into a bar that we knew had $1 shots for a few minutes then ventured out to find somewhere else to go. All the bars were packed so finally we decided to go into a convenience store to get a beer. Since it was so packed everywhere and we had class the next morning, we decided to just go home.



I was glad we didn't stay out late because we had to sit in a little room in the hospital from 8:30-3:00 to learn about med-surg and about 15 minutes about leadership. When our professor told us he was going to keep the leadership curriculum light he wasn't kidding!! Cramming med-surg into seven weeks is a little crazy. We move so fast and cover so much material in one day that by 1:00 my head is spinning and everyone is struggling to keep their eyes open. I can't wait for October 11 when we are finally done with it! We have our first exam this Friday and are getting into the more complicated material so our vacation in PR will soon turn into days and nights spent studying. It's really nice living with all nursing majors because we all understand that we are going through a lot of stress and we are all on the same page. It's great to not have to worry about being woken up at 2am by neighbors who don't have clinical or a full day of class the next day! (I loved living in mansfield, but I definitely lost a lot of sleep there.) Finally 3:00 rolled around and we were free! A bunch of us went up to the pool with intentions of studying but we couldn't concentrate. Instead, we pretended we were ten years old and played marco polo and tag in the water. Sometimes you just need to relax and forget about school for a while.At night, we decided to check out Condando. When we first got there, we ran to the beach to see what it looked like at night. It was amazing, as usual! Then we went to this bar right on the beach that looked like an awesome, modern mansion. We realized that we might have crashed someone's party and everyone there was way older than us, so we decided to go somewhere else. While we were walking to another bar, we found a Dunkin Donuts!! Sadly, they didn't have pumpkin coffee, but I did indulge in one of my guilty pleasures- hash browns. After that, we went to this tiny dive bar where I had some kind of apple rum drink that was delish. By the time we left that bar, half of us were ready to go home so we took a cab back to Hato Rey.



Saturday morning, we decided to go back to Isla Verde. Our professor lives right on the beach and told us to let him know if we every wanted to stop by. I texted him and asked him if he wanted to get lunch with us and he offered to shuttle us to Pinones where we could get freshly made Puerto Rican food sold in little kiosks across from the beach. Before going there, we got to see his apartment. It is amazing!! He has an awesome view of Isla Verde and the apartment is really nice. He was nice enough to get snacks and drinks for us and make three separate trips just to drive all of us to lunch!! The food was awesome but I probably 5000 calories. I got some kind of codfish fritter which was this big deep fried concoction and grilled pork kabobs covered in BBQ sauce. After that, we went to the beautiful beach across the street. While we were waiting for the bus to come home, we met a little stray dog who looked hungry and thirsty. After feeding him some water and crackers, he went on his way. There are so many homeless dogs here. I want to bring one home but I'm pretty sure my parents would not approve. Oh well :( At night, we met Javi and his girlfriend at this hamburger place to eat, hang out, and drink some beers. After that, we were pooped and decided to go to bed early.

On Sunday, almost everyone went to the mall, but I decided to stay back and get some work done. It felt good to finish my care plan instead of spending who knows how much money on clothes. At night, we caught the last bus to Old San Juan. Surprisingly it was dead! Senor Frogs was empty. While we were walking around deciding what to do, I went into CVS and bought a 6 pack of beer to keep us happy before we got to a bar. We went to two different bars that had $1 shots before taking a cab home. Let me say, nachos are my late night bad habit. I need to stop making them after the bar or I'm going to come home ten pounds heavier!

On Monday, we went back to Isla Verde. A few of us went on a nice long beach walk. I could stare at the turquoise water all day. It's breathtaking. I am so lucky that I get to live in such a beautiful place. I never want to leave!! After the beach, we finally buckled down and got some studying done.

Today is my day off from clinical. There can only be ten students in the hospital on clinical days, so every week we have either Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday off. I love my roommates, but it's really nice to have the apartment to myself. Two of the girls went to the university to study so I'm all alone. I think I'll take the opportunity to do my workout DVD... haha I hate doing it in front of other people unless they're doing it with me!

I really only have one complaint about PR so far: the buses. We are only a ten minute bus ride away from the beach but I have had to wait for the bus for over an hour on several occasions. This is really forcing me to get used to living in "Puerto Rican time." None of the natives get frustrated with the unorganized buses and life is a much slower pace here. I am surprised that I haven't gotten more angry and frustrated with it. I am really starting to get used to it, but it's still a waste of time to sit there for an hour. I just keep telling myself that I really can't complain because I'm living in paradise :)

Well I guess I should get back to being productive. I miss everyone at home, especially Emma! (tell here I say hi mom)

The sun does exist in PR!

Greetings from sunny San Juan!

Our first weekend was eventful to say the least. Friday night we explored the bars near the university. Needless to say, when all 14 of us are together, we stick out like a sore thumb. Everywhere we went people would whistle or yell at us (frequently including the word "gringo") but everyone is very welcoming to us. My whole life I've been called dark because of my tan and for the first time every I'm being picked out for being white! (side note: I am still working on my tan and will continue to do so until December.) The first bar we went to was pretty empty but we stayed long enough to take $1 shots. Next, we went to this really cool bar that was half inside half outside. The drinks there were cheap there too so we stayed and hung out for a while. We didn't want to stay out too late because we had to leave the next morning at 8 for Old San Juan.

Old San Juan is so far my favorite part of Puerto Rico. We took the train and bus into the beautiful city and spent the morning walking around and visiting an old Spanish fort. I never knew that this city had so much history. We went to an authentic Puerto Rican restaurant for lunch and I had mofongo again. It was delish but not as good as the one I had at the restaurant near the university. After lunch we did some more walking around and went to another fort. We were all tired and weren't too excited to have another history lesson (I think we can all agree that it's only good in small doses) and luckily it started to pour, meaning we could head back to Hato Rey, where our apartment is. 

After resting up and having dinner, we began birthday celebrations for three of the girls. After having cake (and maybe a couple of shots) we made our way back to Old San Juan to check out the night life. Knowing that the journey would take about an hour between the bus and the train, we brought adequately strong road sodas. Being on public transportation while intoxicated was definitely more fun and I think it's safe to say that we attracted even more attention than usual. We met a couple of kids around our age who were heading into Old San Juan so we introduced ourselves and decided to follow them. We ended up in some back roads of the city where a lot of the bars opened up all their garage-like doors, facilitating a huge block party. We hung out there for a bit then headed over to Senor Frogs. We had to wait in line for what seemed like an hour and finally got in! Between stealing a cupcake from the waitress stand, watching two of my roommates do a very scandalous competition which involved me getting violent with a Puerto Rican for a balloon, getting some drinks, and dancing, I'd say the night was a success. Half of us were exhausted by 1:30 and decided to take a cab home. I can't wait to go back there this weekend!

(Knock on wood) Puerto Rico is a magical place where hangovers don't exist because I was up by 10:30 and ready to go to the beach the next day. Five of us wanted to go to Isle Verde, a nearby beach, but we didn't know what bus to take. The bus system is very confusing without a map or internet connection. The locals were extremely nice and willing to help but three different people literally pointed us in three different directions. Finally we gave up and decided to go to Condando, another beach that was easier to get to. After an hour and a half we reached our destination and it was totally worth it. The beach was pretty empty and really beautiful. It was overcast, which wasn't a terrible thing because it prevented the temperature from being painfully high. We stayed at the beach for a few hours then decided to get birthday drinks for Katie before taking a cab back to the train station instead of risking it with the buses. 

We took it easy on Sunday night because our first day of classes were Monday. It's kind of nice to get back into the swing of things, but sitting in the same classroom from 8:30-2 is going to get really old really fast. After class some of us went up to the rooftop pool because it was FINALLY open!! Even though it wasn't sunny it was still nice to do some reading outside and relax.

Today was our first day of clinical and it was different to say the least. The nurses in PR basically just pass meds and don't do assessments. We are obviously going to do assessments to get our practice in but it is still very confusing to understand who does what on the floor. There are no CNAs and the LPNs are the ones who take vitals, do bed baths, etc. Going from having three patients during my summer internship down to one was a little boring but I'm sure that I will be able to keep myself occupied throughout the semester. The nurses and everyone else on the floor are so welcoming and receptive to us which is a huge change from every clinical experience I have had before. The documentation is all in English and all of the employees speak English, but I am still confused by the different environment. This will definitely be an experience to remember. 

When we got out of clinical the sun was finally out!! We literally have not seen it for more than a few minutes since arriving. Even though it was incredibly hot, I was so excited that the clouds had gone away. As soon as I got home, I put my bathing suit on and headed up to the pool to get my bronze on. Now, here I am once again, sitting here, doing anything but schoolwork because I just don't want to. At least I got some reading done by the pool, so I can't complain :) 

Rain, rain, and a lot more rain!

Day three in PR! So far my stay has included a lot of rain, bad wifi and cell service, rum and good people. The hurricane missed us (I think) but we’ve had a lot of rain and overcast skies. On the first night we got all excited over the pounding rain but Javier, our personal Puerto Rican (as stated by Katie) told us it was normal for the island. Our wifi in the apartment is spotty… I accidently kicked everyone off yesterday while trying to FaceTime mom and Rob. I guess we’ll each have to have designated Skype times. Before leaving for PR, we were all under the impression that our Verizon would work the same as it does back home, including 3G, but ever since we arrived, our service has been “extended” or “roaming.” We all avoided talking on the phone because we thought we’d get charged $0.69 a minute (cough cough according to Bri) but today we learned that we should be ok to talk while we’re on “extended” service. Living without 3G is tough to get used to but I suppose we'll survive. Everyone has been getting along well. I got lucky that the group likes to have fun! The rum that everyone drinks down here is DonQ and it’s pretty cheap. I’m excited to go to Old San Juan tomorrow and look for some more authentic or homemade Puerto Rican rum. We stayed in both nights due to the rain and the fact that we had early mornings but are planning to go out tonight either around the university or in Old San Juan. Hopefully the rain will hold up!

Yesterday we took a tour of the neighborhood, got our unlimited train passes, saw the University, and ate mofongo.. a traditional Puerto Rican dish made from plantains. The city is not as well kept as I thought it would be, but it still is nice in its own way. Living in a city is a whole lot different than living in Suffield or Storrs. Our apartment is amazing and we have a nice view from the 12^th floor. I can’t wait to see the pool on the roof.. the building is 23 stories high so the view will probably be twice as nice from up there!

Today we went to the hospital where we saw the room we’d spend Mondays and Fridays in for class and also the floor where we’ll spend most of our clinical days. Getting the syllabus for med-surg was intimidating to say the least. We will cover the normal 14 week semester in just 7 weeks which will include exams every Friday. I can’t wait till October when we switch to the (hopefully) easier psych. Our home base floor at the hospital seems really great. The walls are painted bright colors and the staff is really friendly. We start clinical next Tuesday. In addition to being on that floor, we’ll have the opportunity to float to surgery, ICU, ER, and cardiac cath lab. I still don’t know what type of nurse I want to be, so hopefully my experiences this semester will help me decide that! We have one more weekend before classes start but I am going to try to get ahead on the readings for next week… oh the joys of nursing school.

Until next time!