My first 7 hours in SL

After spending approx. 7 hours in Second Life (yes, the first 3 were with the class) I can proudly say that I am on my way to understanding how to move about and make the most of SL. (Note the phase "on my way")
During my first class meeting, I was struck the most by how tedious every action seemed to be. It took a long time for me to type anything, and I struggled with navigating my avatar. I would press the button, and there would be a delay between my motion and motion of the avatar, which would lead to me pressing the button again and again, which would lead to me eventually ending up in a pond, a fountain- or just the wrong direction. I have since learned that these problems are all due to the technical limitations of my computer, and that I will just need to learn how to deal. With a little more practice I will undoubtedly learn how to work with my computer to control the movements of my avatar.
I think another reason that I found my first class in SL to be so "tedious" was that I had nothing to associate all of this new knowledge with. I knew nothing about virtual worlds, and therefor could not understand what people do in them or why. Today I explored the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam and exactly teleported myself to the an Italian fashion show. That certainly gave me a better understanding of what people are doing there. Being able to see the inside of the Anne Frank house was really neat; it looked real. There are so many places in SL to explore, but I am interested in hearing people's stories about how they ended up there. So if you read this and you have an interesting beginner SL story please share!! Tell me if there was an event there you wanted to attend, or a person you wanted to meet. Tell me how you have created your social network in SL.
In regards to technicalaties, I have come a long way. My ability to go somewhere, and then come back, has improved. I have learned how to change my appearance, my preferences, my gestures (I even picked up some Salsa dance moves from Help Island). What I still need to learn is what to do with my self when I am there- really find my social niche.
That's all I have to say about my first 7 hours, if anyone has any comments, suggestions, or stories, I would love to hear from you!