Accents and Adventures.

Well, I am writing from my desk in Parliament. Everyday is extremely exciting when you are working in Westminster. For instance, today I went to sit down for breakfast with my researcher and who do I notice sitting next to us? Sir Mingus Campbell, the Deputy Leader for the Liberal Democrats! Anyway, on to substantive matters.

My office got a new British intern from Manchester England. Her name is Salma. It has been really nice getting to talk to someone my age that is British. When I was coming to London, I really expected people to find my accent weird and thought that I would be surrounded by a majority of British people. However, London is so diverse and has so many people coming in and out for business, that I sometimes don't feel like I am in another country. This has changed significantly since Salma came into the picture. She always laughs at different words that I say such as trash, soda, awesome, and Edinburgh (they pronounce it Edinburgh). Her, along with MP and Researcher, are constantly questioning me about the American Political system and social differences. Their questioning has really caused me to examine the system that I am a part of and create an unconscious comparative scheme that allows me to see the differences. It's hard to explain but I feel as if everyone should be forced to live outside of their country for at least a few months in their lifetime. One thing I have thought a lot about is how complacent Americans seem to be with their own country. No one questions if there is anything better out there. The US flag is always flying and most people truly believe that is the best place on earth. My experiences here have shown me that taking time to leave the place you are can actually give you more respect for the country you reside in.

I've always thought that I would like to travel but now I know I NEED to travel. Speaking of travel, this weekend a few of us are heading to Bath, England. Bath is North of London and is home to the traditional public Roman Baths and Churches. I hear it is quite beautiful and am extremely excited to get out of London and see more of England. From what I hear, London is NOTHING like the rest of the country. There is actually a joke that London is not even British anymore because it has become so international. In addition of traveling to Bath, we are going to see the world famous, Stonehenge.

We return from Bath on Saturday evening and depart for Edinburgh, Scotland on Tuesday Morning. We will be in Scotland for 6 days. The program has arranged the trip and has set up lectures inside the Scottish Parliament with a number of SMP's (Scottish Members of Parliament). On the weekend, Dan and I are going to Glasgow to see another slice of Scotland. The next few weeks should be busy but invigorating. Well I must return to work. Working in Westminster is fascinating but strenuous. Signing off.