Exactly one week from now I will be boarding a flight to Amsterdam, with my semester of study abroad in London completely behind me. Right now I am saying good riddance but that is only because I have a 40 page paper to write and 2 final exams to study for. Ah procrastination at its finest. Of course I am kicking myself now for not working on my dissertation throughout the entire semester but I am sure it will all turn out fine. I only have one week of hell to endure, after spending nearly 3 months in a sort of heaven. Not to mention, I get to travel all around Europe for 3 weeks starting on April 1st.
Since the last time I updated my blog, Cole has visited me. He got here on Tuesday night of last week. I thought I was going to have to call my parents and tell them that he just didn't show up, because he must have been the last person off his flight. After waiting around for a couple hours for him, we made the journey back to my flat, nearly an hour away, in Central London. We didn't do anything that night because it was past midnight by the time we got back and I had work the next morning.
While I was at work on Wednesday, Cole managed to entertain himself by walking around the market on the street parallel to mine, getting himself a nice classic English breakfast, and just being lazy I guess, until I got home in the early afternoon. By that time, the sore throat I had the night before had turned into a fever and what I later found out was tonsilitis (which I am still suffering from). But i didn't have any time to be sick, as we had to make our way to the House of Lords for a wine reception in the honor of the Hansard Scholars Programme. Cole was pretty amazed that he was able to take wine and hor douvres in Parliament. And yes, he did enjoy his red wine. He was actually in the background of quite a few pictures, since he was standing next to the Lord Speaker (the equivalent of the Senate Majority Leader in the US) as she was delivering her speech. He will most likely be on the Hansard website once they post the pictures, so I will be sure to post the link when I find it.
After the reception I took him to a local pub so he could have some proper British fish and chips. We stayed for a bit and had a beer or two but I had to go home early since I was feeling so sick.
The next day we did our London sightseeing. First we went to the the Tower of London, which has some of the remains from the Roman Empire when they occupied the area nearly 1,000 years ago. Inside the castle is the exhibit of the Crown Jewels, which Cole and I were equally amazed by. I tried to serve as his tour guide as best I could, but I haven't exactly become an expert on British history and politics since I've been here. You can only learn so much in 3 months, but I hope it was enough to give him a bit of culture while he was over here.
After leaving the castle, we took a couple pictures in front of Tower Bridge. Tower Bridge is the one that everybody thinks is called London Bridge. London Bridge is actually just a normal looking bridge about 1/2 mile up the Thames River, where most pictures of Tower Bridge are taken from.
After that we walked along the Thames since it was such a nice day and we then walked across Millenium bridge, which is a suspension bridge built for the Millenium celebration back on NYE 2000. After a few pictures there we took the Tube (subway) down to Parliament so that Cole could meet the girls I work with. We had lunch with them and then I did some work for about half an hour while Cole nearly fell asleep on the couch in my office.
We were going to take a ride on the London Eye, which is the gigantic Ferris Wheel overlooking the city, but the line was too long and I wasn't feeling very well. Instead, we walked over to Westminster Abbey, where most of the Kings and Queens, as well as other historical figures, are buried in tombs throughout the Church. The architecture in that building is simply amazing. I knew that Cole would love seeing it, as he has always loved that sort of stuff.
Later that night, we met up Mary and James for dinner at nice Italian restaurant in Notting Hill. Cole not only drank more red wine (yes he is of legal drinking age in London for all of you who were just collectively gasping), but he also had carpaccio for his appetizer. Talk about cultured!
The next morning, we were supposed to go on a bus tour of Stonehenge, Bath and Windsor Castle, but I felt terrible when I woke up. My fever still had not gone away so I hadn't gotten any sleep. Cole was perfectly fine with just staying in and being lazy all day. It was his vacation after all, I'm sure he didn't want to wake up at 7 am each day. We went to a 3 level brewery/bar later that night and I stayed for a drink or two then pawned him off on a couple of my friends. I still wasn't feeling well but I didn't want Cole to have to suffer. He came to London to have a good time, and sure hope he did.
The next day I was feeling much better, which was convenient because we spent the day in Cambridge with James. He was a great tour guide and seemed to know all there was to know about Cambridge. The obvious highlight of our trip was punting. In case you aren't aware, punting is very similar to riding in a Gondola in Venice. We were in a long, unstable boat and the method of steering was to stand on the flat part of the boat in the back and push along the bottom of the river with a 10 foot pole. Cole and I got up there for a few minutes each and it was obvious that we were Americans. Not only because we were struggling with directing the boat, but because James was sure to tell everyone that we passed that we were Yankees and that we might fall in at any minute.
After a long, but fun day in Cambridge, it was time to go out for Hayley's birthday. Hayley is one of my good friends from Northeastern who is also in the Hansard program (I'm not sure if I mentioned her before). After a successful session of early drinking, the few of us who managed to make it out went to a club down the street. Cole had never been to a club before and I am sure that he will tell all of you he was a bit overwhelmed and completely surprised. European clubs aren't like the ones in the States. This place was huge and Cole's eyes grew just as big as he walked through the doors. He seemed like he had a great time and to finish off his London trip we got some authentic Bratwurst at a local food stand at 3 am.
Since he has left I still haven't been feeling much better. I don't have a fever anymore but the tonsilitis is still lingering. Not to mention I woke up the other morning with pink eye. I guess it's better to get sick now, than when I am traveling starting next week. Let's hope all this clears up in time for me to leave on April 1st. And let's also hope I survive with my sanity through this paper and finals.
Oh yeah, and GO 'CUSE!!!!
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Friday, March 12, 2010
A busy month
I can't believe it has been a month since the last time I posted something up here. I'm sure my dad is not too happy with me by now, as this is my only way of communicating with most of you. So for that, I apologize. But at least I have a lot to tell you this time.
The last time I posted something was just after I returned to Paris. Since then I have done a bit more traveling.
About a week after I got back from Paris I went on a study trip to Edinburgh, Scotland with the whole Hansard group. We had lectures a couple of the days that we were there but the rest of the time we were free roam the city. It was a very small city so it was easy to walk from one side to the other. It is also a very old city. Edinburgh Castle sat on the top of a huge hill in the middle of the city so on one of our free days a bunch of us walked up and took a tour. They have turned parts of it into a museum, where you can walk through and the Scottish Crown Jewels and the history of the monarch and the army. It was amazing seeing the architecture from centuries ago. Unfotunately I didn't take many pictures in Scotland because my camera died half an hour into the first day and of course I forgot to bring the charger. I will be sure to steal some pictures from my friends though.
Other than the castle we spent some time in the European Parliament office there, where we had a lecture. Right next to the EU builing was a set of cliffs that overlooked the city, I think it was called King Arthur's Way. I got some great pictures from the cliffs that I will be posting online for you guys to see.
I have said since coming to Europe that I do not want to experience these cultures through a camera lens. Although I have taken quite a few pictures (because my mom would have my head on a platter if I didn't), I prefer to experiences different countries through their food and drink. This may be a major contributor to my dwindlying bank account, but I think it is well worth it. In Scotland, one of their traditional dishes is called Haggis. It's basically ground sheeps intestine with a bunch of spices thrown in....and of course I tried it. Surprisingly I liked it.
The next country that we went to was Ireland. This wa a leisure trip rather than one for school. Instead of going to Dublin like every other tourist does, some friends and I decided to go to Galway, which is a small city on the west coast of Ireland. After getting into our hostel at 3am the first night we went on a bus tour of the area around Galway. They took us past a couple castles and through a lot of farmland until we reached our final destination...the Cliffs of Moher. If you remember back to my last post, I said that Chateau Versailles was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Well, that is now the most beautiful man-made landscape I have seen. The Cliffs of Moher are the most breath-taking natural landscape. They hundreds of feet down to the ocean below, and I actually managed to get some pictures within a few feet of the edge. I know, it surprised me too that I was able to get over my fear of heights. I have a lot of pictures of the Cliffs on the website that I posted a link to at the bottom of this post.
During the bus trip we stopped at a local Irish pub and got lunch. So keeping in mind what I said before, I obviously ordered lamb and a Guiness. This was the first Guiness that I have ever had, and how fitting that it was in Ireland. The next day, some of my friends took a day trip to Dublin, but I didn't want to go because I figured it would be too touristy. Instead, I went to the Aran Islands with some of the girls. We rented bikes for the day and rode about 20 miles around the island. We got a beautiful day so the pictures came out great and the riding went very smoothe. On one side of the island there was a fort built on top of a cliff at the edge of the sea. The first was apparently built over 4000 years ago. All in all, Ireland has definitely been my favorite trip so far... but I have many countries to go.
The other day I made a schedule with a couple buddies, Rob and Joe, for our travel plans after we finish with classes. We will be traveling for about 3 weeks and we will be going to Amsterdam, Berlin, Krakow (to see Aushwitz), Venice, Rome, Florence, Nice (southern France) and Barcelona. I'm sure I will be exhausted by the time I finish that but it will be well worth it, and the experience of a lifetime I am sure.
Other than traveling I have been very busy with schoolwork and my internship in Parliament. I'm at the library right now working on my 40 page dissertation due at the end of March. And as many of you have heard, I just got assigned a very important project at work. My MP has just proposed a bill to Parliament that deals with the objectifiation of women in British media. She is worried that the naked women pictured in free daily newspapers (called Page 3 girls) are sexualizing young children and exposing them to adult material far too early. So rather than work on monotonous casework for my last few weeks, I will be doing research for the bill and helping her write the 10 minute proposal speech that she will be giving in Parliament on March 31st. I have tickets to watcht the Prime Minister Questioning that day so I will get to watch her deliver the speech that i worked on, which will be a great experience. Working in Parliament has provided me with amazing opportunities that I don't think I would have gotten anywhere else. I will be sure to keep you updated on my work and I think I will be able to get a DVD copy of the speech for the family to see.
I really appreciate all the support everyone has given me while I've been away for so long. As much as I love being over here, I do still miss all of you. Knowing that you read this and are keeping up with my travels through my parents as well definitely makes everything better for me over here. I hope to write again fairly soon, it certainly won't be a month before my next post.
-Chase
PS: Cole will be here in a few days so I am very excited about that. I'll be taking him to a wine reception for the Hansard Society at the House of Lords in Parliament his first day here. So he will be thrust into posh British society immediately upon his arrival. We have an eventful week planned while he is here so I will let you all know how it went after he leaves.
PPS: here is the site for my pictures. http://www.webshots.com
I think you can search for a user (mine is CBent88) and look at their pictures. if not just email me and I can give you my account info so you can see them. My email is bentley.chase@gmail.com
The last time I posted something was just after I returned to Paris. Since then I have done a bit more traveling.
About a week after I got back from Paris I went on a study trip to Edinburgh, Scotland with the whole Hansard group. We had lectures a couple of the days that we were there but the rest of the time we were free roam the city. It was a very small city so it was easy to walk from one side to the other. It is also a very old city. Edinburgh Castle sat on the top of a huge hill in the middle of the city so on one of our free days a bunch of us walked up and took a tour. They have turned parts of it into a museum, where you can walk through and the Scottish Crown Jewels and the history of the monarch and the army. It was amazing seeing the architecture from centuries ago. Unfotunately I didn't take many pictures in Scotland because my camera died half an hour into the first day and of course I forgot to bring the charger. I will be sure to steal some pictures from my friends though.
Other than the castle we spent some time in the European Parliament office there, where we had a lecture. Right next to the EU builing was a set of cliffs that overlooked the city, I think it was called King Arthur's Way. I got some great pictures from the cliffs that I will be posting online for you guys to see.
I have said since coming to Europe that I do not want to experience these cultures through a camera lens. Although I have taken quite a few pictures (because my mom would have my head on a platter if I didn't), I prefer to experiences different countries through their food and drink. This may be a major contributor to my dwindlying bank account, but I think it is well worth it. In Scotland, one of their traditional dishes is called Haggis. It's basically ground sheeps intestine with a bunch of spices thrown in....and of course I tried it. Surprisingly I liked it.
The next country that we went to was Ireland. This wa a leisure trip rather than one for school. Instead of going to Dublin like every other tourist does, some friends and I decided to go to Galway, which is a small city on the west coast of Ireland. After getting into our hostel at 3am the first night we went on a bus tour of the area around Galway. They took us past a couple castles and through a lot of farmland until we reached our final destination...the Cliffs of Moher. If you remember back to my last post, I said that Chateau Versailles was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. Well, that is now the most beautiful man-made landscape I have seen. The Cliffs of Moher are the most breath-taking natural landscape. They hundreds of feet down to the ocean below, and I actually managed to get some pictures within a few feet of the edge. I know, it surprised me too that I was able to get over my fear of heights. I have a lot of pictures of the Cliffs on the website that I posted a link to at the bottom of this post.
During the bus trip we stopped at a local Irish pub and got lunch. So keeping in mind what I said before, I obviously ordered lamb and a Guiness. This was the first Guiness that I have ever had, and how fitting that it was in Ireland. The next day, some of my friends took a day trip to Dublin, but I didn't want to go because I figured it would be too touristy. Instead, I went to the Aran Islands with some of the girls. We rented bikes for the day and rode about 20 miles around the island. We got a beautiful day so the pictures came out great and the riding went very smoothe. On one side of the island there was a fort built on top of a cliff at the edge of the sea. The first was apparently built over 4000 years ago. All in all, Ireland has definitely been my favorite trip so far... but I have many countries to go.
The other day I made a schedule with a couple buddies, Rob and Joe, for our travel plans after we finish with classes. We will be traveling for about 3 weeks and we will be going to Amsterdam, Berlin, Krakow (to see Aushwitz), Venice, Rome, Florence, Nice (southern France) and Barcelona. I'm sure I will be exhausted by the time I finish that but it will be well worth it, and the experience of a lifetime I am sure.
Other than traveling I have been very busy with schoolwork and my internship in Parliament. I'm at the library right now working on my 40 page dissertation due at the end of March. And as many of you have heard, I just got assigned a very important project at work. My MP has just proposed a bill to Parliament that deals with the objectifiation of women in British media. She is worried that the naked women pictured in free daily newspapers (called Page 3 girls) are sexualizing young children and exposing them to adult material far too early. So rather than work on monotonous casework for my last few weeks, I will be doing research for the bill and helping her write the 10 minute proposal speech that she will be giving in Parliament on March 31st. I have tickets to watcht the Prime Minister Questioning that day so I will get to watch her deliver the speech that i worked on, which will be a great experience. Working in Parliament has provided me with amazing opportunities that I don't think I would have gotten anywhere else. I will be sure to keep you updated on my work and I think I will be able to get a DVD copy of the speech for the family to see.
I really appreciate all the support everyone has given me while I've been away for so long. As much as I love being over here, I do still miss all of you. Knowing that you read this and are keeping up with my travels through my parents as well definitely makes everything better for me over here. I hope to write again fairly soon, it certainly won't be a month before my next post.
-Chase
PS: Cole will be here in a few days so I am very excited about that. I'll be taking him to a wine reception for the Hansard Society at the House of Lords in Parliament his first day here. So he will be thrust into posh British society immediately upon his arrival. We have an eventful week planned while he is here so I will let you all know how it went after he leaves.
PPS: here is the site for my pictures. http://www.webshots.com
I think you can search for a user (mine is CBent88) and look at their pictures. if not just email me and I can give you my account info so you can see them. My email is bentley.chase@gmail.com
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
My first trip to continental Europe
After work on Thursday I packed my bags (well not really my bags, as I still haven't received my duffle bag in the mail from Mom and Dad)and headed to the bus station with about 12 of my friends from the program. On the walk through the bus station, one of the girls spotted a KFC, which we decided was going to be a necessary stop on the way back on Sunday. There will be more on that later.
Anyway, we got on the bus around 10:30 and arrived at the entrance to the Chunnel, which is the tunnel going under the English channel connecting the UK to France, an hour or so later. After having our passports checked we spend nearly an hour waiting on the bus, then getting off the bus, then getting back on etc etc. Needless to say, everybody was already fed up with our coach ride and we were only 1/4 of the way through. When we finally got moving again we had to wait another hour for the Chunnel train to show up. Our bus then drove onto the train, which inside looked a lot like some sort of spaceship. I slept almost the entire way after that and then woke up in Paris.
We arrived at our hostel early in the morning, with everybody having got about an hour or two of sleep. Needless to say, the sight-seeing on our first day was quite labored by our fatigue. On the first day we went to the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Roman Crypts below Notre Dame and then went back to the hostel for a quick recharge. My mom certainly wasn't lying when she said that it would take literally days to see all of the Louvre. The museum is unlike any other collection I have ever seen. I really only made my way through a couple wings which held Greek/Roman sculptures, medeival art and egyptian statues. Of course I saw the Mona Lisa, which actually kind of disappointing. My favorite piece was an oil painting of David and Goliath. If any of you have access to my facebook you'll be able to see the pictures I took of it.
Later that night, six of us went out to eat at a French cafe across the street from Moulin Rouge. I had my first piece of steak in nearly a month, which is probably the longest I have gone in my entire life. With dinner I had my first glass (and by glass I mean half a bottle) of red wine. How fitting is it that my first time getting drunk on wine is in Paris? I'm sure my mother would be so proud haha.
The next day we all went to Chateau Versailles, which was the palace that Louis XIV built in 1630. It was an absolutley amazing piece of architecture and landscaping. No picture could ever do this estate justice. It was the most beautiful and amazing thing I have ever seen in my life. In my opinion, a trip to Paris would not be complete without seeing Versailles. I hope to go back during the spring sometime, as I'm sure it would be even more breathtaking then. Places like Versailles show just how dramatically different the US is from Europe. We simply don't have the tradition and history since we are such a young country. The old money that is all over Europe lends to the amazing pieces of medeival and renaissance architecture.
On our way back from Versailles, we stopped at the Effiel Tower and the Arc du Triumphe. Unfortunately I didn't get to go up the Eiffel Tower. The lines were very long and the elevators only went up to the 2nd story due to construction. But the Arc du Triumphe was probably my favorite piece of architecture in Paris. We walked to the top and I got some great pictures of the Tower and the Paris skyline.
The next day we took the arduous 9 hour journey back to London. This time our bus went across the channel on a ferry rather than the train. This was much more enjoyable because we were able to walk around the ship for an hour or so. The best part about the ferry was that there was a duty free shop on it and I stocked up on some vermouth to make manhattans for the remainder of my stay in London. I'm sure grandpa would like to hear that part.
We got back to London late Sunday night and as promised, I stopped at KFC. I didn't have Cole with me to finish off the entire stock of chicken but I did manage to put down a family bucket which is about my body weight.
Well my day in Parliament is coming to an end and I've got some work to do still.
This week I will hopefully be making plans with Cole for him to come over and visit me on his spring break. I think that it's an opportunity that he shouldn't miss out on. Not to mention it will have been 3 months since I saw him last by then. Of course the availability of frequent flyer miles will determine whether he is going to make the trip. So keep your fingers crossed for us and hopefully we will be in London in two months time.
I may be taking a bus tour of Stonehenge and Bath on Friday, so I will be sure to update you all on more of my travels.
Goodbye!
Anyway, we got on the bus around 10:30 and arrived at the entrance to the Chunnel, which is the tunnel going under the English channel connecting the UK to France, an hour or so later. After having our passports checked we spend nearly an hour waiting on the bus, then getting off the bus, then getting back on etc etc. Needless to say, everybody was already fed up with our coach ride and we were only 1/4 of the way through. When we finally got moving again we had to wait another hour for the Chunnel train to show up. Our bus then drove onto the train, which inside looked a lot like some sort of spaceship. I slept almost the entire way after that and then woke up in Paris.
We arrived at our hostel early in the morning, with everybody having got about an hour or two of sleep. Needless to say, the sight-seeing on our first day was quite labored by our fatigue. On the first day we went to the Louvre, Notre Dame, the Roman Crypts below Notre Dame and then went back to the hostel for a quick recharge. My mom certainly wasn't lying when she said that it would take literally days to see all of the Louvre. The museum is unlike any other collection I have ever seen. I really only made my way through a couple wings which held Greek/Roman sculptures, medeival art and egyptian statues. Of course I saw the Mona Lisa, which actually kind of disappointing. My favorite piece was an oil painting of David and Goliath. If any of you have access to my facebook you'll be able to see the pictures I took of it.
Later that night, six of us went out to eat at a French cafe across the street from Moulin Rouge. I had my first piece of steak in nearly a month, which is probably the longest I have gone in my entire life. With dinner I had my first glass (and by glass I mean half a bottle) of red wine. How fitting is it that my first time getting drunk on wine is in Paris? I'm sure my mother would be so proud haha.
The next day we all went to Chateau Versailles, which was the palace that Louis XIV built in 1630. It was an absolutley amazing piece of architecture and landscaping. No picture could ever do this estate justice. It was the most beautiful and amazing thing I have ever seen in my life. In my opinion, a trip to Paris would not be complete without seeing Versailles. I hope to go back during the spring sometime, as I'm sure it would be even more breathtaking then. Places like Versailles show just how dramatically different the US is from Europe. We simply don't have the tradition and history since we are such a young country. The old money that is all over Europe lends to the amazing pieces of medeival and renaissance architecture.
On our way back from Versailles, we stopped at the Effiel Tower and the Arc du Triumphe. Unfortunately I didn't get to go up the Eiffel Tower. The lines were very long and the elevators only went up to the 2nd story due to construction. But the Arc du Triumphe was probably my favorite piece of architecture in Paris. We walked to the top and I got some great pictures of the Tower and the Paris skyline.
The next day we took the arduous 9 hour journey back to London. This time our bus went across the channel on a ferry rather than the train. This was much more enjoyable because we were able to walk around the ship for an hour or so. The best part about the ferry was that there was a duty free shop on it and I stocked up on some vermouth to make manhattans for the remainder of my stay in London. I'm sure grandpa would like to hear that part.
We got back to London late Sunday night and as promised, I stopped at KFC. I didn't have Cole with me to finish off the entire stock of chicken but I did manage to put down a family bucket which is about my body weight.
Well my day in Parliament is coming to an end and I've got some work to do still.
This week I will hopefully be making plans with Cole for him to come over and visit me on his spring break. I think that it's an opportunity that he shouldn't miss out on. Not to mention it will have been 3 months since I saw him last by then. Of course the availability of frequent flyer miles will determine whether he is going to make the trip. So keep your fingers crossed for us and hopefully we will be in London in two months time.
I may be taking a bus tour of Stonehenge and Bath on Friday, so I will be sure to update you all on more of my travels.
Goodbye!
Wednesday, January 27, 2010
Parliament today, Paris tomorrow
I've hit a little break in the onslaught of letters and emails from angry constituents, so I figured I would take the time to write a short piece on here.
I have quite a lot to do in the next 24 hours as my awaited trip to Paris is approaching. I will be writing letters for the rest of the workday then I have to go off to the Hansard society office and pay a housing deposit that I thought I had eluded. No such luck. Directly from there I will spending a few hours in the library working on my dissertation.
I have decided to do my dissertation on the asymmetrical devolution of politics in the UK and the resultant dissembling of Parliamentary sovereignty. Sounds fun eh? To put that into normal speak, rather than dry political jargin, the UK doesn't have three branches of government like we do in the US. So all of their political power resides in Parliament, headed by the Prime Minister. It is entirely undemocratic that one body delegates all power to local councils, and the UK has started to realize this. So their have been movements to give Scotland, Ireland, Wales and local English councils more political power...and that is what I will be writing about. If that was confusing to you, don't worry, because it is going to take me 2 months of research and 10,000 words of writing to get it down.
On a much, much more interesting note, I go to Paris tomorrow! We are taking an overnight bus, which will get us there early Friday morning. We haven't quite planned out all that we are going to do while in Paris but obviously we will go see the Eiffel Tower, Arch de Triumph, the Louvre, and there is also talk of a half-day trip to Versailles. Either way, I am sure I will have fun being tourist. Don't worry Mom, I will take plenty of pictures so that you can live vicariously through my travels.
There are about 12 of us all going on the trip together, which will make it that much more fun. In the short time that I have been here I have become good friends with a number of people. I am constantly hanging out with the people from Flat 3, so many of the others often ask me if I live with them. There are two other guys, they're names are Rob and Joe. They both go Marist College in NY. It is good to have them around, as I have found the rest of the crowd that we hang out with is overwhelmingly girls. They live with 3 girls, Alexis (who also goes to Northeastern)and Sharyl and Jess (who both go to Purdue). They are all a good time and we spend most of our time together.
Outside of flat three there is another group of girls that we spend a lot of time with, and who are also going to Paris with us. In fact, they planned the trip. Many of you may have heard the name Hayley before. She is one of my good friends from Northeastern and we kind of went through the whole application process together. We were also on the same flight over here. Hayley became quite good friends with Mom before we left so she joins me on Skype every now and then.
Well, I supposed I've wasted enough time blogging now and I really should get back to work. I booked a trip to Ireland last night, so you will all be hearing about my travels to Galway in the near future as well.
Goodbye and I miss you all.
PS: Please comment on some of these posts so I don't feel like I am just talking to myself haha
I have quite a lot to do in the next 24 hours as my awaited trip to Paris is approaching. I will be writing letters for the rest of the workday then I have to go off to the Hansard society office and pay a housing deposit that I thought I had eluded. No such luck. Directly from there I will spending a few hours in the library working on my dissertation.
I have decided to do my dissertation on the asymmetrical devolution of politics in the UK and the resultant dissembling of Parliamentary sovereignty. Sounds fun eh? To put that into normal speak, rather than dry political jargin, the UK doesn't have three branches of government like we do in the US. So all of their political power resides in Parliament, headed by the Prime Minister. It is entirely undemocratic that one body delegates all power to local councils, and the UK has started to realize this. So their have been movements to give Scotland, Ireland, Wales and local English councils more political power...and that is what I will be writing about. If that was confusing to you, don't worry, because it is going to take me 2 months of research and 10,000 words of writing to get it down.
On a much, much more interesting note, I go to Paris tomorrow! We are taking an overnight bus, which will get us there early Friday morning. We haven't quite planned out all that we are going to do while in Paris but obviously we will go see the Eiffel Tower, Arch de Triumph, the Louvre, and there is also talk of a half-day trip to Versailles. Either way, I am sure I will have fun being tourist. Don't worry Mom, I will take plenty of pictures so that you can live vicariously through my travels.
There are about 12 of us all going on the trip together, which will make it that much more fun. In the short time that I have been here I have become good friends with a number of people. I am constantly hanging out with the people from Flat 3, so many of the others often ask me if I live with them. There are two other guys, they're names are Rob and Joe. They both go Marist College in NY. It is good to have them around, as I have found the rest of the crowd that we hang out with is overwhelmingly girls. They live with 3 girls, Alexis (who also goes to Northeastern)and Sharyl and Jess (who both go to Purdue). They are all a good time and we spend most of our time together.
Outside of flat three there is another group of girls that we spend a lot of time with, and who are also going to Paris with us. In fact, they planned the trip. Many of you may have heard the name Hayley before. She is one of my good friends from Northeastern and we kind of went through the whole application process together. We were also on the same flight over here. Hayley became quite good friends with Mom before we left so she joins me on Skype every now and then.
Well, I supposed I've wasted enough time blogging now and I really should get back to work. I booked a trip to Ireland last night, so you will all be hearing about my travels to Galway in the near future as well.
Goodbye and I miss you all.
PS: Please comment on some of these posts so I don't feel like I am just talking to myself haha
Wednesday, January 20, 2010
It's been two weeks already
It has been quite a while since I've posted on this blog and I should really start doing it more often. My internet has been quite spotty at times in my flat so sitting down to write a long story of how it's been over here can be difficult at times. But enough about my complaining, I need to tell you about everything I've been up to.
I am currently writing this while sitting at my desk in Parliament. I started my internship yesterday and I am having a great time. It really is amazing that I was able to get into this program and it is such a great opportunity. I am only one of 11 students in my programme that got placed with a Member of Parliament. The other 20 or so got jobs in various committees, commissions and consulting groups. I'm not sure how I got picked for this position but it is exactly what I asked and hoped for. Not to mention I am with a Conservative MP (Member of Parliament), which is right up my alley. Her name is Nadine Dorries, you can look her up on the internet if you want.
I assumed that when I came into this internship I was going to be placed in an office with very straight-edged, professional, conservative people. Oh how was I wrong, but I am quite glad that my prediction was off. I was pleasantly surprised that I'm working with two girls, both about my age. One of them is actually the MP's daughter. Their names are Jen and Catriona. And they really are great people, very fun, very outgoing and very blunt. They speak what's on their mind at all times and it's hilarious. We just end up talking all day while we're doing our work. It makes the day go by quickly and also makes it enjoyable. I can see myself becoming good friends with them, in fact we're about to go out for some drinks at one of the bars in Parliament. Yes, I said bars in Parliament. The culture is much different over here when it comes to drinking. It is a social thing that everybody does when they get out of work.
The work that I'm doing at this point isn't that interesting because obviously being the second day I'm still getting the hang of things. I have only been writing letters in response to questions that some of our constituents have. But soon enough I will be working on press releases, writing policy briefings for my MP, attending debtates and questioning sessions and many more interesting things.
Between working in one of the most prestigious government institutions in the world and taking classes at the number 3 university in the UK, I am sure my trip will prove to be a great educational experience.
Well, I'm off to the bar now, much like every other night I've been here. Next time I write to you all I will tell you more about the people that I live with and all that we have been doing. By the way, we just booked a trip to Paris for next weekend which I am very excited about.
Talk to you soon!
I am currently writing this while sitting at my desk in Parliament. I started my internship yesterday and I am having a great time. It really is amazing that I was able to get into this program and it is such a great opportunity. I am only one of 11 students in my programme that got placed with a Member of Parliament. The other 20 or so got jobs in various committees, commissions and consulting groups. I'm not sure how I got picked for this position but it is exactly what I asked and hoped for. Not to mention I am with a Conservative MP (Member of Parliament), which is right up my alley. Her name is Nadine Dorries, you can look her up on the internet if you want.
I assumed that when I came into this internship I was going to be placed in an office with very straight-edged, professional, conservative people. Oh how was I wrong, but I am quite glad that my prediction was off. I was pleasantly surprised that I'm working with two girls, both about my age. One of them is actually the MP's daughter. Their names are Jen and Catriona. And they really are great people, very fun, very outgoing and very blunt. They speak what's on their mind at all times and it's hilarious. We just end up talking all day while we're doing our work. It makes the day go by quickly and also makes it enjoyable. I can see myself becoming good friends with them, in fact we're about to go out for some drinks at one of the bars in Parliament. Yes, I said bars in Parliament. The culture is much different over here when it comes to drinking. It is a social thing that everybody does when they get out of work.
The work that I'm doing at this point isn't that interesting because obviously being the second day I'm still getting the hang of things. I have only been writing letters in response to questions that some of our constituents have. But soon enough I will be working on press releases, writing policy briefings for my MP, attending debtates and questioning sessions and many more interesting things.
Between working in one of the most prestigious government institutions in the world and taking classes at the number 3 university in the UK, I am sure my trip will prove to be a great educational experience.
Well, I'm off to the bar now, much like every other night I've been here. Next time I write to you all I will tell you more about the people that I live with and all that we have been doing. By the way, we just booked a trip to Paris for next weekend which I am very excited about.
Talk to you soon!
Sunday, January 10, 2010
I have arrived!
Hi everyone,
So after after a day of traveling and a long time without eating (which many of you know is particularly difficult for me) I finally arrived at my flat (apartment) yesterday around noon. I was genuinely surprised by my flat. It is quite modern in its design and appliances, although the internet connection and hot water are not always available.
On the brighter side, I got very lucky with my living situation. I am living with three guys (Ben, Galen and Matt) who seem to be pretty cool thus far. We are living in a 6 person flat, for just the 4 of us! This means that Ben and Galen, who previously knew each other, are living in one room, while Matt and I each get our own room. I'm pretty excited about this because I certainly wasn't anticipating it.
I came to Hansard (which is the name of my program) with one of my close friends from school, Hayley. We sat next to each other on the flight, ate the nasty food and played the British version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire. She is also living directly above me in a flat so we are constantly running up and down the stairs to ask each other questions.
Today I got a phone and then we went on a bus tour of London as a group. It was very information in that I now know where I want to visit while in the city. It is amazing how historic this city is and also the number of free museums and other stuff they have. Surely, the next three months in London and my last month traveling around Europe will be the best time of my life.
Well, I'm about to head out to a local pub with Hayley and some other people so I'll give you guys another update later this week after I start classes and see Parliament!
-Chase
So after after a day of traveling and a long time without eating (which many of you know is particularly difficult for me) I finally arrived at my flat (apartment) yesterday around noon. I was genuinely surprised by my flat. It is quite modern in its design and appliances, although the internet connection and hot water are not always available.
On the brighter side, I got very lucky with my living situation. I am living with three guys (Ben, Galen and Matt) who seem to be pretty cool thus far. We are living in a 6 person flat, for just the 4 of us! This means that Ben and Galen, who previously knew each other, are living in one room, while Matt and I each get our own room. I'm pretty excited about this because I certainly wasn't anticipating it.
I came to Hansard (which is the name of my program) with one of my close friends from school, Hayley. We sat next to each other on the flight, ate the nasty food and played the British version of Who Wants To Be a Millionaire. She is also living directly above me in a flat so we are constantly running up and down the stairs to ask each other questions.
Today I got a phone and then we went on a bus tour of London as a group. It was very information in that I now know where I want to visit while in the city. It is amazing how historic this city is and also the number of free museums and other stuff they have. Surely, the next three months in London and my last month traveling around Europe will be the best time of my life.
Well, I'm about to head out to a local pub with Hayley and some other people so I'll give you guys another update later this week after I start classes and see Parliament!
-Chase
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Only 5 days until I leave!
Hello everyone,
I've never actually written on a blog before, let alone created one for myself. But I figured this will be a good way for me to keep in touch with everybody and let you all know how my travels are going over the next four months.
I'm gonna be really busy so I'm sure at times it will be difficult for me to talk to everyone back at home as much as I would like. I'll be able to load pictures of everywhere I go and also tell you about the great time I'm having.
To everyone that I won't be able to see this week, I'll miss you all this spring. And to everyone else, let's have fun this week.
Stay tuned!
-Chase
I've never actually written on a blog before, let alone created one for myself. But I figured this will be a good way for me to keep in touch with everybody and let you all know how my travels are going over the next four months.
I'm gonna be really busy so I'm sure at times it will be difficult for me to talk to everyone back at home as much as I would like. I'll be able to load pictures of everywhere I go and also tell you about the great time I'm having.
To everyone that I won't be able to see this week, I'll miss you all this spring. And to everyone else, let's have fun this week.
Stay tuned!
-Chase
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)
