Checking in with our group of business students and faculty who arrived in Oxford this week…
Global Apprentice: Oxford
Junior Marketing major from Amarillo, Carey Cox, shares a little bit about the group’s first week across the pond:
We, as COBA in Oxford Summer 2011, began our journey together around 2:30 on Monday afternoon. Successfully passing through security, we bade goodbye to familiarity, and gathered to wait for our boarding call. Upon getting settled in our seats on the plane, we were notified of a minor delay. We left the ground an hour later.
Unfortunately, sleep was elusive to most of us, and when our group arrived, the majority claimed the sum total of a 20 minute nap over the 9 hour flight. I was a lucky one, having taken dramamine, and enjoyed about 4 full hours. But our delightful professors scheduled a full day of activities to help us get on the local schedule. Our charter bus driver was funny and cheerful, and goodnatured even though the rest of us were significantly less than responsive. He gave us some info on Oxford, and England in general, as we made the last leg of our journey through the beautiful English countryside. Once we arrived at our darling, 1870’s home and freshened up a bit, we ate yummy sandwiches from a little shop down the street, then headed out into the town.
Oxford is probably the coolest place I’ve ever been in my life. I LOVE it. Love. I can’t wait to go back and look at all the places we passed, museums and shops and pubs and bakeries and schools and churches and parks…and it’s gorgeous. Roses and moss and trees everywhere.
There are three classes offered for this session: International Business, Intro to Management, and Operations Management. Each student here takes International and one of the other two. After morning class, we went to the Oxford Market, which is an open-air, half grocery/half flea market open on Wednesday mornings. It was exactly like I pictured it would be, except maybe more disorganized. Men and women worked busily, hawking their wares and produce in wonderful British accents. We didn’t really know how it worked at first, so we wandered around the booths and watched other people buy things. After a while we figured out which stands were connected, and that you could get a basket and fill it, then go to a main booth and buy it. There was fresh bread, all kinds of fruits and vegetables, fish and other seafood, beef, chicken, dried goods, and candy. There were also booths covered with jewelry, dvd’s, crafts, and huge stands of clothes and accessories.
One of the wonderful things about Oxford is that you get to absorb all the breathtaking scenery while you walk around town. The downside is carrying your groceries back to the house. This is also a breathtaking activity.
Our whole class is headed to London this weekend to watch Parliament at work, then I am sure we will all storm off to various exciting activities!