Louise's thoughts

Partying in Cambridge

Last night I went out with some conference fellows, we took the traditional British route: pre-dinner beer at the pub, curry dishes at the Indian restaurant, after dinner beer at another pub, and finally clubbing until they closed at 2 am. Strangely enough this pattern is all determined by British closing hours, since the pub closes at 11 pm, you have to get as much out of their opening hours as possible. I was quite surprised by the average age at the pub; people explained it as being Cambridge, a student town, but some of the people didn't look a day over 16. They were all asked for their ID and quickly got plastered, stumbling around. It was worse at the club and I was again appalled by their lack of taste (clothes) and lack of ability to just stop drinking (or switch to coke as I practice sometimes). In the bathroom I overheard a girl, who could hardly make herself understood, talking to the girlfriend, who desperately wanted to know why she was angry. Obviously it had something to do with a guy (understandable on my part).

I got to hang out with fellow researchers and for once they were not only students 5 years younger than I, but actually people with real jobs. For once I felt like I was perceived as a fellow researcher and not just another student. Although I was my company's token women, except for dinner, I didn't think too much of it as I sometimes do. I guess it is all about my own attitude towards the situation and my level of intimidation of people who do work that I admire but don't understand.

Partying in Cambridge was fun, but that was just as much due to the company. I don't feel the need to party until 2am anytime soon, but know very well that I will be talked into something similar next week. That is the point about having conferences, workshops and seminars for a whole month: I will not need to, not want to, not have time to do any kind of social thing for the next couple of months, because that time is devoted to the most important thing in my life right now: my PhD thesis.