Leaving on a jet plane... to Rhode Island

My next rotation is the AQUAVET course in Bristol, Rhode Island! I am taking the first course which covers from invertebrates to marine mammals. It is a month long crash course in aquatic veterinary medicine. I had a brief time at home to drop off my car and pick up the essentials--> snorkeling equipment ;) Mom and Dad dropped me off at the airport to begin my trip out to the east coast. The obligatory selfie was taken before going through security...

Goodbye Wisconsin!

I still haven't quite finished my presentation for this rotation yet, so I was reading a few scientific papers during the flight and I found my new favorite transitional phrase...

Scopelitis, J. et al. Coral colonisation of shallow reed flat in response to rising sea level: quantification from 35 years of remote sensing data at Heron Island, Australia. Coral Reefs (2011) 30:951- 965

"For concision sake!" This made me laugh out loud. The guy sitting next to be probably thought I was crazy laughing at a scientific paper. 

I had a layover in Philadelphia and saw this gem for GoT fans while I was walking through the terminal. 

Flying from Philadelphia to Providence was an absolutely stunning flight. Seeing all the bays and islands at sunset was beautiful. I ended up spending the night in Massachusetts before driving to Bristol to check in Sunday at noon. Bristol definitely feels very New England! We are walking distance to the Bay!! Everyone at AQUAVET is so friendly, kind and totally my people! We are all geeking out about aquatics and I love it! We also had our orientation and first lectures today. This is the building we are in!

Cetacean skeleton!

Gotta have a fish tank!

 After our evening classes finished up we had a social event where all of us got to get to know each other more.

Aren't these awesome!! When you put hot water in them you they show the map of the world. They are called global warming thermoses.

Now it is time for bed to rest up for a busy morning of sampling in the bay and classes!