We're Back!

Technically, this past week was supposed to be used for reading and research and studying... but everyone knows that never happens.

Mary and I found ourselves in Italy--walking around ancient ruins in Rome and Ostia Antica, wandering down narrow streets and over bridges in Venezia (Venice), and becoming frustrated at the untimeliness of a strike in Padova :) (Don't worry, we got to see St. Anthony all right, and made it back to Venezia in time for supper)

Nonetheless, we made it back in one piece to Canterbury--but not without some cultural grievances towards the Italians for their wild queue jumping :)

Seriously though, being in the UK has had some effect upon us. As Mary stated in this post, queue jumping in England is almost a criminal offense. Not so in Italy. In fact, I might be so bold as to say that if you don't queue jump in Italy, you're weird.

Now, even though the Italians might seem rude at times, you have to forgive them because THEY HAVE SOME OF THE COOLEST RUINS!!!!! Ostia Antica in particular:


Mary and I had tons of fun walking around this ruinous city--there were tons of mosaics and frescoes still intact!! It was just cool to stand in the weeds in what used to be a house and say "Wow! Somebody actually used to live here!" And that reflection, of course, makes you think about who the people were--what did they do in their everyday lives? what were their problems? what did they hope and wish for? Domestic drama :)
Though of course, my Dad had to somewhat crush the coolness of the place by saying that it was probably mostly reproductions, and not originals... whatever, it was still really cool!

Our parents joined us for our week in Italy (for those of you who didn't get the memo) which had numerous financial advantages... such as eating out in a very nice restaurant after viewing:

But I think the Vatican deserves its own post...

Cheers!
~Laura

P.S. We will have to get back to you about Dover, Windsor, Oxford, Bath, Bristol and Stonehenge...sorry...

The English are very charming

Well, they are. Everyone has been so nice to us (excluding crazy British drivers who seem intent on killing American pedestrians--but I think this has to do with my inablilty to look to the RIGHT when I cross the street). Everything here is very clean. I was sitting in the library and there were these guys walking around with spray bottles and wiping off the tables. (Of course, students are allowed to eat ANYWHERE in the library, so this phenomenon is easily explained.

Today we went out and toured a Norman Castle. It was pretty cool.

The castle is called Canterbury Castle, the town prison. Apparently, they once kept a Saracen prisoner there (as the security guards at Uni tell me). A few days ago we got lost and had to consult the security guards at Uni where they gave us an impromptu history lesson about Canterbury. We learned about the castle and about some place along the river where they used to drown "witches." If the woman drowned, she was innocent, she was guilty (in which case the punishment was death by drowning). One of the guards informed us that "my missus passed the test." They were both quite charming. He said that there was a nice river walk near the spot where they kept the same cage they drowned the witches in. We plan to do more exploring tomorrow.


We also had Afternoon Tea today at Tiny Tim's Tearoom. Expensive, but charming. The meal was VERY filling. I won't have to eat dinner. We had cucumber sandwiches, smoked salmon sandwiches, egg salad sandwiches, ham sandwiches, scones (like, HUGE scones), some sort of currant biscuit, a chocolate thing, a lemon thing, and a cupcake. And tea, of course. I tried Tiny Tim's special blend. It was very tasty.

We also visited The Canterbury Tales Museum which has figures act out the stories from Chaucer's Canterbury Tales. It was very charming.

So far, I haven't been homesick. Dorm life takes a little getting used to. There are a few things I find annoying (such as the people who get drunk, get their keys stolen, and pound on the door at 2 AM *cough, cough*). Other than that, I'm quite enjoying myself but just wait until I have to turn in an assignment :).

Cheers!
--Mary

It's getting close. Too close.

Well, we've received half of our class schedules, one day late. You would think that since they told us precisely what date we were to receive our schedules, that they would stick to it. No. Nevertheless (love that word--three for the price of one) we got them the very next day. Our email included the handbooks (syllabi to us American folks) for the two required classes as well as instructions on how different classes and learning will be in the UK. You should see the reading list. Two or three books per week. A few days later I recalled that class takes place only once a week, which made me feel a lot better about it. There is hardly any homework (except these two required ones have more to make the Americans feel more at home). Personally, I would rather have less homework. The only unfortunate thing is that our grades will be based on one paper (or two). In the required classes there are more papers, but nothing like we have at home. We already have the paper topics. For an early bird like me, this is pretty cool.

We are both required to take Modern Britain (which, I suppose, is about Modern Britain) and British History, from the Romans to the Tudors (I am quite interested in their point of view on the Reformation). We could have taken Brit Lit, but I am already taking two other Lit classes, so I didn't want to overload too much. We find out the other half of our class schedule when we get there.

It's getting close. Only a couple more weeks until England! I can hardly wait. It's kind of scary actually, but exciting nonetheless (another cool word).

In preparation for our departure, Laura and I have been going shopping. About every other week. Every time we go, we forget something and have to go back the next week. It's amazing to think of all the things we use on a regular basis (during a three month period).

The day after we got our schedules, we pulled out our suitcases. We didn't start packing, we just pulled them out. (funny story: One of the suitcases that we are going to use was locked. we tried several keys in the house [you know, the ones that you never use so you don't know what lock they belong to] but to no avail. I resorted to picking the lock with a hairpin, the old-fashioned way. Let me just sat that I would make a terrible criminal. After that, my twin accomplice tried. She wasn't much of an accomplice. Somehow or other, we found a key that worked. Amazing.)

(Another funny aside: One of the workers in the cafe where I am typing this, just randomly started singing "Figaro!" from the Barber of Seville. Crazy Americans!)

We should be getting the last (hopefully!) of our papers in the mail next week. Then, the craziness of packing (actually) begins.

Cheers!
--Mary

BritRail Passes

Well, here's something that's kind of interesting...

Yesterday we got our BritRail passes in the mail--which is not really that interesting all by itself, so let me explain.

The BritRail Passes are our gateway to all of England!! It was after several weeks of deliberations and calculations (at my Dad's insistance) to see if the passes would save us any money. (So you know: it took several weeks to weigh all the options because there are so many!)

BritRail Passes are designed for foreigners traveling in Britain (i.e. us!) Apparently you can't buy them in the UK, which is also why it took several weeks to decide whether to get it or not because we had to make sure that we would use it on worthwhile sidetrips.

The option we chose was England-only (not Scotland, Ireland, or Wales) and 8 flexible days over a two month period, because we're hoping to use the passes for some short week-end trips (that might not actually occur on a weekend :P).

All-in-all we save about $200 for the both of us--which is probably due to the youth discount. In some respects, I almost wish we got the Scotland and Wales trains included--but that was way more expensive, and we might not have time to use it to go see both (though that's probably not true...)

I won't discuss the trip-plans just yet because they aren't finalized--and people keep telling us what we should go see (just the other day someone was telling us to go to see Normandy beach while we're "across the pond"!)

Cheers!

~Laura

P.S. Thank you Eric and Jenn for continuing to read and comment on this blog... methinks we have lost our audience :P

Britain is getting closer!!!

Hello all!!

Things have been really really really really really busy lately :) but I suppose we're never not-busy :P

Study abroad class is almost over--then there's the summer--and then we're gone!!! It almost seems too good to be true!

But until then, I've got a report to write on the lunch 'n' learn that I had last week with my mentor--it was rather fun learning about what she had done last year and about different things to do while we're there.

Besides the mentor report, we're supposed to write this "letter to self" before we go, listing all of our dreams, wishes, thoughts and fears... it should be very interesting...

Until later!

~Laura

Oh yeah... I just remembered I have a blog to run...

Hello!

Things have been a little hectic around here lately!!

However, I can tell you that we had a big safety orientation last week! It contained everything from what our insurance over there covers, as well as tips on how not to act like a stupid American tourist :P

I think my dad's advice serves me better than those funny skits: Just keep your eyes and ears open--see what's around you--and don't do something stupid (i.e. don't go around shouting your atm pin number :P)

Anyway, right now I'm working on a presentation for study abroad class about the English custom/habit of drinking tea... and it's pretty interesting!! Did you know tea might just be good for your teeth?

More on that coming up... stay tuned :}

~Laura

P.S. Speaking of British culture, any Masterpiece theatre fans out there? Specifically Foyle's war, Austen and Dickens adaptations... I'm also looking into Inspector Lewis--at least the previews look interesting...

Study abroad news and such...

Well...

Not much is going on around here... We've turned in our papers to register for classes at the university in England.

And you know how I said that we found out where we're going to be living in England...well, that was a misprint on the forms they gave us--so we're ending up staying in the place that we wanted to in the first place! Though, apparently, the dryers don't work very well...

Our parents went to an info session this past weekend - and they seem quite pleased with it all...

So right now we're just waiting to hear back from the university--and praying that a second volcano doesn't erupt :)

~Laura

P.S. Did I mention that Mary and I know more about British culture than some of the other students in our Study Abroad class? I think it comes from watching too much BBC... like, for instance, season 7 of Foyle's War that going to be on tonight!!!!!!!

I'm sure you've noticed by now that the photos OFTEN have NOTHING WHATSOEVER to do with the accompanying blog post... but if you haven't noticed, you know it now :)

Barnga!

In this simulation, the class was divided into groups of four people seated around a table. Each group was then given a set of instructions on how to play a card game. We were allowed to practice the game before starting the simulation. Once the simulation started, our instructions were taken away and we were not allowed to speak to each other. The only way we could communicate with each other was through gestures, simulating a communication barrier. If there was a tie in the game, it was decided that the person whose name came first alphabetically would always win the trick.

The first round was fairly easy. We were able to communicate with each other using minimal gestures. Since we were all familiar with our set of rules, we had almost no disputes about who won the round. At the end the round, both the player who won and the play who lost moved on to other tables.

The second round brought conflict with it. Two of our original players were replaced by two new players. At the start of the game, I signaled to them that at our table, diamonds were trump, but both of them looked as if they could not understand what I was trying to tell them. Once we began playing, it was immediately clear that these new players learned a slightly different set of rules than I did. In the second trick, we had an argument over the winning card. One player tried to tell us that Aces were low and sevens were high. The rest of us sided against him and chose the winner. He was obviously displeased with our decision because he kept waving his hands around, trying to explain his viewpoint. We decided the I won the trick, but after I placed it with my other winnings, I realized that someone else had played a trump card and that I actually did not win the trick in the first place. So, I quickly awarded the trick to someone else while trying to explain about the trump card. This caused even more confusion which we were not able to settle.

In the third round, I moved to another table where the rules were similar to my own table, or at any rate, I found this round to be easier to play. I was amazed that we were able to play smoothly, with little or no conflict between us. The only conflict we had was near the end when we had to decide who won. We held up our fingers to show how many tricks we had won. Even though I knew I had won more tricks than another player, I elected to move to another table because I did not want to willfully break the rules of the other table.

By the fourth round, I became adjusted to the other players’ way of playing the game. If they broke one of my rules, I ignored it. Overall, none of us broke many of the other’s rules. We observed each other and were able to figure out a lot of each other’s rules without offending the other players.

In the different rounds of the game, we were meant to experience the four stages of culture shock: Cultural Euphoria, Cultural Confrontation, Cultural Adjustment, and Cultural Adaptation. In the first round of the game, we were all new to the game and were comfortable with the other people we played with. By the second round, our excitement with the game was gone and variations of the game brought confusion and frustration. When another player insisted on doing something in a different way, we confronted him. The disputes in this round were not settled as easily as in other rounds, perhaps due to the frustration we were all feeling from the inability to communicate with each other. In the third round, things went a lot smoother as we all tried to adjust ourselves to the way other people around us were playing the game. When I was voted out to join another table, I accepted their decision, even though I did not agree with it. By this time, I was adapting to the culture and was trying to assimilate my playing habits with those around me. In the fourth round, I was confident enough to not worry about the little mistakes that my fellow players were making.


Oh, and the name Barnga doesn't really mean anything. The guy who invented the game just named it after some small South African town that he lived in. (the pictures in this post, as well as other pictures on this blog, have no deeper meaning...we just like goofing around with various types of media :P )

--Mary

Second Orientation!

Well!! We just had our second orientation for Study Abroad where we got to question the folks who went to England last year!

They had tons of great tips, so it was a really great meeting! However, I am still curious to hear some of their stories... as in... how they got thrown out of a hostel in Paris... :)

But anyway... after a day of tests and meetings, I am completely exhausted!

Until later:

~Laura

Bafa Bafa

Here's something of a response to participating in Bafa Bafa. For those of you who don't know, Bafa Bafa is a culture simulation (I think it's to make you feel weird)... anyway, here it is:

In the Bafa Bafa culture simulation, I was a part of the Betan culture. We were a trading culture—exchanging cards to gain as many sets as possible of the same color in order to win a prize. The Betan culture was very individualized—each person did not care what happened to the others as long as he or she could continue trading cards to make sets. There were only a few rules to the Betan culture besides the rules of trading—no English was to be used, only the Betan language, and no American gestures, only Betan gestures. Because of this, the Betan culture was rather simple to understand once it was explained.

The Alphan culture was very different. As a Betan, I was used to milling about through a crowd of people trading cards. The Alphans, however, were used to forming large circles. They did not trade cards—though they did play a game. They were a culture that was based on social interaction, as I found out later. They did not have a purpose in playing the game, because it seemed that random people always won some blue coins. However, I was led to believe that the blue coins were a bad thing because when their leader asked if someone wanted some more coins, and I said yes, several people dumped all of their coins into my hand (as if they were happy to be rid of them!)

My first impression and interpretation of the Alphan culture was that the Alphans were a very snobbish and rude group. They did not easily invite other people to join them, though once you were invited into their circle the Alphans were really friendly and nice. When I first arrived at the Alphan culture, and tried to join one of their circles, I was rudely thrust out of their midst and shown a card that said stippler on it. Apparently, that was their way of snubbing someone. My previous experience with the Betan culture (where the inhabitants would immediately approach visitors to trade with them) helped me to form the impression that the Alphans were not very friendly because of their methods of snubbing people. One guy from my group even got banished from Alphan land because he accidentally broke one of their rules.

When the group gathered again to explain the two different cultures, it was interesting to hear that both groups saw each other as selfish and rude. The Alphans were seen as rude because of their methods of snubbing and banishment. The Betans were seen as greedy because we seemed to attack the Alphan visitors in our eagerness to trade with them. Another interesting that the class noticed was that the visitors from the opposite culture were shy, confused, and rude.

~Laura

P.S. Yes, I know the picture doesn't have anything whatsoever to do with Bafa Bafa--I just thought it looked cool...

Stop beating around the bush...

Photo taken by Laura (Epcot, Disney)

I suppose you're all wondering (if there are any of you reading this at all....) how we decided to go to Canterbury--and all the juicy details!

Well... it's actually rather boring...

Mary and I decided that we were going to study abroad (somehow!) when we first heard about the program during freshmen year. In January, we applied, were accepted (like a bunch of other people) and there... we're off!

Orientation doesn't start until next term, so I don't have anymore interesting tidbits for you... sad but true...

~Laura

BTW... you'll probably see more posts from me than Mary because I think I've found a new corner of cyberspace that I rather like, namely, blogging!! Blogging is almost more fun than facebook... though, of course, now I can say that because of Lent...