Books, Bath, and Beyond

Hello again!

This past week has been a flurry of firsts! As we all become acclimated to the city of Bath, we have started to plan trips to venture to other parts of England, including the incredible trip to Stonehenge, Salisbury, and Lacock sponsored by our program coordinators!

Seeing Stonehenge was definitely a highlight of the week, despite the wild wind gusts that reached upwards of a constant 25 miles per hour! As you will see, many of my pictures feature me attempting not to eat my hair every time I open my mouth to smile... but it was worth every minute! It really is an awe-inspiring structure; one of my favorite myths surrounding the origin of Stonehenge claimed the sorcerer Merlin brought the 50 ton boulders to their current location under orders from Uther Pendragon's predecessor, Aurelius Ambrosius, in order to erect a memorial to fallen soldiers brutally defeated by the Saxons in battle. I learned about all this in Stonehenge's brand new visitor's center that just opened a month ago, which includes a panorama movie depiction of Stonehenge throughout the ages, a historical exhibit detailing all of the known research about Stonehenge, a myths and legends room, a gift shop (I bought a postcard, which one lucky person will be receiving soon!), and a coffee shop where I bought a hot chocolate to sip in the 20 minutes it took me to thaw out after being thoroughly wind-blasted.

Stonehenge!

Roomie picture at Stonehenge!

Gettysburg does Stonehenge... Off-campus Studies photo of the week, perhaps?

After a couple hours exploring Stonehenge, we headed off to Salisbury, which boasts a 750 year old cathedral that was built in just 38 years and all in one piece, which apparently is quite an architectural feat. My education programme advisor, Andrew Butterworth, who also happens to be a Blue-Badge tour guide, gave us a wonderful tour of the Gothic cathedral. From the few times that I have listened to Andrew speak, I've realized that he is a genuine storyteller; obsolete facts that would seem like a history lesson coming from anyone else are morphed into an engrossing story, impelling everyone to listen attentively. I eagerly look forward to working with him for the rest of the semester, talking about all things education related!

In the town of Salisbury, on our way to the Cathedral.

Salisbury Cathedral

Andrew Butterworth giving one of his famously animated tours!

The Salisbury Cathedral cloisters

Lacock was just as pretty as expected due to many of their town laws prohibiting the intrusion of the 21^st century…no electrical lines above ground, satellite dishes, or yellow lines on the road can be visible from the main street in order to preserve the picturesque ambiance, which dates back to the town’s origins in the 13^th century. Besides the historical significance, Lacock’s claim to fame rests in its use as a setting in several blockbusters, including Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, Pride & Prejudice, Emma, and The Other Boleyn Girl. After walking around Lacock for a bit, our program directors treated us all to dinner and dessert at The George Inn and my table of four, affectionately nicknamed “Team Whatever” for our lack of imagination when it comes to creating team names, placed solidly in the middle of the rankings for most correct answers on the pub quiz! Overall, a long, but productive day of being a full-fledged tourist on her first excursion outside of Bath!

The streets of Lacock

Lacock Abbey

There just happens to be a river running through the middle of the road... normally the river is passable in a car (yes, it is indeed supposed to be there on a normal basis), but due to all the recent flooding, I'm not sure I would recommend trying to cross it now!

The George Inn where we had dinner and the pub quiz!

Melanie and I in front of the house used as James and Lilly Potter's home in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

Chelsi and I on the coach bus headed to Salisbury!

The rest of this week has been spent rushing off to classes, all of which promise great things to come! My “Ghosts and the Gothic” reading list is by far the most expansive, including Frankenstein, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, Dracula, and The Woman in White as well as a “Jack the Ripper” themed tour throughout the London underground. My Shakespeare tutor certainly blew me away by theatrically quoting whole passages of memorized lines from at least four different Shakespeare plays… I guess it pays to be a former stage actor, producer, and director when teaching a Shakespeare seminar! And I loved jumping right into a debate about the benefits of technology in the classroom within the first hour of class for my “Education in England” seminar. But my favorite academic moment of the week hands down was my first day at Bathampton Primary School in a Year 3 classroom (similar to 3^rd grade in the States) shadowing my cooperating teacher, Ms. Ovigne.

The school is the epitome of the picturesque English school, tucked away next to a small church and situated just behind a canal. Everyone I met was extremely friendly and interested in who I was and what I was doing in Bath; Paul Faulkus, the Head Teacher, even wrote a paragraph in their school bulletin introducing me to the teachers, students, and parents. There is actually one other college student, who is studying education at Bath University and doing a job shadowing similar to mine at Bathampton; we were able to talk about our experiences on the bus ride back into Bath and it was enlightening to see the school from another student’s point of view. I am certain my co-op, Ms. Ovigne, will be a great help to me as the semester progresses; she is a wonderfully skilled teacher, who engages her students and effectively encourages them to reach for the stars in their academic careers. Although I won’t go into an anecdotal analysis of all of her teaching philosophies, I will say that her classroom is without a doubt one of the most positive academic atmospheres I have ever encountered. She relies heavily on the idea of rewarding children for good behavior and intellectual questions/comments as opposed to punishing children who act out inappropriately. She is not adverse to discipline, but rather she preempts any negative disciplinary measures by instilling a solid sense of personal responsibility in each of her students; personal responsibility for behavior as well as for learning. It is up to the students how they want to behave in class, but acting out will get them nowhere whereas positively adding to the class dynamic will earn them various rewards that they get to enjoy on a daily and weekly basis. Merit cards, Head Teacher awards, and sticker charts are just some of the ways in which she encourages her students to become positive influences in the classroom. It was certainly something to witness, seeing all of her kids working diligently throughout the whole day and thoroughly enjoying their time in school. I look forward to the next 10 weeks that I get to spend working with her and learning from her myself.

I’ll write again in a couple days… be sure to check back in to see how my trip to Cardiff, Wales pans out tomorrow!

P.S. Happy Valentine's Day and Happy Belated Galentine's Day to all my girls out there! Thanks to my ASE girls for a lovely dinner at Jimmy's!

A bunch of the ASE girls out to dinner for a Galentine's Day celebration!

Hello, everyone!

I have been in the gorgeous city of Bath for almost a week now, so I suppose it's about that time to start posting on all of my adventures! This first week has been a rush of Orientation, acquainting myself with the academic program that is Advanced Studies in England (ASE) and the city that we will be living for the next four months! I have met a bunch of new people, including the fifty-three ASE students in the program as well as all our staff, student helpers, and some of my tutors (here they are called tutors rather than professors). Classes start this upcoming week and I am incredibly excited, if a bit daunted by the amount of reading that I will be doing over the course of the semester... five plays for my "Mythologizing Shakespeare" class, nine novels for "Ghosts and the Gothic: the Literature of Terror," with countless articles comparing the American and the British education systems for "Education in England." I suppose being an English major, the correct response should be... Bring it on!

Already I am awed by the beauty of this city, especially Bath Abbey, which happens to be a two-minute walk from my flat :) I will definitely be taking a guided tour of the Abbey in the future, so more pictures of that to come, but I will include some of the small tour we were given as a Welcome to Bath celebration with our whole program. As the only city in England and one of two cities in Europe (Bath and Venice) with World Heritage Status, the upkeep and protection of historical landmarks takes precedent; therefore the atmosphere and appearance of the city streets gives off the feeling of stepping into an idyllic postcard. Bath, essentially, is the exact opposite of the stereotypical American city by ridding itself of the grime and pollution, characteristic of places like New York City or Philadelphia. Furthermore, all of the buildings are required to look like classic Georgian architecture so even a clothing store built in 2013 looks like it belongs next to the Royal Crescent and the Circus.

I currently am living in a flat (the colloquial term in Bath for an apartment) with two double bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a small dining room in Nunes House, located right in the heart of the city and just around the corner from Nelson House where ASE's classrooms, offices, and library can be found. I anticipate the closeness will come in handy if I am ever running late to class... I can pop out of bed and be at my class in less than five minutes flat! In terms of discovering what Bath has to offer, it is also quite handy to be located in the center of the city; this way, I can go off in a different direction each time I want to go exploring and always find my way back with the Abbey tower as my geographical guide.

Although I have not been to see the Roman Baths quite yet, I have enjoyed being a tourist for the past few days, walking all over the city to see the Circus, the Royal Crescent, and the Abbey, as well as frequenting a few local pubs and restaurants. I have officially tried fish and chips (good, if a bit greasy) as well as cider (a drink called Beesting is my new favorite!) and just this morning I shopped around the local Saturday markets, which I cannot wait to visit again next Saturday in order to buy fresh bread, fruits and veggies, as well as meats, cheeses, and sweets! Cooking is quickly becoming a new hobby as there is no cafeteria for ASE and we are all given a stipend for groceries every couple weeks. I am happy to say that we have all mastered the basics and have not set off the fire alarm yet! My flatmates and I even baked snicker doodles on the third night :) Shout out to Melanie for being a champ and stirring that batter since we didn’t have an electric hand mixer yet!

Basically, I am having the time of my life already and I cannot believe that I get to partake in the amazing adventure that is studying abroad in Bath, England!!

More to come soon, including.... travels to Stonehenge (tomorrow!!), adventures on my first day of my school placement, and the first week of classes!

Cheers!

This is the view from the window in my room. Right now the canal is completely flooded from the incredible amounts of rain Bath has been getting. And the green section in the middle is actually the Bath Rugby stadium! We can watch a rugby match from the comfort of our bedroom!

Bath Abbey from the side.

Bath Abbey from the front.

Street performers are everywhere in the city!

Chelsi and Madeline, my flatmates, and I in front of Bath Abbey!

My roommate, Melanie!

Madeline, Chelsi, Amy, and I wandering around the streets of the city.

A typical street in Bath...I wish West Grove looked like this!

The Circus

Amy, Madeline, and Chelsi cheesing in the Circus. Apparently, Nicholas Cage is rumored to own an apartment in the Circus; his is the only one without a house number. He removed it in order for his residence to be less conspicuous... that kind of defeats the purpose, however. In order to find out which one was his, we all just looked for the only one without a number!