A little bit of pomp and circumstance

One of the great things about our program here is that there are no classes on Friday, meaning we can make the most of our weekends.

Friday a group of us decided to go see the changing of the guard at Buckingham Palace. We had been told of a really good place to see it, at a lamp post across the street from the gates to the palace, and so we all gathered around our lamp and waited. It was a beautiful day to be standing outside, a little cold, but the sun was shining on us for the first time in several days and we had a good time. While we were waiting we noticed that the Queen’s flag was flying on top of the palace, meaning she was there, which made me a little giddy. The actual ceremony was pretty cool, we saw a band and the guard and the horse guard and there were some people in carriages that went in the palace gates, and then back out again. We listened to the two bands playing for a while and then after the guard processed out we ran over to the gates to take some close up pictures of the palace and the guards. I’m really glad that we went, but I consider this more of our ‘dry run’ so we can come back in the spring when the guards are in their red coats (in the winter they put a grey one over the red ones).

Yesterday we spent our Valentine’s Day at the Tower of London, listening to stories of blood and gore; it was awesome. I didn’t expect the whole complex to be as big as it was, but it was a lot of fun exploring the different towers and seeing the place where Henry VII executed his wives, learning about weaponry from medieval times and oh yeah, seeing the crown jewels. As Natalie and I were walking through the Disney World like line, watching video clips of different coronations and processions of royalty I got really excited for what we were going to see. It was not a disappointment. It’s hard to imagine just how much meaning and significance these beautiful and ornate pieces mean to the British Monarchy. I tried to compare them to something we have in the U.S. and came up with nothing, making it that much more exciting I guess.

Over the past few days I’ve been looking a lot more at the British culture (probably because my classes have started and that’s what we do) and have found it to be so interesting and fun and exciting; but the part that I think I love the most is how deep the traditions are. The changing of the guard has been happening for years and years in the same way that we saw it, and it will be happening like that for years to come. That, to me, is a really cool part of being in London and makes me so excited to be here for the next few months.

We survived...

...One week in London. Okay technically one week ago was yesterday but we were so jetlagged then no one knew what was what and today marks the end of our first week of classes. Its been a crazy week that seemed to have lasted an eternity, which I have a feeling I'm going to appreciate much more when it comes time to leave. But I've done so much in this week that I can't wait for the rest of the semester.

Last night we went to our first play for the theater class, Spring Awakening (for all you Elon theater buffs out there this is the play that Matt Shingledecker is doing in America). It was INCREDIBLE. The subject matter is a little intense and borders on inappropriate at times, but the music was amazing and the cast did such a great job of evoking very powerful emotions. It probably helps that we were sitting in the second row, but the whole experience reminded me of why I love theater so much. It takes you to a different world and lets you stay there and see what happens both on the stage and in your own head in a way that leaves me breathless sometimes.

Today we went to the British Museum for our GST class with the assignment to find a section of the museum that interested our group. We planned on wandering towards the Asian section but then detoured through the African section and somehow found ourselves going down some stairs to an African art gallery. The first piece of art we saw was actually something that I studied over Winter Term in my fine arts class. It was really exciting to see this piece of work in real life that I already knew so much about and had seen in pictures. Our group wandered around the museum just long enough to realize that we're going to have to spend so much more time there if we want to really see things; good thing we have some time.

Tomorrow we're going to go see the changing of the guards from our supposed fabulous viewing place at the lamp (our tour guide on the first day pointed out a great place to see it). Then this weekend I'm going to try to find my assigned practicum school, maybe explore some other places and then the biggest adventure yet: LAUNDRY! wish me luck : )

Begginings of Classes

We started classes today, and as dorky as it is, I was so excited. The schedule here is very different than my one at Elon, though. Instead of rolling out of bed 30 minutes before class starts and wandering over slowly, we left our flat an hour before our first class this morning and only go there a few minutes early. Our GST (General Studies) Seminar was first. This class is taught by the professor that came with us from Elon and it focuses on the Thames. We’re going to be doing some walks along the Thames, taking pictures and documenting different aspects of the Thames. We’ll also be visiting Greenwich a few times and I’m excited to stand on the GMT!

Before my next class I had around a 2 hour break so we hung out in an empty classroom upstairs. It works out well because there is free internet (which we don’t have a the flats, we have a certain allotment of minutes each week). I did sort of miss the ability to go back to my room and take a quick nap or just have some time away between classes, but when the weather is nicer I’ll use this time to sit in the park outside or head down to the British Museum. The next class was London Theater, which I was the most excited about before coming here. We’re going to see 9 shows throughout the semester, tomorrow is Spring Awakening and next week is 12th Night. I haven’t heard of any of the rest of them, but I think it’s going to be so much fun to see lots of different types of plays. My final class of the day was Diversity in Action in London, a sociology class that is going to be interesting to say the least. Part of this class involves field trips where I’m pretty sure we’re going to just wander around London with some direction and watch people. I love people watching and I love London so it’ll be fun.

After class we had to take an alternate route home because the Central Line was stopped or delayed or something, so we walked a few blocks, and then a few blocks more until we found a bus to take us home. I love little adventures like this because I keep proving to myself that I can survive and adapt in a city that I just met.

Doin the tourist thing

The past few days have been busy busy. We did a bus tour of the city on Friday and saw so much, taking lots of notes about places we wanted to go back to. We got off the bus around the corner from Buckingham Palace and the tour guide started running so we could get there in time for the procession of the horse guard; not as cool as the official of the changing of the guard, but it was neat to see all the soldiers in their uniforms riding by on the horses. The guide gave us some tips on the best place to see the changing of the guard so I'm now really excited to see that. Later that afternoon we had a walking tour of our neighborhood, Little Venice. It is absolutely gorgeous and I can't wait until its warm and I can just wander down by the canal or walk around the beautiful houses. Elon really does take care of us!

Saturday we took a day trip to Stonehenge and Bath. Seeing one of the Seven Wonders of the mideveal world was really cool, and we had some fun being guided by Elias, our very experienced and entertaining friend. The drive to Bath was beautiful because of all the snow and the rolling hills. We got to Bath and took a tour of the old Roman Baths which was also pretty cool. I actually understood a bunch of stuff because of Latin and Roman history. Then we had another walking tour of Bath, which I didn't expect to be as fun as it was. It really is a cute little town with some amazing architecture. Then we had some free time to wander around before heading home.

Since we had napped on the way back from Bath, so a few of us decided to go and see London at night. We took the tube out to Big Ben and there it was, right as we stepped out of the station. It was so massive and looked incredible lit up. We walked around there for a bit before heading over towards Buckingham Palace. If you ever want to have some quality time alone at the palace, Saturday night is the time to go. There was barely anyone there, which was fun for us because we were able to shamelessly take touristy pictures.

Today we got up late, hung out around the flat before heading out to Spiddlefield's market, a big, cheap market. We poked around there, looking at scarves, funky clothes, and were almost tempted by some brownies. I haven't been to many markets in my life, but I really liked this one because people weren't hounding you to come look at their stuff or giving you dirty looks if you didn't buy anything. While I came away empty handed, it was necessary to see what they have for our future trips.

I've absolutely loved getting to know the city over the past few days. I love how busy everything is, and that there is always a billion things to do. But its also been great hanging out in the flat, getting to really know my flatmates and other people in the program. Classes start Tuesday...exciting.

Here's a link to some pictures from our first few adventures... http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2003596&l=9d22e&id=1401300102

Getting lost is fun!

Well today has been quite productive. We had our academic orientation at the Anglo American building (where we take classes), which is right beside the British Museum, how awesome is that. After that Jordan, Laura and I decided to check out Primark, a store that is basically a London department store. I bought a really cute bag and we shopped around a bit, kind of falling in love. Then we ran back to the flats and dropped some stuff off before heading off to do some grocery shopping…which is where our adventure begins.

There is a small grocery store right down the street from our flats, but earlier on our way to our class building we saw a bigger chain grocery that we wanted to check out. Jordan and I made our lists and headed there. We got plenty of food, put it in our new big bags and headed back to the tube. Well, the tube was PACKED due to electrical problems on the central line and the fact that it was 6 p.m. When we got off we were kind of confused and forgot that we had to change lines and so we left the station, figuring we could just turn around and get back on. WRONG. There were so many people trying to get through two little entrances it was ridiculous. No problem, we decided we’d take a bus. We got on, found seats up top and rode. We thought that we heard our stop and made our way down to the bottom to get off. Jordan managed to jump off, I did not. We’re pretty smart cookies though, because she started to follow the bus and at the next stop (which was about a block away) I got off and started to walk back towards her. We met up and decided that the stop we got off at was not the right one, but it was close so we could find our way back eventually. We walked, we pulled out the map, walked some more, pulled out the map and somehow found a tube stop that took us home.

Getting lost in London was one of the best experiences I could’ve had. I’m not good with maps or anything like that, but I’m really getting the hang of the tube and so I’m sure the buses will come fairly easily as well. After our bus tour tomorrow I’m sure I’ll feel even more comfortable with the city.

We're here, we're here, we're here....(no ants)

We're in London!!! Our flight went fine, with a little turbulence and very little sleep. But once we saw land it was absolutely beautiful because it was blanketed in snow. We got our bags and everything and then arrived at our flats.

Flat D (aka flat awesome) is living up to its namesake. We have moved in and unpacked all of our stuff...whether or not its going to stay there is a different question, but I really do love our flat. Pictures will come soon....

Today we've been really jetlagged, but managed to do some exploring. We walked around a Middle Eastern section that is right near our flat. That was a bit sketchy, but we found a grocery and got some stuff. Then we wandered over to the canal and that area is gorgeous and in a really nice neighborhood. After a meeting with our professor we then got our tube passes and rode out to Piccadilly, which was so much fun.

My future blog entries will hopefully be more coherent, the jetlag is killer...

Jk Jk

Our flight from Raleigh to London has been canceled. Ironically enough I heard that it was actually for maintenance and not because of the massive blizzard that hit london today. Everyone was able to get their flight re-booked for the same flight tomorrow. A lot of us are staying at a hotel by the airport (nicest hotel I've ever been in, honestly) and our spirits are up.

So tomorrow we're gonna do take 2. Now I'm really excited...lets just get there already!