3rd Week

I just came back from an amazing and exhausting experience learning Scottish dances. Imagine, 2 hours in an enclosed room with 50 people sweating and breathing passionately. King's College hired a Scottish band and a dance instructor to teach some of us Scottish dance routines. Wow. With dances like "strip the willow" (basically I danced with 20 different ladies by swinging them around), and 8-step cave...I am thoroughly exhausted. I planned on initiating the outline process for a paper on risk aversion and wealth, but I think I'm going to rest instead.

So, what have I been up to these past few days?

During the weekend I watched The Rock, I am Legend, and National Treasure 2 in the basement of my apartment. I also went punting, failed to catch a train to Stamford, watched a meager 20 minutes of USA basketball shown by BBC, and ate an amazing brunch at Pembroke College. During the week I have had 2 failed attempts to play basketball (bloody rain...I've never experienced such mercurial weather), made further progress on planning for my backpacking adventure in Spain, and discovered a financial book that I have been buried in for the past 3 nights. It's called Money Game, and the first 2/3 of it is actually pretty fascinating.

This weekend will be quite busy with High Tea, Formal, London, and two extensive papers I need to write. I'm meeting with Professor Vlamis tomorrow to brainstorm on my risk aversion paper (I basically want him to say "well done, that's bloody brilliant...now find your sources"...and then he'll help me find sources to cite...citations can be tedious, but credit must be given where it is due).

I'll probably be updating again after London, so until then
cheers!

By the way, there is a girl at King's who is the most beautiful young woman I have seen in England. I'm quite shy, so when I see her I find myself awkwardly making the hi motion with my hand with no words coming out of my mouth. Yeah, so there's a peek at my shy and trivial romantic life in England.

BBQ, Bletchley Park

If anyone mentions a summer BBQ, images of grilled hot dogs and hamburgers with people playing football and frisbee come to mind.
The only thing that was consistent in a summer BBQ in Cambridge were the grilled hot dogs and hamburgers.
At around 6pm with around 40 people eating their grilled dishes in the park, the heaviest rain to ever come down in Cambridge summer history poured down on us. I felt as if I was experiencing a rainstorm in Costa Rica. Tents were flown around, people were running, hail managed to intermittently fall form the sky, clothes were drenched in seconds, and complete chaos. This was the craziest rainstorm experience I have ever had. This cold and wet experience made my Shin ramyun and quesadilla taste amazing. Followed the delicious meal with some green tea and the movie I am Legend. My point is that I will never forget my first English summer BBQ.

Today I went with some classmates and my professor to Bletchley Park, the place where German codes were deciphered during World War 1. This is where the founders of the CIA learned their craft and served apprenticeships before transferring their skills to the Unites States' secret intelligence agencies. I also managed to visit an American war cemetary, and learned that there are numerous vast American war cemeteries across mainland Europe. In addition, many of the aerial attacks on Germany began from air sites surrounding Cambridge. Since the secret intelligence community recruits actively from the University of Cambridge, there is a lot to learn from the faculty here. Something interesting I noticed about the Anglo-American relationship is that the British perceive Americans as sort of like the little brother who surpassed the older brother (Great Britain) only with the help and guidance of the older brother. There's no resentment or jealousy; however, it seems as if the British are proud of how their little brother has grown.

I definitely miss the peace of my home and just lying on my belly to read a book. Friends, family, Henry (my dog), and of course Inn-n-Out. It's going to be pretty surreal when I head back home in a month. People will be driving on the right side again, rodes will be wider, sidewalks won't be tripping hazards (the sidewalks here are cobblestone, so it's hectic), and everything will be half-price! This coming school year will be my last full year of my undergraduate career spent at UCLA (If everything goes to plan, I'll be at UCLA for the last quarter of my 4th year). Only two years have passed since graduating high school, yet it feels as if high school was another lifetime ago. Go Bruins!
Cheers

Breast Cancer Fundraiser

My older sister is participating in the Avon walk for breast cancer. Please support her through prayer or if you can, a monetary donation.

This is her personal page: http://walk.avonfoundation.org/site/TR?pg=personal&fr_id=1650&px=3965662


Cheers!

Finance, Secret Intelligence

Quote of the day from my finance professor:
"Stocks are like cows."
Explication of this quote revolved around market momentum, herding effects, anomalies, and more. Basically, stocks are like cows.

Learning about the utility of secret intelligence from the British standpoint is fascinating. World War 2, Hiroshima, and other world events will never be the same for me. Little did I know that the secret intelligence communities recruit students from the University of Cambridge.

I'm about to go to a wine & cheese session with some visiting Japanese students. My main incentive is to have a glass of red wine and some cheese before starting my paper on the achievements of MI5 from 1909-1918.

All right, I must get back to work. Cheers

Chapel, Bath

Climbing the stairs of King's Chapel, I ended up at one of the highest points in Cambridge. Amazing.

On Saturday I headed to Bath for a short weekend getaway to see the famous Roman Baths and the place where England's first king was coronated. If you are a Jane Austen fan, then you would know bath from the novels Northanger Abbey and Persuasion. The storyline in these novels are based in Bath and I even had the opportunity to go on a Jane Austen walking tour. The Roman Baths are amazing because it is the location of the sole natural hot springs in all of England. I could actually see the steam coming from the water, and the effects the hot water has on the surrounding rocks. Bath is definitely my favorite city that I have visted so far (other than Cambridge...which doesn't count because I live here). The atmosphere of the city is calm, relaxed, yet enjoyable. The small farmer's markets and quaint shops are quite appeasing to the eye. O yeah, I also visited Stonehenge which was pretty cool. Stayed at the YMCA hostel and ate the best fast food in Bath hahaa.
Overall, an enjoyable experience.

Dublin + afterwards

Recovering from a slight cold, I can commence my blog once again. As you can see from the pictures above, I flew to Dublin, Ireland and stayed at the Marlborough Hostel for 2 nights (3rd night slept at Starbucks and got kicked out). During my first day in Ireland, I took St. Kevin's bus out to Glendalough, located in the Wicklow Mountains. Eating a Quiznos sandwich with the sight of a lake trapped by two mountain ranges was breathtaking. A group of friends and I hiked for about 4 hours (I've never been that tired from a hike) into the beautiful mountains and stopped by some monastic ruins. Supposedly, the ruins are from one of the first churches in Ireland that happened to be attacked by the Vikings repeatedly.
Chilled in the Temple Bar area for a while before hitting the sack at 3 in the morning. Marlborough Hostel was a great place to stay because they have hot showers, locks to the doors, a personalized locker, free internet, a Tom Clancy novel (Teeth of the Tiger if you were interested), free breakfast (toast and butter), and a pool table. So basically, a 5 star hostel.
Anyways, spent the next day exploring Dublin after picking up my baquette at the local bakery. Went to kilmainham goal, a famous jail in Ireland, where I was lectured on Irish history (they had a civil war!). Then off to the famous Guiness Factory where I learned that the water used in the process of making alcohol is called liquor, Guiness is supposedly good for you (false advertising), and loads more. After climbing 7 floors you end up at the bar where they give you a free pint of Guiness or some fanta (I drank the fanta because fanta over here is delicious). I had a great time in Ireland, with many crazy stories to supply from there. That place is sin city.
Managing to operate off of little sleep, I arrived back in Cambridge in time for class (which takes up like 7 hours of my day). Immediately after class and barely awake, I went to the Pembroke formal dinner where I was confused with all the traditions. For example, standing up every once in a while when a fellow (a tenured professor) stands up to leave. The 4 course dinner was great, and the espresso was amazing (maybe this was because I was exhausted). I had a great conversation with a professor specializing in leisure activities and researching the political and economic effect sports has on the European Union. Tried to watch American Gangster afterwards, but ended up falling asleep.
Today was actually a basketball tournament, and my team won the whole thing! We dominated. Since I'm sick, I would like to think of my role as Michael Jordan in the NBA finals when he played despite sickness. Although his sickness was a little more severe, I would like to congratulate myself on playing 3 hours of high quality basketball. My professor ended up showing up after the tournament, so I played another game with him. Since my team had won the tournament, we went with Ryan and Claire (two King's students) to the local Japanese restaraunt to eat some food. Ended up consuming an incredible Miso Ramen dish with Duck Gyoza. O yeah, random obserations:
1) I'm forgetting about many things back in the states... for example, the name of the residence hall I am living in next year.
2) I say "cheers" when I mean to say thank you or good bye.

Anyways, off to sleep before another busy day tomorrow. Cheers!

Morning Jog

You may or may not know, but there is a vibrant countryside that completes Cambridge. On my occasional morning jogging sessions, I run through land owned by King's and pass by all the landmarks you see in the photos. I would like to point out the Mercedes A class and the dinky red car I have never seen before in the states. As you can see, there is a chemist (pharmacist) on the way to the countryside. And to last AND least is the acronym USC. But here, USC is the University Social Club. That's right, USC will always have an identity crisis, in the states and abroad.

Moving on to contemporary role models...
Since there is no perfect human (except Jesus), I am going to identify three individuals who portray great qualities I respect and strive after. Please do not interpret this as me saying that I don't respect other people's characteristics...I am merely identifying three individuals who have been on my mind in recent times.

First, Warren Buffet. His blatant identification and scrutiny of the class struggles that exist in the world is strange for the richest man in the world to do. He appears to actually care about what is happening in others' lives and how his blessings can be used as tools for positively influencing lives. I also love his statement, "Price is what you pay. Value is what you get."

Second, Kobe Bryant. Before you start accusing me of supporting adultery and other infidelities, let me say what I respect about the man. First, he is a man and an imperfect human being. But, so am I. Despite being the best at his respective skill set, he continues to pursue excellence. His constant pursuit of defining and improving his already excellent skill set is what marvels and inspires me.

Last, but definitely not least. My father. Knowing this man up and close for my entire life, I have been able to scrutinize and identify what a man should embody. His constant sacrifices and willingness to live for others have inspired me my whole life. Humble and extremely diligent in what he does, my father has and will always be my role model. Of course he is stubborn and ignorant of social situations at times, but he may be the most genuine and good-hearted person I know. As a result, I can only hope I become half the man my father is.