The Olympic Academic Experience has given me a level of understanding about the global nature of the Olympics and people through experiential learning, academics and reflection. The Olympics serve to bring the world together through peaceful athletic competition. Interacting with the world and British cultures, history and the advancement of human rights highlighted my educational experience while studying abroad in London.
Experiencing the British culture and interacting with the British people allowed me to understand British and Olympic culture. From the beginning, I was greeted with smiles and a friendly welcome from the British people. Often times I also experienced a little of pub culture. The pubs are a great place for friends to meet up, talk and share a meal and/or drink. It is important to find time for the people in your life. The British people like to have fun and seem to do a lot in groups. Their society was built on friendship and respect for others, a great lesson to learn. The other institutions in British society, such as their police system, nationalized healthcare and universities further reflect this sense of compassion that I felt while in England. Having the Olympic games in London added to the cultural experience of the trip. 204 nations competed in the 30th Olympiad and people from all over the world visited London to cheer on their nation. Getting to talk with people and hear their perspective on current events and their nation was eye opening as well. From hearing different stories, I got a sense of appreciation for the moment I was in and my nationality. From all my experiences abroad, I gained tolerance for others. It would have been hard to learn this while at home. The cultures of the world are apparent through their people. Living in an Olympic city during the games allowed me to interact and ultimately appreciate other people and their cultures.
Spending two weeks in London was a history lesson. The Romans originally settled London so there are many chapters in this cities history. The city is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sights of cultural significance and I visited three. The Tower of London is an ancient castle along River Thames, which was built around 1066. The structure has served many purposes such as a royal residence, a treasury, armory and a prison. Walking amongst this place took my imagination back to the 1300s when the building was in its prime. Seeing this monument offered hope for the future as our society has come a long way since then. The Royal Observatory is home to the prime meridian, the longitude line that separates the eastern and western hemispheres. The observatory was built around 1674. Once used as an astronomy center, it eventually served as a time keeping facility. A conference in 1884 established the prime meridian to be centered at this location. The Palace of Westminster is one, home to the United Kingdom’s Houses of Parliament. The Clock Tower, named Big Ben, is the most recognizable structure in London’s skyline and has been for the last 150 years. The city of London has history written into its streets, is living through monuments and is kept in record. Being able to walk the streets became a source of appreciation for my English heritage. Having the opportunity to become a part of London’s Olympic chapter in 2012 gave me appreciation for it’ historical significance when I visited World Heritage sites and walked the streets.
The London 2012 Olympic games helped advance woman rights in the Middle East and in America. In America, women Olympians were more successful in their respective competitions than men. Further, this was the first year more women were on Team USA than men. Of the forty-six gold medals Team USA hauled in, US women won twenty-nine of them. Women team sports also dominated their competition, the soccer, water polo and basketball all won gold in London. The women’s 4x100 relay team also won gold and set a world record time of 40.82 seconds for the fast and technical race. Missy Franklin figures to be a new role model for aspiring female athletes with her successful debut in the London games. Susan B. Anthony fought hard to get women’s suffrage in the United States and showed us the fighting spirit of American women. The women competing in these games showed us that women are capable of amazing things in sports and displayed class and humility. These women all changed the conversation surrounding our Olympic athletes and left a golden legacy. Our nation will benefit from this renewed attention towards women in sports, business, education and politics. Women from countries in the Middle East also made a big impact on their societies. Qatar and Saudi Arabia sent women to represent their countries and compete in London for the first time. Bahrainian women competed in many distance-running events and Mariam Jamal brought home her countries first medal, a bronze in the 1,500. The IOC asserted that every competing country have a female representative and soon became a hot international news topic. The London games became a watershed moment for the Gulf region when Saudi Arabian Wajdan Shaherkani overcame the ban on women competing in public sports events. Olympism was indeed at the service of preserving the dignity of mankind at the London 2012 Olympic games, women wre celebrated at a level unseen before these Olympic games.
Participating in the Olympic Academic Experience offered a once in a lifetime opportunity to immerse myself in the study of the theory of the Olympic games. I found that experience and reflection of the Olympic games in London to boost my understanding of the cultural case a country could make for hosting the Olympic games. London used the Olympic games to spur development of it’s nations capital in many needed areas. Through the games, culture and history was celebrated as the world’s eyes descended upon London. Being able to experience the Olympics first hand heightened my respect, appreciation and tolerance for other countries and their people. I will be able to take these lessons with me forever as visiting London provided me with a lifetime of memories and experiences.
Experiencing the British culture and interacting with the British people allowed me to understand British and Olympic culture. From the beginning, I was greeted with smiles and a friendly welcome from the British people. Often times I also experienced a little of pub culture. The pubs are a great place for friends to meet up, talk and share a meal and/or drink. It is important to find time for the people in your life. The British people like to have fun and seem to do a lot in groups. Their society was built on friendship and respect for others, a great lesson to learn. The other institutions in British society, such as their police system, nationalized healthcare and universities further reflect this sense of compassion that I felt while in England. Having the Olympic games in London added to the cultural experience of the trip. 204 nations competed in the 30th Olympiad and people from all over the world visited London to cheer on their nation. Getting to talk with people and hear their perspective on current events and their nation was eye opening as well. From hearing different stories, I got a sense of appreciation for the moment I was in and my nationality. From all my experiences abroad, I gained tolerance for others. It would have been hard to learn this while at home. The cultures of the world are apparent through their people. Living in an Olympic city during the games allowed me to interact and ultimately appreciate other people and their cultures.
Spending two weeks in London was a history lesson. The Romans originally settled London so there are many chapters in this cities history. The city is home to four UNESCO World Heritage Sights of cultural significance and I visited three. The Tower of London is an ancient castle along River Thames, which was built around 1066. The structure has served many purposes such as a royal residence, a treasury, armory and a prison. Walking amongst this place took my imagination back to the 1300s when the building was in its prime. Seeing this monument offered hope for the future as our society has come a long way since then. The Royal Observatory is home to the prime meridian, the longitude line that separates the eastern and western hemispheres. The observatory was built around 1674. Once used as an astronomy center, it eventually served as a time keeping facility. A conference in 1884 established the prime meridian to be centered at this location. The Palace of Westminster is one, home to the United Kingdom’s Houses of Parliament. The Clock Tower, named Big Ben, is the most recognizable structure in London’s skyline and has been for the last 150 years. The city of London has history written into its streets, is living through monuments and is kept in record. Being able to walk the streets became a source of appreciation for my English heritage. Having the opportunity to become a part of London’s Olympic chapter in 2012 gave me appreciation for it’ historical significance when I visited World Heritage sites and walked the streets.
The London 2012 Olympic games helped advance woman rights in the Middle East and in America. In America, women Olympians were more successful in their respective competitions than men. Further, this was the first year more women were on Team USA than men. Of the forty-six gold medals Team USA hauled in, US women won twenty-nine of them. Women team sports also dominated their competition, the soccer, water polo and basketball all won gold in London. The women’s 4x100 relay team also won gold and set a world record time of 40.82 seconds for the fast and technical race. Missy Franklin figures to be a new role model for aspiring female athletes with her successful debut in the London games. Susan B. Anthony fought hard to get women’s suffrage in the United States and showed us the fighting spirit of American women. The women competing in these games showed us that women are capable of amazing things in sports and displayed class and humility. These women all changed the conversation surrounding our Olympic athletes and left a golden legacy. Our nation will benefit from this renewed attention towards women in sports, business, education and politics. Women from countries in the Middle East also made a big impact on their societies. Qatar and Saudi Arabia sent women to represent their countries and compete in London for the first time. Bahrainian women competed in many distance-running events and Mariam Jamal brought home her countries first medal, a bronze in the 1,500. The IOC asserted that every competing country have a female representative and soon became a hot international news topic. The London games became a watershed moment for the Gulf region when Saudi Arabian Wajdan Shaherkani overcame the ban on women competing in public sports events. Olympism was indeed at the service of preserving the dignity of mankind at the London 2012 Olympic games, women wre celebrated at a level unseen before these Olympic games.
Participating in the Olympic Academic Experience offered a once in a lifetime opportunity to immerse myself in the study of the theory of the Olympic games. I found that experience and reflection of the Olympic games in London to boost my understanding of the cultural case a country could make for hosting the Olympic games. London used the Olympic games to spur development of it’s nations capital in many needed areas. Through the games, culture and history was celebrated as the world’s eyes descended upon London. Being able to experience the Olympics first hand heightened my respect, appreciation and tolerance for other countries and their people. I will be able to take these lessons with me forever as visiting London provided me with a lifetime of memories and experiences.
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