Tell the world I'm coming home!

I'm back in Iowa! I flew home on Tuesday - I took a taxi to the Hull bus station at 6:30 in the morning, then took a bus and a train to London, then the underground to the airport, and finally a plane back to the States! All I needed was a boat, then I think I would have had almost everything covered.

The night before I left a whole bunch of us met up at the Gardener's Arms, which is a pub just around the corner from where we all lived. It was a good way to say bye to everyone.

It is good to be back home and see family and friends. So far I have just been relaxing at home, then on Sunday I'll move back to Cedar Falls and start my internship.

I just want to say thanks to everyone who was thinking of and praying for me while I was gone. Your encouragement and continued contact meant so much! Most of all, though, I want to thank all the amazing people I met in Hull for making this semester an experience I'll never forget. I'll always treasure the memories I have with you and your continued friendship! Love you and miss you xx

The worse of me succeeded by the best of You

While I was at Hillsong church last week we sang "You" from their album "A Beautiful Exchange":

Invading all my weakness
You wrapped me up in grace
The worse of me succeeded
By the best of You

My heart is overtaken
My soul is overwhelmed
The worse of me succeeded
By the best of You

My dreams have found their purpose
My future in Your hands
This life would have no meaning
If it weren't for You

So I lay me down
For Kingdom come
Steal all that is within me
Cause all I want in this world
Is more of You

And the less of me it is You
Increasing as I fade away
Your life for all the world to see
God It is You who breaks the chains
It is You who lights the way
And Everything I am cries out for You

Lord make me more transparent
Your life in mine displayed
And let every earthly glory
Go back to You

Not just this semester, but looking back on my whole life, I know that God has been working in my life. As I grow older and wiser ;) I am constantly being humbled and learning that God is the absolute, most important thing in my life. I hope that God shows through my actions, and that by living my life I can bring glory to God. I don't want to just talk about it or go through the motions, but I want to daily live my life pursuing Him and putting Him at the center of my thoughts, conversations, decisions and actions.

The end is just around the corner...

I honestly can't believe that I'm leaving in a week and a half. The semester has gone by so quickly. I have one more final to study for and all I want to do is just spend time with all the amazing people I've met since I've been here. Good thing for skype, phones, emails and facebook!

I went to Hornsea this week with Jenn. It's a coast town about an hour north of Hull. We spent the day in cute shops and walking along the beach. It's so pretty because there are cliffs right against the coast, so you can only see the beach and the water and the cliffs. It makes it feel like you're secluded a little bit. We walked for over an hour in one direction, hoping that there would be a path to get off of the beach and up the cliff, but we finally gave up and just climbed the cliff. When we got to the top we realized that we had almost reached the next town! It was a long walk back, but definitely worth it.

Jenn, Noopur and I cooked a meal for my Thai roommate since he made us dinner earlier in the semester. We made home-made pizza; we're not really sure if he liked it :) but it was still fun. Manute, my roommate, leaves this weekend, so it was a fun last thing to do before he left.

After Bible study this week I went to a pub with three good friends, Robyn, Andrea, and Becca, to celebrate Becca finishing two exams and to just talk. It was so fun! I love those girls a whole lot. It's good to have people that have gotten close to and can have fellowship with. This morning I made pancakes and had coffee with Andrea, Jenn and Gupreet, and those are the times I think I will miss the most. Seeing Rome and Paris was great, but the friendships I've made are irreplaceable.

Family! :: Winchester

After Grandma and Joanna came back from Scotland (and after two essays and an exam) we took a visit to Winchester. One of my Grandma's high school classmates, Shirley Firth (Colin Firth's mom!!!), lives there, so we visited her and her husband, David. Getting there was an adventure in and of itself. We had tons of luggage; I sent a suitcase home with them, so we had three big suitcases, two little ones and a backpack. We had to change train stations in London, so we weretrying to maneuver all this luggage through the underground and Grandma wasn't feeling the best, so you can imagine. But we made it. David met us at the train station and showed us around the city. There are about 60,000 people that live in Winchester. It is such an old city; the streets are still narrow since they were built before cars and never expanded.

The first day we saw the Great Hall and King Arthur's Round Table. The Round Table is huge. We were joking that if they actually ate around it they must have had to yell in order to hear each other. "PASS THE PEAS PLEASE!" :) Behind the Great Hall is Queen Eleanor's garden, which is lovely, of course. It reminded me of the secret garden; it is kind of isolated and really quiet. I took lots of pictures of flowers - they are just too pretty to pass up.

The next day we visited the cathedral. It has one of the biggest stained glass windows in England (it's the size of a tennis court) and Jane Austen (amongst many other people) are buried there. They were celebrating the 400th birthday of the King James version of the Bible, so they were having an exhibit there for that. We had a tour of the cathedral and this absolutely adorable woman named Noreen was the one who led it. She was 80 years old and could walk faster than me.

The rest of our time in Winchester was spent talking and catching up. It was so relaxing and a nice way to end the time with my sister and grandma. Now only two more weeks and I'll be back in the States to see them!

Family! :: London

My sister, Joanna, and my Grandma Moeckly came to visit on the 13th of May and then left the 22nd of May. It was so good to see them and show them where I've been for the semester. Grandma was amazing; she is 76 and she kept up with the best of them while she toured London, Scotland and Winchester. She is such a beautiful person and it was a blessing to spend a week and a half with her. For the first few days they were here we did some sight-seeing in London. My friend Becca came with us, which was a hugehelp and heaps of fun! :) So, I'll briefly run through the days we spent in London:

Friday, May 13th: Joanna

and Grandma flew into London and both of them were pretty exhausted. We took everything to the hotel, which was both of their first experiences on the underground. Then we went to St. Paul's cathedral to listen to the choir sing. They sing every day at 5P, and it was so good! Grandma said they sounded like angels. After it was done we grabbed a quick bite and called it an early night.

Saturday, May 14th: This was the day of the open bus tour! Grandma was so excited! She was determined to get a seat on the top of the bus - mission accomplished. We saw all the major sites of London this day: Big Ben, Westminster, Tower Bridge, Trafalger Square, Hyde Park and Buckingham Palace. We also went on a riverboat tour down the Thames. It was a little cloudy and chilly, but there was no rain, so we can't complain. Grandma and Becca went back to the hotel after the tour and Joanna and I walked along the Thames by Big Ben and the London Eye for a couple of hours. We got to see the sunset and we took a video of Big Ben chiming. :)

Sunday, May 15th: We went to church at Hillsong, which was amazing! It is a huge

church, but the people are so welcoming and it was such a good experience. After church we went to tea at Harrod's (thanks Dad and Joyce!). We had unlimited tea, scones, sandwiches and mini desserts- all of it was delicious. That night Grandma wanted to go to a church service at Westminster, so we did, and we got to see the inside of the abbey, which is pretty impressive.

Hillsong church: http://www.hillsong.co.uk/

On Monday we traveled back to Hull, then Tuesday Joanna and Grandma went to Scotland until the 19th while I worked on essays and took an exam. They had a great time and good weather for the most part.

Tomorrow I'll post about Winchester, which was the last part of our trip!

Studying, Exams, Essays and Loads of Coffee

Lately I have been hard at work studying, preparing for exams and writing essays. I have two essays and two exams for my finals, each of which is 50% of my grade for its respective module. So far I have three of the four completed; my last exam is the first of June, so I have about a week and a half to prepare for it, which is nice. Exams here are not terrible, but there are things on the exam that are not covered in class, which is a lot different than what I'm used to in the United States. The professors expect you to do a lot of research outside of class and use it on the exams. You are supposed to be able to quote researchers and add in information from your own research in your exams, which are generally in essay format for the modules I am taking. My first exam was for Asia and the World since the 19th Century; there were 12 essay prompts and I had to choose two to write on for the final. I don't think it would be so bad if it was not weighted 50% of my grade, but it is, which adds a lot of pressure. Hopefully I did fine, but I won't find out until August!

My next exam is in Aspects of Child and Family Health. We have to be able to label all the parts of several systems in the body, how to diagnose and treat common childhood illnesses, and general aspects of a healthy family. There is a lot of information, but I have a lot more time to study for this one, so that is good.

This last week my grandma and sister came for a visit, so I will put up a post about their visit this week. It was so good to have them and it went by quickly. Today it rained a whole lot, and actually thundered, which was the first thunderstorm I've witnessed since being here! Tonight a couple friends and I are cooking a meal for my Thai flatmate since he made us dinner earlier in the semester, then I'm going to spend some time with a good friend, Andrea, later tonight. I am looking forward to it, but it means that I have to put in some good study time this afternoon!

Barcelona, Paris, and London

I am finally posting about the last week of our trip! I apologize that I am so late getting it up!
Barcelona is mainly known for its structures designed by the architect Gaudi. The only building we saw by him was his most famous, La Sagrada Familia, which is absolutely beautiful! Gaudi loved nature, and it is evident in the way the light comes into the building and by the pillars that are in the likeness of tree trunks inside the building. There is also a museum attached to the church with all the different models of the church and information about its structure, as well as information about Gaudi's life.

The rest of the time in Barcelona was spent on La Rambla and at the beach. La Rambla is a street full of people selling things they have handcrafted. There is a lot of jewelry and many other unique gifts. It was a little chilly while we were there, but at that point I think would would have sat on the beach if it was snowing!It was so good to relax and take it easy for a couple days. The only annoying part was all the women who try to sell massages to you; they even have charts to show you exactly what kind of massage they give!

Paris was everything we thought it would be: beautiful, good food, and rude people. Our hostel was literally atthe bottom of the Sacre Cour, so each night we climbed to the top and watched the lights come on all over the city. The first day we went on the usual walking tour and saw most of the main attractions. Then we went to the Arc de Triumph, which offers a beautiful view of the city. You can walk 360 degrees around it, so you can see the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre and Notre Dame. That night we went back to the Eiffel Tower to see it lit up at night. It was not disappointing! It sparkles for five minutes on the hour during night time, and it was worth waiting the extra 40 minutes until it started.

Our last day we visited Notre Dame and the Louvre. Notre Dame has huge, intricate stained glass windows, and there is also a lot of information in the church explaining its history. Unfortunately it was all in French and we did not take the audio guide, but it was still good to walk around and see everything. The Louvre is huge. You could spend a week there and still not see everything if you took the time to read and really look at everything. We only visited one wing, partly because at this point we were exhausted, but one wing takes a couple hours to go through. So, we saw the Mona Lisa and Venus de Milo, and much, much more art. I love art museums, so itwas nice to take some time to enjoy walking around and enjoying everything, but we really could have used the whole day there.

I missed my plane out of Paris! So sadly I did not make it to London in time for the royal wedding, but I did stream it live from my laptop. It was beautiful and I read all about it in the newspaper the next day. :)

Munich, Venice, and Rome

I finally have some time to blog about the trip! It has been so busy and hectic going from one city to the next and trying to see as much as possible before leaving. Right now I amin Barcelona and we head to Paris tomorrow morning, bright and early.

I think Munich has been one of my favorites so far. We got to see a lot and it felt like we had enough time to see a good amount of the city. The first day we started off with a free walking tour. It was nice that we had already been to Berlin because our tour guide based most of the tour on comparisons with Berlin. The two cities are almost opposite. Munich is a very rich city with anolder population. They have a lot of pride in their Bavarian heritage. The tour gave us a lot of history behind what we saw- we saw the bar where the Nazi party had its first meeting and the church that Pope Benedict XVI is from.

Later that afternoon we visited the BMW site and the olympic park. We were going to go to the BMW factory, but they had already given their last tour of the day, so we just went to 'BMW World' to get a general idea of what it was like. They just had a information on all the different models of cars that they make. BMW has come out with a new GPS system, and so there was a lot of information about that as well. The olympic parkwas really good to visit. The 1972 summer olympics were held there, which is where Mark Spitz won his seven gold medals in swimming. We went in to visit the swimming pool and it was huge! There was also a memorial to honor the eleven Israelis who were held hostage and killed during the games.

The next day we visited Dachau Concentration Camp. It was such an inexplainable, sobering experience to be there, knowing that it was the place were so many people were inhumanly treated and killed. We took an audio tour of the camp, which was really helpful in gaining a better understanding of what has taken place there. Each of the buildings had an audio commentary, and there were also multiple recordings of survivors of the camp whotold their experiences. There was a huge museum that showed the history of the concentration camp- it was so much information, but it was very powerful. There were no mass executions that happened at Dachau, but thousands of people died under the harsh conditions there.

Venice was a unique experience. We arrived at the train station, then we had to takea "waterbus" to an island where our hotel was. We we got to the island we thought that we had to be lost. It was completely rural; all of it was farmland, and there was no one out to ask for directions. We tried using our cell phones to call the hotel, but none of them were working. We almost got on the waterbus to take it back to the city, but then my phone finallyworked and it turns out that we were in the right place, and the owner of the hotel came and picked us up in an old van. It seemed a little sketchy at first, but it ended up being the nicest place we stayed at. Theyoffered free bike rentals and breakfast, so we got up early the next morning and took a tour of the island. It was absolutely gorgeous. We spent the rest of the day eating gelato and pasta. We also walked to Saint Marcos square, which was also beautiful. Venice is such a relaxing, nice city, and a good break from all of the busy days we had had so far.
Rome was really nice; the weather was beautiful, and so was everything else. We found our favorite restaurant (Pastarito, where we ate three times) and our favorite gelateria. We visited all of the main attractions: Vatican city, the Colosseum, Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon. The Vatican has a huge museum full of beautiful art, including the Sistine Chapel. It took almost the whole day to go through it. We also went to the top of Saint Peter's Cathedral, and you could see the whole city from the cupola. It's so surreal visiting all of these places; I think I'll get back to the United States and almost be in shock that I've actually seen all of these places. It seems so normal to be there while I'm visiting them, but I know when I get back to theUnited States and when I'm looking through all the pictures it will seem so crazy that I've been to these places.

Berlin and Prague

We left for Berlin on Saturday and stayed until Monday, then spent Tuesday and Wednesday in Prague. Berlin was absolutely amazing! There is so much history in the city. It was the center of the Prussian empire mid-century, and of course there is so much history surrounding the World Wars. We took the free city tour our first day there, and got to see most of East Berlin. The Brandenberg Gate used to be the entrance to the center of the city, and we walked to it at night since they light it up; it was beautiful! The Reichstag, or capital building, is also an impressive sight. It is a beautiful building, but there is a huge glass dome on the roof in the middle of the building. This is so that people can go to the top and look out over the city, but they can also look down and see the politicians working. Likewise, the politicians can look up and be reminded of the people they are serving. We wanted to go up to the dome, but unfortunately it has been closed due to a terrorist alert.
The second day we took the 'alternative tour', which was actually really interesting. We went to a building called Tacheles (which means something close to 'straight to the point' in English), which used to be a squat, or home for homeless people, during the 90's. People make all sorts of things, ranging from sculptures to jewelry, and sell them in the building. Unfortunately, the company that used to own the building and let the people live there has been liquidated, and the bank that now owns it has decided to demolish it. I saw it just in time since next week it won't exist any more. We became acquainted with all the style of street art and the "undercover" culture of Berlin.
Prague is a completely unique city. My favorite part of the city was the architecture; it was so unique and there were so many different styles. However, it was raining the whole time that we were in Prague, so we didn't get to see as much as we would have liked to see. The castle that inspired Walt Disney is in the center of Prague, and interestingly, Prague is the city that Adolf Hitler was planning on retiring to. We visited the Jewish quarter, which was not destroyed during the second World War for this very reason. The picture is of the clock tower; there are multiple different clocks, telling the time in 12 and 24 hours, the different moon phases, and which zodiac it is.
Right now I'm in Munich, and it looks like it's going to be a busy couple of days! We are planning on seeing Dachau concentration camp, the BMW factory, and the olympic park. Can't wait! :)

Easter Break!!

On Saturday I leave for my Easter break trip! I can't believe it's here already. I'll be traveling with Gabe (from UNI) and Tyler (from Texas), and we're going to Berlin, Prague, Munich, Venice, Rome, Barcelona, Paris, and London.

Here's a calendar that shows where I'll be when (you can click on it to make it bigger). It is a packed schedule, but it should be good. Everything is all booked, so it will just be a matter of finding everything... good thing for Gabe's iphone.

I made a map of our trip through Google, and I will be adding videos and pictures to it throughout the trip, so go ahead and click on the link under the picture to take a look.

View Europe Trip 2011 in a larger map

This morning I am going to make a run to the big Tesco (basically Super Wal-Mart) and pick up a backpack and all my other last-minute travel necessities. While I'm gone I plan on keeping up with the blog so you all can see all the places I am visiting. Don't forget to stay in touch! It's always good to hear from you! :)

Homework, Food, and Friends

Easter holiday is almost here! I leave for my trip around Europe in a week; we will be going to Berlin, Prague, Munich, Venice, Rome, Barcelona, Madrid, and Paris. So, I've been trying to work hard to get all of my research and as much of my essays done in advance as I can. The last week has been at least somewhat relaxing, spending time with friends and in the library.

One of my flat mates is from Thailand and he cooked us dinner last week. It was so good! We had chicken, rice, fish, noodles, soup, and eggs, as well as a lot of other dishes. Hopefully sometime soon we'll be able to cook him an "American" meal... and hopefully it will be a little more classy than hamburgers and fries.

One of my friend from Salt Lake City had a birthday last week, so we went to an Italian restaurant to celebrate. It was delicious, but we had problems finding it. We took a detour through the mall and asked a couple of security guards how to get to it, and they told us that it was the building that looked like a warehouse, which sounded a little shady at first, but it turned out great!

I went to a Taylor Swift concert this week with my friend Jenn in Manchester! I am not the biggest fan of Taylor Swift, but it was pretty amazing. A Scottish band opened for her, and they were pretty good, too. While we were in Manchester we went to an art museum and did lots of shopping.

It's getting to the point in the semester where we all have our friend groups, and it's been so good to get to know people better. Over coffee dates and girl nights I get the chance to hear about their lives, and it's funny that no matter what country you're from we all have the same experiences with school, friends, and love. Of course everyone is unique, but lately it's just been wonderful to get to know people and relate to them.

Warwick and Chatsworth

This weekend I visited Warwick Castle and Chatsworth House. On this map they are close to the "Heart of England" in the Peak District, near the towns of Stratford-upon-Avon and Sheffield, respectively. I went on the trip through a company called National Holidays; it was great! The hotel we stayed at was nicer than my flat and the breakfast was the best food I've had since I've been in England...

This is Warwick Castle. It was built in 1068 by William the Conquerer. It is huge and gorgeous. Inside there is a great hall, bedrooms and sitting rooms that are furnished from centuries ago. The garden is also beautiful, but the craziest part was that there were peacocks everywhere! There are a lot of activities to do at the castle: archery, bird shows, story time, playgrounds, restaurants, and shopping.

Here is Chatsworth House, and you may recognize it from the movie Pride and Prejudice. I was so excited to see it (because Pride and Prejudice is my favorite movie!), and it was well worth it. There is scaffolding on the front of the house, but it was still wonderful. The Duke and Duchess of Devonshire live there, and it also has beautiful furnishings.

Here is a video from youtube with a slideshow from Chatsworth:

Scotland

Today I just got back from a weekend in Edinburgh, Scotland. I was visiting a friend that I met last summer in Uganda who lives about 15 minutes outside of the city in a town called Bo'ness. Unfortunately the weather was terrible; it snowed a few inches on Saturday and rained for most the day Monday, but we managed to get a few things in during the nice weather on Sunday. We visited Queensferry, which is the bridge in the picture. It was so beautiful! Apparently the experience is much better with ice cream, so we lived it up and enjoyed the treat even though the weather was chilly.

In the center of Edinburgh there is a castle with a moat! It looked like it came straight out of a movie. Laura's hometown, Bo'ness, was my favorite part of the trip, though. The town is right up against a river with huge hills on the other side. The view is breathtaking. Scotland is a gorgeous country, so hopefully I'll make it back sometime when the weather is a little warmer.

Laura had a wedding reception to go to this weekend, and so naturally I was hoping that I would get to see some kilts and maybe hear a bagpipe, but unfortunately that was not the case. However, on my way out of town I had the great opportunity to run into a man on the corner wearing a kilt and playing a bagpipe, so I got my picture with him. Now my trip to Scotland is complete! :)

Going Green

The green movement is definitely not limited to the United States. If anything, people in Europe are more conscious of their carbon footprint than Americans. So many people ride bikes, and the cars that they drive are more fuel efficient than cars driven in America. One article from MSNBC discusses the differences in European and American vehicles:

"CSI found that the number of vehicle models sold in the United States that achieve combined gas mileage of at least 40 miles per gallon actually has dropped from five in 2005 to just two in 2007 — the Honda Civic hybrid and the Toyota Prius hybrid. Overseas, primarily in Europe, there are 113 vehicles for sale that get a combined 40 mpg, up from 86 in 2005. Combined gas mileage is the average of a vehicle’s city and highway mpg numbers. Adding insult to injury is the fact that nearly two-thirds of the 113 highly fuel-efficient models that are unavailable to American consumers are either made by U.S.-based automobile manufacturers or by foreign manufacturers with substantial U.S. sales operations, such as Nissan and Toyota." (Link for article: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/17344368/ns/business-autos/)

At home we have the opportunity to buy bags for our groceries to avoid using the plastic ones, which is also an option here, but some stores actually make you pay for each plastic bag that you use. This caught me off guard the first time I went grocery shopping!

Recycling is another point of difference. Outside of our back door we have three different recycling bins:one brown, one green, and one blue, and each is for a different type of material. Living here has made me much more conscious of the impact that my choices have on the environment, and it has given me a different perspective on the importance of "going green". They have made it a priority to instill a consciousness of the environment into the everyday lives of people, which will certainly produce beneficial results in the future.

Plastic bag picture: http://dailyenergy.net/2011/01/05/bio-plastic-bag-cost/

Cambridge

Last weekend I took a trip to Cambridge to see the colleges. Even though it was rainy, it was well worth the trip. There are 31 colleges that make up Cambridge University, which is the second oldest university in England after Oxford. In the picture you can see King's College, the building in the middle, which is the most prestigious out of the 31. This picture was taken from a punt ride; you are able to see most of the university from this canal that runs along the back side of the campus.

Here on the map you can see that Cambridge is quite a way south of Hull. It was about a three hour bus ride, but it was a pretty drive.

Right before we left we visited an art museum, and this was probably my favorite part of the trip. There were some beautiful paintings from almost every time period and nation. There were also Greek and Egyptian exhibits that contained sculptures and artifacts. Unfortunately the only place where pictures were permitted was the lobby.

Modules

If you're wondering if I study at all, I'm here to tell you that I do. For proof, here are some of my books. Classes (modules as they call them here) are much different from the ones I have taken in the United States. Lectures meet once per week and some modules have a seminar that reviews the lecture. There is usually a lot of preparation that goes into a seminar- a lot of reading and questions to reflect on- and then you meet with your professor and a couple of other students for a discussion. The only grades you receive for most modules are for a paper and a test, however, if you are unprepared for a seminar or do not participate, then you may be docked points from your final grade.

Thus far my favorite module is gender and culture. Right now we are discussing how the media effects our perception of gender, so we have been looking at advertisements and news stories. We have been looking at how much of our identity is embedded in the media. Certain advertisements convince us to buy products, not just for the product itself, but for the image that it portrays. If we buy a sweater that was on sale, it makes us look like someone who is practical and smart, but also someone who is stylish. Our identity is caught up in the products that we buy.

So, between all of my weekend travels, I do a lot of reading to prepare for my essays and my one seminar. I am enjoying learning in a new way, but it takes a while to adjust and learn how to prioritize everything. Overall, I really like my professors and the content of my lectures.

I think I may have the strongest legs in the world...

I spent the last two days in York and Newcastle and I think I walked the most I've ever walked in my life. It was well worth it though, because now not only do I have nicely toned legs, but I was able to see two beautiful cities in England. York is a really old, quaint city.

In this picture you can see the cathedral in background. Inside there are huge stained glass windows. We also saw a train museum, the castle museum, and walked around the city wall.

Newcastle has been one of my favorites so far. This picture was taken from the top of a castle built in the 1100's. The city is right next to a river, and one of the bridges (not the one in this picture) is lower, so when ships come in it has to turn to let them through. The big silver building behind the bridge in the picture is actually a theater. We went inside and it is simply huge.

Lately there have been a lot of people who have not been feeling well, and unfortunately I caught whatever has been going around. Thankfully, I am feeling a lot better. They have a juice here called J2O, which has powered me through a runny nose and a sore throat. It is absolutely amazing. So far apple and raspberry is my favorite kind, but I would have to say that apple and mango is a close second.

.: Kingston upon Hull :.

The University of Hull is located in the city of Kingston upon Hull, and this past weekend a couple of friends and I took a day to check out the city. We went to the tourist office and they gave us a map called a fish trail. There are different kinds of fish that are imprinted into the sidewalks all over the city center in downtown Hull, and if you use the map to follow the trail, you are able to see most of downtown. It took us a while to find the anchovies, but after that we were on our way. We passed by a lot of interesting places that I hope we get to go back and visit sometime (e.g. the William Wilberforce museum and the aquarium). For lunch we ate at a pub called Ye Olde White Hart. It is one of themost famous pubs in Hull; there isa bar downstairs and a restaurant upstairs. There was a woman who was murdered in one of the rooms, so after the building was discovered, her skull was artfully displayed above the bar.

One unique thing about Hull is that all of the telephone booths are white instead of

red because the city of Hull had its own telephone company.

It is fun to see so many old buildings and architecture that is so different than home. I think they have an appreciation for history here that is not as strong at home in the States. Granted, the United States is only a couple hundred years old, but it is refreshing to see so much value put into

history.

Liverpool

I am officially done with the first week of classes! I am looking forward to the semester. My classes will be challenging, but it will be fun to learn things from a different perspective. The weather has been overcast, but usually between 40 and 50 degrees Fahrenheit, so I can't complain. I have mastered the bus system and am able to get from student housing to Tesco (the English version of Wal-Mart) at the city center.

I am a part of a group called International Student Association, and this weekend we took a trip to Liverpool. Liverpool is on the west coast and a little further south than Hull; it took us about three hours to drive there. It was a really good trip. The first thing we did when we arrived was to take in the Beatles exhibition, which was located right on the dock. It is a museum that took us right through the lives of the band members. I learned all about their childhood, how they met, how their career started, and who important people were in their success. They recreated the street where the Beatles began, Matthew Street, and also the pub they played in, which is called the Cavern.

I also visited the Martime and International Slavery museums.

The Mereyside Maritime Museum had exhibits on the Titanic,

Lusitania, and the Empress of Ireland. Thousands of British people lost their lives on these three ships that sank within three years of each other. The International Slavery Museum told the stories of past and modern slaves. There were video interviews and stories to read on the walls. There were also quite a few exhibits on different African tribes. Liverpool was once a major port for slave ships; you could actually look out the window of the museum and see the dock where slave ships were repaired. After we went to the museums we got some lunch and did some shopping. Next week we head to Newcastle!

Map: http://www.visitmap.info/britainvisitoratlas/england.asp?x=100

I made it to England! Our flight went well. We were supposed to fly through Philadelphia, but they were having a snow storm there, so our flight was cancelled and we were moved to a direct flight, which actually made everything a lot easier anyway.

I am all moved in and signed up for classes! I have three roommates so far: Sara from Sweden, Alex from Ukraine, and Joe from UNI. We all live in an apartment- there are six bedrooms, one full bath, one half bath, a kitchen, and a living space. We are about a 5 minute walk from campus, so it is very convenient. I will be taking 3 courses: Asia and the world since the 19th century, Spanish, and gender and culture. I had my first class in Asia and the world today, and it went well; I am excited to start my other classes.

It took a while to connect to the internet and buy a phone, but now I finally feel connected to the rest of the world. I have met a lot of people, most of them international students. It is so great to meet people from all over the world; I now know people from Finland, Sweden, France, Germany, Denmark, Italy, China, and many others.

The top left picture is the view from by bedroom window. Below there is a picture of the outside of our apartment and our kitchen.

The University of Hull

It's almost here! On Thursday I leave to study abroad for a semester at the University of Hull in Kingston upon Hull, England. It is a study abroad program through the University of Northern Iowa, and there are six of us going from UNI. I will be taking classes toward my major in communications. I am really looking forward to meeting new people, going new places, and gaining a new perspective on the world. I plan on blogging once each week, so stay tuned to keep updated.

Here is a link to the home page for the University of Hull: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/

Here is a link to the schedule for the semester: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/theuniversity/semester_dates.aspx

Here is a map of England - I will be at Hull, which is about three hours north of London, and I will be flying into

Manchester, which is about a 1 1/2 hour drive from Hull.

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University of Hull: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/administration/default.aspx?page=1166

Map: http://www.thestudentroom.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1102895&page=14