My name is Colleen Owen. I'm an advertising student at the University of Oklahoma with a minor in Film and Media Studies. I chose to go to school in Oklahoma because I loved the small campus atmosphere and Gaylord had a great program for what I wanted to do.
My mother is originally from England, and when she was younger she traveled all over the world. My mom and my dad actually meet on one of her trips across the ocean in Bermuda. The two of them have emphasized the importance of traveling ever since I was young. My dad worked in the hotel business for a long time, so we've always lived by the coast in very touristy places, like South Carolina and Florida.
When we moved to Texas, I had the opportunity to travel to France and Italy on a school trip when I was about 14. I love wondering the streets, exploring places I had never been and learning about the history. My favorite memory from that trip was when we learned to make homemade pasta in Italy in a very small village outside Florence. Another trip that I will never forget is when I traveled to Pakistan with my professor and two other girls. It was for a class in which we had won a competition for a comprehensive advertising campaign. This was obviously a trip of a life time and probably something that will never happen again. It was interesting to see the vast difference between the western world and the middle east. There were times I was worried about safety, but once we visited the embassy and left to go the the University of Gujrat I felt welcomed and safe. The ten security guards helped.
 |
| Colleen, Caitlyn and Audrey with our security guards. (Personal Photo) |
 |
| Trees in Houston (Personal Photo) |
 |
| Guard in Pakistan (Personal Photo) |
Oh, you have been to Pakistan, Colleen! I am really jealous! As you can guess from my teaching a class in Epics of India, I am very interested in India, and thus very interested in Pakistan. I have read so much, listened to music, seen movies... but I have not been there. I keep hoping that I will get a chance to do that somebody. You will find so many ways to connect up the different possible topics in this course with the places you have visited, so maybe you will want to use that as a jumping off point for your Storybook in this class: French storytelling, Italian storytelling, stories from Pakistan and India - so many stories, so many possibilities! I hope you will enjoy the class! :-)
ReplyDeleteI have to admit, I am pretty jealous of that fact that you have traveled outside of the United States. I have barely traveled outside of Oklahoma but I have always wanted to go everywhere. I find different place and cultures to be fascinating. I also like photography. I am horrible at taking pictures but I love to look at the final products. Good luck with the semester!
ReplyDeleteVery very cool that you have been to Pakistan! I would love to travel to the Middle East at some point in my life. It is such an interesting culture. I too have been to both Italy and France! My aunt lives in Fourquex. It’s a small village just west of Paris. Such a cool place! What were your favorite places in France and Italy? I would love to hear more about where you went and what you did.
ReplyDeleteI love OU’s campus atmosphere as well! It is a fairly big school, but still has that small school feel. That is pretty awesome that your mom is from England. Does she happen to have an English accent? I luckily get to travel a lot with my family as well, and have always enjoyed it. I have never gotten to go to a place like Pakistan! I think that would be a lot of fun.
ReplyDeleteWow, your travel experiences sound amazing! (I'm super jealous of your Pakistan trip..) I love traveling too, but only experienced my first overseas trip just last summer. I think it's awesome how your parents have encouraged you to explore and experience different cultures. I had no idea you such a good photographer. Your pics look awesome! Looking forward to following your blog for more good reads and pictures.
ReplyDeleteSeriously, your trips sound amazing! I've only just gotten to experience going overseas just this last summer, but I certainly fell in love with it! Your pictures are also wonderful. What an fun hobby! Do you know what you want to do with your degree? It sounds like the opportunities could be endless! I'm looking forward to reading more stories and seeing the wonderful pictures! Best of luck to you this semester!
ReplyDeleteHey Colleen! I think it is wonderful that you have grown up with an appreciation for traveling and that you love to experience new places. I would like to travel to the Middle East on day, and it is wonderful to hear how impactful the trip was on you. I wish you all the best. It is nice to meet you!
ReplyDeleteThat's quite the romantic story of how your parents met. Relationships that blossom from travel are unique. I also love to travel! My dad is a pilot for an international freight company, so he gets cheap tickets for me all the time. My favorite place outside the US is either Siena or Positano, Italy. I went with my aunt when I was fifteen and had the time of my life! Keep up making memories!
ReplyDeleteColleen: When you made pasta, did you make it from scratch? That sounds like fun.
ReplyDeleteAlso, it's fantastic that your parents emphasized the importance of traveling. I do wonder why some parents shelter their children to the point of reducing their travel itineraries and keeping them from going abroad. It's quite strange to me.
Regarding your photography, have you ever tried doing light art, where you use an extended exposure and then make patterns in the air with a glow stick or something? One of my friends used to do that, and it was fantastic. Give it a try!
There was another advertising student in this class, but I can't remember his name at the moment. It's a great field to go in to and I heard that the Gaylord program was a good one too. I've never been a big picture taker, but I love that you like film photography. I think if I ever started, I would do that too. There's just something about not knowing what you've got until later.
ReplyDeleteHi Colleen!
ReplyDeleteI think that it’s amazing how much traveling you have had the opportunity to do! I would love to travel. There are so many places that I want to explore and Italy is definitely one of them. Do you visit England often? My roommate is obsessed with all things British and we really want to visit one day.
The picture of the trees that you used in your post was beautiful! Photography is so cool and it’s awesome that you have the time to take pictures.
Colleen, I love how passionate you are about traveling! I have the same travel bug, and it is seriously the best/worst thing ever. It’s the best when you get to travel as often as you’d like, but when you’re stuck in school or at work and can’t travel, it’s seriously a bummer. I know what you mean about having security guards in the Middle East! When I went to Egypt, we had our own bodyguard and that made us feel a lot safer!
ReplyDeleteWhat up Colleen!
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to see another friend in this class. Like you, I am an advertising major and I'm Texas born and bred. I didn't know much about your family, so it was cool to read about them. Your trip to Pakistan sounds like an awesome experience! I'm sure it was a little difficult to adjust to such a different culture, but it sounds like you had a good time. I have never been out of the country, but I hope to some day!
Hey Colleen!
ReplyDeleteLike you I enjoy traveling. Last summer, I had the opportunity to study abroad. I studied abroad in Ireland for a month. And while I was there I also got travel to London and Belgium. I had the time of my life! I hope to continue my travels. I wish to visit Scotland, Switzerland, and Venice someday. Where else would you like to travel?
Colleen. That is great that you travel and I enjoyed reading about your backstory. It's also funny that you mention South Carolina because I am from there. I transferred to OU from College of Charleston. It is also cool that you are a Film and Media Studies minor because that is my major. Your photographs look awesome, congrats.
ReplyDeleteHi Colleen! I'm an advertising student too, i love gaylord! That's so cool that you've gotten to live and travel to so many different places. I have lived in Oklahoma my whole life so I have had a recent itch to travel more now that i'm older! I love to cook so I would have died at that pasta making class, that sounds like a blast! Good luck with the rest of your seamster!
ReplyDeleteHey, Colleen! I love that you have traveled so much! My parents always encouraged travel as well, so I have a soft spot for it as well. I lived in Kazakhstan when I was little, and it really is interesting to see how different that region is from the US. Learning to make pasta sounds like a blast! I love your photos here. You definitely have a knack for photography!
ReplyDeleteHow cool! I actually took intro to Film and Media my freshman year, and I thought it was a really neat class. Im jealous that you have gotten to travel so much. I have never been to anywhere on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean (or Pacific depending on which way you're going), but I'd love to go sometime.
ReplyDeleteHey Colleen! I think traveling is also very important, especially when we are at a great age to travel the world. I think it's cool that's how your parents met. I remember hearing about your campaign group getting to travel to Pakistan! I'm sure that was such a wonderful trip. Where else would you want to travel? Your pictures are beautiful by the way!
ReplyDeleteHi Colleen.
ReplyDeleteI think it is really beautiful that your parents met while traveling. It even more awesome that they stressed how important travelling is. It's really cool that you have been so many places already. Your pictures are also so beautiful. I can't imagine what Pakistan is like, but I would love to travel to the middle east sometime. I am sure it will definitely be a learning experience. See ya!
Wow, Pakistan with 10 armed guards! That really is something to remember you whole life. That's cool that your parents have emphasized traveling to much. My grandparents have always been world travelers so I've gotten to go places like Kenya and Egypt too and see the different cultures there. It's really easy to get a very closed mindset just living in the United States, or even parts of Europe, so I think it's awesome that you've gotten to visit all those places!
ReplyDeleteHi Colleen, I am glad to see a fellow advertising student in this class. I am jealous of your jetsetter excursions around the world. Congrats on winning that advertising campaign contest as well. That definitely sounds like quite the culture shift to have bodyguards accompany you around. I can only imagine how unique of an experience that would be. Good luck with the rest of the semester!
ReplyDelete