Personally, I don’t use a bike, but I do know some people that do. While there are quite a few stairs and hills at UCLA, bringing a bike would certainly allow you to get to certain classes much faster than you could by walking. At the same time, though, riding a bike would involve taking wheelchair detour ramps to avoid stairs, not to mention the issue of finding a place to park and secure your bike both while you’re on campus and on the Hill.

Ultimately, the choice really comes down to you. The majority of the student body doesn’t bike, but don’t let that deter you if you want to bring one!

Nothing special really happens on the first day of school (Week 1, Day 1) for freshmen. You wake up, go to class, and come back—that’s pretty much it. During Zero Week, however, there will be a range of activities designed to acclimate you back into the school atmosphere.

If you’re wondering about orientation and registration for classes, that’ll be in the summer. You’ll be assigned a New Student Advisor who will facilitate the process. For more information on orientation, you can visit the UCLA New Student and Transition Programs page.

Your GEs are the same for all majors in the College of Letters and Sciences; the pre-requisites for each major, however, are not.

http://www.registrar.ucla.edu/ge/GE-LS11-12.pdf

In the simplest of terms, your major is the area of study on which you’ll focus most of your time at UCLA. For instance, since I (Cameron) am an English major, almost all of the classes I’ll take—with the exception of general education requirements—will be related in some way to literature. They can vary in theme, topic, and scope, but they will all ultimately fall under the same general umbrella category.

A minor is an area of study that you are pursuing either as a field of interest or as a complement to your major. For example, a physics major may choose to minor in applied math to give him or herself more opportunities and “hireability” in the field. Alternatively, that same physics major may minor in musicology to cultivate his or her love of harpsichord music. (Slight digression: if you know of the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program, think of majors as HL classes and minors as SL classes, in that your HL classes are your main focus, while the SL classes are arguably less important.)

As for the course numbering system, it’s actually quite simple. Courses that end in 00-99 are denoted as lower division courses, which usually have to be cleared as pre-requisites before you can start your upper division work in a major or minor. Upper division courses range from 100-199. These are considered the “core” of your program of study. Anything above 199 (200-499) denotes a graduate course.

In regards to your last point, I personally think British people are really cool! (Then again, though, the vast majority of my knowledge of British culture comes from watching episodes of Doctor Who and Torchwood.)

There’s nothing particularly “special” about the 14 Premiere meal plan; it does, however, offer some benefits over its 14 Regular counterpart. I’ve included some information from UCLA’s Housing site:

Bruin Premier 19

This is our most flexible meal plan. It offers a preset number of meals at the beginning of each academic quarter. Unused meals carry over from week to week and can be used at any time during the quarter for extra meals and snacks for you, your friends, or family. All meals must be used by the end of the quarter. You should monitor your meal usage to ensure that you have enough meals through the end of each quarter. 

Gold 19

Our most cost-effective plan, the Gold 19, is designed for students who wish to eat in the residential dining facilities most of the time. This plan provides for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, Monday through Friday, as well as for brunch and dinner on Saturday and Sunday. Unlike the Bruin Premier 19, meals not eaten during the week cannot be accumulated or saved and do not carry over from week to week. Gold 19 allows only one entry per designated meal period.

Bear Premier 14 

This plan provides the same flexibility as Bruin Premier 19, but it is designed for residents who generally go home on the weekends or who prefer to skip breakfast. The same carry-over privilege with Bruin Premier 19 also applies to Bear Premier 14.

Blue 14 

This plan provides 14 meals per week. Meals that are not eaten during the week cannot be accumulated or saved. The Blue 14 allows only one entry per designated meal period.

Cub 11

This is our most basic plan for students who are not on campus during weekends or for those who eat only two meals a day. As with the Gold 19 and Blue 14, meals that are not eaten during the week cannot be accumulated or saved. Cub 11 allows only one entry per designated meal period.

Personally, I would recommend going with a 14 Premiere meal plan for your first year. As your eating habits solidify during the year, you can make the choice of whether to upgrade or downgrade as necessary for either the following quarters or the coming year.

Source: http://map.ais.ucla.edu/go/1001859