Warm Beer and Other Things

My Semester in London

Author: Yvette (Page 1 of 2)

Is Studying Abroad in London a Good Idea?

January 4, 2015 / / 0 Comments

Like everything, there are pros and cons, but in this case, I strongly encourage everyone to study abroad. Especially, if you go without knowing anyone, it gives you a good sense of independence and a better understanding of yourself and how culture has shaped your life. Additionally, it opens your mind to being more receptive to different ideas  and allows you to question your own society and way of living. Of course there are times that are difficult and challenging, but in the end it’s worth it.

In regards to studying abroad IN London, my views are more complicated. There are some downsides to studying in London, because it is such a metropolitan city, you do not always notice the cultural differences: cities tend to be similar. When I went to London I was expecting things to look ‘English,’ but you only get that feel from smaller towns like Bath or Dover. Finally, in England, since I already knew English, I didn’t have the opportunity to learn a new language.

However, London is also great because they speak English,  allowing you to really get to know locals and discover the more minute differences between cultures. It also has incredibly cheap flights to the rest of Europe, giving students the opportunity to explore  many different cultures throughout their time abroad. Additionally, London is really diverse, making it easy to meet so many different types of people. Finally, there is so much to do in London, from the free museums, parks, castles, and pubs.

I am thankful I studied abroad and glad I got to know such a cool city with great people.

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Myth Busters

December 12, 2014 / / 0 Comments
While my time in London is coming to an end there are a few misconceptions I want to address.
London is always raining: 
London is not the sunniest of cities, but that does not mean it is constantly raining. In fact, the place that receives the most rain fall each year is a mountain in Hawaii. Additionally, there is a very good chance it rained more during the 10 days I spent in Nicaragua a couple winters ago, then it did during any 10 days in London. That being said, it does not hurt to keep an umbrella on hand while in London.
Everyone has Bad Teeth:
It is true that under the NHS (National Health Service) dental care is not covered. But people have bad teeth in England, just like small populations in other areas have bad teeth. England actually has a rather high percentage for good dental hygiene within its population.
English Food is Terrible:
Curry has become one of Britain’s national dishes and is supposed to be great, especially if you try some on Brick Lane. On the other hand, from hearing from most of my American friends, pub food is kind of bland and they do not have a lot of food we are used to eating. So while not many come to England for its food, there is hope.
They Drink Warm Beer:
Saving the best for last, of course I had to address this at some point. While personally I have never found warm beer in England I have found two possible answers to why this misconception has arose.
1. The English do not keep their beer in refrigerators, rather in cellars. While this may make people assume the beer is room temperature, in reality cellars are quite cold.
2. Personally I prefer this answer.  There are two types of beer. The first, a Lager, which is served at around 45 degrees Fahrenheit, which is most beers that americans drink like pilsner styles or Heineken.  The second type of beer is Ale-fermented and served at ‘room temperature,’ which is about 65 degrees Fahrenheit. This is still pretty cold and is supposedly a better taste for stouts and brown ales.
Cheers! (Pun intended)

 

Global Citizens?

December 7, 2014 / / 0 Comments

In my diplomacy class, we often discuss whether diplomacy will cease to exist. One reason, is because of the different ways countries are now able to communicate with one another like non governmental organizations such as the EU. Part of the idea of the EU is to unite countries, creating less boundaries and bringing the world closer to this idea of having people transcend nationalities to become global citizens.

The more I think about this idea the less I believe it is possible. People enjoy sovereignty and still are extremely patriotic, valuing their own views over others. Glimpses of this idea can be seen through the attempt of the Scottish referendum, the  ongoings in Catalonia (Barcelona and surrounding areas). This idea was reinforced and challenged during my weekend trip to Berlin. Berlin is often known for its part during the cold war. One city torn apart for the sake of a preferred ruling system and power.  This is a motif represented throughout the city through the many pieces of the wall still remaining. However, Berlin as a modern city today is quite different. There are people from all over the world who gather in Berlin because of its wealth of alternative culture, art, and music. While these people have yet to transcend state lines, my weekend in Berlin made it evident that a united world still may be achieved through a mix of alternative culture.

The Monarchy

November 18, 2014 / / 0 Comments

One small difference between the US and the UK is the fact that the UK has a Queen. While the Queen hasn’t done anything political in a while, there is technically nothing stopping her. The UK has a uncodified constitution, meaning it is not written down. In other words, the way the Queen is supposed to act in a constitutional monarchy in the UK, is based off of precedent.

I recently went to see a play, which toyed with this idea of tradition and the uncodified constitution. The British theatre finds nothing sacred, and thus it was not terribly offensive that the play, King Charles III, created a scenario where Queen Elizabeth died and Prince Charles became King. Not agreeing with the first bill that is brought to him in office, Charles refuses to sign it, breaking the hundred year old precedent. Instead, he decides to act on his beliefs, going as far as dismissing parliament. Whether this situation is realistic or not, it taps into some very real themes in the UK such as the importance of tradition, democracy, and the role of the royal family. To hear more about some of the plays I’ve seen click here for my theatre section.

Cheers!

Adventures Abroad

November 18, 2014 / / 0 Comments

It’s been too long so, I want to bring you up to speed. Because London is THE metropolitan city of Europe, you can get cheap flights to almost anywhere in Europe. Which means, within two hours I could casually meet up with my friend from back home in Barcelona for the weekend. It was great seeing a familiar face and a new place. (Also, got to see Madrid and Toledo).

bikesWhile on a traveling high, within the following weeks, I went to Stonehenge, Bath, Harry Potter Studios, and Cardif (Wales). I will hopefully do a little more traveling while I am here. You know what they say… I actually have no idea, but I assume someone once said, “when in Europe, travel Europe”

Cheers!

 

 

 

 

Top Hats and Anglo Jewery

October 19, 2014 / / 0 Comments

Shul

The Lauderdale Road Synagogue

This past weekend was the last of the Jewish holidays that I will celebrate while in London (at least until Chanukah). While these holidays are important in their own right, a big part of these celebrations is being with family and enjoying tradition. Being away from home, Jewish families from different communities invited me to celebrate with them. While it was difficult being away from home, it was interesting to see the unique jewish communities of London.

I had the opportunity to be with a traditional orthodox family and their community in Golders Green, as well as a Masorti family in Finchley (a denomination we don’t officially have in America). But by far the most interesting experience was my time spent with a Rabbi and his family who moved from NY to become the Chief Rabbi of the Spanish Portuguese Synagogues in London. While the words of the services might be the same, their traditions were totally foreign.

The men of the congregation wore  top hats. They used to wear Tricorn hats, until they became out of style, which oddly enough has not stopped the use of top hats. The services themselves were also different, using a choir, which is no longer a traditional part of most American Sephardic communities. They used different tunes, that resemble church hymns and ate a combination of undefined, Middle Eastern and English cuisine.

To more cultural immersion!

Cheers

Noticing Some Differences

October 6, 2014 / / 0 Comments

English culture is so diverse , it’s sometimes difficult to notice what IS english culture, especially after coming from such a multifaceted city as NY. But after being here for almost three weeks I have started to realize more nuanced differences than the fact that there are no stop signs in London. For instance, their complete disregard for the American right to bear arms. They just don’t understand why anyone would need a gun.

I also have become aware of how different our newspapers are. I’ve been told that the ‘main’ newspapers here are The Guardian and The Times. Comparing these two to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, makes English news papers look like tabloids. They just don’t seem as serious. There are articles about the royal family with titles like “David Cameron may have said something he shouldn’t have about the Queen.. AGAIN.” While, they do have things that seem more serious, the royal family is a big part of the culture here and insulting the Queen is a rather big offense for them.

Some other differences are in relation to their  views towards smoking and alcohol. Both are so entrenched in their culture, its weird coming from a place where if you smoked in a park, people would instantly heckle you with a barrage of loud obnoxious coughs.

Another interesting difference is how aware they are of the world. From my experience, America citizens are overwhelming unaware of countries past western Europe, let alone their current events. The other day, I had a sixth year (sixth grader) tell me where the island of Comoros is (never even heard of it). Because, England is physically connected to  the rest of the world, its citizens seem to be more educated and concerned with the rest of the world.

Also they use the words naughty… a lot. It’s really amusing.

Finally, My First Week of School

October 2, 2014 / / 0 Comments

It seems like I’ve been in London for a month, but I finally had my first week of school. I have class Monday through Wednesdays which is pretty great. Monday I have Diplomacy Old and New. Tuesday I have Education and Religion and Wednesday I have Politics and Government and Theatre in London.

University works a bit different in London. First of all, most classes have seminars attached to lectures. So if there is a big lecture for 2 hrs it then splits up into smaller classes for the last hour. (Back home we only do this for science classes). Also here professors are called tutors and classes are called modules or tutorials. The way the education system approaches specialization is also different. In America, everyone needs to have core requirements, where they take a variety of classes in different disciplines. Here, students start specializing during sixth form, or their last years of high school. Once they enter college students have one ‘major’ and study that throughout their three years.

The work here is also a lot more independent. For my classes I have one essay due for the entire semester (The most I have is 2 assignments in one class). I am in class with British students and most of their classes are a year long as opposed to a semester. Reading lists and textbooks are not assigned, rather there is one long suggested reading list, and students are told to pick and choose. Additionally, professors or tutors, don’t mark students’ assignments. Students submit their assignments online to have them evaluated by different people (Until this year students had to hand in their paper in person at a center in the school). Hopefully this new system wont make me procrastinate too much.

Cheers!

Politics in Action

September 19, 2014 / / 0 Comments

While you can’t tell from watching the streets of London, there was a lot of commotion in the UK over the past couple of months. Yesterday (Thursday Sept 18 2014), there was a referendum for Scotland’s independence. After talking to some British citizens, I found people had very strong reactions towards the situation. Most were vehemently opposed to the idea of Scotland’s independence. Luckily for them, the vote came out this morning and Scotland decided that they were #bettertogether, with a 55% ‘Yes’ vote. Considering the small lead, it will be interesting to see how this plays out in the future, now that the UK has ignited the hopes of thousands for independence. Anyways, it was really fascinating to be in the UK during this historic moment, even though I don’t know nearly enough to have an educated opinion about it.

Cheers!

Moved into Nido

September 17, 2014 / / 0 Comments

I am all moved into my dorm. The rooms are small, but nice. The complex is way bigger than anything I am used to. There are two buildings and at least ten floors in each. I am living in an international dorm so the students come from countries all over the world and are attending different schools in London. I am living in a double and expecting my roommate in a day or so. The floor shares a communal kitchen, which will make it difficult to keep kosher, but I’ll manage. My friend actually showed me a way where you can make an omelet in a bag. Check out where I stayed here.

Cheers!

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