Well, the first day of classes is over, and I am starting to settle in a bit. There are more Americans here than I thought there would be. I would say approximately 60% are from the States, but I have met two people from Australia, one from New Zealand, one from Hong Kong, one from India, and a few from the British Isles. One thing I was worried about was being able to meet people because I'm usually shy when I first meet people, but I think I have done a good job of being brave and saying hi to new people. I think everyone is relieved when someone does it because we are all in the same boat of trying to meet new people. So ... let's get into yesterday:
Monday
I woke up around 8:30 for my 9 o'clock class, ran upstairs to the shower (You'll see the pictures, hopefully, tomorrow, but they are literal when they mean "bathroom"; the only shower in the staircase is on the floor above me), and was ready with 10 minutes to spare. Our class is in the bottom of my staircase (they organize by staircases instead of floors in Exeter College; I'm not sure why), so I didn't have to go far. Dr. Mark Almond teaches my Cold War class, and he's a interesting and weird guy. His hair is poofy and curly on the sides, but it appears to be a flat comb-over on top. Anyway, class was interesting. We talked about how Axis governments transitioned, especially Germany, after WWII. They had to balance between punishing them for war crimes and using them to run government, which sounds odd. They did this because the fascist regimes were the only ones who knew the ins-and-outs of the country and its day-to-day operations, so they couldn't punish them without also punishing the rest of the country, which they found out was a bad idea after WWI and the Versailles Treaty. in other words, they needed them to help transition and explain to the Allies how to work everything. Next, Dr. Tom Buchanan talked about modern politics in Britain while focusing mainly on Gordon Brown, the present Prime Minister. I learned a lot about British government (Did you now that the Prime Minister can just call elections whenever he wants?) and Gordon Brown. To demonstrate how American-dominated this is, most of the questions were directed towards the American-English relationship. After that, we walked to a library to get a briefing of how to use the library. During the Changing Face of Britain class, we discussed the changing family structures of Britain. Why do we have families? What makes up a family? What races have what types of families? What are the man and woman's roles? Do the evolving stresses of the new structure of families bring more problems or exchange new ones for old ones? It was really interesting. I felt intelligent when I essentially gave Talcott Parson's theory on why families exist (functionality- two people to have kids create a natural bond, then bring up the kids to transfer societal views and norms, and the kids take care of the adults later) even though I didn't know Parsons or anything about him. It is my shining moment so far in between getting lost, looking confused, and trying to figure out how the card swipes and doors work here. Like my family says, I have book smarts just not much common sense, although I'm not the only one confused and lost so I don't feel too bad. Later, a few of us walked around Oxford's campus. We came back and hung around in John J's room until about 11:30 when we went to bed.
Observations:
- They have "Keep Door Closed: Fire Door" on just about every door, so when you first see it, you don't think you can enter. However, I think they put in on just about every door, so I've learned to mainly ignore them.
- Oh, and England is 5 hours ahead, not 6, so I got in at 2:30 EST.
- English bartenders are nice and will help you figure out which coin is what (what is sad is that some of the bartenders are younger than I am).
- I cannot use the minute button on my alarm clock, so I have to get up at whatever:30.
- If a word ends in an "a", then it has a /er/ sound (ie. data --> dater, idea --> ideer (just not the long pronunciation of the American South)).
- It hasn't rained yet, but it is supposed to tomorrow.
- One of my teachers told me that it isn't usually windy in Oxford, which surprised me (it has been windy every day).
5 comments:
Sounds like you are alive and well in a foreign land! Glad you made it and are getting settled in. I noticed you did say you had a beer. So how was the English warm ale?
More later.
Love Dad
I'm really enjoying reading your blog! Can you say a bit about the structure of your day? It sounds as though you have two or three classes (Almond, Cold War; Buchanan, Modern Politics; and ?, Changing Face of Britain) or is Buchanan the faculty for Changing Face of Britain?
And what about breakfasts? When I visited, breakfast became much more important than it is for me at home. Home = something quick, whereas at Cambridge, it was more leisurely, lots of options in the dining hall, etc. If you get up early enough before class, check out the breakfast options & see what you think.
I'm glad you have this blog--it's great to hear how you're getting along at Oxford!
Lisa
Lisa--
As for classes, I have two. Dr. Almond teaches "Europe During the Cold War" and Dr. Palmer teaches "Changing Face of Britain". Those occur for me on Monday and Wednesday at 9 (EDTCW) and at 4:15 (CFB) for two hours each. Every day at 11:15 (Monday - Friday), we have "plenary lectures" given by scholars, some teachers at Oxford some not, that everyone in the programme must attend. They each have a topic, but they do not correspond with my courses. Dr. Buchanan was the first one to give a lecture on Modern British Politics, and today Dr. Pomway talked about the EU. On Tuesday, Thursday, and Friday, I only have plenary lectures, so I have a bit of free time. I hope that makes more sense because I realize I wasn't very clear.
As for breakfast, it really isn't any more important here. They just set out cereal, muffins, and fruit. You can come in between 8 and 9 to get it if you want. Dinners seem much more important as we are supposed to be more dressed up (polos instead of t-shirts, and we are served instead of self-service. I actually got up this morning to see and get my electronics checked (I guess so i don't blow up the building).
Dad --
The Strongbow was okay, and it is more of a light beer. The Guinness was surprisingly smooth. The Applestone Cider was actually good (meaning I didn't have to wince when I drank it). :)
Guess that means that if I make a cider that you can let me know what you think now. I'll warn you, though. You don't notice the alcohol when you're drinking cider. Beware! Good gateway fermentable, though.
I was going to ask which Guinness (Export vs. Original). I Wikipedia'd and found that it's probably the same stuff (which is contrary to what I've been told). My guess is that you were privileged enough to have a barkeep who has the proper tap (see article) and actually knows how to pour a Guinness properly, other than the "pour it quick and slam it on your table" that we typically get over here. A Guinness should NOT be moving when it gets to your table. It does matter.
While most beer there isn't served warm, you need to find a real cask ale while you're over there. This should help considerably.
I'm beginning to notice a theme in my posts. If you can't tell, I'm preparing to brew this weekend. ;-)
Hey Mark!
Sean told me about your blog. Sounds like you're in for a lot of work with your classes, but try to go hit some tourist sites when you have a chance.
I recommend trying to get down to Salisbury so you can catch a bus tour to Stonehenge - they pick up at the train station there and drive you out to the site and back and give a talk as you walk around the site. Also, when you're in London, get on the London Eye for the best views of the city possible without being in a helicopter or levitating. ;)
BTW, based upon the recommendations of several of my compatriots who were in Ireland with me, try some Bulmers the next time you're in a bar, it's another cider (they sell it as Magners here in the States, but I've been told it doesn't taste the same as it's UK counterpart). Another favorite drink involved a pint that had black current juice added to it. Can't personally vouch for it, but it seemed pretty popular.
Have fun, but don't break your liver...
StephL
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