Traveling Outside of London & Preparing for Midterms! (London, Week 4).

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Noemi Guzman

<i>"Hello" in your host country's language:</i> Hello <i>Home Institution (your U.S. University/College):</i> College of Saint Benedict <i>Expected graduation year:</i> 2023 <i>Destination city & country:</i> London, England <i>Program provider:</i> FIE <i>Major/minor:</i> Social Science / Secondary Education & Political Science <i>Demographics:</i> Hispanic/Latinx, First-Generation College Student, LGBTQ+ <i>Future career aspirations:</i> I aspire to be a 7th grade civics teacher! <i>Top 3 goals for your time abroad:</i> Be involved in my community; Try a new dish; Develop a global mindset

Week four in London has been probably the most stressed I have been since getting here but also my favourite week. This past weekend to mentally prepare ourselves for the amount of work we were going to have to do the next two weeks a small group of us thought it would be good to take a day trip to Dover. We walked to the top where the castle is located which let me tell you was probably the hardest thing ever. It was the most beautiful thing ever. The tour guides gave so much information about the castle and what used to go on in there. I enjoyed it very much especially because I could tell that the people who worked there were very passionate about what they were talking about. I think that is one of my favourite things about history. Is that usually, or the majority of the time, the people that study history enjoy learning and talking about it. It is one of the reasons it is my favourite subjects. I learned a lot about the area as well and I found it interesting that the town of Dover is not as wealthy as some people would think itโ€™d be. Comparing it to another tourist destination like Canterbury, which also has a things like the Cathedral, it is not as wealthy. I just found it odd and surprising that the way of living was very different despite how much tourism may bring in. To be fair they are both pretty small but nonetheless I was surprised to see how different they both are. After our day trip of exploring Dover, it was back to being a student. This week I have been working on assignments for my classes. For my British Life and Cultures class we have to write a weekly Vignette/journal relating to information we learned in class. I focused on the parliament system and how it may not be as representative as one may want it to be. I also wanted to write about that because for my British Politics class I was lucky enough to visit the Supreme Court and sit in on a proceeding! It was actually very interesting to see real lawyers and judges working. I have found that a lot of my classes intersect so I feel very knowledgeable in my classes because of it. Another big assignment this week is my media critique for my British Life and Cultures class. I have to compare two different media sources that wrote about one story. I am comparing different sources opinions on the protesting bill that is trying to be passed which limits the rights of protesters in England. It is all very fascinating to me and I hope to finish it early! I do have another midterm next week which is another thing to look forward to!

*second photo is from the inside of a court room in the Supreme Court!