About This Excursion Of Mine...

So I'm going to London. When? What? Where? How? Who? And so on, right? Let me try to explain about what I will be doing in a few months.

First off, I'm going to London as an International Liberal Arts Colleges Abroad (ILACA) student. Five universities from the Pacific Northwest (Gonzaga University, Pacific Lutheran University, University of Portland, University of Puget Sound and Willamette University) have all partnered together to sponsor an ILACA center in London. The center is made up of students from those five universities. We won't be studying with British students, but we will be taught by British professors. A professor from one of the schools goes with us each semester on an alternating schedule. This fall, actually, Dr. Erkison, from PLU, is there teaching a history class in addition to being the program advisor for the students. In the spring Dr. Share, from UPS, will be the faculty advisor. I'll be staying with a host family in Britain - I don't know who or where yet.

PLU's website had this to say about the program:

Students spend a semester studying in London, England either fall or spring semester. The London program provides students with a study experience in one of the most exciting cities of the world. Courses taught both by Northwest professors and by British professors make extensive use of museums, cultural activities, and the sites of London. Students live with British families and commute by local transportation to classes. Several excursions take students outside London for a look at other parts of England.My program starts on February 4th (a Sunday), and officially ends on May 12th (a Saturday). Then I have my spring break from March 26th to April 1st.

Okay, this is what the ILACA website has to say about London, and why people should chose this program in London:

As Europe's largest city, London is so much more than Roman walls and medieval churches. It is a modern hub of activity where past and present ideas meet as one. No city in the world maintains a population as diverse. Immigrant influences from every corner of the globe give London its rightful name as the world's capital. There is a never-ending array of things to do and see in London: . Roads once traveled by Shakespeare, Churchill, and Virginia Woolf
. The world's largest modern art museum
. From the hippest clubs to the traditional pubs
. Vibrant, urban neighbourhoods and financial market floors
. Hyde Park , Abbey Road , Regent’s Park, Soho and the East End ...
. The Tube (an institution in itself)
. A ride on the London Eye
. Theatre, theatre and still more theatre
. Paparazzi and punks
. The classic sights: Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament,Buckinghamm Palace, Tower Bridge, Westminster Abbey, Windsor Castle and Hampton Court Palace

This website gives a list of the courses available: I, of course, have to take the mandatory class. I'm will probably take 19th and 20th Century English Novel and Empire: The British Experience, 1500-1960. Then, maybe Shakespeare, maybe an art class, maybe a poli sci class.

One of the primary reasons I chose the ILACA program is because of the vast number of excursions that are included in the program. I know that we're going to Stonehenge and Bath; we'll be on an overnight trip to Stratford-upon-Avon (April 27th-28th); a weekend in Wales; three days in Scotland (Feb. 22nd-24th) and more! Plus, we get tube passes included in the price of the program, so we can travel all over on the tube. They've already bought us tickets to the following plays: Taming of the Shrew (Feb. 7th), Antony and Cleopatra (Feb. 12th), Twelfth Night (February 14th), Agrippina (Feb. 21st) and The Tempest (March 13th). Plus, think of all of the museums in London! I can't wait. Though I know I will miss home, I believe I will always remember the things I'll see and do as well as the people I'll meet on this trip.