Field Trips Provide Invaluable Experiences

As an Early American History major, one could not ask for a better school than William & Mary.  Not only does the college have a long history (300+ years WHOO) but it is also located close to some of the greatest historical spots.  Colonial Williamsburg is in walking distance, Jamestown is just down the road and you only have to drive for a few miles to get to the Yorktown Battlefield, and let's not even start to list the many historic houses, museums, etc. that are also nearby.

At least half of my history classes have taken advantage of these local museums and I have had several courses where, every week, we went to a different place. I'm in one of those classes right now and as I reach the end of my semester, I'm starting to realize that only William & Mary can offer fantastic classes like these.  Now, many people who know me realize that I am a little crazy about Jamestown.  Working there since high school, I have always had a soft spot for the museum and find myself mentioning it in most of my conversations.  To this day I can't even watch Pocahontas because I cannot get over the historical inaccuracies (no, John Smith did NOT marry Pocahontas).  When I saw a class called "The Jamestown Era," I had to sign up for it.  With only eight people in the class, we all easily fit into a single van and typically have discussion on the way to our exciting trip for the day.  Our professor, an archaeologist at a local Native American site, is a W&M alumnus that is just as passionate about his subject as I am about Jamestown. 

And while I enjoy the subject matter, I love the class for more reasons than the cool locations.  Because of the small class size, the professor has been able to give each of us his full attention and the class itself has formed a close friend circle just from spending so much time crammed together in the college van.  The group has also bonded over the crazy experiences that seem to keep occurring while on these trips, leading us to believe that our van is actually cursed.  On the first trip, we watched as a deer was hit by the car in front of us. (Interestingly, this happened next to a building named "Bambi.") On another trip, a buzzard ran directly at our car, missing it by only seconds.  Most recently, while driving to the Pamunkey Indian Reservation, our professor accidently ran over the chief's chicken (of course he offered to buy him a new one). And somehow every class it rained.

Every semester my friends love to hear about the "crazy" class that I'm taking for the semester (last year I actually HOED TOBACCO for a course) and while they make great stories, they have also made great experiences.  Because the class is so fun, every single one of us did the reading each week and were willing to contribute to the discussion (regardless of where we were).  And as I start to plan my final paper, I'm realizing how much knowledge I actually absorbed because I now associate facts with the events and conversations that went with them.  When I talk to my history major friends from other colleges (who sit in a classroom twice a week with 49 other individuals and are lectured to by a grad student) I have to try and not brag TOO much.