Milford

Milford is a gorgeous town in Connecticut. We visited the Mayor of Milford, James Richetteli; wandered through the Duck park; lunch at Stonebridge and even a tour of Milford's fire department.

Wilton and Guilford Libraries

Wilton Library has something I have never seen in Australia - a drive through service. Drop your books and other loans off at the drive through, and even pick up reservations and pay fines. The courtyard area is a wonderful area for functions, with seating, and a fountain.





Guilford Library integrates an old building with a new almost seamlessly. I would happily work from their local studies room all day long.

Cato Corner Farm

Wednesday, April 21, 2010.

A tour of Cato Corner Farm was lots of fun and not only because we had a taste testing of all the cheeses made on the premises. I love that gold washed rind!

Well it's the end of the third week and the time has flown by so fast. I have met some wonderful people and seen some amazing places like Wolf Park in Monroe where we had a guided tour and as we came out of the woods into an opening we saw a beautiful man made lake where we were able to take our shoes off and dip our toes in the water. We have also been to district conference in Burlington, Vermont where we bonded with the South African team and sang a song together at the Saturday night function "We Are The World". So far my favourite experience has been going on my vocational days and riding along with the Fairfield Police and visiting the FBI and DEA. I have been surprised by how welcoming my host families have been and how they have made me feel like part of their family in such a short period of time. I have definately built friendships that will last a lifetime.

Boats, Cars and Sports!

We've had some very exciting days over the past couple of days. We visited the Mystic Seaport Museum on Monday morning. We were able to look through the only surviving wooden whaling boat (and yes Perri managed to climb the three flights of stairs as well as bump her head on the roof in the downstairs quarters!) After which we were able to have lunch in the oldest continuous running Inn - called the Griswolds, and no we didn't see anyone that resembled Chevy Chase. Afterwhich we were treated to a ride on the Connecticut River. It was very cold but absolutely beautiful. On Tuesday we visited the Connecticut Police Academy. Sophie was in absolute heaven! We witnessed recruits training in on the skid pad in the cars, doing some combat training and visited their shooting range. For all of those sports fans it's time to wipe that green colour off your face. We visited ESPN Studios and had a fantastic tour, with some very nice views! We even managed to get a wink from one of the NFL show presenters! And yes we saw the set where they shoot the Nascar show!

Wednesday saw us visiting the capital theatre where we had a tour, visiting the senate room and the memorial to the fallen soldiers and many more.

We were treated to a lovely dinner at Modern Pizza tonight before we will be rolling into bed for another busy day in our vocational visits tomorrow.

Along with our presentations

What is GSE all about?

Before I boarded the plane to Connecticut, USA, I thought the Group Study Exchange (GSE) was all about visiting professionals who share a common career path. A Library Manager in Australia will therefore meet up with another Library Manager in Connecticut. They will share stories, find commonalities and discuss difference. And this has certainly occurred on my GSE. The Otis Library in Norwich, Connecticut shares many similarities in terms of staffing, processes and patrons. And it was fascinating to discuss the differences between Hurstville City Library and the Otis Library.

What has surprised me, what I never expected, was how many amazing people I would meet on the GSE. And they are not just from my own profession. In one short week I've met doctors, teachers, nurses, wedding planners, web designers, IT experts....and many more. I've been overwhelmed by everyone's generosity, willingness to help, and genuine interest in the Australian GSE team and our experiences.

I feel very fortunate to be part of this exchange and I'm looking forward to the next 3 weeks of vocational visits and opportunities to meet many more incredible people.

Rebekah

Survival Systems - all part of the GSE experience!

Today we had the unusual opportunity to learn how to evacuate from a plane that has ditched, upside-down (of course) in water. The course was held at Survival Systems and Sophie had a fantastic time practicing her new skills, while photographers, Zoe and Rebekah recorded the moment for posterity.