Day #18 of Potatoes!!!

Ever hear the rumor/stereotype that people in England eat a lot of potatoes? SO TRUE! I've eaten them every day since I've gotten to England! And I still think they're delicious. My host family is amazing, and they have literally adopted me as their third daughter, taking me on as many "cultural learning experiences" (as my host dad calls them) as possible. Some of the experiences this week included going to Freedom Festival (a live music and arts event which takes place in Hull to celebrate...well...freedom!), biking roughly 40 miles round trip to visit the ocean, wondering around York and touching (yes TOUCHING) the walls that William Wallace touched when he "conquered" England, grocery shopping at a local market, learning all the things I shouldn't say, and getting puked on by a baby (some things never change).

This past week was my first full week of work, and it was quite diverse, so I'll only focus on one part of it for today. One of my responsibilities this week was to help run a school assembly. The children were adorable, especially with their British accents! But other than their accents a few things really stood out to me: It's a law in England that all children must have indoor shoes and outdoor shoes for school. However, some of the children's families can only afford one pair of shoes, so these children are made to either wear their socks or go barefoot. My heart completely broke for them, and I instantly wanted to go out and buy a ton of shoes. But would that actually do anything? On a different note, since there is no separation of church and state, prayer is openly allowed and even encouraged in schools. At the end of the assembly we all gathered around and prayed. It was so powerful to see all of those children bowing their heads openly in prayer alongside their teachers.

Overall, England has already been an incredible learning and serving experience for me. I'm completely psyched for what the rest of this year has in store!

Peace!

The Beginning

Hello everyone!

Getting to England was a little difficult, since the plane I was supposed to take from the States was found to be broken as I boarded it. We took off late and I missed my connecting flight in Germany, so I had to take a few more flights before finally making it to England. But I'm here, safe and sound with an amazing host family!

So far I've spent my time meeting people, wondering around the city, orienting myself to the English lifestyle, and have learned that they have peanut butter, so I don't have to live without it for a year! I've had more tea this week than I have in my entire life. The people here are the most hospitable people I've ever met, and constantly offer me food or something to drink or assistance with whatever I need. One of my new-found friend informed me that the only reason I can't understand her is because she "actually speaks English!" So I have a lot to learn, and am very excited.

~Heidi