A London Epic (part two)

Sunday morning proved to be satisfying as well. We woke up early and walked to the Globe Theater across the river.

Striking building on our journey

Interesting cafe we passed (for you, Tommy)

Millenium Bridge: It makes an appearance in the 6th Harry Potter

film as the one that gets ripped apart by death eaters

Our tour guide, a Shakespearian actor himself, was animated and passionate. We learned a lot about the Globe: about how there is no evidence that the structure looked at all like it did in Shakespeare's time. And though it was reconstructed according to certain specifications, it was built in the wrong spot. The original Globe was built further down the river, the ruins of which are now covered by houses. Nevertheless, the inside of the theater was amazing. It has a reed roof, Elizabethan-style bricks, box seats, and a "groundling" area, where members of the lower class once stood and cheered on the actors.

Afterwards, we had the good fortune to see a performance of King Henry IV (the one with Hal and Falstaff). It was really well done. Of course, having read the play in school, I was able to catch a lot of it. The actors and actresses (yes, they decided to let women perform) were all dressed in spectacularly intricate garb. Scene changes and props were kept simple, so as to reenact how they were done so long ago. I was impressed by the decisions the director made in the play (e.g. voice inflections, facial expressions, gestures, body positioning, interactions/exchanges between characters). SO GLAD I WENT.

The stage in all its splendor

Open air: it did, in fact, rain during the performance

(not good for sick people, but it didn't phase the actors)

Stage right

Some of the box seats with murals on the panels

Looking pensive in the box seats

The posing Girlfriend

Afterwards, we were allowed to hang out in King's Cross Station before we departed. Overall, it was an amazing trip: not as eventful as the last, but ultimately tastier. Also, as I predicted, I was a pile of ashes by the time we got home. Thankfully drugs here are so inexpensive. (THE LEGAL KIND, don't worry.) Unfortunately, and I wouldn't be surprised, I don't think NyQuil is legal here. Bah humbug.

Yours,

A London Epic (part one)

Although I was deathly ill, I still managed to revel in London's elegance. As an English major, I felt particularly at home, seeing as most of our stay consisted of literary experiences.

We arrived by train--a mere eight pound journey--and immediately took the London Underground to our hotel.

The group among speeding "Piccadilly Line" trains

Once in Russel's Square, we unpacked and relaxed at The Celtic Hotel. Reportedly, David Faldet's favourite pub, The Helping Hand, was just around the corner. There was hardly enough time to become acquainted with the area, however, because the following morning, we took part on a literary tour of London.

A scene from the musical "Oliver" where rose vendors sold their goods:

"Who will buy?"

Another shot of park area and apartment units

Virginia Woolf's first residence with her sister

T.S. Eliot's publishing house

Residence of William Yeats

Mostly we visited locations where famous authors had resided. The city of London put up commemorative plaques such as the ones above to mark these special areas. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable, and even knew where people like Charles Dickens liked to hang about. At one point, we were told that George Orwell had submitted his manuscript for Animal Farm to T.S. Eliot's publishing house, where it was promptly rejected. Apparently, the two authors hated each other. Anyway, our tour ended at the London Library, which was a breathtaking place, to be sure.

The green awnings indicate the renowned Reading Rooms,

where scholars are permitted to study

Statue outside library of Newton calculating the heavens

The library housed original documents and manuscripts such as the Magna Carta, Alice in Wonderland, Handel's Messiah, Beatles Lyrics (sometimes written upon used birthday cards), Jane Austin's drafts, and Audobon's bird drawings. It was truly humbling to be in the presence of giants.

That evening, many of us attended the London Symphony's opening concert. Photography was not allowed, but believe me when I say that no picture could do the hall justice (not to mention the beauty of the orchestra!) The program this season is strictly Russian, so we listened to works like the Carmen Suite, which was arranged by the modern Russian composer, Shchedrin. We also heard his Piano Concerto No 5, as well as an unrelated Mussorgsky orch Ravel. Immediately after the final cymbal crash, audience members were shouting in awe.

It was a tremendous day indeed, and we all arrived back at the hotel quite spent.

Breakthroughs

Things have been picking up around here! Except for the dirty dishes. They just stay there. Forever.

So I'll just list some of the week's highlights, partly because I like lists, partly because I'm sick and delirious.

1) Aparna and I cooked for everyone on Wednesday. (Everyone cooks in teams of two for dinner because there are so many hungry tummies.) We made a rockin' stirfry with peanut sauce. Also, a nifty tropical fruit salad with an orange liquor glaze. Needless to say, the meal went over well.

A taster of what we made. Ha! See what I did there?

2) I finished signing up for classes and got into all the ones I wanted. In hindsight, I believe it was a miracle. For such a large institution, the University of Nottingham is surprisingly unorganized. Nobody (NOBODY) could give me a straight answer when it came to courses. In fact, I still don't know where the lectures and seminars are located. But I suppose it's all part of the experience, right? Oh well. I only have class every Monday and Tuesday, so the remainder of the week will consist of SLEEPING AND HOMEWORK YAY! The only disappointing thing is that no creative writing courses are available this year. NONE. I cried a little.

3) I did manage to sign up for some cool societies (clubs) on campus. One such cool society is called "Flair". Twice a week we get to go flip bottles around and make cocktails. Think of it as bar tending experience. Here's the website if you wanna take a look: http://www.flairsoc.com. I also signed up for the Kettle Society (an appreciation for all hot beverages) AND Creative Writing society WOO!

4) I may have found a job. A nearby catholic church needs a violist to play with the choir every Sunday. I'm not sure when rehearsal is or how much they're offering, but I think it could be fun.

5) I'm going to London in an hour. It'll be fun. Some of our planned activities include: (OMG LISTS WITHIN LISTS IT'S LIKE INCEPTION WE HAVE TO GO DEEPER)

• A literary tour of London
• A tour of the Globe theater
• A performance of Henry IV part 1
• Shopping/walking/clubbing

Here's what I'll look like by Monday/first day of classes:

It's a good thing I'm a phoenix.

Some real pictures to come! In the meantime, godspeed.

Yours,

GUESSWHAT

That's right. I singlehandedly fixed the internet:

This, my friends, is what win looks like. Behold the happy blue lights.

Megan's note/warning about the dangers of the silver button.

Lookit that. Full bars. Oh yeah.

SO excited. I'm definitely ready to do some skyping now.

Anyway, besides this breakthrough, nothing much happened today. On weekends, we're pretty much on our own. We plan meals, do homework, shop, sleep, read, do chores. All that fun stuff.

Later this week I sign up for classes. Apparently it's quite an extensive process. The system isn't exactly computerized, so we have to go sign up manually and ask individual professors in their individual departments for their individual signatures. Each student here is allowed 60 credits each semester at the University, as per our Luther exchange program agreement. This is the equivalent of 4-6 *American* classes a year. (Our director also teaches *American* classes here at the flat, so these factor into our transcripts as well.) In the end, everything should balance out.

But my point is that I anticipate long queues (lines). Hopefully my English classes won't be full by the time I get up there OTHERWISE I WON'T GRADUATE OMG FREAKOUT SESSION. But not really 'cause I'm super tired.

Imma go eat some digestibles (cookies) and then go to sleep. 'Till next time!

Yours,

These Posh Travels

Win of the week: finding an adapter for four pounds. It's almost as win-ful as rhubarb pudding WHICH THE UNIVERSITY IS SERVING FOR DINNER.

So it's blogging time. As you may have heard, I did some traveling over the weekend. Do you want to hear about it? Of course you do! Here are some pics. LEARN THEM WELL.

We first visited York, the town where Guy Fawkes was born and executed, to visit Yorkminster Cathedral. It was rather large and imposing, but also full of historical goodies. In fact, it kind of functioned like a time line. Every century or so some changes were made to it. Because of several fires, new roofs had to be built. Because of King Henry VIII, several artifacts were stolen. You know, that sort of thing.

Yorkminster Exterior

More exterior. It's so huge-ish!

Statues of kings found inside

The tour proved to be quite remarkable, the architecture astounding, and the overall visit quite enjoyable. Afterwards, we were free to travel around York. Naturally, we explored the shopping area, and we were especially drawn to the--sometimes literal--hole-in-the-wall places.

The Shambles: where buildings lean together.

Example shop. That's for you, Jake.

We stopped at a tea shoppe where we were served REAL sugar.

Another shop, for mom.

At around seven, we took part on a ghost tour. York happens to be the city with the most recorded ghost sightings. It was like scary stories around the campfire, except without the campfire. And finally, we went to our youth hostel for the night. So that was fun.

Portly tour guide with obligatory top hat and cane.

Six beds. Twas cozy.

The following morning we traveled to Hadrian's wall. It was built by the Romans and runs from coast to coast. We only walked along for about two miles, but the view was stunning. Here's a video.

I know, I know. Beautiful cinematography.

Afterwards, we hopped on a bus to Alnwick, where we had the most unusual opportunity to stay at the castle there. It belongs to the Percy family, and has for over 700 years. The current Duke and Duchess are very much involved in the community, and run a very intricate farming/tourist business.

I managed not to capture a single sheep in this photo. Quite an accomplishment, I must say.

The front gates

Remember this? The scene from Harry's first flying lesson? "UP!"

Before we left, we were able to briefly tour the gardens. Rumour has it that the Duchess Percy was not happy about coming to live at the castle, and agreed to stay only if she could have a garden. The Duke agreed, not suspecting that it would cost a staggering forty-two million pounds. The garden itself features several large water fountains, a treehouse area, a poison garden, two hedge mazes, several flower beds, and a cherry blossom collection of at least 300 trees.

Megan and girlfriend on treehouse swingy bridge.

Poison garden. Several plants were kept in cages because they were deadly to the touch.

Next we hit up Lindisfarne island (population: 62), where we toured another castle/monestary and ate crab sandwiches. But we had to leave quickly before the tide came in; otherwise we would have been trapped there for 12 hours.

Lindisfarne beaches

Lindisfarne castle

Girlfriend being majestic

Finally, we traveled to Durham where we stayed at a college dormitory. The cathedral we visited there is home to the renowned St. Cuthbert tomb, but tourists were not allowed to take pictures. BUT I TOLD THEM I NEED PHOTOS OF SAINT BONES. And they asked me to leave. Not really.

ANYWAY, that's about it. Still haven't got decent internet back at the flat. (I'm at the University currently. The Welcome Programme requires us to stay overnight for a few days and attend meetings. It's pretty neeto.) So I'll probably update again if WE EVER FIGURE OUT THE STUPID ROUTER/EXTENDER.

In the meantime, do keep it real whilst in the states. Please.

P.S. Coke is made without high fructose corn syrup here. So it's fresh and tasteful and refined and pleasurable and just plain nummy.

Yours,

Busy Business

Ello, ello!

Just got back from York/Durham/Alnwick/Lindisfarne.

We stayed at a castle where several Quidditch scenes were filmed.

I went to a club where I got hit on by a few guys.

I've been eating billions of crisps (chips) of the salt and vinegar variety.

I visited a wonderful "Poison Garden" filled with Nightshade, Wolfsbane and Hemlock.

I am currently residing at the University of Nottingham. I will be for the rest of the week due to the Welcome Programme. So that means I have reliable internet! Yay!

Also my battery is dying because I forgot to bring an outlet converter. I'll have to go get that. So pictures tomorrow? Maybe?

Here's some fish and chips.

More soon okay bye!

Yours,

Photo Tour: Downtown Nottingham

Here are some masterful photographs taken in greater Nottingham. We had some free time, so I decided to be a tourist. Also I needed a new pillow, so I went shopping. Yay shopping!

Shot of the town centre

Area used for a SWIMMING POOL(!?!?) during the summer

Shops located on Queens and Kings Streets

Cool lookin' building in town centre

That's just Mufasa.

Picture of the tram tracks inlaid in the road

A British gentleman referred to this as "the magic circle"

Grainy Robin Hood on the cool lookin' building ceiling

Dome of the cool lookin building

Example expensive chick shop in the cool lookin' building

Barnes and Noble equivalent 

St. Peter's Chuch. Built in the 1600's.

More of St. Peter's

St. Peters and a Brit.

St. Peter's Interior

St. Peter's alter

Remarkable architecture

The GF, looking snazzy

The GF, looking cute

Broadmarsh Shopping Center, aka MALL

Interesting store...

Shot of the street outside Broadmarsh

In America, you get hotdogs. In England, you get potatoes.

Hahaha, "Sugacane"

The "Exchange". I forgot why I took this.

Allyson and I.

Awww.

More on Monday! (Hopefully...)

Yours,