Los Angeles, Calif. — Upon arriving in the United States after nine full weeks spent absorbing British culture and studying at Cambridge University’s Pembroke and Downing Colleges, my first jolt of Los Angeles was hearing a Spanish-accented loudspeaker announcement to all the newly arrived travelers at LAX. As integral to Los Angeles life as the pub is to British life, a Latino presence was utterly lacking during my extended stay in the United Kingdom. Conversely, I developed a greater appreciation for the British public transportation system after remembering how disjointed Los Angeles is in comparison. There is very little need for a car in Cambridge, especially considering that gas costs more than twice as much in the U.K. as the prices we Californians are just now beginning to let change our consumption habits.

While studying abroad, we American students quickly realized that British citizens, as in everywhere else around the world, hold a vastly different set of customs and priorities than those of Americans. Aside from differences in American and British culture, even the language is different. When I heard that the British TAs were going to give some UCI students “torches” to carry late at night back to their rooms on a far part of Downing College, comical images of students carrying fiery torches reminiscent of an Indiana Jones movie immediately sprung into my head – not of tiny black flashlights. Also, I began to exercise care when ordering the meat, potato and cheese filled pastries known as “pasties,” trying not to pronounce the word in a manner suggesting a product for which one would definitely not come to a bakery.

Studying abroad at Cambridge University in England was one of the best decisions I have ever made, as was choosing to participate in Cambridge 1 and Cambridge 2 for a total of nine weeks of studying and travel. Although I have not yet begun my third year at UCI, I am sure that I will positively recall the intimate campus and class sizes at Cambridge upon entering my 399-student criminology class at UCI. Still, I will appreciate the great diversity of departments that a public university is more likely to offer. More than anything else, the rewarding experience of studying at Cambridge has given me an invaluable sense of perspective on an international and small-college scale.

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Cambridge, England — In the time it takes to explain the differences between the legendary late-night Cambridge food trailers, the Trailer of Life and the Trailer of Death, one can walk across the entire Pembroke College campus. One of 32 colleges within Cambridge University, Pembroke College is smaller than UC Irvine’s School of Humanities. The intimate campus is matched by an equally intimate social experience as there were only about 140 students from various UC universities in the entire four-week UC Cambridge 1 program. With just 27 students, the Cambridge 2 program is smaller than whole classes from the already small four-week Cambridge 1 program.

Organized events in Cambridge are as frequent as the number of UCI students complaining there is nothing to do in Irvine. From trying not to fall in the River Cam while punting to having a tea service at the Orchard to enjoying a Sam Smiley Special, Cambridge offers many unique activities which give it a distinct small town feel (yes, that last one was food). From Pembroke College, tasty sandwiches and dangerously delicious pastries are a stone’s throw away – regardless of your stone-throwing abilities.

Besides the events that the program TAs organize, there is little excuse for boredom in Cambridge. If you keep your eyes open, there are always hidden treasures to be found in and around the city. On the outer edges of Cambridge, I discovered the Snug, offering high quality food and live entertainment. Traditional British food mixed with alcohol and an incredible pianist/singer named Colin Hazel make for a rollicking good time every Sunday at 8 p.m.

Just outside of Cambridge is the Maize Maze, a simple but distinctive pleasure in which visitors can get lost in a life-size labyrinth of corn, go go-karting or enjoy some miniature golfing. Too agricultural? The center of London is a 50-minute newspaper read away on the train. The virtually unlimited entertainment options of the big city include shows, concerts and other distinctive events – discoverable, again, if you are sufficiently diligent.

Of course, a similar premise could easily apply to Irvine, Orange County and Los Angeles. True, the city of Irvine is more family-oriented than student-oriented, but if UCI students apply the same thinking which has seen UC Cambridge abroad students indulge in weekend trips to London, Bath and even Ireland and Spain, the perception that UCI is boring would be a thing of the past. We are in the heart of Orange County and about an hour’s drive from Los Angeles, an internationally significant cultural center. Too smoggy? Enjoy a long bike ride to the beaches of Newport, take a two-hour’s drive to Big Bear to ski, or drive in a slightly different direction and end up relaxing and gambling in the deserts of Palm Springs.

Cambridge is a charming small British college town with more than enough options for a summer’s entertainment (this is, of course, assuming all your coursework is completed). My six weeks in England so far have reminded me of Irvine’s potential as an entertainment-rich starting point in an amazing community which features world-class theater and music just an hour or two from snow-capped mountains, glamorous Orange County beaches and expansive deserts. Just as in Cambridge, options for entertainment in Irvine will not always come biting you in the hind region. You will sometimes have to go out and search for the less than obvious, be willing to drive (or have a friend with a car) and accept the possibility that the best nights you will have in Irvine or in England may come when you are stepping outside of your comfort zone.

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Sherman Oaks, Calif. — In the year 2624, the University of California, Irvine will celebrate its 659th birthday. Aldrich Park may remain at the core of the campus, a nuclear reactor may still reside underneath Rowland Hall, but one thing is certain: UCI will be Under Construction Indefinitely. In its relentless quest to always provide better resources and classrooms for students and professors, the university will probably always be changing, reconstructing and remodeling. This is in direct contrast to the Pembroke College of the University of Cambridge, which celebrated 659 years of academic instruction in the 2005-06 school year. In stark contrast to UCI, Pembroke College has remained relatively similar visually to the day it opened in 1347. Yes – 1347 – a date closer to the millennium at 1001 A.D. than at 2001 A.D. In a few days, I will have the privilege of studying at Pembroke College for nine weeks, making my mark on an institution that has been in existence 15 times longer than UCI.

When I arrive in Cambridge, I will likely take residence in a building which first housed young students like me before the U.S. had its first president. The idea of studying in a university that has prepared so many generations of students for the “real world” through nearly 700 years is daunting, yet inspiring. I will have the opportunity to sit in the same chair as many famous English writers and perhaps sit under the descendent of the apple tree where Isaac Newton supposedly began to understand what would become his universal theory of gravitation. While UCI may inspire excellence through its constantly changing and expanding campus, Pembroke College will inspire me through a rich history to which I can now contribute.

I also look forward to the fresh perspectives of real Cambridge professors. There is no better way to study Shakespeare than with a knowledgeable British professor and a visit to the historic Globe Theatre, where a work of Shakespeare performed in front of many UCI students standing, crowded with other eager viewers, simulating the experience of Globe Theatre patrons from the 17th century. Complementing Shakespeare will be classes on documentary filmmaking, South African literature and another in which the professor will discuss the intelligence agencies of the U.S., Great Britain and Russia.

The prospect of studying such a wide variety of subjects at a historically well-established university in England is exciting. Along with more than 100 other California university students, I will expand my cultural horizons while marveling in my place at this historical educational institution and eating fish and chips.

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