I'm still awake and I just watched my computer clock change from 2:00 am to 1:00 am. I need to go to bed. That's all.
29 October 2006
24 October 2006
A couple of weeks before I left for London, I spent a day with ER downtown Chicago. While perusing the merchandise in the shoe department at Macy's on State Street, we were recruited to get our makeup done for free at the Dior cosmetic counter. Should we have read between the lines of this invitation? No matter, we couldn't resist, so downstairs we went in search of Dior. My makeup was done by Jim, a tall, broad-shouldered man (not gay, believe it or not) who looked like he could have been in the Mafia. (Thankfully, his weapon of choice was a natural fiber blush brush.) We did the small talk thing and he told me he was originally from New Jersey, but spent his formative years learning makeup application in New York City. I let him know that I would be leaving for London soon, etc, etc. Having acquired knowledge of style and fashion after living in New York and working in the beauty industry, Jim said that people in London have no sense of style. I didn't really believe him when he said this because it was my assumption that all large European cities are years ahead of the US when it comes to couture.
Now that I have had about a month to observe people in London, I quite agree with Jim. I am no style expert, but seriously people (women primarily), tone it down! Pick one trend and run with it; don't try to do all of them at once, please. Skinny, tapered jeans are a (questionable) fashion statement when worn alone-- you don't need to put them with a long shirt-dress AND a chunky belt AND a bead necklace AND a scarf AND side ponytail. And the leggings! With slouch boots! And a denim mini-skirt! Are we in 1988 suddenly?
And now the other extreme: I am sitting at the Institute right now and I just saw a woman walk past wearing a full face veil--a niqab. That's right, she was completely covered as if she were wearing a birqa, the Taliban-mandated look for women in Afghanistan. Nothing exposed except for her eyes and hands! Well, at least she doesn't have to worry about trends...
To be fair, there are lots of people who dress in the standard jeans and 'jumpers' (sweaters). So, I fit in quite well, thankfully.
Now that I have had about a month to observe people in London, I quite agree with Jim. I am no style expert, but seriously people (women primarily), tone it down! Pick one trend and run with it; don't try to do all of them at once, please. Skinny, tapered jeans are a (questionable) fashion statement when worn alone-- you don't need to put them with a long shirt-dress AND a chunky belt AND a bead necklace AND a scarf AND side ponytail. And the leggings! With slouch boots! And a denim mini-skirt! Are we in 1988 suddenly?
And now the other extreme: I am sitting at the Institute right now and I just saw a woman walk past wearing a full face veil--a niqab. That's right, she was completely covered as if she were wearing a birqa, the Taliban-mandated look for women in Afghanistan. Nothing exposed except for her eyes and hands! Well, at least she doesn't have to worry about trends...
To be fair, there are lots of people who dress in the standard jeans and 'jumpers' (sweaters). So, I fit in quite well, thankfully.
22 October 2006
When was the last time the country of Cyrpus crossed your mind? It certainly isn't a nation we hear much about in the daily news. (Actually, is this the country to which many Americans were evacuated this past summer during the Israel/Lebanon conflict? So, maybe we do hear about it occasionally...) Anyway, this week I met Maria, from Cyprus. It was so interesting to listen to her tell me about her country. I learned so much since I pretty much knew nothing about Cyprus prior to this. She happens to be a Greek Cypriot but there are also Turkish Cypriots. For many years, these two ethnic groups lived together in peace even though they had different religions (Greek Orthydox and Muslim). In 1974 there was some unrest between the Greek and Turkish leaders which, eventually, led to the division of the country. There is now a UN monitored buffer zone dividing the Turkish northern 1/3 of the country and the Greek southern region. Turkey is the only country which recognizes the northern region as an independent country and only the Greek part is part of the EU.
Talking to Maria prompted me to research Cyprus on the internet. There are amazing ancient historical ruins and and great beaches. Now Cyprus has made it onto my list of places I want to visit someday. Anyone want to join me? :)
Talking to Maria prompted me to research Cyprus on the internet. There are amazing ancient historical ruins and and great beaches. Now Cyprus has made it onto my list of places I want to visit someday. Anyone want to join me? :)
For the past few weeks, I have used my Sunday afternoons to take long walks to the neighborhoods surrounding Bloomsbury. Today is rainy and chilly, but I didn't want the weather to affect my customary stroll, so I planned on just taking my umbrella and toughing it out. But after about ten minutes my shoes , socks and bottom 5 inches of my jeans are soaked, so I have returned to my room. I guess I should do some homework.
Here's a picture I took of the view out my dorm room window. Sad; rain.
My window looks out into the courtyard of International Hall. The glass atrium you see is the back side of the main entrance to the building off of Lansdowne Terrace. I am on floor 5- the top floor. (Floor 5 is really the 6th floor because in England the first floor is called the ground floor.) Looking into a courtyard isn't the best, but people across the hall from me look out over the street and have to deal with traffic noise, so I guess it could be worse.
Here's a picture I took of the view out my dorm room window. Sad; rain.
My window looks out into the courtyard of International Hall. The glass atrium you see is the back side of the main entrance to the building off of Lansdowne Terrace. I am on floor 5- the top floor. (Floor 5 is really the 6th floor because in England the first floor is called the ground floor.) Looking into a courtyard isn't the best, but people across the hall from me look out over the street and have to deal with traffic noise, so I guess it could be worse.
15 October 2006
Being an American in the UK, I suppose it is inevitable that the subject of politics is bound to come up in conversation. Until a few days ago though, I hadn't felt uncomfortable or embarrassed or hesitant to admit I was an American when asked. But, over this weekend I experienced a couple incidences of negative feelings towards Americans, or more specifically, our leader, which made me wish I was from some country that no one hates--like New Zealand or something.
Some Americans welcome a heated discussion on foreign policy, but I hate that topic so much, I'd rather sit in Chicago traffic for six hours. (So you see, I REALLY hate talking politics.) My dislike of talking about the topic probably stems from the fact that I don't know enough about the issues to have an educated opinion-- I don't want to open my mouth to contribute only to end up sounding like an idiot.
I overheard the first unpleasant comment during my writing seminar on Friday. I happened to sit down at a table with a few Japanese women, an Indian guy and an American guy (from Iowa, of all places). (I know this because our tutor made us all introduce ourselves, blah, blah, etc--you know those lame beginning-of-the-year formalities...) Toward the end of class when we were wrapping things up and getting ready to leave, the Indian guy made a comment about Americans taking everything they want first and leaving the rest for everyone else. I think he was in a conversation with the other American, so I didn't hear the context, or the retort (if there was one), but I still felt offended and hurt. I kept my mouth shut, of course, and left the room, but his comment bothered me for the rest of the day and is gnawing at me even now.
The other incidence occurred while I was with two American girls I have met here. They're both Master's students at the IoE also, so I see them occasionally during the week and have spent sometime with them outside of school too--they're very friendly and fun and down-to-earth. The three of us were at a Chinese restaurant with another friend (not American or British) this weekend and a couple of Londoners sitting at the table next to us must have heard our American accents and struck up a conversation with us. The normal small talk stuff at first...and then the natural progression to the topic of George Bush and the war in Iraq. GREAT! MY FAVORITE! I quickly discovered that my new friends hate George Bush with a passion and love to talk about it. So here I was in a group of Americans and Londoners all talking about the terrible things the President has done, how he's ruined the world, and on and on. Since the British also have issues with their own leader, they can at least sympathize with Americans. But I'd say, in general, George Bush is disliked a lot more than Tony Blair. I heard about a TV show, a mock documentary, broadcast on the BBC recently which depicted the assassination of George Bush. (I don't know if it will be shown in the US eventually or not, but if it is I guarantee it will receive a lot of media hype, so be warned.) Now, I am not George's number one fan by any means, but I don't hate the guy. He IS a person, for goodness sake-- show some respect at least for that. Plus, I don't really see how whining about things that have happened and griping about things we can't change helps anything. Just be patient for another couple of years. Then there will be someone else with a whole new set of problems to complain about! Yippee!
The one consolation I have found in all of this is that most foreigners I've encountered do realize that individual Americans aren't directly responsible for the actions of the ones who make the decisions in our country. As a whole, I feel welcomed and comfortable being here among such a diverse crowd. And since there are so many other interesting topics to discuss, hopefully politics won't come up again for a while.
Some Americans welcome a heated discussion on foreign policy, but I hate that topic so much, I'd rather sit in Chicago traffic for six hours. (So you see, I REALLY hate talking politics.) My dislike of talking about the topic probably stems from the fact that I don't know enough about the issues to have an educated opinion-- I don't want to open my mouth to contribute only to end up sounding like an idiot.
I overheard the first unpleasant comment during my writing seminar on Friday. I happened to sit down at a table with a few Japanese women, an Indian guy and an American guy (from Iowa, of all places). (I know this because our tutor made us all introduce ourselves, blah, blah, etc--you know those lame beginning-of-the-year formalities...) Toward the end of class when we were wrapping things up and getting ready to leave, the Indian guy made a comment about Americans taking everything they want first and leaving the rest for everyone else. I think he was in a conversation with the other American, so I didn't hear the context, or the retort (if there was one), but I still felt offended and hurt. I kept my mouth shut, of course, and left the room, but his comment bothered me for the rest of the day and is gnawing at me even now.
The other incidence occurred while I was with two American girls I have met here. They're both Master's students at the IoE also, so I see them occasionally during the week and have spent sometime with them outside of school too--they're very friendly and fun and down-to-earth. The three of us were at a Chinese restaurant with another friend (not American or British) this weekend and a couple of Londoners sitting at the table next to us must have heard our American accents and struck up a conversation with us. The normal small talk stuff at first...and then the natural progression to the topic of George Bush and the war in Iraq. GREAT! MY FAVORITE! I quickly discovered that my new friends hate George Bush with a passion and love to talk about it. So here I was in a group of Americans and Londoners all talking about the terrible things the President has done, how he's ruined the world, and on and on. Since the British also have issues with their own leader, they can at least sympathize with Americans. But I'd say, in general, George Bush is disliked a lot more than Tony Blair. I heard about a TV show, a mock documentary, broadcast on the BBC recently which depicted the assassination of George Bush. (I don't know if it will be shown in the US eventually or not, but if it is I guarantee it will receive a lot of media hype, so be warned.) Now, I am not George's number one fan by any means, but I don't hate the guy. He IS a person, for goodness sake-- show some respect at least for that. Plus, I don't really see how whining about things that have happened and griping about things we can't change helps anything. Just be patient for another couple of years. Then there will be someone else with a whole new set of problems to complain about! Yippee!
The one consolation I have found in all of this is that most foreigners I've encountered do realize that individual Americans aren't directly responsible for the actions of the ones who make the decisions in our country. As a whole, I feel welcomed and comfortable being here among such a diverse crowd. And since there are so many other interesting topics to discuss, hopefully politics won't come up again for a while.
10 October 2006
45 minutes until my laundry is done. This is the first time I've done laundry here since I came. That's right, I held out for two whole weeks! Quite an accomplishment, I'd say. It's all about how many pairs of socks and underwear one has, I think. I bought more before I came just so I wouldn't have to do laundry so often. Not doing laundry for the first two weeks also allowed me to get the scoop from other people who had used the machines. Each laundromat, (or launderette, as the one in this building is called) has its own quirks, and it's good to let other people figure out the quirks before losing money yourself.
There are 10 washing machines and 10 dryers, but at any given time, about 3 have "out of order" signs posted on them. This is not sufficient for a residence hall that houses over 600 people. I thought a Tuesday morning would be a good time to claim a couple of machines, but I was lucky to get one. Forget Saturday, the universal cleaning day--there's probably a queue out the door.
Doing laundry at a launderette is not cheap. I remember doing laundry at Trinity and complaining about spending $1 to wash and $1 to dry. Oh, the horror, $2 to do a load!!! What I didn't know then was $2 is a good deal. Here, it's L1.20 (L is pounds--I don't know how to make the computer to the actual symbol.) to wash and 2op (p is pence, no weird symbol needed) for 12 minutes of drying time. So, if you want your clothes to dry completely, plan on spending L1 or dividing your one load into three, if you're lucky enough to get three dryers. These prices are equivalent to $2.25 to wash and at least $2 to dry, so we're looking at about $4 for each load. I made the mistake of only putting 40p in the dryer the first time, and now I have damp underwear, socks and towels hanging all over my room. I am not opposed to air drying my clothes, but there are not many places to drape damp clothing in a tiny dorm room. But, how this for ingenuity?... I used my hair dryer to dry some of the just-about-dry pieces! The people next door must have wondered what kind of elaborate hairstyle I was working on, but, hey, you do what you gotta do!
On the positive side, the laundrette is an interesting place to observe people. There are always people pacing, waiting for their machines, or mumbling obscenities under their breath because they realized they've just laundered their ATM card. And, everyone is always friendly to one another in a laundrette because you're all there for the same wretched chore and anything to make the experience more enjoyable is welcomed.
Some pictures of where I spent my morning... Lovely isn't it? Sorry, you can only use it if you live here.
There are 10 washing machines and 10 dryers, but at any given time, about 3 have "out of order" signs posted on them. This is not sufficient for a residence hall that houses over 600 people. I thought a Tuesday morning would be a good time to claim a couple of machines, but I was lucky to get one. Forget Saturday, the universal cleaning day--there's probably a queue out the door.
Doing laundry at a launderette is not cheap. I remember doing laundry at Trinity and complaining about spending $1 to wash and $1 to dry. Oh, the horror, $2 to do a load!!! What I didn't know then was $2 is a good deal. Here, it's L1.20 (L is pounds--I don't know how to make the computer to the actual symbol.) to wash and 2op (p is pence, no weird symbol needed) for 12 minutes of drying time. So, if you want your clothes to dry completely, plan on spending L1 or dividing your one load into three, if you're lucky enough to get three dryers. These prices are equivalent to $2.25 to wash and at least $2 to dry, so we're looking at about $4 for each load. I made the mistake of only putting 40p in the dryer the first time, and now I have damp underwear, socks and towels hanging all over my room. I am not opposed to air drying my clothes, but there are not many places to drape damp clothing in a tiny dorm room. But, how this for ingenuity?... I used my hair dryer to dry some of the just-about-dry pieces! The people next door must have wondered what kind of elaborate hairstyle I was working on, but, hey, you do what you gotta do!
On the positive side, the laundrette is an interesting place to observe people. There are always people pacing, waiting for their machines, or mumbling obscenities under their breath because they realized they've just laundered their ATM card. And, everyone is always friendly to one another in a laundrette because you're all there for the same wretched chore and anything to make the experience more enjoyable is welcomed.
Some pictures of where I spent my morning... Lovely isn't it? Sorry, you can only use it if you live here.
08 October 2006
It was my first weekend on my own in London. Not that I needed to relax, but I did anyway, and I rather liked it. My dorm room isn't the most cozy place to spend long periods of time, but at least it's my own and it's quiet.
I'm beginning to really like London, as I knew I would eventually. It's a lot like Chicago or any other big city, I suppose.
Here are some of the things I love:
being able to walk everywhere
great public transport, when walking isn't feasible
LOTS of coffee shops
great parks
free museums
old buildings
diverse people (I've heard so many other languages around here!)
the crowds--this can get old, but then I just go back to my dorm room!
Here are some of the things I don't like very much:
two separate faucets for hot and cold water (annoying!)
never getting enough to drink with a meal
lame TV shows
streets that run diagonally and go every which way so it's hard to figure out what direction
I'm going
I'm sure I could add to both of those list, and I probably will at some point, but those things just came to my mind at the moment.
I'm beginning to really like London, as I knew I would eventually. It's a lot like Chicago or any other big city, I suppose.
Here are some of the things I love:
being able to walk everywhere
great public transport, when walking isn't feasible
LOTS of coffee shops
great parks
free museums
old buildings
diverse people (I've heard so many other languages around here!)
the crowds--this can get old, but then I just go back to my dorm room!
Here are some of the things I don't like very much:
two separate faucets for hot and cold water (annoying!)
never getting enough to drink with a meal
lame TV shows
streets that run diagonally and go every which way so it's hard to figure out what direction
I'm going
I'm sure I could add to both of those list, and I probably will at some point, but those things just came to my mind at the moment.
05 October 2006
I'm finally meeting some other people, both in my residence hall and at the Institute of Education. It turns out that most, if not all, of the women in my wing of the hall are Master's degree students. One or two of them are studying at the Institute, but not the same program as I am. Two others are pre-med and are attending the School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (yes, that's really the name of the school) and another one is studying forensic science at King's College. There are several more in the same wing as me, but I haven't met them yet. And, since we're all doing Master's courses at different schools, our paths probably won't cross very often. Everyone has been very friendly so far, though, and I'm just glad that I will recognize more people in the dining hall and actually have someone to sit with.
During my meetings at the IoE on Tuesday, I met a couple of girls from North Carolina. They know each other from undergrad and both decided to come to London to study for the year. They are very down-to-earth and I can see myself getting together with them socially, if time allows. There are not as many Americans studying here as I thought there would be. Not even many EU people, from what I can tell. Most international students are from Asia. I've seen, and met, a lot of people from Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, China and Japan. It's nice to run into Americans though because we can symphathize with each other about how expensive everything is and about missing our favorite TV shows. Or give advice on where to buy hangers and cheap food.
I still am unclear as to what my weekly schedule will look like. The meetings I've had so far have covered mainly non-academic things or policies that are general to all students at the IoE. Tonight I have my first class, or 'module' as they are called here. I am eager to get into a regular schedule.
During my meetings at the IoE on Tuesday, I met a couple of girls from North Carolina. They know each other from undergrad and both decided to come to London to study for the year. They are very down-to-earth and I can see myself getting together with them socially, if time allows. There are not as many Americans studying here as I thought there would be. Not even many EU people, from what I can tell. Most international students are from Asia. I've seen, and met, a lot of people from Taiwan, Korea, Singapore, China and Japan. It's nice to run into Americans though because we can symphathize with each other about how expensive everything is and about missing our favorite TV shows. Or give advice on where to buy hangers and cheap food.
I still am unclear as to what my weekly schedule will look like. The meetings I've had so far have covered mainly non-academic things or policies that are general to all students at the IoE. Tonight I have my first class, or 'module' as they are called here. I am eager to get into a regular schedule.
02 October 2006
OK, this is like my fourth time on here today. But, seriously, I don't know what else to do with myself. I don't know anyone in my hall yet and classes haven't officially started, so here I sit. Just me and the computer. Thank goodness I have a computer, at least.
I long for actual human interaction or something. Even a TV would help. When I lived by myself the first year after college, I hated the silence so much that sometimes I'd just have the TV on for the noise it provided, even if I wasn't watching it.
There are some TVs scattered throughout this building, but British TV is only 5 channels basically and I don't think there's really much on that would interest me. In the UK people need to register their TV and pay a tax of some kind. I think there are some students who have a TV in their room, but they have to fill out a form and go through some strange process to make it legit.
Instead of TV, I listened to my favorite Chicago radio stations' (WXRT and WDRV) streaming live broadcasts over the internet. It was fun to hear some familiar voices. I started to listening this afternoon--morning in IL--about the same time I would have been commuting to school if I were there.
This residence hall is so huge; there are so many students living here. There's a wide range of students, though. They're not all studying at the Institute of Education. The University of London has about 20 colleges under it's name, so the people living here could be attending any of them. Plus, they are not all Master's students either. Strange thing is that even though there are so many people here, I hardly ever pass anyone in the hallway. Even if I do pass someone, I don't know if they're 18 or 30 or what. Breakfast and dinner in the cafeteria is when I scope things out discretely.
I could write more, but I think I'll save some thoughts for another time when I'm completely lonely and bored.
Here's a picture of me sitting at my desk writing this blog. :) Yes, I did set up my camera strategically to take this shot on a timer. I TOLD you have a lot of time on my hands right now!
I long for actual human interaction or something. Even a TV would help. When I lived by myself the first year after college, I hated the silence so much that sometimes I'd just have the TV on for the noise it provided, even if I wasn't watching it.
There are some TVs scattered throughout this building, but British TV is only 5 channels basically and I don't think there's really much on that would interest me. In the UK people need to register their TV and pay a tax of some kind. I think there are some students who have a TV in their room, but they have to fill out a form and go through some strange process to make it legit.
Instead of TV, I listened to my favorite Chicago radio stations' (WXRT and WDRV) streaming live broadcasts over the internet. It was fun to hear some familiar voices. I started to listening this afternoon--morning in IL--about the same time I would have been commuting to school if I were there.
This residence hall is so huge; there are so many students living here. There's a wide range of students, though. They're not all studying at the Institute of Education. The University of London has about 20 colleges under it's name, so the people living here could be attending any of them. Plus, they are not all Master's students either. Strange thing is that even though there are so many people here, I hardly ever pass anyone in the hallway. Even if I do pass someone, I don't know if they're 18 or 30 or what. Breakfast and dinner in the cafeteria is when I scope things out discretely.
I could write more, but I think I'll save some thoughts for another time when I'm completely lonely and bored.
Here's a picture of me sitting at my desk writing this blog. :) Yes, I did set up my camera strategically to take this shot on a timer. I TOLD you have a lot of time on my hands right now!
After the week in London, T and I decided to take a day trip to Paris. We took the 2.5 hour Eurostar train through the Chunnel. It was a whirlwind tour of the sights: Notre Dame Cathedral, the Louvre, and the Eiffel Tower. This was my second time to Paris and I have yet to see the Arc de Triomphe and Champs-Elysees up close. At least I got a picture of it from the top of the Eiffel Tower!
(For some reason, these pictures are not in the order in which I loaded them on the website, but you get the idea.)
(For some reason, these pictures are not in the order in which I loaded them on the website, but you get the idea.)
Well, I've officially been here for a week. The week was spent becoming familiar with the place I'll call home until next June. Actually, right now I can't really imagine an 8'x 12' dorm room could ever be home, but London itself is pretty awesome, so I think I'll like my broader surroundings just fine.
I am glad I've had experience in big cities, especially when navigating the public transportation system. London's Underground is amazing. I can't decide if the person who designed it was insane or a genius. Just looking at the map is mind-boggling. If the Tube routes were pieces of yarn and you pulled on all the ends, a knot would form that could never be loosened, I think. And what's even more crazy is that this is all underground. The network of tunnels is so vast, one wonders what the city is actually built upon. It seems like just a few below the surface is hollow nothingness.
But, some of these tunnels are quite far in the earth. Russell Square, the station closest to my hall, has an elevator to take you to and from the Tube. There are stairs available, but a posted sign recommends using them only in an emergency since there are 175 steps! Another popular stop also discourages using the stairs because there are 195 steps to the top--equivalent to 15 stories, it stays.
I actually won't be needing to take the Tube on a regular basis. My classes will be held in a building that is just a five minute walk away. One thing I love about cities is that a person doesn't need a car to get places. After the driving the wretched commute from Lansing to Tinley Park all last year, I am looking forward to walking and talking public transportation everywhere I need to go here in London.
I am glad I've had experience in big cities, especially when navigating the public transportation system. London's Underground is amazing. I can't decide if the person who designed it was insane or a genius. Just looking at the map is mind-boggling. If the Tube routes were pieces of yarn and you pulled on all the ends, a knot would form that could never be loosened, I think. And what's even more crazy is that this is all underground. The network of tunnels is so vast, one wonders what the city is actually built upon. It seems like just a few below the surface is hollow nothingness.
But, some of these tunnels are quite far in the earth. Russell Square, the station closest to my hall, has an elevator to take you to and from the Tube. There are stairs available, but a posted sign recommends using them only in an emergency since there are 175 steps! Another popular stop also discourages using the stairs because there are 195 steps to the top--equivalent to 15 stories, it stays.
I actually won't be needing to take the Tube on a regular basis. My classes will be held in a building that is just a five minute walk away. One thing I love about cities is that a person doesn't need a car to get places. After the driving the wretched commute from Lansing to Tinley Park all last year, I am looking forward to walking and talking public transportation everywhere I need to go here in London.
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