Let's start with Friday, 4th of July! That day we went to class and watched a short film on some different schools in Japan and Hawaii (had watched a Chinese school clip the day before that), then we were encouraged to go out and get things for our project, which is due tomorrow! yay! Since I am doing my project on the history of Plymouth, and how it was affected by WWII, I decided to venture to the museum to see if I could find anything! When I got there I was very nervous, but went up to the desk and asked if there was anyone I could interview about my topic. They were very friendly and right away called a man named Dave, who came down and was happy to talk to me! I only was able to record the first half of the interview, but got some good notes and stuff for my project (which I'll post on here when i'm finished!). He was so friendly and nice, he answered my questions and SO MUCH MORE! He told me all about living in Plymouth, his family and how they were affected, and everything! It was awesome! He even took me behind the scenes kind of and showed me the pictures that they recently had on exhibit for the 50th anniversary of the war and the blitz on Plymouth.
He also had some small artifacts originally from the war, it was really neat! I got a lot of good information for my project and learned SO much about Plymouth, and how this little town got together from this horrible event, and built the city back up! My project is due tomorrow so I will most likely be posting it later tonight for me...
Also on Friday the graduate students invited us down to the Fresher for a 4th of July party! We call it the Fresher but it's really "The Fresher and The Professor" I will get a picture of it and put it up soon! It is just a small pub on the corner right next to our dorm halls where were staying. The staff is SUPER nice and really cool, and they know all of the MSU grad students that are here so they were able to get a DJ and they decorated the pub up for 4th of July, it was really fun! Tara and I met a guy from London, who told us some stuff to do while we are there, then we also met a Polish girl and her boyfriend who live in Plymouth and talked to them for a while, it was really neat, and we all had a great time!
Then there was yesterday...Saturday, July 5th, 2008 :)
I went on an adventure to Babeny Farm Stables in Dartmoor. Dartmoor is a HUGE area in Devon, England (like the county here where Plymouth and places like Cornwell are....they are cities in the county) that is a national park. We got up super early to get on a bus at the station to take us to a little town of Ashburton. We got there and found a small Baguette shop and had breakfast. We all had bacon and egg on a roll with Brown Sauce. Now a little bit about brown sauce...well it's brown...and it's really good! Even though the name might scare people a bit I tried it and liked it a lot! They use it on EVERYTHING here, because a lot of their food is prepared very bland they have a lot of different sauces, which is good! Oh and just like in my previous experience, it's called Tomahto Ketchup, not just Ketchup...:)
So we ate our breakfast, got directions from 5 police officers who were very friendly, and another thing, they don't carry guns! at all! It's like they were plainly dressed, I wish I would have gotten a picture but...it was interesting! Our police officers are geared up with huge belts of stuff, guns, knives, handcuffs, everything....but these police officers were plainly dressed in black t-shirts with black trousers and black shoes. They had like a small patch on each arm that said Police, and they had only 1 or 2 things on their belt, neither of which was a firearm. FF (fun fact): Pepper spray is considered a firearm here, and if see in possession of it, you are arrested! Crazy!
So after we had breakfast and found our taxi, we were on our way to the stables! The taxi drive there and back was VERY interesting, and for any of you that know me, I get nervous and sick in cars, especially in the backseat with people driving that I don't know...well welcome to the taxi system in England!! When you enter into Dartmoor National Park there are SMALL roads, one car wide, walls on each side of you (brick with ivy growing all over), sharp turns, because you are in the hills, and animals standing on the side of the road. In this national park the farmers let their animals roam free across all this land. There are sheep, cows, and ponies.
FF: the Dartmoor pony is one of the oldest known pony in history, it dates back all the way to 110 BC!!
So anyways, this taxi driver was speeding through this area, fast around corners and barely 2 in away from the wall on my side, and the cars passing on the other...come to find out however, taxi drivers here have to go through a 2 year program to become a taxi driver, and they get paid SOOO much. Their brains are even scanned before and after and there is a HUGE difference in depth perception and area awareness after they go through this program. This is why they get paid so much here, because they are the best drivers in England! After I found that I (which was at the end of the day) I felt more comfortable getting in a taxi again...but during the ride, I wanted to cry, throw up, and scream all at the same time! haha! But, I'm alive and well thanks to England's finest taxi driver, Matthew :)
When we arrived, finally, to Babeny stables, it was amazing. We geared up into rain proof suits and got our helmets on (they call them hats) and was ready to go, I'll post a picture of me later on, my teacher took it of me on my horse. My horse was supposed to be Little Blue, but somehow I got put on Freckles instead...and given a crop (the whip they carry in English riding)...interesting! So I didn't think I would have to use it....nope, my horse was fat and stubborn, but still beautiful, and fun to ride. We went on a Pub Ride across the hills of Dartmoor, up rocks, and across the moor, it was BEAUTIFUL (picture above of view from my horse, Dartmoor ponies in the middle)...I've never seen a place so amazing and natural and gorgeous as this. I was taken away by the view, and at the moment wanted to just stay and live there for the rest of my life...there was just no way to explain it, but breathtaking. We walked along, trotted a little, and reached the pub after a while. It kept raining every now and then so I wasn't able to take too many pictures :( but combined with what my teachers got I should have some footage up by tomorrow or tuesday. Freckles did not want to walk fast, and she kept trying to eat on the way there...then on the way back...well let's just say I was very scared. The rain started to come down in SHEETS when we were on our way back to the trail from the pub. It stormed so hard at one time, it hailed. My saddle wasn't cinched right and kept sliding, so much at one point I almost fell off! haha it was just a crazy experience, but I just had to keep talking to my horse, and at one point felt like I was in a movie, we were all riding in the mountains, huge storm hits, and we are fighting it to get home...yep that would make a good movie or book some day! :) Overall the weather sucked, but the experience was AMAZING...if I could come back to England every year, I would do that every time I came, even in the hail and rain! haha well....let's not push it....I'd come during their warmer season :) But, it was great, I loved it, and it made me want to get into English riding, so that when I buy my own horse years from now, I will be able to take it on rides like that...well in the US anyways :) Kevin and I are planning on going riding while we are in FL now! Can't wait!
Well I got back from my crazy horseback riding adventure, took a LONG hot shower, put my pjs on right away, and talked to Tara for a while. That's when the stresses of school started to hit...they told us one thing, then told us another, we didn't have anytime to go do stuff for our projects, we were learning how to use stuff and talk about culture the whole week...pretty much they are expecting us to make these wonderful great movies like the other Ed Tech students do...but we are beginners. I am just glad that I was able to get a ton of pictures, learn about my topic, and talk to the historian. I have not put anything officially together yet, but that is what Sundays are for! I think we just all feel like we should be able to experience the culture and city we are in more, or other places, instead of being cooped up in a classroom and dorm room doing homework and projects the whole time...I really just hope London is a different story....which is next weekend! Yay! And this week will be good because we are going to be helping out and observing in the classrooms! I am really excited for that!
So, that was my crazy weekend adventure, I am now going to do my project, even though it's nice outside...well for Plymouth...boo schoolwork! I am happy to be here though overall, I am learning and experiencing a lot, and definitely will want to come back to England again in the future...and travel other places too! It's so amazing the experiences that you get just going to a different country...definitely ones that have opened my eyes a lot so far.
Hope all is well! I am not able to move my body much today because of riding, so I will be posting later on tonight my project and things of that nature!
Miss you all!
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