First Day of School...Again

This will be a short update.  I am in Columbia, SC where I'm studying Russian at Columbia International University- at the Institute of Strategic Languages and Cultures.  Sounds impressive, huh?  First day of class today scared me to death just because I had no clue where they were already and where I am in relation to the rest of the class.  It wasn't a bad day though.  After one day I feel like they are ahead of me conversationally (to be expected as that's a primary focus of this course) and they may have a better grasp of the grammar they've been taught already ( I think they've only covered 4 of the 6 Cases and I've covered all 6 but maybe not in as much detail).  

Columbia is nice; I haven't had time to explore much.  There's a confluence of 3 Rivers here in town and lots of green space.  I have my Kayak and Bike with me.  I'm hoping to go hiking in NC next month when the leaves are changing. I visited 2 different churches last Sunday and might go to a small group meeting this Thursday (What am I thinking?  State and Auburn are on ESPN Thursday night??).  

I'm renting a trailer about a 1/4 mile from the language school.  I'm within 5 miles of any restaurant or store I could want (except an REI Store or Jeep Store).  I know a few people here in town but haven't been able to catch up with them yet.

So that's about it for now.