Craig's Experience in Wales A personal documentation of my journey as an exchange student in Great Britain

It has been about one month since I said bye to my family at Cincinnati's airport. For some reason, though, it feels as though I have been in Wales for much longer. As each day passes it seems as though I'm getting more adjusted to this style of living. One of the more enjoyable adjustments for myself has been doing my own cooking. I would be lying if I said that I didn't enjoy the dorm food at OU. As a matter of fact, I even looked forward to it. Needless to say, it doesn't take much to make this journeyman happy. But it seems as though this style of food consumption is what fits my mold best. I am most interested right now in stir-fry dishes but am eager to pick up new things as time passes. So if there is some recipe you'd like to give me... anything.... please e-mail me and let me know what you've got. Alright, on to some more exciting matters in my life right now. Last Friday I attended my Prehistory, History and Language class for the first time. I was forced to miss the first class because I went to Amsterdam, but I wasn't so much concerned about being behind in any material. I was thinking moreso of how I hoped this class would be interesting. My other two classes - Walt Whitman and European Fiction and Drama - are both really enjoyable because the professors make the material so pertainable to life. So, as I walked into seminar room 230 of Keir Hardie Building, I was hoping for the same thing to happen. I approached the professor before class started and introduced myself, told him why I was absent last class and asked about make-up material. He was real pleasant as we got into a conversation about Amsterdam and what I enjoyed most about being in the city. Within 10 minutes of class I was looking out the window and running my hands through my hair. "They call it the aquatic ape theory...." that was all I needed to hear to know that this wasn't the class I needed to be in. At that moment if somebody told me there was a class on the basics of walking, I would have been the first to sign up. I cringe as I type this up because I have tried to suppress the unfortunate memories I gained during those two hours. The students in the class must have thuoght I ate too much of those baked beans by the way I left the room. "I've got to drop this class," I said to myself as I headed to the English Department office and grabbed a timetable to see any other class that I could take. I think I annoyed the secretary by asking her to check about every class to see if it was open. It was the last day to drop/add classes and I was feeling like a fish out of water. "I've just got to drop this class. I don't care what I have to take," I told the lady behind the desk. After gazing at options and seeing what I could take, I realized there was only one class available that could transfer back to OU. Luckily it was open. So now I am in Power and Peformance: 1590-1740, 17th century literature. It's a lecture-based class and the only downside is that there's a 3-hour exam at the end of term. Just as long as I don't have to hear anything more about primates and vocal chords or apes that speak like children. OK, so before I came on this trip I told myself to be open to any and every opportunity available. I had this mindset that I would grab ahold of any once-in-a-lifetime experience. Whether trying a new food or going to a new place, I had the idea of stepping completely out of any comfort zone that I was in. I just didn't know that I'd step out this far. To a completely different continent. You see, on Thursday I made the final decision to get a plane ticket through the Student Travel Shop on campus. I'll be departing London on March 21st and landing in Sydney, Australia about a day and a half later. Sometimes when opportunities arise, you have to ask yourself, "will this ever happen again?" My answer to this question was "no", and I absolutely could not pass up visiting Katie and Taryn. I am so excited and can not wait to immerse myself in yet another continent's culture. Everything that is transpiriing in my life right now is a dream come true. Since I have a month off from late March to late April, I have been wanting to plan exactly where I'm going to go. I now know that I'll be going to Australia... and I also know that I'll be going to Austria and Switzerland. After my excursion Down Under, I'll have 2 and a half weeks allotted to me to travel in Europe. I pretty much spent all day Friday writing down endless scenarios of what I could do, where I could go, how I could get there, and where I'd be staying. I shut my door mid-day and told myself I wouldn't come out until I knew what I was going to do. After analyzing all my options, I decided that Austria and Switzerland were perfect for a couple reasons. First, I'm obssessed with mountains and nature and trees and anything green. The Alps are breathtaking and are a sight that would be an absolute crime for me not to see. Secondly, they are two countries that I don't know much about. I have seen so many pictures of Paris and Rome and Venice that the "element of the unexpected" has, for me, disappeared from those places. In an abstract sense it feels as though I've already been to those places even though I haven't physically (if that makes sense). But these two countries for me are like feeding ground for my desire to experience anything new. I absolutely can not wait to take lots of pictures and just take in all the incredible and beauitful views. For me this is all a dream come true. The church I attend, Mount Pleasant (called "Mount" around here), is having a church retreat next weekend that I'm going to. It's about 2 and a half hours away in the Welsh countryside somewhere up north. They call these retreats "house parties" which greatly confused me when they asked me if I wanted to go. I was thinking more along the lines of a Crusade-type party at someone's house with music and socializing... but I guess "house" here doesn't necessarily MEAN "house". Hmmm ... I sometimes wonder how much of their language I'll pick up and take back with me to the States. I hope I pick up on a lot because I love the little phrases and sayings that come up in conversations. Like "brilliant"... but I suppose that would only sound as neat with a British accent. Perhaps I'll pick that up as well? Oh, and this past Wednesday I played in my first soccer game with the Welsh folk. All the different societies (clubs) play against one another in this league, so its somewhat competitive in nature. As a team they purchased a uniform kit, so everyone on the team has a "Lonsdale" brand uniform with numbers on the back and socks, top, shorts... they gave me one to wear for the game and I'll be honest with you in saying that I felt like a little kid. It was like a movie scene. I walked up to captain who was on the sideline and he introduced himself to me as he told the players to all come over. They all ran up and formed a circle as Dannie, the captain, tossed me a uniform. Each player proceeded to introduce themselves (about 15 in all) and say they were happy that I could make it out. It was one of those first time experiences that I certainly will not soon forget. I played about 20 minutes or so of the game in the second half and was found myself rather fatigued after a short amount of time. "Oooohhhhh," I panted as I ran back and forth througout the field, "I am so out of shape". The field, or "pitch" as they call it, was "rubbish". I rather enjoyed it, though, because I got quite muddy and it gave the impression that I had been playing all day. With all the mud on my legs and hands I felt like "one of the boys" I guess you could say. We ended up losing 3-1 and I told myself in the end that I would have been perfectly content with simply wearing the uniform. But playing was a blast. They are quite physical here so I tried my best to throw around my 5-7, 165 pound frame against guys a head or two taller than me. They are SOCCER CRAZY here in the UK. I pick up the sports section as I sit down at the table and unconsciously expect to see an article about baseball or football or a mention of the Flyers or Raiders. But nope... just the usual 5-6 pages devoted to soccer scores, analysis and feature articles. And, of course, there's the cricket section and the mention of billiards as well. It's a change that is growing on me and that I'm appreciating, but I'll admit that I do miss taking out the Sports Section of the USA Today. Although I bet my dad always knows where it is now. So anyone out there reading this, if you want to do a crazy favor for me you can send a USA Today (even if it's a month old I'll read it like it was yesterday's news... trust me). There has been so much that has happened this week and I am incredibly excited about the opportunity that is coming forth. May God bless you all.... I look forward to seeing you all again and hearing about all the change in your lives as well. Peace! Philippians 1:3, Craig