Tower Bridge, Tower of London Site Visit
Author: Gabby Beilfuss | Majors: Political Science, International & Global Studies, and French
When I attended the first general information meeting for the UofA Faculty Led: Medieval England Summer 2022 study abroad program in November 2021, the only thing I wanted to do was call my mom to tell her that I was going across the pond in the summer of 2022. Professor Quinn was incredibly knowledgeable and humorous and the courses the program offered fit perfectly into my favorite areas of academia (English, History, Literature, and Humanities). While learning history through documentaries, various courses at the UofA, and leisurely reading is fascinating, it doesn’t compare to walking atop the same cobblestones as the monarchs and politicians who shaped the world as we know it today.
Dr. Quinn’s lectures took place over the first two weeks of the five-week program. He taught the history of Medieval England from the fall of Rome c. 476 CE through the end of the Plantagenet dynasty c. 1485. Throughout the historical lessons, there was a great deal of Medieval English Literature covered. This included Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, Gawain and the Green Knight, and (my personal favorite) Courtly Love. While lessons in history and literature may be thoroughly enjoyable at the Fayetteville campus, history is best learned in the place it occurred. The second half of the trip were spend doing just that; we ventured to Canterbury Cathedral, York Minster, London (including parliament, the Tower of London, etc.), Dover Castle, and countless other cites we had been educated on.
Daily routines are different for the two main chunks of this program. During the first bit, while the group is staying at Hatfield College at Durham University, life is simple. Three meals a day are provided by extremely kind dining hall staff, class is held twice a day, and the afternoons and evenings are filled with exploration of the medieval town. A usual day in London began with food and coffee and a few hours of site visits. The afternoons were full of the Tube, London’s parks, walking, museums, galleries, and maybe a nap. Evenings began with dinner with my classmates and usually ended with a group of us hanging out in the hotel lobby. Dr. Quinn does a great job of allotting enough time to finish the Final Project in Durham, so London is very relaxing and enjoyable.
After my time at the University of Arkansas, my goal is to work in international relations in Europe, France specifically. While the United Kingdom is no longer apart of the European Union (thanks, Brexit), English history is still deeply entwined with the European culture, identity, and economics. This experience was not only the biggest educational opportunity I have ever received, but it also inspired life-changing personal growth. Before this trip, I had never left the United States. Comparing my life at home to my life in England gave me perspective on consumerism, living in excess, and health. English culture (at least for the broke university students like myself) promotes walking/public transportation over personal cars, having what you need and no more, appreciating and using public areas (like city parks), and living free from the opinions of others. The lessons in humanity I learned from speaking with random people in London’s city parks, or kind shop keepers in Canterbury, or a South African sitting atop a rock overlooking the North Sea, will stay with me for the rest of my life.
I have a few pieces of advice to give to prospective students. The hardest days of the trip were characterized by homesickness, loneliness, and lack of money. While I made friends with most all other students on the trip, it was really hard to not have any of my best friends with me. If you can, try to get a good friend to go on the trip with you! I am 100% sure it would’ve made me feel more comfortable. In retrospect, I probably brought plenty of spending money with me, but I made the critical mistake of spending a huge chunk of it within the first week and a half of the five-week program. If you budget your money wisely, you will be just fine. Like most of my classmates, the first thing I did when I got home was race back to Fayetteville, anxious to begin a new year.