Castles, Cathedrals, Cruises..OH MY!

                 Our adventure began today by traveling to Victoria's Station where we boarded a coach to take us to Canterbury. The first stop on our bus tour was Leeds Castle it was so big and magnificent. It reminded me of something you would see right out of a story book it was beautiful! This was the first castle I have ever been to unless you count Medieval Times Dinner Theaters as a castle! Around the castle was a huge moat around the base there was also a 9 whole golf course on the grounds! After our tour we boarded the coach and where off to a British monument and the Cliffs of Dover. When we got there we did not really realize until we walked out further we were at the Cliffs of Dover we thought we were just at the monument. The view from on top of the cliffs was magnificent so beautiful you could see  so much of the landscape form there. There was a lot of fog that day but I guess on a clear day you can see France...how cool is that! We then headed to lunch where we ate at a costal Best Western I choose to have fish and chips. 

           After lunch we headed to Canterbury. Canterbury is a very cute calm area with lots of history for me it was so much more enjoyable then being in the hustle and bustle of London. In Canterbury we visited Canterbury Cathedral it was beautiful. The outside of the Cathedral just made your mouth drop by how detailed and intricate the stone decorations where. Right before you came into the door they had a set up of the tomb where Jesus was laid after his death with lots of beautiful flowers. Once inside of Canterbury Cathedral your eyes where instantly searching everywhere everything was so unique and beautiful! I was especially drawn to the stained glass windows and the ceiling everything was so detailed and unique to the cathedral. After leaving Canterbury we got back on the coach and headed towards Greenwich where we boarded a boat on the Thames River. The river cruise was very relaxing and from my seat I enjoyed my blueberry muffin and tea and watched as the city sites went buy. After the cruise we headed to the tube station for the hostel!! 

Laundry, London and Lounging

Have you ever taken a almost 2 hour bus ride without any air conditioning and full of sweaty people you don't know? It isn't a very dry event, let me tell you. Seeing Stonehenge at the end of the trip was worth the struggle however and I was able to get some pretty sweet pictures of the stones.

First time doing laundry overseas and so far so good, now I just hope that they will dry correctly! It's a good thing these couches near the WiFi hot-spot are so comfy.

New words/phrases & quotes

The words/phrases and quotes pages have been updated.  Click on the links above.

Avast!!! Nine miles of walking SO worth it.

You read that right. Nine miles. At least for the girls of the group.

We finally had our chance at shopping!

Earlier on, we visited the Royal Observatory, and the National Maritime Museum. The Observatory was interesting and the view was totally worth the almost 90 degree incline trek.

There at Greenwich, the Meridian of the world, that devices the world into two hemispheres, is located. We were able to talk a picture with our feet on either side.

The National Maritime Museum was the best of the two, because there were more interesting pictures and artifacts to look at.

I was itching to get out of the museums though, so I could scour London's shops!

Some of us wanted to see Olympic park. It turned out that no one was allowed to even walk around in the venues, so we had to take a long distance photo from a tube platform.

We finally were released to do our own thing.

Thats when my day got exciting!!!

We started off on Oxford street, with many uptown shops and nicknack stores.
I found my mom a purse, got my grandmother some tea, bought my brother a stupid Chelsea jersey that cost me a fortune.

And then came the event that made this trip worth it.

I went into the Nike store, searching for football stuff, and sure enough, I found my beloved Manchester United Jerseys!!!

I bought a red home jersey for a steal, and got free name and letter ironed on the back!

I never want to take it off.

I will for the sake of the group, but I really, really don't want too.

Anyway, for dinner, we went to the ultra-technologically advanced restaurant Iamu.

It was different to say the least.

To get your food, you had to put your hand on the track pad and order directly from the table.
Something new for me. The bright colors of the table gave me a headache, but thank God the food was good. Expensive food I ever had, but the technology part of the dinner made it worth it.

Good day overall.

Can't wait for Ireland!

Until then,

Peace out.

Kayla Jayne

Touring Alan Turing

This year is the 100th anniversary of Alan Turing's work and to celebrate, we went to see the museum at Bletchley Park. While we were there we were to try to learn at least one new thing about computers or computing in general. If I were to tell you I only learned one new thing while there, I would be lying to you. Learning how military information could be pumped out of a 5 bit punchline into a machine with no RAM was rather surprising.

In addition to the museums and tours given around Bletchley, there was also a competition involving creation of a computer chat bot program that was attempting to imitate a human so much as to trick the judges into thinking that they  are humans. As to my expectations, there was no chat bot program that passed the test and all of the judges were able to find the computer and the human respondent. While that was all fun within itself, the group felt done with the exhibit rather quickly and I felt that everyone was ready to take the rest of the day off and do nothing of extreme academic worth.

Hopefully the laundry room will open up so I can do my overdue laundry, I'm feeling... salty.

If it's Monday it must be Harry Potter!

Monday brings to an end our first full week. We began the day by taking the tube to Westminster and got to stand in line for 45 minutes in the cold drizzle waiting to buy tickets to get in to see the magnificent Westminster Abbey. The wait was worth it. The history that is everywhere is amazing. Queen Elizabeth I is buried there along with lots of other dead people! The BBC was there filming a documentary and we watched them for a short time behind the scenes. After leaving the Abbey, we headed to Victoria Station to begin one of my favorite activities - visiting Warner Brothers Studio and taking the tour of the Harry Potter sets. For Harry Potter fans like Kayla and myself, it was great! There were lots of props, pictures, sets and memorabilia. Dave and I even shared a butterbeer. And of course, there was the gift shop where you could spend all kinds of money.

Things are going well. We've had a few glitches but nothing that couldn't be handled. I'm learning to be flexible, which can be difficult for me. Our hostel is nice but would be better if we were a little closer to the tube stop. We spend the time walking each day talking and having a good time. Things were a bit bit rowdy with the arrival of three buses of students we think are from Belgium. They seem to like running up and down the halls. We hope they don't stay long.

I've been wearing a pedometer since we left (except I forgot it on Sunday) and we have logged over 35 miles of walking so far according to it. No wonder my feet are tired!

We have a great group of kids and I'm enjoying getting know each of them. I think we are all a little tired but we are keeping them busy! We have traveled by plane, train, bus and tubes and soon will be adding ferry to the list. I love watching them as they try new things like food and other things. They are getting really good at getting us around London on the tube system. Watching them interact with people around them is amazing. They enjoy getting to know others and their stories. They aren't shy! They are giving me incentive to talk to others as much as they are. It is all good!

Towers, buses, debaters, afternoon tea, worship, and dinner, all in a day’s time!

In case you’ve not yet noticed, each member of this field study is taking turns posting entries about our activities and experiences on the trip.  Today is my turn to blog.

Having arrived Saturday afternoon, Sunday was our first full day in London, and a full day it was!  We gathered “early” for breakfast and our morning meeting where we’ve been collecting new words/phrases and quotes to post on the blog, reviewing the previous day’s activities and experiences, and learning from our daily topic experts about the day ahead of us.  Sunday was a very full day involving towers, buses, debaters, afternoon tea, worship, and dinner.  It started with a 45 minute tube ride to the …

Tower of London which is one of the historic royal palaces.  This particular one is famous for housing the crown jewels and many notorious criminals of the state over the centuries and is located in the center of London along the river.   The yeoman warders who give the guided tours always do a great job.  There were also a few re-enactors that brougt history to life.  After grabbing a quick lunch at neighboring restaurants, we then got on a …

Hop on/hop off bus by which we saw some of the city and learned a bit about it.  I was not real impressed with this particular pre-recorded tour, but if nothing else, it did transport us to the …

Speaker’s corner at HydePark which is an amazing place and event that happens every Sunday.  One of the students described it as an internet chat room in real life.  You walk down a road in the park, and are bombarded with speakers on both side of you yelling their thoughts at whoever will listen, and a few others as well.  They seem to draw an audience who are intent on taking the opposite view.  I believe some of these people simply enjoy arguing and will take an opposing view point simply so they can have an argument.  The topics can be anything.  After spending a few minutes here, we took a city bus to …

Afternoon tea at Harrod’s, which wasn't everyone’s cup of tea, but all seemed to tolerate it, and most enjoyed the traditional English tradition.  All seven of us were seated at a large round table where we ordered and consumed a pot of tea and five small desserts.  Tasty!  After looking around Harrod’s for a bit, some of the group went back to the hostel for a while.  Lois, a couple of students, and I took the tube to …

Evening service at Westminster Abbey.  This was a wonderful experience.  The message included a discussion of community and supporting each other.  To be inside the huge space that is Westminster Abbey and worship with a few hundred others is a bit awe-inspiring, especially when you realize this has been happening for hundreds of years in this building.  Afterwards, the others rejoined us for…

Dinner with another group of Ball State University field study students and their professor.  This group included my daughter, so Lois and I were able to spend time visiting with her, while the students shared their experiences of the field studies thus far.

Over all, I’m proud of my field study group.  Over the last week we have become closer as individuals and we’ve all learned more about who each other is.  We’ve learned about some of each other’s strengths, as well as some of their weaknesses.  We’re starting to look out for each other and support one another, just like some of us heard about at the abbey.  There is one person I must publically thank on this day, for without her help and tireless efforts, this trip would be but a shadow of what it is.  When we first arrived in Edinburgh, Scotland a week ago, Lois commented she felt like a mother duck with a bunch of ducklings following her.  We presented her a hand-drawn card with ducks on the outside, signed by the entire group.  Inside it read “Happy mother (duck) day!”  Thank you Lois.

Arriving in London

Our day trip to London was started at 8 am in Edinburgh with a 4 hour train trip through the country to London. When arriving in London we made our way to the 9 and 3/4s Harry Potter spot to get a photo. We then got our tickets for the tubes, (the subway) and were off to our second hostel of our journey. After arriving in our hostel we went to a restaurant called the Crypt to eat. I drank a herbal sunflower soft drink and the house pork chop and vegetables. After this we called it a night as a group and Steven, Josh and I went to do a tourist attraction known as the Camden Pub Crawl. So far this was the best night of this trip and I doubt that it will be beat. During the pub crawl we met and talked with over 20 of the 80 people in the pub crawl, the majority being Australian. The craziest thing happen as we bumped into a guy who was from Indiana and when we asked where he responded Ball State. Truly a small world this world of ours. I enjoyed most of my time with a few Australians, a few Canadians, a few Germans, and some Brazilians just chatting most of the night. Apparently in Australia there are only a few degrees to go for to make more money than a miner so the guy we were hanging out with opted not to go to college to mine. Some of the most interesting conversations were had that night and the environment was incredible everyone wanted to talk to everyone else. Incredible night. When finding our way home we ran into an Italian girl who works in London and caught a cab back to our hostel and her to her abode. A fitting start to our time in London.

ALRIGHT! I'll admit it, this trip is really fun.

This trip has convinced me in so many ways that being abroad is an excellent idea for anyone. You can have such a good time the locals of a distant town. So far the most memorable events have been the ones I could share with people I've never met before and would have never met if I hadn't have come here.


The sights are more beautiful than the cornfields of Indiana, but the way of life is rather similar, but yet different enough to be refreshing and remind you what your every day norms are. You can't really grasp what normal for you is until you see what something other than normal is. (Although tights as pants still happen in the UK... what a shame)


And on a final note, we are extremely similar to most everyone here. We all listen to American music, wear t-shirts with jeans, go to work from nine to five, and drink Jager bombs. However politically different we are it seems the only real thing that makes you stand out from a social situation is what you call a bathroom (well, and that whole accent thing).