GASP!
Becca likes a candy that does not involve chocolate! Alert the MEDIA! Wait - I used to be the Media. Haha. Gotta love it.
Today was a really really good day for some reason. I expect this week to be busy because it's our midterm week of sorts. But today was quite nice. In fact, today was perfectly amazing. I think now that I'm done raving about it I shall tell you all about it. :)
Alright it's Tuesday so I began this morning early, with breakfast and tea before my British Life and Culture class with Susie. I had jam on my toast this morning and some nice black tea. (I was aiming for caffeine because I couldn't fall asleep last night because even though I was exhausted from my intense travels this weekend - I'm so excited that Mom and Dad will be here, in oh, like two days!!!)
Whew. So. Anywho. I went outside to meet Kemper because we had class at the Imperial War Museum today, and she and I were going to ride the red double decker bus to class. So we did and we got there about thirty minutes early because we alloted ourselves extra time. That worked out well enough because we walked around until she and I found a place for coffee and a pasty thing. I got coffee from this really neat Italian restaurant where the employees literally spoke Italian. A lovely little old Italian man called me amore and asked me if I wanted sugar in my coffee. I know that this is really petty - but in London - I get really excited when people are nice.
We walked a bit down the street and got Kemper this really good spinach bread thing from this really sketchy pastry place. Don't get me wrong - it smelled like heaven in there. :) After that we walked to the museum to meet up with the rest of the group and Susie. We went inwards and spent about three hours walking around. This is a definite place that Dad would love. We spent a long time in the World War I and World War II exhibits and Kemper and I did the Trench Experience. As ridiculous as this is about to sound, I literally had adrenaline in my stomach when we walked through the trenches. They made it smell bad in there and it was really really dark...
Anywho then we explored the war art and Sergeant's famous paintings. They were intense and I stared at his largest one for at least ten minutes in complete silence. I really liked it, I suppose, or at least I had a reaction to it. Ha. Anywho after that Kemper and I went to the Holocaust exhibit. We had to leave that one - it was really starting to get to me.
We caught the bus back after class and I had an egg sandwich for lunch - good old faithful. :) Then Kemper and I went to the library and I spent forever perfecting my Shakespeare paper. I probably overdid it a bit. A bit...Ugh. Can't help it it's the first paper I've written over here for school so it's a big deal...to me anyway.
After that I thought that I needed to go practice for the choir audition that was supposed to be today - but I failed on that one. Let me explain - I failed because I wasn't even eligible to try out. They have two concerts both of which I thought were in November however one is in late December. So...I felt really bad but I emailed the lady in charge and profusely apologized to her and told her that I couldn't try out. I felt really horrible about that. But on the bright side, I think I'm going to join this Christian Rock Choir Group that doesn't have auditions and meets every Monday for two hours. Why not? I sent them an email so I'll keep you posted on that one...
Alright. SO after that little mishap I printed my paper out and then I realized that I had TIME TO GO RUNNING!!! SUCESS! Oh I was so excited. I took a good six mile run. It took me about an hour and this includes the crazy traffic in London and all that - I'm getting really good at weaving through all the suits and ties. I usually go running at rush hour so it's busy. I tried to look up an alternative route to where I was headed - St. James Gardens, however, even though I wrote my instructions on my hand - I got lost. So I just found the Thames path and ran along there like I always end up doing. I figure that's alright because there are always a lot of people run there and I love seeing all of St. Paul's and Big Ben and Parliament in the skyline.
That was lovely and got my endorphins all flowing. YES! So, after that Kemper, Hillary and I went to this Mexican place called Benito's Hat. Let me explain - you start to mix Tex-Mex when it doesn't exist and you really, really want some. SO - we went and got Burritos the size of my face. OH MY GOODNESS. It was so amazingly delicious. I loved it. AND then after that - seems like we should have just gone back to the flat - well we didn't.
Actually we did - we had to get my oyster card because I needed to top up for class tomorrow. For Art and Architecture we are meeting in the Victoria and Albert Museum, which Kemper and I went to a couple of weeks ago when we went to Harrods. Then we went to Ed's Diner. Hahaha. It was amazing. Ed's Diner is in Soho and they advertise having American Diner food. Literally they have signs for burgers and fries and shakes. So Kemper and I went to get a milkshake. Gramner - guess what flavor I got? I got my Chocolate Peanut butter one that you always think is crazy when we go to the purple cow. It was nice to go - sort of my comfort food. Gramner and I go to purple cow and get milkshakes a lot. In fact, Jess and I go a lot as well. I think she likes the purple one and the strawberry one.
They had a jukebox that was fifties style and they were playing songs from Grease and such and I was loving it. I kept looking for Billy Ocean's Caribbean Queen, but they didn't have it. I was a bit confused as to why they had the Animals The House of the Rising Sun...Hmmmm....Strange combination there.
Anywho after that we walked to Holborn station and I topped up and then on the way back Kemper and I got a package of Randoms. They are a bag of gummy candies that are literally shaped like random objects. I ate a hedgehog, a beer mug, a lighthouse, and a palm tree. :) So much fun to reach your hand in and pull out a strange looking item. Kemper got to eat a bow-tie. I was a little jealous.
So anyway - as you can see from my tone today was great. I don't know if it's because I finally got to go running, I had a great burrito, or I had a wonderful milkshake in Soho...it's probably the fact that Kemper and I were walking around like we owned the city. We finally are making London work for us. Yes Man! This is how it should be.
BUT NOW - hurry up Thursday because I'd really like to see my Mom and Dad. Although it's only six days until my twentieth birthday, you are never too old to be excited to see your parents. And boy am I excited! :)
I miss all of you guys. Again, thanks for the letters they are part of the reason I smile as much as I manage to. Alright I'm back to the Stones - and hopefully I'll get to talk to that boy named Johnny Gately...Hmmmm. ;)
Perhaps I'll listen to the Beatles instead? It's research. :P
Cheers.
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
Monday, October 4, 2010
Northern Ireland - I love GREEN
So - I've just returned to London from Northern Ireland. At the moment - Northern Ireland is my all time favourite place right now. I am so in love with the country-side and the coast there. I think it's more gorgeous than the Caribbean. AND the Caribbean is really really pretty - in my humble opinion.
Ok. So I know it's Monday, but as I've said, I just got back - so I think I will backtrack to Saturday.
Saturday morning I awoke quite early so that I would have time to have my coffee, tea, and scone for breakfast. I made sure to enjoy some strawberry jam as well because I had a long day of travel - and I didn't want to eat a whole bunch of junk on the road.
SO - I was ready to meet Kemper at 7:30 am to get on the tube to travel to the bus station that had our train that went to the airport we were flying out of. That sentence was extremely long. Anywho - we got on the tube successfully and made it to Liverpool street station to catch our train.
So we got on the train and I started my scarf. I'm knitting the one that Gramner sent me so it's all green. Kemper pointed it out to me - it was very appropriate that I was knitting a GREEN scarf for our Irish travels. :) So far I think I've gotten about one fourth of the scarf finished. It's looking really nice and I love being able to knit like I always do at home.
Anywho - we made it to the airport and I immediately got nervous. I believe the security measures taken in airports since 9/11 has had a huge effect on me. I always feel like when I'm walking through security that I've done something wrong even though I haven't done anything besides show up with my backpack. I kind of felt like a backpacker - although we didn't carry our backpacks EVERYWHERE.
Right. Moving forward - we made it through security - in fact I made it through with a half full water bottle. I don't know how I did that - I feel like that's ridiculous. Once through the gates Kemper and I went on a hunt for her some breakfast. The airport (Stanstead Airport) was very small...but we finally managed to get her some food and find a place to sit. BUT - of course - the screen didn't announce our terminal until it said in great huge red letters "FINAL CALL"
SO...we literally ran down the gangway trying to find our gate. We found it and discovered that really, last call apparently means first call because we only ended up queing in this ridiculous line waiting waiting and MORE waiting. We finally boarded the plan and got to sit together. The plan ride was literally only forty-five minutes. THEN we were in IRELAND. (Northern Ireland that is - still part of the UK)
And it was really ridiculous because when the plan landed the cabin filled with this crazy music that sounded like the starting music at Oaklawn. Kemper and I died of laughter because as far as we know - we weren't in Ireland to go gambling...
Anywho - we got off the plane and went and found the bus that took us to the Bus Station in Belfast's center. We then just walked (after picking up a map) to our Hostel. We stayed at Lagan's Backpacking Hostel and I will say - even though we got our own private room I was nervous. HOWEVER we essentially stayed in a Bed and Breakfast. We got a nice complimentary breakfast (I got the traditional which I can't figure out why they like beans with their breakfast...). AND the owner - William was great. He gave us plenty of suggestions for things to do in Belfast and Ireland in general. Which is good because upon consideration we realized we totally just winged our trip. I mean we made sure we had transportation and a place to travel - but we didn't plan beyond that.
SO - on Saturday when we arrived and settled in and after I'd managed to wash my face I asked Kemper if she didn't mind doing the Black Taxi tour with me. The tour was suggested by William - of course - and it's a tour given by a taxi -driver on the "Troubles." When WIlliam mentioned it Kemper talked about how she would do that when she came back. I was upset because I wanted to do it too - but then I just asked her and she was surprised at my interest.
Anyways - so we asked William when we needed to book that and he said that they were actually doing one at four that evening...so Kemper and I went exploring around our neighborhood before that and ended up in the Queen's Botanical Gardens. It was absolutely beautiful but it was a little disconcerting. I mean - it was disconcerting because we immediately noticed two things just from walking from our walk from the bus station to the hostel.
Number one - there are a bunch of groups of pre-teens/teenagers that seem to just walk around in small gaggles screaming and shouting at each other. They are extremely intimidating for Kemper and I. I don't know why but we felt like they didn't have anything else to do and apparently - that's when trouble starts anywhere in the world - usually right after school when kids don't have anything to do in the afternoon. Anyway - we got used to it and just ignored them and didn't make any eye-contact.
Number two - The streets were EXTREMELY quiet for a Saturday afternoon. In fact, Kemper called it a 'nervous' quiet. We couldn't figure out where anyone was. After London and all that Belfast (which is the capital of Northern Ireland) was so dead. But it was like there was a nervous tension in the air...and after we took the Black Taxi tour I understood why better. And I was a little less concerned.
SO let's move on to the Black Taxi Tour. Kemper's thesis is on a really interesting topic that I'm going to have to investigate further. Ok. So I don't know how much you know about the Troubles - but it's what the Irish call their problems which involve a strange connection of religion and unionism. Basic back-story is that apparently the rest of the world noticed in 1969 that there is a problem between the Catholic and Protestant communities within Northern Ireland which was a part of the UK. Britain took land from Ireland and gave most of it back and then kept Ulster - which is the region that's Northern Ireland now. This all happened a long time before 1969 and flared up even in the 20s.
BUT - our taxi driver (who was catholic himself so we had an interesting bias in the presentation) took us to the murals and a the peace line and through some of the Catholic community as well as the Protestant community. He said that the peace line (which is a huge wall put up dividing the two communities and closes nights and does not open again until morning) has been up longer than the Berlin Wall. That really hit me. And he said that Belfast was a safe city - no worries - because the Irish don't have any problems with foreigners. It doesn't matter whether they are Catholic or Protestant or Unionists or for a United Ireland. They are interested in making you feel at home and all that - and I can say that that is true.
BUT during the tour we asked him about the strange underlying tension. He smiled and said it's a place just coming out of troubled times. He said that we should wait until nighttime and they would be out frequenting the pubs - and YES - they do come out at night like they're nocturnal. They're loud, which was refreshing, after London where people seem to glare at you for breathing too loudly. Anyway - I have not done the troubles justice - so look at my pictures and ask Kemper. Or ask me to ask Kemper - I really took a lot in during the tour - but more importantly - I was affected in a way that I haven't ever been affected before.
After that pretty heavy-thought provoking tour - we returned to the hostel to ask for suggestions for dinner. We walked all around until we settled on an Italian place. You pretty much can't screw up Italian food. After that (I got a pretty good Calzone) we returned to the Hostel once again to get ready to go to one of the pubs. We got way-laid by three very intense, nice Scottish girls who were also staying in our hostel. One of them was also named Rebecca, she is a fashion student who one day wants to study in London. Anyway - they had way more energy than we did. Our plan was to go to a pub and get a pint and sort of blend in - and they tried for a good fifteen minutes to get us to go to a club.
They finally left and we settled for our walk to the Crown. The crown is a very rowdy pub that is a huge tourist attraction that has been in operation since the 1800s at least. I don't really remember the exact date. Anywho - we went in there and I didn't know what beer to order because I didn't recognize any of the names. (Later I found out that only beers owned by Guiness are in Ireland - so they were all a bit different...) Anyway I asked the bartender for a suggestion telling him that I didn't like Guiness and he was about to say something when a nice middle-aged Canadian lady said - try this one it's called Carling. The bartender said the same so I ordered a pint of it. Well...
Kemper and I spent the evening talking to this nice middle-aged Canadian couple. They reminded me of Mom and Dad - they were on Holiday exploring Ireland from Dublin to the Giant's Causeway to Ediburgh and Glasgow in Scotland. They were nice and easy to talk to - again I think I enjoyed talking to them partly because their Canadian-ness was comforting and they were like Mom and Dad. So. They bought us a drink and I got a half pint of Guiness and I will say that Guiness is AMAZING in Ireland. I'm not kidding. For some reason it was very decent...and...dare I say this...I liked it. I was like...huh? Anyway - so now I can say that I've had Guiness in Ireland...and I can even say I liked it.
Anyway - we left the pub at about eleven because it was really really rowdy. They're not kidding when they say the Irish can drink. They can, and they do, and they LIKE to. They were back in the seating area singing songs and screaming at each other. I'm telling you - I didn't feel like I had to worry about being American because well...they were louder and jollier than I think I've ever been.
We got back to the hostel and I took a quick shower (yeah right. The first shower experience I had resulted in being both frozen and scalded constantly - but after about an hour of this I was clean...) and Kemper and I went to bed in our little private room at the top of like...fifteen flights of stairs. Ha. AND I was so tired from our full day that I slept extremely well.
SO. Now to SUNDAY. (Sorry this is so long - but if I don't write this now I won't write it all - this upcoming week is my midterm week in a sense...)
I convinced Kemper that we needed to go to the Coast of Ireland. It wasn't hard to do - seeing that she loves the sea. But instead of getting a train ticket like we originally planned on doing - we went on a tour. There are pros and cons of going on a tour. Obviously - on a huge bus tour like we went on you can't help but be labeled as a tourist and you're on a time table and all that. But you get to see a lot of things and you get to have fun observing your fellow passengers (maybe the latter only applies to Kemper and I.)
Anyway so we did the Giant's Causeway Coastal tour. We had a full day (from 9 am to 7 pm) and I absolutely loved the views. We went from Belfast to the Giant's Causeway along the coast and we stoped at various castles and such. When we stopped for the rope-bridge that probably would have killed me to walk across - Kemper and I did this cliff walk thing off by ourselves. So we managed to feel like we were just out walking through the coastal countryside. I have some AMAZING photos. I think I made Kemper nervous because I kind of like to get close to the edge - it simply reminds me of Pinnacle. :) (No worries I was safe)
Our bus driver was really interesting. He kept laughing at his own jokes with a strange little laugh and poking fun at us to see if we were listening. We were...most of the time. I can tell you that most places in Ireland Ballymena and any other place with the prefix "bally" literally means the place of. So Ballymena means the place of mena. I could also tell you really boring/interesting things about Irish history that he told us - but you can always ask me later. Ha. I did notice interestingly enough that he avoided the whole Catholic/protestant conflict as often as he could in his information he gave us. He did tell us though (and there are a lot of sheep in ireland) that the Protestants will usually mark their sheep red and the catholics will mark their's blue. It's true. We saw a lot of sheep with blue and red marks on them. Once I think we saw one with both colours - wonder how that works out.
Anywho - we finally got to the Giant's Causeway - which is a really neat bunch of cliffs and hills and rocks at the Northern Point of Northern Ireland along the coast. Let me tell you the interesting bit of Legend that goes with it - because I thought it was pretty funny/interesting. So apparently there used to be a giant named Finn McCool that lived along the Northern Coast of Ireland. And he thought he was the strongest and best-muscled giant in all the world. However - a Scottish giant named Fingal challenged his strength.
Well now, Finn McCool couldn't have any of this so-called challenging so he created a rocky path all the way to Scotland. Well he went over there and saw that Fingal was indeed stronger looking that Finn McCool was. So he ran all the way back home to his wife. His wife dressed him as a baby and when Fingal made his way over the (Giant's Causeway) rocks he went to McCool's house. He saw Finn McCool dressed as a baby and he thought - well if this is how large the baby is I don't want to meet the father. So he ran all the way back to Scotland with Finn McCool throwing rocks at him.
Those Irish. They like their stories and beer and songs.
So we got to walk down to the Causeway and Kemper and I actually touched the sea and picked up some seashells. It was absolutely stunning. It began to rain at that point - but that's perfectly ok - because we saw the first of three rainbows for the day. I have pictures of the rainbows - and unfortunately - there was not pot of gold or a leprechaun at the bottom of any of them. :(
Anywho after that we drove back to the Hostel and Kemper and I had Italian food for dinner again. What's up with that? We must really like Italian food or we must just be creatures of habit. Actually - we wanted to try this 'mexican' place - but it was closed because it was Sunday. Because it was Sunday we were worried the pubs were going to be all closed. Nope. They were open - we wanted to try the one that features traditional Irish music every night that the hostel owner William suggested.
So - we went there and I got a pint of Guiness. It'll probably be the last time I do that unless I'm in Ireland again - Guiness in London is NOT lovely. We listened to the Irish music which involved a fiddle - but then we left because they were all a bit rowdy. Even though there was FOOTBALL (American Football - the redhawks versus the eagles on the telly) I am pretty sure that there were locals in the pub as well. And I'm pretty sure that they started drinking way before five.
Anyway we returned to the hostel and I showered again - this time in a different shower with a less scalding experience. The next morning we got our lovely breakfast - packed and then went city exploring.
We ended up seeing all the sights - like City Hall, the peace statue, the fish (you'll see the pictures at some point - no worries) and old Albert clock (which is an interesting clock after seeing Big Ben all the time). Then we tried to shop for a bit before catching lunch and traveling back to London.
Ugh. London.
Must I mention that there was mostly beautiful Irish sunshine all weekend long? Oh it was so beautiful and green and amazing. I would love to be studying there instead of here. Is it ridiculous that I even like Irish accents better than British? Sheesh. I'm having an identity crisis. Am I Irish? I felt at home there in a hard to explain way.
Anyway once we returned to London the sun was gone and it was bleary - as per usual. AND guess what? We returned right in the middle of a tube strike. SO - Kemper and I walked all the way back from Liverpool Street Station which is a little past St. Paul's. It was a mess there were people everywhere dressed in black and looking posh. (I also forgot to mention that I like Ireland for being a bit less fashion forward and a bit more accepting of any styles...)
Right. Well we got home fine with our backpacks and such and I made a hamburger for dinner. I was impressed with my skills. Although I've prepared hamburger meat and watched both my parents cook it many times - I've never done one myself. It was a great success. :) And now I'm happily full (that is - after hillary let me have some of her chocolate chip cookies)
Ok. Wow. This is a HUGE post. I miss you guys so much. Did I mention that I came home to three lovely letters? One from Jess, one from Uncle Bubber, and one from ALL of you guys? I miss you so much! The letters make me so happy. I think i'll have to write one to the whole family. (I mean you guys get together and eat really good food without me often enough that I should be able to send a letter that you can pass around whilst enjoying REAL five star burgers.)
Ok. It's time for bed...I'm exhausted. I don't know if this post really suffices as to my experiences over there in Ireland but I'm always going to want to talk about it next time I get to see you. Hope you enjoy the pictures which I'll upload tomorrow.
Cheers!
Ok. So I know it's Monday, but as I've said, I just got back - so I think I will backtrack to Saturday.
Saturday morning I awoke quite early so that I would have time to have my coffee, tea, and scone for breakfast. I made sure to enjoy some strawberry jam as well because I had a long day of travel - and I didn't want to eat a whole bunch of junk on the road.
SO - I was ready to meet Kemper at 7:30 am to get on the tube to travel to the bus station that had our train that went to the airport we were flying out of. That sentence was extremely long. Anywho - we got on the tube successfully and made it to Liverpool street station to catch our train.
So we got on the train and I started my scarf. I'm knitting the one that Gramner sent me so it's all green. Kemper pointed it out to me - it was very appropriate that I was knitting a GREEN scarf for our Irish travels. :) So far I think I've gotten about one fourth of the scarf finished. It's looking really nice and I love being able to knit like I always do at home.
Anywho - we made it to the airport and I immediately got nervous. I believe the security measures taken in airports since 9/11 has had a huge effect on me. I always feel like when I'm walking through security that I've done something wrong even though I haven't done anything besides show up with my backpack. I kind of felt like a backpacker - although we didn't carry our backpacks EVERYWHERE.
Right. Moving forward - we made it through security - in fact I made it through with a half full water bottle. I don't know how I did that - I feel like that's ridiculous. Once through the gates Kemper and I went on a hunt for her some breakfast. The airport (Stanstead Airport) was very small...but we finally managed to get her some food and find a place to sit. BUT - of course - the screen didn't announce our terminal until it said in great huge red letters "FINAL CALL"
SO...we literally ran down the gangway trying to find our gate. We found it and discovered that really, last call apparently means first call because we only ended up queing in this ridiculous line waiting waiting and MORE waiting. We finally boarded the plan and got to sit together. The plan ride was literally only forty-five minutes. THEN we were in IRELAND. (Northern Ireland that is - still part of the UK)
And it was really ridiculous because when the plan landed the cabin filled with this crazy music that sounded like the starting music at Oaklawn. Kemper and I died of laughter because as far as we know - we weren't in Ireland to go gambling...
Anywho - we got off the plane and went and found the bus that took us to the Bus Station in Belfast's center. We then just walked (after picking up a map) to our Hostel. We stayed at Lagan's Backpacking Hostel and I will say - even though we got our own private room I was nervous. HOWEVER we essentially stayed in a Bed and Breakfast. We got a nice complimentary breakfast (I got the traditional which I can't figure out why they like beans with their breakfast...). AND the owner - William was great. He gave us plenty of suggestions for things to do in Belfast and Ireland in general. Which is good because upon consideration we realized we totally just winged our trip. I mean we made sure we had transportation and a place to travel - but we didn't plan beyond that.
SO - on Saturday when we arrived and settled in and after I'd managed to wash my face I asked Kemper if she didn't mind doing the Black Taxi tour with me. The tour was suggested by William - of course - and it's a tour given by a taxi -driver on the "Troubles." When WIlliam mentioned it Kemper talked about how she would do that when she came back. I was upset because I wanted to do it too - but then I just asked her and she was surprised at my interest.
Anyways - so we asked William when we needed to book that and he said that they were actually doing one at four that evening...so Kemper and I went exploring around our neighborhood before that and ended up in the Queen's Botanical Gardens. It was absolutely beautiful but it was a little disconcerting. I mean - it was disconcerting because we immediately noticed two things just from walking from our walk from the bus station to the hostel.
Number one - there are a bunch of groups of pre-teens/teenagers that seem to just walk around in small gaggles screaming and shouting at each other. They are extremely intimidating for Kemper and I. I don't know why but we felt like they didn't have anything else to do and apparently - that's when trouble starts anywhere in the world - usually right after school when kids don't have anything to do in the afternoon. Anyway - we got used to it and just ignored them and didn't make any eye-contact.
Number two - The streets were EXTREMELY quiet for a Saturday afternoon. In fact, Kemper called it a 'nervous' quiet. We couldn't figure out where anyone was. After London and all that Belfast (which is the capital of Northern Ireland) was so dead. But it was like there was a nervous tension in the air...and after we took the Black Taxi tour I understood why better. And I was a little less concerned.
SO let's move on to the Black Taxi Tour. Kemper's thesis is on a really interesting topic that I'm going to have to investigate further. Ok. So I don't know how much you know about the Troubles - but it's what the Irish call their problems which involve a strange connection of religion and unionism. Basic back-story is that apparently the rest of the world noticed in 1969 that there is a problem between the Catholic and Protestant communities within Northern Ireland which was a part of the UK. Britain took land from Ireland and gave most of it back and then kept Ulster - which is the region that's Northern Ireland now. This all happened a long time before 1969 and flared up even in the 20s.
BUT - our taxi driver (who was catholic himself so we had an interesting bias in the presentation) took us to the murals and a the peace line and through some of the Catholic community as well as the Protestant community. He said that the peace line (which is a huge wall put up dividing the two communities and closes nights and does not open again until morning) has been up longer than the Berlin Wall. That really hit me. And he said that Belfast was a safe city - no worries - because the Irish don't have any problems with foreigners. It doesn't matter whether they are Catholic or Protestant or Unionists or for a United Ireland. They are interested in making you feel at home and all that - and I can say that that is true.
BUT during the tour we asked him about the strange underlying tension. He smiled and said it's a place just coming out of troubled times. He said that we should wait until nighttime and they would be out frequenting the pubs - and YES - they do come out at night like they're nocturnal. They're loud, which was refreshing, after London where people seem to glare at you for breathing too loudly. Anyway - I have not done the troubles justice - so look at my pictures and ask Kemper. Or ask me to ask Kemper - I really took a lot in during the tour - but more importantly - I was affected in a way that I haven't ever been affected before.
After that pretty heavy-thought provoking tour - we returned to the hostel to ask for suggestions for dinner. We walked all around until we settled on an Italian place. You pretty much can't screw up Italian food. After that (I got a pretty good Calzone) we returned to the Hostel once again to get ready to go to one of the pubs. We got way-laid by three very intense, nice Scottish girls who were also staying in our hostel. One of them was also named Rebecca, she is a fashion student who one day wants to study in London. Anyway - they had way more energy than we did. Our plan was to go to a pub and get a pint and sort of blend in - and they tried for a good fifteen minutes to get us to go to a club.
They finally left and we settled for our walk to the Crown. The crown is a very rowdy pub that is a huge tourist attraction that has been in operation since the 1800s at least. I don't really remember the exact date. Anywho - we went in there and I didn't know what beer to order because I didn't recognize any of the names. (Later I found out that only beers owned by Guiness are in Ireland - so they were all a bit different...) Anyway I asked the bartender for a suggestion telling him that I didn't like Guiness and he was about to say something when a nice middle-aged Canadian lady said - try this one it's called Carling. The bartender said the same so I ordered a pint of it. Well...
Kemper and I spent the evening talking to this nice middle-aged Canadian couple. They reminded me of Mom and Dad - they were on Holiday exploring Ireland from Dublin to the Giant's Causeway to Ediburgh and Glasgow in Scotland. They were nice and easy to talk to - again I think I enjoyed talking to them partly because their Canadian-ness was comforting and they were like Mom and Dad. So. They bought us a drink and I got a half pint of Guiness and I will say that Guiness is AMAZING in Ireland. I'm not kidding. For some reason it was very decent...and...dare I say this...I liked it. I was like...huh? Anyway - so now I can say that I've had Guiness in Ireland...and I can even say I liked it.
Anyway - we left the pub at about eleven because it was really really rowdy. They're not kidding when they say the Irish can drink. They can, and they do, and they LIKE to. They were back in the seating area singing songs and screaming at each other. I'm telling you - I didn't feel like I had to worry about being American because well...they were louder and jollier than I think I've ever been.
We got back to the hostel and I took a quick shower (yeah right. The first shower experience I had resulted in being both frozen and scalded constantly - but after about an hour of this I was clean...) and Kemper and I went to bed in our little private room at the top of like...fifteen flights of stairs. Ha. AND I was so tired from our full day that I slept extremely well.
SO. Now to SUNDAY. (Sorry this is so long - but if I don't write this now I won't write it all - this upcoming week is my midterm week in a sense...)
I convinced Kemper that we needed to go to the Coast of Ireland. It wasn't hard to do - seeing that she loves the sea. But instead of getting a train ticket like we originally planned on doing - we went on a tour. There are pros and cons of going on a tour. Obviously - on a huge bus tour like we went on you can't help but be labeled as a tourist and you're on a time table and all that. But you get to see a lot of things and you get to have fun observing your fellow passengers (maybe the latter only applies to Kemper and I.)
Anyway so we did the Giant's Causeway Coastal tour. We had a full day (from 9 am to 7 pm) and I absolutely loved the views. We went from Belfast to the Giant's Causeway along the coast and we stoped at various castles and such. When we stopped for the rope-bridge that probably would have killed me to walk across - Kemper and I did this cliff walk thing off by ourselves. So we managed to feel like we were just out walking through the coastal countryside. I have some AMAZING photos. I think I made Kemper nervous because I kind of like to get close to the edge - it simply reminds me of Pinnacle. :) (No worries I was safe)
Our bus driver was really interesting. He kept laughing at his own jokes with a strange little laugh and poking fun at us to see if we were listening. We were...most of the time. I can tell you that most places in Ireland Ballymena and any other place with the prefix "bally" literally means the place of. So Ballymena means the place of mena. I could also tell you really boring/interesting things about Irish history that he told us - but you can always ask me later. Ha. I did notice interestingly enough that he avoided the whole Catholic/protestant conflict as often as he could in his information he gave us. He did tell us though (and there are a lot of sheep in ireland) that the Protestants will usually mark their sheep red and the catholics will mark their's blue. It's true. We saw a lot of sheep with blue and red marks on them. Once I think we saw one with both colours - wonder how that works out.
Anywho - we finally got to the Giant's Causeway - which is a really neat bunch of cliffs and hills and rocks at the Northern Point of Northern Ireland along the coast. Let me tell you the interesting bit of Legend that goes with it - because I thought it was pretty funny/interesting. So apparently there used to be a giant named Finn McCool that lived along the Northern Coast of Ireland. And he thought he was the strongest and best-muscled giant in all the world. However - a Scottish giant named Fingal challenged his strength.
Well now, Finn McCool couldn't have any of this so-called challenging so he created a rocky path all the way to Scotland. Well he went over there and saw that Fingal was indeed stronger looking that Finn McCool was. So he ran all the way back home to his wife. His wife dressed him as a baby and when Fingal made his way over the (Giant's Causeway) rocks he went to McCool's house. He saw Finn McCool dressed as a baby and he thought - well if this is how large the baby is I don't want to meet the father. So he ran all the way back to Scotland with Finn McCool throwing rocks at him.
Those Irish. They like their stories and beer and songs.
So we got to walk down to the Causeway and Kemper and I actually touched the sea and picked up some seashells. It was absolutely stunning. It began to rain at that point - but that's perfectly ok - because we saw the first of three rainbows for the day. I have pictures of the rainbows - and unfortunately - there was not pot of gold or a leprechaun at the bottom of any of them. :(
Anywho after that we drove back to the Hostel and Kemper and I had Italian food for dinner again. What's up with that? We must really like Italian food or we must just be creatures of habit. Actually - we wanted to try this 'mexican' place - but it was closed because it was Sunday. Because it was Sunday we were worried the pubs were going to be all closed. Nope. They were open - we wanted to try the one that features traditional Irish music every night that the hostel owner William suggested.
So - we went there and I got a pint of Guiness. It'll probably be the last time I do that unless I'm in Ireland again - Guiness in London is NOT lovely. We listened to the Irish music which involved a fiddle - but then we left because they were all a bit rowdy. Even though there was FOOTBALL (American Football - the redhawks versus the eagles on the telly) I am pretty sure that there were locals in the pub as well. And I'm pretty sure that they started drinking way before five.
Anyway we returned to the hostel and I showered again - this time in a different shower with a less scalding experience. The next morning we got our lovely breakfast - packed and then went city exploring.
We ended up seeing all the sights - like City Hall, the peace statue, the fish (you'll see the pictures at some point - no worries) and old Albert clock (which is an interesting clock after seeing Big Ben all the time). Then we tried to shop for a bit before catching lunch and traveling back to London.
Ugh. London.
Must I mention that there was mostly beautiful Irish sunshine all weekend long? Oh it was so beautiful and green and amazing. I would love to be studying there instead of here. Is it ridiculous that I even like Irish accents better than British? Sheesh. I'm having an identity crisis. Am I Irish? I felt at home there in a hard to explain way.
Anyway once we returned to London the sun was gone and it was bleary - as per usual. AND guess what? We returned right in the middle of a tube strike. SO - Kemper and I walked all the way back from Liverpool Street Station which is a little past St. Paul's. It was a mess there were people everywhere dressed in black and looking posh. (I also forgot to mention that I like Ireland for being a bit less fashion forward and a bit more accepting of any styles...)
Right. Well we got home fine with our backpacks and such and I made a hamburger for dinner. I was impressed with my skills. Although I've prepared hamburger meat and watched both my parents cook it many times - I've never done one myself. It was a great success. :) And now I'm happily full (that is - after hillary let me have some of her chocolate chip cookies)
Ok. Wow. This is a HUGE post. I miss you guys so much. Did I mention that I came home to three lovely letters? One from Jess, one from Uncle Bubber, and one from ALL of you guys? I miss you so much! The letters make me so happy. I think i'll have to write one to the whole family. (I mean you guys get together and eat really good food without me often enough that I should be able to send a letter that you can pass around whilst enjoying REAL five star burgers.)
Ok. It's time for bed...I'm exhausted. I don't know if this post really suffices as to my experiences over there in Ireland but I'm always going to want to talk about it next time I get to see you. Hope you enjoy the pictures which I'll upload tomorrow.
Cheers!
Friday, October 1, 2010
Stonehenge and Salisbury Cathedral
Welcome to England. It's cold, rainy, and if you don't have wool socks on - you are just majorly out of luck!
Wow. I know I didn't post yesterday so let me tell you about the wine tasting. It was interesting and fun, after I got over the feeling that I wasn't posh enough to be present at the event. All I learned is that I can't drink a lot of wine. I got sick - I'm good now though. So - I think I'll just charge on through to today.
Alright. Today was our group trip to Salisbury and Stonehenge.
Let me just say that Stonehenge was a bit of a disappointment. We rode a coach bus for about an hour and a half and we got to a really rainy middle of nowhere place. There were sheep - I suppose that was nice. The grass was also incredibly green which made me happy. But - as our professor warned us - we were not able to get close to the rocks because they have had problems with graffiti.
That made me think about the barrier they had to put up in the Parliament building where the spectators sit and listen in the House of Commons. Apparently back when Mr. Blair was prime minister someone threw flour all over him. What do these barriers and gates say about our societies? Ugh. Makes my head hurt - these philosophical questions.
Anyway - I did enjoy the stones I suppose. They are supposed to be one of the seventh wonders of the world and all that jazz. We walked around it and took a bunch of pictures and then got back on the bus to go to Salisbury. Salisbury is about a fifteen minute drive away from Stonehenge and it's a nice little town. I've discovered that I appreciate the smaller towns in England way more than London. People are actually nice to you.
Kemper and I found this lovely little restaurant called Greencages Tearoom or something like that. We went in there and I had a panini and she had a cheese sandwich and we got a nice lovely pot of peppermint tea for two. It was cute. It made me want a cute little coffee pot for our flat - but alas - we have some water heater thing that I suppose is way faster than a tea pot. However, most of the charm is lost considering that it looks sort of like a toaster.
Anywho - we had a nice little lunch. The lady who was waiting on us was just so nice. Then we made our way over to the Cathedral and on the way we stopped at a second hand shop focused on funding breast cancer research. Have I mentioned that my umbrella broke? Well I got a new cuter, plaid one for cheaper than the first one I got. AND I went ahead and bought a huge old man sweater. It's black and extremely comfortable. I'm really really excited about it. When I wear it it's like being in a tent of cuddly happiness. The weather is just not what I'm used to. :\
We got to the Cathedral and it literally looked like something out of my imagination. It was built sometime in the 1200s...and lo and behold. It's still there. We went on this tour thing that was two hours long and we climbed the spire which had about three hundred or other steps. I didn't like the climbing part because - look at my photos - I'm not sure these people over here know how to build staircases and stairwells. Sheesh.
Or everyone's a dwarf.
Anyway. It was beautiful - the Cathedral on the inside and outside. I loved when we got to the place on the spire where we could go outside. Looking over the little town was amazing and you could see the country side. I loved it so much. That was worth the stupid spindly wavy stairs I suppose. But I've been there, done that, and I have to say - I'm TIRED of climbing stairs. I mean, literally, there was one stair case that had a rope that you were supposed to use as a support. A rope. The roped looked older than me - how reassuring is that?!
Anyway - after that I went to the Gift Shop and got a couple of post cards and a feather plume pen. I couldn't help it! It's purple and amazing...I mean - what else is there in life besides amazing feathery pens?
Let's see- tomorrow I'm off to Northern Ireland. I am really excited. I am currently charging my camera - so I think I'll just upload Ireland pictures and Stonehenge pictures when I get back. I miss you guys.
Cheers.
Wow. I know I didn't post yesterday so let me tell you about the wine tasting. It was interesting and fun, after I got over the feeling that I wasn't posh enough to be present at the event. All I learned is that I can't drink a lot of wine. I got sick - I'm good now though. So - I think I'll just charge on through to today.
Alright. Today was our group trip to Salisbury and Stonehenge.
Let me just say that Stonehenge was a bit of a disappointment. We rode a coach bus for about an hour and a half and we got to a really rainy middle of nowhere place. There were sheep - I suppose that was nice. The grass was also incredibly green which made me happy. But - as our professor warned us - we were not able to get close to the rocks because they have had problems with graffiti.
That made me think about the barrier they had to put up in the Parliament building where the spectators sit and listen in the House of Commons. Apparently back when Mr. Blair was prime minister someone threw flour all over him. What do these barriers and gates say about our societies? Ugh. Makes my head hurt - these philosophical questions.
Anyway - I did enjoy the stones I suppose. They are supposed to be one of the seventh wonders of the world and all that jazz. We walked around it and took a bunch of pictures and then got back on the bus to go to Salisbury. Salisbury is about a fifteen minute drive away from Stonehenge and it's a nice little town. I've discovered that I appreciate the smaller towns in England way more than London. People are actually nice to you.
Kemper and I found this lovely little restaurant called Greencages Tearoom or something like that. We went in there and I had a panini and she had a cheese sandwich and we got a nice lovely pot of peppermint tea for two. It was cute. It made me want a cute little coffee pot for our flat - but alas - we have some water heater thing that I suppose is way faster than a tea pot. However, most of the charm is lost considering that it looks sort of like a toaster.
Anywho - we had a nice little lunch. The lady who was waiting on us was just so nice. Then we made our way over to the Cathedral and on the way we stopped at a second hand shop focused on funding breast cancer research. Have I mentioned that my umbrella broke? Well I got a new cuter, plaid one for cheaper than the first one I got. AND I went ahead and bought a huge old man sweater. It's black and extremely comfortable. I'm really really excited about it. When I wear it it's like being in a tent of cuddly happiness. The weather is just not what I'm used to. :\
We got to the Cathedral and it literally looked like something out of my imagination. It was built sometime in the 1200s...and lo and behold. It's still there. We went on this tour thing that was two hours long and we climbed the spire which had about three hundred or other steps. I didn't like the climbing part because - look at my photos - I'm not sure these people over here know how to build staircases and stairwells. Sheesh.
Or everyone's a dwarf.
Anyway. It was beautiful - the Cathedral on the inside and outside. I loved when we got to the place on the spire where we could go outside. Looking over the little town was amazing and you could see the country side. I loved it so much. That was worth the stupid spindly wavy stairs I suppose. But I've been there, done that, and I have to say - I'm TIRED of climbing stairs. I mean, literally, there was one stair case that had a rope that you were supposed to use as a support. A rope. The roped looked older than me - how reassuring is that?!
Anyway - after that I went to the Gift Shop and got a couple of post cards and a feather plume pen. I couldn't help it! It's purple and amazing...I mean - what else is there in life besides amazing feathery pens?
Let's see- tomorrow I'm off to Northern Ireland. I am really excited. I am currently charging my camera - so I think I'll just upload Ireland pictures and Stonehenge pictures when I get back. I miss you guys.
Cheers.
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
What is London but...RAIN?
Ok. You caught me. I'm sitting here on my little piece of hallway with a scone. And raspberry jam. What can I say - the English are starting to rub off on me, I guess.
Alrighty - well - Wednesdays oh Wednesdays. They are spossed to be the 'hump' days or what not. For me it's just the 'helter-skelter' day. And maybe I shouldn't complain because my schedule is pretty open, and in a sense I'm not complaining. I just had a very rushed lunch today and I like to enjoy my food. :)
Anywho. Let me fill you in on the day. I had to give my presentation on Mr. John Martin the British Artist today. I was nervous, to say the least, because Art History is not something I'm an expert in. Well...also this morning I decided to mix it up a bit and take the bus instead of the tube. Guess what? I think I've solved my traveling problems around the city - almost.
We (Mandi, Kemper, and I) left at about 8:30 for our 9:30 class because we had to meet at the Tate Britain Museum. Well, it was raining right then and there this morning - so luckily I had my very versatile trench/raincoat thing. We did a good job gramner - but I don't know if the coat will survive all the wear and tear - I wear it all the time.
So we got to the stop and we had to walk a minute to get to the Pimlico station which was actually our meeting place - no big deal. Barnaby was there with the rest of the class and we stopped at a tea shop and some people got some coffee, because we had to wait for the museum to open at ten. (Lots of waiting - huh?) We then finally went in and started up with the presentations. They were all ten minutes long and there are fourteen of us - so it was a bit of a trying class. It's hard to listen to lectures for about three straight hours - especially if you're like me and all you want to do is sleep.
Haha. Lately I've been having trouble falling asleep - but once I do - I'm out. Anywho - here is a link to the painting that I did. I want you guys to see it. I think it's beautiful. It's all about the sublime or industrialization or whatever. Who knows but the artist? I just had a reaction to it, perhaps an inspiration and so here you go for yourself: (You make the call) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Martin_001.jpg.
After that we had to get back to the flat and then make lunch and then make it to Shakespeare before two. We got out of class about at 12:40. Well...that doesn't give you much time to get back and make lunch. I suppose you could grab lunch out - but it's expensive and plus - I had some money left from my stipend that I was saving to buy Hamlet this evening from the Globe. Ugh. So I ran to the flat basically and made a beigel cheese thing. I didn't have time for anything else - but I took a snack to Shakespeare.
Shakespeare is shakespeare. You simply do Shakespeare, I suppose. Anywho I asked Jean about my three page rough draft paper that's due next week and I think I'm good. I need to proofread of course, but I think it'll all be good. I'm hoping for an A in that class. Jean luckily let us out early and Kemper and I went to the library to print things. As in print out our boarding passes for this weekend. I'm going to Northern Ireland. I'm excited and nervous and forgetful - I need to remember to recharge my camera! :)
I'll be sure to take pictures. Anyways - after our library expedition I made a portobello mushroom sandwich and then Kemper and I got ready to go the Globe to see Henry IV part II. I will say - the performance was great - but...HOW in the world is standing for three hours in the rain a pleasant experience? Especially when you can see your breath in the wind. Sheesh. My rain jacket did it's job - but I didn't. I forgot my gloves and to layer and to wear fuzzy socks. What good am I? I'll know next time I suppose. It's supposed to rain at Stonehenge.
Did I mention that we're going to Stonehenge this Friday as a group day trip? I'm pretty excited about that one as well. AND tomorrow night is my wine tasting adventure. I'm pretty excited. Haha. Merlin's pants! All I can say is that I'm excited! :) I think we're going to try to go to this interesting sounding restaurant with an eclectic menu called Stockpot. I'll let you know how that one goes as well.
Alright. Well - Shakespeare's ending this evening made me a little sad. I just finished my scone and just now managed to warm my feet up...so I'm going to go make some real hot chocolate with milk and write a letter to a special someone. I miss you guys. Can't wait till Mom and Dad get here - 8 DAYS!!!
Cheers.
Alrighty - well - Wednesdays oh Wednesdays. They are spossed to be the 'hump' days or what not. For me it's just the 'helter-skelter' day. And maybe I shouldn't complain because my schedule is pretty open, and in a sense I'm not complaining. I just had a very rushed lunch today and I like to enjoy my food. :)
Anywho. Let me fill you in on the day. I had to give my presentation on Mr. John Martin the British Artist today. I was nervous, to say the least, because Art History is not something I'm an expert in. Well...also this morning I decided to mix it up a bit and take the bus instead of the tube. Guess what? I think I've solved my traveling problems around the city - almost.
We (Mandi, Kemper, and I) left at about 8:30 for our 9:30 class because we had to meet at the Tate Britain Museum. Well, it was raining right then and there this morning - so luckily I had my very versatile trench/raincoat thing. We did a good job gramner - but I don't know if the coat will survive all the wear and tear - I wear it all the time.
So we got to the stop and we had to walk a minute to get to the Pimlico station which was actually our meeting place - no big deal. Barnaby was there with the rest of the class and we stopped at a tea shop and some people got some coffee, because we had to wait for the museum to open at ten. (Lots of waiting - huh?) We then finally went in and started up with the presentations. They were all ten minutes long and there are fourteen of us - so it was a bit of a trying class. It's hard to listen to lectures for about three straight hours - especially if you're like me and all you want to do is sleep.
Haha. Lately I've been having trouble falling asleep - but once I do - I'm out. Anywho - here is a link to the painting that I did. I want you guys to see it. I think it's beautiful. It's all about the sublime or industrialization or whatever. Who knows but the artist? I just had a reaction to it, perhaps an inspiration and so here you go for yourself: (You make the call) http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Martin_001.jpg.
After that we had to get back to the flat and then make lunch and then make it to Shakespeare before two. We got out of class about at 12:40. Well...that doesn't give you much time to get back and make lunch. I suppose you could grab lunch out - but it's expensive and plus - I had some money left from my stipend that I was saving to buy Hamlet this evening from the Globe. Ugh. So I ran to the flat basically and made a beigel cheese thing. I didn't have time for anything else - but I took a snack to Shakespeare.
Shakespeare is shakespeare. You simply do Shakespeare, I suppose. Anywho I asked Jean about my three page rough draft paper that's due next week and I think I'm good. I need to proofread of course, but I think it'll all be good. I'm hoping for an A in that class. Jean luckily let us out early and Kemper and I went to the library to print things. As in print out our boarding passes for this weekend. I'm going to Northern Ireland. I'm excited and nervous and forgetful - I need to remember to recharge my camera! :)
I'll be sure to take pictures. Anyways - after our library expedition I made a portobello mushroom sandwich and then Kemper and I got ready to go the Globe to see Henry IV part II. I will say - the performance was great - but...HOW in the world is standing for three hours in the rain a pleasant experience? Especially when you can see your breath in the wind. Sheesh. My rain jacket did it's job - but I didn't. I forgot my gloves and to layer and to wear fuzzy socks. What good am I? I'll know next time I suppose. It's supposed to rain at Stonehenge.
Did I mention that we're going to Stonehenge this Friday as a group day trip? I'm pretty excited about that one as well. AND tomorrow night is my wine tasting adventure. I'm pretty excited. Haha. Merlin's pants! All I can say is that I'm excited! :) I think we're going to try to go to this interesting sounding restaurant with an eclectic menu called Stockpot. I'll let you know how that one goes as well.
Alright. Well - Shakespeare's ending this evening made me a little sad. I just finished my scone and just now managed to warm my feet up...so I'm going to go make some real hot chocolate with milk and write a letter to a special someone. I miss you guys. Can't wait till Mom and Dad get here - 8 DAYS!!!
Cheers.
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Official Parliament Tour
So. Today was not really that busy but at the same time it was OH SO BUSY! (Does that make any sense at all?) Meh. It does in my brain somewhere.
Let's see. Today I started off by getting up (on time thankfully - I stayed up late last night finishing Shakespeare) and I ate some lovely breakfast. Then I went out to get to class on time - it's Tuesday - so I had British Life and Culture.
This morning we were supposed to have a lecture on both the World Wars, and then we were to go off to explore the Imperial War Museum. However, the problem is that we also had a tour of parliament scheduled for this afternoon, and it was cutting our lunch break so short that lunch would be cease to exist.
So...we rearranged the schedule to meet at the war museum next week (so class won't start till ten YES) and then we had a discussion about a movie that we are supposed to watch this Thursday after our politics class. I don't remember the name of the movie we are going to watch but it has to do with the Royal Family and the rise of the New Labour party around 1997. It should be interesting.
In fact, the discussion made me all interested in the Royalty over here. Did you know that the royal family (to a certain extent) is on a list called 'the civil list' and therefore...the taxpayers support their lifestyles? Granted, the Queen for instance, is supposed to uphold her duties that she has a symbol of head of state and et cetera...but still. I do NOT think that would fly in the states.
Anywho - after class I made myself a grilled cheese sandwich and I had carrots with it. Carrots are healthy somewhat right? Sheesh. :) After that Kemper and I walked to Parliament to get there on time for our tour at 2:00. We didn't really know where we were going - I mean, we knew where Parliament and Big Ben were, but we didn't know exactly where we needed to meet Dr. King, who had our tickets. However, we figured it out and got ready to go on a really informative tour of parliament.
I took some pictures in Westminster Hall the oldest remaining part of Parliament that has survived from when King Edward (Edward the Confessor) had the original building (parliament used to be the cite of a Royal Palace) built in the 1090s. Just saying - that is really really old. It was a neat part of the building - but it was really really cold. Our tour guide, who was a nice lady - said to imagine how cold it was in January. I can't!! Must be FREEZING!!!
Anywho - I had an interesting time. We went through the area where the House of Lords and the House of Commons meet. If you didn't know, because I didn't, the House of Lords is an assembly made up of men who were born into a seat in the house of Parliament - or that's how it used to be. They used to have some five hundred of these 'hereditary' lords, some of them were even bishops and all that jazz - but now there are only 92 odd 'hereditary' ones. Apparently, according to Susie and our tour guide, the British people like tradition and so - they are having trouble with getting rid of things that may - well - be out of date so to speak.
The house of commons is made up of men and women who represent a certain percentage of the population. There are a bunch of those - I don't really remember the number she gave us. Anywho - the area where the Lords meet is so regal looking with gold and red everywhere and the place where the MPs meet is green and rather simple looking. Apparently the design is so simple because the Houses of Parliament suffered from bombings during World War II. In fact, Churchill made the people who were rebuilding it leave an archway in the building as it has a bit of damage from the bombings (needless to say it is now called the Churchill Arch.)
Anyway - that's a lot of perhaps boring information if you don't have the actual images in your head to go to. I was very impressed with the tour and the building itself. I was a little let down with the British's system of doing things. Let me explain - when there is a vote for something in the House of Commons there is a decision bell that they ring (it rings for eight minutes) to let the MPs decide if they want to vote yes or no. In stead of ballots or raising their hands, they literally have to divide into either the 'yes' or 'no' corridor.
Well, they then are marked down for how they voted - and that's put on public record. That's all great and sounds democratic. However, if they vote against their party - they get a nice little invitation from what are known as 'the whips.' Apparently these are people that note how MPs vote with the party guidelines and if they vote against something that a party advocates they then interrogate the MP about why they voted the way they did. Even the tour guide said herself, it's a form of party control. That had me a bit...well...apprehensive.
Anywho - The debates that go on either in the House of Lords or the House of Commons are open to the public, when Parliament is in session. I think Kemper and I are going to try to go watch one one day whilst we're here - seeing that the Parliament is usually in session from October until June. We're golden.
After our parliamentary tour Kemper and I walked about London on a search for comfortable shoes. We are going to Northern Ireland this weekend and I absolutely refused to let her go without any good shoes. So - we finally found some...after we went almost all the way to St. Paul's along the Thames and then through Covent Gardens and then through Soho. Soho - is a whole new world man. Just saying.
Anyway - we finally settled with a pair around seven. I came back to the flat and had a beer whilst Claire and I cooked chicken stir-fry. It was great. Really good food. (I was especially hungry for some reason - but I'm sure I'll have some cookies later. You know me.)
Tomorrow I have to give a presentation of my artist - "Mad Martin." I also have to go see a Shakespeare play - which I am rather excited about. It will be a long day - and it is almost promised to rain on us groundlings tomorrow evening during the course of the play. Thank goodness for the rain jacket. Miss you guys.
PS I GOT YOUR LETTER TODAY. Thanks so much for sending me snail mail. It makes my day when I get to hear from the people who truly care about me. Miss my little familial unit. :)
Cheers. (Enjoy the pictures!)
Let's see. Today I started off by getting up (on time thankfully - I stayed up late last night finishing Shakespeare) and I ate some lovely breakfast. Then I went out to get to class on time - it's Tuesday - so I had British Life and Culture.
This morning we were supposed to have a lecture on both the World Wars, and then we were to go off to explore the Imperial War Museum. However, the problem is that we also had a tour of parliament scheduled for this afternoon, and it was cutting our lunch break so short that lunch would be cease to exist.
So...we rearranged the schedule to meet at the war museum next week (so class won't start till ten YES) and then we had a discussion about a movie that we are supposed to watch this Thursday after our politics class. I don't remember the name of the movie we are going to watch but it has to do with the Royal Family and the rise of the New Labour party around 1997. It should be interesting.
In fact, the discussion made me all interested in the Royalty over here. Did you know that the royal family (to a certain extent) is on a list called 'the civil list' and therefore...the taxpayers support their lifestyles? Granted, the Queen for instance, is supposed to uphold her duties that she has a symbol of head of state and et cetera...but still. I do NOT think that would fly in the states.
Anywho - after class I made myself a grilled cheese sandwich and I had carrots with it. Carrots are healthy somewhat right? Sheesh. :) After that Kemper and I walked to Parliament to get there on time for our tour at 2:00. We didn't really know where we were going - I mean, we knew where Parliament and Big Ben were, but we didn't know exactly where we needed to meet Dr. King, who had our tickets. However, we figured it out and got ready to go on a really informative tour of parliament.
I took some pictures in Westminster Hall the oldest remaining part of Parliament that has survived from when King Edward (Edward the Confessor) had the original building (parliament used to be the cite of a Royal Palace) built in the 1090s. Just saying - that is really really old. It was a neat part of the building - but it was really really cold. Our tour guide, who was a nice lady - said to imagine how cold it was in January. I can't!! Must be FREEZING!!!
Anywho - I had an interesting time. We went through the area where the House of Lords and the House of Commons meet. If you didn't know, because I didn't, the House of Lords is an assembly made up of men who were born into a seat in the house of Parliament - or that's how it used to be. They used to have some five hundred of these 'hereditary' lords, some of them were even bishops and all that jazz - but now there are only 92 odd 'hereditary' ones. Apparently, according to Susie and our tour guide, the British people like tradition and so - they are having trouble with getting rid of things that may - well - be out of date so to speak.
The house of commons is made up of men and women who represent a certain percentage of the population. There are a bunch of those - I don't really remember the number she gave us. Anywho - the area where the Lords meet is so regal looking with gold and red everywhere and the place where the MPs meet is green and rather simple looking. Apparently the design is so simple because the Houses of Parliament suffered from bombings during World War II. In fact, Churchill made the people who were rebuilding it leave an archway in the building as it has a bit of damage from the bombings (needless to say it is now called the Churchill Arch.)
Anyway - that's a lot of perhaps boring information if you don't have the actual images in your head to go to. I was very impressed with the tour and the building itself. I was a little let down with the British's system of doing things. Let me explain - when there is a vote for something in the House of Commons there is a decision bell that they ring (it rings for eight minutes) to let the MPs decide if they want to vote yes or no. In stead of ballots or raising their hands, they literally have to divide into either the 'yes' or 'no' corridor.
Well, they then are marked down for how they voted - and that's put on public record. That's all great and sounds democratic. However, if they vote against their party - they get a nice little invitation from what are known as 'the whips.' Apparently these are people that note how MPs vote with the party guidelines and if they vote against something that a party advocates they then interrogate the MP about why they voted the way they did. Even the tour guide said herself, it's a form of party control. That had me a bit...well...apprehensive.
Anywho - The debates that go on either in the House of Lords or the House of Commons are open to the public, when Parliament is in session. I think Kemper and I are going to try to go watch one one day whilst we're here - seeing that the Parliament is usually in session from October until June. We're golden.
After our parliamentary tour Kemper and I walked about London on a search for comfortable shoes. We are going to Northern Ireland this weekend and I absolutely refused to let her go without any good shoes. So - we finally found some...after we went almost all the way to St. Paul's along the Thames and then through Covent Gardens and then through Soho. Soho - is a whole new world man. Just saying.
Anyway - we finally settled with a pair around seven. I came back to the flat and had a beer whilst Claire and I cooked chicken stir-fry. It was great. Really good food. (I was especially hungry for some reason - but I'm sure I'll have some cookies later. You know me.)
Tomorrow I have to give a presentation of my artist - "Mad Martin." I also have to go see a Shakespeare play - which I am rather excited about. It will be a long day - and it is almost promised to rain on us groundlings tomorrow evening during the course of the play. Thank goodness for the rain jacket. Miss you guys.
PS I GOT YOUR LETTER TODAY. Thanks so much for sending me snail mail. It makes my day when I get to hear from the people who truly care about me. Miss my little familial unit. :)
Cheers. (Enjoy the pictures!)
Monday, September 27, 2010
Learning to master the Library - Sort of?
Alright so today was a day full of scholarly learnings and lectures and such. At least, I think it was.
I woke up at eleven and made myself an egg and cheese beigel. Absolutely delicious! :) Then I went to Sainsburry's and made my weekly contribution and bought the laundry detergent. No worries - my flatmates and I can now resume with our laundry endeavors.
Then Kemper and I went to the...dun dun dun...LIBRARY! I'm telling you what that building has it out for me. No kidding. Today we made it into the building and past the weird turn-style things that aren't really turn-styles. It was all good. We went into the reading room on the fourth floor that has wi-fi. We started our projects.
I did research on my artist from Tate Britain Mr. John Martin. If you're interested in seeing my painting google, "The Day of His Wrath" and stare in amazement at the colours and size of the painting. You know, I didn't know this, but they called my artist, Mad Martin. Sheesh. Good job Becca pick the eccentric one. Of course.
Anywho I searched for a couple of books about him from the library and had the hardest time figuring out their coding system. Apparently (definitely not the dewey decimal system) the Senate House Library is one of the two libraries in the UK that uses the confusing classification system that they use. Sheesh. Anyway I eventually found my book and did my research. Then I wrote my rough draft for my Shakespeare paper which is due in a week and a half. No worries, no worries we're keeping up.
I know it sounds like I'm crazy early but I'm just trying to prepare for this weekend because I'll be gone in Northern Ireland the whole time. :)
Anywho so then Kemper and I went to the Union for a bit and tried to plan our trip to Scotland. We are having trouble booking a hostel...so we'll see if that works out. After that we went to her flat and I read the London Student (which is ULU's newspaper) and then we got ready to go listen to a free lecture. When we were walking back from St. Paul's yesterday we stopped in front of this building called Greshem College and we looked at their free lectures. Well they had one listed for today at six about the use of the media in the post-conflict Northern Ireland.
Well. We found the Museum of London (we walked of course) and we went to the lecture - it was given by a fulbright scholar, so a girl not much older than Kemper and I. We were a little disappointed in her presentation skills, but the question and answer section afterwards was well worth the visit to the lecture. People were definitely fired up about the issues she raised and I felt like a fly on the wall - so I just sat there and took it all in.
And I have this to say - I'll be really careful when I'm in Northern Ireland. I think 'post-conflict' is a misnomer. If 95% of the children are going to segregated schools - the conflict can't really be post. However, we're going to be safe, promise. Anyway I love learning about things and her presentation about the media's role in the 'post-conflict' era was interesting. She raised questions she didn't answer but hey man. I like to ponder. I should mention that she was from Cincinnati, so she was from the US. I felt that she wasn't prepared for the heated discussion following her scattered presentation.
Anywho. After that Kemper and I walked to our little cafe - Candid Cafe - that we found on Saturday. I ordered a mocha again and she ordered this lovely cherry cheesecake and shared a bit of it with me. It was heavenly and we definitely think that it was home-made. Anyway - we sat there on our sketchy comfy dorm like couch and worked through some of Shakespeare - Henry IV part II. This one isn't as hard to get through as the first Henry. I think I'm just getting back into the Shakespeare mode.
We stayed there for a while - till bout nine something, then we walked back in the weird rain. I was wearing my leather jacket so I was prepared. I wasn't warm or cold I was just right - although I was too lazy to take my hands out of my pockets. :)
Then - just a minute ago I made dinner - grilled cheese with carrots. A bit of a late dinner but I was a scholar today with our homework endeavors. I think I'll probably read a little more Shakespeare before bed. I'm feeling energetic.
Let's see - that's it no pictures for today. Although I'm now going to take this moment for a random PDA rant. Well, I guess it's not random it has a basis in the events of today. PDA as in personal display of affection, not your pocket pilot. Anywho, I've noticed that the people over here are very okay with being intimate in public. In the park in nice days couples are usually mounting each other and sticking their tongues down each other throats. I didn't know I was so uncomfortable with that but I guess I am.
I mean - most of these people look like they are in their late twenties and early thirties. What I want to know is - what else do they do? Why do they have all this free time to sit and 'snog' each other openly in parks and such and make me uncomfortable. Don't they have jobs - I mean London is not a cheap city. Sheesh! Get a room! (There was a couple making out in our cafe - we were not please. And thus the event aforementioned fueled this rant. The rant is now over.)
I miss you guys! Cheers!
I woke up at eleven and made myself an egg and cheese beigel. Absolutely delicious! :) Then I went to Sainsburry's and made my weekly contribution and bought the laundry detergent. No worries - my flatmates and I can now resume with our laundry endeavors.
Then Kemper and I went to the...dun dun dun...LIBRARY! I'm telling you what that building has it out for me. No kidding. Today we made it into the building and past the weird turn-style things that aren't really turn-styles. It was all good. We went into the reading room on the fourth floor that has wi-fi. We started our projects.
I did research on my artist from Tate Britain Mr. John Martin. If you're interested in seeing my painting google, "The Day of His Wrath" and stare in amazement at the colours and size of the painting. You know, I didn't know this, but they called my artist, Mad Martin. Sheesh. Good job Becca pick the eccentric one. Of course.
Anywho I searched for a couple of books about him from the library and had the hardest time figuring out their coding system. Apparently (definitely not the dewey decimal system) the Senate House Library is one of the two libraries in the UK that uses the confusing classification system that they use. Sheesh. Anyway I eventually found my book and did my research. Then I wrote my rough draft for my Shakespeare paper which is due in a week and a half. No worries, no worries we're keeping up.
I know it sounds like I'm crazy early but I'm just trying to prepare for this weekend because I'll be gone in Northern Ireland the whole time. :)
Anywho so then Kemper and I went to the Union for a bit and tried to plan our trip to Scotland. We are having trouble booking a hostel...so we'll see if that works out. After that we went to her flat and I read the London Student (which is ULU's newspaper) and then we got ready to go listen to a free lecture. When we were walking back from St. Paul's yesterday we stopped in front of this building called Greshem College and we looked at their free lectures. Well they had one listed for today at six about the use of the media in the post-conflict Northern Ireland.
Well. We found the Museum of London (we walked of course) and we went to the lecture - it was given by a fulbright scholar, so a girl not much older than Kemper and I. We were a little disappointed in her presentation skills, but the question and answer section afterwards was well worth the visit to the lecture. People were definitely fired up about the issues she raised and I felt like a fly on the wall - so I just sat there and took it all in.
And I have this to say - I'll be really careful when I'm in Northern Ireland. I think 'post-conflict' is a misnomer. If 95% of the children are going to segregated schools - the conflict can't really be post. However, we're going to be safe, promise. Anyway I love learning about things and her presentation about the media's role in the 'post-conflict' era was interesting. She raised questions she didn't answer but hey man. I like to ponder. I should mention that she was from Cincinnati, so she was from the US. I felt that she wasn't prepared for the heated discussion following her scattered presentation.
Anywho. After that Kemper and I walked to our little cafe - Candid Cafe - that we found on Saturday. I ordered a mocha again and she ordered this lovely cherry cheesecake and shared a bit of it with me. It was heavenly and we definitely think that it was home-made. Anyway - we sat there on our sketchy comfy dorm like couch and worked through some of Shakespeare - Henry IV part II. This one isn't as hard to get through as the first Henry. I think I'm just getting back into the Shakespeare mode.
We stayed there for a while - till bout nine something, then we walked back in the weird rain. I was wearing my leather jacket so I was prepared. I wasn't warm or cold I was just right - although I was too lazy to take my hands out of my pockets. :)
Then - just a minute ago I made dinner - grilled cheese with carrots. A bit of a late dinner but I was a scholar today with our homework endeavors. I think I'll probably read a little more Shakespeare before bed. I'm feeling energetic.
Let's see - that's it no pictures for today. Although I'm now going to take this moment for a random PDA rant. Well, I guess it's not random it has a basis in the events of today. PDA as in personal display of affection, not your pocket pilot. Anywho, I've noticed that the people over here are very okay with being intimate in public. In the park in nice days couples are usually mounting each other and sticking their tongues down each other throats. I didn't know I was so uncomfortable with that but I guess I am.
I mean - most of these people look like they are in their late twenties and early thirties. What I want to know is - what else do they do? Why do they have all this free time to sit and 'snog' each other openly in parks and such and make me uncomfortable. Don't they have jobs - I mean London is not a cheap city. Sheesh! Get a room! (There was a couple making out in our cafe - we were not please. And thus the event aforementioned fueled this rant. The rant is now over.)
I miss you guys! Cheers!
Sunday, September 26, 2010
From Brick Lane to St. Paul's Organ Recital
I really like music and a bargain. That's why it makes sense, in my mind, to combine a Brick Lane excursion day with a St. Paul's Organ Recital. I shall do my best to begin from the beginning.
Today I woke up around nine something and made a quick breakfast. I then went to Kemper's flat and we began our three mile journey to Brick Lane. Brick Lane, if you don't know, is supposed to be a famous street-market in London known for it's different, artistic items.
Brick Lane = major letdown. I can only say that I felt that I was definitely in the middle of a very sketchtastic area made up of eclectic garage sales. It was definitely uncomfortable after a while - although we did manage to find a couple of really neat covered parts of the market that had some neat vendors.
The best part of Brick Lane was the Beigel shop. I got the best lunch there. I ordered a fresh, hot, doughy, bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese. OH MAN. It was amazing, so I got a half dozen beigels to take home with me for later in the week. I am thinking that my breakfasts will be completely complete this week. I am pretty excited - so I guess that means that our three mile lap was not a total loss. :) Leave it to me to find the food place. (well it was hard to miss - there was a line stringing outside the door)
Anywho - we returned to the flat and took a quick break before we got ready to get to the tube. Let me backtrack - today the weather in London was MISERABLE. I know all I do on this blog besides talk in circles is complain about the weather. But, today, London's Mother Nature gave me something particular and reasonable to complain about. There was rain all day long. Kemper noted in the beginning (the beginning being back in the beginning of September) that the rain here has a weird consistency a bit like snow.
Well. She's right. When it rains here is spits at you weirdly as if it's puffy, like snow, but then it lands on your nose and freezes the remaining warmth on your face off. It's a bit depressing really. No wonder all the English poets and writers are all depressed. They don't have much sunshine over here although apparently I have been fortunate enough to be enjoying an Indian Summer - according to Jean.
So anyway - we got to the tube and we sped over to St. Paul's stop to be at the Cathedral on time for the four forty-five organ recital. I was so excited. The recitals and Sunday masses (actually anything worship related I believe) is free. So, we went and listened to this amazing organist play the organ in St. Paul's. We were sitting directly under the huge rotunda that can be seen from many places in London's skyline. It was amazing.
I was a little concerned at the beginning because I thought the organist was accidentally messing up the music - but the Cathedral is just so big when he plays too loudly it just sounds a little like feedback because there is so much room for the sound waves to resonate against each other. At least, that's my theory but I'm no physicist.
Anywho - It was great, great, amazing, and lovely. I don't think the words I am using to describe the performance are doing it justice. Maybe actually - I spend more time trying to describe my own emotions and reactions. That's a bit difficult as well. Oh well - just know it was amazing and the Cathedral is more beautiful than you can imagine. Even more beautiful than you can imagine and makes you feel like you're a part of something greater than anything else. I don't know if it's so much as a religious reaction or if I'm just full of awe at the building itself. Who knows.
After that we walked back in the rain. I'm glad I brought a raincoat that's a bit longer than a normal jacket. I was pretty much protected against the weird rain snow. I made it back safely and made a great dinner which consisted of a portobello mushroom sandwich and carrots to eat. Doesn't that sound healthy? Don't worry I've finished a whole pack of oreos today - so it's nice to pretend like I've been healthy. I would have gone running - but there's the rain and I think we walked a sufficient amount today. Haha - can you tell I am regretting haven eaten THAT many cookies?
Oh well. Comfort food.
Then I talked to everybody - Mom, Dad, Jess, Gramner and Johnny.
Just one complaint - HEY FAMILIAL UNIT - please get your computer fixed. I miss you guys a lot. :) I'm glad that we got to talk for a little bit though.
I have a day of homework planned tomorrow and I might go to an interesting sounding free lecture about the troubles in Northern Ireland. I happen to be going to Northern Ireland this coming weekend with Kemper.
Well I miss you guys. I took a couple of pictures at Brick Lane (they don't allow photography in St. Paul's - not sure I'd take a picture anyway - I was too busy experiencing it.)
Cheers.
Today I woke up around nine something and made a quick breakfast. I then went to Kemper's flat and we began our three mile journey to Brick Lane. Brick Lane, if you don't know, is supposed to be a famous street-market in London known for it's different, artistic items.
Brick Lane = major letdown. I can only say that I felt that I was definitely in the middle of a very sketchtastic area made up of eclectic garage sales. It was definitely uncomfortable after a while - although we did manage to find a couple of really neat covered parts of the market that had some neat vendors.
The best part of Brick Lane was the Beigel shop. I got the best lunch there. I ordered a fresh, hot, doughy, bagel with smoked salmon and cream cheese. OH MAN. It was amazing, so I got a half dozen beigels to take home with me for later in the week. I am thinking that my breakfasts will be completely complete this week. I am pretty excited - so I guess that means that our three mile lap was not a total loss. :) Leave it to me to find the food place. (well it was hard to miss - there was a line stringing outside the door)
Anywho - we returned to the flat and took a quick break before we got ready to get to the tube. Let me backtrack - today the weather in London was MISERABLE. I know all I do on this blog besides talk in circles is complain about the weather. But, today, London's Mother Nature gave me something particular and reasonable to complain about. There was rain all day long. Kemper noted in the beginning (the beginning being back in the beginning of September) that the rain here has a weird consistency a bit like snow.
Well. She's right. When it rains here is spits at you weirdly as if it's puffy, like snow, but then it lands on your nose and freezes the remaining warmth on your face off. It's a bit depressing really. No wonder all the English poets and writers are all depressed. They don't have much sunshine over here although apparently I have been fortunate enough to be enjoying an Indian Summer - according to Jean.
So anyway - we got to the tube and we sped over to St. Paul's stop to be at the Cathedral on time for the four forty-five organ recital. I was so excited. The recitals and Sunday masses (actually anything worship related I believe) is free. So, we went and listened to this amazing organist play the organ in St. Paul's. We were sitting directly under the huge rotunda that can be seen from many places in London's skyline. It was amazing.
I was a little concerned at the beginning because I thought the organist was accidentally messing up the music - but the Cathedral is just so big when he plays too loudly it just sounds a little like feedback because there is so much room for the sound waves to resonate against each other. At least, that's my theory but I'm no physicist.
Anywho - It was great, great, amazing, and lovely. I don't think the words I am using to describe the performance are doing it justice. Maybe actually - I spend more time trying to describe my own emotions and reactions. That's a bit difficult as well. Oh well - just know it was amazing and the Cathedral is more beautiful than you can imagine. Even more beautiful than you can imagine and makes you feel like you're a part of something greater than anything else. I don't know if it's so much as a religious reaction or if I'm just full of awe at the building itself. Who knows.
After that we walked back in the rain. I'm glad I brought a raincoat that's a bit longer than a normal jacket. I was pretty much protected against the weird rain snow. I made it back safely and made a great dinner which consisted of a portobello mushroom sandwich and carrots to eat. Doesn't that sound healthy? Don't worry I've finished a whole pack of oreos today - so it's nice to pretend like I've been healthy. I would have gone running - but there's the rain and I think we walked a sufficient amount today. Haha - can you tell I am regretting haven eaten THAT many cookies?
Oh well. Comfort food.
Then I talked to everybody - Mom, Dad, Jess, Gramner and Johnny.
Just one complaint - HEY FAMILIAL UNIT - please get your computer fixed. I miss you guys a lot. :) I'm glad that we got to talk for a little bit though.
I have a day of homework planned tomorrow and I might go to an interesting sounding free lecture about the troubles in Northern Ireland. I happen to be going to Northern Ireland this coming weekend with Kemper.
Well I miss you guys. I took a couple of pictures at Brick Lane (they don't allow photography in St. Paul's - not sure I'd take a picture anyway - I was too busy experiencing it.)
Cheers.
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