Creating a Sense of Place in Salem

History of Salem and Main Street

When one of guest speakers came to talk to our seminar class this week, I learned that telling stories was a very persuasive and effective way of having people feel connected to Salem because it helped us as a class feel very connected to these stories and be able to relate to them.

 I did not ask a question but someone's question about playing in gigs was interesting because we got to earn more about students in the class and what their hobbies are. 

What I want to learn more about is the history of Salem itself and how it came to be how it is today, since that would interest me very much. 

One of the most frequently asked questions is about the Salem Heritage Trail (more information on http://www.massvacation.com/explore/history/heritage-trails/ ). A picture example of the Salem Heritage Trail is as seen below. 

NPS Reflection

1. Some information to be shared about Salem from the NPS reading is that at the maritime is that many people came to Salem to trade items such as spices, textiles, minerals, etc.

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4. https://www.nps.gov/sama/index.htm 

5. I enjoyed the experience of visiting the maritime mostly because I had visited there a few days ago and did not know that it was a national park until visiting there the second time. I was quite intrigued with how popular the maritime site was in the past and how successful it was in terms of making an economy for the citizens of Salem. The ocean smelled quite salty, much more salty than the ocean in Boston, which I found interesting. Being able to see some of the places that we studied was quite interesting because it helped us learn some of culture and the lifestyle of the people who have lived there from four hundred years ago up until present day.

6. How have the lifestyles of people living in Salem changed overtime and how do they affect the economy of Salem and the rest of the United States?

Library Reflection

1. When thinking about a sense of place in terms of the library I feel that my sense of place at the library would be to work together with my group members and be able to use the library to its advantage to get work done.

2. I feel that the location of the library on campus helps with the sense of place on the SSU campus because it is located in the center of most of the academic buildings on campus so everyone is able to meet and connect with each other. 

3. I learned about the many parts of the library through Jason and the purposes of the library sections. I also learned about the importance of the architecture of the library.

4. I learned that we can not use books to look for information but we can also use ebooks and can use ebooks to be able to check out books from other libraries and also use articles online that match the topic you need.

5. I learned that MapWorks is an easy way to analyze your strengths and weaknesses in your classes and how well you are doing in adjusting to the classes and environment of your college campus. It also has a list of the departments you can look into based on your responses.

Day Visiting Farmer's Market

Meeting With Melissa

Today me and four other people in my class walked from Salem State to downtown Salem to go to the Farmer's Market to meet with Melissa at her table for her Honey Pot Farm. We also met with her husband as well and we all talked to the both of them about their business and how it came to the Salem Farmer's Market.

I thought that the Farmer's Market was really interesting, it was right in the middle of downtown Salem and there was a lot of vendors there. I did not expect it to be such a popular event in Salem but apparently Salem has the Farmer's Market open every Thursday from 3 to 7pm. The way that the Farmer's Market is set up is a little confusing at first since it is hidden by some buildings and its on two sides of of a street and it was difficult to find the Honey Pot farm table, but we eventually found it in the center of the market. 

Most of the questions that we asked Melissa were about the bees on the farm and the production of the honey. We also asked questions about her sense of place in Salem because of the production of honey from her company. 

A lot of the answers that we got from Melissa are as followed (in bullet form):

-go to many farmer markets to sell honey besides in Salem:

      -Tewksbury, North Reading, Andover, Wilminton, etc

-not only produce and sell honey and maple syrup, also harvest a chicken farm 

-have 45 to 50 hives in order to produce large amounts of honey

-produce honey in the warmer months such as the summer and fall, maple syrup in the winter and spring

-bees can fill up a jar with honey in as little as a week

     -takes a day for a bee to produce 2 tablespoons of honey

-created sense of place in Salem by having two stores carry and sell the company's honey and syrup

-if the queen bee dies in the hive, the whole hive will eventually die

We asked them many questions about the bees themselves and how the endangerment of the bumblebees will affect the honey production of the honeybees, which is why some of our answers are specifically about the bees themselves. 

I felt that this experience was really good because I got to learn how other people can run a business and have it expand to different cities. It gave me a sense of place in Salem because it helped me learn more about Salem and what is has to offer. 

I took a couple of pictures today as well:

Panel and Advising

1. On October 17th we had some students from the sophmore and junior class come in and talk to us about what college life is like at Salem State University. Most of the them were academic mentors and they helped us prepare for registering for classes for the spring semester and meet with our academic advisors. They gave us more advice such as saying that we should complete all of ur gen eds during our freshman and sophmore year so that they are out of the way and during junior and senior year we can focus on our classes for our majors. 

2. I felt like Justin was very informative and helpful for us in terms of helping with registering for classes and advising. He visually showed us how to register for classes on the day of freshman registration for the spring semester and I felt that it was helpful and now I have a better idea of how to register for classes for the next semester. 

3. 

I found a photo of a spring day which lets me know that the spring semester will again be a new start of success.

4. https://www.salemstate.edu/academics/2424.php

Sense of Place at the Park

1. I did not have the time to do a nature drawing, but I was able to take a picture of the park, here is the picture:

2. I felt connected to the trees because trees have roots that connect to the earth itself and just like me at the park, me being there let me feel my roots in the park, as well. 

3. I value the park a lot because I felt that the park is definitely an easy way to find a sense of place in some place that is open and quiet than someplace that is loud and crowded.

4. The park plays a role in my own sense of place in Salem because it helps me get a feel of what Salem is like in a different environment besides the city itself.

5. What I liked the most about the field trip was being able to go the park and enjoy the freedom of choosing where to sit for a half hour to take in nature. What I didn't like was how windy and cold it got eventually since it made me want to leave. 

6. I would love to go on more excursions like this one because I felt that it was very relaxing and I enjoyed it a lot, I love being able to explore Salem and get out of the classroom to find my own sense of place.