The school week wrapped up nicely last Thursday with a class all about the blues, jazz, and the birth of rock music in England. I learned a lot about the Rolling Stones, Jimmy Hendrix, the Yardbirds, and many others. I don't know a whole lot about popular music history, so it was really interesting to hear all of the stories about these amazing artists. We even got to hear some conspiracy theories about their deaths from our professor, Justin. Needless to say, I'm loving my classes and learning all kinds of great new things.
Friday was a full day of royalty, as we traveled with our tour guide, Angie, west of the city to Windsor Castle and Hampton Court. Windsor was a huge, intimidating castle that boasted green lawns and beautiful interiors. It was incredible to stand in those halls and think about all those that had been there before. We got to see where the Queen lives when she's there (which she wasn't) as well as many staterooms that are used often by the monarchy. After taking an audio tour of the inside, we saw St. George's chapel, a place I had been anticipating for a long time. As soon as I walked in the building, I was taken aback by the scent. It took me a few minutes walking around the beautiful chapel to realize why it smelled so familiar. The smell reminded me of Christmas - and I realized it was because it smelled like the old south campus of my church, with its old wood and high stone ceilings. I only go to this branch of my church for midnight mass on Christmas with my mother, so the smell took me back to the holidays and made me feel very much at home. It was very comforting and made me so happy! Finally, at the very back of the church, I found what I'd been looking for: the tomb of Henry VIII and his favorite wife, Jane Seymour. My fascination with the Tudors was only heightened as I stood above the floor plaque that marked his burial place.
The overwhelming presence of such great history only continued at Hampton Court, the palace built for Cardinal Wolsey but lived in mostly by Henry VIII. It is a beautiful brick palace, and while its interior is not as epically beautiful as that of Windsor, the surrounding grounds more than make up for it. We took a quick tour through the older half of the palace, guided by Angie, and picked up a lot of stragglers as we went, eager to hear Angie's fascinating stories about the Tudor family. We even got to see a man dressed as Henry VIII walking around! I took another moment to think about all of the historical people who had walked these halls, then our group went outside to explore the gardens. This was where I found my happy place. The gardens themselves were beautiful, but a little too finely manicured for my tastes. However, we soon wandered over to the edge of the deer park, where the giant trees and leaf-covered grass made me think of autumn in the midwest. It was a wonderful feeling, made even better by the hedge maze we found ourselves horribly lost in. We finally made our way out, then got on our bus to head back to London.
That night we went to a nearby bar called The Rocket, which attracts many local university students and was a lot of fun. The next morning we woke up and went to the Portobello Road Market at Notting Hill. It was crazy! There were all kinds of stands, from antiques, to silverware, to clothes, to food. I bought some fresh veggies, a Breakfast at Tiffany's poster, a new bag and a £5 dress. Once home, I took a short nap, then went with some friends to Covent Garden to get some cookies at a little bakery. We then went home to get ready for the main event of the night. We left the flat around 10pm, then went to a pub in Soho, and finally made our way over to Sports Cafe in Picadilly to watch the "Collision in Columbus": USC vs. OSU. We met up with a bunch of USC alumni, and set up to watch the game in our own private room with a nice big tv. I found a front row seat, and met some friendly Buckeye Brits. It was really nice to hang out with some Buckeyes, even if we weren't cheering for the same team. I mean, of course I was cheering a bit for the Bucks on the inside, but I was dressed in USC gear and supporting my alma mater all night. We shared stories of high street, Upper Arlington, and even chocolate buckeyes (which they call chestnuts over here), but when the game came on we were separated by the competition. And what a game it was! Both teams fought hard and played well, but the Trojans took it home in the end. I was a proud Trojan and a sad Buckeye that night, but at least I got to see the game all the way over here, and I met some very nice people in the process.
Us London Trojans didn't get home until 5:30am, having watched the game live, so it was rough waking up at noon to go to the Fulham vs. Everton football (soccer) match. But it was a lot of fun, and Fulham won in an exciting finish. After the game, I went straight to the River Thames Festival, which is an annual event put on by the Mayor of London. It was a great festival, with lots of street vendors, art, music, and good food. I got some paella and bought a couple of souvenirs: a hand-pressed t-shirt with multicolored birds (I love birds, which was ironically the name of the artist selling the shirts) and a glass panel with tiny pressed flowers inside spelling out "PEACE" in different colors. It was a great night that finished up with a bunch of us on the Hungerford bridge watching an incredible fireworks show. The bursts of light bounced off the River Thames and lit up the red buses driving slowly across the London bridge. It was the perfect end to a perfect weekend.
Still having a great time here in London, and filling in every single minute with amazing memories! This weekend should be a little slower paced, but just as full. The weather's getting chillier by the day, so I'm trying to fit in all the outdoor things I can before that famous London cold sets in for good. Tomorrow we'll be touring the infamous Buckingham Palace, and this weekend is Open House - where many of London's most famous buildings are open to the public for free. I plan to take full advantage of the event, and maybe even fit in a market and a trip to the nearby Kew botanical gardens. I'm sure I'll have a lot to report then, so I'll try to keep you posted!
Love!
Photos: Football (soccer) match, Hampton Palace, Windsor Castle, the group and the London Eye (all lit up!) at the Thames River Festival, fighting on for the Trojans!
Alright, it's already 10pm and I haven't started my reading for tomorrow, so I'm really keeping this one short. It was a very long, but great day! Our group took a river cruise down the Thames to Greenwich for our London tour of the week. It began at Westminster, where we boarded the ferry, then meandered toward the sea. We saw all of London on either side of us - what a view! But my favorite part was seeing the Tower Bridge and the Tower of London, since those were the two biggest sites of London that I hadn't seen yet. The Tower Bridge did not disappoint - it was absolutely magnificent... and blue! I didn't know that it was painted such a beautiful color on the sides, but I loved it. We got to Greenwich around noon, and Angie showed as around what used to be the naval academy, but is now a university. Built originally as a palace by Christopher Wren, the famous architect of St. Paul's Cathedral, it's a fantastic building, split in two to allow the Queen's House, a very old building built for Queen Ann, a view of the Thames. The whole complex is very beautiful, with a great green quad in the middle. One side of the building is the "Painted Hall" with beautiful paintings on the walls and ceiling, while the other half is a chapel. After this little tour, we ate lunch nearby, and got ice cream, of course. We then met back up to climb the hill through Greenwich Park. The park was full of people enjoying an absolutely perfect day out in the sunshine. At the top of the hill is "the birthplace of time," or the Prime Meridian Line for which Greenwich is famous (Greenwich Mean Time = GMT). There's an actual line on the ground, and you can straddle it and say that you're standing in both the eastern and western hemisphere. Pretty cool, yea? We took a bunch of photos, as well as some snapshots of the amazing city view we got from up there. We learned a little bit about how the Prime Meridian Line was found (by a very poor man under King George III, who spent his entire life creating devices that could measure time at sea), then took a tour of the discoverer's home. It was a very interesting experience and I certainly learned a lot about longitude!The afternoon came to a close with one of my favorite moments of this whole trip. Sarah and I decided to go sit in the park for a while to rest up and enjoy the amazing weather.After choosing our spot, we began to make our way there, when something caught my eye.As I looked at the grass beneath my feet, in this park so far from home, I saw something very familiar.I picked it up, and sure enough, there it was… a Buckeye.A real Buckeye nut! To all you non-Ohioans out there, this may seem quite silly, but to me it was incredible to find such a rare memento of home in somewhere so very far away. I couldn't find any others, and there were no Buckeye trees in sight, so I took it as a sign that I was meant to find this little nut, as a reminder that home is always with me. :)
What a great day it has been, and as I look over at my little nut on my dresser, I'm reminded of how lucky I am to be all the way over here, having such incredible experiences every day. It's always hard to be far from home, and there are many people that I miss terribly, but I know that home will always be there, and I have my Buckeye to remind me when I forget!
Sorry it's been so long, but I have been busy busy! This post will be short (sorry again!) because I'm feeling a bit under the weather and plan to get to bed early to rest up.
The past weekend has been fantastic, complete with a trip to the theatre, a visit to Stonehenge and Bath, a day at the Borough Market, and a couple of really great football games. On Wednesday we saw Billy Elliott at the London Palace Theatre, one of London's most popular musicals. It was absolutely wonderful! It's about a little boy from northern England who loves dance, but is afraid to pursue his dream because it's not really accepted in his small town. I learned from our tour guide Angie, who filled us in a bit on the production, that the show started as a one time performance, but after Elton John saw it, and deeply empathized with Billy's story, he made it into a long-term musical, and wrote the music for it. He also created a school for the arts in northern England for boys like Billy, and they now cast every "Billy" from that school. Pretty cool, huh?
On Thursday of last week, everyone in my program made a dish and we had a big potluck dinner. I made my family's tabbouleh salad, which was a huge hit. The next morning we woke up bright and early for a trip to Stonehenge and Bath. Stonehenge was magnificent. I'd heard so much about it, but seeing it in person was an astonishing experience. I took a million photographs, of course, but also took a moment to sit in the grass and look upon the awe-inspiring stones, pondering their intention and just thinking about life. It was lovely.
After an hour at Stonehenge, our group headed further west to the city of Bath, where we promptly took a tour of the famous Roman baths from which it gets its name. These baths, which date back to the 1200's, were created by the Romans to indulge their luxurious passion for bathing and lounging. They were quite splendid, and I'm amazed at how well they are preserved. After the tour, my friends and I walked around the city, doing some shopping and eating. I bought some tea and some chocolates (the essentials), then shared an incredible ice cream sundae with Sarah, which boasted two scoops of locally farm-made ice cream, espresso, and whipped cream - delicious. Full to the brim, we boarded our coach and made our way home to London.
That night, Sarah and I booked our trip to Edinburgh, Scotland for the end of September. We're taking a night bus that will get us there in 9 hours, but for very cheap. After our Ireland adventure, I'm pretty sure I can handle anything, so I'm excited for the trip. I think now that that's booked, I'm all set for the semester. I'm going to a total of six places (including Ireland) outside of England, with two trips to Italy (one with friends, one with my mom when she visits in October). I will also have two more day trips, to Windsor and Hampton, and Oxford and Blenheim. Over all, a whole lot of traveling! I guess I'm sort of glad I'm sick now, so I can be healthy for all of these planned adventures. I think it's just a cold, so hopefully I'll be up and running in just a few days.
The rest of my weekend was spent shopping at the Borough Market, under the London bridge, and watching some grade-a American football. The market was great: I got some fresh farm grown potatoes, cinnamon almonds, organic oranges (for extra vitamin c), and a delicious looking pie, with goat cheese, spinach and tomatoes. We also ate at a Mediterranean stand, and the owner told me he was from Syria. Delighted to meet a real Syrian (perhaps my first, outside of family), I promptly, and very excitedly, told him that I was Syrian. At this, he kindly shook his head and chuckled at my red hair and freckles. I then explained to him that I am only a quarter Syrian, and look nothing like it, but we had a good laugh and he gave me some free falafel. Over all, a great market experience.
Saturday night was all about the football. I found the Ohio State-Navy game streaming online (somebody out there loves me) and was able to watch almost all of it. The USC game was harder to find, but I got to see the first half, and that was enough to predict the ending. The Buckeyes looked pretty good, but I would have liked to have seen a little more defense. On the other hand, the Trojans wailed on San Jose State, almost an embarrassing amount, and our defense stood strong (not that we really needed it). Over all, I was quite pleased with both of my teams, and am beyond excited to watch them battle each other next weekend. The USC alumni association here in London is meeting up at a nearby pub to watch the showdown, so my die-hard fan friends and I have planned to attend. It should be a great experience, and hopefully a great game. The only downside is that I will be watching the game live... at 1:30am. But it's all worth it for a good game. Go Buckeyes, fight on Trojans!
Alright, this post ended up being way longer than intended, and now I think it's time for a Sex and the City episode (I brought the entire series with me on DVD) and then bed. Hopefully I'll kick this cold and be back to taking London by storm in a few days. Until then... love!
Photos: A view of Wales from the countryside outside of Bath, a statue of Julius Caesar at the Roman Baths, Sarah and me at Stonehenge.
This weekend was crazy, but absolutely wonderful. We actually missed our flight out because of some airline complications, but we ended up taking the train to the coast of England, then a ferry over to Dublin. Quite the experience! Once in Ireland, Sarah, our friend Aaron, and I went south to Dun Laoghaire (pronounced Done Leary) where the musical festival was. The festival was incredible! There were a TON of people there, the streets were filled, and there was all kinds of music being played everywhere you went. There were also tents set up selling things from all different countries. I bought a lovely winter hat made of sheep's wool, to prepare for the London cold. The three of us rode the ferris wheel, with spectacular views of the ocean and the city, ate some delicious Bailey's crepes, then took the seaside train up to Dublin for the rest of our trip.
We stayed at a great hostel, and went out in the Temple Bar district that night. It was a ton of fun! The area is full of bars and pubs, with a very international crowd. We started in a small pub then moved on to a huge microbrewery called the Porterhouse, where we tried some local beers and listened to a live band. And guess what? All the music was American! I especially enjoyed "Last Dance for Mary Jane" by Tom Petty. Aaron and I met some great Italian people from Rome, and spent the night trying to talk to them in English, Italian, and even a little Spanish. My favorite part was when they taught us how to say "cool" in Italian - it's "bella," which also means beautiful. I just love that!
The next day we took the train up to Howthe, a small seaside town with a farmer's market and beautiful cliffs. We walked around the market for a bit, then did a 2 hour hike on the cliffs - beautiful. The ocean seemed to go on forever, and the classic Irish green hills sprawled out behind us. It was a really lovely little town with some adorable cliff-side cottages. After we worked up an appetite, we enjoyed some fish and chips (my first!), then took the train back down to Dublin for our last night. Sarah and I explored the city a bit, seeing the Spire (a downtown statue that looks like a giant thin spike, tallest statue in the world!), eating some yummy Irish dairy ice cream, walking around the local park, and just enjoying a loving evening in Dublin.
The three of us woke up very, very early to catch our 8am flight back to London. But, thankfully, everything went smoothly and we were back at our flats before noon. The rest of my day was spent in class, then at the Notting Hill Carnival, the largest carnival in London. It was crazy! There were tons and tons of people there, you could hardly walk around. It was mostly just fun Caribbean music and yummy jerk chicken (another first for me). By the time I got home, I was totally wiped out, so I crashed early to wake up for early morning class.
Today's tour was to Westminster Abbey, and the surrounding areas. The abbey itself was gorgeous - as expected. My favorite part was definitely the back area, with the "lace stone" ceiling. The carvings are so intricate that they really look like lace, and the white stone allows the light from the glass windows to bounce softly throughout the whole chapel. It was truly beautiful. I saw the tombs of Queen Elizabeth, Queen Mary, and many others. It was weird to think of how many famous people were buried there... I'm excited to go to Winsor and see Henry VIII's grave. That trip is in a couple of weeks. This weekend we are going to Stonehenge and Bath on Friday, then a nice relaxing couple of days here in good old London. I think a couple of friends and I are going to have a picnic day in Regent's Park (my favorite) on Saturday, complete with paddle boats and garden walks.
It was a long weekend, but a great one, and it was very exciting to start my travels around Europe. So far, my other planned trips for the semester are to Paris, Brussels, Amsterdam, Prague, and Italy (twice). I might try to squeeze Spain in there somewhere too, we'll see. And the rest of the time will be spent here in London, my new home, which is just fine with me. :)
Cheers and love! Bella!
Photos (top to bottom): Sarah and me on the ferry; Sarah, Aaron and me at the festival; me and the River Liffey in Dublin; cliffs of Howth; Dublin Spire; me on the cliffs of Howth
Another day in lovely London... today was pretty uneventful actually, but not in a bad way at all. I woke up and went to yoga class at the local YMCA (the first one in the world, actually), which was a great start to the day. Sarah and I had lunch at the flat together, then went to our 2pm class, The Politics of Global Media. This class is taught by Shawn Powers, a young USC professor who specializes in public diplomacy and media. The class seems really interesting so far. There's only five students in it, which should make for some great conversations and debates.
After class, a few of us went to the computer lab to print out our boarding passes for our trip to Dublin, Ireland this weekend! Sarah interned there over the summer and planned a music festival which we will be attending on Saturday and Sunday. We leave Thursday night and return early Monday morning, in time for the Notting Hill Carnival and my afternoon class. I'm so excited for my first trip! I've heard that Ireland is absolutely gorgeous, so I can't wait to see it for myself. Hopefully the weather will be good to us! It rained a bit here today, which I didn't mind at all. :) I don't think I'll be bringing my laptop to Dublin, so it might be a while before I post again. Have a great weekend and I'll be sure to update and post pictures soon.
Today was another wonderful day in beautiful London. It began with an early class, Rhetoric of London, which is a basic intro to London class taught by Phillip Drummond, a native Brit. We talked briefly about what the class is going to be about, then took a mini walk to a building that had a model of London inside. It was fantastic! It had every building in London, and many that haven't even been built yet. I found my flat, Regent's Park, and even the site of the 2012 Olympic Games.
After class, Sarah and I went to lunch at a nearby Indian restaurant. There is a ton of great Indian food here, which comes from when India used to be part of England's Empire, so they basically took a lot of their culture (food, tea, etc.). Which is great for me, because I love all of those things! Lunch was delicious, although very spicy. I had actual tears in my eyes by the end... I guess that's a sign of good Indian?
After lunch was our weekly tour, part of our rhetoric class, and this week's tour was of the City of London. The City, as they call it here, is where London started. It used to be the only London, until it expanded, and now hardly anyone lives there at all. It's mostly financial business stuff, but there's also St. Paul's Cathedral, which was absolutely stunning. The tour was really great, but very long, so by the end we were all wiped out. I headed back to my flat for a rest, then made some dinner from the groceries I got at Waitrose (aka Whole Foods of London). After dinner, I walked over to Russell Square Garden at the end of my block. It was a nice cool night, so I sat for a while and read under the trees. It was so nice to have nothing to think or worry about for a while, and to just enjoy the lovely London evening.
That was Tuesday! I'm hoping for more fun adventures tomorrow, in between class and yoga. Talk to you soon!
Hello to all of you who are reading this! I'm not normally a big "blogger," but it was getting tedious telling everyone individually what I'm doing over here, so I figured it might be easier for everyone to read about it in one place. I'll try to keep these posts short and sweet, just the good stuff :)
So far, everything here in London is going absolutely wonderfully! I've only been here a short five days, but I already feel right at home in the city. I'm living in Bloomsbury, which is pretty central and a very nice neighborhood. The British Museum is just a block away, and my street is bordered on both sides by little square gardens. Beautiful! The building where I'll take my classes is just down the street, about ten minutes from my flat. My flat is small, but cozy, and I'm trying to live by the motto of "live simply" (our Akita theme this year) and make do with what I have. My room has a giant window looking out on the street, which lets in wonderful sunlight and makes me very happy.
The past few days have been filled with tours of the city, walks around the neighborhood with groups and on my own, yoga classes and runs through Regent's Park, eating at all kinds of different restaurants, and generally being thrilled to be in such an incredible place. Classes began today, and I can already tell this is going to be a great semester.
That's all I have for now. I'll try to post every couple of days or so, but no promises - I have an awful lot of world to see...
<3
"Moon River, wider than a mile, I'm crossing you in style some day. Oh, dream maker, you heart breaker, wherever you're going I'm going your way. Two drifters off to see the world. There's such a lot of world to see. We're after the same rainbow's end, waiting 'round the bend, my huckleberry friend, Moon River and me."
