Thursday, July 31, 2014

One down, two to go...

Hey guys :) so, I recently finished my Truth class. Yay! Now I have to finish the last two, which are 8 week courses so they last a little longer... Hmm, where to start, well, I've been behind on blogging because of finishing up that course. The final wasn't bad... I just had to answer a couple questions, essay style. Then, I had to finish up my paper. That was a little more difficult because it was really hard for me to fully understand the theories of truth. And, it's hard writing about something you really don't understand. BUT, it's done and hopefully I get a good grade. :) Anyway, the past couple weeks have actually gone by relatively quickly. The second formal at Pembroke college was really enjoyable. It's a smaller college and dining hall than King's, so there was a more intimate feel, but it did not take away from the extravagance and elegance. There is still lush grass and beautiful architecture. :) It's really cool actually being in this area surrounded by so many old and beautiful colleges. I plan to go on an actual tour of all the colleges sometime before I leave. Last night was the third formal, although I didn't go to that one because I missed out on getting a ticket! You really have to be on top of things if you want to participate in all the extra-curricular activities. It worked out though, because I got to FaceTime someone special. :) Another thing that happened recently is that I went to one of the music events of the Cambridge Summer Music Festival! It was a performance of the Aronowitz Ensemble. They were so good, so talented. They played the violin, the cello, the piano, and the viola. Together, it just blended so well! It gave me shivers haha. Also, it was performed at Westminster college in Cambridge, right down the street. I had taken a walk before and passed it and thought to myself, I want to visit this place! So, that was really cool being able to go in. Here are some pictures from the past couple weeks. Enjoy. :) 

Oh, almost forgot.. I went to Oxford last weekend, which was nice! Did a lot of walking, visited colleges, and saw the dining hall that inspired the one in Harry Potter (which I still have not seen the movies of or read the books...). 

This week I also got to borrow the key to the music room in King's college. :) Loved it! God bless. 

Formal 2, Pembroke College, Cambridge

Crepe Affairs, Cambridge

Painting by Henri Fantin-Latour (1864) in Fitzwilliam Museum
Cambridge
(Love it!)

Fitzbillies Cafe (yummy :))

Dinner with Karine :)

Class in the park! Lecture room = hot/no AC!

Oxford trip with these kiddos!

Touring Oxford

One of the Oxford libraries I believe... ?

Ashmolean Museum in Oxford

Oldest Cafe in England, since 1650

Can't get enough :)

The Radcliffe Camera, Oxford

Handwritten works of Henry Savile 

Egyptian artifacts!

Plum and Toby, the pet tortoises at Trinity college in Oxford!
They're 90 years old!

Tortoise selfie with Plum :)

Visit to the Museum of the History of Science, Oxford

Bridge of Sighs, Oxford

Harry Potter Dining Hall
Christ Church College, Oxford

Christ Church College, Oxford

Westminster College, Cambridge

Inside Westminster College

The music room! King's College, Cambridge

Postcard sending time :)

Monday, July 21, 2014

Life in Cambridge

What's life like on a daily basis in Cambridge?

Random musicians on the streets

Sitting beside the River Cam

Trying new foods

Breathtaking walks

Discovering new places to try

Admiring the sunsets

4 o-clock pick-me-up ;)

Statue Man

Celebratory fireworks

Dessert!!

Regular FaceTime with Loved ones

It's the little things that remind you that you are in a different country. From accents to phrases, cultural norms to city life, there are endless examples that make you realize how your home country differs from others. Study abroad is an eye-opening experience and rewarding on many levels. Take that step of faith if you get the chance! You won't be sorry. And if you let the opportunity take its course, if you really dive in and embrace it wholeheartedly, you will be stretched and it will be good! Never stop learning. The moment you let unwillingness get the best of you is when you miss out on important things you could be learning and experiencing.

On that note, what will I be experiencing this week? Well, there's the second formal dinner tonight! Woo! I'm excited. Also, this is the week of module 1 finals! Yay! Haha. I have a lot to study! Wish me luck, guys. :) I'll be writing an essay on the pragmatic theory of truth and will study other various theories of truth for my philosophy class final. On Friday, I'll be done with that course and will only have the remaining two to finish (art history and studio art). Friday night is Bible study and Saturday I'll be going on a weekend trip to Oxford. Looking forward to a rejuvenating weekend. Love you guys! Can't wait to see my loved ones when I come back. Meanwhile, I'm gonna do my best to make the most of my short time here! God bless. Xoxo.


Friday, July 18, 2014

Missing people back at home, but being here has been a blessing. <3


Sunday, July 13, 2014

Tea Time!

Tea in Grantchester at the Orchard. Charming place for breakfast, lunch, or afternoon tea! Homemade pastries and delicious teas. It was quite the walk there but worth it.







Homemade scones & apple crush tea


Friday, July 11, 2014

Le Tour!

Just finished week 2! Good week. Monday the Tour de France went through Cambridge! Right past King's college. It was so cool! It was cool to be part of such a celebrated event. Everyone was stoked to be there and witness the bikers. And it's a sports event where there's no crazy riots and such, which made it that much more enjoyable :) People just simply enjoyed being there. Also, I happened to get a good view! A nice English family let me stand by them in the front. Afterwards, I did some grocery shopping, and even the store was decorated for the Tour de France! It was sweet. The rest of the week I spent getting to know the city more, going on walks/jogs, studying, and getting to know more people. :) Thursday night, some friends and I had dinner at a Chinese restaurant -- soooo good (at least to me ;)) Afterwards, there was a guest lecturer who spoke on "Things to do in Cambridge," which consisted of visiting various museums and buildings, punting, going on walking tours, etc. Hopefully in the weeks to come I'll be able to do most of that list. Oh, and Thursday I DID go to the Fitzwilliam museum... Funny story, our class was supposed to meet there to see some of Van Dyck's paintings but another student and I forgot and were waiting all confused in the classroom, wondering why no one was there... It finally hit him that we were supposed to go to the museum so we booked it! And we actually made it fashionably late. ;) Good exercise. Thursday night was my first Bible study meeting in Cambridge! It was good. I had spoken to a couple other students about getting together for a Bible study and posted on the Facebook page, and more people were interested than I thought! It was exciting. Praying for the weeks to come! 

Since I'm studying abroad it's only fair that I talk about academics, too. ;) Well, classes are good so far! I'm already halfway done with one of my courses if you can believe that. Such a short program that it flies by! For my philosophy class, Truth, we're currently learning about relativism -- whether or not truth is relative. There's actually two main types: global and local. The global relativist believes that all truth is relative while the local relativist believes that some truth is relative. It's interesting to see people's viewpoints while I develop my own. The class definitely goes over my head a lot. But I'm trying to push through and learn as much as I can, since it's an interesting topic. My other classes are good, too. They are more fascinating to me, since I like art. :) For one class we're actually in the art room drawing and painting and the other is learning about historical factors and features of British paintings. For that one, we get to visit museums, as I mentioned a bit earlier. :) I'm grateful for all my classes since I think they nicely balance each other out. Lots of thinking but lots of fun! Anyway, time for sleep! God bless. Xoxo.

Le Tour -- Decorations!

Me at Le Tour de France 

There they go! 

People hanging off buildings

The grocery store celebrates le Tour

Ice cream time :)

Beautiful Cambridge clouds!

Cuties in the River Cam

Fitzwilliam Museum 

Love my walks here

Charming homes

Beautiful sunsets

Dinner with these guys :)

Bible study!

Studying in King's Library