|
Leaving Yale to learn about lifeBy Jessica Meyer With the deadline for applications to spend one or two semesters abroad fast approaching, I spent the last week contemplating what exactly I learned from my semester in the Yale-in-London program. From an academic standpoint, the answers are most unsatisfactory. I learned, for instance, that London is the world's most cosmopolitan city (according to my good friend the tour guide). I learned how to say "I love you" in Italian. I learned more than I ever thought there was to know about the London Underground. And I learned that Kuwaiti airline pilots drink not one, not two, but three bottles of vodka on flights between Kuwait and Britain.But none of these things will help me convince you that Yale-in-London was one of the most worthwhile educational experiences that I have had in nearly three years at Yale. Let me first address the common misconception that courses offered at Yale-in-London are easier than classes at Yale. While the workload is intentionally lighter to allow students more time to travel and explore London, the courses were just as intellectually stimulating as those offered here. Indeed, two of my classes this past semester were so close to Yale standards in both content and workload that many of us found ourselves unable to take trips we had planned without serious detriment to our work. The result is that I can now discuss the limited effect of the Italian Renaissance on British art, and identify vast amounts of Shakespeare's work by play, speaker, and act. These are things that can, however, be studied in New Haven. I would probably have learned even more if I had taken the classes at Yale, as I would have focused more on my work without the many distractions that London presents. But I did not apply to Yale-in-London to work as hard as I work at Yale. Rather, I wanted to allow myself a chance to experience London. The city is, after all, the main thing that differentiates Yale-in-London from Yale itself, and it is a city well worth experiencing. The things I will most remember about my semester abroad will be riding the tube everyday, going out to the pub on a Friday, and standing in line for two hours for tickets to a sold-out play. London, like any major cosmopolitan city, offers an extraordinarily rich life. Unlike Yale, however, there are no table tents in London advertising events, and the distances to be traveled to venues are farther than a stroll over to Lynwood. These obstacles make it rather difficult to motivate oneself to abandon the paper you know you have due in a few days and go out, especially for conscientious Yalies. Yet Yale-in-London is still worth the experience. Whether it is just a quiet beer in the pub, a production of Tom Stoppard's new play, or a weekend trip to Paris, the opportunities are there to be taken; it is really just a question of whether or not one takes advantage of them. The same is true of meeting people in London. Because everyone at Yale-in-London shares the same classes and there are no college dining halls, opportunities for making friends outside the program are rare. But again, you have to take the initiative to chat up that cute guy sitting in the pub, to start a conversation with the woman standing behind you in line, or to get the phone number of the man you danced with at that club in SoHo Saturday night. In a place like London, a social life is not going to be handed to you on a silver platter the way it is in a more insular community such as Yale. Ultimately, the rewards of living in London depend on the amount of effort that you put in. Yale-in-London is a program that inspires participants to live life to its fullest, both academically and culturally. So maybe that is what I have learned from my semester abroad--to seize the day. Jessica Meyer is a junior in Jonathan Edwards.
Sites related to this article
|
All materials © 1998 The Yale Herald, Inc., and its staff.
Got any questions, comments, or advice? Email the online editors at online@yaleherald.com.
Like to join us?