Ok, indulge me for a moment...
Who else watched the season finale of Grey's Anatomy?! Holy crap! Stuff like that really has a tendency of getting under my skin. I'm going to be percolating in the back of my mind... all... freakin'.... summer! Damn cliffhanger ending..

Back to your regular scheduled programming.


PS- I <3 George O'Malley!

Can *anybody* tell me WHY the art teacher just decided to have class in MY classroom?!.... When she has a room of her own?!... when I have things that I would like to do in MY planning period in MY room?! Now, I'm stuck, helping her babysit the zoo. UGH! Ouch! My precious break!

...One of these days, I will have time for a proper update.

I am so frustrated with this school! The kids, the parents, the teachers, the administrators: all of it! How are we supposed to be teaching children responsibility and accountability when everyone eschews it themselves?!
More to follow, when I have more time.
Now, I have to pick the demons up from lunch and "reward" them with recess.... UGH!

PROS:
* Clean and tailored-looking grounds.
* Apartment now smells of fresh-cut grass... Hooray Spring!

CONS:
* Yard work done at 8AM wakes me up on my only, precious day off!!!

Really, Powder Mill Village? REALLY?!?!

Alright Everyone... At long last, I present to you:

Top 10 Things I Didn't Know I Loved About the US Until I Left

*Disclaimer: International Travel is SO cool. I had such a great time in England! There are a bunch of things I loved about England and appreciated more than the American counterpart. (ie. The Tube, taxi accessibility, food options, landmarks and monuments, liquor sales.) However, there is no place like home.*

10. Good Plumbing
(Ugh. England = Poor water pressure and difficult temperature control)

9. Bars open late
(I'm not much of a club rat. Regular bars close at 1!)

8. Smoking in Bars/Pubs
(Granted, NOW I can't do this in the US either.)

7. Ice
(Can I have more than half a cube in my soda? Thanks.)

6. American Food
(Ok... Yorkshire pudding and curry is great, but sometimes I want something fried in a patty.)

5. Table service in bars/pubs
(Get up to order?! You must be kidding.)

4. Tiny Drinks and portion control
(8oz is not a cup of coffee... well, maybe a kids cup.)

3. Trash Cans
(# of trash cans is inversely proportionate with the # of free newspapers. Odd.)

2. My friends and family
(I suppose they should rank somewhere...)

and, at the top of the list....

1. FREE REFILLS!
What?! PAY for another SODA?! (Even though it was tiny to begin with?! {see #4}) This concept offends my delicate American sensibilities.

:)

Well, I'm back in the States and I've had a couple of days to a) decompress, b) get over my jet-lag and c) collect my thoughts. Here's what I've come up with:
International Travel is awesome and beneficial. I've always known that I wanted to travel for fun, but the benefits of such outings never occurred to me until I lived it. Seeing how other people live their lives is an excellent reminder of the varied kinds of people that one is likely to meet in their lives. On one hand, I saw that people are just people... with more similarities than differences. While this is perhaps more apparent in that I went to a Western country, it is nevertheless valid to say that many people have similar experiences and aspirations. However, on the other hand, it could be argued that the differences lie in the details of life. Even though people may be striving for the same goals, it is important where they have come from to get there. Also, people (all too often) get into the habit of polarizing cultures. For example, many see that their culture and experience is the "norm" and everyone else is "other." It is important to keep in mind that cultures are equally valid, diverse and rich. It is imperative for anyone traveling internationally to be receptive and open to other ways of life; careful to not be judgmental and to attempt to be enriched rather than assigning subjective values. By trying to understand the circumstances of someones life, it is easier to make connections and form bonds that will make us all "people" together. I feel as though this lesson is extremely important to have learned; especially before I venture into a world that is filled with all sorts of people, not just American college students.
That's about it. After seeing a bit of the world, I cannot wait to explore it further! I will definitely be looking to travel more in the near future. Also, it is now interesting to consider how visitors to this country perceive us... Interesting.

So, I'm back in London. I actually had a very pleasant and reassuring conversation with Dr. Bell about my episode of homesickness in Bristol. I was quite surprised and pleased by his compassion and commiseration. So, with renewed confidence and exuberance, I went into my last week in England.
I think we were all pretty pleased to be back in London. Bristol and Liverpool were nice, but London is more varied and is much easier to navigate without a car. Going back to London was almost like going back home! We had so much fun in that last week! We had several interesting lectures and even got in a couple of really good walking tours. We even go to see the History Boys on the West End. The play was fantastic, and, not to be a googly-eyed girl, most of the boys in the cast were pretty darn attractive. People began to be more pressed to explore the town outside of class as everyone knew that time was a premium. Friday night, many of my classmates embarked on weekend tours around Europe. I didn't get to go as a)my traveling companion bailed and b) I was coming to budget. Not to mention, I was laid up for a decent portion of traveling weekend with food poisoning. So either a) I would have paid all sorts of money to go and be sick in Paris or b) I wouldn't have eaten what it was that made me so sick if I had gone on the trip. I've been trying not to think about it. After a days convalescence on Saturday, I couldn't stand it anymore. I was not going to spend my last completely free day in England inside the hostel. So, I escaped. It was really nice to see some things on my own and go at my own pace. All of the course-sanctioned activities were awesome, but I think that much of it had a larger impact on me than on some of my classmates. Now, I was free to take things in and develop my own ideas, without the judgment of others. I picked up souvenirs from Paddington and Baker St. and I took myself to the Globe theater. I think what sets me apart from a lot of my classmates is my approach of learning through immersion. I feel as though I learned a respectable amount about British culture simply by being observant while walking the streets. One can tell a lot about a population by walking amongst them. Many of my classmates view our two cultures as binary and mutually exclusive. I, on the other hand, am very interested in the fluidity and subtleties.
Everyone had interesting stories as they returned to London on Sunday night. I was generally pleased with my weekend, even though I was sick and London-bound. However, there is still a significant portion of London that I did not get to explore, even with my extra time. Oh well, more to see when I go back, I suppose. On Monday, we went to Southhall, which was amazing. I loved it because it wasn't really touristy. It was just people living their lives, expressing their culture. Southhall is pretty much exclusively an Indian community, complete with culturally-affiliated grocers, tailors, confectioners and pubs. I really enjoyed our time there. If ever I return to England, I will certainly go there again. Our walking tour there was fantastic as well; with ample time in the schedule for shopping and browsing. That evening we went to a lecture by Dr. Carretta of UMD. (Apparently, there are a ton of UMD faculty across the pond for the semester..) The lecture was actually pretty lack luster, given the interesting an controversial topic of the birthplace of Equiano. That night, we all went to the Ice Bar in London. It was really cool! (Pun totally intended.) Deciding to ride the buzz, we went to another pub after we left the Ice Bar. Typically, I would deem these activities as being too expensive, but Hey! When am I going to be there again? And, I was actually having a lot of fun!
Tuesday (today)was our last day in London. (Being as tomorrow is almost exclusively a travel day.)We spent all day in the Guildhall Library doing our final assignment. Whereas I was excited, as a history major, to be in such a dense and extensive library, I would have much preferred to be out and about for my final day. But, as I noted before, I expected that a certain amount of *studying* would be required for Study Abroad. The final was tough, but Dr. Bell promised us a fun night in appreciation for our efforts over the past three weeks. Ever a man of his word, he delivered. We went to a fantastic Italian restaurant and then went ice skating at Somerset House. Ice Skating was awesome! It was so strange to be doing something so ordinary, yet having such an extraordinary time. I felt really close to my classmates as we glided, ever-so gracefully across the ice. Alright, I did fall. Fantastically, once. After we took off our skates, Dr. Bell took us for ice cream in Leicester Square. Not even my classmates complaining and blatant rudeness could damper my spirits. Once we were seated everyone was quite happy and we all participated in an entertaining and rousing conversation. On the way home, I was lost in my thoughts. I can't believe that three weeks had gone by so quickly! The time had definitely had its ups and downs, with the positive parts far outweighing the negative. I made some new friends; strengthened by the factors of sharing such a marvelous experience together.
The next time I post, I'll be stateside. I'm happy to go home, but I'm certainly going to miss England.

Wow, I forgot to post the last couple blogs for my trip. My Bad. Here they are now:
Our time in Bristol ended with a whimper. All of the academic-y stuff that we did suited me. We were all over that town, and, barring further disturbances from awful walking tour guides, we lived out the rest of our days in peace. We went to the Georgian house and had an interesting lecture on abolition and minority rights in Bristol. Oddly, of particular mention was out night of playing Taboo in the mezzanine of the hostel. It was good to just stay in and play after being out and about for so long. It was most enjoyable, companionable and just plain fun. (Especially watching a flustered Dr. Bell try to get us to guess clues.) Bath was pretty cool; it was a representation of many different periods of History all in one place. Around the ancient Roman Baths for which the city is named, we also were adrift in a sea of Georgian architecture. It was symmetry and crescents everywhere! We went the the Jane Austen house (further cementing my love-hate relationship with Ms. Austen. I love movies based on her works, but I can't seem to muddle through one of her novels to save my life..) We even (finally) got to go for tea! I also had a delicious cinnamon-sugar bun with abundant amounts of clotted cream. Fantastic!
However, not all was peaches and cream in the fair town of Bristol. Notable, for example, was a severe onslaught of homesickness. I have long maintained that while I enjoy travel, I am not all that fond of being away from home. (If that makes any sense at all..)It didn't help matters that I continued to be the loner of the group. While I was having much fun immersing myself in a different culture and delighting in partaking in everything Bristol had to offer, I was having a bigger problem with my US traveling companions. First off, it seemed to me that I was doing what I meant to do: immersing and observing, while others spent much of their time in judgment of how the customs of England were silly. This did not sit well with me. Seems to me, we are visitors to their culture and, as a consequence of which, we cannot expect them to bend to our traditions. Also, it just seemed that no one else on the trip thought that I had any idea what I was talking about, which is of particular sensitivity to me. This assumption may have been accelerated by my feeling of loneliness, but I suspect that there was a fair amount of it to begin with. I didn't figure myself to be one of those girls who has a bawling conversation with her boyfriend, but there I was. Lame and disappointing. But, after staying in and having a good cry, I started to bounce back. I began to forge stronger friendships with some of the other people on the trip. It still happened that I got left behind from time to time, but at least people began to notice when I wasn't there.
Liverpool was not as I had expected. Given that it was voted to be a "European Center of Culture" for the year, I expected a stunning city. What we received was a city entrenched in construction, rain and sketchy folks. A town rich in Beatles, Titanic and Slavery (not necessarily in that order) seemed rather more drab than anticipated. Not to mention, we only were there for two days. I suspect that if we had a bit more time to explore and the weather were not so bad, I might have a far better impression of the town. We did go to some fun museums and went to see Blood Brothers. (My jury is still out on that one..) My new friends and I attempted to go out one evening for dinner and then to meet up with some others. However, the plans fell apart when the group that we were to meet kept changing their minds as to the logistics. Oh well, not to worry, at least I was with friends in this instance.
Alright, not too much for now! I'll check in when I'm back in London!

So, we’re in Bristol. For those of you from the Baltimore area, it’s almost exactly like Fells Point; but, y’know…. English. Seriously, it’s all hippies and fair trade and bars and cobblestones. Only today did I see what a charming town it is. We’ve been under quite a deluge since we arrived and long walks in hard rain are enough to sour anyone on an experience. Top that with the fact that a) the lift in our hostel is broken, so we have to haul up 5 flights of steps multiple times everyday (including with our luggage on the first day), and b) as opposed to London, we are now 4 to a room. There’s no room to move around or organize properly so the place is a mess and it’s starting to smell funny. Not cool. However, we turned a corner today. It was a bit colder, but no rain! The sun actually startled me when I saw it this morning; I haven’t really seen it since I’ve been in England! But, rest assured, I hear report that it has started to rain since I’ve been camped out inside the hostel.
Things are pretty good, other than the weather for the past couple of days. We had a little bit of a scare with Dr. Bell. Long story short, he had a really nasty allergic reaction to something he had touched or eaten. (Really narrows is down, eh?) It was so bad that he had to go to the emergency room to get it sorted. Luckily, he didn’t have to get his wedding band cut off of his hand (which was of primary concern) and all he needed was some steroids and cortisone. Apparently, he even managed to get a smokin’ hot doctor to treat him. So, everybody wins. The only thing that got affected was that he had to do a day of academic stuff without him. There was an expected amount of people offering sneaky alternatives to actually doing our work for the day, but they were largely overruled and we, like good little students, attended to our studies.
We’ve done some cool stuff in Bristol and some not so cool stuff. On the first day we were here, we went on the WORST WALKING TOUR EVER!! This woman didn’t know what planet she was on, let alone anything about abolition history in Bristol. However, the other people we’ve encountered have been better, for the most part. Yesterday we went to the SS Great Britain, which was pretty cool. Today, we went to John Wesley’s New Room and Charles Wesley’s house. Again, pretty interesting stuff. Tomorrow, we are going to Bath for the day. Georgian architecture ahoy! Also, we’re going for a pub lunch and afternoon tea. So excited!
Things are interesting on the social front. I get along with some people on the trip better than others, as would be expected. I’m still sort of the loner of the group, but most people seem to think I’m nice. A couple of us went to a bar the other night where I was adopted by some very drunk English girls. Good times. (Note: If someone offers to buy me tequila shots, I’m their new BFF.) As a result, I ended up stumbling home, much later than anticipated and awoke hung-over in the morning. Not good times. Dr. Bell was unsympathetic, but amused and slightly impressed with the amount of drinks I could cram into my body. No surprises here.
That’s about it for now. More from (temporarily) sunny England later!

So, things in London are pretty cool. I’ve done a lot of cool stuff since last time I wrote. We’ve gotten into the swing of things so far as the actual school work is concerned. It’s ok though, we’ve visited some amazing stuff.
St. Paul’s cathedral is amazing. Seriously, I was speechless. It’s easy to see how the level of faith was higher in a time where places like that were being built. The place was awe-inspiring; something that I feel is lacking in most people’s experiences with religion. St. Paul’s is certainly the type of place where God would live. There’s such a feeling of history, and of enchantment in that place, it makes even the most self-assured people feel small; yet, part of something larger. As we walked across the millennium bridge, you definitely had the feeling that God was at your back. By far, St. Paul’s is one of the highlights of my trip so far.
Also, up in the rankings at the moment is our day trip to Cambridge. We had so much fun; I can’t imagine what those who opted not to come did to compensate. First and foremost, it’s a beautiful town and something about it reminds one of the past… sort of in an old movie-set kind of way. Very rarely is something almost exactly the way you imagined it. Now *that* is a college. We spent a very pleasant afternoon there. We had a lovely pub lunch and then punted down the river. (Although, we had to split into two groups and, alas, our boat did not have the benefit of our punter-in-residence, Dr. Bell.) But, some steering mishaps later, we were on our way; albeit slowly.
Last night we saw Billy Elliott on West End. Who knew that a story about miners and ballet could be so entertaining? Oh, that scamp Billy, you just want to take him home with you! Also, I was thoroughly impressed with the heavy-set gentlemen doing tap.. Well done! Additionally, the songs are almost obnoxiously catchy. Both my roommate and I awoke to have one of them stuck in our heads.
We’ve visited many cool museums while we’ve been here. Although I’ve had to investigate Renaissance-era sits on my own, its good to learn about something new. Everyday I learn more about the British Empire, a place and concept that had held my imagination for many years. In a twist of irony, today we visited the Ben Franklin house on Craven St. Agh! That old man is haunting me! Whatever, BF is still my BFF!  Also today, we went to a football match. Dr. Bell was less than enthused to attend, but he was a good sport and went anyway. English football is intense (not at all like camping… haha!). The fans were rabid and drunk. I’ll admit, I was a little intimidated and felt sure that all hell was going to break loose at any moment. The game was exciting, but other than that, the trip was uneventful. That is of course, except for the “cozy” conditions of the tube on the way back. Oh, and the two chavs who were contemplating hitting on Dr. Bell. (I don’t think that he noticed them, but it was pretty darn funny to watch.)
So, my first week in the UK is already drawing to a close. It seems like just yesterday I was jetlagged and bright-eyed. Well…. One of those things is still going on. Tomorrow we travel to Bristol. More later…