my journey "across the pond"

home sweet home

2010-06-13T15:19:00.002+01:00

I arrived back in Iowa on Tuesday night. I gave myself a few days to process before attempting to blog about completing the year and saying the final goodbyes and re-entry into America. My mom picked me up at the Chicago airport in the afternoon and we made the 4 1/2 hour drive home-- chatting the whole way of course. Somewhere between Galena and Dyersville, looking out over the sea of cornfields, I was struck by a sudden, "I can't believe I'm finally home," and at the exact same time, "I can't believe I was gone for a whole year." Basically, the whole ten month experience dropped into the same realm as dreams in about two hours. Funny how our minds do that. So I needed a few days to get my bearings.

Goodbyes were hard. Really hard. The thing is, I know that that means that I made good friends. Saturday the basketball team had our end of the year awards dinner, Sunday I met some of my friends for one last go at the pub near to my house, Monday day I spent saying goodbyes to some of my closest friends (I really miss you guys already!), and Monday night I went to my hosting Rotary club to say a farewell and officially exchange banners.

The honest truth is that my brain is still a bit fuzzy. I am jet-lagged, which in this case means crashing mentally from exhaustion around 6 or 7 in the evening, not even physically being able to stay awake past 9, and waking up between 5 and 6 in the morning. I am still trying to get my head around all the experiences I had and everything I had to opportunity to see and do.

As apart of my Ambassadorial Scholarship, I have to put together a "Final Report" document, reflecting on the year. I am in the process of reflecting and once I put that report together I will post bits of it on my blog so that there will be a more coherent evaluation on here. Then I will also be giving presentations at various Rotary clubs throughout my district in Eastern Iowa about Wales and my experience this year. If you are interesting in having me come speak to your club-- please get ahold of me: lauraedwards13@yahoo.com If you are family/friends and aren't apart of Rotary, but are interested in hearing my presentation, also get ahold of me and I will see if there is a club that you could come as a guest with me when I am speaking. I have learned so much about Rotary this year and it truly is a wonderful organization-- I am so grateful for this opportunity.

As for my summer plans... Tomorrow I will be heading to St. Charles, Iowa to volunteer for the week at Wildwood Hills Ranch. For those of you who are unfamiliar, Wildwood is the non-profit dearest to my heart-- it is a horse ranch that serves as a summer camp for at-risk youth. At-risk meaning kids 8-18 who have been abused, neglected or come from poverty. The camp is designed to give them opportunities to experience the outdoors, horses, swimming, teambuilding activities, hiking, etc. all the while being shown love and that they are worthwhile individuals who are valued, and being taught character and integrity. It is an incredible organization to be apart of. This particular week is especially dear to my heart because the kids who are attending camp are from Waterloo. Please keep the staff and kids in your prayers this week-- the weeks can sometimes be difficult because of habits and environments that some of the kids come from, but the opportunity to be exposed to an environment where these kids know that they are valued and cared about can change their lives.

Besides spending time at Wildwood, I will be spending the summer catching up with friends and family, hopefully getting some hours at Edwards Smith Family Dentistry so I can start replenishing my bank account, and moving myself to Iowa City so I can be settled in time to begin classes at the Univeristy of Iowa Dental College in August. It's going to be an exciting summer!

Thanks to those of you who bearing with my outpouring of words over the last 10 months. :) Thank you for all of the encouragement and support throughout my journey. Like I said before, I will post my final report document on my blog when I complete it, but aside from that... this is me signing off. It's been a good year. I can't believe its passed already. Ta ra! (a British goodbye)

the smell of education

2010-06-03T10:45:00.005+01:00

There are times and places where the atmosphere of education is so attractive to me. It doesn't take much to get caught up in thinking I could be in an academic atmosphere forever. I just love it. (I can hear my friend Megan reading this and saying, "You really are my favourite nerd...") Oxford was one of those places. In addition to the beauty and tranquility of the city itself, having a college around every turn that breathed academic excellence was so cool. Oxford is nicknamed "the city of dreaming spires." I mean, how romantic is that?!

Oxford University is the oldest surviving English-speaking university, and third oldest university in the world (behind the University of Bologna and University of Paris). Although not exactly certain of a foundation date, historians do know that teaching was going on in Oxford in 1096. The university is a federation comprised of over 40 self-governing colleges and halls. When I visited Oxford on Tuesday, I visited several of the colleges and let me tell you, each is beautiful.

<-- One of my favorites was Christ Church College. It had a magnificent courtyard, a cathedral (the only university in the world to have a cathedral as opposed to the many who have chapels), a world famous cathedral choir, a war memorial garden, and 150 acre meadow aside it for the enjoyment of the students. This is a photo of me in the courtyard. Out of Christ Church College has come thirteen British prime ministers and loads of recognized individuals, author Lewis Caroll, theologian John Wesley, scientists like Albert Einstein and Robert Hooke and so many more noteables I could make a whole blog out of the list of people (John Locke, Robert Peel, William Gladstone, W.H. Auden, David Dimbleby, Rowan Williams, Richard Curtis, Howard Goodall...). I thought this was sort of interesting-- some places in Christ Church College are inspiration for several parts of Lewis Caroll's Adventures in Wonderland.

<-- When I was visiting Oxford I opted for a self-guided tour, which I really enjoyed because I could go at my own pace and make pit stops as I wanted. One such pit stop was at the Grand Cafe-- the very first coffee shop in the UK, serving the first cup in 1615. On my walk I also stopped off at the Botantical Gardens, known for being the oldest teaching gardens. There was a memorial surrounded by rose bushes commemorating the discovery of Penicillin that I thought was pretty cool.

<-- Oxford's central research library is the Bodleian library. It is home to 117 miles of shelving, the second largest library in the UK (after the British library). It is a "legal deposit" library, meaning that they are entitled to a free copy of every book published in the UK and is therefore growing at a rate of 3 miles of shelving per year! On one side of the library is the Radcliffe Camera, a dome shaped building affiliated with the library, used to house the science books. On the other side is the Clarendon Building, which used to house the Oxford University Press... think dictionaries! In 1975 the Clarendon Building was handed over to the library. This photo is the library with the Radcliffe camera behind. The day I was visiting it was really crappy weather, so this photo really just doesn't give the old historical buildings any justice. Standing outside the library you could just feel the prestige of centuries of great minds coming and going to use the books and do their work. Walking the streets in Oxford, I was struck by a sense of being honored to be able to visit the places where these great people had done so much of their work.

I have to tell everyone-- I finished my exams!!! Wooo!!!! It always feels so good to complete yet another year in my academic journey :)

knighthood still exists

2010-06-02T12:09:00.007+01:00

With two exams completed and only one more to go, the pressure was on. And when the pressure is on to be studying, the pressure to come up with even better reasons not to also looms even more closely. Luckily, my commitment to exploring the UK and getting the most out of the cultural experience provides material from which to draw excuses to sneak away from Swansea and the daunting task of traditional studying. Don't worry, I took my study materials with me on the train :)I am really passionate about making sure I see and do all that I can while I'm here, so that means that even in this last week, I have been trying to make the most of it.

Thanks to Sue Smith, I have had in my hands this term the first season of the television show, The Tudors. For those of you who aren't familiar with it-- I would first advise that it is probably not suitable for kids. It is a soap opera style TV drama following the story line of Henry the VIII, his life as King of England, and his six wives. Although it is a little "trashy," it has provided a more interesting backdrop from which the history of the British monarchy, and I have grown to love it. In addition to watching The Tudors, I have also made an effort to watch period dramas like The Other Boleyn Girl and Elizabeth I. Luckily, I have a friend here who is equally entranced by these shows-- so I'm not alone. I know that TV producers have added their own twists and drama to the stories, but I've kept my computer close and have been googling individuals out of curiosity how close their TV characters were to the real thing. I know that the personalities are hard to pinpoint historically, but what they are pictured doing is surprisingly accurate.

--> Take this whole fascination with the monarchy one step further, and I've accidentily reinforced my TV habits with real history. Monday I went and visited Windsor castle, which had so much to see and learn, but along the Tudor line, was where Henry VIII himself, along with some of his closest friends (like Charles Brandon, Duke of Suffolk for those of you who know the TV show) as well as Jane Seymour were buried. Also buried in St. George's Chapel at Windsor was Edward IV, Henry VI, Charles I (among many others) and more recently the queen's mother. It is also where the current queen intends to be buried.

--> For a little bit more history-- when William the Conquerer came over to Britain in 1070, he decided that he wanted London to be his capital. In order to protect the city, he built 9 castles around it. Two of those are still standing: the Tower Castle (which I visited in March) and Windsor. While both house heaps of history within their walls, Windsor is still an "official residence" of the Queen. Across the lawn in this photo is the "private apartments," where the queen stays when she is there. Apparently she didn't get my note about coming to visit, she wasn't there when I was there.

--> The big attractions in Windsor for tourists to see are the queen's dollhouse, the state apartments, the round tower (pictured behind me here) and the chapel. Unfortunately, the only one you can photograph is the tower-- from the outside. While the Tower Castle was originally built in stone, Windsor was originally wood. Obviously the original wood wasn't able to survive a thousand years of wear and tear, so they have had to rebuild. The round tower is the oldest structure standing, being built in stone about one hundred years after the original wood was put up (so during the 1100s).

The State Apartments were my favorite, particularly St. George's Hall. Inside this massive hall where the queen hosts banquets there were knight's sheilds up on the ceilings and along the walls, just over a thousand of them. I was fascinated by the "Order of the Garter." I guess I didn't know that knights and stuff like this still existed, even though nowadays it isn't as hardcore as it was originally. So the Order of the Garter is the highest order of knighthood. Yup, knights still exist-- they originated in medevil England, created by King Edward III, were warriors, and were all apart of the order of chivalry. At any time in history, the Order of the Garter was comprised of the monarch, the Prince of Wales, and 24 companions (appointed by the monarch). The knight's sheilds are all on display in St. George's Hall because the order is dedicated to St. George, the patron saint of England. There are some sheilds that are blank, though, instead of showing the particular coat of arms. I learned that rather than take the sheild down when a knight is degraded from the order, for committing a crime like treason, the sheild is left up, but blank, to remind everyone the cost of treason.

ketchup... no-- catch up!

2010-06-02T11:37:00.004+01:00

In an effort to attempt to study for my exams, I told myself I needed to take a break from the computer-- at least from facebook and blogging. Ha, yea right. What actually happened was I just found myself finding other things to do with my time and my blog got backed up and now I have to play catch up!

<--Not this last weekend, but the weekend before, I went to Cardiff to visit Gareth and Jan Cheeseman. Now this is a memory jogger because I have mentioned them before, but it has been awhile (time flys I tell ya!). Gareth and Jan are the lovely Rotarians that chaperoned the Ambassadorial scholars at district conference and took me to see Atlantic College in St. Donat's castle. I just had to see them once more before I hopped back over the pond. I stayed overnight at their home in Cardiff Bay and we got a perfect couple days- sunshine and heat!! Gareth and Jan both grew up in Cardiff when the bay was considered a really rough area. Sunday evening when we strolled around the bay, checking out all the unique boutiques and restaurants, massive hotels, million-plus pound residences, the opera house, etc, they were able to tell me about how the docks used to be dangerous and dirty. It's amazing how much can change!

<-- Monday we walked into the city centre by the new mall and pedestrian streets for shopping, the library, government buildings, the rugby stadium (the national football and rugby teams' home stadium is in Cardiff), by some of the university buildings, and into Bute park where we met Emily, another of the Ambassadorial scholars studying in Wales (in Cardiff), from Australia. I had met Emily in November at district conference. Gareth and Jan had arranged to take us for lunch at a pub in Bute park to catch up and say goodbyes since the year is drawing to a close. I'm beginning to work on my Final Report for Rotary, and one of the things I've found has been most beneficial to my year abroad and my learning process is the incredible people I've met from all over the world. Gareth and Jan have been such incredible people to get to know; passionate about Rotary and its initiatives and genuinely kind. Meeting other scholars, like Emily (and Claire) has opened my eyes to the people across the world who are doing great things-- if we just connect and work together the possibilites of what we can achieve are endless.

On another topic, I am fearing I didn't do Christian's German meal or Barbara's Italian meal justice, so I decided I should include photos, a visual will complete the experience. The following is Christian's meatballs in sauce, and then Barbara's super fresh brushetta and then her pasta. I didn't get a photo of her marscapone dessert because we ate it too fast. :) Mmmm....

the art of distraction

2010-05-29T12:02:00.002+01:00

It's funny how changing circumstances can change a person's perspective on things. Like how with the onset of a need to be studying for exams, suddenly so many things become important-- like cleaning the house, doing the dishes, and blogging of course! (Haha)

We students call this the art of distraction. Don't let me deceive you, exams are definitely important. Because of this fact, the student must frame the distraction in a light that portrays it to be more important. Thankfully, this term is offering much material to work with: given that it is my last weeks in Wales, not only is packing or cleaning a priority, but so is spending time with friends I may not ever see again. Thus, socializing becomes very important. :)

I am an emotional person (I can hear my mom chuckling already). I don't know who came up with the idea of putting exams at the end of the term, but don't they know that we students, especially international students, already have a lot on our plates this time of year?? Goodbyes are hard enough, let alone figuring out how I'm going to fit everything back into the TWO suitcases I came with, realization of how much less money I have, and then add to it the stress of exams. Not to mention that its finally been starting to feel like Spring/Summer around here.. Mom, can you even imagine the rollercoaster my emotions are on? It's no surprise my face has broke out a little bit!!

If you remember, at the beginning of this term I shared with you about how my American housemate and I made an "American dinner" for our international housemates. Well, we have continued the project to share our cultures-- My housemate, Jon, is from France and I have to be honest, his English isn't always the best (don't worry, he doesn't follow my blog), but he didn't quite understand the project and rather than sharing something French, made us one of his favorite new dishes-- fajitas! Haha! Christian, from Germany, made us a dish that he explained was really traditional and he'd grown up with his mom making it for him. It was meatballs in a cream of mushroom-type sauce over white rice, served it with a yummy cucumber salad on the side. Delic'! I have to admit that my favorite was our most recent-- Italian! Barbara is an amazing chef and she really treated us. Fresh bruschetta starter, pasta with a homemade cream sauce with mushrooms and ham in it, and marscapone dessert! Wowwy it was so good.

So anyway, these days have been filled with coming up with a packing strategy, beginning to say goodbyes to friends as they finish their exams and start leaving town, trying to enjoy the sunshine that Swansea has been offering lately, wrapping up paperwork from the university and my final report for Rotary-- oh, and studying for exams!!

one down, two to go

2010-05-26T23:45:00.004+01:00

Completed my first exam this morning. Honestly, this blog is more of a distraction from studying for my second exam than anything. Not that you all aren't important, but my days lately have been filled with attempts to study and learn last minute things before being evaluated. I have to say, though, in my studying with my friends from the UK, we've gotten into a lot of discussions about coursework and grades and one thing I'm realizing is there are so many differences between the US and UK educational systems.

I cannot even begin to explain the high school system here to you. To me, it sounds like they are in high school for two years and then they do two years of courses that are more focused on their interest area and structured in a way that is more transitional to a university-style schedule. Then, university and college are not the same thing here. The way I understand it, college is more like a technical school education and university is like our universities and colleges. Some people go to "college" instead of doing the last two years of high school. I think I have discussed this before, but the concept of a liberal arts education is definitely more rare in the UK. The US university system requires a much broader spectrum of classes, and therefore takes longer to achieve an undergraduate degree. While it takes at least four years in the States, undergraduate degree programs in the UK hardly ever take more than three years.

The differences abound when you start talking about how things are evaluated. We call it grading, they call it marking. While we have the gradepoint system that we are all familiar with-- I never realized how complicated it really is until I tried to explain it to a friend here. Hah! Maybe I'm just not very good at explaining! Nevertheless, for evaluating a specific assignment or exam, our grading is based on taking away points while theirs is based on earning points. So our professors give you 100% and then take away points for what you answer wrong or are missing. Here, they start at zero and give you points based on what components you have.

On a larger scale, our numerical grades are converted into letter grades while theirs are converted into another numerical system. Our top grade is an A+ depending on where you go, and theirs is called a 1st (so the top grade is a 1st, the next is a 2-1 followed by a 2-2, and then a 3rd). Step back another step and while our grades are converted into the gradepoint system and averaged based on the credit hours and accumulated as you take classes, theirs again, is different. The first year of their degree program is pass/fail. Then the next two years are weighted- sometimes each year is worth equal parts, but sometimes it is split where the second year is worth 30% and the third worth 70%. Like I said, it is very complicated.

In any sense, I must be getting back to my studying. One down, two to go!!

sun in swans

2010-05-22T18:02:00.006+01:00

--> You will never believe what I saw today-- the sun! Haha. I was starting to wonder if it even still existed... My Welsh friends got a kick out of my playful complaints about how my complexion has gone all wrong due to being so white I feel reflective and how I've just got to be vitamin D deprived.. They all laugh and say, "This is Wales!" The Welsh embrace their pasty skin tone and sing and dance in the rain... Ok, not quite. It has rained and rained and rained up until today. Today, the sun showed its marvelous face accompanied by none other than its lovely sister-- heat!! Today, it was summer. Ah.... finally the Wales that they put in the advertisements for the university online. :)

--> We all are in the midst of "revising" (the British word for studying) for our exams, but we felt compelled to embrace the day, "sharpen our saws", and head to the beach. What a wonderful choice we made!! My friends Jess and Ceridy insisted that I could not leave Wales without having swam in the sea, and I may not get a better day, so today was it. Digging my "swim costume" (as they call it) out, we packed our bags and headed for Caswell, a nice beach west of Swansea. And the water was COLD!!!!! So COLD. Probably the COLDEST water I've ever swam in in my life. It was also SO FUN. We took a frisbee, caught some rays, and prayed our toes didn't freeze off.

--> Reverse a couple of days... Tuesday I went with Ceridy and her sister, Immy, and Immy's boyfriend, Francesco, to stay a couple days at her grandparent's farm outside of Tenby. Tenby is a coast town in west Wales known for its stunning beaches. Of course, the two days we set out to explore the beaches some of the densest fog I've ever seen rolled in. We opted to bypass some of the beaches on account we wouldn't even be able to see the water or appreciate the view, but we made the most of it exploring other options. Wednesday we went into the Tenby village and shopped around at the surf shops and boutiques. This photo, in a way, tells a story for me. First of all, you can see how absolutely dense the fog was-- you can't even seen the water!! Second, the tide in Wales is unreal-- the second largest in the world! As such, when tide is out, the boats rest of the sand. The combination of these two things makes this picture almost sort of creepy...

--> Ceridy and Immy took us for several "traditional" meals. Tuesday night we got fish and chips in Kilgetty from a "proper chippy." Doused in vinegar and wrapped in paper to take home (like it traditionally was done), it was the best fish and chips I've ever had. Wednesday night, we went to a local pub in Tenby for dinner. They insisted that we experience "white bait," one of their long-time favorite snacks. Ehhhh.... while breaded fish is nothing new to me, I hope this picture is clear enough for you to see that the fish were whole!! I manned up enough to try them, and will admit that they did taste alright (like any breaded food), but I couldn't keep it up- it was just too much for me to see their beady little eyes, skin and tails!! Bleahhhhhhh......

--> Thursday we went to Pembroke Castle. Now, I have been to A LOT of castles. And the truth is they are starting to look similar. The significance of this castle, though, is that Henry the VII, the first king of the Tudor Dynasty, was born in Pembroke Castle. And even more significant in my little world, I did my essay for my Welsh History class last term on Henry the VII. Being in Europe this year has brought a lot of history to life for me, and this was yet another one. They had an exhibit set up in one of the rooms, marking the exact place where he was born. Very cool.

Between touring around, we spent time with Ceridy's grandparents. First of all, it was so good to be around a family, particularly out in the country around the animals. They had dogs and chicken and horses and ducks... "Bampa," as they called their grandpa, showed us how around the chicken pen, explaining how to know when they are about to lay eggs and how to get them to have chicks. He also got out the dogs and showed us some examples of the ways he trains them to retrieve when he's hunting. Lastly, "Batman," as they call their grandmother (who is usually called "Nan" by British people), was so hospitable-- it made me really miss my grandmas at home (Shout out to Grandma Jo and Grandma Emma! Can't wait to see you soon!). Over the course of three days, I think we had tea about a zillion times. I LOVE this British tradition. It is such a great way to sit down and have a chat with whoever is around and relax. Tea, tea, tea. All the time!!

When I get home and start getting together with all of you-- I think we should have tea!

busy busy bee

2010-05-18T10:31:00.007+01:00

There is a magpie that lives outside my window. They say that magpies mate for life. The one out my window is always alone so I think his mate may have died or else he just never met the "one." Either way, he has decided that we're roommates because he's always sitting outside my window like the roommate no one ever officially invited in. I think he was uninformed about a few social "norms". He starts singing quite loudly around 4:30 in the morning! Maybe he thinks I should be getting up earlier? I haven't had lectures to attend so I don't have anything scheduled to be getting up for in the morning, but contrary to my magpie's opinion, I have been getting up plenty early! I have been seizing my days around 8 and packing them full of last minute sight-seeing, reading on the beach, packing in time with friends I won't see for who knows how long, visiting Rotarians I have met, and studying in between!

<-- My housemate Lauren, and I at the Roman baths in Bath, England. One week ago today we took the train to Bath to explore the historical village. Bath was established around 43 AD by the Romans, who called it "Aquae Sulis," because of the hot springs. The only hot springs in the UK, they used the naturally warm water to heat the largest public bath in all of the Roman Empire. That's what is behind Lauren and I in this picture, and although you're not supposed to touch the water, I couldn't resist and it is warm! I have to say, now that I've been to Rome and see Roman architecture and remains in pretty much every city I've visited, I cannot help but be totally impressed. Those Romans were busy, efficient and obviously intelligent. I love going to the gym-- and they started the trend sooo long ago.

<-- Sunday, my friend Ceridy and I went to explore some of what the Brecon Beacons have to offer. The Brecon Beacons are the mountain range in South Wales, forming the centerpiece of the Brecon Beacons National Park. It was stunning and we got a perfect day. Our first stop was at the Dan-yr-Ogof caves. Claiming to be the largest show cave in all of Europe, it was massive. This photo is from inside one of the smaller pathways, but the next photo is from inside one of the larger caves.

<-- This is the "Cathedral Cave." They actually use it for weddings sometimes! It wouldn't be my pick of wedding location, but how unique! Truthfully, the photo doesn't really do it justice either because it turned a bit to the left so you can't see any of how big it is that way and all of what is behind me. There was a spot in one of the caves where you got quite a ways back and it was blocked off to the public. We found out later that only people a part of a special caving club can continue on because its not lit and a bit more rugged terrain, but that it continued on at least 20 more kilometers! These caves were the most amazing caves I've ever seen in my life!

<-- After exploring the caves, we drove to Glynneath, still in the Brecon Beacons and hiked along one of the rivers. It reminded me a lot of hiking in Oregon, dirt paths along the water up and down mountain sides. Every so often trees would open up to a breathtaking waterfall. We got to this one and there was a family sat down picnicing. Their dog, as you can see, was enjoying the water. It was picture-perfect. We were enjoying ourselves so much we didn't even realize we'd hiked for over two hours! It was awesome!

<-- Yesterday I caught the bus to Aberdare to visit Robert and Marilyn Bratman, Rotarians I had met when I visited the Aberdare Rotary club in November. We've kept in touch since, and I wanted to see them at least once more before I headed back to the States. Of course a simple visit is just not how the Bratmans roll. Marilyn took me to a cute little museum and art gallery in Aberdare, spoiled me with "study treats" from Tesco, and then we picked up Robert before going to a local pub for lunch. After lunch we had tea and chatted at their home until I had to catch the last bus back to Swansea. The Bratmans have been such wonderful people to have connected with!

<-- The pub that Robert and Marilyn took me too was out of fish and chips so I opted to try the "American burger" they offered on the menu. I don't know if you can tell from this photo, but it was THE BIGGEST piece of burger meat I've EVER seen in my entire life! I couldn't help but laugh-- it was 20 ounces!!! I think I maybe ate a fourth of it before calling it quits, but I couldn't help wondering where the pub owner had gotten the impression that American burgers are that huge?!

reflection is in the air

2010-05-10T15:14:00.007+01:00

On the way back from Stonehenge last week, my friend Alex asked me what the best and worst things about the year have been. A fair question. I've been starting to reflect on my year and put together ideas for the Rotary presentations I will be doing when I get home and part of that has been thinking about the best and worst things.

There have been a lot of "bests." I mean, look at my entire blog! Daily routines, friendships, travels.. the entire experience has been amazing. Today, as I sit here, if I had to pick just one thing that was the best, I wouldn't be able to do it. I would have to categorize: Academically.. the best part has been the chance to take classes that incorporate literature. I have a re-inspired love for reading.

Socially... the basketball team. I've said it before, but these girls have become my best friends. Not only have we played basketball together, but we've hung out, shared meals, traveled together, studied together, laughed, cried... Most recently we went and did an "assault course" together. We crawled through tunnels and mud and water in not-so-warm weather, through tires and over walls and on rope walkways through the trees, laughing the whole way through! They say courses like this are to build a team. We already are a close team so the experience helped to create yet another memory...

Traveling... this one is hard to put a finger on because its really hard to compare a city like Copenhagen or Amsterdam to Barcelona or Rome. I loved every minute of the traveling I've gotten to do. I took advantage of every opportunity I've had to spend time in London and fell in love with that city. It has so much to offer! Barcelona definitely stands out in my mind though, it was just SO unique from all the others, and the architecture and art were probably the most appealing to my eyes. That one is hard!

Rotary related... My favorite club I visited was Aberdare. All of the clubs were warm and inviting and encouraging, as all Rotarians are, but I particularly enjoyed the atmosphere that night. That night I met Robert and Marilyn Bratman, who had me over for lunch a couple weeks ago. District conference was pretty fun too! Getting to hang out in Torquay with the other scholars, Emily, Andrea, Wendy and Claire and dancing the nights away was a blast. As I've been reflecting, I have to say that having a host counselor/host family definitely made this experience top notch. While I am confident that I would have been OK on my own, having the Murrays' help to get around, show me things, and just knowing that there is a family nearby willing to look out for me took my experience to the next level. I am forever grateful to Rotary for setting up the scholarship that way, and to the Murrays for being those people.

In Swansea... The beach! Swansea Bay isn't the absolute prettiest beach I've ever been to in my life, but having the chance to live a five minute walk from the ocean has rocked my world! I love getting up in the morning and going for a walk on the sand, or just peaking out the window during a lecture to notice that the tide had come in, or being able to go out and BBQ and sit around a bonfire with friends. What can I say?? There aren't many beaches in Iowa, and the nearest ocean is at least 1,000 miles in any direction! How can I not enjoy what is new to me?

You may be wondering how I responded to the "worst" part of the question. Overwhelmingly, my time on this side of the pond has been positive, but of course there were moments. Nothing negative related to people or the places though. The things I have found myself most frustrated with have been the rain and when I miss the convenience of having a car. When I say the rain, I don't mean rain in general-- I just mean on those days when it was pretty hard AND the wind was gusting, blowing my umbrella inside out, AND I had to walk the fifteen minutes to campus for class. Which is where the convenience of private transportation comes in. In those same moments, I missed being able to make the dash to the car and zip to class or zip to the store. But truthfully, in hindsight, I know those moments were "character building." I still made it to class and I didn't melt.

I've got a few more exciting little day trips planned for the next couple weeks before my return to the States... and the daunting task of preparing for and completing my final exams, but I can feel the adventure is winding down. Living in house full of international students, I can feel it in everyone's attitudes and emotions. Dreading the goodbyes, cleaning up the house to move out, and packing. Reflection is in the air, and I can say with a smile that my reflecting is full of great memories.

most fascinating old rocks

2010-05-05T13:46:00.007+01:00

<-- I'm sure most of you recognized this famous circle of massive rocks known as Stonehenge. The bottom line is that they know they've been there for about 5000 years but they really don't have a clue why people took the time and effort to put them there. There are hypotheses of religious symbolism, the rocks also seem to line up like a giant sundial indicating the summer and winter solstices, or maybe it was a power thing. Then there is the issue of how did they get there? 5000 years ago, the type of rock came from over a hundred miles away, and they each weight about 5 tons. To be honest, I really don't know what I think. This massive structure is in the middle of a countryside field with sheep wandering around and it left me kind of speechless. Maybe they should have left an inscription for future generations?

<-- On our way home from Stonehenge we drove by the Westbury White Horse, a giant figure of a horse carved in chalk on a hildside in Wiltshire. As you can see, its huge. Sort of like Stonehenge, its another mystery in this part of the English countryside. They suspect it was originally carved in the 1700s and speculate it may have commemorated a battle of some sort, but they really have no idea.

<-- Coming over the bridge back into South Wales from our day out in the English countryside at sunset. My friend Alex, and another friend Claire, and I had made a whole day out of exploring around Wiltshire. It was so good and the sunset was the perfect end.

I finished my essays yesterday and got everything turned in which means that I have a little bit of a break before final exams start. Whooo!!! On another note, yesterday marked five weeks until I head home... I cannot believe it. With essays to work on, I hadn't really thought much about it, but today, on my first free day, I can't help but be a little sentimental thinking about how much I've learned and done and the people that I've done life with these last nine months. Ah... 'tis life :)

Colour my world

2010-05-03T09:55:00.009+01:00

--> During my time in the UK, I have had the opportunity to visit the Hillsong London church several times. Well, this last weekend I attended the Colour Conference, a women's conference hosted by Hillsong. It was in London at the Royal Albert Hall and it rocked my world. It was two days full of inspirational speaking and teaching, workshops and great music. I was a bit overwhelmed so I have been pondering the last couple days what exactly I walked away from the conference with. First of all, from a tourism point of view, its worth mentioning that the Royal Albert Hall is breathtaking. The conference hosted about 5000 women hailing from 29 different countries.

One of the main initiatives that the Colour Sisterhood partners with is called A-21, and they work to help get women out of sex trade. My eyes were opened to the vastness of human trafficking on our planet. I had no idea. 27 million people, mostly women and children, and mostly for the purpose of sex, are in captivity on our planet-- more people in slavery than ever before in history! And they say its on the rise. My heart broke. One of the speakers explained that in instances like Haiti's earthquake and other natural disasters, often human traffickers show up before humanitarians and steal children off the streets. What kind of world do we live in?? I haven't been able to get these women and children off my mind since. I know I've got to do something, I just don't know exactly how that will manifest itself yet. Watch out world. Check this out for more: Click here and Here.

--> The keynote speakers were Bobbie Houston, Holly Wagner, Priscilla Shirer, Dr. Robi Sondregger, and Christine Caine. There was so much to take in. I found myself learning new truths about God's Word, inspired and motivated. One of the cool teachings was about the Israelites headed to the promised land. Priscilla Shirer pointed out that God offered the promised land to Moses among 2 million people. When God fulfilled his promise, of that 2 million, only Joshua and Jacob were the only ones from the initial generation to actually see it. The question presented was, what did Josh and Jacob have to be that one in a million? They acted immediately, acted fearlessly, they gave the glory to God, and they confidently expected the miracle God provided. I think, for me, I could stand to have a lot more confidence in God's ability to provide. I am ready to expect miracles :)

This last weekend was so enriching to my soul. Thank you to those of you who were praying for me to have a good weekend-- it was!

Welsh varsity photos :)

2010-05-02T21:53:00.008+01:00

<-- My whole basketball team together before the game. We had a pasta dinner the night before at my house-- it was so much fun!! I love these girls, they have truly become some of my best friends here in Swansea.

<-- Like I said before, the rugby match is the biggest event of the day...

<-- ... And Swansea won! Yay!!

Welsh varsity

2010-05-01T22:31:00.002+01:00

I don't really think there are words that can give this event justice. This last Wednesday was "Varsity," an annual university sporting event day in which all of the sports teams compete against all the of the sports teams from the other large Welsh university, our rival, Cardiff. (Boooooo....)

I have never been to an event that I can really compare to this. It sort of reminded me of weekend tournaments from when I was in middle school, but then add to it that there was every possible sport going on at the same time and all of the games were Swansea vs. Cardiff which really amped up the competition because people could walk from game to game and you were always cheering for your university. And I only mention it because it truly was a significant part of the day, (and Welsh culture in general) add a lot of alcohol.

It was a beautiful day out- perfect for watching the various football (soccer), lacrosse, or field hockey games. Plus there was netball, badmitton, squash and basketball going on indoors. Because this is a competition between the universities, the idea is that they keep track of how many teams from each side wins and the university with the most is the champion. The reality is that the finale of the day is the rugby match in the evening and the winner of that is the champion. I learned that Welsh Varsity has been in held in Cardiff for the last several years, so it was a pretty big deal that it was in Swansea...

Of course you want to know how my basketball team did... not so pretty. Cardiff women's basketball were some of the strongest, most fit girls I've ever played basketball against in my entire life. I am not, and have never been a girl that gets tossed around easily, and I felt like the Cardiff girls could have smashed me like a bug if they wanted to. Needless to say we lost by a margin that does not even need to be recorded. BUT we had fun. It was my last basketball game of the year and the girls on the team have become my best friends.

And now, the information you've all been dying to know, who won the rugby match-- Swansea!! It was so exciting! The crowd was loud the entire game, chanting back and forth between opposing fans, the game was close, and Swansea pulled it off! All of the students rushed the field, jumping around screaming "Swansea!!" The Varsity event concludes with the buses that take all of the students from the rugby stadium to the bars to celebrate... The rest is history.

Pictures to be posted once I get them uploaded. The whole essay writing thing has gotten in the way of keeping up on posting photos-- but I'll get to it soon!

some things I didn't mention before: home edition

2010-04-27T14:18:00.002+01:00

One thing I've learned from observation is that there is one overwhelming theme throughout all of Britain: space consciousness. :) Anyone who has been to the UK can understand what I'm talking about-- small rooms, even smaller hallways, tiny roads, strategically placed gardens, steep stairs... In many restaurants, don't be surprised if you get seated at a table with other people!! Any open space is free game!

My house in Swansea... to start-- our neighborhood uses up every inch of free space. It is a "terraced house" meaning that even though it is considered a house, it is attached to the houses on both sides so that basically our entire block is just one long building.

We've got three floors and let me tell ya, the stairs are steep! My room is the "shoebox," kindly nicknamed because of being the smallest in the house. It's about 8 by 10 feet... yes, tiny tiny. Good thing I was only allowed to bring two suitcases with me for this year because there wouldn't be room for more than that! In order to fit in a desk and a bed, the door to my wardrobe doesn't even open all the way. I also have a sink in my room- which comes in handy when someone is in the bathroom, but is also kind of funny when I really stop to think about it. I've had friends over before to watch movies or hang out-- maneuvering in the small enclosure is a bit like doing a dance.

My favorite part of my house is the bathroom. Keeping in mind that my house was most likely built in the early 1800s, I am content to be satisfied with not understanding the original architect's thoughts when designing... For starters, the light switch is not only outside of the bathroom, but above the door. I am not the tallest, so yes, this means I have to jump to turn on the lights every time I need to relieve myself. Not only is the light outside the room but it is also motion sensored- in theory. In reality it just pretty much has a mind of its own. 9 out of 10 times, while relieving oneself, the lights go off and you're forced to flail your arms around until they come back on. You may ask why, if the light is motion sensored, we don't just leave the switch on. Well, because it also has a mind of its own, that means it also switches on on its own as well. It gets better. The shower... aside from being tiny (which makes shaving ones legs incredibly difficult), has a switch to turn on the water. I don't really know if this is normal or not throughout homes in Britain, as I haven't seen it in anyone else's homes, but we have it. And just like the awkward light switch, the water switch is equally awkwardly placed-- out in the hallway. For those of you who have devious minds-- yes, that means that in theory you could turn the water AND the lights off while someone was inside. Luckily, none of us housemates have gotten to be close enough friends to feel comfortable playing any practical jokes!

This last bit is unrelated to the inherent architecture of our house, but has still been something I've had to cope with. One of my housemates is on the university surfing team. While this is super cool, it means that he's got a wet suit that needs to be hung to dry from time to time. Wales is a wet climate, eliminating the effectiveness of hanging something to dry outside, so the best place in the house to hang a damp wetsuit is in the shower. I cannot even count the times I have stepped into the bathroom, sometimes half asleep in the middle of the night-- and seen the dark outline of a person in the shower. My heart stops each time!!

I learned recently that they don't make "big" refrigderators in Britain. While this may not be entirely true, there is definitely less of them. Which explains why instead of having one big fridge, we have two small fridges. This gets complicated sharing between five, but usually just ends up meaning having less in the house and more frequent visits to the grocery store. It also brings up a few grocery discrepancies I have come across-- namely, eggs and milk. In the UK, they do not keep their eggs in the fridge. That is one habit I have had a hard time changing, but there have been times that the space in the fridge doesn't allow for my carton of eggs. I have not gotten food poisoning or anything, so it must be OK. The other thing is they have milk that doesn't need to be in the fridge. It does once its opened, but it allows for my housemate who likes to buy his food in bulk to store bunches of milk in the cupboard until he's ready to use them. I can't bend on this one, it is just too weird to me, so I continue to buy fresh milk. When I was staying at Juliette's in Bordeaux, I learned that they don't even have a fresh milk option in France. Weird.

Living in a house with 4 other people, sharing a tiny bathroom, and strategizing how to organize the "shoebox," have all been learning experiences. Lots of laughs and lots of memories. I think that its going to make me appreciate the day that I have my own bathroom and kitchen utensils that much more.

Today marks six weeks until I head back to the States for good. I cannot believe how fast things have gone... but I'll save that mushy stuff for another blog later. Spring is one of my favorite times of year in Iowa, and let me tell ya, I miss a good thunderstorm. So, the next thunder-boomer that rolls through, take a moment and enjoy it on my behalf :) Miss you all!

some things I didn't mention before

2010-04-25T17:22:00.004+01:00

I've decided that it is not fair to leave all of my faithful blog followers believing that all of my adventures and traveling have gone off without their moments of lost-ness or confusion. My blog thus far reads a lot like a movie, editing out the bloopers... However, trust me. There have been a few.

Let me start by talking about money. One of my biggest questions when I first arrived on this side of the pond was related to how everyone claims that "traveling Europe is SO cheap and easy." Ok, so how do I do it? I suppose I could agree-- but only if you're willing to eat less, sleep less comfortably, and travel at the mercy of the system, sometimes taking a roundabout way or leaving at a less convenient time. Let me explain... traveling Europe is not technically cheap by any means. My bank account can attest to that. It is less expensive to travel around once you're over here relative to if I were to start in the States and come to each place separately. We have found ways to reduce cost, like being willing to stay in less desirable places or take the longer bus or train ride.

Traveling on a budget means cutting corners and being willing to be very flexible. The least expensive train to Wimbledon was at 3:58 AM. Most of Megan and my adventures have begun at some ungodly early time in the morning in order to avoid "peak" travel times. On our particular train to Wimbledon I only vaguely remembering getting on the train, I believe we were the only ones to board in Swansea, and while I recall falling asleep the only one on the train, I woke up with my head on some kind businessman's shoulder on a packed train somewhere just outside of London! Ah!

That same weekend, our night in Brighton was our first experience with a youth hostel. After having stayed at several hostels and budget motels, I can tell you first hand that there are definitely differing degrees of nice-ness when it comes to places to stay. And truthfully, while you can get lucky and find some diamond in the rough, mostly you just get what you pay for. The reviews for the hostel in Brighton had mentioned it being a louder place to stay, but for 15 pounds a night we were willing to give it a try. What we didn't expect was the hostel to be above a pub and the bartender to double as the receptionist. Sketchy doesn't even begin to describe the vibes coming off this place.

Because it was our very first experience with a hostel we agreed we would try to participate and meet people, because we'd heard that was common in that environment to meet up with other travelers and make friends. We'd only been in the pub for a half hour when a crew came in that transformed the place into a full blown music-blasting dance club. People of all shapes, sizes and styles started pouring into the room. While we are not above a good night out, this was not the scene we'd been looking for. Suddenly thankful for the three flights of stairs that separated us from the ground floor and our room, we turned in for the night. After being woke in the night to a false fire alarm (probably set off by the impromtu smoke machines being carried onto the make-shift dance floor) and sleeping with one eye open all night, we packed our stuff up and carried on our way to our next destination early the next morning.

I have discovered since being in Europe that I get motion sick from time to time, particularly on buses. I had my first experience on a day trip to Cardiff with actually being sick on a bus. It was awful. I will spare you all the details, but this truth has since made travelling a little more difficult because buses are usually the cheapest way to go. Sometimes motion sickness can be combated by sleeping, but other times I feel like I'm being tortured slowly.

Ever heard the Scottish song I Would Walk 500 Miles by the Proclaimers? "And I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more..."? It might as well be my theme song minus the falling part. Any time the walk won't absolutely kill us, we have. I have walked across the entirety of London, Dublin, Amsterdam, Barcelona, and Rome. I have walked under sunshine, in rain (lots of rain), wind, fog, and snow. There are times where we've been tempted to take the bus or a tram-- and times we've given in, but I am sure that we have saved significant amounts of money by using our God-given transportation mechanisms. :)

Have we ever gotten lost? More than we'd like to admit. Luckily, none of our mishaps have been significant enough to leave us sleeping on a bench in an abandoned parking lot or been for any significant period of time. When we were in Irun, Spain we decided we'd explore the area. Being lost wouldn't have really been that big of deal because Irun isn't that big, except it started raining-- complete with gusting wind. We were miserable. Wandering around the streets in a non-English speaking city drenched wasn't my idea of fun. Obviously, we found our way back to our hotel and survived, but I can only imagine what locals who saw us trudging through puddles with my umbrella blown inside out must have thought. I mean, Megan and I are both blonde hair-blue eyed girls. We obviously weren't locals. Haha.

After checking out a few hostels, we decided we prefered the atmosphere of a budget hotel. Budget hotels are a little like pulling a hotel's name out of a hat. Each experience has been different. We stayed in a hotel that was like a house that someone had converted into rooms for rent in Amsterdam. The steps up to our 4th floor room had been steeper than any I'd ever encountered and just wide enough for my shoulders to go through. It was less than clean, and our room had 3 single beds in it (in case we wanted to invite a friend?) and one of those 'wet room' bathrooms where the shower floor is the whole bathroom so water spreads out all around even the toilet. Our hotel in Barcelona had been absolutely lush, one of those diamonds in the rough I'd talked about. It wasn't in the middle of the city but we'd lucked out and it was right next to an underground station that took us straight into downtown Barcelona.

Most memorable award goes to Rome. Hotels in Rome, particularly around Easter, were incredibly expensive. We agreed to book a hotel that was less expensive but on the edge of the city, hoping for another experience like Barcelona. Ha. Not so much. Our first clue was when the transportation desk at the airport described our hotel as "by the sea." (Rome is about 30 miles inland) But the website had said there was "complimentary bus service." While the actual hotel was really nice, and we had plenty of room for the three of us, getting into the city each day was an adventure in itself! Our hotel was out in the middle of the countryside, and the complimentary bus service meant walking a quarter of a mile down the access road and standing on the side of the highway to flag down a bus.

Our first morning in Rome was so frustrating. We went out to the bus stop like the man (who, bless his soul for trying, spoke very poor English) had told us to. Three, obviously not Italian, girls standing on the side of the highway... 5 buses passed without stopping. We had no idea what we were doing wrong when finally a local stepped out. I bet her family had a good laugh over dinner that night as she told them about how silly we looked standing out there. We learned from watching, though. While we'd only just been standing below the bus stop sign, we observed that you have to stand, pretty much in the middle of the road and flag the oncoming bus down. A 20 minute bus ride dropped us off at the outermost underground stop where we transferred onto that and made our way into the city. Every day was an trek flagging the bus down and then on the other end, trying to remember which random spot on the highway to get off at to get back to our hotel. Considering all of the ways in which that situation could have gone poorly, we did quite well.

Traveling has been incredible and exhausting. Looking back, I have to say just how lucky I feel that things went as smoothly as they have. I am aware that at every turn, each train and each hotel or hostel there was potential for disaster. The experiences I have had will be with me forever.

18 days running and here I am, inside

2010-04-24T10:37:00.004+01:00

Hopefully those of you who have been following my blog have started to recognize the weather patterns in Wales. Rain.. Rain.. Cloudy.. Rain.. Bit of sun.. Rain.. Haha. You'll be able to understand then, the significance of the fact that for 18 days straight now, Swansea has been full of sunshine! It has been absolutely wonderful. It is so much easier to get out of bed in the morning or walk to class when I don't have to worry about puddles or my brolly turning inside out.

Of course then, its only appropriate that it be essay and exam time. With only two more weeks of lecture remaining in term, I have FOUR essays, totaling more than 12,000 words of intelligent discussion, due in the next week and a half. With a strategic plan in place, incorporating short and long term goals, as well as implementing a personal reward system, I am hoping to complete my essays with time to spare. I am not a procrastinator. Procrastinating makes me anxious. Thus, making up systems and plans to complete my work helps me to keep from stressing out.

Sitting by the window, longing to be out under the lovely blue sky, I am researching and writing about the Fortunes of the Welsh Language since 1900. Just like my essay writing, the history of the Welsh language has not always been an easy road. Prior to 1900, schools had a wooden paddle they called a "Welsh not." Students overheard speaking Welsh were given the not. Throughout a school day, they could pass the not along to other students whom they caught speaking Welsh. At the end of the day, the student left with the not was paddled.

Being an outsider, the question I had to ask was, "Why is the Welsh language so important?" It is only spoken in Wales and Patagonia, Argentina, and the truth of the matter is that everyone can speak English just as well or better. After asking around and doing some of my research, the answer to that question seems to be a matter of pride and patriotism. Wales never wanted to be apart of Britain, they just didn't have a choice. There are committees and groups in place for the purpose of preserving Welsh National Identity, furthering Welsh nationalism, and seeking more international recognition as a separate identity from Britain. The truth is, though, that at this point, the Welsh language is pretty much the only thing that distinguishes Wales from the rest of Britain.

Only half of the population of Wales can speak Welsh, and significantly less consider it their first language. Because so many English people are moving into Wales and so much business is done in English, the Welsh language continues to slowly decline. However, there seems to be an ever so slight comeback in the wind. While Welsh has traditionally been the language of the working class, campaigns to promote the language as a means of Welsh national identity have sparked an interest in upper class citizens who can afford to take Welsh language classes in their free time. I have met Welsh people who are passionate supporters of promoting Welsh nationalism through preserving and advertising the Welsh language, and I have met Welsh people who are indifferent to the issue. Sometimes it seems a little bit silly to have every single road sign and public notice written in both English and Welsh, but regardless of your stance on the duplications, the Welsh language IS unique and you won't see it anywhere else (unless, of course, you find yourself in Patagonia).

In conclusion, yes, it is a beautiful sunshiney Saturday morning and I am working on an essay. I don't know if that makes me more dedicated to my studies, or just that much more of a nerd. I guess I am just hoping that I will be rewarded for my commitment to my work with more sunshine after this next week and a half of essay-ing. :) Don't worry... its not really that bad. According to my goal-reward system, 100 more words and its break time!

ironic?

2010-04-18T10:00:00.003+01:00

--> I had to take a break from writing the other day. There was just so much to say about Rome! But it was not where the story ended. During our time in Italy, we took one day and made the journey south to see Naples and Pompeii. I had remembered learning about Pompeii in middle school but never really grasped what it meant or the implications of the history associated with it until now. Behind us in this picture, mostly covered up by clouds (unfortunately) is Mount Vesuvius. The still-active volcano six miles from the village of Pompeii erupted in 79 AD with such force and magnitude that the initial gas from the eruption killed everyone in the village from asphyxiation within three minutes of the initial blast. Everything was buried in 60-some feet of ash and pumice. In the 1500s, archeologists began to uncover the city, which had been extraordinarily maintained by the ash.

--> Excavation work has been going on for a couple hundred years now, and there is still much to be done to uncover the city. They know that the village had suffered from a destructive earthquake a couple years prior to Vesuvius and was in the process of being rebuilt when terror struck again. As you wander the streets, I was struck by how advanced people were 2000 years ago. 2000 years, which I am now realizing in the scope of time isn't that long, I had perceived to be very primitive. These people definitely weren't. You can still see sliding doors, a plumbing system, remnants of art, open-air markets, restaurants, an arena, and an outdoor theater with accoustics as good as any built today... It was unreal. They say that there were about 15,000 people who lived in Pompeii and while they did not have the technology to predict volcanic eruptions like we do today, they lived by instinct. 12,000 people evacuated the city based on intuition prior to the eruption. The remaining 3,000 were killed and buried in ash.

--> One of the methods that archeologists are using to learn more about the people of Pompeii is plaster-cast molds. While some of the actual arifact, or in this case, bodies, are not preserved by the burial, the original shape still remains. They have been able to create several plaster-cast molds of people who would have been killed and buried.

--> On a lighter note, though, this is a picture of the best preserved house they have on site. There are several rooms, this one is the room you walk into when you first come through the front door. It has an open spot in the middle of the ceiling and a spot on the floor beneath it for catching water from rain. You can still see paintings and artwork on the walls. The other thing we were told about here, that I found quite interesting, was how resourceful the people of Pompeii were. In their bathroom, there were seperate places for urine and defecate. This was because they would sell the defecate to farmers to fertilizer and use the urine for a source of ammonia. Kinda gross, but resourceful!

As you all are aware by now, the volcano with the really long, unpronouncable name in Iceland erupted a few days ago and has caused all sorts of problems here in Europe. I feel I am definitely getting my dose of volcano education between my trip to Vesuvius and now the more recent chaos. Who knows, maybe I will be needing to take a boat home in June? Anyone willing to come pick me up? Haha.

life is learning

2010-04-15T06:53:00.008+01:00

Just when I thought I was starting to get a handle on things that were history and the concept of "old," I was exposed to a whole new kind of "old." Last week, my friend from home, Chelsea, made the jump over the pond to visit me during my Easter break. She, along with my usual travel buddy, Megan, and I made the trek to Rome for the weekend.

I am struggling to put the words in place to describe all I learned and realized in the four days we spent in Italy. I have to admit that while I was familiar with Rome, I didn't really know what to expect at all. While I am aware of the basic plot line of the movie Gladiator, I've never actually seen in, and while I am in no way criticizing the education I received from the Waterloo public school system, I also feel I have never learned more about history (including the history of America) than I have this year. I would almost even venture to say that I learned more this last weekend about history than I learned during the entirety of my middle school years.

I grew up with my mom always saying in my ear, "Life is learning." We were the family that may miss a day of school here or there for traveling or the "take your daughter to work days," things like that. When I was younger, Mom's anecdote, "Life is learning," was an excuse to cut class. I am a true believer now. Anymore, every day I step out of my doorstep is a new experience. I feel like if our brains grew in proportion to the knowledge we were exposed to, mine would have blown up to the size of a hot-air balloon this year. Anyway... don't worry, I won't bore you with all of my educational enlightenment, just a few highlights.

<-- Our first stop was the Colosseum. I had no idea that this Roman engineering genius (the invention of cement) had been built in just eight years-- completed in 80 AD. Yes, 8-0. Chelsea, Megan and I opted for a guided tour of the Colosseum and barely made the start time our first morning in Rome due to struggling initially to navigate Rome's public transportation system. We came running up 20 seconds before the tour was going to start, hustling to get our radio sets and headphones plugged in, and were immediately hit with the date of the massive structure next to us my knees got a bit trembly. To be honest, I just can't believe its still there. Testimony to Roman enginuity. So the cool thing about this particular picture I included for you, is that in the last 2000 years the actual stage, made of wood, is no longer there-- so you can see down into the intricate passages where the people who would have been facilitating the Gladiatorial contests were able to lead the exotic animals or contesting Gladiators, whatever the occasion called for, in and around to any number of trap doors on the arena floor, in order to enhance the element of surprise. The current Colosseum staff has also kindly built part of what the wood floor was like so your brain only has to some of the imagination work to figure out how it would have looked.

<-- Right next to the Colosseum is Constantine's Arch. It was built in 315 AD to commemorate the victory Constantine had over Maxentious. While the arch itself is interesting, because Constantine had the builders use not only new art on it, but also re-use art from older monuments, and because it outlines the battle and how God helped Constantine defeat Maxentious, it was also interesting to me because of its significance. After this victory, Constantine reversed the persecution of Christians in Rome. I have grown up hearing about religious persecution and reading about it in my Bible, but the history and reality of it became real to me at that moment. Standing between the arch that signified the relief that Christians in Rome had to have felt, and the Colosseum, where many of them were fed to lions for their beliefs, I was awestruck. (This same day we also visited Palatine Hill, walked through the ancient Forum, people watched while tossing wish coins into the Trevi Fountain, visited Raphael's tomb in the Pantheon, and strolled through the markets of the Piazza Navonna... but if I told you all I saw, learned or noticed, we would honestly would be here for a week)

<-- One less historical thing about Rome that I appreciated was the abundance of water. The Romans are known for their beautiful piazzas and stunning fountains. But I learned that they also serve a purpose. Because it gets so hot in Rome, the city has always made sure that the water is clean enough to drink. While I wouldn't suggest picking up a cup from the bottom where its been sitting or been littered with dirty coins, it wasn't unusual to see people drinking from the faucets. So this is me drinking from the fountain in the Piazza de Spagna, right in front of the Spanish Steps. In addition to the fountains, they also had water faucets for people to fill their water bottles on every block. What great ideas those Romans had! Day two began with a visit to another country... Vatican City. Only 110 acres and with a mere population of 800, it is the smallest country in the world. Despite its small size, it packs a serious punch. Inside the Vatican walls are the Vatican Museums, St. Peter's Basilica, St. Peter's Square, and the pope's residence.

<-- The queue was a mile long it seemed. Luckily, we'd pre-booked a tour and had queue-jump priveleges. Everyone we'd spoken to had said doing a tour of the Vatican Museums was the only way to go. The place is too huge and there are too many things to see a person would get lost on their own. Our guide even said that if a person were to spend just one minute at each peice of work, it would take something like 15 years to see it all. All the ninja turtles were accounted for: Michaelangelo, Leonardo, Donatello, Raphael... you know what I mean. It is legal to take pictures in the Vatican Museums by the way. Of the hundred plus photos I took, I am sharing this, one wall in one of Raphael's four rooms of painting, because I really liked it. Its called the School of Athens, in the room called the Stanza della Segnatura. Each wall depicts a branch of knowledge, and this particular one is philosophy. One reason I really liked it was because they say that each of the great Greek philosophers can be seen in the painting, like Plato and Aristotle (and from the number of people you can see in the photo, many more).

I did get to go in the Sistine Chapel, however, it is illegal to take pictures so I have nothing to show you, but I will tell you that it was much more impressive than a photo could ever do it justice anyway. Michaelangelo was a genius.

<-- Our last stop in the Vatican was at St. Peter's Basilica. The one people see today is actually the second St. Peter's. Pope Julius II made the decision in 1505 to demolish the first and rebuild a bigger and better one. Obviously a controversial decision, but either way it was done and the one that is there today is huge and beautiful. Built right over the top of St. Peter's tomb, it is cleverly known as "the church on the Rock," with reference to Peter's biblical reputation as the "rock" for whom God would build his church on. As you can see in the picture, it is not a humbly designed place. The altar in front is a mere 5 stories high, the architectural design of the place made so that the paintings and monuments got larger the higher up on the wall they are, to keep the perspective from being too daunting.

<-- Chelsea, Megan and I chilling out on the Spanish Steps. This photo is taken immediately after I consumed the best gelato I have ever had in my entire life. Unfortunately, there is no photo of the actual gelato due to the fact that I was so captivated by its flavor I didn't want to put it down. I am looking pretty happy post-gelato, though, aren't I?

Easter blessings!

2010-04-05T13:37:00.002+01:00

I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter! I found myself celebrating Jesus's resurrection making the trek back to Swansea. While it wasn't quite the same as celebrating in a church with my family, I found myself celebrating despite the abnormal setting. In addition to the usual celebration, there was one thing that made this Easter more special this year, and I can't help but share.

For those of you who are less familiar with my family, I have an older sister, Kim who is married and has four beautiful children ages 7, 5, 3 and 1. Last summer Kim was diagnosed with stage 4 non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. Last Friday was her 5th round of 6 chemo treatments. In the midst of the icky chemo, it truly was a good Friday... She got scans back indicating that she is winning the battle! Her most recent scans show no cancer cells in her body! Praise God!!!

Thank you to those of you who have been praying for my family this year and throughout Kim's treatment. Still one more chemo treatment and a bone biopsy ahead, but celebration must be paid for the current victory!

I also can't help but put in a plug: In the midst of Kim's treatment battle, she's not short on ideas about how to use her experiences and love for others to make a difference in the world. As of last Friday, two of her entrepreneurial adventures have been selected to compete for Pepsi Refresh community grants for $25,000 and $50,000 in Des Moines for community good.

The Pepsi Company decided during this year's Super Bowl to NOT advertise but to instead take that money and distribute it in other more innovative ways to communities across the U.S. Kim's organizations made the first cut in being selected for the month of April. This is a huge step in just being selected!! Now she is competing for the actual grant awards.

The projects with the most votes get the grants... The following are the links to vote for Kim's organizations:

www.refresheverything.com/bewomenonline

and

www.refresheverything.com/allbecause

If you happen to be interested in more information about the companies, there are links on the right hand side of my blog under "Things I Like." Click Be.Cause or Be Women.

Thank you again! Happy Easter!

carpi diem

2010-04-05T12:15:00.005+01:00

With last two months on this side of the pond left, and looking ahead to my plunge back into the "real life," the reality is that I begin dental school in August. And along with that reality, the fact that traveling like I have had the opportunity to do these last months won't be apart of my "routine." What's a girl to do? Well... carpi diem! Seize the moment! I am in the middle of grasping every single day with both hands, willing myself to be a sponge to soak up all of the experiences I have at my doorstep.

With that.. Megan and I seized the opportunity to head to Spain from Bordeaux. We made a pit stop in Irun (San Sebastian) on the northwest coast before taking the 6-hour train ride to Barcelona. While most of the cities that I have been to thus far have had plenty to do for a couple days stay, this one left me wanting more. Barcelona had so many things to offer. How does a girl do it all in two days?? Lets just say I am definitely going to be in need of a new pair of Nikes when I get home!

--> I don't really know how to explain Barcelona except that there are several different "categories"... We'll start with the "Old city." Barcelona used to be an old Roman walled city (those Romans sure did get around!). Portions of the Roman city still remain, tucked in the Gothic quarter, but they are harder to spot due to the way they are mixed in with the rest of the tightly packed buildings. So we opted for a walking tour. This picture of me is decked out in my "nerd gear," as I like to call it. Camera in hand, headphones, with radio transmitter around my neck to hear the guide better, in my ears, and my purse tightly tucked under my arm to combat pick-pocketers. What you can't see is my passport protector strapped around my waist, under my clothes and my "Eyewitness travel Europe tourism" book and map of Barcelona in my bag. All I need is one of those khaki safari hats and my sunglasses on and my look would be complete.

So the coolest part about Barcelona being an old Roman city isn't the usual old churches, but that they have actually uncovered some of the old city remains-- of which is underneath the current city! They have created a history exhibit that you can go down into, beneath the streets and see. I liked the way we did it though, which was to look down into the windows (like a basement) of the museum at the remains, so you got the perspective of it being under your very feet. This tour also took us to the chapel where Columbus returned to share with the king and queen about his discovery of a new passage to Asia... Of course we all know that it wasn't really Asia...

--> Along the line of the old city wall line is an immensely popular pedestrian street, La Ramblas. At the top is the square shown in the picture, with pretty fountains. True confession: I am a sucker for street entertainment. I could be captivated for hours by street magicians, men without heads, mediocre musicians, women dressed as fairytale princesses, or the everyday person completely covered with silver spray paint pretending to be the tin man. I absolutely love it. La Ramblas had an incredible selection of this particular type of entertainment, as well vendors selling everything from turtles to beautiful paintings. At the bottom end of the street is the seafront, as well as a giant monument to Columbus... and my first-ever sighting of the Meditteranean Sea.

--> The Barcelona seafront was redone and made to be vacation resort caliber in 1992 in preparation for the Olympics. Supposedly, it was so successful they never looked back. They even still call the area, with the high rise hotels along two miles of sandy beachfront, the Olympic Village. And yet another form of street entertainment... sand castle building!

-->It's also worth noting that the 1992 Olympic grounds (the stadiums and pools and fields) were built on a mountain/park on the western edge of the city near the castle of Barcelona. Atop a mountain, the views from the stadiums overlook the entire city. We did go up the mountain and see the castle and view... Can you imagine watching the world's best high divers with this in the background? Ah....

--> Of course we had to "experience the culture" as well. My Spanish is quite sparse... "Hablo muy poco Espanol" (with a charming smile of course). In the cultural department, having a real conversation with the locals was pretty much out of the question. So we opted for food :) Sangria and Paella. Yummy yummy. Of course they had to serve the sangria in a fish bowl sized glass! Luckily, it was our last "experience" of the day.

Outside the "old city" is a whole new world architecturally. Barcelona has had two very famous artists, Antoni Guadi and Pablo Picasso, with very unique styles. Guadi's mark is more noticeable from the street because he was an architect. Bold colors and designs-- it was right up my alley. There were museums, a park, a church, and other various buildings he had designed. We only had two days in Barcelona, and I hope you've already begun to understand the vastness of what the city has to offer, so of course we had to make choices about what we wanted to see. We chose the park, which houses his home and church, Sangrada Familia. The park felt a lot like an oversized playground and his home, designed by him, reminded me of a lifesize gingerbread house. My pictures really didn't do it justice, so if you have time, please google Park Guell in Barcelona. (http://www.gaudidesigner.com/uk/parc-guell.html)

--> And the church, an incomplete masterpiece. Guadi died before the completion of La Sangrada Familia. Gaudi started work on it in 1883 and worked on it until his death in 1926. Located perfectly in the middle of the city, it is supposed to be a symbol of the identity of the Barcelona. It is being built, based on the original designs Gaudi had, completely on the donations of the people. Because of this, its completion is slow going. The side of it shown in this picture is a representation of the Easter story underneath four of the twelve spires representing the twelve disciples. The following is a website that shows more pictures of the beautiful church: http://www.sagradafamilia.cat/sf-eng/index.php

I easily could have spent days exploring Barcelona. There was so much to see and do. Hopefully, someday, I'll have the opportunity to go back :)

warning: word explosion ahead

2010-04-05T10:15:00.004+01:00

It's an inside joke inside my family (not anymore, though) that I am a person with a "word quota" per day... a certain amount of words with which I need to share with the world each day.. My brother jokes that if I've had a quiet day he pities the person who gets stuck with me at night. I start by saying all of that because, well, my housemates have been gone the last two days and I've got so many exciting things to share with everyone about my last ten days that I thought you may need a proper warning.

From my last entry, you know I had made my way to Bordeaux to visit a friend. My words were restricted while there due to the French keyboard. Typing was so hard!

<-- Bordeaux was beautiful, and it was extra special to visit with the help of Juliette and her family because of being from there and opening their home to Megan and I to stay. So... to start the food her mother prepared was amazing. Fresh baguettes at every meal, yummy pasta, ham, salad... MMmmm.... This picture is of Juliette and I in Lacanau, a beach town west of Bordeaux. It wasn't quite warm enough to hit the beach in a swimsuit and go for a swim, but it wasn't hard to picture how packed the area would be as soon as the real heat comes!

<-- For one of the evenings, we went out for dinner with some of Juliette's friends. Talk about a "local experience." Juliette was the only one at the table who spoke both English and French fluently. The extent of my French is "bonjour," "pardon me," and "au revoir." Pathetic, really. Thank goodness smiles are universal! We ate at a restaurant in the Bordeaux city center and then went for a stroll. The ambiance of Bordeaux felt sophisticated. I don't really know how to explain it, but it made me want to sit outside a cafe and sip some of that world-reknowned red wine and talk about global issues. A photo doesn't really capture it well, but this photo is looking out over one of the bridges. During the summer, the open area you see before the river is a water mural. Bordeaux boasts the largest square in all of Europe-- lined by quaint cafes, elegant city buildings and then backed up against the river... there was a garden and also this water mural.

<-- I feel a little embarassed to admit I am not a wine drinker. Embarassed because I was unable to grasp the significance of the wine chateaus we visited. Bordeaux, as most of you know, is known worldwide for their wine... This photo doesn't do it justice at all... but what I was going for was to show the vastness of this region of grapes. Try to imagine when the grape vines are in season! We drove for over an hour and still all you could see were rows and rows of grapes. While there were literally hundreds (maybe thousands) of chateaus, we visited the Medoc and St. Emilion regions. You may recognize some of the bigger chateaus... Petrus, Canon, Cheval Blanc, or Beau Sejour-Becot. I will be honest and tell you that I don't know much about wine..

<-- The oldest Bordeaux area to produce wine, Saint Emilion. This is where the chateaux Cheval Blanc was. There were quaint wine shops everywhere on the tiny, winding cobblestone streets. Saint Emilion's is considered a midevil French village, with its first vineyards were estimated to have been planted in the 2nd century. Amazing!

the amazing race

2010-03-28T22:18:00.002+01:00

First of all, I have to explain the circumstances under which I am blogging. I met a friend in Swansea, Juliette, who is from France. She invited Megan (who I usually travel with) and myself to stay with her with her family in Bordeaux. So here we are and, interestingly enough, they have different keyboards!! Its like someone took all the letters and punctuation marks, threw them in a blender, and then spit them back out all over the keyboard. I am struggling to find anything I need-- for instance, there probably will not be any contractions in this blog as I cannot find the apostrophe!!!

My main purpose for blogging today, though, is to talk about what I have observed while travelling in Europe. We have chosen to fly RyanAir and EasyJet for most of our travels because of their typically low fares. There are a few things that are unique about flying in the airports here. Rather than give you the gate number for your flight right when you arrive at the airport, they have a common waiting area for all travellers and a screen listing the upcoming departures. About 30 minutes prior to your departure- at what seems like the very last minute, the screen announces your gate number and the race begins!!

Everyone stands, pretty much in unison, and begins the race to the gate. This practice is made even more interesting because air carriers like Ryanair and Easyjet do not give seat assignments. Therefore, when the gate is announced, the mass of people all moving together towards the gate gets competitive, everyone vying for a premier spot in the queue. My initial reaction to this process found me apathetic, not minding being towards the back of the queue. But more recently, I have found myself really getting into it. Megan and I were standing and at the ready when the gate announcement signalled the start. We took off, speed walking along the moving walkways. If it were a real race, we came in third. Our prize-- getting to be able to board the plane first. Haha! It is the same thing in the train and bus stations as well.

More to come on my trip here in France another time.............

Wales in a nutshell: Castles and sheep

2010-03-26T18:34:00.004Z

It was a blustery, rainy day in Wales Wednesday when Paul and I set out on our adventure to see some of South Wales' treasures. From what I've gathered from being here seven months now, I would call the rainy weather something like, "typically Welsh." There are exceptionally beautiful days, but rainy is by no stretch of the imagination uncommon. Nor is it the most ideal for climbing mountain trails, exploring caves or sight-seeing. Most Welsh tourist attractions are outside. So here's the thing I've realized/learned: In Wales, you let weather slow you down in any way, you will most likely miss all of the wonderful things this country has to offer. With that said, Paul and I pressed on. (For those of you who don't remember, or have joined my blogging world recently, Paul Murray is my host counselor here in Wales. He and his family have been absolutely wonderful to me-- making sure I have my neccesities and staying out of trouble! Wednesday, Paul was able to take a day off of work and volunteered to take me around Wales to see some of the sights off the main road- or at least the one the bus goes to!)

-->The main stop of our day was at Carreg Cennon Castle, Paul's favorite castle and now mine as well. In this picture, you can see it perched atop the hill. Most castles are on top of a hill-- having a cliff on two sides of your castle means two less sides to worry about being attacked from. Nowadays it means two things: breathtaking views and steep hikes to get to them!

--> This picture is from the inside of the castle looking out over the cliffs at the Welsh countryside. There's a few reasons why this castle has become my favorite. Wales is the country with the very most castles per land mass of anywhere in the world. They are everywhere-- in town, out of town, next to each other (there was actually another castle within a mile of Carreg Cennon), some are round, some are square... Anyway, although I know that all of them have had some sort of restoration work done to preserve them, I really appreciate when they are left as close to how they were as possible. Some are rebuilt so that tourists can see how it would have looked when it was alive and well, but I feel like the ones that are toppled a bit and missing peices have the most character. You walk in and can feel the history within their walls. There are small stairs that wind and twist into small chambers... your imagination can't help but soar into a different world full of knights and princesses, horses, bows and arrows, cannons and battlefields. Carreg Cennon is also unique because of the natural cave below the castle. Pictures don't do the dark tunnel justice, as the flash takes away all of the ambiance created by the darkness-- but it was pretty cool. You climb down into it by way of old, crackled steps, and it isn't lighted so you have to make your way with a flashlight, ducking because the space is kind of crampt. Mom, you would definitely be too clostrophobic to do it. And I made it all the way to the very back!

--> Paul and I made a day of it. The family (Bernard is in the picture with me) whose land Carreg Cennon is on are friends of the Murrays. It is a working sheep farm in addition to also having long horn cattle. Spring is lambing time.. which means baby sheep! Although we didn't get to see born while we were there, I did get to see several day-old baby lambs :) They are a little bit more cozy looking than the pigs and cows we're used to in Iowa, haha. After hiking up to Carreg Cennon and exploring the grounds and cave, Paul and I had a bowl of homemade "cawl" (Welsh stew). It was delicious. The rest of the day we drove to Brecon and stopped in at the cathedral and then drove back to Swansea through Brecon Beacons National Park, which was a beautiful drive through the South Wales mountain valleys. The only thing we forgot to do was get a photo of Paul and I together!

everyone is Irish on St. Patty's Day!

2010-03-23T12:01:00.004Z

<-- Dublin is the top destination in the world the week of March 17 every year. So I thought to myself, what better time to visit the capital of Ireland than when everyone else is too? I am not normally a large crowd, thrive on chaos type of girl, but spending St. Patrick's Day in Dublin was a worthwhile experience! Three friends and I took the 45 minute flight over, wore some green, experienced the over-full pubs, tasted the Guiness, and celebrated the patron saint of Ireland with the rest of the world!

<-- It was a short 2 1/2 day stay in Ireland. We explored Dublin: the Guiness Storehouse (of course), St. Patrick's Cathedral, Christ Church Cathedral (In the picture), Trinity College, O'Connell Street, and Temple Bar were the main highlights. Ireland, like the UK and the rest of Europe, has incredibly rich history. The cathedrals we visited, although most had had extensive restorations done in the 1800s, still had parts of them dating back to the 1100s. Amazing.

<-- Taking advantage of being on the island, we took a rail tour south to Cork to visit Blarney Castle. Those of you who know me know that the "gift of blab" isn't exactly something I need, but nevertheless I climbed the winding stairs of the castle to the top, grabbed the rails and leaned back to lay my lips on the sacred stone. I have not noticed a huge difference in my speech or my desire to speak yet, however, my presentation at the Swansea Rotary Club last night went exceptionally well. Maybe the stone really does have magical powers!

<-- If you look closely at the photo, you can see through the bars down to the ground. Apparently years ago, people actually had to hang to kiss the stone. After one death, they changed the tradition by adding rails and a "trained assistant." The stone that you're meant to kiss is down a little bit. Being that I am on the shorter side, I had to keep scooting off and bend back far enough that it did give me a whisper of fear for my life. One can't help but wonder how incredibly un-hygenic this particular tourist site is either. I'm not saying I licked it or anything, but after making the journey to Cork and trekking throug the grounds and up the castle stairs, you have to make sure your lips touch!

23 candles

2010-03-14T16:57:00.004Z

<--I started my 23rd birthday day, yesterday, being greeted out front of my house by a Welsh friend singing, "Penblwyd Hapus A Ti!"(Welsh "Happy birthday to you!"), with a bag of Minstrels in hand (my new favorite chocolate candies here that you can't get back home). Definitely one for the memory books! My favorite part of the day was my friends that took me to the local cafe for a yummy breakfast, but I also got ice cream in the afternoon and went out for pizza and drinks with the rest of the gang that evening! I can't say I feel older quite yet... however, I do feel a subtle whisper in my ear encouraging me to act more like an "adult", whatever that means!

Thanks for all of the birthday wishes from home! I missed not being with you all to celebrate-- we can make up for it this summer :)

springtime swans

2010-03-12T12:50:00.004Z

It's days like these that I am reminded why I could stay in school forever. While I am aware it is not unique to any particular college campus, there is something about the first day when Spring is really in the air and everyone is out on the lawn socializing, reading or just soaking up the sun. There's usually music coming from somewhere, and there is that extra energy of youth mixed with Spring fever. It makes you want to skip your lectures and have a picnic! Spring is finally in the air!

Monday evening I gave a presentation at the Mumbles club- unique because it is one of the one of the only remaining "male-only" clubs in Wales. They were warm, hospitable and encouraging as all Rotary clubs are!

The academic term is flying by! One more week until Easter break. I have a couple of adventures, some near and some far, planned for my upcoming break, in addition to setting aside time for essay writing. Easter break in the UK is 4 weeks long-- US universities could adopt this tradition and I sure wouldn't mind! Following my return from break I will have 2 weeks of lectures remaining and then their final exam schedule is 4 weeks long. Educational philosophy here is largely based on independent learning. I can't remember if I mentioned this before, but my lectures here meet only once a week. Now, while I, at almost 23 years of age, am really loving the flexibility in my schedule and can manage my time and get my work completed, I am not sure if I would have been able to do that as successfully at 18/19.

This more independent learning model does not only pertain to universities either. At the school and college levels (high school age), they also appear to have a lot more flexible schedule, and longer breaks, than the high schools I attended. Neither is better or worse-- just different I suppose!

bring on the SUNSHINE

2010-03-05T11:25:00.004Z

I woke up this morning to the sunshine in my window (YAY) and had the immediate urge to run down to the beach to soak it up like it may never come back. This whole week has been like that-- and it has been amazing. I hadn't even realized how much I had been missing my daily doses of Vitamin D! I did have to slow myself down though.. its beginning to be time to start thinking about research and essay writing..

A short pep-talk with myself about investing the time for research and writing now so that I can enjoy the sun down the road as it gets nicer and keeps warming up, and I ended up investing 3 of my morning hours to Iolo Morganwg, a Welsh polymath, collector and forger. I am writing one of my four essays on Morganwg and his influence on Welsh history and culture.

I had no idea who he was when I started, and he has since captivated my interests. He's an interesting chap... born and raised in Wales, incredibly gifted... he started off as a antiguarian, collecting mainly the poetry of the Welsh bards. He was a poet himself, so as part of his studies, he began transcribing pieces of work. Inspired by slightly misguided, but passionate patriotism and impulsiveness (plus a slight opium addiction) he began "transcribing" pieces of work based on his own theories of 'Bardism'.

Basically, he wanted people to respect the people of Wales and Welsh culture so badly that he was mixing up genuine history and his own material to accentuate how enlightened the people of Wales were. For instance, during the latter half of the 1700s, when Iolo Morganwg was alive, the dominate theory was the literacy indicated intellect. Iolo made up a historical Welsh alphabet that he 'discovered' to prove that the Welsh were among the pioneers of literacy in Britain! A lot of his work romanticised and highlighted the Welsh people and culture.

His transcriptions and forgeries were so accurate that they were not found out until after his death, and by then had left a profound positive impact on Welsh nationalism. He's recognized not only as one of the most infamous forgers in European history, but also one of the strongest contributors to the 18th century renaissance, upholding the reputation that Wales has as a civil nation and being the first to suggest that the people of Wales need their own national institutions: libraries, museums, etc. Fascinating.

Hope all is well back home! Happy Friday!

Happy St. David's Day!

2010-03-01T18:48:00.003Z

March 1.... I spent the day today traveling home from London. It was one of those journeys where, in order to get the best deal, you take the slow train that makes a couple extra stops, then opt for a little longer lay-over to take a little later train that costs a little extra because its "super off-peak" instead of just an "off-peak" time. It was alright though because I was able to get a spot by the window, the sun was shining, I had a good book, and no one seated around me brought stinky tuna sandwiches for their afternoon snack!

In addition to premium reading time, the journey gave me time to reflect a little.

First of all, I had a great weekend in London. That is one city I could visit a zillion times and always discover something new and exciting! Highlights from this last weekend include time spent in Hampstead, a borough in the north that reminds me of what I always imagined London being like... hilly, red-brick flats lining the streets, boutiques and coffee shops along the narrow streets with giant trees down the edges-- moss growing on the walls to give it that warm, earthy feel in the midst of the city. We also got to go to the musical Mama Mia- a new favorite of mine now.. and took the audio tour of the National Gallery. I will admit that I always tend to bypass the option for an audio tour because I've always thought it looked a bit "geeky"... but I am a recent convert-- I got SO much more out of the art displayed because of the pre-recorded tour and geeky headphones than if I would have tried to walk around and read the signs and do it myself. My favorite colletion they had was probably the several paintings by Monet... beautiful!

Further reflections... I cannot believe that I've been living in the United Kingdom for 6 months now! I feel SO blessed to have this opportunity. Rotary-- THANK YOU. Mom and Dad-- THANK YOU. I am learning so much and getting so many amazing opportunities I can't help but feel like I'm living in a dream.

I gave a presentation at the Swansea Bay Rotary club last Wednesday (which was awesome.. this particular club in small enough that they eat dinner around a big round table and can all have conversation together... It was really cool. They were so kind and inviting too!) and I spent time sharing about what I have been learning from this experience... I will share one of the main points: This is my first time over the ocean and I was definitely scared before coming. I was scared of the hurdles of meeting new people and learning a new "system" and culture and of navigating a foreign country... But I did it! And every day I feel like I am faced with a new challenge-- some big and some smaller-- that I have to overcome. And I am! And with each of those accomplishments I feel myself growing as an individual, becoming empowered to believe in myself and my abilities and my mind that much more. Because of that, I can feel myself setting my goals higher. I can feel myself believing in dreams that are bigger. This experience is teaching me that I am capable of more than I imagined.

And all of that with a newfound international perspective. I have met people from all over the globe and because of those connections, the way I see the world and issues and conflict is "wider".

Thank you to all of you who encourage and support this adventure that I'm on. :)

Lastly, just a note that today is St. David's day. St. David is the patron saint of Wales and therefore today is a sort of "Celebrate Welsh Nationality" day. It's not a bank holiday but the schools and churches often have plays or kids choir programs. This whole last week there have been community events-- music or plays celebrating Welsh heritage... And of course, there have been lots of Welsh cakes around!

literally HIGH tea

2010-02-23T13:50:00.006Z

<-- "High tea" is an English tradition that I've come to really enjoy. Its a little bit expensive to take part in the entire tradition: sandwiches, scones, cakes and tea... But sometimes its nice to just have tea in the afternoon with friends. It's a great excuse to get together and chat. This last Saturday afternoon, when the sun was shining, a couple of girl friends and I decided to walk to the marina here in Swansea where they recently built a super tall building with a restaurant at the top! We took the lift to the 28 floor and sat by a window to drink our afternoon tea and chat. It was a really cool view of Swansea! This photo is a view, looking west towards the neighborhood where my house is and where the university campus is. The next photo is a bit of a crooked view looking down into the marina.

<-- I was visiting a friend in the dorms the other day and got into a discussion with some of her flatmates about something that wasn't even important enough to remember-- I'm sure we were comparing accents or British and American culture as that is how most conversations go.. but at one point the conversation turned to the topic of tea. While most discussion points had been dismissed as unimportant, this one was taken seriously and the quote to be remember was, "People disagree all the time, but any conflict can be resolved over a good cup of tea." I'll never forget this because it is the perfect reflection of the British view on having tea. They drink tea ALL THE TIME! With every meal, mid-morning, as an afternoon snack, as an excuse to meet with friends, during their 15 minute break from work... all the time! I'm really beginning to enjoy it too! I've decided that I'd like to find a tea pot sometime before I go home to remembered my time here and how much I enjoy having tea (with milk, like everyone here does). Maybe I'll even convince some friends at home to have a "high tea" with me from time to time.

<-- I had to include a photo of playing basketball to prove that I'm actually doing it. I've talked about it a couple times but realized I have no real proof. A couple things to note from this picture: 1.) I am the one shooting the free-throw and I hope that, Dad, you notice that I still remember how to shoot a ball with good fundamentals! 2.) The lines from the free throw line to the baseline are at an angle rather than perpendicular like ours- I don't know why they have it differently, and 3.) They only allow 5 girls to line up during a free throw at a time. Again, I don't know why the rules are different than at home, but they just are. None of the rules were significantly different enough to inhibit my playing- the ball is still round and the basket is still 10 feet from the ground, but its kind of funny that there would be such subtle differences!

its hard to stay beautiful in the rain

2010-02-19T15:09:00.002Z

I think I am finally getting used to the rain now that the sun is starting to shine more often. People who live here must just get used to it. You can carry an umbrella (or "brolley" as they call them) but 8 out of every 10 umbrellas blows inside out after being outside for 2 minutes because of the gusty breeze. So you learn to accept that your make up and hair aren't going to stay the way they looked when you left your house. "Function over fashion" as my mom always says.

I have started to miss home a little bit lately. I combat these feelings by listening to k98.5 online. There's nothing like country music to lift a person's moods :) Plus I get to hear the news and weather from home.. and I while the rain gets a little old, I am a little glad that I'm not still dealing with snow. We actually got a break from the rain today and I went for a jog on the beach in capris and a hoodie. It was really nice.

I just finished week four of my new classes. I am in the second half of the Welsh history class, Welsh language (So I can speak Welsh to y'all when I get home, haha, but really its actually very hard. They have heaps of double letters that are considered single letters and pronounced different than you'd ever expect! Like how a "dd" is pronounced "th"), Media and Terrorism (this class is fascinating!) and lastly, a class called Crisis of Identity which covers the way that American identity changed in the first half of the 20th century in the face of WWI, the depression and WWII. I am really enjoying my classes this term-- and learning so much!

Missing you all! Stay warm!

"Dutch" valentine

2010-02-16T12:23:00.005Z

<-- What better place to spend Valentine's day weekend but in Amsterdam? They say that the term "Going Dutch" comes from the reputation that the Netherlands has for "etiquette". I'd never heard of Dutch etiquette before but I was willing to go explore the city and find out! A friend and I left Thursday and spent the weekend exploring the "Venice of the North." Amsterdam is nicknamed as such because of the extensive canal system the city is built on. I was blown away by the vibrant culture and beauty of the city! And exhausted by the time we returned on Sunday from all of the sight-seeing.

<--The only thing that would make this picture better if there were a canal running through the middle instead of a street. It would have captured all of the aspects of the city. Other than the canals though, there were bicycles everywhere! Even in the freezing temperatures most everyone got around on their bikes. They even had a bike lane and light system for the bikes! This picture also captures the narrow streets and pretty brick buildings.

<-- Most of the touristy places we went to didn't allow picture taking. The Heineken brewery did though! In addition to seeing Amsterdam's native brewery we also did a canal boat tour that stopped at the Van Gogh museum and the Anne Frank house. Both of these musuems were really cool. Van Gogh has always been one of my favorite artists, and seeing the Anne Frank house, the secret annex that the family hid in for over two years during WWII, made the story real. We got to go through the passage to the annex hidden behind a bookshelf and although the room isn't currently furnished, you can still things in the room like markings on the wall documenting the growing heights of the kids while in hiding. Knowing that I was going to being seeing the house I started reading the diary on the plane to Holland. The experience was very touching. And there was so much more that we didn't get to see! Amsterdam is home to heaps of street art, ethnic restaurants, the Rembrant house and several significant art musuems. Cross my fingers I'd love to find time to go back some day!

<-- Once in Amsterdam, we came across the opportunity to take a daytrip tour bus to Brussels... We just couldn't help ourselves! Saturday we hopped aboard a tour bus mid-morning, stopped in Antwerp, Belgium for lunch and were in Brussels by early afternoon. Brussels is home to the European Union and NATO headquarters. This particular picture is of Manneken Pis, a famous Brussels landmark. I couldn't help but giggle a little when I first saw it. Its a little statue of a naked boy peeing on the street corner. But what makes it famous is the legends surrounding it and what it stands for. There are several legends, but my favorite was the one about a little boy who was awoken by a fire and able to put it out with his urine and a statue was put up in his honor. Other legends we different variations of parent losing sight of their son in a crowd and how the people of Belgium helped search for him, finding him on the corner peeing in the street. Mannekin Pis as since become a symbol of tolerance in the city, as normally it would be unacceptable to have a naked boy peeing on the corner. The last extraordinary thing about the statue is the traditions that have developed. The statue is dressed in costume that is changed a couple times a week. The collection of costumes, which we saw in a nearby museum, numbers over 700 and continues to grow! The oldest one is from the 17th century, and they are often given to the city of Brussels by visitors from other countries. The costumes usually represent the native dress of the visiting country but there were fun ones too!

<-- And of course the sweets that Belgium has made famous... chocolate and waffles! I was willing to sacrifice my diet in order to do some first hand research on these matters! And let me tell you-- they didn't disappoint! There were chocolate shops on every corner and outdoor and indoor waffle vendors in between! It was like having mini donuts at the state fair for the first time. The waffle was so sweet (nothing like a breakfast waffle) and so yummy! MMmmmmmmmm

good times

2010-02-10T17:32:00.005Z

--> I took the opportunity to go visit the other Waterloo Rotary Scholar, Maggie Luce. I was able to stay with Maggie in Limerick, Ireland, where she's studying Thursday to Sunday. Maggie's host counselor's wife, Ursala Callahan gave Maggie and I a historical tour of Limerick Thursday afternoon when I got there. Ursala is currently writing her doctorate thesis on the history of Limerick and was full of knowledge! The church behind me in this photo is St. Mary's, established in 1168. Maggie and I wandered around the cathedral and the graveyard surrounding it. It really stretched my mind to try and wrap around the idea that that church had been there hundreds of years before our country was even a country!

--> This particular photo is from Adare, a quaint little Irish town outside of Limerick. We saw little thatch-roofed houses and boutiques in addition to an abbey that dated back to the 1200's! During the time we were in Adare we stopped into one of the local pubs for a cup of soup and watched some of the Ireland vs. Italy rugby match. The next couple weeks are the "6 nations" rugby games. I will admit I don't really understand the total significance of the games but I can tell you that EVERYWHERE we went the game was either on TV or the radio and it seems to be a really big deal!

--> One of my favorite things that we did during my short stay in Limerick was the evening that Maggie took me to Dolan's, a local pub that hosted local groups playing traditional Irish music. It was so cool! The pub was cozy and with the "trad music" the ambiance made me feel like I had stepped into a movie! And of course I sampled the local Guinness.. not my favorite brew but you've got to at least try when you're in Ireland, right?

let the presentations roll

2010-02-09T12:16:00.005Z

<-- Myself and the president of the Ammanford Rotary club. I was presenting him with the club flag from Waterloo. Although not in the picture, I have one from their club to bring back too! The presentations are really picking up lately. I was in Ammanford a week and a half ago and I have three more scheduled for the next couple weeks!

<-- Me with my host counselor, Paul. Paul and his family have been unbelievably good to me! Not only does he make sure I'm in the right place at the right time and schedule my presentations, he and his wife Helen and their family have had me over for Sunday roast several times and are always available to help me out. Thanks Murrays!

<-- Not exactly sure what I'm saying but here's a candid shot of me giving my presentation. My presentations mostly include information about my family, things I've been involved in like working at Wildwood Hills Ranch, how I got involved with Rotary, and what its been like growing up in Iowa.

tennis love, chalk cliffs, castles and tunnels

2010-01-26T14:57:00.004Z

<-- A weekend journey with my Canadian friend Megan took us first to the Wimbledon tennis club. I will admit that tennis is not my favorite sport.. but the tour we got was so cool! The tradition of tennis was very intriguing to me. It helped, too, that our tour guide was very interesting and told a lot of good stories about the athletes and experiences at the championships over the years. One of the things he told us that I found interesting was that Wimbledon is not really set up to house the loads of people that come for the championships every June. They have very few hotels and definitely nothing to the standard most world class athletes usually like to stay in. So what the residents of Wimbledon village do it rent out their houses for the couple weeks! The houses around the tennis club were impressive houses, and our guide told us that owners usually rent their homes for 25,000 pounds for the couple weeks of summer!

<--Megan and I at the desk where they do the press conferences. The Wimbledon facilities were nothing less than state of the art. One interesting thing we learned was about the Wimbledon club's finances. I'll tell ya, the place reeked of money. Everything was immaculate and construction was being done to improve the grounds simply for the sake of improvement. Our guide explained to us that the club was not ran by the super wealthy necessarily and that it only cost 100 pounds a year to be a member at the club (However, it was an elite crowd because you have to be invited to be a member). They make all their money off of the championships and have been successful mainly because of really good decision making by the board. Court one and centre court where the championships are held are only used once a year for the championships and they're making an exception in 2012 for the Olympics. It was all very interesting!

<-- I have to laugh because I know it would take hours to cross the state of Iowa... well Megan and I crossed all of Wales and England to the east coast in only 5 hours rail! Saturday evening and Sunday we spent in Dover, "the gateway to England." Now I'd heard of the white cliffs of Dover but I had no idea why they were white or anything else about the quaint coast town. I was pleasantly surprised! The cliffs are white because they are chalk, and there is much more to Dover than just the cliffs!

<-- Dover castle is situated behind me. It was a massive castle with parts of it dating back to the 1200s. Even more impressive than the castle, though, was that they had dug out tunnels in the chalk cliffs under the castle. Some of the tunnels dated back to the Middle Ages, but most of what is in them is from WWII. There was a hospital, barracks and offices all situated below ground. 6 miles of tunnels at three main different depths! This was where Admiral Ramsay strategized his plan to evacuate the thousands troops from Dunkirk, operation Dynamo, and many of the meetings leading up to D-Day took place. They still had the maps and tables set up with data from the war on them (but you weren't allowed to take pictures in the tunnels.. sorry!). The deepest set of tunnels that people weren't allowed to go down to because of health and safety reasons were set up in case of a nuclear attack. They "Dumpy level" (what they called the lowest level) was equpped to house the Regional Centre of Government and even had a BBC studio to communicate with the people in case of nuclear war. It was so cool!

boys dressed as girls and an "American" experience

2010-01-21T14:37:00.007Z

<-- My last final exam was last Friday so I've had this week to expore and readjust to being in Swansea.. I have been very productive. Working on my metric conversions lifting weights at the gym, sorting out my class schedule for this next term, and strategizing for my travels this Spring to maximize the most of my last couple months! I haven't stuck around Swansea this whole time though. Wednesday I took the bus to Cardiff, the capital of Wales, and did some exploring. This picture is of me inside the walls of Cardiff castle.

<--Most of the castle was from the Victorian Age (1800s) I found this room the most interesting because it was the kids room. On the table you can see a picture... You can't really make out the details but it is the four children who lived in the castle. There were two boys and two girls, but when you looked closely at the picture you noticed that the youngest boy was dressed in girl's clothing. Apparently during Victorian times they believed that death was a person and that he preferred to take young boys so they dressed their boys like girls in hopes that death would pass them by.

<-- I've also had some fun. This picture is of me and my housemates in our dining room/kitchen. The girl next to me is Lauren, she is from New Mexico. To my left is Jon, he's from France. The other girl is Barbara, she's from Italy (but originally from Argentina). And the guy on the left of the picture is Felix, from Germany. As a house we decided that this term that since we have so many different cultures represented we should have house dinners and prepare "our food" for each other. Lauren and I volunteered to go first. What is American food? As is the American melting pot we realized that most of our food is just spin-offs of other cultures' foods. Because I went home for Christmas I brought back an American delicassy... Kraft Mac N Cheese. They'd never even seen anything like it! Powdered cheese? Haha. We added meat to some of them just to make it appear more like a nutritionally "balanced" meal and it was fun to share something from home with everyone. I'm not sure they were as excited about it as Lauren and I were though!

observations

2010-01-16T20:32:00.004Z

During my time home for Christmas one of the most common questions I got from friends and family was, "So how different is it over there really?" and my response, based on my observation was that a lot our cultures are very similar. I think that comes from speaking pretty much the same language, watching a lot of the same TV shows and movies, and listening to much of the same music. However, gym and sport culture have some differences. I don't want to say that one culture is healthier than the other by any means, I think we just do things different. So my experience today...

For all good Americans, January is always a good month to kickstart or re-engage a workout routine. It's been almost a full year since I've lifted weights so I decided that I should get back at it. Let's start with my expectations: I spent three years at UNI in Cedar Falls and like clockwork, there were three times of the year that you can always count on the gym being packed. Right when classes start in the fall, before Spring break, and just after the New Year. Now for those of us who are pretty consistent gym users throughout the year, the extra people in the gym with their "New Years Resolutions" are something you have to mentally prepare to be patient with, because its mostly annoying. I'm not saying that I don't think they should be there-- I think everyone should exercise. Anyway... so I was absolutely shocked when I walked into the gym and it was just as empty as usual. I'm not even sure what conclusions to draw from that... Could it be a lack of New Years Resolutions? or New Years Resolutions that don't revolve around body image and weight loss? Hm... Or just a fluke?

So I did a short warmup and then made my way over to what I consider the "Boys' side" of the gym.. the weights. I was looking for the usual 8, 10, 15 and quickly realized that these weights weren't the same as the ones we have at home. Oh the metric system! So as I did conversions in my head to try to figure out which weights to use to do curls as close to 10 pounds as I could I found myself pondering the problems with having separate measuring systems... I've had some trouble cooking and baking because of the temperature being in celcius, and the little bit that weight comes up in converstation between girls I did notice that they weigh themselves in kilos.. They do height for people in feet and inches but distance from sea level in meters. The road signs and distances are all in miles (I noticed when I was in Canada that their road signs were all in kilometers!). Seems to me that they are stuck in the middle of this whole battle of measurement systems!

holiday pics

2010-01-16T11:26:00.007Z

--> Dad and I after cutting down our "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree. You better believe we chose the smaller of these two trees to take home with us! Mom got it really dressed up though and made it look pretty in the living room. She claims she's not an artist but if that were true she wouldn't pick a tree that needs so much work haha. The day before I was leaving I noticed that most everyone in our neighborhood had their trees out by the street, including us. Everyone else had such beautiful, big, full trees that I could visualize with ornaments and lights set up in their living room windows.. I burst out laughing as I came around the corner and saw our little branch that had been blown into the middle of the driveway. Haha!

--> My sister and I in Banff, Alberta. We joked the whole week before leaving, "Who goes to Canada in the middle of Winter?" I learned, though, that loads of people go to Canada in the Winter for the huge array of winter sports, not to mention it was warmer in Canada than it was in Iowa. I was beautiful!

weather report

2010-01-16T11:06:00.005Z

Just four days ago I pulled out of my driveway to run a quick errand, began to turn the corner about 150 yards down the street, didn't quite make the turn... and gently slid into the snow pile on the other side of the corner. My little car doesn't go very well in snow, obviously. Dave Buck, my home counselor and conveniently my next door neighbor as well, noticed my predicament and came and pushed me out. As I continued on my way, I couldn't help but chuckle a little at the thought of adding "pushing me out of a snow pile" to all the things Dave has helped me with this year.

I have since made my way back to Swansea where that particular issue is not one I have to worry about. There was a half an inch of snow in London (I don't think they see any snow very often from the panic I picked up on in their voices, haha) that was disrupting plane schedules and altering bus routes, but that has since melted and temps are back up in the 40s.

It's nice to be settling back in and reconnecting with friends. I heard there was sunshine again in the Midwest yesterday. I am excited for you... I won't mention my slightly warmer sunshiney walk on the beach... The sunshine here was unusual though, and of course, rain is still the norm. Sounds like I'll get my full dose of rain at least until March.

winter wonderland

2010-01-08T16:31:00.005Z

I apologize for not blogging sooner... The holiday season has been crazy! I was able to make the journey back to the states after my final papers were due to celebrate Christmas with my family in Iowa. Highlights include (but definitely aren't limited to) going out to the farm with my mom and dad to cut down our "Charlie Brown" Christmas tree. My mom has a thing for trees that seem to be missing branches and a little thin through the middle, maybe it is sparked by compassion inside her to save a tree that wouldn't otherwise have been chosen.. I don't know! For those of you from the Cedar Valley, you may understand what I mean when I say that a couple trips to Cup of Joe on Main Street in Cedar Falls were a must! It is my favorite coffee shop, and a great place to meet with friends to catch up. I loved sharing stories about my journey this far- I didn't realize until recounting some of what I've learned just exactly how much I really am learning. This experience has been invaluable.

Christmas traditions run wild in my family, from Christmas Eve service as a family at my parent's church to leaving cookies out for Santa to reading the Christmas story from the book of Luke in the Bible before opening presents on Christmas morning. I spent New Year's in Banff, Canada with my sister, representing our family at wedding. This trip, planned last minute, was a blast! For those of you who have never been to Banff, it has got to be one of the most beautiful places in the world. The last major highlight was January 5-- this date should ring a bell for all the Hawkeye fans out there-- the Orange Bowl. No, I wasn't able to go... but my brother is a redshirt freshman who got to dress for the game so my parents made the journey to Miami to support him and the team. I spent the evening with friends glued to a TV cheering them to victory! GO HAWKS! I'll tell ya, the Brits have no idea what they're missing. There's no way their football (soccer) could ever replace our football (American football) in my eyes!

It was really great to be home and experience what I would consider "real winter weather". I didn't realize how much I'd missed snow. I could do without the record-setting cold we've had the last couple days, but the snow was fun. However, this "real winter weather" currently has me trapped in Iowa, having had to postpone my flight back to the UK. Between the snowstorm that hit the midwest yesterday and Wednesday, and the unusually cold, snowy weather in London, there was no way I was able to make my scheduled flight yesterday. The next available flight I was able to get on is for Tuesday. Gotta love Iowa winters!

British holiday factoid for you as well: the day after Christmas in the UK is "Boxing Day." While the history of this day is fading through the generations (most people my age relate it to shopping, sort of like our Black Friday after Thanksgiving), and the day is marked by the opening of many shopping sales, the real meaning of it is quite interesting to me. Back when there was class segregation and wealthy families had servants that waited on them, the day after Christmas was the only day of the year that the servants had off to go visit and spend time with their families. The servants boxed up the leftovers from Christmas and left it for the families to eat while they were away. Thus being called "Boxing Day." A traditional Boxing Day in the UK, if one isn't hitting the shops, is spent with family having cold meat sandwiches. I like it.

Stay warm friends!!

the million dollar question

2009-12-05T17:03:00.003Z

It was completely dark out today by 4 in the afternoon. Winter can be so depressing. I spent the whole day in the library working on term papers that are due next week. Funny how the time of year when everyone is gearing up and embracing Christmas season is also the time when students are the most stressed out because all of our end-of-term projects and papers are due. I refuse to let the stress of school interfere with my Christmas spirit though.

The other, obviously important, matter I've been pondering today has been the weather. I got several messages from friends back home about the snow this last weekend. I can't decide if I miss it or not. Snow is beautiful... but it always means that that frigid bajillion below zero weather is right around the corner. Again, here is another case where students don't have it so good. Instead of being able to hide from the weather inside our vehicles and only be exposed to the elements during our dash from the car to the door, students have to park forever away from our classes and walk through the elements.

Here in Swansea it has been raining pretty much 5 out of 7 days of the week. Not a downpour, more of a constant drizzle mixed with some downpour. Because we're on the coast we get some of the blustery winds which can be tricky because your umbrella has a tendency to turn inside out, but the temperature hasn't been below 50 F. So I don't find myself cold often, but I do find myself wet.

So the million dollar question today is... which would I rather have? Cold... or wet? Now don't worry Mom and Dad, this question is not loaded- I am not pondering whether or not I will come home at the end of the year. More or less, my mind has simply been wandering from one thing to the next in an attempt to avoid focusing on writing these silly term papers.

I suppose its time to refocus...

Kobenhaven

2009-12-03T20:54:00.002Z

<-- Copenhagen was a blast! As I said in my previous blog, I took advantage of getting to see a good friend from Oregon that was there because of a pharmaceutical conference. I was only there for two and a half days, but we made the most of it! I didn't really know much about Denmark's capital so I did some internet research prior to my journey. Copenhagen, like most major cities, is on the water, so one of our stops was at the old harbour. As you can see, the colors of the buildings and ships made this area very unique feeling- like something out of a movie! What you can't see is behind the boats there were loads of stands set up selling original arts and crafts. It was a fun place to explore.

<-- This was a display set up in the city center. I had to include it because I'm sure you'll be hearing about the global climate justice conference that is going on in Copenhagen next week. We just barely missed the hustle and bustle but you could tell that it's going to be big. There were posters up everywhere advertising the event. "Hopenhagen" I thought it was clever... This particular display had some of the best photography I've ever seen in my life-- of beautiful places in the world. Once you got through it you learned that all of these places will either disappear or be radically changed in the next hundred years due to the climate change. I don't know if it was just because of the conference next week or not, but you could tell that environmental issues were near and dear to the people's hearts.

<-- This picture is of our other major stop during our stay, Tivoli gardens. This place was cool. It definitely got me in the mood for Christmas too! We spent a whole day wondering around this small theme park/village. There were small Christmas shops everywhere, food stands, and AMAZING Christmas decorations. When the sun went down-- which was around 3:30/4 in the afternoon because we were quite far north, the lights came on and were wonderful! I cannot even explain them and I didn't include the pictures because it just didn't do them justice. If anything has gotten me in the Christmas spirit this season, it was walking around Tivoli!
<-- Another display in Tivoli was this barn where you walked through a Christmas elf scene. This is just one of them behind me but there were scenes where the elves were skating or skiing or making a Christmas dinner or even in snowball fights. I learned that a lot of Tivoli and Copenhagen are inspiration to Hans Christian Anderson's stories.
<-- The Christmas tree out front of city hall. Nicole and I were fortunate enough to have randomly been in Copenhagen for the Christmas parade where Father Christmas makes his entrance into the city and they light the tree for the first time this season. Father Christmas came in with a bunch of dancing girls in front of a firetruck. It was really fun! In addition, you can see the outside of Tivoli behind the tree.

lessons in Welsh history

2009-12-03T19:23:00.007Z

I decided to take an opportunist's approach to traveling Europe this year. Instead of operating with a list of places I'd like to see and checking them off as I go, I am taking the method of ceasing opportunities to travel as they present themselves. So when my good friend, Nicole, from Oregon emailed and said she'd be in Copenhagen for a pharmaceutical conference, I jumped at the opportunity to visit a friend and see Denmark's capital city.

My plane was set to fly out of Cardiff (Wales's capital) at 6am on Sunday... so I emailed my Rotarian friends Gareth and Jan Cheeseman, who live in Cardiff, and asked if they would mind if I stayed at their home Saturday night so I was closer to the airport to catch my flight the following morning. Rotarians never seize to blow me away with their kindness and hospitality. Gareth and Jan not only opened their home to me for the evening, but provided transportation and took me out for dinner Saturday night (an absolute treat for college students who mainly live on cereal and pasta).

Gareth and Jan are a wealth of Welsh knowledge! One of my courses at Swansea University is an Intro to Welsh History class, so while Gareth and Jan were inquiring about my studies, we ended up delving into a world of Welsh trivia. Did you know that 16 of the 56 signatures on America's Declaration of Independence are Welshmen? Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Abraham Lincoln, Calvin Coolridge, and Richard Nixon all have family roots in Wales. We also discussed the Welsh resiliency in the face of oppression. My family surnames... Edwards, and my mom's maiden name, Jones, are both Welsh in decent!

I am developing a genuine respect for the Welsh nation and their history the more I learn. English Parliament established Penal Laws against Wales in 1402. These laws were infamous. The Welsh weren't allowed to gather together, to hold any sort of office, their children were denied education, they weren't allowed to carry arms or to live in any of the English cities or towns. This code applied to any Englishman who married a Welsh woman as well. Talk about oppression! The Welsh were treated by law as second-class citezens.

The Penal Code was lifted in 1535 by Henry VIII's Act of Wales, but a 130 years of oppression is hard to forget. That's one of the reasons I am coming to admire the Welsh. Even though they occasionally have their friendly banter directed at the English, they haven't let it ruin them. Most of the natives that I have had the chance to discuss Welsh history with speak of overcoming the adversities, taking to home education and realizing that they simply needed to work harder and press on. They didn't comprimise their integrity or let the labels the English placed on them set them back. They maintained hope, waiting for a leader to restore Welsh dignity. The leader they found was Henry Tudor, the first King of England with Welsh ancestry. He was the one who set things in motion to get the Welsh their equality back.

Gareth and Jan picked me up at the airport after my trip (pictures from Copenhagen to come in next blog) and delivered me back to Swansea, but not before taking a detour to see and tour St. Donats castle. The castle was so cool. At least part of one of the remaining walls dated back to the 1100's, but most of the castle was from the Tudor era, around the 1500s. The castle was renovated and opened as Atlantic College in 1962. College as in what would be grades 11 and 12 to us Americans. The set up and education is top notch. Gareth retired two years ago after working for eleven years at the college, but still has the priveleges of bringing guests to show around the grounds and castle. The College itself was impressive, with 70 countries represented and only 320 students.

The pictures included in this post are from the castle. The first is of the inner courtyard. This is where the wall dating back to the 1100s is. The second picture is looking through to the main entrance. The castle is the central hub of the college's campus. The presidents office, the dining hall, and some of the classrooms are in rooms in the castle. I have to say that a lot of it reminded me of the Harry Potter movies- especially the dining hall. They even renovated the dungeon down in the basement into the women's restroom. Each cell had a toilet in it! The last photo is of the view from the dining hall down to the church. Getting to see castles and things like these is so unreal sometimes-- nothing like history we have in the States!

Copenhagen to come in my next post...

Thanksgiving!

2009-12-03T18:55:00.002Z

I have the most awesome set of friends on my basketball team ever! I am one of only two Americans on the team and they all agreed to help create and participate in a Thanksgiving dinner for us lone Americans! It wasn't exactly like mom's Turkey day feast but we had roast chicken, veggies, potatoes, stuffing, gravy, apple pie, crumble, and custard! I will admit I've never really participated in the creation of a Thanksgiving feast-- its always been left up to my mom and aunts, so it was a bit of an adventure, but it turned out fabulously. We chose to have chicken instead of turkey because a big turkey wouldn't fit into the ovens they put in student residences, and you can see from the pictures that we served the meal and ate it like proper college students.. on the floor around a living room table, but it served its purpose and if nothing else, made me feel loved. The other American and I shared with the team what we knew about the history of Thanksgiving and what our "traditional Thanksgiving" at home would look like. One of my traditions I shared was that my family goes around before we eat and says what we're each individually thankful for, so of course the girls agreed that it would only be appropriate for us to each share something. I shared with the group that I felt exceptionally thankful this year for the opportunity to study in Swansea, and that being away from home on a more family-oriented holiday was hard, but that I felt exceptionally thankful to have met and made friends with this group of girls. I will admit that our basketball team is not the best basketball team on the planet, we have a long way to go, but most of my closest friends I am making here are from the team. We hang out outside of basketball-- classes, studying, eating, social events, movies, just hanging out, and now we've even shared a holiday!

I hope everyone at home had a great Thanksgiving! Thank you to everyone who has contributed to helping me be in Swansea this year-- I really appreciate it!

home like a remedy

2009-11-22T17:54:00.003Z

I've had a small cold since I've been here, but mostly I've been fortunate enough to avoid the germs... Until Thursday. Thursday I came home after class and crashed early-- 5:00 early. Friday I chose to fight it and venture out into the sunshine and try to be productive but found myself back in bed for another early night. Saturday I was unable to leave my bed.. I was suffering from a massive headache but other than that I was just achy and feverish, hot and cold chills. I just felt so darn miserable! This morning I woke feeling somewhat better but I know it won't be a late night. I am anticipating a full recovery by tomorrow.

My reason for sharing this with you all is I don't think you realize how much "home" can be like a medicine until you need that perfect remedy and can't get it. My bed here, which is usually quite comfy, didn't feel as good as settling in on couch at home in front of the TV. The tomato soup didn't have the same soothing qualities that it seems to when Mom serves it. Then on top of feeling physically down, I felt extremely lonely. I had a couple good friends checking in on me and willing to stop by, but I think something about sickness goes hand in hand with homesickness. They say getting sick overseas is normal being that you're surrounded by foreign bugs and viruses. Now that I've experienced it though I've learned 2 things: 1.) There is nothing like being at home and being looked after by your mom when you're sick, and 2.) I am going to do everything in my power to avoid illness again while I am here!

presentations!

2009-11-21T11:31:00.004Z

I am sending out my First Report Document this week, and therefore felt it was important for me to share some of my Rotary experiences thus far.

I spent the weekend in Leicester with the other scholars, I also spent the weekend in Torquay at the district conference.

I have also had the opportunity to give two presentations. Both have been joint presentations with the other Swansea scholar, Claire, from New Zealand. We spoke at the Port Talbot club and at the Aberdare club. Rotarians continue to impress me with their hospitality and kindness.

My presentations have gone well. I am still working to improve my speaking skills and hone in on what is most important to say-- its hard to fit all of the things I'd like to share into a 10/15 minute presentation!

The picture included is of me exchanging flags with the president of the Aberdare club.

its best to call it an adventure

2009-11-21T10:31:00.004Z

My parents haven't ever been to Europe, so having one of their children here was more than enough of an excuse to come explore. I met them in London Tuesday before last and we dove right in. We hit all of the touristy sites, some pubs and had a couple pints. My aunt and uncle came along too.

Thursday we signed up for a daytrip to Paris through a tourist company out of London. It was fantastic. In order to maximize the day, we were picked up at our hotel at 4:45am and taken to the Eurostar station to catch the first train of the day out. We were in a group of about 20 with a guide. Once in Paris, we saw the Arch de Triumphe (did you know that there is a giant 8-10 lane roundabout around the Arch, and it is different than most roundabouts because once in it, you yeild to incoming traffic... just think about it-- it's crazy!), went up the Eiffel Tower, did a boat tour on the Seine, went around the Concorde monument and the Jardin de Triolies before going to the Louvre. At the Louvre we saw the Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory before distaster struck. We were getting dinner in the food court and my handbag disappeared. I can't explain the rush of emotion that hit all at once. I've been warned I don't know how many times about protecting your things and about how good thieves can be... and in the 5 minutes I let my guard down it was gone. I am my own biggest critic. I know I made a crucial mistake-- I hadn't separated out my important things from my bag and I had forgotten my money belt. So when this thief took my handbag, he took my passport as well. Checking in with security and filing a police report were quite difficult given that we were in France, we don't speak French, and they don't speak English. Luckily, we had our tour guide to translate.

Because I didn't have a passport I wasn't allowed to board the train back to London. I understand the purpose of having Border Agencies and the importance of their job, but at that very moment I have to say I was real upset that they wouldn't bend the rules. In any sense, Mom, Dad and I found a nearby hotel to crash at that evening. I was emotionally exhausted at that point. I have to insert here that I have never been more thankful to have my parents with me in the midst of trauma.

The next morning we got up and headed to the US Embassy. The sight of an American flag never looked so good. We were greeted kindly and everyone was incredibly helpful and encouraging- they were able to replace my passport that day. It was a strange feeling, dealing with the French police, the UK Border Agency and finally the US Embassy. Everyone was cordial and polite, but there was also a sense coming from the French and UK officials that they really didn't have to help me and weren't willing to go out of their way. That sense in contrast to the warm welcome we felt from the US Embassy taught me a quick lesson on the importance of citizenship and loyalty to your home country.

I was traveling a little lighter now without my bag, but we were headed back to London. We met back up with my Aunt and Uncle and pressed on with our week's itinerary. The next two nights were spent in the Cotswolds- one in Moreton-in-Marsh and one near Branbury. We stayed at quaint bed and breakfasts and spent the days exploring the nearby villages. We also made our way to Warwick castle. Parts of this castle date back to the William the Conquerer in 1068. It's hard to believe that these structures are so much older than our country!

Sunday night we made our way to Swansea. I was able to show my parents and aunt and uncle some of the area I'm staying in. We checked out the local market, some of the local shopping, took the bus out to the Gower, and ate fresh seafood in addition to showing them my house and the university. It was cool to be able to show my parents where I'm at. Now when I call/email home, they will have a visual to know what I'm talking about.

Saying goodbye was quite hard. It's hard to believe that I've been away three months already. But I dove right back in... Wednesday morning I said my goodbyes to Mom and Dad and Wednesday afternoon we had a basketball game in Winchester- our first win of the season.

I learned a lot that week. And rather than dwell on the violated feelings one gets when property has been taken, I'm going to choose to dwell rather on the things I can do to prevent the situation from happening again. Chalk it up to a learning experience I guess.

remember, remember the 5th of November

2009-11-05T18:09:00.003Z

Some of you, like me, may have seen the movie "V for Vendetta" starring Natalie Portman and Hugo Weaving. It came out in 2005. I know I really liked it, but I had no idea that it was sort of based on a true story! Come to find out the plot is based on the attempt by Guy Fawkes, Britain's most notorious traitor, to blow up parliament and the king!

As the story goes... back in 1603 the English Catholics were getting tired of being persecuted by Queen Elizabeth. James I was taking the throne and they were hoping that he would allow more religious freedom. When he didn't, a small group of people decided that violence was the answer. The plan was to blow up 36 barrels of gunpowder beneath Parliament and in the process blow up the king, some lords, and the prince of Wales. When they realized that they could injure innocent people in the process, most everyone backed out-- except Guy Fawkes.

The plan was foiled and Guy Fawkes was caught before lighting the barrels-- on November 5, 1605. He was tortured and executed. The people celebrated by lighting bonfires all over the UK. Ever since, November 5th is celebrated as bonfire night, where everyone in Britain lights bonfires and shoots fireworks to celebrate the safety of the king... So tonight I am headed to the Murray's for hotdogs, a big bonfire, and fireworks :)

yes, they celebrate Halloween here!

2009-11-02T14:27:00.003Z

--> Please don't be shocked as we are supposed to look like dead people! Halloween here was very similar to Halloween at home.. except because the Welsh like to dress up in costumes, "fancy dress" pretty much all of the time, Halloween was just another excuse to make a WHOLE week out of it! I have to say I missed going to the haunted house in Evansdale... But there was still enough haunting and scaring going on around here to suffice! Wednesday night in town is "student night" so all of the bigger events-- mostly revolving somehow around Michael Jackson and "Thriller," were that night. Wednesday nights are also the night that the athletes go out with their teams... so the two girls in the picture with me are teammates! I'll have to load a picture soon of us all "alive"... because we do normally look much better than this!

Swansea friends

2009-11-02T13:46:00.003Z

<-- Me and the rest of the girls singing karaoke at the birthday party. Another thing that made this party a bit different than parties I've been to at home was that it was themed. They call it "fancy dress." Anika, the birthday girl, wanted everyone to dress in black, white or silver and her friends to dress sort of like gangsters and their girls. A cocktail dress wasn't something that made the cut when I was fitting my whole life into two suitcases, so I just went along with the colored theme but you can see that the other girls are looking "smart". Anika was the only one there in a color-- she's on the far left in blue.

<--Me with a couple of the "gansters", Arron and Edward. Edward, in the middle (who does not normally have a mustache) is my host counselor's son. He's the one who introduced me to this great group of locals!

<--The whole gang all together. Most everyone from the group went to "school" together. So another bit of English word/change (I don't really know what to call it when we have the same English words that mean slightly different things). In the UK, when someone says "school", they are referring to what we would call elementary, middle school, and freshman and sophomore years of high school. After grade 10, they can either end "school", or go on to do what they call, A-levels or "college". They pick what they'd like to study for their A-levels and they start focusing they education in a career-direction. A-levels/"college" is two years. After "college", they can apply to attend "University." This word game all gets quite confusing as you know in the US we call any type of education "school", and the education we do after high school can be called not only "school", but "college", and we usually attend either a "college" or a "university." So when I first arrived here and I told them I went to "school at the University of Northern Iowa," they were quite confused... Now that I've been here awhile though, I think I'm getting the hang of the word game.

honorary "swansea jack"

2009-11-01T12:16:00.003Z

According to legend, there was a black lab named Jack that lived in Swansea years ago that would dive into the sea and save people in trouble. Ever since, the people of Swansea have been nicknamed the "Jacks." I learned this before being named an honorary "Swansea Jack" at a 21st birthday party I was invited to last night.

21st birthday parties here are nothing like 21sts at home. In the States, turning 21 is pretty much all about a person's ability to drink alcohol legally. Here, at 21, they've been drinking for three years already! But 21 is still a big deal. I would compare it to our tradition of celebrating high school graduations. Friends and family were all invited, there was a finger-food buffet, music was being played, and gifts were given. It was very fun.

At one point in the evening, there was karaoke which quickly turned into a string of football (soccer) chants that the entire crowd joined in on. As I've gotten more involved with the athletic union at the university, I've picked up on the rivalry between Swansea and Cardiff, especially when it comes to rugby and football (soccer), but also pretty much all of the time. Never has this rivalry been more apparent than when I was in the middle of the chanting and singing about their beloved teams, putting down the nasty Cardiff teams. I am starting to wonder if all of the Welsh people eat, sleep and breathe rugby, football (soccer) and this deep divide between the Jacks and the people of Cardiff.

While we're talking sports... Comparing home to here: replace basketball, baseball, football, and volleyball with netball, rugby, and football (soccer). Granted, we've got soccer at home- but its no where near as prevalent as it is here. And I've been somewhat exposed to rugby before, but never like this! The local rugby team, the Ospreys, are practically worshiped. And netball... I'd never even heard of netball before! Apparently its huge on this side of the world. For those of you, like me, who've never heard of it, its sort of like the old 6-0n-6 women's basketball... but with a slightly smaller ball and you can't dribble- its all passing. It's quite fast-paced and all the "cool girls" do it. Haha.

You can't find baseball anywhere here. There is club "American football", volleyball, and basketball. But honestly, the American football team is quite small compared to football players at home (and although I've never watched them play, I've heard they are "rubbish"). The volleyball team is entirely made of exchange students- mostly German and American. And I think I mentioned it before, but I'm playing on the basketball team... We're alright. I applaud the girls for learning and trying but you can tell that basketball isn't something they learn in grade school. And they don't even have it available in high school! So needless to say, most of the girls started playing for the first time here at the uni. They call the basketball courts the "sports hall", the hoops are called "rings", practice is called "training", games are called "fixtures"... I'm learning a whole new terminology!

Sports culture here is simply just different. They don't have athletic scholarships or recruiting the way we do. Being here and talking to British people has sort of started to make me think Americans are a little bit sports/fitness obsessed (comparatively).

In any sense... I'm off to "training"... Missing you all in the states!

here comes the sun

2009-10-14T21:48:00.014+01:00

---> All dressed up and looking "smart" for the cocktail evening. From left to right: Wendy, from Australia (studying in Aberyswyth), Emily, from Australia (studying in Cardiff), Andrea, from Germany (studying in Cardiff), Jan and Gareth Cheesman, me, and Claire, my kiwi friend.

---> Friday night was the "fancy dress" night. It was nautically themed so Claire and I figured that blue and white stripes were the way to go.. Turned out we looked more like inmates!

---> I thought I would throw in a picture of some of the friends I'm making here. On the left side of the booth, in the middle (the other blonde) is Lindsay, the Iowan I met taking my presessional course in London. The rest of the group are British students we've met at our university. We were out celebrating Lindsay's birthday one night last week at a local pub! The reddish colored drinks on the table are a new favorite of mine... Cider with blackcurrent juice. It's very sweet!

---> This picture is from my day in Rhossili. The formation you can see is called "Worm's head." If you look hard, you can kind of tell why... it looks like a snake popping it head out of the water! This picture is also taken in a Southwestward direction-- towards Iowa! It was such a clear day I thought I could almost make you guys out over there on the other side of the ocean... just kidding!

---> My day was not all hiking and exploring... I had to take some time to relax and soak in some rays.. The beach in this photo and the next are one and the same. It was so quiet and almost like an oven with the sun not only shining down but reflecting up off the sand as well!

---> The bay I hiked down to. It was actually quite the journey down! And back up out of it! The small path you see ahead winded around and through and down... Then you can kind of see it but the beach was surrounded by rocks.. The rock climbing course I took at UNI finally paid off!

---> Lastly, a picture of me sitting where I can overlook Rhossili Bay. I did hike down to that beach as well.. but not before getting a cup of ice cream from a little cafe in the village. You can kind of make out the village (it was very small) in the background as well.

when life gives you lemons... eat welsh cakes!

2009-10-14T20:45:00.003+01:00

So I let my personal oath to blog once a week slightly get away from me. Once every two weeks might end up being a little more reasonable. Either way... don't let the lack of blogging lead you to believe in any way that the last ten days have been less eventful!

I have been in the UK for over 6 weeks now.. Can anyone believe it? I can't! How time flies... I have definitely missed home and my friends and family many times since I've been here, but last week was the first week I can say I was truly homesick. My living accommodations here aren't exactly what I expected. I had opted to live in one of the university housing complexes because of the simplicity of having it pre-arranged for me. What I didn't expect was to be living in a house with 9 first-year undergrads. I have to say that it has been entertaining at times, and there is always activity, not to mention I do have a roof over my head and a bed to sleep in... but after being here a couple weeks I am realizing that while communal living like this is definitely something everyone should experience, my two years in the dorms at UNI in Cedar Falls had already satisfied that rite of passage for me, and I am ready to be around people who are becoming more career focused, who value sleep and cleanliness. Needless to say, my housing situation fueled an already homesick fragile state and led to a couple of pretty rough days. I have since applied for a change in housing.

Welsh cakes are the answer. Not really, but they are great. I discovered them initially at my sponsor club's dinner-- they were served for dessert. It was love at first sight. They are somewhere between a scone, a pancake and a cookie and typically have a few raisins in them. I told my host family, the Murrays, how much I enjoyed them and they informed me that there was a lady who had a stand in the Swansea market (which is open every day from 9-5 with all sorts of fresh fruits and veg and fish and meat, not to mention unique knick-knacky things too- its pretty cool), and made them fresh and sold them still warm! You can get 10 for only 2 pounds!! I made my way to the market Tuesday and have been addicted ever since! Anyway...

There were several bright spots in my week (in addition to my Welsh cake discovery). Sunday roast at the Murrays was awesome. I don't know if it's a human thing, an American thing or just a me (or my family) thing, but great food always seems to lift my spirits :) Due to the 12 million sheep that inhabit the country of Wales, lamb is as plentiful and as common of meal as pork in Iowa! Helen made lamb, which was served with a mint sauce, along with lots of yummy veggies and finished off with some custard. MMmmmm.

Also, this last weekend was the my Rotary host district, 1150, annual conference, and they invited the scholars to attend. There were 5 of us- Claire and I from Swansea, two girls from Cardiff, and one from Aberyswyth (I think thats how you spell it). Gwenda, Claire's host counselor drove us two Swansea girls there, and Gareth and Jan Cheesman looked out for and "chaperoned" the Ambassadorial Scholar group for the weekend. It was held in Torquay, England, and really fun. Friday night was a "fancy dress" nautical themed dinner and dance. Saturday morning we listened to talks from several inspiring, funny, and informative speakers, and then in the afternoon we were free to explore Torquay. I chose to walk along the bay... Don't be jealous Iowans (I heard in snowed there last weekend...), but it was warm enough for me to go for my walk in capri's and a t-shirt! Saturday evening was a cocktail party, dinner and dance to a big band. Sunday, not only were there more talks, but we scholars got to present the district with our home club banners. I have to add this story because we discussed it in the moment: on the drive home, Gwenda's car got a flat tire on the motorway (they call them motorways, it looked like a highway to me..). We stood on the side of the road for approx 45 minutes waiting for the UK's equivalent of AAA to come and help us out, and the thing is... no one ever stopped to see if we were ok! Maybe I am a bit niave. I have never had a flat on the highway at home, but I would like to think that someone at home would have stopped to at least make sure I had a cell to call for help. Gwenda assured me that the Welsh were kind people, stopping for people on the side of the road was just not something they do. At least in Iowa we look out for each other, right?

My last highlight I'd like to mention was my day trip to Rhossili. I don't have lectures on Mondays... so when I woke Monday to sunshine I immediately knew what I had to do. Everyone has been talking about how beautiful the Gower peninsula is and I just had to see it. A quick and easy 30-minute bus ride and I made my way to Rhossili, a quaint coast town on the westernmost point of the Gower. It was breathtaking. Of course I'll post pictures! Again, not to rub my sunshine in your snowy faces, but I have to mention that I had the perfect day. It was so filling to my soul to get to soak up sun and hike and explore and listen to the ocean, especially after the crummy homesick week I had had before. Not to be overly poetic, but it really was like a lullaby for my soul. It was even nice enough I stuck my toes in the Atlantic.

This week has been great so far. My day trip to Rhossili, yesterday I had lectures, football practice, and went to a pub quiz with Edward and his friends (Edward is the son of my host counselor who is close to my age and has been kind enough to share his friends with me. I have to say, it makes me feel pretty cool to have local friends and get to experience local things...). Today, although the biggest highlight was getting my laundry done, it was still beautiful and warm! Tomorrow will be good too. I can already tell.

Sorry this one was so long, I had a lot to catch you up on!

Swansea local

2009-10-04T11:47:00.003+01:00

This will be a short one. Promise. I just had to tell everyone about how I felt like I had a very "local Swansea" day yesterday. Claire and I decided to head to Mumbles, ate fish and chips at Yallops sitting on a bench by the pier looking at the bay, had Joe's ice cream for dessert, and then ate a Cadbury chocolate on the bus home.

I love Mumbles. Its one of the villages on the SW part of the bay and has a quaint, lovable feel to it. Lots of boutiques and bed and breakfasts. Yallops is supposed to be the best fish and chips in Swansea. Mmmm fresh cod! Joe's ice cream is also a local treasure-- and its awesome. Lastly, I had to put a little plug in for the Cadbury chocolate. Although we can get Cadbury chocolate in the States, it did begin in Birmingham, England so I feel like I may be having it in its most natural form here. All the more reason to eat more of it, right?

Of course I forgot my camera on this impromtu adventure, but I will try to steal a picture or two from Claire and post them when I can!

Leicester, pronounced "Lest-er", in pictures

2009-10-03T11:39:00.008+01:00

<-- My kiwi friend, Claire, and I in the Leicester city hall courtroom. The particular seats we chose to sit in were in the middle of the room and encased by bars... We found out a bit later that that was the seating for the criminals being prosecuted. Some of the bars were bent from where the handcuffs had been attached-- apparently these seats were not the ones most people wanted to be in!

<-- Dancing with the Morris Men... this was definitely an experience for the memory books.

<-- After the Lord Mayor had shown us the courtroom he hosted our group for tea and cakes. We took this opportunity to get a picture with him and the lady mayoress. Also in this picture is Claire, Asca, a scholar from Japan, and Mike, another scholar from the States. The tea cakes we had here were the best that I've had since I've been in the UK!

<--- Before our host families had to take us back to the Rotary conference, they took the time to show us some of the sights around Leicester. Here, my host mum, Isabelle, and the other scholar staying with us, Noriko from Japan, and I are standing next to the locks at Foxton. We got to see how the barges go up and down the hills using the lock system.

just before football practice

2009-09-29T15:39:00.003+01:00

I've got a few minutes before I head to my first football training and I'd like to take the opportunity to update you on my weekend and first day of class. Yes, you heard me right- football practice. I signed up to be apart of the women's club football team- British football, the kind with the round white and black ball. I haven't played in a few years, but it seemed appropriate while I was here. I'll let you know how it goes...

But as for my first week in Swansea and this last weekend... I spent most of last week finding my bearings, discovering the grocery store, unpacking and getting settled, meeting people.. You know, the usual. One of my tasks for last week was to seek out Claire, the other Rotary scholar studying at Swansea University, from New Zealand. We successfully found each other and immediately became friends. Talk about the stars lining up just right or however this all works-- we hit it off instantaneously. Claire is from the north island of New Zealand and here in Swansea doing her masters in Engineering.

So this last weekend Claire and I bought coach tickets and made the long (6 hours each way) journey to Leicester for the Rotary UK Link conference. The UK is the only branch of Rotary to have their own separate but still apart of Rotary International organization called Rotary International of Britain and Ireland. So they hold their own "Welcome to the UK" weekend for scholars. I will admit I was starting to question how worth it the weekend was 3 hours into the coach ride when I began to feel slightly nauseas, but the questions were silenced when we were taken straight to host families in Leicester for home cooked meals. The Symboroski family, my hosts for the weekend, lived in a beautiful country home 30 minutes outside Leicester surrounded by the rolling hedge-filled English countryside. The fresh veggies from their garden were my favorite! In addition to staying with families, Rotary also arranged for the 80-some scholars being hosted that weekend to visit the National Space Museum, City Hall, the local university, and to see and participate in a performance by the Morris Men (Britain's national dance). We got to see an Imax movie on astronomy, at city hall the Lord Mayor gave us the history of Leicester and hosted us for tea and cakes (which we delicious!), and most exciting, we got to meet other scholars from all over the world. I met not only other students from the US, but also from Japan, Denmark, Antigua, Italy, Germany and everywhere else. Did I mention it was really cool? I felt like I'd only blinked my eyes and Claire and I were boarding the coach home. I decided I would combat the motion sickness with sugar this time... 2 bags of sour gummies and some Smarties later... and I think I may have invented a new alternative to dramamine :). I got off the coach in Swansea with a bit of a stomach ache but at least it was better than feeling dizzy the whole way home!

Yesterday evening Paul (my host counselor) and his wife invited me to attend my hosting Rotary Club. Everyone was so nice and the food, again, was delicious. I had the opportunity to have my first Welsh cakes (a dessert) and they were awesome. I observed very closely to see if the Rotary Club of Swansea did things the same, similar or different from my home club in Waterloo. Aside from the meeting being in the evening instead of lunchtime, and possibly their food being better than the Sullivan Brothers catoring, the only notable difference was ending the meeting in a "vote of thanks" to the speaker, and they kindly toasted the club of Waterloo, Iowa to end the evening! I feel so honored to sponsor our club at home and so welcomed here in Swansea.

Well... off to football! Wish me luck :)

my address

2009-09-25T09:48:00.001+01:00

The following is my mailing address here:

Laura Edwards
American Studies Exchange Office
Department of American Studies
Swansea University
Singleton Park, Swansea SA2 8PP
Wales
UK

the beaches of the abertawe

2009-09-21T20:54:00.007+01:00

<--- Swansea Bay... This view is from standing in Mumbles looking Northeast. The most left buildings in the photo are actually Swansea University. As you can see, the uni is right on the water :) This picture is taken when the tide was out (obviously). Swansea Bay has the 2nd fastest tide in the world-- it goes from what you see here to filling the bay almost up to the roads in about 20 minutes!

<--- Josh and I at a cafe called Ripples. I had yummy English tea there, which, by the way I am learning to love taking milk in my tea... Milk with tea is "very English." This place may become one of my favorite study/reading spots very soon.

croeso i gymru (welcome to wales)

2009-09-21T14:42:00.004+01:00

We spent our last night in London at our favorite restaurant/pub we had discovered-- the Churchill Arms that I have wrote about previously. Pad Thai and a pint of Fuller's Honey Dew never tasted so good!

The next morning we began our journey through the countryside to Swansea, Wales. I have to be honest, it was a long day filled with several travel "issues" that, of course, seem to be magnified by anticipation and anxiousness mixed in with exhaustion. Nevertheless, I refuse to dwell on the negative, we arrived! And let me tell you- the pictures do not do this place justice. It is beee-A-ut-iful! (Pictures to come)

I am living in a student village about 2 miles from the main campus, in a flat with 9 other first year students: 3 American exchange students, 1 French exchange student, 1 Japanese exchange student, and 5 British students. We each have our own rooms and then share 2 showers, 2 toilets and a big kitchen.

Swansea University has a reputation for being an international school-- 38% of the student body are international students. Also, the student village is very social. With a pub and restaurant located right in our village, everyone seems friendly and anxious to be making new friends. I have met loads people from lots of different places already!

Sunday I had lunch with Paul, my Rotarian host counselor, and his family in their home. Traditional Sunday roast-- it was delicious! Roast chicken, sausage, bacon rolls, potatoes and parsnips in addition to cauliflower, brocolli, mashed potatoes, carrots and peas, bread sauce and gravy. MMmmmmmmm. I had no idea I had been missing home cooked meals so much! Not to mention Paul and his family were incredibly kind. Not only did they welcome me into their home for family lunch, but Paul and his middle child, Edward, drove me to Tescos (the British equivalent of Walmart) to get a few things I needed for my flat, showed me around Swansea, and took me to get ice cream at Joe's. It was a great day. (Thank you Murray family!) I must insert here something about lunch-- being in a new home with people who are being so gracious towards me, I was racking my brain and using my very best manners that my dad has taught me relentlessly growing up. Even though Dad's training has been stellar, I was out of my element. They, the British, or we, the Americans.... well, someone is holding the fork upside down! As I attempted to cunningly copy my manners as the Murray family did, I have to say it was terribly awkward to eat with my fork upside down to what I'm used to, and to eat with both the fork and knife in use at the same time! Haha, but I think I'm going to like it as I get used to it. It was kind of like a new challenge :)

Today I had orientation at the University. We have to register in person with each of our proposed professors, and I learned mine with be available on Wednesday. For the rest of the afternoon, we opted to explore the bay... We started at the uni and walked in the sand westward to Mumbles. (Swansea proper wraps around the Swansea Bay and is basically an accumulation of several villages that have grown together. I am living in Sketty. The Murrays live in Dunvont. Mumbles is along the waterfront). We explored around a bit, stopped at a cafe on the water to have tea, and caught the bus back to our student village.

Again I find myself exhausted. Adjusting to new routines can be such a physical and emotional drainer!

Pictures to come soon...........

british dogs and pints in the street

2009-09-18T12:06:00.009+01:00

---> Taken from atop a hill at Hampstead Heath, one of my very favorite parks I came across in London, you can see the city line behind me. If you look close enough, you can make out some of the building outlines like the London Eye and St. Paul's Cathedral. I walked around this massive park for several hours one afternoon. In addition to coming across this viewpoint, I also saw the Kenwood Estate and the Pergola gardens. Everything was so beautiful, I can only imagine how the locals love to escape the city life to walk their dogs and enjoy fresh air. Which brings up another interesting point-- unlike parks at home where dogs MUST be on a leash, hardly any dogs here ever are! Not to mention, all of the dogs I've observed are SOOO well behaved (maybe that's why they don't have to be on a leash). All I can conclude this far about my observations is that just as British people have a reputation for being extrodinarily polite and on the quiet side, this reputation appears to extend to their pets as well. My dog would never in a million years fit in here!

---> We had gone to the night showing at Shakespeare's globe theater and this was the view from the Millennium Bridge on our walk home in the evening. It was such a perfect evening! From this view, you can see London Bridge in the foreground and Tower Bridge in the background. The city of London is so gorgeous all lit up!

---> What a new experience it was to be able to enjoy our pints on the street outside of the pub! And let me tell you-- this was one popular pub-- with people spilling out of its doors all the way across the street, bitters in hand! I think we came across one of the local hangouts. This, the Churchill pub, was the venue that combined Thai food and the pub atmosphere. In addition to all the of the baskets of flowers you can see on the outside of the building, the entire inside was filled as well, from the ceilings to the walls to the toilets! We loved it! The sign behind us is a picture of Churchill throwing up a peace sign-- he's become one of our favorite characters we've learned up since being here.

bad food myth debunked

2009-09-17T09:02:00.007+01:00

I was told I don't know how many times before coming here that I was in for it--simply put, British food does not have a great reputation. So far, though, this just has not been my experience. Maybe all the warnings set my expectations low enough I have avoided disappointment, or maybe I just love food so much anything tastes good to me. Or maybe London food is different... I don't think we've ate the same ethnicity of food twice since we've been here. Whatever the case... I've been properly nourished and exposed to multicultural London at the same time.....

Uncarbonated beer-- growing up in the states we are definitely accustomed to highly carbonated beverages of all kinds. This is not the British way. This is mostly because the pump the taps by hand, but to some extent it is simply how they like it... and honestly, I didn't mind. I know one of my roommates has found the struggle for carbonated Coke a bit frustrating at times, but the lack of carbonation in a pint strangely seems appropriate here. (Maybe it just suits their local brews) I have to make a note here also about the drinking culture we've been introduced to thus far. Every day of the week around 6 (as people are getting off work or out of school), the pubs begin to fill and overflow out onto the streets. The atmosphere is social, friends getting together after a day to connect before they head home for dinner. The other drinking observation I have made relates to their laws. There is no "open-container" laws in Britain, therefore it is legal to walk about the streets, alcoholic beverage in hand. This caught me off guard at first, but after talking to a few of the locals, realized they don't worry about it as much because so few people drive anywhere.

British pub food-- of course, fish and chips. Every pub we come across, which is about three to every block, advertises their version of fish and chips. They also have a dish called the "plowman's meal," which never includes a description, but always comes on a cutting board with various meats, breads, cheeses, and fruit, that you can assemble yourself. I learned that it is supposed to represent a traditional meal that a plowman would take to the fields with him on a work day.

Thai food-- this meal was, first of all, delicious, but the venue caught us off guard. We ventured into a pub one evening literally covered in flower baskets inside and out. Once you passed the bar, you stepped into another section that was a Thai restaurant inside the pub! I never imagined the combo, beer and Thai food, together, but in that venue it strangely made sense.

Japanese-- we experienced authentic edamame, sushi and noodles in a lovely hole in the wall place really close to our home. Japanese culture seems to be fairly spread throughout the city, not really concentrated in one area like some cultures are.

Indian/Bangladeshi-- my first time having Indian food ever. Our professor took us to Brick Lane for our class the other morning. Brick Lane is the area of London where the bricks used to be made to be used to pave the streets of "the city." Back then, it was prodominantly a Jewish area. It is on the east end of London, and home to most immigrating cultures before they disperse throughout the city. It also has a reputation because of the artists and musicians who choose to create and perform there. Currently, it is prodominantly a Bangladeshi area. We had a traditional Indian lunch there. I have to say, it was good, but not my favorite.

French-- there is a little cafe on the way from our residence to our school here in London. On days when we're running ahead of schedule, we have occasionally stopped for coffee or tea here. Every time, we gaze into the case tempted by the pastries, breakfast dishes and desserts. One morning, I gave it. I also learned that I love croque monsieur! I had to indulge just one other morning, but its definitely something I'd like to learn how to make at home!

Italian-- Pasta and pizza.... Honestly, I've never met an Italian dish I despise. Mostly, though, we've discovered a cafe on the way back to our residence from the tube stop that serves gelato. Mmmm anyone who knows me knows how much I LOVE ice cream :) So whenever my group has been up for it, we stop on our way home for a bit of gelato. It's the perfect night cap in my opinion.

Now that I'm hungry I suppose I'll go rummage through the small fridge in our room for something I can create for lunch. We've been trying to strategically use up all of our food before we transfer to Swansea. As such, meals around here have been a little hodgepodge. Almonds, green grapes, and a bagel it is!

on the banks of the Seine

2009-09-17T08:53:00.003+01:00

<--- A glimpse of the cobblestone paths along the Seine in Paris. By mid-afternoon these pathways were packed with people soaking up the sun, reading, or resting.

<--- The iconic Eiffel tower...

parlez vous Anglais?

2009-09-13T15:18:00.004+01:00

My roommate, Lindsay, and I decided at the last minute that it would be a great idea to sign up for one of the day trips advertised in the brochures in the lobby of our temporary housing. So Saturday morning, under the cover of darkness (about 4:30am) we ventured out onto the streets of London in search of the St. Pancras International Train Station. We were headed to Paris! Before we arrive on the streets of the "City of Love," though....

I've been known to be wrong a few times in my life, I prefer to call it confused though. And apparently I had misinformed myself as to the whereabouts of the train station. Oops. Thank goodness Lindsay isn't one of those people who freak out! We bumped into a guard somewhere around the gates to parliament 5 minutes before we we'd been told to be at the station. Politely asking him where the station was, he politely told us we were on the wrong side of the city and speculated it would be a 40 minute walk. I felt my jaw hit the pavement and my eyes widen to the size of half-dollars..... The nice thing about spending time around a roommate you've only just met is neither of you know each other well enough to have a full-blown freak out breakdown in front of each other. Or get that mad at each other thankfully. So as I oppressed the desire to scream "WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?!?!", we calmly walked down the street and assessed our options. Buses? No way, too confusing and too slow. Tube? Maybe... but for whatever reason London does all their renovation projects on the weekends and you never know which lines will be open or closed on Saturday. Taxi? If only there were one around... we walked two blocks before finally flagging down a lone black cab on his way around a corner. Desperation must have squeaked through in my voice in my explanation of being lost and late for a train because, boy, that cabby flew through the winding streets! Luckily, the streets are not crowded at 5:35 in the morning. Whipping into the St. Pancras station in 9 minutes flat, we were feeling more relieved about only being 15 minutes late rather than whatever it could have been.

We made it onto the Eurostar on time. The Eurostar is the train that runs frequently between London and Paris through the "chunnel." I was fascinated by this underwater tunnel beneath the English Channel, yet somewhat dissapointed that while on the train, you can't really even tell when you're just in a tunnel or underwater. The wonders of modern technology! We were so excited our plan hadn't fallen apart under the early morning street light :)

Our first steps into Paris were the first time I really realized that I wasn't going to communicate with anyone. And, I learned that I do not have any percieveable ability to be able to spot other Americans. A deep sigh just to check if I was breathing... Yep. Again, I found myself thankful it wasn't ok to have a breakdown in front of people we've just met. We must have looked lost staring at a bus map, attempting to decode it. A kind Parisan stopped and informed us that we probably wanted to take the 31, towards the Arch de Champs... it would get us to the main tourist area and from there things should be easier. Our next question-- where is the bus? Laughing a little, he pointed us in the direction of the closest bus stop and we were on our way again.

The rest of the day was great. We saw the Eiffel tower, went on a boat tour up and down the Seine river, wandered the courtyards of the Louvre, looked for Quasimoto at the Notre Dame Cathedral, ate lunch a French cafe, and enjoyed the sun as we walked the cobblestone paths that line the banks of the Seine. Occasionally we found ourselves staring at signs, puzzled as to their meaning, but we got the hang of the flow of things in time. It was a full day. Needless to say, we crashed immediately when we got back to our London flat. What an experience!

Tomorrow starts our last week of class here in London before heading to Swansea. I'm going to try to pack the week full, attempting to leave no stone untouched-- at least not the stones I really want to see. We have a final paper due and a test on Thursday. My paper is on whether the National Health Service will continue to exist in the UK in the next 10-15 years, through the predicted party change in government, increasing budget and the populations demand for more choices in healthcare.

Until next time... Au Revoir!

ten day reflection

2009-09-09T22:28:00.002+01:00

Being ten days in and catching a moment this evening to reflect on how much I've gotten to see and do and experience since I arrived in the British Isles... I can't help but devote a secton here to saying another thank you to all of the Rotarians that have made this oppotunity for me possible. I feel so blessed to have people at home supporting me and investing their time and money into my educational and personal growth.

I have already learned SO much. Navigating a foreign transportation system and money exchange, not to mention that by being in London temporarily, I have had the chance to be exposed to SO MANY different cultures and this alone has been been a dramatically different experience than I expected. I have to say that my expectation before departing was that I would be dropped into a world of British accents, royal etiquette and "high tea." London, however, has blown me away with its immense diversity. It seems you run into a different culture every three store fronts, if not more often. I have been told that once I arrive in Swansea in another ten days, the British/Welsh culture will be notably more concentrated. With that in mind, I feel my experience getting to be in London for a couple weeks has been unique and priceless. I've tried new foods (more on this later), chatted with people from backgrounds I've never been around before, and heard languages truly foreign to any of my previous exposure.

Thank you, again, Rotarians, for believing in the educational scholarship programs! I am so thankful for this opportunity!

lifestyles of the rich and famous

2009-09-09T21:40:00.004+01:00

Ahhh, to do what American women do best--Shop! A day of shopping on High Street Kensington and a breeze through Harrod's department store... Don't worry Mom and Dad, I didn't blow my entire savings today!

One of the free days last week offered us time for exploration of the surrounding neighborhoods which sequentially led to the discovery that we were only about 3 blocks from the reputable shopping on High Street Kensington. My roomies and I of course made plans to go back, strategically planning to make it to the area as close to opening time as possible in an effort to avoid the masses of people we'd witnessed on those streets the first time we'd come across it. Most British folk seem to be opposed to getting up and moving any time before 11 or so, so our plan to arrive, cash in hand around 10, worked marvelously. Stepping in and out of stores we'd never heard of, it never took long to size up just how far out of our price ranges the merchandise really was. I guess that's just part of the big city life! Needless to say, it definitely wasn't a "big haul" day like some I remember from back in the day when we did "school shopping," but I did find a really cute scarf (so I could better fit in with the 9 out of 10 people you see walking down the street with beautiful fabric wrapped around their neck), some shoes that were miraculously on sale, and some "English chocolates" to send home to surprise my brother-- don't worry, he doesn't read my blog!

Harrod's was an experience to say the least. By the time we reached the beautiful, security-loaded doors, we only had an hour of time before we had to be back. Let me tell you, even without spending ANY money, it was not near enough time to see all that this ENORMOUS department store had to offer. "The world's most famous department store," filling an entire city block and reaching several luxourious stories high, it was a window shopper's dream. We didn't have time to see any of the purses or clothing, but we did get to meander through the jewelry, fragrance, food and wine sections. I could never even imagine spending as much money as some of the watches and necklaces cost, but I sort of felt like I'd walked into a scene in "Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous." It was a great day :)

Tomorrow we're headed to the National Portrait Gallery for class, and the school that is sponsoring the presessional course I'm taking, Foundation for International Education, has gotten our class all tickets to the musical, 39 Steps, in the evening. Should be another great day...

the view from the top

2009-09-05T20:37:00.004+01:00

---> My flatmates and me on Millenium Bridge with St. Paul's cathedral behind us. Millenium Bridge is nicknamed the "Wobbly Bridge" because the first time it opened the architects hadn't planned for the thousands of people who would cross it, causing the bridge to sway side to side and up and down. They closed it down, fixed it and reopened it once it was stabilized but the nickname stuck. Either way, its a great view of St. Paul's!

---> The view from the top gallery of St. Pauls. 537 steps up and being exposed to wind gusts that made you feel like you could be blown into the Thames, but it was totally worth it!

600 sq miles of area to cover

2009-09-05T19:28:00.003+01:00

Whew! The first week flew by! Our 3-week presessional course began on Wednesday with a tour of the Imperial War Museum and a tour of St. Paul's cathedral on Thursday. I feel like I've learned SO MUCH in the last 5 days-- English culture, history, tradition-- that the brains inside my skull might burst!

This morning began with a beautiful walk around the Serpentine Lake in Hyde Park, followed by an afternoon spent at the eclectic market in Camden Town. Before we left for the market, we were told that Camden Town has a reputation for being the origination of punk and goth styles amongst London teens. These trends, bright neon colors mixed with lots of black, big boots and bold hairstyles peppered the streets and market stands. Every weekend, thousands of people frequent the markets. Mixed in with the crowd, we looked at antique stands, clothes stands, fresh fruit and veggies, watches, hats... You name it, they had it. So much of it was incredibly unique!

As a part of our coursework, each member of our 5-person class was assigned a specific culture that has made part of London their home. We have a week and a half to visit an area of the city where our particular culture can be found, research their history, explore some of their culture, eat their food if we can, and then present what we've learned. Because of our class size and curiosity associated with our individual tasks, we've decided to do them all together. On our way home from Camden Town, we visited an Irish Cultural Center and learned about how some Irish immigrated to London seeking work in the 1940s and 50s. Tomorrow we're headed to a Jewish Cultural Festival to listen to live music and eat some food!

This city is so huge-- 600 square miles--so many different cultures that over 200 languages can be heard throughout the city! In an attempt to see and do as much as we possibly can, our days have been packed to say the least. Sleep hard, play hard is the motto.

The night is young, and tomorrow will not only include the Jewish festival, but also a visit to a local church in the morning and evening plans to attend Shakespeare's Troilus & Cressida at the Globe Theatre.

Pictures to come soon...

life in the "bor-ah"

2009-09-01T19:30:00.003+01:00

<--- This is me and one of my flatmates at Buckingham Palace. We got to watch the changing of the guard, however, the queen and Philip are not there as they are in Scotland for the summer. We learned that you can tell this because the queen has her own flag that flies above the castle when she is there. When she's not, the Britisth flag flies.

<--- I am currently staying in the Royal Borough of Kensington. To the left is one of the tube stop signs nearby. The other tube stop nearby is the Gloucester Road stop. Gloucester, as much as I'd like to pronounce it like it looks, is actually pronounced Glouw-ster. I've also learned since being here that Borough is pronounced Bor-ah. Go figure:)

look right!

2009-08-30T20:10:00.002+01:00

I cannot believe I am really here. I am sitting this evening (evening for me, afternoon for you...) in a small kitchen in the Metrogate House in Chelsea, London, soaking in the fact that I am actually in London.

My journey began at 9 yesterday morning. Mom and Dad loaded me and my luggage into our vehicle and off we set for the Chicago O'Hare airport. We had time for lunch before "goodbyes" and "I love yous" had to be exchanged at the curb. Security check, a 7 1/2 hour flight into the future (London's timezone is 6 hours ahead of home), a venture through customs, and recollection of my bags led me to a thirty minute cab ride that dropped me at the doorstep of the Metrogate House. I arrived in London at 8:00 local time ( 2am by my body!) and ran on adrenaline and excitement all day.

Shortly after arriving at my destination, I met my flatmates and we decided to explore our surrounding area. It didn't take long for us to learn we needed to look right before crossing the street. A couple of close calls and I think I've got a new habit formed! We wandered through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens, saw the Kensington Palace and Princess Diana Memorial, walked by the Natural History Museum and the Albert and Victoria Museum, concluding our evening with a stroll, window shopping, down High St. What a great first day!

I am thoroughly worn out though. A 4500 mile trek on 2 hours of interrupted plane-sleep will really take it out of a girl! I had to blog tonight, though, before my head hits the pillow, to tell you all I'm finally here!

The adventure begins...

goodbyes and thankyous

2009-08-24T23:55:00.000+01:00

A "going away pizza dinner" and a "going away cocktail party" have been my big events for the week leading up to my big skip "across the pond" as so many people have called it. I currently have all of my belongings spread throughout my living room in my disorganized attempt to sort through what will be important to take and what will be unneccesary. It's a process, but one thing I've learned about myself is that the more planning I do, the less butterflies I will have to combat during my journey.

You probably won't hear from me until I set foot in London, but I wanted to take time to let everyone know how much I appreciate the support you've shown me. The last couple weeks I have had the opportunity to visit the Waterloo and Cedar Falls Rotary clubs, and my consistent experience has been endless encouragement from the Rotarians I have gotten to speak with. Thank you for supporting me in this adventure! And thank you to my family who all got together at a pizza dinner to let me know that they will miss me. I am so blessed to have the family I do, and so blessed to have this opportunity.

Thank you:)