By: Digby Wilkinson on June 14, 2019
Culture shock! London. But wait, there’s more – Culture shock! Great Britain. You’d think one book would be enough, but this week it’s two. The first by an America who specialises in IT, English and Lexicography.[1] The second by a Singaporean chef, with a sideline interest in “evolution and the social and cultural semantics of…
By: Jenn Burnett on June 14, 2019
There is this spot at the camp I love called Vespers Point. It feels holy. It is the place where I have spent countless hours in prayer and contemplation. It is the perfect place to watch the sunrise over the water, making early morning quiet time all the more attractive; it is the perfect place…
By: Shawn Hart on June 14, 2019
I know this is supposed to be a theological paper of sorts, but to be completely honest, this reading was more nostalgic for me than anything. No, I was not born in Britain, but I have been there; and it was fascinating. A number of years back, I had the chance to…
By: Harry Edwards on June 13, 2019
Reading our text, CultureShock! A Survival Guide to Customs and Etiquette: London, this week brought fond memories of the time my wife and I were in London almost six years ago. It was a very special occasion because a good friend who was completing his D.Phil. at Oxford at the time invited my wife and I…
By: Trisha Welstad on June 13, 2019
Reading Culture Shock! London and Culture Shock! Great Britain is both informative and intriguing as one preparing to adventure to England in the fall. Reading about what to do and not do, the layout of London, the vast differences of the people, and how to go beyond a tourist perspective are all helpful in understanding…
By: Tammy Dunahoo on June 13, 2019
It was our thirty-fifth wedding anniversary which occasioned the trip of a lifetime, two weeks in Great Britain and France. From the theatre in London to the Tattoo Festival in Edinburgh to the highspeed Chunnel train transporting us to five magical days in Paris, it was simply unforgettable. With all of these amazing experiences and…
By: Sean Dean on June 13, 2019
I was born into a family that loves being American. From generations of military service to cheering on any and all the Team USAs, if it is something that shows any level of pride in the United States my family is right there. Heck, my dad was even born on Independence Day, so when we…
By: Jean Ollis on June 13, 2019
Here we are – it’s officially summer 2019 and we are on the cusp of finishing the LGP academic work for our DMin degree. It’s hard to believe we have only one more travel advance with the George Fox/Portland Seminary LGP program. This fall the program will culminate for the LGP8’s with a trip to…
By: Jay Forseth on June 13, 2019
Lisa and I can hardly wait. We are pumped to go to the United Kingdom! Being together to make lifetime memories–SWEET! We are starting our time in Scotland, United Kingdom for 5 days before our London and Oxford Advance officially begins. Lisa is part Scottish and may call herself a Scotty on occasion. Our free…
By: Andrea Lathrop on June 13, 2019
I was impressed with the depth of insight into the cultures of Britain and London offered by Tan and Hargraves, respectively. My anticipation for our advance has certainly been stoked from the CultureShock! books. I have visited London previously as a tourist and am ready to visit as a student. This part of the world is…
By: Rhonda Davis on June 13, 2019
Our readings this week made me even more excited about our Great Britain advance. I first experienced the England of the imagination through the lens of the literature I was exposed to during my early teenage years.[1] In my mind, everyone still dressed for dinner, often engaging in a game of Whist in the evening.…
By: Mark Petersen on June 13, 2019
British culture has its own peculiar flavour, even for a colonial like me. So much is familiar, yet I am oddly struck from time-to-time by dissonances between British culture and my own. Canada, as one of the Old Dominions, slowly evolved in becoming its own country. I’m writing this blog post from my home office…
By: Kyle Chalko on June 13, 2019
Mining for Gold by Tom Camacho has been a fun book to be our last leadership book together. Coaching is still on the rise and I think that is because people have discovered it’s much more than a fad. About 7 years ago the district office of my denomination launched a coaching initiative, and since…
By: Dan Kreiss on June 13, 2019
Wait! What? This is our final advance and we finish in London/Oxford. I was nervous about Pecha Kucha in front of all of you stunning intellectuals already. Now I have to do it in the auspicious halls of English academia? Sorry, I’m out!! Have a good time y’all. (That is my inner TN redneck coming…
By: Jason Turbeville on June 13, 2019
As I started to peruse the two books for this week, I had a flashback to our first year. We read several books to get us ready for our advance to SA that gave us a historical perspective of Christianity in Africa and the affects of apartheid specifically in SA. I had a moment of…
By: Dave Watermulder on June 13, 2019
Great Britain is in the news again, and not for positive reasons. The Brexit debate continues to rage and boil, as the slow-motion mechanisms of politics and governance continue. It was recently reported that “Theresa May stepped down as Conservative Party leader last Friday after failing to break the Brexit deadlock. On Monday, ten candidates were…
By: Rev Jacob Bolton on June 13, 2019
This trip to London and Oxford promises to be most exciting. I have been in the Heathrow Airport . . . but that is my only experience in England. I have visited Scotland twice, so my time on the Island of Great Britain has trended toward the North. But this time I will experience all…
By: Jake Dean-Hill on June 13, 2019
The books for this week were very interesting and informative and surely assigned so we could get acquainted with the location of our next advance. Since I am extremely good at putting my foot in my mouth (or both feet for that matter) at the most inopportune times, the Do’s and Don’ts sections in both…
By: Greg on June 13, 2019
Culture shock can be very real. One often experiences culture shock in places where they believe the culture is the same as their home country. I have seen culture shock experienced worse by those that feel like their world travelers or grew up in a multicultural environment. One thing I learned about culture shock is…
By: Harry Fritzenschaft on June 12, 2019
Both of our sources this week are an excellent preparation for our advance to be held in London and Oxford later this year during the Fall. Both are titled to prepare us for possible culture shock in both London and Great Britain, and less like a Rick Steves’ travel guide. In skimming them, I reflected…
