Sight
Though the University itself is a very modern campus much to
the likes of a state school in America, the surrounding area is like stepping
straight into an episode of Game of Thrones. When walking through campus you
can catch a glimpse between buildings of what lies beyond, and it is dramatic.
Meadville and Allegheny’s large quantum of snow precipitation is replaced here
by rain and mist. The dynamic of a day’s weather can change in the matter of an
afternoon. Wind and a clear morning turn to grey skies that roll in off the dark
green of the moor and settle in for a piercing sunset that brings on a dark night.
It is wondrous to behold.
As far as sightseeing is concerned, I’ve been here just a few weeks and already have seen some amazing things. A trip to the historic city of Chester and the sophisticated Glasgow in Scotland are but a few. Belfast is planned for early February over in Ireland and I’ve booked a trip to Alnwick Castle for the weekend. I’ve found the greater cities are quite an experience, but my larger interest lies with the near ancient castles that populate this historic country. Having taken a number of History courses at Allegheny focusing on the Medieval period, I am driven to make it to these age-old structures that have lasted for centuries and were the homes to many people of a time now gone. Lancaster itself has a castle we toured the first weekend. It has an amazing history, having only closed as a prison in 2011.
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| Gothic structures in Chester Cathedral. Chester England (2016) |
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| 14th Century ceiling of the Parish Hall in Chester Cathedral, Chester, England (2016) |
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| The Lion In Winter: A statue the likes of a lion proudly guards Glasgow City Chambers on George Square, Glasgow, Scotland (2016) |
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| The Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, Scotland (2016) |
To single out one instance with sight, I’m going to
highlight an experience I had with a suit of plate armour seen in Glasgow’s
Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. Held in a glass case, there was nothing
astounding to this particular piece. Before me was a very classic display of
the iconic suit of armour recognized in the late 15th and early 16th
century, full of chivalry and sport. I took a snapshot and began to move on,
but before taking more than two steps away I found myself drawn back. I don’t
really know why, nothing particular caught my eye, but there I was nonetheless
taking a closer look. I read the label that told of the minute calligraphy scribed
into the steel for artistic and personal value. Piqued, I searched the armour,
and sure enough, on the lip of the breastplate, I could just make out the
tiniest yet strikingly beautiful penmanship. There was a small symbol
accompanied with it, the mark of a household name to whom the armour once
belonged. There was no way this artistic expression would ever be noticed on
the battlefield, in tournament or in ceremony. Perhaps its importance, then,
was not in show, but in the personal pride it must have instilled within its
owner. I mean how cool really to have your own, custom made suit of plate
armour dressed for your own ideals. With wearing that suit, you would be
wearing your house, your family, and your name. Everything you stand for, right
there, on your armour, so beautifully yet painstakingly placed and beyond
criticism of garish in its tiny detail. I found myself realizing that it
matters not how idle anything may be, for if you look closely enough, you can
find something very telling of the subject while discovering a bit of yourself
along the way. This is why I love Museums. They are so filled with treasures it
can be overwhelming. Yet there is always that one piece, insignificant as it
may be, that stays with you. For me, at the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum
in Glasgow, Scotland, it was this one suit of armour. I hope to have many more
of these experiences whilst studying in England.
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| Steel calligraphy is just barely visible on the edge of the breastplate to this plated armour of the Italian Renaissance, housed in the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, glasgow, Scotland (2016) |
Sound
While the wind can whip through your ears on your way to
class and howl on your window at night, I find it is the sounds of the many
dialects that my sense of hearing has picked up the most. Though English is the
main spoken language here, it hasn’t necessarily been easy communicating with
the Brits. My sense of hearing is slow to process when in simple conversation
even, and there are a few expressions that I’m not used to. Perhaps my favorite
is the word ‘cheers’ used in place of the word ‘thanks’. While ‘thanks’ is
certainly a word in the dictionary here, it’s not one you hear when holding
open a door for someone or upon offering a simple compliment. When checking out
at the grocery store or even purchasing a postcard, I express a ‘thank-you’
where a simple ‘cheers’ would suffice. My response is out of habit, and though
I find myself wanting to express a nice ‘cheers’ for small gratuitous acts of
kindness, it just doesn’t seem right without the proper English accent.
There are many other dialects heard on this campus, relating
the fact that this school is very international. One of my ‘flatmates’ is from
Austria while another from Turkey. Students from New Zealand and Australia,
China and Korea, Scandinavia and Poland as well as France and Germany are found
here as well. This was something I hadn’t anticipated. Students studying
internationally in America, on Allegheny’s campus even, must feel very
polarized from the rest of the student population that is primarily made up of Americans.
Lancaster’s campus, on the other hand, is largely made up of international students.
With the United Kingdom so much closer to a wide array of countries, waves of
different cultures have easier access with integrating themselves into the
country, especially as students. You never quite know where it is that the next
person you end up talking with might be from. That has really made this place
feel special for me. It feels as though this school is a center for cultivating
one’s own growth in gathering a wider perspective of the world.
Hearing all of these voices in such a close setting has
helped ground me in understanding who I am and where I come from as well. A
small town boy from the quiet Midwest state of Ohio, where LeBron reigns King
of the Land, the cows graze for miles and the backwoods has the same meaning as
my backyard. Ohio may not be the most exciting of states, and Cleveland may not
be the oldest and grandest of cities, but it is where I’m from and it will
always be where my family and that sense of home can be found.
Smell
Alright I can’t start this sense without stating that the
very first smell to welcome me onto Lancaster’s campus was well mineralized,
freshly plowed, good ol’ farm manure. While it wasn’t one I was anticipating, I
can’t say it disgusted me. I get a good dose of manure straight from the farm
fields back in Ohio, and it was actually kind of a comforting smell, as odd as
that is to say. Truthfully the smell sits well with the fresh rain brought on
by a new day, much better than the stale dog and cat food aroma that wafts onto
Allegheny’s campus every so often from Meadville’s nearby factories anyway.
Perhaps worse than the smell of domesticated pet food is the
smell of cigarette smoke finding its way into your nostrils and straight up
into your brain. Smoking a cigarette is very common here on Lancaster’s campus,
and though the campus is large, I find myself almost continuously walking
through cigarette vapors whipping through the cold. This is because the campus
is connected, almost from top to bottom, by a passageway known as the spine.
Like its name, it holds the campus together and is the main causeway for student
traffic during the day. The spine is exposed in some areas to the sky, but it
is mostly covered overhead thus allowing for those using it to stay dry. This
doesn’t do entirely well for ventilation, especially when it is crowded with
moving people. I’ve discussed cigarette etiquette with avid cigarette smokers,
and in nearly all instances we’ve agreed that it is rude to not take any heed
of those surrounding you. No I don’t ‘fancy’ getting cancer purely from
secondhand smoke thanks to you who could not wait for open air to drag on your
cigarette and thus bless the rest of us behind you with your leftovers. Of
course I’m being dramatic here, but for the sake of this prompt, I can’t help
but note this noticeable and everyday sense of smell.
Touch
Though the hand is a sensor and touching is a simple sense,
with it can come deep meaning. I experienced this sensation when visiting
Chester Cathedral in the city of Chester. The building itself was centuries
old, but there was one particular structure, a simple archway just off of the
main parish hall, that has been there longer than the Cathedral. Visually there
is a significant difference in the arch to that of the rest of the Gothic
architecture in which it is encased. Instead of the pointed pinnacle found in
the arches of a classic Gothic window or doorway, this arch is instead rounded all
the way across the top. A much more simple and classical style, this particular
look is of Roman descent. Indeed the pillars and the arch itself are speculated
to be a site of worship that was used by the Romans during their occupation in
Britain. The pillars themselves are over two thousand years old. Two thousand
years later, and they are still serving their purpose as a means of design. Two
thousand years strong feels the way those pillars felt when I placed my hand on
the course and exposed rock that was carved by no less than another human’s
hand. The sensation of all that history on nothing more than my own hand was
truly a reverential experience. It’s really amazing what a simple touch of the
hand can conjure up in the vast world of human emotion, and those columns
brought out some of the finest.
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| A rounded archway signigfies a drastic change in the surrounding Gothic architecture found in Chester Cathedral. Standing for over two thousand years, the arch dates back to Roman descent. Chester, Cathedral, Chester, England (2016) |
Taste
This sense would be nothing without mentioning a word that
makes me very happy, and that is food. To travel is to see, experience, and of
course, to eat. Tea is indeed very common here. In fact the schedule of the day
is stopped specifically so that a break for tea can be made. One evening I was
making a late dinner in the kitchen of my flat, and my flatmate Phillip entered
to put together a small snack as well. We talked about how we love to eat,
because you know food is always a great conversation starter, and he asked me
if I had had my tea yet. I thought, ‘what? I haven’t even had tea yet since
I’ve been here’. It was almost like the British really can’t make it through a
day without a single cup of tea. I guess in America for a lot of people it is
coffee that gets us through. No matter, I will soon be making it a priority to
have myself a ‘spot of tea’ on a daily basis. Another common occurrence found
on a British menu is their fish and chips. A great big slab of fish grilled to
a golden crunch, plopped right on top of a small pile of chips, which are not
to be confused with crisps. (Look that one up if you feel so compelled). Add a
side of mushy peas and of course a succulent lemon slice or two and there you
go, a good and proper English meal. Funnily enough, both tea and the ever
delicious fish and chips are actually neither a British original. Both in fact
were imports from China and France, respectively. The British have simply made
them a staple to their culture, and I am ever so thankful. Atop the smell of
such wonderful food are the just as wonderful smells of cask ale, tarty cider
and hearty beer. Needless to say I’ve grown more than familiar with all three
brews, which offer a merry time in any old pub filled with laughter and a great
many smell. You can usually catch a riveting ‘football’ match too (look that
one up too).
There you have it, the first few weeks of a long journey
summed up in the five basic senses of human sensations. My adventure has just
begun. Thanks for tagging along.
Cheers!
Joe Bruch
Your remarks on the suit of armor really stuck out to me. It seems to me that a lot of the time when we go someplace, we go and try to check off all the monuments on our list, which is valuable, but sometimes the memories that remain important are those things like taking a second look at something smaller that didn't immediately catch your eye. It's good to hear about those times because they're different for everyone. We all tend to try to go see the big monuments, but the little things that make us look again are all different and so individual.
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