To number 686...

Dear number 686,

You don't know me yet and I still haven't had the pleasure to meet you though I'm looking forward to that happening in a couple of days.
Today I saw the place where we'll meet... It gets crowded and there will be many people in there so we won't really have a quiet time together but I'm sure we'll like each other... I already feel I like you!
And this is because you have given me an incredible gift that will help me become the doctor I aim to be and for this I'll be eternally grateful. Through your gift I'll gain knowledge, confidence and skills. I promise always to be respectful and try my best to do things right with you. I'll come prepared for our meetings and I'll be very careful to make the most of what I'll learn from you!

I'm glad we never met before, it would have made the next few months a bit awkward otherwise and I possibly wouldn't be able to enjoy your gift as much but this doesn't mean that I wouldn't have been curious to hear what you have done before coming to St Andrews... Who knows? Maybe one day I will find out...

I wish I could tell you a bit about myself, it seems a bit unfair that I'll be able to discover your innermost secrets and you don't even know my name.
I'm really looking forward to be with you and I am really appreciative and a bit emotional thinking that if it weren't for you and others like you I wouldn't have the amazing opportunity of discovering what makes our bodies so special!

So here is my thank you, from the bottom of my heart, to you my cadaver, one day I'll know your name but for the moment you're number 686 and I already feel like we have a connection!

Dona x

One week on...

Unbelievable...

After having wished for the moment I would start med school to come for what seemed to be an endless summer, a week has already passed and things will start to get serious from next Monday!

So how was my first week at St Andrews?

Well, I have to say:
"exciting" coming from the realisation that I am a proper doctor in training now,
"brilliant" thanks to all the new friends I have already made,
"inspiring" after all the talks from our lecturers and presentations of the university,
"a bit of a drag" after we have heard the same rules explained several times in a row though I supposed that, since it's quite important that us doctors behave professionally, it doesn't hurt to repeat them just a few extra times
"happy" because I am finally doing what I have wanted to do for just about a lifetime
"daunting" as of course pressure was put on us to perform to the best of our abilities
"fattening" thanks to the several social events that were organised to socialise with our classmates.

All considered, despite having to part with some blood to be tested for some diseases to make sure we're fit to practice, I am still living a dream and it's unlikely that this feeling will change anytime soon!

So bring on the real clinical stuff from next week, see the "baby-doctor" (as we have been defined by our lecturers) grow into someone that will be able to make the difference in people's lives...

I am ready, loving it and rearing to go!

Music to my ears

Though music it was not!

Saturday I headed towards Leuchars with a friend and his dad to see the airshow which takes place every year in September.

The weather was just perfect for such an event and even the 3 hours sitting in traffic we had to endure didn't curb the enthusiasm of assisting to such an amazing show.

The place was incredibly crowded and taking pictures was challenging to say the least but the day was fabulous and the flying displays were just incredible. Especially the one of the Red Arrows that painted the sky red white and blue in different shapes (including a heart!)

As I was standing there watching these flying machines sail effortlessly through the sky and hearing the blast of the engines I wondered how breathtaking it must be for a jet pilot to be able to do such things, to fly at that speed, to own the sky and to turn so many heads...

I had to take a picture close to one of these beautiful iron birds...

What an amazing day!

The new sister

She arrived just before I left to go on holiday in Italy... Gift (alas, to be returned) of a friend in need


A little bundle of fur, quite scared and aggressive; never I had heard a cat growl like a bear but she did give a very good demonstration of it.

The first few nights she slept close to me, in my bedroom with the door closed... after spending the first afternoon hiding under the bed she came out and started exploring.

Now she's unstoppable!

She eats any food that's left around, has put her two stepbrothers in line and she rules the house.
No place is off boundaries and she walks around like a queen in her castle...


This said, still at night she cuddles close to me with her head resting in the palm of my hand and she purrs looking at me with those beautiful, enticing, emerald eyes she was gifted with...

Welcome to your step-family India... you are the proof that any girl will always rule!



Love you loads already!!!

Back to school...

Well, I have been absent for a month or so...

Been on holiday, ate too much food, traveled around a bit, had fun with friends... even gave a bath to our dog!

But now the fun is over and it's time to get serious again (who me?!?)

In just over a week my adventure at St Andrew's will begin and though that will be so much fun in many ways it also needs to be taken seriously because that's my future... That's what will finish to make me the doctor I want to be and give me the tools to make the difference in people's lives.

I'm all sorted (have been for a while actually :-p)! Have my books, loads of stationery, coloured pens, pads to take notes, folders already set up on my laptop and yes, I even have all my folders colour co-ordinated with the subjects... In short, I need nothing else but my train tickets to get up there.

Wish me luck!!!