Think of me fondly

My time in London has been a complete whirlwind! --this is my tourist blog for the weekend--London is a lot bigger than Dublin (obviously) and I can't decide if I consider it more to be like New York or Paris, I guess it is a nice mix of both. 

Last night was one of the cultural highlights--going to see the Phantom of the Opear at Her Majesty's Theatre. It was amazing. I have seen the movie and knew that I've loved the music but seeing it live was unbelievable! *Note: my sister LOVES this show. She has seen it live twice. Once for Valentines Day my dad bought tickets for my mom, sister and grandparents to see it on Broadway...and then they got to go backstage...I got some chocolate in the mail. Thanks dad. So I don't feel too bad about going without Katie, well maybe a little. 

The Queen was in! When I first arrived on Thursday afternoon I was spent. I didn't sleep at all the night before, a mix of weird sleeping noises of hostelmates and also knowing I had to wake up early for my flight. 

Luckily, I have a friend who is studying in Cantebury this semester and she met me at my hostel and got me walking around and we saw all of the big sites (fun fact about London--it takes like ten seconds to see all of the sites). 

Buckingham Palace

Me and Buckingham Palace

Memorial in Front of Buckingham Palace

Big Ben Tower and cute phone booth 

Westminster Abbey

Better pic of Big Ben Tower

I had a surprisingly nice dinner my first night here. Like I said, I didn't get a very good nights sleep the night before and when I tried to take a nap nothing was really working. So I wandered into an Italian Restaurant because I needed some serious calories in me with all of this walking. 

There was live music (Frank Sinatra like...but with friends and more personality) and everyone was laughing and it was nice. I got dessert. Lemon sorbet in a lemon. I thought it was great.

This is St Pancras --very beautiful hotel...I may have thought it was KIngs Cross Station until I saw Kings Cross Station which is right next to it.

And of course...Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station. Upsettingly, there isn't a wall between the two. Its pretty funny though because to the right of this picture being taken Kings Cross has created a Platform 9 3/4 and the line to take a picture there was shockingly long. 

Lastly there was this demonstration giong on around Parliament (note Big Ben is a part of the Parliament building). I thought that this was interesting mostly because of how uninterested the students I talked to were about this topic. Almost like its taboo...but its obviously not taboo for everyone in London.

I am a pro (basically) at the Underground...once you know how to use the subway in one place you really can do anything.

Today's my last day and I have a few more things to finish up on and then its on to Paris!

Some London interviews

Today I went down to University College London and met a few people. It was really a very nice campus and overall I found the people to be a lot kinder than at Trinity. Maybe its because it wasn't raining and exams were mostly over. Either way had some very nice discussions. I also have found London to be a very international and multi-cultural city. The people I casually talk to who I think are locals are new in town and others I think are just travellling through...and they've lived in the city for thirteen years and have dual citizenship. Don't judge a book by its cover, I guess.

Chrissia

Chrissia told me she was ethnically Lithuanian but was born in Russia. However she has spent most of her life in the EU in France and studying in London. She had a bit of a mix of feelings on her individual identity since she felt she was from many places, not all of which were in the EU.

She feels that the future of the EU is either it must get bigger or smaller, but probably smaller. Because there are already countries which are bringing down the EU and it isn't going to last like that. 

When I asked about how social issues, such as climate change impacted the overall unity of the EU she had some first hand experience. Her work involves studying the impacts of the legislation and she sees first hand how climate change legislation does have an impact on the bigger scale.  

Ralph

Ralph has a man bun, which is important for some reason, I'm sure. Anyways, he had a very positive view of the EU. He viewed himself as being British and European (he is a Londoner born and raised). His positivity seemed to stem from being able to travel around freely and see other city centers and cultural hubs and that has allowed him to meet people and make friends all over the EU.

We talked about how he thinks there is a socio-economic level to how people view this idea of being European...if someone does not have the means to travel or leave the city then why should he/she feel apart of the whole? Especially if parties like UKIP are villianizing the other countries and listing that as a reason as why these people are not well enough off to have the luxory of traveling. He likes how the EU has investeda lot in the traveling though, he thinks that has broken down a lot of barriers.

When we talked about the bad things in the EU, corruption and lack of democracy were his two main talking points. He has said that in his experience of meeting people that work within the EU structure that the jobs do not appear to be taken that seriously and that it is easy to help yourself more than helping the organization.

Fighting climate change and other social issues do have to come from the bigger organization.

Ralph told me to travel around the rest of England and I would have interesting results. Thanks Ralph, but unfortunately I do not have the time right now. Luckily Northern England appears to be where most of my survey results have come back so far so I think I do have a little bit of info. (the survey update is going to come when I get back to America and have my laptop again).

When I asked about the legislation and particularly climate change he said that it was inconsistent. France and Britian are pretty on point with where they are supposed to be in terms of cutting back but countries like Croatia, who have just joined the EU, have been thrown into the middle of things and don't have too much say or understanding in this legisation and enforcing it is difficult.

Pier

When I asked Pier if I could speak with him and explained my project he immediate said that he wasn't British that he was Swedish and if that was alright...it was fine. I asked him if he identified as being European and he said that he didn't think anyone in Europe would identify as being European (which isn't true by the way as we just say with Ralph). And that the only times he is refered to as being European is when he either leaves the EU or comes to England...where British people will refer to him as European as though they were not. He does identify as Swedish, French and German...because that is what he is. (Pier came with some sass btw)

I asked him about what he thought about the future of the EU, to which he said it had a very promising future! I pressed and asked him why he thought that people within the UK were so against it and he very strongly believed that it is a big flaw in the British education system...they are not required to learn EU history and that almost every other country within the EU has a curiculum that makes students learn about the entire history and future of the EU for 10 years! So, according to Pier, all the people who claim that the EU cannot survive are not properly educated on the issue. 

Three very interesting and thoughtful talks today and I really enjoyed them. However, I did notice that the topic of refugees and migrants did not want to be talked about at all here, which is interesting especially compared to have emotional some of the Irish folks I talked to were. Maybe I'm just talking to the wrong people

Already have one country down?

(Over two hundred year old whiskey wheel...apparently if you touch it three times it is good luck for ten years...)

It seems unreal that I am already moving on to London tomorrow. I must have thought that time was just going to stop when I got here and I'm already finding that it is moving too fast! However, I did thoroughly enjoy my time in Dublin. 

Everyone is really friendly, this is truly the only place I've ever been that people will just stop on the street and talk to you just because they feel like it. With that being said, even though everyone is very friendly I didn't get to talk to anyone about my project today. I set time aside this morning and went out to a coffee shop but there was a little too much going on in peoples lives for me to have a conversation...which is fair. I was a little disappointed but not discouraged. My interest was definitely hightened yesterday when I spent a good amount of the day finding people at Trinity College and I am already wondering how the responses and thoughts are going to differ based on each country. I think it's cool. I've already learned a lot of do's and don'ts for how I want to approach this trip and my dialogue with people. As I said before I want to be stronger at initiating these conversations but I also want to learn more about life in different countries. Trying to find a balance might be tough at times but I feel like I would be missing a part of the experience as a whole if I didn't do things that are just fun and help me meet people. 

My disappointment did not last for too long either since I was convinced (it really wasn't that hard to convince me) to go to the Jameson Distillery AND the Guinness Storehouse...what a world. Very interesting cultural day...still not a big fan of whiskey, but I appreciate it as an art. Really liked the Guinness Storehouse, but I really like beer. 

There was also an circular bar on the top of the Storehouse that had a 360 view of Dublin, including that +1700 acre park-Phenoix Park. It is the largest city park in all of Europe...which is really impressive because there are some really big parks out there. They really like there greenspace. 

Three takeaways from Dublin: beers, bikes and public spaces. Three of my favorite things!

Now on to packing up my backpack and getting ready for an early flight! 

Other snipits from today

Besides navigating Trinity and learning my way around a new city in the rain (which is to be expected) I was welcomed to Ireland by a very drunk man who was drinking whiskey out of a lemonade bottle (which is to be expected). But I also investigated some new parts of the city and found St Patrick's  which is pictured below and St Audeons Church which were both very big and very beautiful. 

I didn't want to pay to get in. 

What I expected least when walking around St Patrick's big garden/park was to run into a woman with a Tim Hortons cup (Canadian/northeastern coffee house given to Canadians and hockey players by God). So then, to my surprise I found out that there was indeed a store that sold Tim hortons bakery goods and coffee. Just a little piece of home to help me through a rather rainy and chilly afternoon. 

Also I forgot to mention the political street signs all over the place. Obviously Ireland had a big and historic vote last week regarding gay marriage and the signs are EVERYWHERE! Since yesterday I was driven across the entire country I paid some attention to them. I noticed that the cities were largely "vote yes" while the countryside had many, many signs saying "vote no". Just an interesting city/country dynamic I thought. 

Tourist day to get over jet lag

Today (meaning yesterday since I'm posting this late) I went on a 14 hour excursion to Galway and see the Cliffs of Moher. I know you're thinking "wow that sounds awful" but when you are in a strange time zone and have to be up at 6am and can basically sleep all day except for seeing cool things it is the best actual option. 

So here are some of the pictures. It was so lucky that the weather ended up being so beautiful seeing as it rains all of the time here. But it was just windy and cool but very sunny! 

Words with Ireland --Understanding my own language

Yay! My first interview 

So just a disclaimer because I don't know who is reading this but my method of talking to people isn't exactly scientific. I just want to hear what random people have to say...and know that some people will have a lot to say and some won't have anything. 

also for those of you who don't know me you should probably know that I'm not the best at cold opens. I am scared at the thought of rejection and nervous talk and am basically a spaz when it comes to talking to strangers about something only I care about. So that was one of my big goals for this trip as a whole--actually talk to people. That is stepping out side of my comfort zone. Granted so is all of this experience but just trust me.

So below are the synopses of the students I talked to at Trinity College today. Overwhelmingly there was no consistancy in most of their answers...except no one really cared about climate change. 

#1 Paul

One of the major themes he talked about was his generation. That was his response to a lot of my questions. Early on he said that he has always felt European, he loves being Irish and everything but he always felt European. He said that Ryan Air had a lot to do with that. So to me I took that as traveling was a big compenent of feeling a part of Europe. I asked him about bigger issues in Europe and how he saw Ireland as a product of that, specifically climate change and the migrant overflow (and then I said is this migrant overflow something that you feel a part of in Ireland, because obviously in America we don't see it as "our" problem it is, more broadly "Europe's problem." 

His response was interesting, he said that he is used to a lot of races and that he has met a lot of good people that were racist, but that they were against so many different people. He said there was a little riff with Eastern Europeans (who are, interestingly enough also part of the EU) but that people had reasons who being racist against certain people and that is largely do to lack of education and it is the states job to educate people to not be racist. He said that it isn't like the states where it is basically just blacks and whites. So thats good. Hey America--you're being called out by a random Irish guy eating lunch for being racist...in a bad way. Figure it out America.  

#2 Kate

Kate just finished a four year biology degree and doesn't see climate change as something that can be done on an individual level. She's leaving it up to the government.

She gave some different ideas which was really interesting. She feels more Irish than anything relating to the EU as a whole. If anything, she feels closer to other English speaking countries like Austrailia and the US. Which is great becasue it took me like five tries to get her name right...reminder her name is Kate, I really thought it was Case. Anyway she felt like there were too many cultures to really have a sense of identity.

Then I asked about the big vote in Ireland, asking "do you think that other countries are looking at you guys and saying yes I want to be a part of that!" And she said yeah, but if it this same vote happened in any other country outside of the EU she would have the same reaction to if it had happened to a country in the EU.

Then I asked about the migrants, because this has been a topic I just want to know more about recently because it is really emotional and I've been seeing signs around the city saying "public discourse: what to do with the migrants" This is when Kate switched to "we." She said that Ireland was fortunate that they don't have these border control problems like these other countries do. But she is glad that Europe is trying to help more than the contries in the Pacific that are just hard and fast saying "no." We both agreed that it was a terrible thing and it is really making us sad. 

Kate thinks that the EU is starting to decline.

Kate was nice. 

#3 Fiona

Again with my grace on entering into these conversations. Unbeatable.

Fiona was about ten minutes away from taking an exam so we were brief and she talked in absolutes.

She is half French, but definitely does not feel European. She feels Irish and like the places where she lived (a little French but also UK). 

Again we have a overwhelming feeling that the climate change is not her problem and that the legistlation really does not affect her.

However, because now this is just something I have to ask about to see if people have any kind of connection to the news...the migrant problem IS Europe's problem. It is more a problem for Spain and France, italy and Greece but everyone feels it. So this leads me to think (as this is a small theme) that this sense of urgency is really something that is a common European threat...and when I bring up climate change there isn't a sense of urgency among the random people I am pulling over. Maybe I will randomly pull over an environmental enthusiest. 

I need to be more casual. But so far everyone has been nice. Good call on starting in an English speaking country Amanda. 

#4 Fiona 

The name of the day is Fiona...she is from Northern Ireland and a little bit harder for me to understand. But some of the big take aways 

Dublin feels a million miles away from Brussels. She is glad they are taking proactive measures of issues but does not really feel the impact of them. 

She doesn't really feel European, she feels Irish but she is glad that Ireland is a part of the EU and hopes that England doesn't leave and that would be bad. 

She asked if this was my thesis and I panicked because I wasn't prepared to explain the program so if anyone asks...this is my masters thesis. I am the worst at interviewing people. Baby steps though...I have to learn to talk to people at some point in my life. 

#5 Leo

Leo was nice. He made probably the best analogy so far. That the other countries in the EU are like siblings. "I'm myself and I have my brother. We are each our own but we depend on each other for things." He feels very Irish and used that in his analogy as well that he was not going to stop feeling Irish like his brother won't stop feeling like his brother and that's okay. 

He admits that he doesn't know much about EU legislation (which is fine I'm not judging anyone on that), but he is glad that they are doing it. 

I asked about the dynamic between Eastern and Western Europe and he said that he definitely saw that divide (I said that the articles that I've read from Western Europe are more leaning towards "yes we are a united Europe--where as Eastern writers take the "wait, hold on, what about us...you are united with us" side.)  

the land of my fathers

WARNING: I am extremely jet lagged right now but still want to talk about it.

After a relatively low key travel day and a nice taxi ride from Brennan McCarthy (they do in fact drive on the other side of the road...it is much weirder to see in person I promise).

Stop 1: Dublin, Ireland. and what a great first desitination! Not only does it make sense logisitically to stop here first and with some great recommendations from past fellow, Rachel Snodgrass. Ireland is supposedly where the Burns clan hails. However I have some reservations about that seeing as my grandfather doesn't really seem to have a clear "how our family came to America" story. So I think it's probably one of two things.

1. My family was chased out of Ireland because they were routy and never welcomed back. In which case...shhh don't tell anyone I'm here. 

or

2. My family just appeared out of the foothills of Pennsylvania one day and when someone asked where they were from the Burns' just mumbled something in their native tongue and everyone has just assumed we were Irish ever since. 

Personally, I just assume the latter. Anyways--what is ahead for me in Dublin? Well I am going to fight my jetlag tomorrow with a tour of the Cliffs of Moher...pretty excited to see this landscape, especially because of my fellow Fellow, Emily, who will be following the paths of American Landscape artists (check out her blog too: adventuresofapainter.blogspot.com). This is for you, Emily! 

My main goal right now is to settle in to my hostel and get to a point where I can form a coherent sentence the first time around. 

Lastly...of course I've already had a Guniness.

Proof that I'm somewhere new!

Update from the 716

In 24 hours I am scheduled to be sitting on my plane to Amsterdam which will then take me to my first destination-Dublin. But this leaves me with a big question:what I should do with these next 24 hours. Seeing as I've paced, planned, freaked out and scheduled some more things...and basically packed...what else is there to do?! So instead of actually putting things in bags I thought I would make sure my blog still worked. 

It does...thank god.  

Well here is what the next seven weeks all on a once nicely printed and neat agenda. 

Wish me the luck of the Irish! 

Before the Beginning...

Well I leave in less than a week for what I'm sure will be one hell of an adventure.

I'm not entirely sure how I will end up utilizing this blog. In adventures past I have made a point of journaling everyday...so I feel like it is safe to say that this blog will not be strictly business but will also include some of my day to day life as well (especially since I know my dad will be following this blog very closely and needs to make sure I'm alive). So bare with me on the half thoughts, fragments, ramblings and emotions and I'll try to give you some good pictures and meaningful reflections

However here is a brief introduction...I am a two day old alumni of Xavier University majoring in the Philosophy, Politics and the Public Honor's Program and an International Studies major. As a Winters-Cohen Brueggeman Fellow I have been given the opportunity to take part in a year of independent study followed by a grant to pursue my research with international travel.

My project has changed quite a bit from the project I applied with but here is a short bit about what I'm doing now: I initially wanted to see how sustainability initiatives were impacting life in Germany but then I thought a more fundamental question had to be asked about if environmental consciousness plays a role in a sense of unity (within a town, a country or something bigger, such as the European Union). And with that question in mind I have designed a survey to see if there is a link between people who support environmental initiatives on these scales and how they view their individual role in the EU. My trip will now be focused on collecting survey data (it has already gone out in a few languages but I am hoping to spread it around more) and hearing testimonials from people from different countries and regions with a variety of political backgrounds. 

I will be leaving a week after graduation and will be gone for eight weeks.  A quick overview of my trip: starting Ireland (which is in the midst of a union strike) to the UK (which just had an election with a surprising number of seats going to the conservative party and the leader of the independence movement wanting to step down), Paris, Barcelona and Valencia (the regions in Spain are highly independent and hold a very strong sense of regional identity); Greece (which has a rocky history in the EU), Macedonia, Romania and Hungary (the three of which are "relatively" new to the EU and have a unique culture...then finally to Germany where I will be staying for a while because it's my favorite and Germany as a political unit seems to have the strongest stake in EU politics in the past and I want to hear what the people have to say about it and then ending in Italy- which has a very relaxed economy and lifestyle compared to many of the other countries.