My Life in Cambridge: Chapter the First

Hello Redhot!!!

I write to you in the midst of having to reread Common Sense, fishing for quotes to explain the difference between the American Enlightenment and the British/Scottish Enlightenment for an essay due on Monday. I spent the weekend in Edinburgh, Scotland with the rest of the folks in my summer program, and I brought back a kilt (yes, an actual kilt) and a lambswool scarf, which is so authentic that it makes me smell like a petting zoo when I wear it. I need to wash that thing.

I got to visit The Elephant House, the café where J.K. Rowling wrote Harry Potter, and I had lunch there. (I recommend the lamb pie.) Also, we had a night of traditional Scottish dancing to celebrate July 4th, followed by a rousing rendition of the "Star Spangled Banner." I thought I would never again have a use for the polka skills I had learned from a high school show, but apparently the polka is a major part of Scottish dance...

Some Scottish sheep. They were EVERYWHERE.

The Scottish countryside.

I've been at Kings College in Cambridge for about a week and a half (less if you exclude the Scotland trip), and I'm in love with the place. Not only is it about 20 or 30 degrees cooler than back in New Jersey, it's also incredibly beautiful and full of interesting history. Some of the buildings here date back to the 11th century, yet there's a Starbucks and a McDonald's around the corner. British accents abound. I'm taking classes in European history ("Europe 1890-1990") and security studies ("Constructions of War and [In]Security"), as well as a "supervision," which is basically a directed independent study in which I write an essay a week––so much for having a summer break! My supervision is on the relationship between Europe and America from 1776-1815, and the professor supervising me is great, so the work isn't that much of a pain.

The River Cam behind Kings College.

There are a bunch of Yalies here, and I've met a ton of really cool students from all over the country. But I still miss all of Redhot!!! As much as I don't want this experience to end (and it won't for almost seven weeks), I'll be glad to be back singing with all of you in August. But before then, expect more blog posts from the land of tea and scones!

Cheers!

Noah