Video!!!

Our video for the end of Coming of Age as a Global Citizen. I had the best experiences here, and I wouldn't trade them for the world!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=463cJdlIcek

Coming of Age as a Global Citizen

 Like Karim, we were born in a country with which we have strong connections. We were born in America, while Karim was born in a suburb of London, England. We are studying in teh country where Karim feels his connections, and we will soon be returning to the country where our connections lie. Although this picture was taken in Scotland, it represents our nationality and home.















Each country has traditional outfits that are associated with it. This man is wearing a traditional kilt while playing bagpipes on a street in Edinburgh, Scotland. Karim found out about the stereotypical outfit of India. When he is selected to play Mowgli in The Jungle Book, he is made to wear a loin cloth as his costume. This is not the traditional dress Karim knows. Instead, this is what narrow-minded people like Mr. Shadwell think everyone in India dress - like savages.










                                                                                                   
Many of the sites that we have gotten to see during our time in London are iconic images of London, like this one of the Houses of Parliament. Karim would have been very familiar with all of these sights, having grown up around them.

In order to travel and become a global citizen, we need to have a passport to allow us to travel to other countries. Karim would need a passport to travel to India. This is a picture of my passport that allowed me to travel to London.

By exploring the world through reading, learning, and traveling, we all become global citizens. It is the goal that becoming a global citizen will make us better, more well-rounded people.

Coming of Age as a Writer during the War

In order to write, you must also read. Books from various time periods and about different topics helped expand a writers' imagination and helped them understand the many connotations of words. Briony had not learned or started to understand the different connotations of words when she first started to write. This section of books were on display in the replica 1940s house in the Imperial War Museum.

During some wars, such as the Cold War, people did not feel like they could write how they normally would in letters and stories. Instead of these regular forms of writing, people - especially young people - took to non-traditional forms. This piece of the Berlin Wall is on display outside of the Imperial War Museum. It shows how people anonymously expressed themselves through words and art.

Families got letters from loved ones in the war, whether they were involved in the fight or caught in the middle at home. This letter in the Imperial War Museum was written by Captain T Kerr of the Royal Navy on June 1, 1940 from Dunkirk. It is a joint letter to both his "Dear Adelaide and Gertie" because it will be "a long one" and would have been hard to write twice. He also writes that it is a narration instead of a letter. These are the types of letters that Robbie and Cecilia might have exchanged during the war.

Children also wrote letters, even those that were not involved in the war effort. Many children were evacuated out of London and did not know why. Some looked at it as a fun trip, while others were scared. In this letter from Roy Grimsley, he says that he is happy and will be starting school soon. Many evacuated children wrote back to their parents and relatives in London. Roy was evacuated to Bolton and wrote to his "Mum" in London. He asks about the family pets and asks for them to be mentioned in every letter to him. This is the childish voice that I envision Briony having at the beginning of the novel.

Children kept track of everything that was happening during the war. Even though some children may not have known exactly what was happening around them, many still wrote. These pages on display at the Imperial War Museum are from 1944 from the diary that Robert Wills kept. The boy draws and describes German V1 flying bombs that passed overhead.

Robert Wills was not the only person to keep a diary during the war. A young Jewish girl named Anne Frank kept a diary while she hid in her father's office building in Amsterdam. The diary she kept for 2 years during the war is one of the most widely-read books around the world. She is arguably the most famous young writer. Her diary is still read today by many people.

Coming of Age as a Skeptic and Believer

This street performer set up his drum set on a sidewalk in Oxford. His playing drew a crowd that listened to him and sometimes gave tips. There are times when music is the only thing people have to stay cheerful and to share. The fact that a street performer can draw this large of a constant crowd makes me believe in the power of music.









Charles was a skeptic of things - especially religion. Being a skeptic of religion is almost like trying to find your way through a maze. It is difficult to find your way through the many religions, as this maze was difficult to navigate. I was skeptic about finishing the maze at first...

But we made it! It was difficult along the way, but finding the way in the end is a reward in itself. Charles found religion at the end of the novel, just like I found my way through the maze at Hampton Court Palace.

After living in Houston all my life until college, I began to be skeptic that a large, metropolitan city could look beautiful. This view of London from the top of the Monument commemorating the Great Fire made me believe it is possible. The buildings against the tumultuous sky look surreal and beautiful to me, unlike anything I've ever seen Houston.

I became a believer in soccer and the Chelsea Football Club after touring its stadium, Stamford Bridge. I was a skeptic of soccer because I did not truly understand it. After seeing the story behind the club and the fans' stories, I have become a believer in both soccer and Chelsea F.C.

In a way I am sometimes a skeptic of religion, as many people are at times. My skepticism, though, is nothing compared to that of Charles. Places like the chapel at Christ Church College in Oxford make me question why I am ever a skeptic. If I were a skeptic on the level of Charles, I would think that this chapel would be enough to make me a believer.

Coming of Age as a Traveler

As a traveler like Lucy, the journey could be tiresome and sometimes lonely. Although Lucy had Charlotte and others to keep her company, others during her time were not always lucky enough to know someone else. For this reason, books and diaries would have been a reliable companion for some travelers. A book or a diary is one companion that has stood the test of time. Although this picture was taken at the Geffrye Museum, the idea of books being a companion spans the ages.

Travelers during Lucy's time did not have the luxury of automobiles or planes as we do now. Instead of these fantastic inventions, some people would use carriages to get around town. Although it got a person from point A to point B, it was not always the easiest or most comfortable way to make the trip. This carriage in the Royal Mews is for royal children, but Lucy would have probably used a common carriage that looked similar to this.

Eventually, trains came into use, and carriages were replaced by railroad cars. The railroads were used more often by city-dwellers than by those who lived in the country, like Lucy. Someone of Cecil's class would be more likely to ride a train to his destination than Lucy would be to get to hers. I was a traveler to the city of York, and my family and I used the railroads as our mode of transportation.

Church was a major part of a Christian traveler's life. Faith was sometimes the only thing people had to hang on to during their journeys. The Christianity, church, faith, and traveling are all represented in A Room with a View in Reverend Beebe. He is a clergyman who travels to Italy at the same time as Lucy and Charlotte. This picture of Yorkminster shows the immensity of some of the cathedrals people attended and that Lucy might have seen.

Lucy lived in the country, and specifically Surrey. This is a painting by John Linnell titled "Harvest Home, Sunset: The Last Load." It shows people unloading their harvest items at the end of the day. It happens to be set in Surrey, so a landscape like this is one that Lucy could have seen many times. It is a simple painting, just as England is a simple place for Lucy.  

Someone such as Cecil Vyse, though, is not someone who is used to seeing the countryside. Instead of Lucy's view of home, he sees the big city of London as his home. This is a scene that Cecil might have seen going down the River Thames for work or play. Lucy is not used to this kind of view. This is the view that everyone on this study abroad trip has seen, and it is probably the same view Cecil and Lucy would have seen from the water.

Coming of Age as a Worker

Many times workers had to leave their home for work, wherever work could be found. Jane Eyre must leave her adopted home of Lowood to seek her new situation at Thornfield Hall.

Many times governesses were limited one job situation, which led to many being unhappy with their lack of mobility in life. Although Jane liked her situation as Adele's governess, some others were not so lucky.

Although Jane is paid thirty pounds a year, most governesses were not so fortunate. Most others also did not have the friendly relationship Jane had with her pupil Adele, and were therefore left fairly lonely.

Many workers were confined within a certain area of work, much like this chair is confined to stay inside by this window. As this chair is not bolted down, neither is the worker who always hopes for a chance of a new situation or job. They rarely advanced, though, due to scarcity.

Just like there are many raindrops from the sky, there were many workers. This meant it was not always easy to find new situations.

Although it was not common, some workers were able to change status levels and become part of the middle or even high class, as Jane did when she became an heiress.

It's a Horned Frog life for me

To celebrate me going to TCU, I had purple and white balloons at my senior luncheon.

I am frequently at Billy Bob's Texas, but I have never been there on a Thursday night. Instead of the usual college night, I prefer to go for the great country concerts on Friday and Saturday nights.

I am a proud member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority.

I think I have only missed a couple home football games over my two years as a Horned Frog. I even camped out to see College Gameday broadcast from our beautiful campus commons.

I followed the team to Arizona to watch them in the Fiesta Bowl. The game being in Arizona also allowed me to see the Grand Canyon for the first time.

Then I was lucky enough to get tickets to go to California for the Rose Bowl parade and game - camping out was worth it. I even made it on TV because of the frog hat I'm wearing.

After football season ends, I keep up with TCU sports with the baseball team. I'm sometimes there as a spectator, and other times I'm there as a member of Diamond Darlings getting bats, foul balls and throwing shirts during games.

For my second semester as a Frog, I was lucky enough to wake up to snow for the first time in my life.

The opportunities kept piling up for second semester, as I got to see Lady Antebellum perform right on campus. And now I get another opportunity to see London!