Rugby!

Last Saturday, Edinburgh hosted the Scotland vs. South Africa rugby match, and my friends and I were lucky enough to get tickets. I've seen a few rugby matches at Colby so I had a general understand of how the game worked but was not prepared for the level of ferocity with which these men played or the amount of Scottish pride associated with the sport.

After going to bed the night before and hoping for sunshine the following morning, I woke up to a traditional Scottish day: pouring rain. Although the rain stopped for the bus ride to the field, giving everyone a sense of false hope, it immediately started pouring again when we stepped off the bus. The game started with an introduction of the players, and although it was cool to see South Africa's players in green and gold, (I loved the movie Invictus) watching Scotland's players come out was incredible. There was an enormous marching band on the field, complete with a set of bagpipe players, and everyone sang a traditional Scottish song.

When the game got underway, I could not believe how violent it got and how tough the players were. These enormous men were sent flying in every direction after taking awful hits. The crowd didn't make it any better, with collective groans and gasps echoing throughout the stadium. However, even when bleeding or in need of a muscle taped up, the game continued and the player pushed through it.  There were several times when trainers ran onto the field while the game was still in progress, taped someone up, and ran away again. These guys define true dedication. Each time Scotland scored, the crowd went wild, cheering, singing, and waving their flags. Scotland eventually won the game 21-17!

Throughout the game, it was amazing to see how much pride Scots take in their sports and in their country. Everyone was dressed in blue, waving huge Scotland flags, and singing traditional Scottish songs. Fans were much more respectful and less vulgar at this game than the football (soccer) game we attended in September, but there was still a great deal of cheering and yelling in support of the team (just a lot less swearing and threatening of the other team!). A little girl was sitting next to me with her Dad, and it was her first rugby game as well. She kept asking her Dad lots of questions and I couldn't stop thinking about my first Red Sox game 11 years ago, sitting in the stands at Fenway with my Dad, watching the Red Sox play the White Sox and asking lots of questions. I'm definitely missing watching American sports at the moment, but Scottish sports have been a crazy experience!

The ranting of an ethnocentric Colby student

First, let me preface this post by saying I am having the time of my life here and would not change my experience for anything. Second, I understand that there are plenty of different styles of education out there, and it's great to try new things. I just think Colby's the best.

To be completely honest, school wasn't exactly my first priority when deciding where to study abroad. I knew I wanted an English speaking country, a large but manageable city, and and a region in which I could travel. Edinburgh was a perfect match for me, and love the city and culture here. However, the deeper I get into my courses, the more I dislike the education system. I don't learn well while sitting in a room with 300 people and listening to a lecturer read from the slides for 50 minutes. One professor actually reads directly from a sheet of paper for the entire class, without looking up once. It's a struggle to stay awake every week. Students here are supposed to be "independent learners" but it's difficult to do research when 300 people need the same book from the library. People also don't understand what the meaning of "silent floor" is here. With all the work and research I've completed over the past few weeks, I'm really missing Miller library (where I go to pretend to do work) and the second floor of Diamond (my favorite location when I actually need to get things done).

I also hate just being a face in the crowd during class. I have not spoken to a single professor since I have been here, and as they run in with 30 seconds to spare before class begins and run out just as quickly when class is over, I don't think I'll be having any conversations soon. I miss professors asking how my day is, how my extracurriculars are going, if I need any help on my papers, etc. The connections that professors and students have at Colby is amazing, and I definitely took that for granted until now. I can't wait to be back on the Hill, where professors give me matzo bread and tell me to chill out when I'm having a meltdown over an impending international relations midterm or challenge my rather radical ideas on saving the environment.

While I appreciate the opportunity to see what education is like in a different country and at a large school, I can't wait to get back to Colby!

Dublin!

I spent this past weekend in Dublin, and despite it being a rather short trip, I had lots of fun. I went with seven other people on my program, which did get a bit overwhelming at times, but everything went smoothly.

Our flight on Friday was at 8 am, so when we arrived in Dublin, we had the entire day in front of us. We took a bus to the center of town and found our hostel which was very centrally located. It was very inexpensive, so we were surprised to find that it was actually quite nice and spacious. After checking in, we decided to wander around the city for a bit. Dublin is fairly compact and we didn't have a hard time finding our way around. Our first stop was Dublin Castle. Everyone has seen their fair share of castles since arriving in Scotland, and no one wanted to pay the money to go inside, but we did get some great shots of the exterior.  After Dublin Castle, we walked to Dublina, an enormous cathedral in the center of town, and then St. Patrick's Cathedral.  St. Patrick's was gorgeous, inside and out, and definitely worth the visit. The inside was so ornate, and it's home to a lot of historical artifacts.  My favorite piece in the cathedral was the "Door of Reconciliation." In the 800s, two large and wealthy families were constantly warring, and the feud between the families had lasted many years.  Finally, the head of one family decided enough was enough, and went to the other head of the family's home.  When the other man refused to let him into his house for fear of a trap, the man looking for a truce bust a hole in the door and stuck his arm through to shake hands. I'm not sure if I would trust someone who broke a hole through my door, but nonetheless, it was a good story.

After St. Patrick's cathedral, we got some lunch and continued wandering around the city for a bit. It was nice not to feel rushed around and to take our time walking through the streets and exploring.  It did start raining, so we returned to the hostel for a nap before we went out for the night. After a great night out, we decided to come back around midnight to get some rest before our busy day. However, after coming back, we realized our hostel was located right next to a night club. So, despite being serenaded by Usher and Jay Sean all night, we did manage to get some rest before getting up bright and early on Saturday.

Saturday began with a walk along the river through town. We got to see a few really cool bridges, including the Harp Bridge, which looks like Guinness Harp. From the river, we walked through town to Trinity College, through some shops, and eventually to a great (and inexpensive) food market. I had the best sweet potato soup which was perfect for the cold weather. From the food market, we continued wandering through town, past the old city walls of the city and finally to the Guinness Storehouse.  The storehouse was so much fun, and I learned a lot about the beer brewing process. The displays were really interesting, and we learned how to pour a pint of Guinness the proper way. I now have a certificate, so if anyone needs a pint poured, I'm your girl.

Dublin was different and much more industrial than I had expected, but I loved how compact the city was. It was easy to see everything, and we got to spend a lot of time just wandering around the city and exploring. Although I'm the type of person who likes to stick to a plan, especially when traveling, I had a lot of fun just playing things by ear.

Next stop: Paris!

Wait, I actually have to study here?

After a very eventful Halloween weekend that encompassed throwing a surprise birthday party, three costumes, and finding the most delicious late night snack food only 2 minutes away from my flat, this week is dedicated to my studies. At Colby, I usually work for at least four hours a day on homework. So far, I've put maybe four hours a week into my school work outside of class. It's not that I'm slacking, but I actually don't have any work to do. However, I have two essays due this week, a presentation next week, and an essay due the following Monday.  Thanks University of Edinburgh for piling it all on at once.

The toughest part about writing essays here is doing research.  Nobody buys books here, and the library only has a limited amount of the books that 300 students need at the same time, so I've had to work at slightly odd times to get the information I need. I'm also nervous about the expectations here.  I'd like to think my research papers are pretty good, but what if the standards are completely different here? Finally, the rules on plagiarism here are so strict! Not that I've ever copy someone's work, but the emphasis put on plagiarism is scary.  Students have to attach a declaration of work to all assignments turned in, and there are major consequences for plagiarizing.  It's also much harder to get work done now because it gets dark SO early.  It started getting dark around 4 today, and when I left class at 5, it felt like it was at least 8 pm. Slightly depressing.

Now that I've blogged, caught up on all of my celebrity gossip, and sufficiently Facebook stalked the majority of my friends, I suppose it's time to stop procrastinating and get back to work.