Berlin Marathon, History Museum and a Long Ride Home

No wonder there was no vacancies last night at the hotel!  Today happened to be the day of the Berlin Marathon - we managed to see the runners pass by a street about a block away from the hotel.  Afterwards, we decided to go see the Story of Berlin Museum, an interesting interactive museum that traces the turbulent history of Germany's capital from the time it was founded to the present.  After a leisurely morning in Berlin, we headed off to the Central Bus Station to catch a bus from Berlin to London.  Although the bus takes 19 hours to get to London, we figured this was the best choice because the Berlin trip was coming out to be more expensive than we initially anticipated and this was the least expensive option.  Given the reputation of these kind of buses in the US, I was a little worried about what I was getting myself into, but things turned out better than I expected.  There were only about 15 people on the bus so there was plenty of room, the passengers all seemed like friendly budget travelers, and the bus had a bathroom (always a plus on a long ride).  Here's to hoping the bus ride goes well...

Berlin Zoo and... Crap, We Missed Our Flight!

The Berlin Zoo's Oriental Elephant Gate

http://www.bargaintraveleurope.com/07/Germany_Berlin_Zoo.htm

 

Today was supposed to be a nice relaxing day at the Berlin Zoo in the morning and then we were supposed to catch our flight to Paris.  The Berlin Zoo was nice - it houses the world's broadest variety of species and the set up of the Zoo Garden is nice.  The problem is, we had the time of the flight l wrong (had the ticket for a different flight on top) and ended up spending too much time at the zoo and missed our flight!  From there it was a nightmare - trying to figure out how to get back to London (our original plans were to fly from Paris) and where to spend the night (or the next few nights if we could not find a way to get out of Berlin).  We went back to the hotel we were staying at to see if we could stay another night, but they were fully booked.  We asked around several other surrounding hotels, but they happened to be fully booked as well.  We did manage to find a vacancy at Hotel Berlin Berlin - this was a lifesaver.   Now to try and figure out how to get back to London....

Potsdam

The New Palace

Having seen a lot of the can't miss attractions in Berlin, we decided to do a day-trip to nearby Potsdam today.  After a little over an hour on the train, we arrived and set out to explore Potsdam on foot.  We managed to see quite a few interesting sites, with the highlights being the Sanssouci and the New Palace.  This was a lot of walking though - the two palaces are opposite ends of Sanssouci Park, and since there is a clear path to the other palace it looked a lot closer than it actually was! We probably walked over 2 miles just to get to the other palace.  All in all, another good day of sightseeing.

Museum Island and Schloss Charlottenberg

My friend Jared in front of the reconstructed Pergamon Altar

Yesterday, we briefly walked around Museum Island, a museum complex literally located on an island in East Berlin.  Museum Island is considered a UNESCO World Heritage site and contains 5 internationally significant museums.  Today, we bought a Museum Island pass and decided to spend time exploring what these museums had to offer.  My favorite museum here was the Pergamon Museum, which holds an enormous reconstructed ancient Greek temple (The Pergamon Altar) in the main room.  After spending time at Museum Island, we tried currywursts from a market (basically a hot dog with curry powder - quite popular in Berlin for some reason) and then headed to Schloss Charlottenberg, a Prussian royal palace on the West side of Berlin.  It was quite an impressive building, but we did not have much time to take it in.  We did manage to have another great German dinner - the best roast pork I have ever eaten smothered in - you guessed it - beer gravy.  

Walking Tour of the City

Checkpoint Charlie - one sight on a memorable walking tour!

Today we went on a walking tour of the city with Original Walking Tours.  I would definitely recommend doing one if you are visiting Berlin!  There is so much recent history here (Cold War and the Berlin Wall) in which some narration goes along way towards understanding what Berlin is all about.  Our Walking tour was truly a memorable experience - we learned about destruction to the city during WWII, the events leading up to the construction of the Berlin Wall, escape stories from East Berlin to West Berlin, and a lot more fascinating things all while walking from one interesting sight to another.

 For dinner, we had a very good German meal -  veal meatloaf, with mashed potatoes and beer gravy to go with beer on tap!  I am generally health conscious when it comes to eating, but I do admit that it feels good to eat manly food like this once in a while!  

Hallo, Berlin!

Today, my friend and I arrived in Berlin bright and early after a sleepless night.  It took us a little while to find our hotel, and when we did, we took a power nap and then set out to sightseeing.  We stuck around West Berlin near our hotel today and managed to see the Victory Column and we also were able to orient ourselves a little bit in our area (in relation to the nearby attractions Europa Center, Zoo Station, Berlin Zoo, Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial Church, etc.)  Ready to see a lot more tomorrow!

Sigh of Relief

In a previous entry, I mentioned how all the classes I take this year will be factored in towards my GPA and that I may fail one course because I did not get a course approval from the appropriate department back at Emory.  This was something that really scared me and I was prepared to accept the fact that I may fail a class that I did really well in due to my misunderstanding of my school's study abroad program.  However, I was saved by the Emory Economics Department, who granted credit as an exception for the class in question, AC100.  This was great news right before my Euro-trip.  My word of advice - while you are abroad, you feel like you are a whole different world with new rules - but make sure you know the rules of your home university well - especially about the courses you take while abroad!  I was very lucky - but the outcome would have been very different if the Emory Economics Department had not acted exceptionally.  

The LSE Problem Part One

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovmHfMKHuY8

Above is a screenshot of a video on YouTube that is making its rounds among LSE students.  The video pokes fun at ambitious students who come to LSE to get on the fast track to a job in the financial world. Obviously, the video is an exaggeration (for comedic effect) of what goes on at LSE - I have met many people at LSE who have a lot more on their mind than getting an internship and are genuinely interested in studying and learning "the causes of the things" (the LSE motto).  Also, many of the people I have met are active members in the LSE community and know how to have a good time.  Yet, there is also some truth to the video.  For instance, many students at LSE tend to go on the path described below :

 Acceptance into LSE -> Spring Week ->  Summer Internship -> Job Offer -> Graduation -> Job in Finance  

 Also, the depiction of the teaching style here and the difficulty of the classes is largely true.  Definitely worth a watch if you are considering a year at LSE...

Selfridges

Today, I went farther along Oxford Street than I normally do and visited Selfridges, a high end department store.  As a student, this place felt a little out of my price range - I was surrounded by (very) expensive suits, purses, and dresses, among other things on the ground floor, but it was a good experience.  Later, I went to the food court and got some of Pierre Herme's famous macarons (this is the only place they are sold in the UK).  They have some very interesting flavor combinations and are affordable in small quantities - definitely worth a try.    

Chinese New Years Celebration on Clare Market Street

Last week, there were parades and festivals in London (the biggest celebrations near Leicester Square and Trafalgar Square) to celebrate the Chinese New Year.  I felt a little disappointed that I missed out on these celebrations, but as a consolation prize, I did manage to see an LSE group doing its own Chinese New Year Celebration on campus today.  The celebration consisted mostly of a couple people in a dragon costume and another banging a gong.  The gong was awfully loud - I wonder what it was like for people in class at the time...

British Music?

One of the things I was excited about sampling before I came to the UK was British music.  Truth be told, I am not the biggest fan of American pop music and wanted to try out different music in London's music scene.  I have found out that there certainly is quite a bit of variety here and you will probably be able to find venues that suits your taste, whether it is indie, hip-hop, dubstep, classic rock, jazz, etc.  I do have to say the most popular songs among my peers are (mostly) the same as those that are popular in the US - I did not know how much influence American culture had even here in Europe (I will discuss this more in a future blog post)

A Memorable Night at Fabric

Tonight, I went with a friend to club called Fabric in Farringdon.   Fabric was ranked by DJ Magazine as the #2 club in the world in 2009 and 2010 - and after a night here I can tell why!  Definitely a cool place to go if you even sort of like electronic music - the speaker system here is insane!

Apple Store in London

Today, I accompanied my roommate to the Apple Store - I managed to convert him to a Mac user as well.  There are a couple of Mac Stores that I know of in Central London - one in Covent Garden (in the picture above) and the other on Regent Street.  Both times I have been to the Apple Store here they have been packed.  However, Mac laptops do not seem to be as popular in the UK as they were back at Emory (although I see a fair share of iPods and iPhones).  Also, the LSE IT system (at least towards the beginning of the year) did not seem very Mac friendly - in fact, LSE does not own any Mac computers as far as I know and seems to be more Windows based.  

Stay up to date with Housing back Home!

While you are studying abroad, it can seem like you are in a different world in more ways than one.  However, make sure you don't forget about what's going on back home!  In particular the deadline for applying for Emory housing was this week.  Make sure you stay on top of your housing situation so you have a place to live next year!

Classic London: The Black Taxi Cabs

Another unique characteristic of London are the classic black cabs that look like they are frozen in time since the 1960’s.  Granted, there are many taxi companies in London and not all of them use the classic cars, but it is nonetheless an unforgettable aspect of London.  

Cigarette Packages in the UK

My friend was smoking cigarettes and I noticed that the cigarette cartons here have a much more blatant warning than what is on the US....

Black Swan at Odeon on Tottenham Court Road

Today, a few friends and I went to see Black Swan at a nearby movie theater.  Movie prices are pretty expensive in central London - tickets are about 10 pounds during peak hours.  Tickets are a little cheaper during non-peak days/hours (usually Monday - Thursday before 5 pm).  As a student, you can also get a 2-for-1 voucher from studentbeans.com - great if you're going with a (even-numbered) group of friends!  Also, keep in mind, like everything else in London, movie theaters close fairly early (latest showing is usually before 10 pm) so keep that in mind!

Submitting Homework

For each class, the standards for submitting homework are different.  Math is one of the few subjects here at LSE where homework is marked every week.  Econometrics is another module where homework is marked every week. Class teachers either expect you to bring the homework with you to class, where the homework is taken up at the beginning of class, or you are expected to deposit it in a mailbox in Columbia House (the building that houses the math department) before a certain deadline each week.  

Pedestrian Crossings in London

London is definitely more pedestrian friendly than most American cities.  A case in point is this crosswalk with the yellow lights that you see all around London.  There are pedestrian crossings in the US as well, but they are not often in the middle of fairly busy streets like this!

Coffee Chains in London

In central London, you will encounter a fair number of Starbucks.  You will also encounter a couple of (Italian) coffee chains you won't see in the United States - Costa and Nero.  These chains serve drinks that are about the same price as Starbucks and I have come to prefer them to Starbucks.  They may not have frappuccinos, but they do have pretty good cappuccinos and espressos 

The Three Tuns

The Three Tuns is a pub owned by LSE that is a popular hangout for undergraduates.  It gets quite crowded on the weekend and is a good place to a "have a pint with some mates" as the British would say.  The drink prices are reasonable - you can get a pint of Guiness for a little for two pounds.  There is also a pool table, which tends to have a waiting list as well 

Football Match: Coventry vs. Queen Park

Today, I attended another Emory outing - this time it was a football (soccer) game between two clubs in the  Championship League (In 2011 QPR will move up to the Premier League, the top league in Europe).  It was a good experience - we had pretty good seats so we could see the action well and the atmosphere was nice (the fans were very passionate).  There were Danish guys behind us chanting in Danish, which was an interesting experience.  Also, the stadium food included steak and ale pies, Cadbury instant drinks, and beer/cider by the pint - I found this to be an interesting cultural difference from what is normally served at American sports venues

Borough Market

Today, one of my roommates and I went to the Borough Market, London's most famous food market.  If you are in London, I would definitely recommend it - you can sample some of London's best coffee, chocolate, pastries, sausage, cheese, produce, and much more! Definitely plan on having lunch here - it is a great experience!

A Different Grading Scale (Especially for subjective work)

If you are going to do the General Course next year, one thing that you will notice right away is that the grading scale here.  Basically a 70+ is 1st, 60-69 is 2.1, 50-59 is a 2.2 and 40-49 is a 3rd.  In essay-based classes, it is very difficult to get a first - you definitely should not expect a 90 because a 90 according to the grading scale is something that changes how the subject is thought of in the field - a groundbreaking work. I'm pretty sure that not many undergraduates (if any) have been able to produce such a work!  In quantitative courses, it is much more possible to achieve a high score, but there is also a lower floor on you performance compared to an essay-based class.  In math courses, homework is graded slightly differently, with performance ranging from Very good, good, satisfactory, pass, and fail.  Since the homework sets for math classes tend to be fairly involved, it is difficult consistently getting a "very good" as well.  

Much more of an Emphasis on Recycling over here…

At LSE and in the UK in general, there seems to be a stronger emphasis on recycling and reducing the country's environmental impact.  There are plenty of recycling bins around campus, where students can throw away their trash in one of three different bins.  Also, most of the packaging and plastic bags in the UK seems to be biodegradable - in this sense the UK seems much more progressive than the US.

Guest Speaker: Deputy Governor of the Bank of England

Today, I was fortunate enough to attend a guest lecture by the Deputy Governor of the Bank of England, Charlie Bean.  It was a great opportunity to learn about the global financial crisis and the current recession from an expert in the field.  He also offered some insight into the Bank of England's forecast.  One great thing about these guest lectures is that students have an opportunity to ask questions to prominent speakers and often receive candid answers in this informal setting.  I think that attending guest lectures is a great compliment to what I learn in class.

Hare Krishna Free Hot Meals at LSE

Every day, a monk comes to the LSE campus near the Old Building around 12:30 and hands out free hot meals to LSE students.  The meals are pretty popular, as there seems to be a line from 12:30 to 1:30.  I have gotten into the habit of eating Hare Krishna meals about once per week - this undoubtedly saves around 5 pounds a week (around what I would normally spend for lunch), which definitely adds up!

Street Vendors

There are several places around central London where you can buy local produce from street vendors.  This vendor in the photo sets up shop near High Holborn station, which is a five minute walk from the LSE campus.  You can buy fruits and vegetables a lot cheaper here than you can from the local supermarkets - and the quality is usually pretty good.  

Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes

About 3 minutes away from my dorm is the Bloomsbury Bowling Lanes, a fun place to hang out to bowl or play a little pool (on a significantly better table than what we have at Passfield).  They also have some fun party nights with different themes, so it is definitely worth checking out if you are in the area!

New Lecturers are a Little Scary...

Viewing past exam papers online

At LSE, the only evaluation students have is the exam at the end of the year (well, for General Course students, a final class grade is recorded as well).  For each module, LSE has past exam papers available online, which are often a strong indicator of what to expect on the exam this year.  Often, this is very helpful because most lecturers do not offer hints as to what you should focus on when preparing for the exam and will not tell the type you the type of questions you can expect to see.  However, if a new lecturer is teaching the class, the curriculum of the course may change and the past exams may not be a good indicator of what the exam will be like this year.  Therefore, students may not feel like they have enough practice material for the exam when there is a new lecturer or if a lecturer changes the curriculum for the course.  Often times it is thought that lecturers make the exam a little easier than they normally would if this is the case but this is not guaranteed.  This is a little scary for me because I have new lecturers in 2 of the 5 modules I am taking and in one class my lecturer is changing the curriculum to make it harder (so the exam will probably be harder as well!)  Better the devil you know than the devil you don't...

Last Day of MA203 Class – For Better or for Worse

Today is the last day of Real Analysis class (a half unit course).  It is a little odd that we meet once in the Lent Term, but I guess it also makes sense in a way because the material covered in classes usually lag behind lectures by 1-2 weeks.  In a way, I am relieved because I used to spend quite a bit of time on the homework assignments for this class and now I have one less thing to worry about.  However, even though there will be no lectures/class in the Lent term, I will still be tested on the material in the summer - so I have to make sure and revise and keep the material fresh in my mind.  

Not Ready for Classes...

My mind is still somewhere in mainland Europe...

In the beginning of the Michaelmas term (the previous term), students are eased into the academic year because classes (opposed to lectures) do not start until usually the third week of the term.  No such luck for the Lent term - classes start the first week.  Just keep that in mind if you plan to do a long winter Euro-trip - it is sometimes hard to get back into study mode after an eventful trip so give yourself a few days rest before classes start.  I thought I planned for that well, but I still do not feel ready for school (maybe because I am still recovered from being sick on the trip).  

One Pound Sake and Yakitori in Soho

Well, I managed to submit my accounting essay right at the deadline.  I think I did a good job, but this is my first essay here at LSE so I do not know what to expect as far as the grading goes.  I still have to write an essay for monetary economics by Friday.  Unfortunately, I have not done enough research for this paper so it will probably take longer to write than my accounting essay.  We are free to write on any topic we learned about this semester, which makes it difficult to decide on a topic...  I am probably going to write about the validity of money-in-the-utility-function (MIU) models, but we'll have to see.  

Well, another interesting thing that happened today was a fellow Passfield resident invited me to go to a Japanese bar/restaurant in Soho that has a special promotion every Monday: one pound for a shot of (pretty good) sake and other special deals on various grilled dishes (like yakitori).  It was a good experience, and I look forward to coming here again sometime soon!

Welcome Back!

Today is the official start of the new term (for our housing contracts anyway), so many Passfield residents are returning to their rooms.  Most of them went home for the break, wherever that may be (LSE has a very diverse student body so many students are not from the UK).  Both my roommates were among those returning today.  Although I am a little stressed because my accounting essay is due today, I am also happy to see everyone back and am looking forward to the next term!

Crunch Time With Essays

Back to the grind, I guess.  Before leaving for the trip, I was not been able to accomplish as much as I would have liked on the two essays that I have due soon, so I really need to pick up the slack and get to work.  The problem is I am not exactly in the frame of mind to get started right away - I need to both mentally and physically recover.  The Euro-trip was a great experience, but after two weeks of riding airplanes and trains, walking about unfamiliar cities, and pushing our bodies to the limit (I am still feeling the effects of the flu or whatever I had), I just need some time to unwind.   But my accounting essay is due Sunday at midnight... I hope I can pull it together.  Luckily, I have most of the background research done, but I still need to punch out 1,000 words or so for each paper.  

Memorable Euro-trip winding to a close…

After almost two weeks of sightseeing, our memorable trip is finally over.  It was an incredible experience visiting Rome, Florence, and Paris and seeing some of the most spectacular sights that these cities had to offer.  It was also a good learning experience - we had never traveled by ourselves like that before, so we learned a lot.  It was particularly challenging not speaking the language and also not knowing some of the details about each city.

I felt sad sending my brother off at the airport (see photo), but I am somewhat relieved because the Euro-trip was pretty exhausting and I don't think I could have continued at that frenzied pace much longer.   Either way, it was good to be able to see my brother during my year abroad here and I look forward to seeing him (and the rest of my family) again in six months!   

Famous Churches and the Tower of London

For my brother's last full day in London, we decided to walk to a couple medieval Churches located within close proximity of each other and then took in St. Paul's Cathedral (from the outside anyway).  Each of these buildings were very impressive, adding to the long list of memorable things we've seen on this trip.  It is too bad that the weather had to get nasty though - it was raining and very cold today so we had to head back to the room and shower/change clothes before we went out again.  We then saw the Tower of London, another fascinating sight with a lot of history.  The White Tower and the Crown Jewels were especially impressive.  

Oxford Street, Covent Garden, Soho, Picadilly Circus, and Leicester Square

My brother in Picadilly Circus

Today, I chose to show my brother around some London's famous shopping and entertainment districts.  We were both exhausted from being on the go constantly so we opted not to explore the vibrant nightlife in this part of town (particularly Soho and Leicester Square).  It was still a good time - we managed to pass by some kind of event for Gnomeo and Juliet when we walked through Leicester Square.  

Back in London - Buckingham Palace, House of Parliament, Westminster Abbey, and National Gallery

Today, we set out to see some of London's most famous sites.  We started the day by walking to Buckingham Palace (see photo), a remarkable place, and managed to see the guards there as well.  After this, we saw the House of Parliament, Big Ben, and Westminster Abbey.  I had seen Big Ben and House of Parliament from a distance before, but it was definitely impressive seeing them up close.  We did not get a chance to go into Westminster Abbey this morning (I do want to go sometime during this year in London).  We also walked to Trafalgar Square and visited the National Gallery, which was yet another impressive art gallery in a trip full of them.  

The Louvre and a Chocolate Walk

Today, we started bright and early to go to the Louvre.  The Louvre is absolutely massive and there was no way we could hit all the highlights in the half-day or so we had here.  However, we did manage to see the Mona Lisa, Winged Victory of Samothrace,  and Venus de Milo, three of the most famous works of art here.  We also managed to see other impressive works by Raphael, Da Vinci, Titian, and Delacroix, to name a few artists. The buildings that comprise the Louvre were also very impressive - the Glass Pyramid and the Richelieu wing were particularly memorable.    

Next, we went on "a chocolate walk" - we visited several bakeries and chocolate shops and enjoyed some of the best sweets that Paris has to offer - we bought eclairs, macarons, and chocolate from different stores.  I also bought a box of chocolate to send back with my brother so my parents can experience a taste of Paris.  

Although we had a rocky start, I came to enjoy Paris a lot.  The people here seemed friendlier than in Italy and spoke more English to be sure.  In a way, I am relieved to be getting back to London tonight though - London feels like home after only three months.     

Versailles and Montmarte

In Paris, museums offer free entry on the first Sunday of the month (which happens to be today!).  We considered doing the Louvre, but found out that the student fare was actually pretty reasonable, so instead we opted to visit Versailles, the elaborate palace of King Louis XIV (we will go to the Louvre tomorrow).  After reading about it in history textbooks and tourist guidebooks, I knew what to expect, but it was still very impressive to see in person.  What stands out most is that there is gold everywhere - it is not hard to see why French finances were in bad shape prior to the French Revolution...   I guess simply saying that there is gold everywhere is not doing this place justice though - the gold, combined with the intricacy of the interior decoration is remarkable.  The Hall of Mirrors (see photo), King's Chamber, and the Queen's chamber were very impressive.  Versailles also holds some important national paintings (especially portraits), although some of them were replicas.  We obviously did not have enough time to check out everything here, but I am glad we came.

In the evening, we also checked out Montmarte, an artsy district known for being home to the Cathedral Sacre Coeur and Moulin Rouge.  The view of the city from Sacre Coeur  was excellent.  We then went back towards the hotel and ate a proper multi-course meal at Au Boeuf-Coronne - this was a great dining experience!  We had an aperitif, red wine, foie gras, hangar steak, cheeses, Creme Brulee, and a cappuccino.  Not cheap to be sure (32 euros per person) but it was a great value I think for some very good food!

Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Latin Quarter, and Champ Elysses

Well, I guess the recovery day helped - I feel well enough to get around now!  To make up for lost time, we decided to combine a couple days worth of sightseeing into one.  We started with the Eiffel Tower, which was truly worth seeing even though you see it in every postcard/ movie taking place in Paris.  It's too bad that it was cloudy today - we couldn't see the tip of the Tower.  We also saw the Arc de Triomphe and Notre Dame.  Notre Dame was a very impressive cathedral - it was a very fine display of Gothic architecture and the interior was also remarkable .  Both the Latin Quarter and Champ Elysses were probably quieter than what they normally are because it was New Year's Day, but that was nice its own way.  As for the food, I had a good crepe from a street vendor in the Latin Quarter and some very good (albeit very rich) French onion soup at a cafe.