If You’re Going to London…

I just spent three and a half months of my life in London.  During this time, I spent a great deal of time on touristy endeavors.  The difference, though, between me and your average tourist is that average tourists only get to peel back the very top layers of the city.  They visit all the monuments and maybe get a tour in here and there.  Being there for an extended period of time gave me the ability to dig deeper, see more, and get a real feel for the heartbeat of London.

For this post, I’m going to talk about my favorite places in the city.  But I also aim this post to you, dear readers.  If you’re going to London, these are (in my opinion) places to see.  I’ll do my best to provide interesting insider tips, in case you end up taking a trip.

First of all: if you’re going to London, take advantage of how close everything is.  Half the main monuments are within twenty-minute walks of each other.  Between here and there, there are constant interesting sights and memorials that you’d miss by taking the Tube.  For example, the walk from Parliament Square to Trafalgar Square has lots of World War I and II memorials, Number 10 Downing Street, and the Cavalry Brigade.  Or the walk from Trafalgar Square to St. Paul’s Cathedral brings you through the Strand and down Fleet Street past the Royal Courts of Justice.  The Tube system in London is absolutely splendid (I’d write poems about my love for it if that were socially acceptable), but if you want to really see the city, use your feet.  If you get tired, there are a plethora of pubs and coffee shops on every block.  Rest your feed, get caffeinated, and keep moving!

The problem with London is that there are so many places worth touring, and almost all of them are completely worth it.  The one tour that I absolutely recommend taking is Parliament.  Also known as Westminster Palace, it’s one of the most beautiful buildings in London.  You’ll learn all about how the British government runs and some of their traditions.  I come from a very politically involved family, so I found the tour fascinating.  However, since it’s a building that is constantly in use, it is only open for tours on Saturdays!  Book ahead to make sure you get a spot!

Parliament Square is also home to Westminster Abbey.  Their tour schedule is weird, so double-check the hours online before visiting.  Although the abbey is not the most beautiful or splendid church I saw in Europe (not by a mile), it is at the heart of British nationality.  Westminster is where kings and queens are coroneted and wed, where the nation’s beloved innovators are laid to rest, and where people every say still meet to pray and worship.  You’ll get to see the ancient Coronation Chair and the graves of nearly every famous British writer in Poet’s Corner.  Plus, the audio guide is narrated by Jeremy Irons.  You definitely want to be shown around the famous church by Scar from The Lion King.  Trust me.

Speaking of Trafalgar Square, it’s one of my favorite spots in the city.  It’s where I would always go to eat lunch.  If you’re ever in London, please sit on the fountains and eat a sandwich in my honor.  Watching the tourists is always fun.  Then, when you’re done eating, take an hour or so and lose yourself in the National Gallery.  Why?  ‘Cause it’s one of the best places in the city.  And it’s free.  The galleries are absolutely stunning and brimming with famous works.  On my very first visit, I was amazed at how many paintings I had studied in school were on the walls.  It’s got rooms from every major European art movement from the Renaissance to modernity.  All the greatest painters in the world are there–Leonardo, Raphael, Van Eyck, Rembrandt, Reubens, Claude, Caravaggio, Turner, Constable, Monet, Manet, Renoir, Cézanne, and so many more.  It’s got all the splendor of the Louvre without being overwhelming.  In order to truly appreciate the place, I suggest making multiple trips of an hour or so.  Focus on a corner of the  museum each time and soak in the art.  I must have gone there at least ten times during my stay in London.  It’s a wonderful museum.

If you’re like me and have a passion for books, London is the place to go.  There’s all sorts of bookstores everywhere in the city.  Charing Cross Road is home to some of the best secondhand bookshops I’ve ever been in.  There’s three or four right in a row not far from Leicester Square.  All have similar interiors: you walk in and there are books from the floor to the ceiling.  Anywhere you can put a book, there is a book there.  Don’t just settle for the first floor, though!  All of the stores have basements!  They’re narrow little stairs and you may have to wait for someone to finish going up or down.  Downstairs is where you find the really good deals.  The rooms are often really small and tight with even more books crammed in odd places, but the smell of all those old pages is incredible.  One of my favorite bookshops is located in the Bloomsbury area and is called Skoob Books.  It’s located on to the side and in the basement of a shopping center and is wonderful.  Also, if you’re ever on the South Bank of the Thames, check out the book market under Waterloo Bridge.  It’s marvelous.

If you like churches, St. Paul’s Cathedral is somewhere you’ll want to tour.  In my opinion, it’s one of the most beautiful churches in the world.  The audio tour is really interesting and will tell you all about the construction of the church and the symbolism for all the interior decorations.  Make sure to visit the Whispering Gallery and climb the 500-some steps to the top of the dome.  It’s a long haul, but worth it for the view.

Both St. Paul’s and Westminster are functioning churches and I recommend catching a service if you can.  In the evenings at five you can attend evensong where they sing the psalms and pray for the country.  They’re beautiful services and well worth it.

A tip for getting a good taste of the city is to take a walking tour!  They have them for all sorts of different subjects.  I did a Jack the Ripper tour, which was interesting.  But I recommend a Dickens themed tour.  You’ll pass places the famous writer lived and worked as well as locations found in his novels.  If you’re a literature fan, walking his footsteps will change the way you read his novels forever.

If you’re going to be in London, take advantage of theater!  West End tickets are easy to come by–just go to the TKTS booth in Leicester Square and you can get day-of tickets!  If that doesn’t work, there are countless vendors in the area.  Aside from big musicals, perhaps go see a play at one  of the independent theaters.  If you can see Shakespeare, see Shakespeare.  In fact, groundling tickets at the Globe are super cheap.  If you see any theater in London, GO TO THE GLOBE.  It truly is a magical space and takes you right back in time.

There are so many other wonderful places to visit that I don’t have time to write about–the Tower of London, the Churchill War Rooms, the British Museum, Natural History Museum, Victoria & Albert Museum, British Library, etc.

The best thing about London is that there’s something for everyone.  If you like literature, it’s basically heaven.  If you’re into theater, it’s the best place in the world to see it.  If shopping is your thing, hit up Oxford Street, the longest shopping street in Europe.  If you’re into art, there’s plenty to choose from with the National Gallery, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, and countless smaller galleries.  If you like sports, Wembley Stadium is always hosting football and rugby matches.  If you’re a history geek, don’t miss the Churchill War Rooms.  If you like museums, all the big ones are free.

There’s so much to see and do in London.  A week-long visit will only enable you to scratch the surface.  You could live your whole life there and still not cover the depth of what the city has to offer.  I’m so blessed for the few months I’ve gotten to spend in the city.  I got a taste of almost everything!

I hope that this post has been interesting and helpful.  If you’re reading and want more tips, please drop a comment!

View from atop St. Paul’s Cathedral.

Thanksgiving Abroad

Back home, on the last Thursday of November, Americans all across the country gather with their families to celebrate the things they are thankful for.

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In my family, the day begins watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade while helping Mom in the kitchen.  Around noon, the other family members begin to arrive and we are lost amid a flurry of hugs, coats to put away, and tables to set.  Eventually, everyone is settled and it’s time to eat.  Grandpa usually says a few words before we all go around the table telling what we’re thankful for.  Then, we pray and eat.  We stick to American traditions: turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, gravy, cranberries, etc.  We sit at the table for hours, talking and laughing.  If it’s with my mom’s side of the family, my uncles usually reminisce about all the crazy pranks they pulled growing up on the farm in Southern Minnesota.  Not a Thanksgiving or Christmas goes by without telling the story about how my mom drove the truck in the ditch or the time Rod pulled the Chinese fire drill at the only stoplight in town.  The food usually goes around at least once more before breaking out the pie.  After the meal, the family splits into two groups: those who go into food comas (also known as naps) and those who play football.  I usually watch the football for a while, then settle inside to read a book.

It was really strange not being there for Thanksgiving this year.  Every time I logged on Facebook, I saw someone’s status saying they were homeward bound for the holiday.  Here in England, though, life proceeds as usual.

Despite the lack of Turkey Day in the UK, I somehow managed access to more Thanksgiving dinners here than I have at home!

My first Thanksgiving took place this past Wednesday with the flat below mine.  Several of my American friends convinced their British flatmates that they should cook a giant meal to share.  One of the girls who lives there is a very dedicated and good cook, so she took on most of the project.  I was invited, along with several of my Biola friends.  All we had to do was chip in a couple pounds for the meal and we were in.  It was a true dorm-style meal.  The tables took up the whole hallway and it was rather crowded, but definitely worth it.  In true American style, we went around the table and all said what we were thankful for.  The British students didn’t take it very seriously, but I enjoyed the cheesiness of it all.  And the food was delicious.

Photo by my friend Torrey. I’m way in the back on the left–you can’t really see me.

My second Thanksgiving was put on by the University.  It took place in Grove House, the fancy building on campus where all the heads of the colleges have offices.  It was an incredibly formal affair–we even got stopped at the door to make sure we were on the guest list!  We all stood around in the entrance room (complete with ornate fireplace and chandelier) sipping apple cider while waiting to be seated.  I only knew two people there, which was problematic because the seating was assigned.  And, of course, I got put at a table where I knew absolutely no one.  However, I was seated next to the head of the communications department with whom I had an excellent discussion on literature and film.  Aside from that, the dinner was REALLY awkward.  I just sat there quietly most of the time, listening to the conversations around me and watching the ladies across the table get more and more drunk.  Not to mention that all the portraits of former presidents of Froebel College lining the walls were extremely creepy.  At the start of the meal, one of the heads of departments got up on a platform and gave a speech about learning about the meaning of Thanksgiving, how the Unviersity hoped to bring American traditions home to us in England, and we even had a moment of silence where we all reflected on what we are thankful for.

The whole evening was rather strange. Although I deeply appreciate their efforts, the University kind of missed the mark regarding the spirit of Thanksgiving.  It’s not a formal affair where we sit down to a multiple course meal and have intellectual conversation in a ballroom.  Thanksgiving is a casual, homey, laid-back holiday.  It’s not stiff or formal.  Nevertheless, I appreciated the sentiment and the food really was good.

Here’s a photo to give you a feel for how this meal went.  This picture is actually from the Froebel Welcome Dinner in September, but the meals were very similar.  The others in the picture are some of my flat-mates.

My final Thanksgiving took place this afternoon!  I went to my mentor’s house to join her family and friends in their celebration.  After a bit of a fiasco that involved missing a train by thirty seconds, thus screwing up the rest of my mapped out plan, I made it to the proper station!  Unfortuantately, no one was there when I arrived and I don’t have a working cell phone.  So that was a bit stressful, but the kind man working the desk let me pop back into the office and use the phone there.  Eventually, Shannon and Michelle (one of the other Veritas students) arrived to get me.

Being at Shannon’s house was like being home.  After three months of dorm life, just being able to curl up on a couch felt like such a luxury.  The house was filled with children of every age shouting and running, which brought me right back to life at camp.  There were several other American families there.  It felt a bit weird to sit at the adult table, but definitely in a good way.  It was really comforting to hear people talking about normal things like deer hunting, football scores, and (yes) Duck Dynasty.

The best thing about today was being among Christians.  There’s something about being surrounded by mature believers that makes you feel so incredibly at home.  It’s probably because they’re already family.  Even though I had never met some of them before today, we share a common faith and therefore have the most important aspect of our lives in common.  I’ve been so isolated from community over the past few months that it’s always wonderful to get a taste of what it’s like to be among believers.  It makes me look forward to returning to my faith family in Morris all the more!  It was so nice to talk with them, hear about their experiences living and raising families as Americans in England, and in turn share some of my stories.  (Fun fact: I was the only Northerner there!  Everyone else was from the South–Texas, Oklahoma, Alabama, North Carolina, etc.)

I don’t have a nice photo of today, but if you imagine the Thanksgiving you had at home (that is, if you are American), it will look similar.  It didn’t have the familiar faces of family, but they were family nonetheless.  And, again, the food was absolutely delicious.  (I ate WAY too much and fully intend on passing out in a coma when done writing this post.)

On Thursday, I did actually get to talk to my family back home.  I had a two hour Skype call with them, which was great.  I got to talk to my older brother (and his girlfriend) for the first time since coming here!  (He’s a guy, and therefore terrible at communicating, despite my efforts.)  I also spoke with my parents, my younger brother, aunt and uncle, my grandpa, and even my cat!  Paco was extremely confused and didn’t pay me much mind, but it was still good to see him.  I even got to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade because my brother held the iPad up to the t.v.!  At one point, I had my family carry the iPad around the house so I could see everything.  It still looks the same!  Oh, the weird things studying abroad makes you do!

So… three Thanksgivings.  Dorm style, overly formal, and family.  I’ve never eaten so much pumpkin pie in my life!

I’ll end with this video.  As an American celebrating in England, I found it extremely amusing.  And Gary Oldman is just fantastic.

In Dublin’s Fair City…

You can’t really go to Ireland without at least passing through Dublin.  It’s one of the largest cities in the country, so it only makes sense that it’s the place we flew in and out of.  We arrived there late last Thursday night, but I didn’t actually see it in the daylight until Sunday.

Dublin is a nice town.  It’s full of history and has lots of really pretty bridges going over the River Liffey.  In the Temple District, there are all sorts of fun cozy pubs.  And the live music… oh my goodness, the live music in Dublin is FANTASTIC!  Aside from that, there’s not too much there.  I recommend visiting, but don’t spend all your time in the city.  Unless you have your heart set on pub crawling and drunkenness, I’d say one day is enough to see most of the highlights.  We got to see a lot of the city–St. Patrick’s Cathedral is lovely, although we weren’t able to go inside.  We also didn’t tour the castle, but we got to see it and wander the grounds.

My favorite part of Dublin was touring Trinity College.  I did a tour, guided by one of the students, so I got to hear all about the history of the school and what all the buildings are used for.  That was really interesting.  I also got to see the Book of Kells, an illuminated manuscript of the four Gospels from the year 800.  It was absolutely gorgeous.  The best part of all, though was the famous Trinity College Library.

You know the scene from Disney’s Beauty and the Beast where the Beast brings Belle into the library for the first time?  As she opens her eyes, her face alights with pure wonder and she exclaims:

Yeah… that was me entering the Trinity College Library.  The place is absolutely GORGEOUS.  One of the most beautiful interior spaces I’ve ever seen.  I feel like every library has been ruined for me from here on for the rest of my life.  The air is heavy with the smell of millions upon millions of old books.  Oh my goodness, it was all too much for my nerdy English major heart.  I just kind of stumbled around in pure awe.  I mean… JUST LOOK AT THIS PLACE.

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In other news…

I have a friend studying abroad in Ireland this semester.  Bekkah and I have worked together the past couple summers at the same Bible camp.  She’s currently in Limerick, Ireland at a university there.  We talked, at the end of summer, about meeting up while over here.  But then all our weekends filled up and we didn’t have any matching open ones.  However, I messaged her a week or so before Allison and my trip, and she just so happened to be going to Dublin the same weekend!  So it was only natural that we met up.  It was a blast seeing Bekkah again.  She showed us around the city.  We popped in and out of all the famous pubs soaking in the live music.  Then, we got burritos and reminisced about camp.  We laughed ridiculously over Gong Show memories and freaked out about friends who have gotten engaged.  I worried a bit that it would be awkward for Allison, but she had a wonderful time.   Eventually, we relocated to a quiet corner in a traditional pub and had a great discussion about what God has been doing in our lives over here.  It’s so wonderful to reconnect with someone from home.

Before I wrap up this post, here’s some photos of the city:

River Liffey

Temple Bar, one of the famous pubs.

St. Patrick’s Cathedral

Dublin Castle

Trinity College

Bekkah and I!

So, there’s Dublin.  It’s a nice city.  I was extremely impressed by how kind everyone was.  From our hotel’s staff to the shopkeepers to people on the street, everyone was extremely helpful.  They went out of their way to make sure we got where we needed to go, which I was extremely thankful for.

I’ll end this post with a song.  One of my favorite bands of all time happens to be Irish.  I started listening to Flogging Molly when I was in eighth grade and have loved them ever since.  This song isn’t my favorite by them, but it’s a cover of a famous song about Dublin!  I thought it was fitting.

Much Ado About Nothing

This post is coming to you a few days late, but alas, that’s what happens when essay season runs around.  After all, I gotta write those papers to get good grades.  Adventures are all and well, but school first!

Last Sunday, I had the opportunity to see a production of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing at the Old Vic.  I’ve read Much Ado, studied it in school, and seen the fabulous 1993 film with Emma Thompson and Kenneth Branaugh.

I got my tickets via the theater’s student discount option for only 12£.  I was absolutely shocked, then, when I walked in the day of the show to find that my seats were absolutely amazing.  Technically, they were second row, but they were pretty much first, as they were slightly to the side and there were no chairs in front of me.  The stage was five feet away.  Basically, I had the best view in the house.

Mind you, the production got absolutely TERRIBLE reviews.  I did my research before going to see it, and gosh, almost every major London newspaper and theater blog gave it atrocious marks.

Personally, I didn’t really care that they critics hated it.

The show featured the famous actors James Earl Jones as Benedict and Vanessa Redgrave as Beatrice.  Making the pair, usually played by twenty year olds, elderly was an interesting directorial choice.  I’m not really sure that it worked very well.  Redgrave played a lovable, soft-hearted and sharp-tongued Beatrice.  Every time she was on stage, it was a delight to hear her speak.  Jones as Benedict, though, fell flat.  He waddled around in a military jumpsuit, garbling lines.  His expressions were good, but it was sometimes hard to hear what he said.  During Benedict’s longer speeches, he had to sit down.  A character as fierce and witty as Benedict needs someone who is sharp and on his game, and Jones just didn’t fit the bill.

However, it was absolutely amazing to see James Earl Jones in action, as he is a famous American actor.  When I go home, I get to tell everyone I got to hear the voice of MUFASA and DARTH VADER.  Not only that, but I got to sit five feet away from him!  What a great experience!

Aside from the leading pair, the rest of the show was good.  Hero and Claudio were both spot-on and there was a gaggle of kids that were really funny.  The weakest link was Don John.  I couldn’t tell if the actor was from a really strange part of America or just put on a TERRIBLE American accent.  He was nasally, whiny, and annoying.  Every time he was on stage, I wanted to go all traditional Shakespeare and throw fruit at him to make him go away.  But, then again, the character doesn’t have much going for him.  Don John is kind of a mopey person anyways.

Unfortunately, the business of life and school has caught up with me, so that’s all I have time to say on Much Ado.  But stay tuned for another theater write-up sometime soon!  In the meantime, check out this video about how the production came into being:

Edinburgh (Scotland Part I)

After four and a half hours stuck on a train, I stepped out of the station in Edinburgh, Scotland and didn’t quite believe it was real.  I’ve never been in a city like it.  In America, all cities are pretty much the same.  They’ve got gridded streets, skyscrapers, and the occasional park.  Not Edinburgh.  Edinburgh has hills.  It has castles and cathedrals.  The old town has winding cobblestone streets and narrow alleyways called closes.

The first thing we did in the city (after dropping off our bags in the hostel) was tour the castle.  Perched atop an extinct volcano, it is the absolute heart of the city.  When standing on the highest tower, you can see the entirety of Edinburgh for miles around.  The castle (I think) was first built in the 12th century and, throughout the years, has been used as everything from a royal residence to a military garrison.  Wandering around, we got to see the Scottish crown jewels and a war memorial.

J.K. Rowling lives in Edinburgh.  Back before she was famous and successful, she was a single mom living in a cheap flat and surviving on food stamps.  Since she didn’t have a job, she would often go to cafes to scribble on napkins and write.  Her favorite cafe is The Elephant House, a cozy little place in the heart of the city.  Out the back windows you can see Edinburgh Castle.  I could imagine Jo sitting in a corner table, gazing outside only, instead of the castle at hand, her mind’s eye saw Hogwarts.  I could feel the inspiration brimming in the air.  It’s the exact place that would inspire something like Harry Potter.  The Harry Potter books have been an enormous impact on my life since I first picked up the books when I was eight.  There aren’t really words for what it feels like to sit in the place they were penned.  It was a dream come true.

The first night in the city, we did a ghost tour of the old town.  Guided by a charismatic young Scotsman named Hugh (all the tour guides seem to be charismatic young men, actually) we wandered around St. Giles Cathedral and down some of the closes and learned about public hangings, beheadings, and the nightly gardyloo (where everyone dumped their chamber pots into the street).  We then went indoors and Hugh showed us a room filled with medieval torture devices.  He explained how all of them work.  Let me tell you… Edinburgh was a VIOLENT city.  The stories make the ones I heard in the Tower of London sound like something out of a Disney movie.

Then… we went into the secret underground vaults.  These vaults had been used way back when for tons of different purposes, varying from illegal pubs, hiding spaces from fires, and a place for homeless people to escape from punishment (apparently, it wasn’t legal to be homeless in the medieval times).  Then, at some point, they had been locked up, forgotten, and left to fester for over a hundred years.  They were rediscovered by some students in the 1970’s.

When I hear ghost tours, I usually expect interesting historical stories mixed with the occasional story about a creepy incident that happened there.  There’s a hint of reality to the hauntings, but mainly shameless tourism and fun history.

Not these vaults.

The vaults we entered were home to all sorts of horrific events.  Murders, cholera, famine, plague, rape, violence, brawling, people locked in and left to go blind and die, and countless cases of violence followed by rape followed by gang rape followed by murder.  Basically… not a happy place.  Honestly, if I had known what we would be exposed to down there, I would have opted out of the underground portion of the tour.  I’m not usually one to shirk from haunted things–after all, I spent quite some time in the dreaded solitary confinement cell 14D in Alcatraz, and that place was definitely creepy.  I’ve watched enough episodes of Ghost Hunters to not be overly freaked out though.  Despite this, I repeat: if I had known what we would be exposed to in the vaults, I would not have stepped foot down there.  Nope.  Not a chance.  It was the darkest place I’ve ever been, and I’m not talking about physical darkness you can see with your eyes.  I’m not going to muck up this post with anything more detailed than that ’cause I don’t like thinking about it.  You’ll have to ask me about my experiences in person.  I was pretty shaken up.

In other news, on Saturday night I tried haggis!  It’s the Scottish meal.  It was absolutely delicious.  Honestly, it’s one of the best meals I’ve had since coming here.  (Not that my meals have been that great as I’ve been learning to cook…)  If you’re ever in Scotland, TRY HAGGIS!  It’s so good!  But, when you do, eat first and ask questions later.  Finding out what it’s made of makes it significantly less appetizing. Do not let that deter you, though.  It’s worth the experience!

Today, we were let loose in the city for several hours.  With my friend Mackenzie, I wandered about most of the old town.  We checked out the Parliament building (which is, seriously, one of the ugliest buildings I’ve ever seen) and the Palace of Holyroodhouse.  We then hiked up Calton Hill to see the monuments and a great view of the city.  After wandering our way back to the Royal Mile, we hit the souvenir shops to get Christmas presents for family and friends.

I don’t know what else to say about Edinburgh, to be honest.  It’s very Scottish.  There’s always a hint of bagpipes in the distance and the accents are wonderful.  (Although, if I were around them for a long period of time, I’m sure the novelty would wear off.)  Though I know I’ll never live there, I could see myself getting in the habit of grabbing a book or journal and haunting the infinite number of pubs and cafes to lose myself in words.  It was that kind of atmosphere, which I loved.

Basically, go to Edinburgh.  It’s a beautiful city and you can’t walk the cobblestone streets without pondering all the history that happened in them.  However, when you go, stay above ground.  Seriously.

Stay tuned for stories about my day in the Scottish highlands!  Until then, here’s some photo highlights as usual.

View from the castle

Center of the castle

More views from the castle

Here’s the castle all lit up at night

The Elephant House!

Scribbling on my napkin just like my hero, Jo Rowling.

Palace of Holyroodhouse (taken from the gate, we didn’t actually go in)

View of the castle and city from Calton Hill

St. Giles Cathedral right in the center of the city

Reading Robert Burns poetry while eating a toastie.

Haggis!!

Land of the Red Dragon

As you may have noticed from yesterday’s preview photo, I have spent the weekend in the Wales.  Because it would be an enormous task to fit an entire weekend into a single post, I’ll give you the highlights.  Our tour guide for the weekend, a lovely man named Tim, was the best guide I have ever had.  He was constantly talking and gave us a thorough history of everywhere we visited and passed.  I took notes and held on to the most interesting of information.  Did you know that the sheep in Wales outnumber the people three to one?  Also, Wales is bilingual.  20% of its population still speaks Welsh, an absolutely beautiful language.  I feel like I could listen to it being spoken all day.

So, here is an overview of my trip!

Carleon:

Home to a Roman legion, the ruins found today are some of the best preserved in the United Kingdom.  The Roman town was nine miles in circumference.  There are rows upon rows of foundations of barracks and the amphitheater is the best preserved in the UK.  Some believe that the amphitheater is the location of King Arthur’s Round Table.  There were also some Roman baths, which were cool as well.  (I was mostly interested in the Round Table stuff, though… I’m all about the Arthurian legends.)

Caerphilly Castle:

As seen in yesterday’s photo, Caerphilly is the second biggest castle in Briton.  In fact, it is one of the best preserved medieval castles in Europe.  Building took place from 1268-1271.  At the time, it was extremely technologically advanced, which is good because it was at the heart of some bloody wars between England and Wales.

St. Fagan’s Museum of Welsh Life:

It is what it sounds: an open-air museum documenting Welsh lifestyle.  It includes over forty re-constructed buildings–everything from cottages and sheds to a castle and a manor house.  We didn’t have time to see it all.  The grounds were, to use the best words, delightful and charming.

Swansea:

The second biggest city in Wales, located on the coast, we spent the night in Swansea.  Our hotel was right on the wharf and the high street was only a ten minute walk away.  We didn’t see or do much aside from dinner and sleep, but it was a lovely city.

Big Pit Mine:

Until Margaret Thatcher closed the mines in the 1980’s, coal mining was the biggest industry in Wales.  One could say it was the backbone of Welsh society, peaking during the Industrial Revolution.  At one point, one-third of the world’s coal came from here.  We had the chance to tour the Big Pit mine, which opened in 1810, and was home to 13,000 employees.  We had the chance to tour Big Pit Mine.  We donned miner’s helmets complete with gas mask and headlamp and headed down the lift 300 feet into some of the higher up tunnels.  We weren’t allowed to bring anything in with batteries–no phones, cameras, or even watches!  You see, anything with batteries could cause a spark.  The mines have gasses in them from the coal and sparks could cause explosions Our tour guide, an ex-miner named Jake, took us through the dank tunnels and told us all about mining life.  Being the clutz that I am, I managed to hit my head on the mine ceiling three times, much to the amusement of my friends.

Tintern Abbey:

Founded by Walter de Clare in 1131, the Abbey was the home to Cistercian monks.  Located in the Wye Valley, it was a thriving place.  The monks farmed 3,000 acres and cared for lots of sheep.  Many pilgrims came to Tintern–in fact, the Pope used to offer indulgences for people who travelled all the way there.  In the 1530’s, Henry VIII founded the Anglican church, the land was divvied up among his supporters.  The once wealthiest abbey in Wales eventually fell into decay.  The ruins are what we see today.  However, in the 18th Century, the Romantic Period happened.  The picturesque ruins overcome by the forces of nature, the savage grandeur, naturally drew the Romantics in like moths to a flame.  Tintern is the very image of the sublime and inspired William Wordsworth to write his famous poem.  It also served as a muse for Tennyson at some point.  J.M.W. Turner also drew upon the ruins for many of his paintings and sketches.

All in all, I loved Wales.  Rolling hills and mountains, picturesque valleys, herds of sheep grazing everywhere you look… it’s like something out of a story.  I got to experience the full range of Welsh culture.  We saw Roman ruins and castles from the middle ages.  We got a taste of the Welsh home throughout the years, followed by modern vibrant city life.  We got to see and experience Welsh industry and economics.  And, to seal the deal, we got to see the beautifully picturesque ruins that have inspired some of my favorite poets.  All in all… I loved Wales.

Caerleon Roman Amphitheater–or possibly the Round Table.

Wales is the Land of the Red Dragon

Caerphilly Castle

Caerphilly Castle

Caerphilly Castle

A pleasant walk at St. Fagan’s

Colleen, Samantha, and I are all geared up and ready to head into the mine!

Big Pit Mining museum

Big Pit mining museum

The only medieval bridge that still has a gatehouse in Wales. This is in Monmouth, where we stopped for lunch.

Tintern Abbey

Tintern Abbey

Tintern Abbey

Tintern Abbey

Caerphilly Castle: Sneak Peek

Sneak peek of my weekend in Wales: Caerphilly Castle after a thunderstorm. Absolutely breathtaking.

Chimerica

Last night, I saw the play Chimerica at the Harold Pinter Theater.  Located a block from Leicester Square, it was in the heart of the West End.  I arrived on the scene a few hours early because, if I’m going all the way to Central, I might as well make the most of it.

Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square were buzzing with people, as usual.  As I passed through the later, men in construction uniforms were setting up rails and fastening down red carpeting.  I stopped to watch for a couple of minutes, then continued on my way to Charing Cross Road.  Here, I poked around in some tourist shops and explored the endless line of secondhand bookstores.  The bookshops were absolutely beautiful–books from floor to ceiling, filling every nook and cranny.  Most places had basements, and they were the same.  Books and books and books, all for extraordinarily affordable prices.  I practiced restraint, however.  When I returned back to the Square, there was a red carpet premiere going on.  The place was crowded.  I could see the heads of actors and filmmakers bobbing by over the swarm of people.  The film wasn’t anything I had heard of, just a local film with some rising British actors.  I wish I had stopped by to see them, but as I can’t stand enormous crowds, I went up a block and cut through Chinatown.  I ended up sitting on a bench by the Leicester Square Shakespeare statue and fountain for quite some time.  I ate my packed sandwich and watched the tourists and school groups go by.

Then came my purpose for being in the city: Chimerica.  The show was enormously successful with critics and was so popular that its original run had to be extended and moved to another theater.  The run finally ends in a couple of days, so I’m glad we got to catch it.  Here’s how the show’s website describes it:

Tiananmen Square, 1989. As tanks roll through Beijing and soldiers hammer on his hotel door, Joe – a young American photojournalist – captures a piece of history.

When a cryptic message is left in a Beijing newspaper more than 20 years later, Joe is driven to discover the truth behind the unknown hero he captured on film. Who was he? What happened to him? And could he still be alive?

I wish my family could have been there to see it.  With a lobbyist mother, a NPR listening father, and an older brother with a degree in history, they would have absolutely loved Chimerica.  The show was all about relations between the United States and China.  The assumption, at the beginning, is that all Chinese want to come to America and be American.  Throughout the production, the communist party that controls China is critiqued and questioned.  One would assume that citizens would want to escape the manipulative government that does not care about the people for a taste of American freedom.  But, although the show reveals conflict here, the Chinese really just want the freedom to be Chinese.  Other themes that arise throughout the story are idealism and heroism.  Do heroes still exist?  Joe, the protagonist, firmly believes that the American people need to know that it still does exist in our corrupt world.  Although Joe is just as screwed up as the country he is from, he holds on to that traditional American idealism.  This drives him to relentlessly search for the man in the photograph he took.

Since I don’t have time to discuss the show further, here’s some reviews from London newspapers:

• The Telegraph
• The Daily Mail
• The Guardian

The set for the show was absolutely amazing.  Because I couldn’t find a trailer or clips from the production, here’s a time-lapse video of the construction of the set:

Cambridge

Let me pause my essay writing (yes, it’s that time of the semester) to tell you about this past Sunday’s trip to Cambridge!

The town of Cambridge, located on the River Cam from which it gets its name, is best known for its university.  The university has 31 colleges and is rarely outside the top five ranking for best schools in the world.  Pretty impressive statistics, right?  Cambridge University was founded in 1209 and is the second-oldest university in the English-speaking world.  (What is number one?  Oxford, of course.)  Being one of the top universities in the entire world, there have been many, many, many famous graduates.  81 of these affiliates have gone on to win Nobel Prizes.  Fifteen British Prime Ministers are Cambridge graduates.

Famous alumni include:

• Sir Isaac Newton
• Sir Francis Bacon
• Francis Crick
• Charles Darwin
• Stephen Hawking
• Christopher Marlowe
• C.S. Lewis
• A.A. Milne
• Lord Byron
• Sir Ian McKellen
• Stephen Fry
• Emma Thompson
• John Cleese

My day at Cambridge began with (as most ISA trips do) a boat tour.  Most of the day was fairly rainy (as they so often are here in England), but just as we were climbing into the boats on the River Cam, the sun decided to show up.  The river runs straight through the heart of most of the historic colleges.  Our seats on the boat were low and reclined and we had plenty of leg room.  All we had to do was sit back, soak in the sunshine, and watch it all go by.

We then had the opportunity to tour King’s College, which is right in the center of the city.  It was founded in 1441 by Henry VI.  The college is famous for the King’s College Chapel, which features late Gothic architecture and took about a hundred years to build.  It wasn’t finished until 1544 during the reign of Henry VIII.  The chapel itself is one of Cambridge’s famous symbols.

After meandering through the chapel, which really looks more like a grand cathedral, we had time to explore the grounds and city.  A friend and I poked about the streets and somehow found ourselves on the grounds of other colleges, like Trinity.  We got some good peeks at the beautiful grounds of St. John’s College, but didn’t have time to go in.  The colleges are exactly as you would imagine them, though: majestic buildings with sweeping green lawns.  (How do they keep the lawns so nice?  They don’t allow anyone to go on them.  This is problematic for me because whenever I see signs that say “Keep Off the Grass”, I automatically feel inclined to keep on the grass… even if it’s only for a second or two.)

Cambridge is definitely a student town.  You could easily pick out students on the street–they were the ones walking purposely and not goggling at everything.  When I saw them strolling about together, all I could think was “Wow, you’re ridiculously smart.  You could win a Nobel prize someday.”  It was a bit intimidating, to be honest.

Everywhere you go in the center of the city, there are bikes, college shops, and bookstores.  In one shop, I gave in to my English major tendencies and purchased brand new copies of Little Dorrit by Charles Dickens, The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, and the collected poems of W.B. Yeats.  It was a total steal–they were only 9£!  (Yes… I already have several copies of The Hobbit at home.  But I get to read it for class in a few weeks and want to annotate… and home is far away at the moment.)  How will I get all these books home come December?  Well… I have a few months to figure that out.

All in all, I loved Cambridge!  I’ve always loved school and it was really cool to get a taste of one of the best schools in the world.    Now I just have to tour Oxford and see how they compare!  (That’s coming up in November, so stay tuned.)

On the River Cam

On the River Cam

St. John’s College

King’s College

Inside King’s College Chapel

The ceiling of King’s College Chapel. Isn’t it exquisite?

 

Seaside Brighton

In Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen, there is a point where the militia leaves the town the Bennet family lives in.  Lydia, the youngest daughter, is invited by the colonel’s wife to go with them as her special guest.  One of the other daughters, Kitty, is very upset by this.  In one of the film adaptations, I can still her wailing, “I WANT TO GO TO BRIGHTON!”

Well… Kitty Bennet never got to go to Brighton.  But I sure did!

Brighton is located on the Southern coast of England.  It’s about an hour on the train from London, and I spent that hour delighting in the Once soundtrack (see previous post) and reading The Wind and the Willows.

Way back in the day, the city was a little fishing town, but in the 1800’s, it became the hotspot place to go for people of fashion.  (After all, there’s a reason Lydia was so psyched to go there in P&P.)  Today, it is one of the most popular cities to visit in the UK and has been voted Britain’s “Happiest City”.  Brighton has been compared, by some, to San Francisco and has a reputation for its nightlife, culture, and gay community.  It has hundreds of restaurants and shops.  I absolutely loved San Francisco when I visited a few years ago, so it made sense that I enjoyed Brighton.  They aren’t identical cities, but I can definitely see why they are compared.

One of the biggest attractions Brighton has to offer is the Royal Pavilion, which is the former Royal palace built in the 1800’s by King George IV.  Back when he was the youthful Prince Regent, George had the pleasure palace constructed.  Later on, Queen Victoria sold the palace to the city in favor of a more remote getaway on the Isle of Wight.  It was used as a military hospital during World War I.

The unique thing about the Pavilion is that it is one of the best examples of European architecture inspired by Asian cultures.  The exterior is influenced by India and the interior is remarkably Chinese.  Pretty odd for a palace in the south of England, right?  Wikipedia tells me it is a prime example of exoticism in the Regency period.

(Yes, I use Wikipedia to help me write insightful blog posts.  Don’t judge me.)

We had the opportunity to tour the palace.  I didn’t do much research ahead of time and had no idea what to expect.  I’m pretty sure I gasped aloud when I walked in.  The building was absolutely gorgeous.  It was probably the most decadent places I’ve ever been in.  Every single room was beautiful to the tiniest detail.  I can’t even imagine what it would have been like to live there!  It would be amazing to eat in the banquet room under the thirty foot dragon chandelier and then listen to a performance in the music hall.

We weren’t allowed to take photos inside and my outside ones weren’t very good, so here’s some pictures nicked from Google.  (I do not claim to own these photos and the link to their home URL’s are captioned.)

http://austenonly.files.wordpress.com/2011/06/pavilion-exterior.jpg

http://georgianregencyinteriors.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/pavillion-chinosie.jpg

http://www.film-locations.co.uk/images/BrightonPavillionSEL6.jpg

http://www.kungahuset.se/images/18.7d567ccd12609a2858d80004698/KINA-int-gr%C3%B6na-salongen-Alexis-Daflos-stl-390-262.jpg

http://bookssnob.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/brighton-pavilion-banqueting-hall.jpg

http://rpmcollections.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/dragon_banqueting_rm_8823.jpg

The other main attraction in Brighton is the pier.  Built in 1899, it is the home of traditional Fish and Chips restaurants, rides, roller coasters, arcade games, and ice cream stands.  Around the pier, the rocky beach stretches for miles and is lined with adorable little shops and art galleries.

My friend Mackenzie and I spent most of our free time wandering the pier, eating fish and chips while watching the sea gulls, and poking around in the little shops.  Most of the other students in our group went and hit up the street markets and bigger shopping areas, but we were content to sit by the ocean and watch the tide slowly roll in.

All in all, Brighton is a lovely city.  It’s your typical sea town with history and pleasure all wrapped into one.  I loved walking the beach and smelling the salty breeze.  There’s something about the ocean that is truly special.  Hailing from the Midwest, it’s not something I get to experience every day.  I’d love to visit again in the summer when the water is warm.  After all, as Mrs. Bennet says in P&P, “A little sea-bathing would set me up forever.”

Mackenzie and I after our tour of the Royal Pavilion. They made us wear our backpacks backwards in case we bumped into anything. They didn’t want us clutzy Americans knocking stuff over. Thus… we looked like total tourists.

Eating chips on the pier!

Brighton Pier

The water actually wasn’t that cold. It felt like Lake Superior back home.

I Instagrammed this moment. Beautiful, right?