The End of the Road

Tonight is our last night in Cambridge together. With finals behind us, and with most of us having completed our final papers, tonight has been a celebration of a truly great summer. We met Pavel for a drink at the Avery, a nice pub just off of Parker's Piece, before meeting our Cambridge Professor, Solomos Solomou, and his wife for a final group dinner at Brown's. It was a great opportunity to speculate on this year's Premiership winner, joke about the debate over Britain's infamous 2% growth path, and reflect upon our time together in Cambridge, the UK and Europe.
Tomorrow most of us will be heading back to the states. Some will stay to do some additional travelling, with family or independently. I think I can speak for all of us when I say that the Cambridge Economics Seminar is truly a wonderful, once in a lifetime experience, and that I would recommend it to any Carleton student, whether they are an econ major or not. If you are interested in going to Cambridge with this seminar in the future and would like to find out more about it, there is a list of students on the left-hand side of this page, and any of us would be more than happy to answer any questions you may have.

Bain, The Globe, and Alumni Dinner

With one week left in the UK, our group made one final trip south to London. Our first stop of the day was the London office of Bain & Company, a management consulting firm based out of Boston, Massachusetts. There we met with one of the partners of the firm, John Ott '81 P'07. He briefly explained what consulting firms do, what he does, and how he got there, before opening up for questions. We once again used this opportunity to get a better idea of how to prepare for and get into the business world.
After the Bain visit, we crossed the Thames for a nice South-American lunch on the south bank before proceeding to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre for a matinee presentation of King Lear. The atmosphere at the Globe was incredible. The stage is open-air and a majority of the audience stands on the ground in the middle of the theatre. We were lucky enough to have seats in the upper circle, which gave us great views and better yet, protection from the rain. Despite the poor weather, the talented and determined cast pushed through and gave a spectacular performance.
After the show, we met a small group of Alumni at Zizzi, a British Italian restaurant, for dinner. This afforded us yet another valuable opprtunity to network, and to hear their collective experiences and advice.

UBS and the British Parliament

For our second-to-last excursion, during our second-to-last week of classes, we again hopped on the morning train south to London. Our first stop was the London office of UBS, a Swiss Financial Management firm, and the second largest bank in Europe. There we met with currency strategist Geoffrey Yu '06. He gave a short presentation consisting of an overview of UBS as well as his particular dealings in the foreign currency markets. The most valuable part of the meeting however was a candid discussion in which Geoffrey shared with us his experiences as a recent Carleton grad, and advice on how to best take advantage of all that Carleton has to offer to prepare us for potential careers in the financial world. Geoffrey was full of extremely useful and interesting information for us and we probably could have sat and talked with him well into the afternoon. Unfortunately, the finance world is a busy place and eventually Mr. Yu had to leave us.
After departing UBS and picking up a quick lunch, the group returned to Westminster for a guided tour of the British Houses of Parliament. It was was quite amazing to walk through a space with such a rich history, to see where the kings, queens and lords went about running the British Empire. We were not allowed to sit, but we even got to stand behind the benches in the House of Commons where we could only imagine the raucus atmosphere that must be present during a session. When we had seen all the guilded ceilings, churchill statues and Henry VIII portraits we could handle, we headed back up to Cambridge for an extravagant dinner at Pavel's house (Domino's Pizza), in honor of our guest, the professor leading the 2009 Cambridge Seminar, Radek Szulga.

Trains, Planes and... Cruise Ships?

        Well, here we are back in Cambridge after a week and a half on the continent.  Popular destinations included Italy, France, Germany and Spain, in particular the cities of Roma, Paris, Berlin, Barcelona and Amsterdam, among many others.  Some people travelled by plane, others by rail, and yes one group even took a cruise ship from Italy to Spain, but regardless of mode of transportation, the many great cultures of europe were experienced by all.  Unfortunately, there are too many stories for me to tell here, so you'll have to ask your friends/sons/daughters to share their individual experiences with you.

Brussels, Belgium

        The last three days have been a a blur.  Wednesday morning our bus left Shrewsbury and stopped briefly in Cambridge to repack before continuing south to London's St. Pancras International Train Station, where we caught the afternoon Eurostar to Brussels.  The quick trip under the English channel took only about three hours, and before we knew it, we were surrounded by people speaking French and driving on the right (read, proper) side of the road.  We spent the first evening settling into our hostel and exploring the surrounding area.

        Thursday morning we met Pavel for a guided bus/walking tour of the city.  We visited the Atomium, a steel structure built for the 1958 worlds fair, the Cinquantenaire Triumphal Arch, the European quarter, and the old city center.  At the old city center, where our tour ended, we were able to sample the fine offerings of authentic belgian cuisine, namely chocolate and beer.  One particularly fun finding was Cafe Delirium, a pub that boasts a menu with over 2500 different kinds of beer from all over the world.  After a solid afternoon of taste-testing, a majority of the group found it's way to the hostel pub, and then to a fine Irish establishment back in the city center for a karaoke marathon.  The highlight of the night, led by our own Rodney Kuhl, was a performance of Pavel's personal favorite, Gangster's Paradise by Coolio.

        Friday morning we returned to the European Quarter for a visit to the offices of the EU Commision.  We were given a series of presentations, giving us further insight into the structure of the European government, as well as the political and economic challenges facing the EU moving forward.  After dragging Pavel away from a heated debate on the merits (or lack thereof) of agriculture subsidies, we split up for lunch in the EU neighborhoods.  Then after lunch, our group visit to Brussels officially came to a close.  Some stayed in Brussels for the night, and others set out on their 9 days of independent travel.  After going our separate ways, we will return to Cambridge for class on August 4th.

The Midlands

        With the first (more than) half of our classes, and one midterm behind us, the last five days were spent getting a more experience based education on the industrial revolution period, and the lives of those who lived in England during that time.   We moved to the town of Shrewsbury, on the Welsh border, as a base for our daily excursions.  Our first stop, not necessarily having to do with the IR but certainly to the delight of all, was the Cadbury factory in Birmingham.  After obtaining a thorough knowledge of how Cadbury's Dairy Milk Chocolate was invented and produced, and subsequently filling our bellies with the many samples provided, we managed to escape the Cadbury grounds without giving into the temptation to buy the 5 kilo (that's 11 lbs) bars in the gift shop.

        Saturday, we rode the bus back towards Birmingham, to the Black Country Living Museum near the town of Dudley.  The museum's website gives the following description of the area:

The Black Country is the industrial region to the west of, and separate from, Birmingham in the Midlands of England. It gained its name in the mid nineteenth century due to the smoke from the many thousands of ironworking foundries and forges and the nature of the countryside which had been covered by dark spoil from the working of shallow and relatively thick (30ft) coal seams.

The region was described as 'Black by day and red by night' by Elihu Burritt, the American Consul to Birmingham in 1862 and other authors, from Dickens to Shenstone, refer to the intensity of manufacturing in the Black Country and its effect on the landscape and its people.

Our day at the museum included a walking tour of an old coal mine, a boat ride through a series of limestone mines/caverns, and presentations of the many craftsmen's shops and homes.

        Sunday, we visited the small town of Ironbridge, where they have... you guessed it, an iron bridge.  Actually it was the first iron bridge ever built, a product of the new technology of malleable iron.  We also visited the ruins of the iron foundries, where the giant furnaces separated the iron ore from the rock surrounding it.

        Monday, we travelled northeast to Stoke-upon-Trent, to the Gladstone Pottery Museum.  The museum has preserved a set of four bottle-shaped pottery kilns and the complex surrounding them.  Our tour included demonstrations of the pottery making process, and examples of the conditions under which the men, women and children of the mid-19th century worked and lived.

       In the prior three days we had seen the relics of several industries that were of great importance to England during the industrialization period, but the most important industry for the british economy was the textile industry.  Tuesday we travelled north to Manchester to the Quarry Bank Mill.  This textile mill, which still works to this day, also contains a museum that wonderfully illustrates the evolution of textile producing technology, and the effect that these changes had on the working population.

        Tuesday afternoon, we concluded out tour of the midlands with another lighter visit, this time to the home of the Manchester United Football Team, known as the "theatre of dreams", or more properly, Old Trafford.  We toured the ManU museum, were given a tour of the stadium, and found out that Pavel can kick a soccer ball really, really hard (though still not as hard as Cristiano "I'm a huge baby" Ronaldo).

        After a fun and interesting five days in the midlands, we now prepare for our trip to the continent.

  

London Corporate Visits

        Today we left our home in Cambridge and returned to London to gain some insight on the state of global commerce and finance from two of the largest multinational firms in the world.  Our first stop was the UK headquarters of Royal Dutch Shell, the world's second largest energy/oil company.  We were given a fairly thorough overview of the current oil market, as well as projections of how the world's demands for different types of fuel and energy sources will change in the near and medium terms.   The presentation was interesting and engaging, and our presenters were happy to continue chatting with us over lunch afterwards.

          After leaving the Shell Center, we took the tube to Canary Wharf, a bustling financial area, and home of the Barclays PLC, the world's 4th largest financial services provider.  There we were given a presentation by Carleton alum John Winter, head of European Investment Banking and Debt Capital Management, regarding the current state of the world's financial markets and institutions, particularly how they were recovering following the sub-prime mortgage crisis in the U.S. and it's spillover into the world economy.  He and a member of their University recruiting team also gave advice on how to prepare for, and how to get a job in the investment banking industry.

After the corporate visits, a small group celebrated Michelle's birthday with an Italian dinner and a visit to Queen's Theatre for a showing of Les Miserables.

Weekend Travel Part III: Branching Out

This weekend was the first big travel weekend for many here in Cambridge.   The largest group of students made the quick trip to the other British Isle for a visit to Dublin, Ireland,  another group flew south to the sunny beaches of Barcelona, Spain, and yours truly took a train up to Liverpool, England, home of the liver bird, the Beatles, and a world class football side.  It was a great weekend with many stories to share. 

Newmarket Ritz Club July Festival

This Wednesday afternoon, our rag-tag group of carleton economists would take on the high class world of thoroughbred horse racing, in hopes of making a few pounds, or perhaps just to quietly mock the people wearing funny hats.  Actually, aside from the fact that it was a great cultural experience, there was a class related exercise involved.  

        To better understand how exchange markets work, and to illustrate the difference between spot rates, forwards, etc. each student was given 10 pounds that they were to use to bet on the races.  You first had to decide what kind of risk you wanted to undertake.  Should you take the favorite with 3-1 odds, the long-shot with 200-1 odds, or maybe somewhere in the middle.  Do you bet to win? To place? Maybe hedge your win bet by going "each way"? And do you bet with Tote, the primary booking company which utilizes a pot-sharing mechanism where the odds for each horse adjust depending on  how many people place bets on it and then the odds you receive are the final odds before the race starts (we'll call this the spot rate), or do you bet with one of the smaller bookmakers where you lock in the odds at the time of the bet (we'll call this the forward rate)?          

        All of these factors led to quite an interesting afternoon, where over seven races, our betting strategies (or maybe just luck) improved dramatically as the day went on, yet the greatest lesson that we came to learn was that really, unless you are "in the know", horse racing is pretty much a complete crap shoot.  That being said, a day at the races is highly recommended to anyone should you ever get the opportunity.

Exploring Western England

Over our second weekend of independent travel, several groups set out towards western England to further experience the rich history of this country.  One group went to Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of William Shakespeare, to see his grave, his church, and a performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream by the Royal Shakespeare Company.

Those looking to experience something a little more... well, ancient, took a day-trip to Salisbury and nearby Stonehenge.  The 3500 year old monument, even as it lies in partial ruin today, is still an awe-inspiring sight.  

One unexpected surprise that we encountered on the way to Salisbury was platform 9 and 3/4 at King's Cross station in London.  Massive hordes of middle school girls posed to have their pictures taken with Harry Potter's luggage trolley vanishing into the brick wall, but despite their favorable numbers, Steve Merry was able to sneak his way in for a quick photo.  These unfortunately are stock photos.  I hope to have ours up soon.

Cheers,

The 232nd Birthday of the Greatest Nation in the World

After finishing our second week of classes, a majority of the group remained in Cambridge today to celebrate the independence of the United States of America.  We spent the afternoon on Parker's Piece (a park), grilling burgers and tossing/kicking around various sporting implements.  The only things that could have made the day better would have been proper bratwurst, and perhaps a good fireworks display.  Even though its only been a couple of weeks, all of which have been wonderful, being in another country (even one as great as England), has definitely given most of us a new appreciation for the American culture that we naturally take for granted.  Happy 4th of July.

Our First Independent Weeked

The Monday-Thursday class schedule of the program is designed to allow for independent travel over the long weekend and many took advantage of this opportunity right away.  Some went back to London to catch a few Wimbledon matches, others went to Edinburgh, Scotland among other places.  Hopefully those who went will send me something to share about their experiences this weekend.  

        I personally spent the weekend with the Cambridge ultimate frisbee team at the UK Mixed Tour 2 event in Burton-upon-Trent.  Our team, the Strange Blue, were seeded 8th in the tournament, which meant saturday would consist of peer-pool play against other top eight teams.  We started off with a hard fought 10-13 loss to the Thundering Herd, then lost to Emu on universe point after taking a 3-0 lead to start the game, and finally were defeated by top seed Chevron by a significant margin in the third game of the day.  Many of the teams, including ours, camped at the tournament site. Sunday we began bracket play for 5th place.  We lost our first game to Leeds, but then rallied in our second game to beat the Bristol Plastic Factory, only to lose in the 9th place rematch against Emu.  It was fun, and definitely different to experience the UK mixed club ultimate scene.

        Tonight was the final match of the Euro Cup between Spain and Germany.  The Carleton contingency was divided between the Homerton pub and the Earl of Derby, but all were treated to a great match as  Liverpool man Fernando Torres scored the lone goal and the Spaniards hung on to win the title.

Excursion I: East Anglia

Yesterday was the first of several excursions into the english countryside to explore the history and culture of this great country.  We were joined by our tour guide Janet, who was full of energy and knowledge, even if we were not.   We started out the day just on the outskirts of Cambridge at the American Military Cemetery.  This memorial to the men and women who gave their lives in the second world war contains the graves of over 3000 Americans, and a great wall with the names of over 5000 more whose bodies have never been recovered.  

        Our next stop was the town of Ely to the northeast, where we were given a tour of the Ely Cathedral. This magnificent structure was constructed in the 11th century as a shrine to Etheldreda, or St. Audrey.  Over the ensuing centuries, parts of the cathedral/monastery were destroyed and reconstructed, resulting in a peculiar blend of architectural styles and features, most notably the "octagon lantern" of the central tower.  We were allowed to climb up to the top of the lantern to view the cathedral from the perspective of the many archangels that adorn the walls.  

        After lunch in Ely, we then proceeded to the town of Bury-St. Edmunds in the neighboring county of Suffolk to the east.  There Janet took us through the ruins of a great abbey at the town's center.  It was in the church of this abbey where in 1214 the barons of England met to force King John (the one in Robinhood) to accept the Charter of Liberties, which influenced the creation of the Magna Carta.  In addition to this event of great historical significance, the town is also known for having the smallest pub in all of Britain, called the Nutshell, which is about as big as a modest walk-in closet.  A few members of the group, upon Janet's instance of course, indulged in a pint before we had to get back on the bus.

        The final stop of our tour was to the town of Lavenham, a quaint medieval relic in the heart of Suffolk.  The town was a booming wool town in the 13th-15th centuries, and a majority of the town's timber-framed architecture has remained intact to this day.  After a quick walk about the town, we were treated to a proper English afternoon tea at the Swan Hotel.  Spreading butter, jam, then cream on a scone is an art that very few of us mastered on the first attempt. 

Today we continued our coursework on industrial revolution, and finished the morning with our first lecture on Contemporary British Economy from Solomos Solomou.  This being our final class of the week, we then had the much anticipated Euro Cup match between the favourite Spanish side and Pavel's Russia.  Unfortunately the Russians were once again greatly outplayed, exiting the cup with a 0-3 loss.

Settling into Cambridge

So its been a good few days since we arrived in Cambridge, yet due to some issues in dealing with this "internet" thing, only now am I able to share this with you.  

We awoke bright and early about noon this Sunday, packed up our things and loaded a charter bus which had conveniently parked itself just in front of our hostel.  We took the scenic route out of London, passing one more time past all of the brilliant sites we had seen in the previous few days, and made our way north to Cambridgeshire.  It took just under two hours to arrive at what would be our temporary home for this week, Homerton College.  

After moving in and spending a few hours strolling about Cambridge, a majority of the group found its way to the Earl of Derby pub to watch the last of the euro cup quarter finals.  The match between two very skilled sides, Spain and Italy, left much to be desired, and really only got exciting as the match concluded with Spain winning on penalties.  

Monday, we had the morning free before meeting for a tour of the University.  Two absolutely delightful elderly women each took half of our group about the city center, showing us the King's, St. John's, and Trinity Colleges.  They shared with us .and quizzed us on, a great deal of history involving the University.  We walked through the very pub where Crick and Watson first conceptualized the structure of DNA, passed by the Cavendish Laboratory where 29 of Cambridge's 81 Nobel Prize winners conducted their research, looked upon an apple tree, grown from the roots of that very same tree from which a rosy orb fell into Newton's lap, and we even got to see Prince Philip taking part in the university's graduation ceremonies.  

When the tour's were over we continued our explorations of the town, amidst a flurry of activities as many of the university students made their way home for the summer, and the tourists made their way in.  The evening culminated with the first of what is sure to be many games of pickup football in the back lawn.  We played until it was too dark to see the ball and the time we had remaining to read before Pavel's first lectures  had dwindled.  

Today was our first official day of classes.  We spent a good four hours in lecture hall C in the art school building where Pavel presented lectures for our Industrial Revolution, and Multinational Financial Management courses.  We discussed the Malthusian Trap, and the relative stagnation and perhaps even decline in income per capita over the first several millennia prior to the industrial revolution, and were given a brief introduction to globalization, multinational firms, and exchange rate mechanisms.  

When class ended we then had the rest of the day to ourselves.  Most used the afternoon to read, rest and further explore the city.  I am told that another spirited game of pickup football took place early this evening, with the star player Pavel Kapinos gracing the field with his presence.   I instead attended a practice of the Strange Blue, Cambridge's ultimate frisbee team, on Jesus Green, and returned just in time for the tail end of a game of cards, which I'm sure Pavel also managed to win.  

After a grueling first, well, day of lectures, we will be joined by our awesome tour guides tomorrow for the first of our excursions into the English countryside to attempt to experience firsthand what life leading up to the industrial age might have been like. 

Exploring London, Day III

Our third and final day in London was another busy one.  We once again met Pavel in the morning and traveled east to the north bank of the Thames.  Our first stop was St. Paul's cathedral, a magnificent creation of the Anglican church during the baroque period.  As is true of any great cathedral, St. Paul's is architecturally exquisite, filled with gilded columns, vaulted ceilings, sculptures, mosiacs, and paintings of the holy saints.  The cathedral also provides visitors with endless views from the golden gallery high atop it's dome, as well as the chance to look upon the tombs of the Duke of Wellington and Lord Nelson, hero of the battle of Trafalgar.  

After leaving the cathedral, we then proceeded to the London Museum, which displayed a comprehensive history of the city of London, from prehistoric times, through the Roman era, the middle ages and the modern day.  With such an extensive and culturally rich history, London or Londinium, as it was formerly known, is one of the greatest and oldest cities in the western world.

The remainder of the day was given for free time.  Some of us took this opportunity to rest and catch up on some sleep, while others used to time to attend a play, which hopefully we can describe in greater detail at a later date.

As per usual, the early evening consisted of watching football as a large group at the hostel.  Pavel's (and thus most of our) side Russia was taking on the favourite to win the Cup, Holland, in the third quarter final match.  Both sides traded missed opportunities in the first half, with Russia looking to be the stronger side.  In the second half the Russians jumped out to a one-nil lead that seemed as if it would hold until the late equaliser from Holland's Ruud van Nistelrooy would force extra time.  Pavel was filled with sheer ecstasy as Russia scored two pretty goals in the second extra period, stamping their ticket to the semifinals where they will meet the winner of tomorrow night's match between Spain and Italy.

After the game, and attempts to collect winnings from a few bets on said game, a large majority  of us went out to enjoy our last night in London.  We arrived in Leicester Square, where our attempts to gain entrance to the world famous Zoo Bar were quickly thwarted.   However we were then subsequently invited into a venue called Ruby Blue, which turned out to be quite fun.  There were a broad range of peoples enjoying the... we'll say... more up-to-date musical offerings of the club.  After a good few hours at the club, we made our way back to the hostel to rest and pack up for our trip up to Cambridge tomorrow.

Exploring London, Day II

Our second full day in London was another busy one. We met Pavel at 9:30 and took the tube to the Waterloo area on the south bank of the Thames. There we took a ride on the London Eye. Even those with a fear of heights found the views over the city to be breathtaking. We then broke for lunch in the Tottenham Court area before proceeding to the British Museum. We spent several hours wandering among the endless collections of artifacts of the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans and many other civilizations. It was a truly humbling experience to look upon a giant bust of Rameses III, or a painted Greek vase depicting Herakles' defeat of the Nemean Lion, to imagine that these treasures were created by human hands thousands of years ago. After absorbing as much history as we could handle, we returned to the hostel for some much needed rest. After a short rest a small group took a trip to the Tate Modern gallery. The countless modern pieces stood in stark contrast with the classical works of art seen earlier in the day, and provided a unique link between the past and present documentation of the human experience.
    Tonight's Euro Cup matchup has been a thriller between Croatia and Turkey, with the favourite side Croatia sneaking in a goal with less than two minutes left in the second period of extra time, only to have Turkey notch the equalizer seconds later.  In convincing fashion, Turkey completes the upset with a 3-1 edge in penalties.  

One small group that chose to explore the London nightlife set off to Piccadilly Circus in search of a good time.  We were delighted to find that a fairly large Turkish contingency had gathered in the square.  They were singing, chanting and waving flags in celebration of their country's victory.  Seeing that kind of pride and passion was truly inspiring.  After the bobbies had cleared the mob, our group walked south to Covent Garden where we went to a club called the Roadhouse.  It was a happening place with lots of people and a great atmosphere.  The most interesting part of the club scene was the music, american pop/hip-hop that was just a few years past its prime, which was played by a DJ as well as a cover band called Everyday People.  Upon leaving the club, we discovered that finding transport after the tube closes is more difficult that imagined, as it took about twenty minutes to hail a cab. Never the less day two was a great success and we look forward to day three.

Exploring London, Day I

Today was our first full day in London.  For most of us, it started with venturing into the Chelsea neighborhoods for an authentic English breakfast.  The bacon and egg croissants from the local fish and chips vendor were particularly good.  After breakfast we met Pavel and took the tube to Greenwich to see the Royal Observatory, where we had the unique opportunity to stand in both the Eastern and Western Hemispheres at the same time.  Then, only after synchronizing our watches to Greenwich Mean Time by watching the ball drop (see photo right), we proceeded to the National Maritime Museum .  The remainder of the afternoon was allotted as free time, during which most of us took care of some logistical chores (buying a pay-as-you-go mobile was much more complicated than one would expect), and wandering about the Borough of Westminster, visiting sights such as the Parliament Building, Westminster Abbey, Trafalgar Square and Buckingham Palace.  After taking the requisite photos of the beautiful architecture and the stoic guards, we returned for the hostel for another mellow evening of watching football on the tele.  For any football fans out there Portugal was out-classed by ze Germans in a very exciting match.   Day one was full of great experiences, days two and three  are expected to bring more of the same. 

Cheers.

Arriving in London

Today was the day that the majority of our group arrived in London.  Whether flying into Heathrow or Gatwick, or taking a train in, we all managed to find our way to our lovely little hostel at 7 Brechin Place in the Chelsea-Kensington District.  After a brief meeting with Pavel and our host Fabio, we set out for a lovely dinner at the Cactus Blue Restaurant and Lounge, which provided an eclectic blend of Mexican, Cajun, and Asian flavors.   We finished dinner just in time to watch the Euro Cup match between Sweden and Russia as a group in the hostel lounge.  Much to the delight of Pavel, and to the dismay of this particular Scandinavian, Russia pulled off an impressive 2-0 win over the Swedes.  With jet-lag setting in and a busy couple of days ahead, most call it an early night.

A (Brief) History

Founded in 1983, the Economics Seminar in Cambridge has been located at Cambridge University for 20 years. The University has been home to many of great economic theorists including Alfred Marshall, John Maynard Keynes, and F.A. Hayek. Being in Britain allows students to study the contemporary British economy as well as the cradle of the Industrial Revolution. The program has become an integral part of the economics curriculum at Carleton, and the faculty believes the seminar’s historical focus and exposure to British culture help students see themselves, their country, and the world with new perspective.

The Beginning

As the final week of Carleton's spring term commences, it's students are battling through their last books, problem sets, essays and exams, while looking forward to the summer holiday that lies ahead.  For twenty four of us, this coming summer will be spent at Cambridge University studying economics and experiencing the culture of England, the UK and the European continent.  Beginning with our arrival approximately two weeks from now, this blog will chronicle our studies, travels, experiences and new perspectives, with the hope of giving friends, family and prospective participants a taste of what the seminar is all about.  

Cheers.