31 August, 2005
Day 36 - Paris-Rome-Durham
Today I bought the tickets for my first big trip. I bought a train ticket from London to Paris (leaves 12:09pm this Saturday), and a flight from Rome to Durham, which is in the northeastern part of England (leaves 5:20 on Wednesday).
The most amazing part is that the flight from Rome to Durham was only €5.99 (about $7). Well, with all the taxes it came out to be around $30. Wow!
Now I just have to figure out how I'm gonna get from Paris to Rome. I can travel for free on any train in France, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, and Italy, so there are quite a few interesting routes I can take. At the moment, I'm leaning toward concentrating on France, Switzerland, and especially Italy.
I'll still have one or two days left on my rail pass after I get back, so I can hit Germany and Spain on another trip(s). I'm also thinking about day/weekend trips to Ireland, Norway, Sweden, and maybe Poland or Czech.
30 August, 2005
Day 35 - Oxford
Today I went to Oxford. I've been through there several times, as it's quite close to Reading. But I've never really seen Oxford. It's a hard city to see. The old buildings are very nice, but they block your view of everything else. There's no place (on the ground) with a good view of the city. But today I went up into St. Mary's Church tower, and really saw Oxford for the first time.
It's an amazing city. Here are a couple pictures. If you'd like to see more (I took 105 today), just email me.
Two things were very frustrating though. 1) Garbage cans are very hard to find. I had to cary an empty coke can and sandwich box around for about an hour. Then later I had to take my empty coke bottle & cup on the train with me and eventually throw it away in Reading.
2) It's very hard to find cold drinks! It was very warm today, which only made it worse. The Sainsbury's Local had cold drinks, but it also had 20-minute-long line ("queue") to buy anything. Most places just have cans and bottles in refrigerators - which LOOK cold, but in reality the average temperature inside of them is about 60F. I was fooled by one place with a sign that said "cold drinks". I guess their idea of "cold" is anything below room temperature. I stopped at a few cafes to try to at least get a cup of ice, but none of them even had ice. Just warm drinks in the refrigerator. Yuck! Fortunately, I eventually found a place that had ice. I asked for a cup FULL of ice, and a bottle of coke. It probably seemed to them like a strange request.
Otherwise I had a great time there, and will probably go back again before too long. And I was able to make it back to Reading in time for a great healthy dinner with some friends.
29 August, 2005
Day 34 - Kissing
In Britain, some people kiss each other as a kind of goodbye-greeting. It has already happened to me twice this month. The first time it happened, it was quite a shock because I didn't know what it was! It's not like a family member kissing you in the middle of the cheek where your faces are perpendicular (like some family members do in America). This is like halfway between the cheek and the lips, and both people do it at the same time. I'm pretty sure it's only done between people of the opposite sex (if that's not true, I might start avoiding people from now on).
I say "happened to me" because I didn't know what to do so I just kinda stood there. It's a little scary because I really don't know how to do it properly. I don't think faces are shaped quite right for it to be easy to do. And if you're not careful and miss a little to the right, well, that could be bad.
I'm not complaining, not at all. I think it's very nice actually. Other than the initial shock, it made me feel very welcome here.
Day 33 - The Welsh - Part 2
This is the sequel to
Part 1, which I posted on Day 13. Now that I've actually been to Wales and met a lot of Welsh people, I'll comment on some of the things I read about them before going there.
"ugly, pugnacious little trolls" - not true at all. They do tend to have a different look, but I noticed a lot of cute girls there - no more or less than in England. And they were very friendly, nice people - not pugnacious.
accent is "annoying and hard to understand" - Not annoying, but can be hard to understand at times. However, the area I spent the most time (Carmarthenshire) is known for unusually pleasant accents.
"ridiculed" by the English - Yes! On the train back to Reading, some Englishmen were harassing a guy who was wearing a Wales shirt. One of them said "I'm gonna sing the Welsh National Anthem for you because you're so proud of your country Wales." But rather than singing "Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau" (The Land of my Fathers, the real national anthem) he started making sheep sounds - "Baaaaaaa.... baaaaaaa". So mean!!
They don't like the English very much - I don't think that's a fair characterization. They're not particularly fond of the English as a whole, and understandably so. There seems to be a long history of oppression against them by the English. But most don't dislike the English people.
They love rugby - yep!
They are very proud of their heritage - yes, and understandably so!
They're sick of the racism against them in the English media - didn't seem like much of an issue, although North Wales may be different.
The "prince of Wales" - I don't think they're bitter about that, but they're well aware of the history there. My hosts personally know a REAL price on Wales.
Approximately 10-15% of the Welsh people support independence from England. - That wouldn't surprise me, but it's not as big of an issue now as many decisions are now made from Cardiff instead of London.
They love sheep - can't argue with that one!
In summary, I like the Welsh people a lot and I admire them very much. The fact that they're still here (and the fact that their language still exists) says a lot about them. They have a long and very interesting history. I'm even trying to learn some of the language, but I don't think I'll ever get the pronunciation right.
28 August, 2005
Day 32 - Sioe Flynyddol a Mabolgampau
Today I truly experienced Wales. In the morning, my kind hosts drove me all around the Llandovery area and showed me many historic sites there. They also answered all of my many questions about Wales.
Around noon, we went to the Sioe Flynyddol a Mabolgampau (Annual Show and Sports). It wasn't like anything I've ever been to before. They had a dog show, pony show, old engine exhibit, and best of all, sheep dog trials. The sheep dogs were awesome! The dogs had to gather sheep from about 1/4 mile away, lead them through an obsticle course, split the group of sheep in half, and lead them into a pen. It was a competition, as it was all timed. I was amazed at the intelligence of the dogs and obedience of the sheep.
The event was very Welsh. Most of the people there spoke Welsh as their native language. Most of them probably owned sheep themselves - the Welsh are known for sheep (which outnumber people in Wales), and they really seem to love their sheep.
While there, I was introduced to a very well-known Welsh-American author/theologian/broadcaster who now lives in my home state of California. After that, we went down to Llandeilo and saw a very old castle and abbey ruins. In this blog I can't even begin to cover all of the history of that area. It was truly amazing. The scenery was spectacular as well.
My hosts invited me back to Llandovery later this year, and I definitely plan to go back. I also was given another very exciting offer -- to have my Ph.D. dissertation (when it's finished) added to the National Library of Wales!!
(click for larger versions)
26 August, 2005
Day 31 - Caerdydd a Abertawe
Today was the first day of my adventure in Wales. My goal was to experience Wales and learn more about the Welsh people. I always wanted to hear people speaking the Welsh language. I started by going to Caerdydd (Cardiff) and Abertawe (Swansea). Those were very neat cities - I attached a few pictures at the bottom. From Swansea, I wanted to catch the Heart of Wales Line to go through the middle of Wales. Only 4 trains run through there per day, and I ended up having to wait a few hours and take the last train of the day.
As I was riding toward the middle of Wales around sunset, I discovered that I wouldn't be able to get back to Reading until 3:46 AM! Oops! After asking one of the train operators about hotels in Shrewsbury, the nearest major town (which was in fact quite far away, not even in Whales), a Welshman sitting near me on the train started talking to me. He eventually offered to let me stay with him and his wife at their farm near Llandovery, one of the next stops. It seems a little scary to spend the night at a complete stranger's house, especially in a foreign country. But I couldn't resist this opportunity to truly experience Wales. So I accepted.
Shortly after arriving at the farm house, I discovered that this man who I met on the train was no ordinary Welshman. He was, in fact, the President of the National Library of Wales and chairman for the Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies! He has written several books about the Welsh people (one of which, entied "World-wide Wales", he gave me a signed copy). I wanted to learn about the Wales, and there I was at the home of one of the most knowledgable people in the world on the subject of Wales and Welsh people. On one wall were pictures of him with some very well-known people who he had met with -- including Prince Charles, Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and Mary McAleese (president of Ireland) to name a few. He even preaches at a local Welsh-speaking church, and his wife (who made me a wonderful fried egg from their own chickens that night) teaches Welsh at a nearby college!
How amazing is that? Later on he told me that he originally wasn't even planning to be in Swansea (where our train came from) that day, and that he usually doesn't talk to people on the train. We both agreed that it was an example of God's providence.
And the next day was even better, but I'm a day behind on the blogging so I'll write about it tomorrow.
(click on image to see larger version)
25 August, 2005
Day 30 - The first month
I've made it through the first month! I must admit that it was scary at first, and I missed America a lot. I still miss America, but at the same time I'm very happy to be here. In fact, there is no place I'd rather be right now. Having friends and people to talk to makes a huge difference! I think I've made a lot of progress in that area this week. Reading seemed foreign and a little intimidating at first, but now it's starting to feel quite friendly.
My food situation is a bit better - I have a small refrigerator in my room now, a blender, and a basket for carrying stuff on my bike. That helps. Getting food is still a pain sometimes, and still is my biggest problem here, but I think the second month will be easier than the first.
Tonight I went to my first cell group meeting, and like all of my experiences so far with the church, it was great. It was amazing to hear English people pray for me and for America. I hope all Americans appreciate how good of friends/allies we have here in England. Don't let the media fool you. The vast majority of people here are not anti-American in any way -- much the opposite. To celebrate my first month here, I'm planning a much-anticipated trip to Wales tomorrow. I'll be sure to post some pictures here when I get back.
By the way, we had a couple GREAT "air-mass" thunderstorms today. Very Florida-like, even though the high temp was about 59. Northwest flow -> cold air aloft. Relatively warm ocean in August, and plenty of vegetation & soil moisture -> enough moisture. Warm surface during he afternoon -> convection! :-)
24 August, 2005
Day 29 - No twisty ties? C'mon!
I don't want to be a complainer, but this is ridiculous. I've bought loaves of bread at several different grocery stores now, and at each place the bags come sealed with a little piece of tape. I don't understand. Has twisty tie technology not made it to the UK yet? I've been keeping the bags closed with paper clips because the tape doesn't work and doesn't last.
Maybe that has something to do with why bread is so cheap here and why it only lasts like 3 days. On the bright side, some of the bread here is great!!! Today I got some "giant white baps". I don't know what that means, but they look very good for sandwiches.
23 August, 2005
Day 28 - Addicted to UK geography
If I wasn't in England I'd be going crazy right now, because I've developed an addiction to UK geography. I already posted about my fascination for
Wales. But even within England there are so many unique regions, each with different personalities and accents, as well as differences in topography, vegetation, climate, etc. Here's a map of where I've been so far. As you can see, I have the south and west of England pretty well covered.
(map courtesy of Google)As you can see, I've barely touched the north and east. Today I met a former Reading student from the East Midlands (an unexplored region that I knew nothing about) who has already given me a lot of very interesting insight into the East Midlands and other parts of England. She said she likes answering my questions about England, but we'll see if that remains true after the millionth question. If there are very many more people here who like to talk about these things, I may have a hard time getting any work done.
But just to prove that I actually did get some work done today.. I finished the RUF Fall Conference brochure. Well, most of it anyway - still waiting for confirmation on the inside pages. Here's the cover (right) and back (left). I spent a lot more time on it than I planned, but it was fun so I didn't mind.
22 August, 2005
Day 27 - They know the way to SJ
A strange observation... a surprisingly large percentage of people in Oklahoma don't know where San Jose is (when I tell them where I'm from). But almost everyone here in England does! They even (unlike many Oklahomans) understand me when I say it the *correct* way ("SannoZAY" or "Sannuzay"). And they know the
song too. Today I met three people who have been to SJ, including two who have relatives there!
So does this say more about the English or about Oklahomans or Americans?
Perhaps this quote says it all:
"In a country not noted for its geographical knowledge prowess, many Americans have no idea where San Jose actually is." -Wikinews
Maybe I, someone with maps of England on my walls and frequently studies them, can help change that stereotype of Americans, at least in the RG2 area. But then again, maybe that stereotype is true!
21 August, 2005
Day 26 - Talking England
During my first 25 days in England, I haven't talked to people very much. I want to change that. But I've always had a hard time talking to people. Much of the reason is, let's face it, most of the things I like to talk about are pretty boring to normal people. And the things I can talk about easily tend to be things that can't easily be brought up in casual conversation.
Today I realized that being in England turns much of that around. As a general rule, I find it easiest (and most fun) to talk to people who know a lot about a particular subject -- even more so if it's one I'm interested in. A great thing about being in England is that everyone here knows a lot about the UK, which is a subject I'm very interested in!! People here seem to enjoy talking about England, especially if they're from a different part of England. But no matter what the subject is, I learn something about England by it. Notice I said "UK" at first instead of "England" -- I absolutely LOVE hearing English people talk about the Welsh, the Scots, and the Irish. It's hillarious! So much better than just reading about them on
Wikipedia. And it's just as fun when people here in the South talk about the brummies, scousers, geordies, etc. I don't mean to imply that it's in a derogatory way -- most/much of it is not. But it's amazing that there's such variation in people across such a small island(s).
Today I went to church in the morning, friend's house for lunch (had chicken with very good homemade bbq sauce that tasted nothing like american bbq sauce), and a worship/prayer meeting run by another church here aimed at international students (i'm a foreign student now, so weird!). At each place, I had a GREAT time talking to people. I learned a lot. And I got a lot of question about America too -- that's always fun. I like English people a lot, and not just because they're "actual English people" and know so much about the UK. Deep down, I think they're really not much different from you and me. They are different somehow, but I can't quite put it into words.
20 August, 2005
Day 25 - Royals and Sooners
Today I went to
Comet to pick up a few things and ran into a sea of people wearing blue horizontally-striped shirts, all walking toward Majedski Stadium. I, wearing my red Sooner shirt, soon realized what everyone was flocking to.
Reading FC was playing today against Millwall. By the way, Reading won 5-0 and moved into the lead in their league! If they ever move up to the Premiership league, maybe I'll become a big fan? ... Naaahh, probably not.. it's still only soccer.
It reminded me very much of Norman on a Sooner football game day. The only differences were in the color and the sport. Most OU football fans couldn't care less about a soccer game, much less Reading FC vs. Millwall. In fact, they care about as little as Reading FC "football" fans care about American college football. Otherwise, it was a very similar feeling -- I almost felt like I was back home. It's neat to find such similarities between two places that are so different.
I'm finally feeling better today. I made a lot of progress on the new
CTK church bulletin and I'm ready to start working on the
RUF fall conference brochure, hereticzone.com, and of course, my model/dissertation. I plan to go to church tomorrow and after that get ready to visit Wales on Monday. At least that's the plan as of now.
One last irrelevant note - today I started using my UK keyboard. It's strange and kinda hard to use, but I'm starting to get the hang of it.
19 August, 2005
Day 24 - Global warming
Earlier today, I was actually thinking about posting something about global warming, but decided that people have already heard enough of my opinion on that issue. Well, today I read a comment from my friend Norman wanting to hear my thoughts on
this article, published today in the Independent -- only an hour or so after I finished reading several
similar articles in the Guardian. Now I can't resist.
Global warming is a big issue here in the UK. After hearing that I'm a meteorologist and from America, it's one of the first things people ask me about. It appears to me that the theory that humans cause global warming by increasing atmospheric CO2 concentrations is taken for granted here. Of course, the same is generally true in America and most other countries as well.
One of the major reasons why some people in the UK (and around the world) have negative opinions about America is its refusal to adopt the
Kyoto Protocol. I've seen this
attributed to President Bush, though it President Clinton who first rejected it. I can see the other countries' point of view: The Americans pollute more than anyone else, yet they aren't willing accept measure to reduce it. Meanwhile, they are contributing to a change in the world's climate that affects all of us. They see the ones who oppose Kyoto (or question global warming) as unenlightented, ignorant of science, and selfish.
Well, I'm a research meteorologist who studies climate-related issues, and here are some of my thoughts about it, both scientifically and politically:
The scientific case for human-caused global warming is GREATLY overstated by environmentalists and political activists.
There is evidence that the earth has been warming over the past few decades, at least near the ground.
It is true that atmospheric CO2 concentrations have increased significantly over the past several decades
I think a majority (although a much smaller majority than environmentalists suggest) believe that elevated CO2 does/will increase the earth's temperature.
The relationship between these two is not known, and is a subject of debate.
Humans certainly do change the local climate by urbanization and deforestation, but it is unknown whether rises in CO2 have a significant impact on the global climate.
Much of the historic climate data is "tainted" by the fact that urban areas have moved closer to historic observing stations during recent decades.
Global Climate Models (GCMs) generally predict a rise in the earth's temperature (of a few degrees) over the next century or so.
GCMs are very crude, and do not represent many important processes that affect the climate.
A 4% error in cloud cover, for example, would completely eliminate the global warming forecasted by most GCMs.
The atmosphere is remarkable in the way it tries to reach equilibrium. For every process that would act to increase the temperature, other processes are there to counteract it. I think this is an example of God's wonderful design.
Many scientists believe recent climate changes are related to sunspots rather than CO2. Some have even bet large amounts of money that the earth's temperature will actually cool in 10-20 years.
It is very unlikely that America's adoption of the Kyoto treaty would have any significant impact on the earth's climate over the next hundred years.
Meteorologists involved in government policy seem more likely to believe in global warming than researchers outside Washington DC. (simply from my experience, I could be wrong here)
Politically conservative meteorologists seem more likely to reject human-induced global warming than liberal ones.
Scientists in other related disciplines, such as Botany and Geography, are more likely to believe in human-induced global warming than those in Meteorology.
On the other hand, there is financial incentive for meteorological institutions to promote global warming as an important issue and not to contradict the theor that humans cause it. (I'm not accusing anyone here, just stating a fairly obvious fact)
Some (particularly freshman) meteorology students (including myself before I knew better) simply dismiss global warming without seriously looking into it - I think it makes them feel superior in some way to people who blindly believe in it.
Otherwise, generally the people who are most sure that humans cause global warming (and that it's a problem) are the ones who know the least about the issue scientifically. Meteorologists/climatologists who actually study it tend to be much more unsure and divided about it.
The question that's usually not discussed (perhaps even taboo in many circles) is whether global warming is good or bad. Though there would definitely be drawbacks in some areas, I think a compelling case can be made that global warming might benefit the world as a whole, perhaps more so in the poorer countries.
So there you have it. I'm not trying to advocate a particular position here, either scientifically or politically. I don't know enough to say whether or not humans cause global warming (other than local microclimate changes) or whether the earth's temperature will rise over the next 100 years. But I can say that the case for global warming has definitely been exaggerated, and the harsh criticism of America for not signing the Kyoto treaty is unfair at the very least. In an ideal world, scientists would not let their political views influence their research, and people with political agendas would not make bold claims about scientific issues they know little about. But I think both will continue for a long time, especially with regard to global warming.
18 August, 2005
Day 23 - Islam in Europe
I'm still sick, but starting to get better. Today it gave me plenty of time for reading and thinking. Two questions have been on my mind a lot today: Is Islam on its way to becoming the dominant religion in Europe? And if so, what are the implications of that?
Here in the UK, approximately 72% of the population is Christian and 3% is Muslim. But that doesn't tell the whole story. According to polls, only about 7% of the Christians attend church regularly. Of that 7%, another poll shows that 32% do not read the Bible outside of church. Thus, the percentage of (what I would consider) practicing Christians in the UK is only about 3.5%, not much different from the percentage of Muslims, most of which are practicing.
In France, the Muslim population is exploding. Practicing Muslims already outnumber pracicing Christians there. Some project that Muslims will outnumber non-Muslims in France (and perhaps all of western Europe) by 2050.
The dramatic rise in the Muslim population of Europe is mostly the result of immigration and relatively high birth rates. Unlike most Muslim immigrants to the U.S., they tend to be poor, uneducated, and are concentrated in ghetto-like areas where they form the vast majority of the population. Thus, European Muslims do not assimilate into the culture as much as American Muslims.
What are the political implications of this? Secular liberals, especially in the U.S., seem very tolerant of Islam (as opposed to Christianity, of which they are generally not very tolerant). But that may not be so true in places where Islam is a bigger force. France recently banned the wearing of religious symbols (including veils) in schools, which created a huge controversy. It'll be interesting to see the clash between liberal secularism and Islam as the percentage of Muslims increases. These two worldviews, in my opinion, are very incompatible.
This affects America as well. I think it had at least something to do with the opposition by some european countries to the war in Iraq, for example. And it may be a source of conflict in America's war on terror (particularly radical Islam and countries that support it).
I'd love to hear what you think about all this.
17 August, 2005
Day 22 - Still sick, TV recording
Today was even less eventful than yesterday, as I have been sick and home resting all day. My family left this afternoon, which was sad. It was great to see them again. I had a great time while they were here, and they helped me a lot. I will get to see everyone (in Norman and in San Jose) in about 4 months so I'm looking forward to that. Tonight I received an unexpected call from my aunt Merri which helped cheer me up.
I finally got my Norman TV recording/encoding system working so today I was able to watch the Seinfeld and King of the Hill episodes that I recorded during the past week. Now I'm all set for the OU football season. I'm looking forward to that, but I'll miss being able to flip between channels and watch 5 different games at the same time (the internet connection only gives me 50K/s between here and my house, so the live stream is frustrating to watch - recording them and watching them later works much better, but I can only record one at a time). And I won't be able to listen to the analyses on the radio either. But that's probably good news, because it'll give me more time to analyze nocturnal boundary layer decoupling and less time wasted analyzing most of the teams in college football.
16 August, 2005
Day 21 - Sick
Today I was sick, so I didn't do much. My youngest brother Torrey also was sick, so he stayed at the hotel and rested while I rested at home. My mom & dad & brother TJ went to London. They visited
Bluewater, Britain's largest mall, but were not impressed with it after seeing the Trafford Centre in Manchester. They had a nice drive back through London and saw some nice cars on the road, including a $750,000 SLR McLaren and several Ferraris. That's something I like about London. A lot of very rich and famous people live there, so it's loaded with high-end merchandise that can't be seen in Oklahoma.
15 August, 2005
Day 20 - B'ham, Manchester & Blackpool
Today my family and I went to Birmingham, Manchester, and Blackpool. I've been to B'ham several times, and it'll always be one of my favorite places. Listening to Birmingham
radio stations was one of the things that made me interested in going to England (my office mate from OU was from the B'ham area).
After that, we went to Manchester. It was a beautiful city. A good mix of old and modern. It was very clean and nice. The traffic wasn't nearly as bad as London or even Reading. In some ways it was more like a U.S. city. We spent a lot of time at the
Trafford Centre, a large mall just off the M60, which circles the city. I don't usually like going to malls, but this was an exception. The food court was amazing. I've never seen anything like it in a U.S. mall. The closest I've seen was in the
Venetian and
Paris hotels in Las Vegas -- two reasons why Las Vegas is such a spectacular and unique city. This place certainly makes Manchester stand out.
Later we went to
Pleasure Beach in Blackpool, home of the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Europe. It's in a great location along the beach in northwest England. It was kinda like the
Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk but with more/better rides.
The batteries to my small camera are dead because I haven't been able to plug in the charger yet. But here are a couple pics from the car using my big camera:
14 August, 2005
Day 19 - Blackpool
Today I'm leaving for Blackpool with my family. Blackpool is about 200 miles NW of here on the northwest coast of England. I'll write more about it (including pictures) after I get back.
13 August, 2005
Day 18 - Restaurants - less for more
My family has been having a lot of trouble finding restaurants lately. It used to be so easy... just drive up the I-35 frontage road in Norman and you'll see tons of nice, clean, newish restaurants where you can get a good dinner, big enough portions, and unlimited ice-cold drinks for around $10-15 per person. You can do that in pretty much any American city. Not in England. Not even close.
The $13 Outback Special doesn't exist here. But you might get something comparable (although probably very bland) for $25-30. That's just not very practical for a family of 5 or 6. Free drink refills? Forget about it. They don't seem to exist anywhere. It's another $3 or more for another small glass of Coke at most sit-down restaurants.
The $3.79 meal deal at Burger King or McDonalds doesn't exist either. A typical meal at Burger King is almost $9, and you don't get free refills there either. A family of 5 could spend $50 on a meal at Burger King or KFC.
I understand that most people here don't eat out very often. And I know that $9 is not totally unaffordable for a fast-food meal. But it bothers me a lot... not because I can't afford it, but because I always know that no matter what I'm eating, I could be getting something much better (and with bigger portions & free drink refills) for much less $$££ back in Norman.
Day 17 - London with family 2
Today we went to London again. We had some interesting adventures today. Here are a few pictures:
11 August, 2005
Day 16 - London with family 1
Today I went to London with my family. Not enough time to write about all the places we went to, but here are a few pictures:
10 August, 2005
Day 15 - Windsor Castle
Today I went to Windsor Castle with my family. The inside was amazing, but no photography was allowed. Here are a few pictures of the outside:
09 August, 2005
Day 14 - Family and technology
My family arrived this afternoon!!! They'll be here for 8 or 9 more days. I'm so happy to see them!!!
Today we didn't do much. We spent a lot of time looking for a hotel, which is not easy to do here, but eventually found one. We went to the Toby Carvery for dinner, which is one of my favorite places here. Then we went to ASDA and as usual it was fun looking at all the different foods and drinks.
Tomorrow we're planning to go to Windsor Castle and maybe a few other things around the Windsor/Reading area. I'm looking forward to that.
Something that I've noticed, and my family noticed immediately, is that a lot of basic things just don't work as well here. Lights, doors, toilets, showers, windows, heaters, ... they seem to be older technology and of lower quality in general.
Maybe that's not as true about newer places in England, but there aren't very many new places in England. It might be because we're so used to relatively young cities like Norman and San Jose, which barely existed 50 years ago. I've seen pictures of Reading from around 1900 and it looked very much like it does today. However, even new items in stores seem to be of slightly lower quality - for example, many of the electronics have a cheap plasticy feel to them, much like the newer electronics sold at the
Beryessa Flea Market.
08 August, 2005
Day 13 - The Welsh, part 1
Ever since I saw a map of wales and the strange city names, I've been fascinated by the Welsh language. Since reading more about Wales yesterday, I've also become fascinated by the Welsh people. Here are some things I've heard or read about them lately, mostly from the English perspective.
They have been described as "ugly, pugnacious little trolls"
Their accent is described as "annoying and hard to understand"
They often are "ridiculed" by the English
The English have "thousands" of jokes about them.
They apparently don't like the English very much
They love rugby
They love to sing
They are very proud of their heritage
Their football (soccer) skills are described as "like little kids playing in the street"
They don't like to be called "English"
They're sick of the racism against them in the English media
The "prince of Wales" has been from the English royal family for centuries. They tricked the Welsh into believing they would have their own monarch.
Approximately 10-15% of the Welsh people support independence from England.
All of these things are very interesting to me, especially considering that Wales is only 90 minutes from Reading. The train I take home from London is the same one that goes to Cardiff (Caerdydd), the largest city in Wales.
It's amazing (and extremely interesting) that there are such large cultural difference across such a small area, not just between England and Wales but across the entire British Isles, and even within England itself. I am very much looking forward to visiting Wales. I'm also interested in learning about the other peoples within easy visiting distance (i.e., the Scots, Irish, Geordies, Cockneys, Brummies, and Scousers). I'm learning a lot about what Reading/London think about them, but I'd love to hear about Reading/London people from their perspective.
A few interesting sites about the Welsh:
Wales on Wikipedia
WelshJokes.com
Guild of Glyndwr
And last but not least, my family will be arriving here tomorrow!! I can't wait!
07 August, 2005
Day 12 - Different perspectives
This morning I attended the
Reading Family Church. It was much different from the two previous churches I visted. I knew that going in, as the web site said it was "charismatic". But it also was much different demographically. The congregation had approximately 50 people today, but is usually more like 100 -- many of the distant students and holiday travelers were not there today. But still it seemed (age-wise) like a pretty representative sample of Reading, including a lot of people around my age.
In many ways it reminded me of
Riverside Church in Norman, though not as big. Like Riverside, it was charasmatic to the extent that people showed significant emotion, but it wasn't overly emotional or pentecostalish (I didn't see anyone shaking out of control or anything like that). They clapped during most of the singing. I liked that. I did it too, though it did feel a little strange after being at
Christ the King so long. I thought the music was right on -- it was reverent, biblical, contemporary, soulful, but not shallow.
I met some very nice people there. After the service, I was invited to a barbeque. I ended up staying there until around 5:30. Normally I wouldn't like to sit around and chat for so long, but this time I enjoyed it very much. Rather than just a lot of small talk, the group at the barbeque had some very interesting conversations, from which I learned a lot.
One of the things we talked about were differences between America and England, including why they (remember, these were charismatic Christians who are quite conservative socially) liked Bill Clinton but dislike George W. Bush. They liked Clinton because of his personality and good speaking/debating skills. They saw him as someone who looked like he could be the leader of such a powerful country. Similarly, they like Tony Blair because he presents himself as a good leader. As for Bush, it was not so much his conservatism or particular policies that they didn't like, but more his attitude and speaking skills, and how he didn't really work his way up to the top politically. It was very interesting. I just assumed that people in England didn't like Bush because they're all liberals, but that is definitely not the case.
I spent a lot of time talking to another guy there, around my age I think, who had just returned from a trip to India. I went to his house for a while before and after the barbeque, which was about a block away. He asked about my view on Global Warming and the Kyoto treaty, which is always something I'm happy to talk about. He also had some interesting perspectives on politics, theology, and America & Britain, which are some of my favorite topics. I later learned that he's a big fan of
John Piper and
Jonathan Edwards, and read a book about the Trinity in the Old Testament - he even knew what I was talking about when I mentioned the trinitarian language in the Aramaic targums. Anyway, as most of you know, I love talking to people about these topics, so it's great to find someone here who's also interested in them.
Also, the people at the barbeque gave me a lot of useful information about the Reading/London area. And they explained the English soccer ("football") leagues to me. I might actually be a little interested in it. I don't like soccer as a sport, but the same was true about (american) football when I first moved to Norman. Seeing the way people here go nuts over it just might be enough to make me interested in it, as was certainly the case with OU football.
I might visit a couple other churches to see what they're like, but I'm pretty sure this will be my church while I'm here. By the way, one last thing -- they thought it was very funny that I seriously would've voted for Arnold Schwarzenegger if I still lived in California.
06 August, 2005
Day 11 - Phone number
I now have a phone number! Well, kinda. You can reach me at
(408) 426-8161. It's a free local call in the San Jose area and a regular U.S. long-distance call for anyone else in the U.S. The only catch is that I have to be using the computer to receive your call. However, you can leave a voice mail at any time and I can call you back later if you want me to.
If you need to reach me right away for some reason, I should be getting a cell phone in the next week or two, but it will have a UK phone number.
By the way, if you don't already have my mailing address, it is:
Matt Haugland
Sherfield Hall
Northcourt Avenue
Reading, Berkshire
RG2 7EY
Great Britain
... but only until September 23. It'll change slightly after that.
Otherwise, not much happened today. I was able to submit one of my two abstracts for the AMS (American Meteorological Society) annual conference, 29 Jan. - 2 Feb, 2006 in Atlanta. The title is - "The Crosstimber Micronet: An automatic microscale surface observation network". I plan to submit my other abstract tomorrow, which will be called something like "The impact of meoscale wind speed on microscale temperature gradients".
05 August, 2005
Day 10 - Other sides of London
I used to think most of London looked pretty much the same. I was wrong.
Today I explored several new parts of London. First, Picadilly Circus. I think "Circus" is a good name for it, because it was packed with people during the early afternoon and at night. After that I walked to Leicester Square, which led me through through Chinatown and Soho, London's "red light district". It seemed mostly like a tourist trap now, although there were several stores with big signs that said "Sex Shop". As you might suspect, I walked through there pretty quickly.
Leicester (pronounced "Lester") Square was neat. There were TONS of restaraunts and pubs. For £1.30 I got a slice of one of the best pizzas I've ever had. From there I went up toward Hapstead Heath, but decided to stop first at Camden Town. I'm glad I did. Wow!!! That is a unique place! The people there wore all kinds of wacky clothes and all sorts of bizzare hair styles. The area was full of shops, including several tattoo and piercing places, a bong shop, and many clothing shops that sold the kinds of bizzare outfits that people were wearing there.
Only two underground stops north of Camden town was Belsize Park and Hapstead. You wouldn't believe this place is so close to Camden Town (I think it's actually in the borough of Camden). It reminded me of a very old (1800's) version of downtown Saratoga, CA - as opposed to Kensington which looks a lot more like Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills. Many upscale shops and cafes, and some very nice houses. Hampstead Heath was pretty close. It's a very nice park in the hills with views of the city. Although I think many things are better (newer, nicer, bigger) in America, parks are a big exception. Every park I've seen so far in England is better than any park I've seen in Oklahoma. Hampstead Heath was probably the nicest of those.
After that I went down to South Kensington to the Natural History and Science museums. Unfortunately, they were closed. They close at 5:50 and 5:45, respectively. I think that's crazy! There are some things about England that I'll probably never understand, and the times at which certain places close is one of them. I'll have to go try those again, because they look spectacular, at least on the outside.
I went to a few other places, but this is already getting long so I'll stop. One last thing -- on the way home, I walked through the Oxford Circus area and the pubs were PACKED! The same was true to a lesser extent in Reading on the way back. People here love the pubs! There's no doubt about that.
(Camden | City of London from Hampstead Heath)
04 August, 2005
Day 9 - Not in America
Today I saw several things that I've never seen in America.
1. On the way to the Meteorology department, I thought I was lost because the trail that leads to the meteorology building looked more like a remote hiking trail in the Santa Cruz Mountains than anything I've ever seen in the middle of a university campus. Though it's similar in size to the OU campus, the Reading campus has at least two lakes and a forest, with trails going between them. While on the trails, you can't see anything even resembling a university building.
2. After that, I went to get lunch at a nearby fish & chips place. It had a "Closed" sign on the door. Under that there was another sign saying the owners were on a holiday so the restaraunt will be closed for the next couple weeks. Also unlike America, many of the fast-food restaraunts here are closed during the afternoon.
3. On the way home, I went to a park that appeared to have tennis courts. On closer inspection, they were not tennis courts at all, but a row of small fenced in SOCCER FIELDS. And several of them had games going. That's just wrong!
4. Next to the soccer courts was a small green field with very short grass, similar to a putting green. It was a bowling green. I just thought "bowling green" was a city in Kentucky, but apparently people here bowl outdoors on grass.
5. Right behind the bowling green was a large field where people were playing cricket! It was the first time I've seen a real cricket game being played. It looked strange but kinda fun.
03 August, 2005
Day 8 - Thinking ahead
I wonder if the British are not very good at thinking ahead. Take the road layout for example. It obviously wasn't designed to accomodate much future population expansion, not to mention the invention of cars. London doesn't even have any freeways, except the M25 which circles the outskirts - compare that to L.A. or San Jose, which have freeways and expressways everywhere. Though it's handy for a student like me (I don't mind that it's faster to get places by bike than by car), it must be very frustrating for people who live here -- unless they just don't know how easy we have it in the U.S.
And then there's the lack of air conditioning. At first it might seem like a good way to save money, considering that it's usually not needed. But what about when it is needed? Last night was a little too warm to sleep, so I kept the window wide open. Now my room is starting to collect bugs, and there's not much I can do about it. Maybe I could try a fan, but that doesn't actually change the temperature. I've heard that the standard UK heaters aren't very good, but I guess I'll find out in a couple months. In fact, I'm starting to look forward to the cold weather, which shouldn't be too far away.
Speaking of weather, I learned something today that surprised me a lot: the average annual rainfall in London is only 23 inches! Somehow I thought it was at least 40. London is known as a gloomy, rainy place. But places with only 23 inches (Woodward, for example) are considered "dry" for Oklahoma. It's not new to me -- the Cambrian Park area of San Jose (where I grew up) also gets about 23 inches/year. East Norman gets about 36, which might actually be somewhat equivilent to London's 23 because of the lower temperatures (and thus, less evaporation) in London. Okay, enough weather statistics.
Although it doesn't rain a lot here, it does rain OFTEN. It's similar to Seattle in that way. But in a Seattle, you almost ever need an umbrella downtown because the sidewalks are generally covered by large overhangs. Very few sidewalks in London (and Reading) are covered, so you risk getting soaked if you don't bring an umbrella.
02 August, 2005
Day 7 - 75 degrees: too hot
Today was the first rain-free day since I arrived. It was quite sunny, with a high temperature around 75F. I never thought I'd be saying this, but it seemed a little too warm for me. A 90-degree day in Norman feels rather cool, but a sunny 75-degree day here feels too warm.
Why? One reason is that air conditioners are extremely rare here. The average indoor temperature here is at least a few degrees higher than in Norman on the typical 94-degree summer day. Often it's a few degrees warmer than outside, which means on a 75 degree day, many places are near 80 inside, which is a little uncomfortable.
Another reason is that I (and most people who live here) do a lot more walking and bike riding than the typical person in Norman or San Jose who drives everywhere - and in an air conditioned car at that. When riding a bike up hills or briskly walking a few miles, the usual cloudy 67-degree southeast England day is just about perfect.
It's hard to imagine what it's like during those "heat waves" when it gets up into the 80's and 90's. Hopefully that won't happen while I'm here, because I can't sleep very well if it's above 70 in my room.
By the way, I always keep my window open, and there is no screen. Surprisingly, there are still no bugs in here. Try doing that on a summer night in Norman!!
