observation full and felt.

haiti. {days two and three}

2010-11-28T07:58:00.000-08:00

the next morning we woke up and got ready to set out early for the beach. most of the morning beforehand was spent planning and preparing ourselves to do one of the most important things we'll ever do: spread our dad's ashes along the shore. we had very few specifics in mind. we just had vague visions and left the rest up to the moment.

we made our way up and over the mountain, taking plenty of opportunity to take in all that we saw along the way including a grand view down to cap-haitien, and a goat in a tree. yep, a goat sitting in a tree. odd. soon after passing the goat we rounded the corner near the top of the mountain and caught the first sight of the breathtaking coastline. as we were taking it in, wilbert unexpectedly stopped and got out. as we slowly ventured out of the truck, taking pictures, in awe of the beauty we were now surrounded in, wilbert came back exclaiming that this would be the place. it was perfect. the cliff traveled all the way down to the water with a gorgeous view surrounding it. we began the descent down the cliff. it was sharp and jagged, resulting in awkward/tricky positions, and scraped feet, knees and hands. we each made it down to the bottom eventually.

{on top of the mountain, looking down on cap-haitien} 

{goat in a tree}

{going down the cliff to the coastline}

{ricky sharing his shoe with ariele to help her get down the cliff}

we sat the box containing the ashes along the shore as we stood a few feet above, huddled together. as reality began to set in with all of us, but particularly my sisters and i, we began to weep. the others said such genuine and inspired words that helped us to feel that we were in the exact company that we wanted to be among in that moment. they spoke of past, present and future. as we stood together weeping and remembering, in awe of where we were, the waves began to crash with an almost violent intensity that felt as if my father was letting us know that it was time--time to set him free. while the waves’ intensity increased, the small box containing the ashes remained still. it was time, but he still wanted us to be the ones to physically let go. we climbed down, and together, my sisters and i, released him into those waters allowing him to finally be put to rest, knowing that part of him will always remain in each of us. it was in that moment that i so strongly felt his impact on my life; both through his life and through his death.

before we began the climb back up the cliff, without even thinking, still in a bit of shock, i struggled to bend down to touch the waters that he now rests in. the journey back up was symbolic; we were eager to help each other, as if we knew we were climbing to a different reality, but felt so much more prepared to face it. a new chapter.

{spreading dad's ashes}

the rest of the day was spent at the beach down the way. it was a nice beach, a very different setting than we had seen so far, and the only other place we saw white people (aside from the airport). we spent lunch chatting and learning a little bit more about each other while sipping particularly refreshing coca-cola, in tall glass bottles with french labels. mid lunch we heard a haitian choir practicing in the near distance. we paused to take it in. beautiful. throughout the week we would hear that quite often. mostly as we woke, early in the mornings.

{eating lunch on the beach}

{haitian choir singing}

on our way back down the mountain we stopped at the market to do a bit of shopping. and apparently a lot more haggling than any of us were expecting. some of us grew to be rather good at it, despite previous mixed emotions and moral indifference's? not naming names. but, we each came away with a few treasures of our own. mostly, wooden pots and figures, colorful paintings, necklaces, various handmade musical instruments, and painted metal designs.

{wilbert breaking out the accordion}

that night, as we did every night, we finished the day with a delicious meal while sitting around telling more stories, and laughing, with a bit of singing on the side. all week we were continuously uncovering strange connections that we each had with one another, common people, stories etc. this night in particular, it was discovered that a song that ricky and ran's parents had taught to them when they were boys, could have been in fact taught to their dad by wilbert himself. this is a song that each of the men, ricky, ran and wilbert still remember every word to.

{ricky and ran singing in church}

sunday morning we all woke up, ate breakfast and headed out to visit one of the many church's living hope missions has helped in some form in the past few years. one of the wise things wilbert and meg have decided is the importance of never getting too involved in any one organization/church/neighborhood. rather, they choose to help start many, and leave the rest up to those they've helped to continue the work. there's a greater sense of accomplishment and responsibility and thus a better success rate. my sisters and i were over prepared in the wardrobe departmen. we could have easily been mistaken for truly conservative stereotypical missionaries, while our male counterparts looked quit dapper in their dress shirts and ties. but we weren't bitter. no.

sitting in the back of the haitian church we tried to absorb what we could. i think each of us had imagined what that moment would be like. and for most of us, the reality exceeded our expectations. the entire service was in creole, which created a sort of out of body, surreal feeling as we sat listening to words we couldn't understand and simply observing. mid service, wilbert stood up to introduce us. and introduce us he did. he has a way with words that very few people are capable of mastering with such genuineness. my father was also one of these people, perhaps this was one of the many things that connected the two of them. he shared with the congregation in creole as meg translated for us. he explained why we were there in a better way than we ever could have done. he refered to our father as one of his best friends. he painted a picture of the importance of all of us being there in a way that hadn't crossed my mind until that moment. he explained that our parents loved haiti, and showed us that love, and now here we are the same way they were many years ago. further, he explained the impact it could have if we shared our love for haiti with our own children and they too someday were to visit haiti. and what if our children told their children and so on, exemplifying the impact that you can have on your children. thus the impact your children can have on the world. it was pretty powerful.

following that humbling introduction, the boys got up and sang that exact haitian song taught to them by their parents. as they sang in creole, they invited the rest of congregation to sing with them. i couldn't help but tear up at the sight and at the sound. i won't ever forget it. after the service we were greeted and thanked with many hand shakes and many more hugs. just simply for being there.

{outside of church}

throughout the week ricky and ran became pretty good at taking advantage of every moment they had to interact with haitian children, which wasn't always easy due to the language barrier. but we realized all around the world children simply love to play. standing around after church was no different. i loved to watch as the young haitian boys played and commonly were so comfortably affectionate with each other. the three boys below asked me to take their picture. their stoic faces look as if they're posing for their hip band photo contrastly, their little hands are so gently held together.

{playing around}

{band photo?}

later that afternoon we ate lunch at a favorite restaurant of meg and wilberts. coming to haiti i didn't expect to get such diverse perspectives of the country. i feel as if we were able to truly see it from so many different lenses. this restaurant was slightly upper scale. as we sat at our outdoor table we were being watched and waited for by several local haitians, eager to make eye contact long enough to mouth "i am hungry". we talked of this for awhile. the importance of approaching certain situations from all sides, and of meg and wilberts experiences living in haiti where they are faced with such encounters daily. and the ways that they feel, truly bring about the most significant change. doing the best thing in some situations isn't always as easy as it seems. while in others it's more simple than we try to make it.

sunday night was mostly spent on the roof at the living hope missions compound. the roof quickly became a favorite place where one or more of us were often found. from the roof you could see across the city onto many other rooftops, you could more clearly hear the surrounding choirs singing all around, as well as have the best view of the clearest stars i'd seen in ages. not to mention, at night the breeze did a nice job of cooling us off from the humid, tropical air. sunday night, we all sat on the roof reading, dancing, and singing.

{roof time reading}

{roof time dancing}

haiti. {day one}

2010-06-13T14:33:00.000-07:00

my family has been planning this trip for years. a trip to Haiti. the place where my father always talked of the immense joy of a people despite the devastating poverty they live in. a place that would often move my father to tears just to think about. i have a distinct memory of my dad and i sitting at some chain restaurant in Austin, as i complained about wanting, or not having some petty teenage possession. my father sat with his head down almost in tears, disappointed, and reminded me of those who have nothing. literally nothing. he never said this to manipulate, but his heart was so full of love and desire to live for the many he has seen struggle that he wanted to share that desire with everyone around him. my father had always been a compassionate and loyal man, but i think it was after his first trip to Haiti that his world truly shifted. he would spend the rest of his life learning, challenging, and teaching to love fully; to never let him self be too comfortable in his beliefs, in his relationships, and mostly in how he lived out his life.

after my father passed from an unexpected accident on December 18th 2009, my sisters and i, charged with both the responsibility and honor of finding the perfect location to spread his ashes, pictured Haiti. we each knew that in the last few years he had thought of retiring in Haiti, and we could not think of ANYWHERE else that would allow him to rest with the people who gave him so much passion for life and love. we were also compelled by the potential opportunity to take a final trip together as a family to Haiti, the way he had always wanted.

after months and months of preparations, story telling, phone calls, shots, and fundraising--and with thanks to so many who have not only supported us in this but in so much more, we were able to finalize our trip and set our course to put our father to rest in the most special way we could imagine.

in addition to my two sisters {ariele and calla} and i, three others joined us on our journey. i think my sisters and i would agree that among the many wonderful people who made their way to my father’s memorial service in late December {the david gentiles experience}, one of the most memorable interactions we had was was with a man named tim pylate. it was brief, but he held so much genuine love and respect for our dad that it was pretty overwhelming. we came to find out that tim was in my dad's youth group as a teen and accompanied my dad on his first trip to Haiti back in 1988. his experience in Haiti would play a huge role in the path he followed as an adult: he now lives in Ukraine after serving for years with various international aid organizations. a beautiful rabbit hole of conversation after the memorial service brought tim to join us in Haiti; quite frankly, we wouldn't have been able to make it to Haiti if it had not been for tim's knowledge, leadership, and...well, the fact that he was certainly the most responsible among the lot of us.

the other spots were filled by two dear friends of ours who also happen to be brothers. ricky and ran jackson have played a pretty significant role in our family’s life for the last ten years or so. my father loved them as if they were his own children, and i know that love was mutual. my sisters’ and my connection with the boys would only grow stronger surrounding my fathers accident, as they became a pretty large support for us, along with many others who "showed up" in bigger ways than any of the three of us could have hoped for. and to all of you we are so very grateful.

in the past, we had frequently spoken of the idea of ricky and ran joining us in our family trip to Haiti. for their parents too held a special place for Haiti in their hearts and shared that love with their children as they grew up. so naturally, we felt strongly that if the boys were up to it, we would love for them to join us along this journey as a comfort, but also with the notion that it would hold a different kind of specialness for them as well.

{ariele, dad, ran, calla, ricky, and I at our friends wedding a few years ago}

before we knew it, the time had arrived. early on the morning of May 21st, the five of us found ourselves scrunched in a cab in Ft. Lauderdale with a driver poignantly named Johnny Angel sporting a strong nawlens accent on our way to meet Tim at the airport. a couple hours later we stepped outside to walk down the runway and up the steps of the tiny prop plane that would finally take us to a place we've longed to be for years. i'll just say the flight was part of the experience. amongst our fellow passengers was a rooster that never skipped a beat...or a crow, i should say.

{our boarding pass for the flight to haiti}

we arrived to some of the most beautiful landscape i've ever seen. it was breath-taking. we each talked the night before that we had no idea what to expect; we couldn't even visualize what it would look like. i can honestly say it was more beautiful than i could have imagined. many times we compared it to the scenes in jurassic park. minus the flesh eating dinos, of course.

our first couple hours in Haiti was spent in and out of a large closet-sized "office," answering a series of questions--which was tricky at first, seeing as none of us speak creole. our host Wilbert came to our rescue, and i'm sure spoke some magic words to help speed the process along. i was the lucky one chosen to endure most of the questioning. it was quite an emotional, and a bit stressful, welcome into Haiti, but certainly made us appreciate our journey all the more

{our lovely russian gifts from tim}

our first breath of fresh air onto the other side of the airport was soon met with a gasp at the sites from inside the truck as we drove the 7 minutes it takes to get from the airport to the living hope missions compound where we would spend the next week and a half. the people were more beautiful than i could've imagined, but their surroundings were, quite frankly, shocking to see for the first time. it felt as if we were in the middle of a war zone. piles of trash lined the streets, frequent scrappy cars were broken down along the roads. the bumpy, dusty roads contained no lines or street signs. cars, trucks, vans, and motorcycles weaved and swerved around each other with a fluid motion, rarely ever stopping. the horn was frequently used. it was truly surreal. i'm not sure any of us spoke until we arrived to the compound.

upon arriving at the compound, we first saw Meg, the other half of our hosts. meg and wilbert were old friends of my fathers. they were part of what he loved so much about Haiti. {you can read more about what they do and their story on their website, click here.} we had met them and their children on a couple occasions early in our childhood, and carried vague memories of them, but i couldn't have guessed how instantly familiar they felt upon seeing them again--so warm, genuine, and welcoming. this trip was so special because of them.

{living hope mission compound}

{sisters on top of the roof at the living hope missions compound}

after settling in a bit and eating some lunch, we hopped back in the truck to get out into the town. with the boys and meg in the bed of the truck balancing on tiny wooden chairs, we were off to visit the building that my father, grandfather and tim had helped build 23 years ago in Jolie--a place that wilbert and meg hadn't been back to since. so it was a special journey for all. again, we sat in awe as we tried to take in all that we were seeing around us. the roads we drove through had ditches so deep that ponds/creeks were created after it rained. freckled along the roads were livestock tied with ropes to various patches of green. throughout the trip we saw a plethora of cows, goats, chickens, roosters, pigs, horses, donkeys, and strays dogs roaming the streets. some seemed healthier than others, but for the most part, they appeared skinny and frail. the deeper we drove into rural areas the more stares we got, and the more frequently "blan!" was shouted at us {simply meaning, white}. many a kiss was blown, or a wave pointed in our direction, with the occasional disgruntled face. people seemed very friendly. granted, none of us spoke creole well enough to know exactly what they were saying.

{rural haiti}

arriving at the building was a pretty special moment. as we got out of the truck and walked up to the building that was surrounded by haitian children playing, i couldn't help but picture my father standing there. tim showed us exactly the work they did, the bricks they made in the street and stacked, the way dad played his guitar and sang for the surrounding haitian children as my grandfather directed each of them with the most efficient plan. it was powerful and beautiful.

{the building my dad, grandfather and tim helped build}

{iphone magic}

the rest of the afternoon was spent driving in and around cap-haitien, trying to gain a better picture of haiti and its people. we saw many things, some more shocking than others, but we certainly each gained a world of knowledge just from getting the chance to see it for ourselves, though we knew that we had so much more to see and to learn.

{downtown cap-haitian}

{shocking river filled with trash

that many haitians swim and bathe in}

{tap tap. public transportation.

hop on, tap the side twice when you want to stop}

{rain}

{over the next few days i will be posting our trip in a few different sections. stay tuned...}

paris.

2009-12-12T06:24:00.000-08:00

Bonjour. I got much practice in pronouncing this french greeting. put simply, i managed to fully plan a trip to paris, tell everyone i know about it, spend a couple hours packing perfectly, take a stress free non stop train from bangor to london (very rare), walk the few minutes it takes to get down to the eurostar station from euston station (train from london to paris), take my time having lunch, get in line to go through security (giving myself an hour and a half cushion), only to see the person in front of me in what seemed like slow motion pull out their passport in preparation to go through customs. this was the very first time i'd even considered needing my passport to of course get across the country line to france. bullocks. the next series of events involved my talking to official after official person who all very kindly led me to the next individual in charge. in the end i had to make the trip back to bangor and then back again to london in order to obtain my passport. fortunately, the kind people at eurostar allowed me to simply switch seats onto a train leaving the next day. however, i did have to pay an arm and a leg to buy tickets last minute to get to bangor and back. i barely caught a train and began the journey to a place i had so recently come from. this time dissapointed, tired and with a bit of a headache. i walked straight to my room, briefly explained the situation to my flatmates, who couldn't understand why anyone would return from paris so quickly. went straight to sleep, woke up bright and early the next day, and did it all again. this time with a passport.

after the excitement of a now second stamp in my passport, i arrived in paris wearing my cowboy boots in honor of visiting my childhood friend, Jenica. and she in return was wearing a black and white striped shirt, and holding a croissant poignantly welcoming me to this great city she now takes residence in. she is the first familiar face i've seen in almost three months. it was good.

{river seine}

my first night in paris, Jenica introduced me to the brilliance that is crepes. i opted for the traditional egg, cheese, ham, lettuce, and tomato. made to perfection as i watched from the street. we walked as i consumed both the delicious crepe and all that was around me on my first stroll through paris. we talked of the differences in french men and woman, cultural norms, the general feel, all under the thousands of lights that decorate the city. we further had a glass of wine in one of paris's oldest cafe's. for some reason the waiters each looked like classier versions of mario and luigi, sporting white overalls and matching hats.

{overall wearin' french waiters}

the following day i awoke to fresh croissants and espresso. (as i did everyday). the first part of this day would be spent exploring paris on my own as my lovely host had classes to attend. she escorted my to the metro, where we parted and i with a list full of basic french words began my journey through paris. i've explored many a city on my own before, however never have i ventured into a place that's official language is not one that i speak or understand. i managed to make it to the infamous sacre couer. or le steps as i like to call it. after making it up the long secession of stairs to the top, i spent the majority of my time staring out onto the miles and miles i could now see over paris. it was mesmerizing. i thought about how not long ago i thought i might never have a chance to be where i was standing. and yet there i was. i watched as the other newbies, fully embraced the moment in their own individual ways. some with loved ones, some alone, and some in large groups of people all carrying unusually large smiles.

{sacre couer}

positioned all along "le steps" are working african men either with the intent to stop you as you walk by or with a blanket of various typical parisian souvenirs to sell. i dodged my way around the individuals on my journey up to the top. however, coming back down was a bit of a different story. out of nowhere i found my finger being used as a base for what was quickly becoming a braided bracelet in the patriotic colors of france (britain and america as well for that matter). finding myself caught, and slightly embarrassed, as my fellow tourists were flooding passed me with their appendages free to do as they pleased. i began to share with this man that i would not be paying for this bracelet. he assured me that it would be okay by saying "we're friends" and "not to worry about it". he with ease led a conversation about where we were both from, claiming to "love america" and frequently exclaimed "hakuna matata" a phrase from his home country. one that factually can make any person smile, if only to think about timon and pumba. he quickly finished, and tied the bracelet around my wrist before i could mutter a word. clipping the ends with tiny clippers he kept in his pocket. as quickly as he tied the knot his attitude made a complete shift.

he then quite aggressively requested "paper money". in euro's paper money can mean no less than 5 euros. which is translated to about 8 dollars. in that moment i felt a bit of fear, as his mood was quite serious, and such disappointment. i muttered a few phrases of disappointment, trying to trigger some sort of guilt complex in him. attempting to make eye contact, as he looked quickly from side to side as if we were making a drug deal. i managed to walk away with all of my money minus 50 pence. however, i felt so cheated, and quite angry. on my way down i heard another man say, as he held yet another finger captive, "hakuna matata", and somewhat aggressively showed another the new garment that now hangs on my wrist as he approached me with more string, as if my saying "i've already been tricked".

i tell this story not to further the what i would soon learn is a massive amount of racism in france. but because that experience began the mindset and lens by which i would then view paris. not angrily, or dissapointed but through the answers to the series of questions i would then ask myself and my friend jenica who's spent a few years in this country. questions about how quickly i could shift my feelings from almost peacefully floating across the beautiful views of paris, to the realities that exist here even in paris. in no way did my new bracelet ruin the nostalgia of paris, but it did and does still represent the heaviness of inequality and truth that exists between the cracks. or even on the way down from one of the prettiest views in the world. thoughts that began to develop after walking away involved strong feelings of wanting to understand what would make someone have to choose those methods of manipulation to make a living. {if they even make enough to live off of } i guess many choose this path everyday, but it's in less obvious ways through various businesses and politics. how, unfortunately this path has lead many to not only see them in hatred and fear, but view anyone who looks like them the same way. i don't think it's fair that man used fear and manipulation to gain my measly 50 pence. period. but i also have to wonder what his motivation is. i get to walk away, he's probably standing at one of the many tourist attractions in paris as i type holding the finger of another tourist, perhaps wishing he could just walk away. i guess i can't know for sure.

{french kiddos holding hands outside the louvre}

i then walked around the montmartre full of thoughts and wonder. i ended up at the entrance to the louvre, where i for a moment sat with the dozens of art students sitting and sketching as hundreds of people swiftly passed by.

{cafe}

later i met up with Jenica again and we headed to a favorite cafe of hers. it was quaint and almost exactly how i could've imagined it. (mostly because i've seen the many attempts made in the states to mimic it). but it's better in person. we drank espresso. occasionally with my pinky out. ya know, to look like a local. we ate delicious pastries. and talked further of france and people and the world. from the cafe we headed to a pub where jenica and a friend meet with a favorite professor over a few pints. a british professor. we chated a bit about wales, and then were off again, this time to the eiffel tower.

{ze eiffel tower}

other than the odd disco type light show that happened at one point while gazing upon the ze eiffel tower, it was magnificent. i devoured my second crepe in paris. this time filled with nutella and bananas. yum.

{near the modern art museum}

my last full day in paris was spent following Jenica around as she showed some of her favorite parts of paris. it's always best to visit a city with a local. we started by seeing the red light district in paris, complete with running into a vary scantily clad lady of the night (during the day). this wasn't one of her favorite places just happened to be where a store she needed was. ha. other than the french hooker, we saw many other classic french scenery. My favorite being an area of town that is occupied simultaneously with both the jewish population and the gay population. quite the combo. basically a lot of great shops and bakeries. (i know, stereotypes, but also truth).

{inside the notre dame}

i also crossed the bridge over the river seine to the notre dame, passing the hôtel de ville. after taking a slow stroll through the cathedral i then crossed again the river tyne over unto the ile saint louis. next we spent a bit of time inside the infamous bookstore, shakespeare and company. unfortunately, i missed the weekly tea party that is held within it's walls. we ended the night eating the most delicious food at a senegalese restaurant. yum. then briefly watched some television dubbed over in french while snacking on chocolate covered waffles.

{ile saint louis}

{brasserie}

i hope to someday return to paris for a longer visit. if you'd like to get a good picture of life and love in paris i strongly recommend the film paris j'taime. it is a compilation of 12 short films made by different directors from around the world displaying a variety of love. your guaranteed to love at least one.

{the owner of shakespeare and company- green frame}

{shakespeare and company}

one week left in this country. crazy. the next week will be spent, traveling in dublin, having a christmas meal with my flatmates, finishing papers, meticulously packing, spending a couple days in london and trying to bring some closure to my experience here.
until next time.
au revoir.

{for more photos you can go here}

liverpool, thanksgiving, and manchester.

2009-11-29T12:14:00.000-08:00

{the liverpool harbor}

once again i got the privilege of tagging along on a class trip. a fellow international student {from finland} and i were able to join our teacher along with another of her classes on a free field trip to liverpool. the day would be spent touring in and out of some of the best museums i've yet to see. after arriving in liverpool we spent the first couple of hours exploring the international slavery museum which in detail and with much opportunities for interaction described the history of slavery around the world. it was very moving. We then ventured to the same museums collection of intricate model ships, including the titanic. i learned of the many connection between the titanic and liverpool, including the fact that many of the staff and passengers were liverpool natives, as was the ship itself.

{international slavery exhibit in liverpool}

{titanic, museum in liverpool}

we then, very excitedly, made our way over to "the beatles story" exhibit. this was truly the coolest exhibit that i've seen. each room gave genuinly mapped out the stages of their lives and success. my favorite rooms include the hall of screaming fans, the trippy yellow submarine, and the replica of the cavern, where the beatles got their start (first performed as the quarrymen). as well as learning the fun random facts along the way. we also went to the museum further down the harbor that in more detail covers the life and death of john lennon. did you know that hey jude was written by paul mccartney for john lennon's son? yep, that's right. he wanted to help him cope with his parents separation.

{the beatles story, liverpool}

{replica of the cavern, inside the beatles story exhibit, liverpool}

{john lennon}

{inside the john lennon exhibit, liverpool}

my friend melanie's sister came to town, just in time to help make thanksgiving in wales happen. she came bearing gifts of canned pumpkin, which are close to impossible to find here. for the most part not many people even knew it was thanksgiving. i woke up in time to go to the first of my five classes as usual. (i did receive a happy thanksgiving day post it on my door, thanks john). the day felt no different than any other, until i pushed play on the first sound of christmas tunes. harry connick jr. instantly, nostalgia came rushing to my soul.(couldn't think of word to not make that sound cheesy) it can be said that i've not felt nearly as homesick as i did in that moment. i hurried over to help with the preparations of thanksgiving with a bit of pep in my step. the next few hours would be spent preparing a feast of turkey, green beans, sweet potatoe casserole, cranberry sauce, stuffing, gravy, and individually prepared pumpkin pies with homemade whip cream. it was a neat feeling to share thanksgiving with all of melanie's local british flatmates, who've of course never experienced thanksgiving before. we explained that there are still key ingredients missing such as hot apple cider (can't find that here), a comfy couch for taking naps, and perhaps football, or christmas movies. but, we managed to give the best experience that we could including the tradition of going around the table expressing one thing we're thankful for. while very different than any before, it will be well remembered.

{turkey day in wales, yes, i drew that}

{sharing thanksgiving with local british students}

{individual pumpkin pies}

the program i am here with, arcadia, has subsidized many trips throughout the semester to try and give students opportunities to explore the country for a cheaper price. however, this past weekend they offered a completely free trip to manchester for the weekend to participate in a leadership sympsium. even though i generally try to avoid anything with the words leadership or symposium in it, i figured "when in britiain" and "hey a free trip to manchester". i arrived friday morning in time to jump right into the symposium. there were about 20 arcadia study abroad students from all over the uk participating in the weekend. the first session involved gaining further understanding of the results of the personality test we all took prior to arriving. it was the myers briggs type indicator. according to this test i am an infj. this breaks down as introverted (vs. extroverted), intuition (vs. sensing), feeling (vs. thinking), and judging (vs. perceiving). or as it explains introverted intuition with extroverted feeling. we spent the next couple hours participating in active demonstrations further proving our types. the purpose was largely to help us better know ourselves so that we can better lead others.

{the brittania, our hotel in manchester}

of all the things we learned there were a few things about myself that i absolutely agree with. and as part of the process of further knowing and accepting myself, i'm going to share some of them here. i guess this will be more interesting for people who know me well. so no hurt feelings if you want to skip over the next bit.
at my best:
 *i have a visionary grasp of human relationships and possibilities, which, when articulated, can elevate and inspire others.
characteristics of infjs:
*i'm loyal to people and institutions that exemplify my values but have little interest in those that don't.
*i prefer to lead persuasively by sharing my vision, and am likely to be sensitive, compassionate, empathetic and deeply committed to my values.
*i want meaning and purpose in my work, relationships, and even in material possessions.
*i'm reserved at first, but once i feel i have nothing to prove i'm able to freely relate and interact with others without hesitation. and can even gain energy from it.
*however, i ultimately gain energy from a certain amount of solitude.
how others view me:
*others may find me difficult to know, because i tend to only share personal things with people i really trust.
*i often express my internal senses metaphorically with complexity.
*i especially value authenticity and commitment in relationships.
*while reserved i don't hesitate to assert myself when my values are violated.
*individualistic
potential area of growth:
*if i'm not able to find some place for my gifts i may feel frustrated and not give others the information i used to arrive at a decision, and thus seem arbitrary. as well as withdraw my energy and insight. and i might fail to check me insights against reason and practicality, and end up following a vision that has little possibility of being realized.
*if unable to give attention to my sensing and thinking parts i will be unable to verbalize my inner insights in a way that others can understand.
*and lastly under stress i become obsessed with data i would normally consider irrelevant such as watching tv, or buying things that have little meaning.

some of these things were hard for me to accept. mostly because i tend to still think of myself within the boundaries that others have put me into (not intentionally). i've often thought that i have to acquire the personality traits that i have been labeled with, thus convincing myself that i truly possess those traits. when in reality they are often not who i am inside. i feel as if i'm getting closer to knowing what the true me is.
it's interesting how knowing these things can really effect the way you see yourself, but also the way that you choose to talk to/ treat others. 

{the manchester christmas market}

the following sessions were entitled intercultural communication skills for global leaders and entrepreneurship for leaders. both of which provided more insight into our surroundings. we later had dinner with a group of manchester students who had joined us for the second and third sessions. these students will all be studying abroad in various places all around the world next semester. of them i was able to connect with a british student who will be studying in tennessee next semester. hopefully i'll be able to provide some sort of support for her experience. we then all ventured over to manchester's super crowded christmas market. in addition to the typical christmas items, there were many more traditionally british treats, mulled wine, lots of meats on a stick, nutella and banana pancakes (crepes), trinkets, handmade gifts, and lots of alcohol.

{used books stand in manchester}

the following day we all gathered for a brief walking tour of manchester, which concluded the sympsium. i had planned to try and take advantage of my free train ticket and see what i could of manchester for the last time, on my own. i luckily, and i think with some credit to the symposium focusing so much on each individuals gifts met several fellow students that i was able to genuinely connect with. the rest of the day was spent along with two new friends (studying in aberdeen,scotland), we had quite an adventure around manchester, and headed back late saturday night to bangor with many new stories, and a greater sense of self. how does it always happen that the situations that you have very little expectations for turn out to be some of the best experiences.
until next time.
cheers.

{for more photos click here}

birthdays, protests, and landscapes.

2009-11-23T10:55:00.000-08:00

{melanie's birthday cupcakes}

some of my favorite times here in bangor have been celebrating birthdays with friends. a couple weeks ago i got to help a friend of mine celebrate her birthday. the celebration consisted of all international students, drinks, laughs, lots of singing (both in italian and english), and ended with a unique night of dancing at one of the local clubs. last friday night all of us fellow arcadia students helped melanie celebrate her birthday. we hopped in a crowded train to llandudno junction, home of the only theatre for miles. we pre-ordered our movie tickets for the opening night of twilight saga: new moon. got food and drinks at a great pub and then headed back to the theatre to get in line for the teen cult movie, practicing our screams and bursts of excitement to fit in with our surroundings along the way. i will willingly admit that i was very excited for this movie, i had only seen the first one a few months previous and have not read the books, and don't really have a preference for jacob of edward. but, i LOVE going to the movies, i love waiting in long lines for the excitement of finding a good seat, i love previews, i love sitting in a room full of people all experiencing varying emotions, and i love watching the credits until the last name rolls of the screen. and to do that all in wales is just...brilliant. of course the couple hours afterward were spent analyzing the stories faults, but ultimately we all thoroughly enjoyed every part of our experience. we then took an even more packed bus back to bangor around midnight after our train had been mysteriously canceled, and lastly surprised melanie with cupcakes and trick candles.
next adventure: where the wild things are...december 13th. {finally}

{musician performing at the anti-protest}

{a speaker during the celebration, and the djembes ready for the drum circle}

saturday morning i woke up early to catch a mini bus along with several other bangor students, all headed to wrexham. with us we brought signs reading "say no to racism" both in english and welsh. and a welsh flag with the words "this is not a symbol of hatred" written in magic marker. we set off on the hour and a half journey to help the community celebrate diversity, and show an opposing group of anti-islamic protesters that we wont stand for racist actions.

{fellow bangor students}

we arrived to the town without knowing what to expect. what we found were two empty carnival rides and few gathered under a tent near the towns center. we were the first to arrive with signs, and it seemed to begin the passionate yet small in size celebration of diversity and protest of anything conflicting with it. throughout the next few hours there would be poignant speeches from various community leaders, politicians, and other members of both wrexham's community and other surrounding towns in wales. consistently there was the presence of music be it live, through speakers, or through the all inclusive rhythmic drum circle. despite the challenging wind, rain and biting coldness there remained a steady flow of passion, hope, and joy, complete with both a conga line, some interpretive dance, and many exchanged smiles.

things heated up a bit as several attempted to head in the direction of the EDL (english defense league) anti-islamic protestors. after a brief rise of excitement, we were soon slowed down to a halt by surrounding police. after learning that there had already been a "confrontation" between the two groups resulting in some sort of riot, and reaching near to the time we needed to head back to bangor, we decided a peaceful ending would be the most satisfying. all in all it was quite a moving experience, different to any i've yet to have in britain, and was proud to be apart of it. my flatmate thom was chiefly in charge of organizing bangor's participation in the event, and will be writing a piece in our uni's local paper. i will be sharing that, as soon as it's made available.

on sunday i woke up yet again to catch a mini bus, but this time as part of the photography society. each month they sponsor a trip to give its members a chance to take pictures out in the field of the particular theme. this month's theme is landscape. our first destination was to the isle of anglesey. more specifically to newborough beach and forest along the south west coast of anglesey. the winds were tremendous in size, but the scenery was breathtaking. the beach consisted of both rock and sands, and ran along a forest of epically thin and tall trees.

{newborough beach}

{newborough forest}

we then began a brief journey through snowdonia national park, stopping at several ideal places along the way. snowdonia is going to be a place in which i will regret not getting to see more of. it's the one true place in which i can honestly say i've never seen anything like it before, in respects to landscape and scenery. it's some how both distinctly rugged and magically beautiful. it's amazing that it has somewhat still remained such a secret. after such a busy weekend, i'm due for some proper rest. i feel a cold sneaking it's way in. still, it was worth it.
until next time.
cheers.

{snowdonia national park}

{the huge slate quarries in snowdonia national park}

{for more photos go here}

northumberlands and edinburgh.

2009-11-13T15:05:00.000-08:00

{along hadrian's wall in the northumberlands}

this past week was what they call "reading week" here at bangor uni. reading weeks are set up as weeks off from modules (classes) according to separate courses (departments). students here only take classes within their selected course, unlike me who is taking classes from all over. thus, i didn't get quite a whole week off, due to conflicting reading weeks amongst my modules. blah blah...the point is that i did however get to travel a bit.

{historic, hadrian's wall}

{taken while standing on hadrian's wall, the view goes on for miles}

{houseteads roman fort, along hadrian's wall}

my friend melanie and i visited a family friend of hers in northern england. we spent the next few days in various villages and towns in the northumberland province. we arrived in the prudhoe train station, then walked about 10 min. to the small village of novingham. that night we were taken to our host's local pub for dinner and drinks. we spent the following day, traveling along the historic hadrian's wall, more specifically visiting a roman fort called housesteads situated along the wall. hadrian's great wall was built by the roman emperor hadrian around 122 a.d representing the northern limits of his empire, keeping out the caledonians (scottish). it ran/runs from the east coast to the west coast of britain, even now you can see strips of it here and there, including along highways, and even in random english suburbs. now, the line between scotland and england is much further north.

{speedy trees}

{art installation inside a castle in the northumberlands}

that night we traveled in a fully packed train to the town of hexham, england for a night of fireworks and the largest bonfire i've ever seen. these were both in celebration of what the british call bonfire night and guy fawkes night. named after a failed attempt by a man named incidentally, guy fawkes, to blow up the british parliament on november 5th 1605. traditionally, they now place a fake figure of a man on top of a huge bonfire, and shoot off fire works in celebration that he was not successful in his attempt. here's an anonymous poem i found that rhythmically explains it's history:

Guy Fawkes, Guy Fawkes,

'Twas his intent

to blow up the King and Parliament.

Three score barrels of powder below

Poor old England to overthrow.

By God's providence he was catch'd

With dark cantern and burning match.

Holla boys, holla boys!

Let the bells ring!

Holla boys, holla boys!

God save the King.

another surreal experience.

{bonfire night/guy fawkes night}

{wee lad swingin' a glow stick in front of me}

{silhouettes on bonfire night}

{fireworks}

the next day was spent exploring newcastle, england. we saw a bit of the university, walked along the river tyne, went to a small flea market, crossed the swing bridge, experienced the center for contemporary art (which was really neat), and saw the inside of the sage theatre (also called the slug). the night ended with exactly what melanie and i needed, while our gracious host was off at choir practice, we made our selves some dinner (french toast) and watched an old classic (when harry met sally). followed by a bit of british tv, and then fell fast asleep in anticipation of the next days events. {it was very pleasant to be in a proper home again}

{downtown newcastle}

{the swing bridge, on the river tyne in newcastle}

{view of the sage theatre, and the tyne bridge at sunset, newcastle}

{inside the baltic: center for contemporary art}

{top floor of the baltic}

{night reflections of the swing bridge, baltic, sage theatre, and tyne bridge, along the river tyne}

after an early train we arrived in edinburgh late morning, leaving a whole day to explore and experience. i can confidently say that scotland was what i'd always imagined and hoped it would be. the scenery, the people, the ACCENTS, all wonderful. despite the heavy construction that takes up a significant part of the city center edinburgh is majestic. from the castle that sits above the town on a rocky cliff, to the beautiful buildings and streets through out the city, all of it, majestic. we first found our hostel/hotel that was potentially one of the nicest places i've stayed, and is made even 100 times better by the fact that we only paid 12 american dollars. after setting our bags down we set off to the castle. due to it's massive size we spent a couple of hours walking around, through, up and down the castle. the best bit was getting to hear our scottish tour guide tell his tales and jokes with a heavy scottish rhythm. we continued down the infamous royal mile filled with shops, pubs, street vendors and classic scottish closes (alleys). 

{where we stayed in edinburgh}

{taken along a side street near our hotel in edinburgh}

{edinburgh castle}

{inside edinburgh castle}

{the oldest bldg. in edinburgh, the castle chapel}

{view from the castle}

{cannon, inside edinburgh castle, looking out to the city}

after eating delicious scottish steak pie at a pub along the royal mile, we headed back to the hostel to drop off our loot. only to turn around and head back out to yet another pub, advertising traditional scottish music. there, we were to encounter the guitar, banjo, moothie playing, plaid pants wearing, tam o'shanter sporting, thick scottish accent singing greame e. person. also known as the only person to do musical walking tours of edinburgh. he was more than we could've asked for in a scottish experience. he sang and played for nearly 3 hours intermittently telling jokes (frequently about us being american and my being texan), telling historical tales, and successfully involving most of the audience in his performance. we were all singing along, lifting our drinks with smiles as wide as we could manage. the most surreal moment, being as the whole bar sang, swaying and smiling "bye bye miss american pie...". and i'm pretty sure everyone else there knew the words better than we did.

{down a scottish close (alley)}

{the royal mile, in edinburgh}

we started the next day with a scottish breakfast from our hotel. however with the absence of haggis, it was actually just an english breakfast. it did however include black pudding, which i am glad to have found out what it consists of only after the fact. (thanks thom for the insight) our last day was spent exploring some areas we had yet to see, some old bookstores, shops, and cafes. luckily, we stumbled upon the very coffee house that j.k. rowling is said to have written harry potter. i must say i could feel the inspiration as i sat in the elephant house and ate my bacon and brie pizza. ha. after having a bit of a chat with a couple of really friendly locals working at a tea shop (who also "took the mick" out of my being from texas) we ended our trip gliding through the edinburgh modern art museums, and taking a last stroll around the city. i can say that i already look forward to my trip back to scotland, even though it'll probably be years from now. but i will be back. now for some rest.
until next time.
cheers.

{the coffee house j.k. rowling is said to of written the first harry potter}

{old scottish bookshop}

{taken inside edinburgh museum of modern art, art installation}

{to see more photos from this trip feel free to click on the link below}
http://www.flickr.com/photos/theafterglow/

lake district.

2009-11-03T15:15:00.001-08:00

{ambleside backpackers lodge, kitchen}

this past weekend two other international students (from italy, and switzerland)and i took a trip to visit the lake district. the lake district is rumored to be one of england's most beautiful, and quaint places. despite the immense amount of rain, we were not let down. we arrived to the ambleside backpackers lodge late on friday night. we settled into our room, then checked out the facilities, which proved to be quite adequate.

{taken in excitement that the weather was clearing up}

we then began the slow decent into what we would later refer to as our "elderly ladies weekend". we pulled out our books and knitting supplies, poured ourselves a cup of complimentary tea and lastly settled down in comfy chairs located in the lounge amongst fellow "backpackers". keeping up with our theme we ended the night with my friend playing "Comptine d'un autre été" on the piano, and playing several rounds of my new favorite card game called "dutch blitz".

{taken as we found the correct path around the lakes}

the following day we awoke early enough to partake in the free breakfast. as we had been told that it would, the day started off with a pretty steady flow of rain. luckily we were each prepared both physically, and well...mentally. we headed off into town, discovering a few rather neat shops. the town was a quaint Victorian style village, filled with other visitors dressed  and ready for a days hike. we stopped into the information center to get some help about where to start. after some advice and a point in the direction we were off. unfortunately, the advice wasn't as clear as we'd liked. i'll just say we did eventually find our way, but it took some time. brilliantly, just as we began on the right path, the weather started to clear up. And for the first time we got a peek at our beautiful surroundings which had previously been hidden by the rain and the brim of my hood shielding my face.

{the closest i've ever been to sheep, not counting a petting zoo}

the weather stayed rather clear for the remainder of our hike, allowing us to see the colorful changing leaves, green hills, many sheep, a river, two lakes, swans, ducks, and the beautiful scenery combining it all. our path brought us to grasmere, where we rejoiced at the sight of food and a warm place to sit. grasmere is the village in which the famous poet william wordsworth and his family are buried, not to mention a gingerbread factory that makes your mouth water with one wiff.

{lake windermere}

after a bit more confusion we finally found our way back to ambleside, exhausted. we decided to utilize the open kitchen and make a meal together. remembering that it was halloween we decided to venture out into the "busy" night life of ambleside. after, passing a few pubs packed with witches, ghosts and disco lights, we settled on a much quieter pub off the high street in which was hosting free live music. here, we seemed to fit in a bit better as the average age was about 55. we slide into a long booth next to our soon to be new friends. we spent the rest of the night sipping cider and talking about how wordsworth was actually not that great of a poet, the best secret places to visit in north wales, and why switzerland has never gone to war. it was a delightful night.

{the hikers}

the next day we had planned to spend partly exploring ambleside a bit more, partly traveling back to bangor, and then lastly giving myself time to finish a paper that would be due the following day. unfortunately, these proportions shifted a bit as the day went on. we were able to spend the morning in ambleside, however due to the rain we spent it reading inside of a coffee shop.

{swan lake}

we then began our journey to the train station. it was during the bus ride that we began to realize just how much it was raining, as the roads began to seem narrower and narrower due to the flooding. after making it to the train station we were very confusingly informed that our train may or may not make it, and that they had arranged for us to take a coach bus to our connecting station, but that the decision was up to us. last minute we hoped on the bus, making it to the next rail station in time to find that this train had too been canceled. we caught the first train to leave the station. as did every other person who was there, making the trip to our next destination leaving us feeling like cattle. needless to say, due to the flooding we had three trains canceled, leaving the three alternate trains with standing room only, and a fourth train finally making it back to bangor after 8 total hours of traveling. that was double the amount of time it should've taken us. i'm choosing to refer to it as...character building.

{wordsworth family graves}

despite the rain, eight hour train extravaganza, and having to stay up until four in the morning finishing my paper, it was quite a memorable trip. as the three of us discussed in detail, there is something so unique about building friendships with people who've grown up in unimaginably different places, with different languages,and different ideas of comfort and challenge. yet, we've all ended up in the same place, simply looking for a place to have an "elderly ladies" weekend and enjoy the simple beauty of life.

until next time.
Cheers.

{for more photos click on the b&w photo to the right, near the top}

conwy, beaumaris, portmeirion, delamere.

2009-10-27T12:11:00.000-07:00

{school bus, in conwy; bws, is the welsh way to say/spell bus}

because my post last week was quite long, and due to the fact that i got to visit many places this past week, i've decided to do a mostly photo post.

on one of my days off, i decided to explore the nearby town of conwy. conwy, is home to the conwy castle, king edwards second largest castle. i've been able to visit the first three in order of descending size. thankfully, the weather couldn't of been nicer. while in conwy i visited the bustling harbor, travled along several footpaths, and walked all along conwy's outer walls. like caernarvon, conwy was built with bordering walls both for protection and seclusion.

{just off conwy harbor}

{boats on conwy harbor}

{conwy town walls}

{wee lads practicing british football}

{sign tied to a docked boat on the harbor}

{conwy rail station}

when i asked the train conductor if he would stop in conwy, he replied "wish i could but, that'll make me late for tea". funny british.

{beaumaris pier}

last friday, my friend melanie and i ventured to beaumaris. beaumaris is a town located on the isle of anglesey, just across the menai straits from bangor. beaumaris is home to the third largest castle built (and never finished) by king edward. in addition to seeing the castle and walking around the city we took a footpath which led us through a cliffside cow pasture which hovered over the menai straits, and a beautiful rocky coastline.

{looking out on the menai straits}

{walking through the cow pasture, looking out to the menai straits, welsh mainland, and snowdonia national park}

{rocky coastline}

"i gotta go julia, we got cows" -twister
{that was mostly for ariele}

{taken while waiting for our bus back to bangor}

{entrance to portmeirion}

on saturday, i went with the bangor photography society (photosoc) on a field trip to the village of portmeirion. portmeirion is a small fake italian village built and designed by a welshman(sir clough williams-ellis)who had never actually been to italy. and according to my italian friend, he didn't get much right, however he did manage to create quite a quaint atmosphere. it is both very strange, and very intriguing. in addition to snappping shots of the tiny town, we wandered around the surrounding nature. we found a footpath that led us through the woods, to a super windy overlook of the irish sea, as well as down to the sandy beach coastline. i'm quite certain that i will never see anything like portmeirion again. apparently not even in italy.

{yes, this looked like a doll house in person as well}

{on the beach along the irish sea}

{wind surfing}

{taken along our walk to the apple orchard}

on sunday, we furthered melanie's autumn family tradition of apple picking. after doing some research she was able to find one orchard situated on the border of wales and england. it took us three hours on a train, and then another 40 minute walk, but we eventually made it. the small town ended up being a hub for various outdoor pursuits. we passed many hikers, bikers and fellow apple pickers. the stroll down the road to the orchard was very pleasant complete with befriending a lone horse, hills of cows and the bright sun sneakily shinning through the surrounding trees. not to mention it ended with a bag full of delicious hand picked apples. (and some pears) this was my first experience picking apples, and it will be quite hard to top.

{the road we took to get to the orchard}

{the lone horse}

{apple pickers}

{my trusty holga camera}

{baby apples}

{for more photos, click on the b&w photo the the right, near the top}

sunsets, castles and piers.

2009-10-20T10:38:00.000-07:00

{bangor pier, at sunset}

{menai straits, at sunset}

there tends to be a general idea that many people share before venturing on such a trip as this. it's that if you go abroad you will automatically experience a certain amount of personal growth, and understanding of culture, in addition to gaining a host of life changing memories and experiences. implying, the need for no more than passive thoughts and efforts. up until this point in britian i have been stuck in this mindset. even though i feel i should know better i entered into this venture with certain expectations based on the experiences of those before me. despite being conscious about trying new things, being open minded, and even constantly reminding myself that "the best things can come from the least likely places", i've in a sense, been waiting for my new "cultural benefits", memories, and growth to be handed to me on a silver platter.

{rowboat on the menai straits}

while being here i have indeed had many wonderful memories, seen a multitude of beautiful new things, and asked myself many "challenging" questions. yet, i've experienced these things some what passively.

{man watching the sunset on the menai straits}

{menai suspension bridge from bangor to the isle of anglesey}

after a friend let me try to articulate an answer to the question "how am i doing", she responded with words more perfect than she can know. she kindly reminded me of some of the things that make up "who i am" and further reminded me that these things don't change by my being here. upon reading this i realized just how passive i have become in this experience. not only had i potentially been missing out on certain genuine experiences but, i'd forgotten the very things that make me who i am. the very things that could've been enhancing my experience.

{inside the church on church island, st.tysilio's}

{the american ladies, tea room, end of bangor pier}

{taken by elderly owner, very glad she included the bright red fisherman outside on the pier. love it.}

with fresh eyes, i understand that having the best possible experience here doesn't mean i have to forget all of the things that bring me joy in order to some how make room for new experiences. i have spent the past 23 years trying to develop these qualities in myself, stitching together my character. such as the importance of building relationships, art, music, observation, and laughter.

{before and after, jumping on bangor's garth pier}

{ha. not sure what's happening with our legs and hands}

during my remaining time in britain, i hope to find a more complete combination of the items of my character/personality that truly make me who i am, balanced with extra room to allow those things to be fostered through new experiences. with further hope that it will give me a better foundation to perhaps build new branches of interest from a much more rooted and genuine place. basically, i need to be feeding myself with as much joy bringing "things" in order to be better equip to enjoy all experiences.

{caernarfon castle, ironically built by english to keep out welsh}

{apparently, i don't know the difference between aiming two guns and a bow and arrow. ha.}

all that said, my attitude has already changed and is resulting in a much more enjoyable experience, as a whole. some of the highlights of this past week include:
going to an open mic night with a couple of friends, benefiting amnesty international. the music was really enjoyable and i didn't realize until arriving just how much i missed hearing live music. it's arguably one of those core pieces that contribute to making me a more whole person. while enjoying the music i was able to engage in conversation with a fellow international student from italy. together we talked about many things specific to each other's different cultures as well as things that were common to the both of us. lovely.

{practicing my flexibility on the top of the castle}

{top of the castle, looking out onto the menai straits, and the walled in town of caernarfon}

later in the week, while adventuring around north wales i found myself crossing the menai bridge over to the isle of anglesey, north of bangor. after much walking, i stumbled across the most peaceful and calm place i've experienced yet. it is a tiny island called church island. it's situated just off the coast of anglesey covered from head to toe in beautiful, old, tomb stones. most of the graves are for lives lost during both world wars. the graves curve around the entire tiny island, all the way to the top, with a large celtic cross protruding over the top of the hill. also, on this island you will find a tiny church. inside are stain glass windows, stone flooring, and tiny pews. after, overwhelmingly feeling the serenity of the location i sat inside the church. for the first time i really and truly felt peaceful. i'm not sure exactly what it is about the place, but decidedly i will be back each at least once a week, to this tiny island to simply be still for as long as i need to.

{super steep spiral staircase, inside the castle walls, i can't imagine rushing up and down them, my legs feel weak just thinking about going up and down myself}

the week couldn't of ended any better than it happened to. a couple of friends that we made during our orientation in london, came up to bangor to visit from manchester. these visitors brought the piece in which i have been missing the most. laughter. and lots of it. i'm pretty sure that i laughed for two days straight. in addition to the ab workout, it was great to show visitors around bangor and feel a small sense of belonging to this lovely town. we showed off some of our favorite places in bangor including the pier, the high street, went to a farmer's market in anglesey, and a greek restaurant that's so unique i couldn't even begin to explain it. we also went to the nearing town of caernarfon to visit the biggest castle in north wales. and then again stumbled upon a wonderful old restaurant, and ate one of the best meals i've had in wales.

{the spot where prince charles was crowned prince of wales, 1969}

{canon on the castle grounds}

slowly but surely things are really coming together here in bangor.
my apologies for this being a bit of a long one, but this was a big revelation for me.
until next time.
cheers.

{inside the black boy inn restaurant, within caernarfon walls, built circa 1552}

again, for more pictures feel free to click on the black and white photo at the right, near the top of the page.

north wales.

2009-10-10T14:48:00.000-07:00

highlights from the past week:
the international students department has been sponsoring several events helping us to both meet fellow international students and see Bangor and the surrounding areas. last weekend they sponsored a trip through Snowdonia National Park. during this trip we stopped for a bit in the towns of Caernarfon which holds the largest castle in north wales, and Bettws-Y-Coed, home of the stunning, Swallow Falls. during my time in Bangor, both in walking around and talking with locals i have made the conclusion that Bangor is not the most attractive (architecturally speaking) town in north wales. however, it is within very close distances to some of the most beautiful areas in the country, including the number of places that we visited during this trip. due to this realization i have vowed to take the train somewhere away from Bangor each weekend.
as they say...so much to see, so little time.

{caernarfon, wales}

later in the week, i had the opportunity to listen/watch traditional welsh music, preformed by a young welsh woman singing folk music while playing the harp. as she played, an elderly man sitting in front of me taped his foot steadily, and with less consistency teetered back and forth between humming and singing quiet loudly along with the tunes that were so familiar to him. it's in these smaller moments that i'm able to really feel the welsh culture. often times it can be hard to uncover. in arriving i quickly realized the depth in which american culture has really (and sadly)infiltrated this country. it is not uncommon to hear american music coming from down the hall of my flat, the Simpsons, Friends, and Scrubs are regulars on the teli, and KFC and Subway have even nudged their way into Bangor's high street. it does not become hard to forget that i'm not in the states. however, i'm learning that the further i get away from the uni, the more i'm able to participate in these moments.

{snowdonia national park}

after a very long day of classes (all but, one class is set on thursday). my understanding community class refreshingly, opted out of the normal class setting and went out on a field trip to gain a "concrete" understanding of the community within Snowdonia National Park. my lecturer brought us to a place that he made us swear in secrecy not to share the location of. it was unbelievable, with a perfect view of Snowdon mountain, as well as both Bangor and Caernarfon. each placed in opposite directions far in the distance, making a triangle of sorts around us. the land was freckled with sheep and cattle roaming freely, and clusters of lights outlined the tiny communities spread out among the barren hills. it was made complete with the sun setting on the water behind us, and clouds of smoke raising from various chimneys across the landscape. i could've sat there for hours.

{bettws-y-coed, all of the bldgs are made of this same stone}

{swallow falls}

weaved in between these wonderful experiences and beautiful sights have been a mixture of emotions. these emotions have involved feelings of adventure, joy and wonder. complete with spontaneous smiles and the occasional throwing of my hands in the air as if to more adequately take in all that's around me. it's in other moments that I feel quite confused, unsure, and worrisome. these moment's include "simple" questions such as "why am i here?" "what do i want to do with my life?" and "who am I?". (so maybe not that simple). it becomes a bit like riding a see-saw. while this is not in itself new for me, to do this both in such a beautiful, but unfamiliar place, with out contact with those who truly know me, is proving to be quite interesting. an experience very familiar to that which i had after moving to both Oakland, and Nashville for the first times. however, it comes at a different time in my life, bringing up slightly different questions, and perhaps the answers are coming more slowly.
until next time.
cheers.

{bangor universities, main arts building}

{if you'd like to see more pictures of great britain, you may click on the black and white photo to the right, near the top of the page}

bangor.

2009-10-02T12:23:00.000-07:00

{seagull near bangor's pier}

i started my classes this week. after sorting through the crazy process that is signing up for classes at bangor, i will be officially taking the following: television and radio {mostly about the bbc}, images of wales {looking at both how "outsiders" view wales in theory and tangible images, and how it relates to the ways in which the welsh see themselves etc.}, education in europe, understanding community, and globalization and community.

{the view off the side of garth pier toward bangor, with snowdon in the background}

i'm excited about all of these courses however, the last two hold the most excitement. they are courses taught through the school of "lifelong learning" which basically is for non-traditional students. while my other classes at Bangor hold btwn 50 and 100 students, these two courses have on average 8. i am the youngest by 3 years, next closest would be 26, with the oldest being 68. i became a bit emotional during my first understanding community course as we went around the room telling a bit about ourselves, family, what led us to this class, where we're from, and for the rest of my classmates where they work during the day. many of which were actually employed by the university. not to mention they are all native welsh speakers. my lecturer {who i could listen to talk for hours} encouraged us in our small size, and given the topic of our class to begin to see our class as our own supportive community. which doesn't feel as if it will take long at all. this, is where i will get to participate in the lives of the true welsh. next week we are taking a trip to snowdonia national park to see a concrete example natural community. brilliant.

{some sail boats docked, off of the menai straits}

among the many new phrases and words i'm learning here in britain i thought i'd share a few that i've grown fond of or am trying to "naturally" incorporate into my own vocabulary.
"gorgeous" -specifically referring to food. "nightmare" -anything that's awful. "sorted" -everything's figure out, contentment. "love"- even in the worst situations, being called love seems to make things better (and surprisingly, is not condescending). "cheers" -goodbye, or in place of thank you, often accompanied with "mate" -friend. "rubbish" -physical trash, or nonsense. "brilliant" -this covers a host of words mostly, great/fantastic. "mickey mouse" -stupid looking/comical, or poorer quality. "will do, should do, could do" -common response when asked a question. "proper" -used as an intensifier. "smarmy" -condescendingly flattering. "cabbaged" -intoxicated, or very tired. "crisps" -chips. "chips" -french fries. "chatted up" -hit on. "blimey" -exclamation of surprise. among many more...

{bangor train station}

i've been filling my journal with lots of thoughts, continued with lots of walking up and down hills, listening to a lot of sigur ros, discovering secret paths, taking many photos, drinking many (half) pints (of cider), and trying to learn a bit more about welsh culture all at the same time. i have had my share of challenges amongst this journey, and suspect i will continue to, but have had an equal if not greater amount of "brilliant" memories and insights. it's hard to be somewhere that most things are unfamiliar, but boy does it teach you a lot about both who you don't and who you do wan't to be. i'm trying to make the most of this experience in every way, with daily reminders to do so... i'm hoping to do much traveling, as well as have joined a few "societies" here in town. {most excited about the photography society}

{pigeon}

to sum it up: i'm learning how to be a better friend, a better learner, a better listener, a better leader, a better supporter, a better guest as well as a better host, a better communicator, a better traveler, better at appreciating both the differences and similarities between all people, better at understanding my strengths and my weaknesses, better at being brave, better at being humbled, better at being resourceful, becoming a better photographer, better at being in the moment, a better reader, a better team player, better at having the confidence to ask questions, and i'm learning what it truly means to care about/for one another...i've still got MUCH to learn in these and all areas. until next time.
cheers.

{the view down from one of the many hill's in bangor,
on a clear day you can see the mountains beyond these hills}

england.

2009-09-23T13:13:00.000-07:00

{taken on my walk around the town of marple bridge}

{manchester museum of art}

after three days of orientation in london, me and the three other students studying at bangor university headed to a small town called marple bridge via the train to meet with four families who would be hosting us for the next three days.

{a pub in manchester}

marple bridge is exactly the place that i picture when i close my eyes and imagine a quaint british town. gorgeous green hills freckled with livestock. stone walls guiding paths to classic homes. tiny cars journeying along skinny stone roads.

{the view out the back/side yard of one of the homestay families}

{chatsworth}

we spent most of our time being well taken care of by the group of four families who were already a very close community. the first night we all came together complete with many drinks and a potluck of traditional british cuisine. it was also filled with lots of questions on both sides. the following day was spent exploring downtown manchester spending a good amount of time walking around an art museum, and a bit of shopping. that night we all met at their towns pub or "local". then on for "tea" or dinner, filled with much entertainment.

{one of the modern sculptures displayed around the garden at chatsworth}

the following day i took a walk around the area, went to the local food festival, and all of the mom's, us students and couple of the kiddos explored the stately home called chatsworth. chatsworth happens to be the home of mr. darcy in the most recent "pride and prejudice" and the setting for the movie "the duchess". it was gorgeous and took us almost three hours to walk through the house and around the gardens. that night due to exhaustion on all our parts we each stayed in and had a relaxed night complete with a very delicious meal while watching tv. i was introduced to the british television staples. we watched "strictly come dancing" (similar to dancing with the stars) and " x factor" (similar to american idol). all of the families were more hospitable than i could've ever imagined. and i had a fantastic time. i hope to go back and visit.

i arrived in bangor on sunday afternoon, only to hit the ground running. this week is what the "uni's" here call freshers week . basically the freshman fully celebrate their new found freedom with a lot of "toasts". it has consumed the town, but the business is much appreciated by the local pub's. it's also full of trips, signing up for classes, fairs, and meeting new people. it's been...interesting to say the least. bangor is breath taking, set between the menai straits and the snowdonia mountains. i've been doing lots of walking and have eaten my share of fish and chips and curry. i will give an update after classes have started and things hopefully settle a bit more. until then.
cheers.

austin.

2009-09-12T21:26:00.000-07:00

{hamilton pool}

{karaoke}

bay area.

2009-08-13T14:05:00.000-07:00

{foggy rooftop view in san fran}

{wood street reunion}

{pacific ocean}

{lower bottoms}

{visiting neighbor friends}

{view of the bay area from the plane}

asheville.

2009-08-02T14:12:00.000-07:00

{bele chere}

{conner turned thirteen}

{downtown drum circle}

nashville.

2009-07-29T15:21:00.000-07:00

{holiday world}

{dragon park}

marfa is a unicorn.

2009-07-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

{west texas}

{prada marfa}

{flattening pennies}