Picture update starts with my hash browns. I don't think I will make it again, now trying to force myself to finish it.Imagine the hash browns from McD's, which is golden and crisp on the outside and soft on the inside. This is not it. I think the main reason may be because this one's baked, and McD's one might be fried...

On the other hand...I want to make carrot cake.

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Anyways, the other day, I went to Campus life and events' office, looking for an AAU shirt, which all new students get. And when I reached there, the staff also gave me one of these. The AAU portfolio and pencil bags. I think they will come in useful for putting my oversized papers for anatomy class.
And the AAU shirt. My camera has an issue with the colour red. It turns red into pink whenever there's too much of it.
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Yesterday, I went to Fisherman's Wharf with Mandy. Mostly to see the historical ships on display, but for me, it was also to sample the well known food of San Francisco. Everyone says that when you are here, you must eat 3 things: Ghirardelli's chocolate, Ben and Jerry's ice-cream, and clam chowder in a sourdough bread bowl.

This one's the clam chowder. I liked the clam chowder, but the main part of the meal was the sourdough bread. Maybe it's an acquired taste, but it got a bit overwhelmingly sour towards the end. The outside is tough, which may have been necessary to contain the chowder, but not a plus when it comes to taste.
Some animal shaped sourdough bread being made at Boudin's bakery. The kitchen has a glass window so visitors can see how the bread is made. Another good thing is that this means they have to be very hygienic when making the bread. No picking your nose and then kneading the bread with the same unwashed hand, please.

The Hyde St. Pier historical ships on display. There were several different types of ships on display, but only 2 were open at the time, this merchant ship with sails (the Balclutha), and another one which looked like a steamboat(the Eureka). The entry was $5, but the good thing is that it's valid for 7 days, so you can visit the ships at leisure.
Golden Gate Bridge in the fog
One of the rooms in the Balclutha.
The galley.
Stairs to the deck.
They had this programme for kids as well. The kids pretend to be ship crew members, while actors in costumes order them around. It would be fun if they rented costumes to go with that, especially for Halloween or something.
The Eureka housed a collection of antique cars. Pretty cute...they should revive this style of cars.
And then later, on to Ghirardelli Square, which has their chocolate shops and cafes, as well as other eateries. What most people do is just go into the shops, get their free sample of chocolate, and leave without buying anything. Their chocolate is really good though. Shared this waffle cone ice cream with melted chocolate, with Mandy. I don't think 1 person can finish it.
Only thing left to try is the Ben and Jerry's ice cream, but that can be bought from anywhere.

Last picture: The F line electric busses run by MUNI along Fisherman's Wharf. The busses were imported from all over Europe and America. Quite cute, retro vehicles.
Oh yeah, an this, the Bushman. We laughed at people getting scared by the not-so-realistic bush, but then we fell for that later on ourselves, because you don't pay so much attention to things outside your peripheral vision, until it goes "Boo"at you. This guy's got a Wikipedia page

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Classes started today. My first class was Anatomy, a 6 hour class (ok, 5, if you minus lunch break, but still...) The bus ride there itself was a bit of an event. The uni provides free bus shuttle services between uni buildings and dorms, since they are scattered all over the city, but they are very crowded. So, sometimes you'd have to stand in the bus. The bus railings are really high up, you might as well have to grab hold of the ceiling to steady yourself (although strangely, I don't think Americans are much taller than us) So imagine the bus is moving, right. It breaks and starts very jerkily. And San Francisco is a very hilly place. And you have to carry a bigass portfolio bag, containing the drawing board nicknamed The Castrator. Nice ride. Too bad my classes are so far away, so walking is not an option.

The class size I guess, was about 15 people or so, from different majors and different semesters. Lots of animation students there though. Generally I think AAU has a lot of Fashion and Animation students. And a lot of Chinese and Korean students too. The funny thing is that, since we are Masters students, everyone comes from different backgrounds. Some have never studied art, they took maybe science or business for their undergraduate course and switched to art just this semester. Then there are those who have been working for years, and are just here to polish their skills before returning to work again. Personally I'm glad that there are some people to be a bit of a noob with me. I think I will have a kiasu breakdown if everyone is a 50 year old Korean who has worked in the Animation industry for the past few decades...

So far, pretty pleased with the class. I've taken anatomy in TOA before, but this one is more detailed. TOA's was like blocking in shapes, and this one is those types that are so detailed, you know the names of the bones. But mostly you'd have to study from your own book, the class is just to explain it clearer. And yes, naked models for live drawing. Which some of you probably think is going to be exciting. Only thing is that they are not going to be hiring swimwear models to pose, but everyday people with various things sagging in an unsightly (but more realistic) manner. Oh well...now I don't feel so bad about my body anymore.

Also, tried out belly dancing classes today. The uni provides free recreational classes and facilities to the staff and students, which is especially good for me, since the building with most of the activities is just next door. No traveling in the night time in the bus with sweaty clothes. They have dance classes(modern, Broadway, belly dancing, Zumba), fitness classes(cycling, weights, yoga, rowing) and self defense classes (Judo and Aikido) as well as a gym and pool. Apparently, this weekend there will also be Bollywood dancing, so that sounds interesting. And you wouldn't have to commit to one, so I can try them all out.

The belly dancing was 1 1/2 hours, but it felt quite short. Not that easy to learn though. I think I probably have 2 left feet. Especially when the class is so crowded and you can't see what the instructor is doing, you end up trying to copy the person in front of you instead. Only thing I would be uneasy about though, are the cheerleader type students. There you are in your most convenient clothes and slightly tousled hair, and there they are in perfect makeup and nice clothes with an upturned nose. See...this is why so many of my friends are geeks :) People with a little spare tyre ,some blemishes and imperfect skills with makeup are the best ones to be friendly with.