Back logging...

On Monday (Feb 9th) we visited Hampton Court Palace with Sarah. It took us a couple of hours to get there by train. It was a particularly rainy, gloomy day, but it was an experience nonetheless. Hampton is one of the largest palaces in Europe.In its day it was practically a small city, that is for the few weeks it was in use every so often. The royal court- consisting of a few hundred people, and many more servants, cooks, butchers, etc.- would travel around to different palaces. The only reason they left is because the stench of all their waste was too much to handle. Then, after they left, there would be people cleaning the place for a few weeks. That's how much of a mess they made! The main hall was closed for restoration, which was crappy because it was one of the main things we came to see- the ACM curse of scaffolding strikes again!- and we didn't go see the expansive gardens because it was raining and cold. But the interior of the castle was lovely. We got to see Henry VIII's chambers, and the queen's chambers (I'm not quite sure which of the many queens it was actually made for...) There was a Henry VIII exhibit that was not particularly memorable, except for after we left the exhibit, there was a creepy recording of a little boy saying "Divorced, Beheaded, Died, Divorced, Beheaded, Survived" in a whisper. It was really creepy, but I don't think I will ever forget the fate of each of Henry VIII's wives.
On Tuesday we got a tour of the National Theatre. It was very interesting. There are three theatres in the building. The Olivier is the largest, and it is set up similar to an ancient Roman amphitheatre. The stage is semi-circular, set in the corner with audience set up around it. The really cool thing we learned about it though, is that there is a spot a little up stage of center where it was designed to match up with the angle of human peripheral vision, so the actor standing there can see every member of the audience. Awesome.
The Lyttleton is the middle sized stage, and it is one of the most comfortable spaces I think I have ever been in. It is a proscenium stage, and it is fairly large, but designed so that the seats are closer to the stage, so it feels intimate. Also, the seats have been rated the most comfortable theatre seats in London, which I would have to agree with. Part of our tour was going back stage, and we actually got to go on the Lyttleton stage! I was really surprised. At home, visitors are NEVER allowed on the stage for any reason. Plus, it was opening night for a new show, which usually means someone is frantically trying to finish something. So, yes, I have officially been on stage in London.
The Cottesloe is the smallest theatre in the building, and is usually used for newer and more experimental theatre. This is where Gethsemane was performed. It is a black box theatre, which means the stage and the seats are not permanent and can be rearranged in many different configurations. Which brings me to another astonishing fact about the National. They do multiple shows on each stage at any particular time, and there is only a 6 hour change over time between shows. That means that they only have 6 hours to change the entire set from one show to another! Holy crap! It was really nice to be able to learn more about the National. I think most of us feel like it has become a second home to us, we spend so much time there!
On Wednesday we went to the Banqueting House of Whitehall Palace. The Banqueting House is all that is left of the once expansive palace. The rest burned down in one of the many fires London is known for. The building was intentionally saved because of its architectural significance. It was designed by Inigo Jones and was used, not for banquets as the name would suggest, but for court masques (plays/ballets that the royalty could participate in.)It was the first building in London made in the Palladian style. If you don't know what Palladian is, look at any government building in the states. It was the original neoclassic, and now it is everywhere. The building itself is not incredibly awe inspiring. Then buildings around it are more grand and more ornate versions of the style. But to appreciate the building's genius, you have to think of it surrounded by brick Tudor buildings, the only white, classic building in all of London. I think the building today is like many places in London, in that you could walk right past it and not give it two glances, yet it has such a vivid history. Many things in the city are not clearly marked telling what they are or what the historical significance is.
Thursday, we trecked back to our second home to see The Pitmen Painters (the show in the Lyttleton theatre that was opening the night before, and whose set we stood on.) The play is a true story about a group of miners in Scotland (they used Scottish accents, it was difficult to understand some of what they said) who start taking an art appreciation class, and the teacher decides the best way for them to learn is to create the art themselves. It was an interesting show; it was art discussing what art is and should be. The characters of the miners were surprising. They were not stereotypical miners, but they were well educated, well dressed men who eventually become quite well known for their folkish art style depicting the lives of the mining community. There was an exhibition of the real Pitmen Painter's art work on display in the National Theatre, which was quite nice to be able to see after watching the show.
On Friday we went to Salisbury, which is where Stonehenge is. But that will have to be a post of its own. It was an interesting and fabulous day. Computer won't let me upload pictures again. Sorry. Maybe next time...

From a while back...

So, I know it's been a bit longer between posts than it should have been, but I will try to catch everyone up on the last two weeks or so. When I last left you, it was snowing and London had shut down. The next day, almost all of the snow had melted (though not on the foot bridge across the Thames, which was an adventure to cross!) That night we saw Gethsemane, by David Hare. The play was ok, not my favorite, but the coolest part was the set. When we first came into the theatre, the stage was bare, and the walls somewhat resembled drywall with blue light cast on them. But once the play began, large chunks of the walls began to move, and the whole set was rear projected with images of London in fast motion. Throughout the rest of the show, different parts of the set moved and different images were projected. All in all it was very neat.
The next night-- Wednesday for those who are keeping track-- we saw a production of Midsummer Night's Dream at the Novello performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company. I had never seen the show before, and I quite enjoyed it. It was an unusual interpretation of the play, and some people didn't like it. It was a lot darker and more modern than the traditional method of staging the show. The set was also intriguing. I was worried when we first came in because once again, the set was bare. All that was there was a large red moon, which was very cool, a glossy black floor, and the entire back wall of mirror. No huge moving set pieces this time, though the moon did move continuously, slowly across the top of the stage. Lights were shined from the back of the mirror at some points, which created the really neat effect of being able to see the light and the reflection in the mirror at the same time. The character of the fairy queen was hoisted up to the top of the proscenium on a crescent moon shaped hammock-type thing, where she spent most of the second act. I think I would have freaked out a little if I were her. The only bad thing about the experience was that we were up in the balcony, with some restricted views, and a group of restless high school students around us.
Something interesting we've noticed about the theatres here that is very different from theatres at home is that they allow food and drinks during the shows. During the interval (intermission) there are vendors selling ice cream! It was really strange, and gave the theatre more of a movie theatre feeling.
On Thursday we went to Westminster Abbey with Sarah. The building is magnificent from the outside, though obviously (at least obviously after class with Sarah) added on to in different times. The inside is breathtaking. I wish so much that we were allowed to take pictures inside. I understand why we weren't, of course, but I still REALLY wanted to take pictures. It was a very interesting experience. We walked into the side entrance of the Abbey, which is more or less a rough stone hallway, which quickly opens into the main part of the building. But as we walked along, we noticed that there were stone chunks on the ground that were a different color, and there was writing on them. Low and behold, we were walking over people's graves. We tried to walk around them, but soon realized that was impossible because of the sheer abundance of stones. It made me feel less awkward when I saw that scaffolding near an area that conservators were working on was sitting on top of someone's grave. We saw Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Lord Byron, and many other notable individuals. There was one point when we went into a chapel to note the architecture, and had to squeeze through 2 stone tombs to stand right in front of another, and I realized that we were completely surrounded by dead bodies. It was an interesting feeling. The newer section of the abbey built by Henry VII, which had a completely different feel from the rest of the building, was very open, and light, and detailed, and ornate, and absolutely gorgeous.
On Friday, we went to The National Gallery and The National Portrait Gallery, which are both free museums. Most of the museums are free here. The National Portrait Gallery had portraits of just about any notable person from England's history. Some of the paintings were fantastic, and even more so after Sarah helped decode some of their meanings. The National Gallery was fantastic, and I could have spent a long time there, but we had to hurry back to the flat for meetings. There were paintings by some incredible artists. There was Van Gogh, Degas, Rembrandt, Monet, Van Dyck, Botticelli, Seurat, Da Vinci, and so much more! It was fantastic! And the fact that it was free made it even better.
Well, that is enough for right now, more to come very soon. Sorry no pictures this time, the internet connection is being annoying.

Has it been a week already?!

      So, the first week has come and gone. It's hard to keep the days separate, they keep blending into one another. I am having a mostly fantastic time here. The weather has been pretty good on most days, though there have been some not so pleasant days as well, details to follow. 

On Wednesday we had our first class with Sarah. Those of you who have been on the program before know what that implies, but for the rest of you, I will explain. Sarah Cochraine is our London As A Visual Text professor. She is a pretty awesome lady. She is British, and when you think of the arhcitypal motherly British woman, Sarah is who you think of. She is also an incredibly fast walker, and as our class includes walking around London, stopping at points of interest, listening to her spout off a fountain of information from memory, then taking off in another direction, we all are learning that we will have to eat a bit extra on mornings before her class. She really is an incredible woman, and the amount of information she has stored in her brain is mind blowing. And if she doesn't know the answer to a question, she will look it up and get back to you. After her class there is an obvious difference in the class. Usually when we ride the tube together we are a bunch of boisterous American college students, but after her class, our section of the train is silent. It's really fun though, and even though we've almost lost people a few times, we are learning a ton! 

Wednesday night we saw our first play. It was Tom Stoppard's Every Good Boy Deserves Favour performed at the National. I realize most people have never heard of this play, or even its author, but last year Ripon did Stoppard's Arcadia, so we were pretty excited. The show was fantastic. There is an orchestra called for in the script, and it is a central part of the performance. The orchestra was fantastic, and the lights (though Jess thought they were too much) were really cool. Tonight we are going to see another show at the National called Gethsemane. I don't know if I'm as excited for this one. It is very political, and that part is a little confusing, but there are some hilarious parts as well. We have to read the plays before we see the shows, and we have been reading them out loud as a group. It's an entertaining way to do your homework. 

On Thursday we had class with Leslie (for our theatre class) and discussed the play from the night before. It was a good discussion and I enjoyed it. After class Cady, Katherine, Gwen, Nick Baker and I went to Kesington garden. Cady wanted to find the Peter Pan statue that's in the park, as she has a particular connection to the story. The park was huge, and it was a beautiful, sunny day. Almost everyone we saw had their dogs out, and I must have squealed a few dozen times because they were all so cute. The dogs were also incredibly well-behaved. Most were not on leashes, but none of them were barking or running away and jumping on passersby. I know for sure that my dog would have been so excited at everything going on that it would be impossible to keep him near. Once we made it to the Peter Pan statue, my camera died. But I was ok with that because right by the statue there was a pond with a bunch of ducks and geese and seagulls. The birds were so funny! They were a bunch of posers! I pulled out my camera and the grey geese nearest to me turned and stood up and faced the camera. There was another man there with a camera, and he walked up to one end of the railing, and all of the birds quickly swam over to him. He took some pictures, then walked to the other side of the railing, and the birds followed him! Some of the geese even stood up and expanded their wings, waiting for him to click the camera. It was very entertaining. Cady and I decided that we have to go back sometime when we have some bread that's going stale to feed them. 

On Thursday night George wanted to go to this bar he found, and he was really excited. So, George, Cady, Michelle (One of the 3 non-Ripon people) Gwen, and I hopped on a tube, got off, got on a bus, walked a little way, and discovered that this bar that George was so excited about was pretty much a dump. Downstairs they were playing rock music, but not rock music we were familiar with. So we went upstairs. There was an open room that was fairly dingy, and a few little groups of people standing around. The only saving grace of the whole place was that they were playing 50's music from actual records. A song came on that was so obviously a jitterbug, that Cady and I couldn't help ourselves. We threw our stuff at George and started dancing. It was fun, even though we were the only ones dancing. Soon after, we decided to head back home. Walk, bus, tube, home. Sleep.

Friday we had another class with Sarah. We went to the original London wall. It's huge, and has been around since the Romans were here. We also went to the  London Museum to learn more about early London. The last part of  class was a stop at Borough Market. This is a huge outdoor market, and it was PACKED! We didn't stay for very long because a group of us had to go to the British Library to get library cards so we could do research for our papers. Some people had gone the day before, and they warned us that it would take a while, and we probable wouldn't be able to get in to do any work that day. They were right. So, we got our cards and went back home. 

We had found out the day before that Eddie Izzard was going to be performing at the Apple store nearby (Apple is doing a series of performances there that are being recorded for itunes). The newspapers said that there were a number of free tickets available, so we got there around 7:30 (it started at 9:15) and we were pretty close to the front of the line, so we thought we had a chance of getting in. It was cold, but not unbearable, but by the time 9:30 rolled around, and nothing had happened, we got a little frustrated. They finally let in like 5 people, then nothing happened again for a while. Finally, Katherine went up to the guy at the door and asked what was going on. Of course he said he had no idea. Katherine asked if he knew if there were any tickets left, or if the show had already started, and the guy just said that he was outside and didn't know what was going on inside. So after hunting down several other people, someone finally told her that there were no more tickets. We were all more than a little annoyed. We had been standing outside for quite some time and obviously someone knew that there weren't any tickets, and just thought it wasn't important to tell the freezing people outside that they had no chance of getting in! After that, our group split up, some people were frustrated and just wanted to go home, but the rest of us, George, Nick, Cady, Katherine, Aubry (From Coe) and Myself decided to stay out. Nick had looked up a bar online that he thought would be fun. This time we only had to take a tube and walk down the road. However, it turns out that "Crowbar" is a biker bar, and a sketchy one at that. We walked in and promptly walked right back out. Luckily, Nick redeemed himself by remembering that Club41 was nearby. We wandered in the direction of the club and once in sight Cady said "It has a red rope! That's an improvement! Let's go!" There was a 5 pound covercharge, which is not bad if you don't drink. The others all had some drinks, and I think they felt it a little more in the pocket book. But it was a really nice club with a dancefloor downstairs. They played pretty good music, and the room was pretty full by about midnight. We were supposed to leave around then to catch the last tube, but everyone was having too much fun, so at about 12:30 we rushed out to find that the tube stations had closed. So a bus it was! Which was interesting. We started out going the wrong way, and once we figured out where we needed to go, it was like 20 minutes until our bus got there. George promised us that if we didn't get home by 1:45 he would make us breakfast in the morning. We had French toast. (ps syrup is crazy expensive here!) 

The next day Brian, Jacqie and I went to the library to do some research. Now, the British Library is kind of strange. First of all, it is huge! Second, it is the national library. It is a reference library, so you can't check books out. You have to have a call number when you go, so they know you're serious about doing research. You can't just show up and say "I think I will look at some books today." We reserved our books online the night before, which worked out well. If you don't reserve them beforehand it can take as little as half hour or as much as a few hours to get your book because they store some of them off site. You also have to sign up for a reading room, and if you don't reserve it before hand you  should be ready to wait an hour to get in. When you first get there, you have to leave your coat, any bags, pens, sharp objects, or food and drinks at the coat room. Anything you want to bring into the reading room has to go in a clear plastic bag they provide. You show your library card to the people sitting at the desk right inside the reading room, then pick a spot to sit. The seats are numbered and you have to give that number to the person at the issue desk before they will give you your reserved books. You then have to sit at that desk until you are done. We were there for about 3 hours until it was closing. Then I put all my stuff back in the plastic bag, urned in my books and headed for the door. The people behind the desk stopped me and snapped that they had to look in my bag. Ok, i thought and set my bag on the desk. They rifled though it, then asked me open my laptop. Come on! Am I going to smuggle out a page in my computer? So I struggled to get it out of the bag, opened it, to their satisfaction, and headed for the cloakroom. 

We realized shortly thereafter that 5:00 on Saturday at King's Cross station tube stop is not fun. The tube was packed, and then as we continued on our 20 min ride, people kept stuffing themselves inside. Mind you, almost no one got off. I was shoved in a corner, Brian was squished against the wall, and Jacqie was on the other side of the cabin. There was an older lady standing near her, and no one offered to give up their seat for her, even though there are clearly marked priority seating signs all over the train. Eventually we made it back to Earl's Court, and squeezed our way out of the train. One guy by the door wasn't moving and when we said excuse me and pushed past, he said "Geez, they could have said plaese!" Geez, you could have gotten out of our way instead of standing right in front of the door! 

Sunday passed in a blur, and I honestly can't remember what happened. I don't think it was anything exciting, except that it started to snow. Around midnight, George wanted to make a snow man, so now there's a pretty awesome snowman in our backyard. 

Yesterday was interesting. London got more snow than it has in almost 20 years! It was only about a foot, but it was enough to stop all of the busses running, and in the morning, most of the tubes were suspended. This was not good, as I still needed to do my river walk for our paper on the River Thames. After about an hour of figuring out what was running and how to get to the river, Cady and I set off. The streets were really slushy, and the sidewalks had not been cleared off. We took the tube to Picadilly Circus and asked a newspaper man which direction the river was in. He pointed down a road saying "It's straight that way." So that was the way we went. We walked past some neat snow covered statues and eventually found ourselves in St. James park, right next to Buckingham Palace. It was still snowing, that big fluffy snow. The park was full of kids who had school cancelled, as well as a bunch of adults, all playing in the snow. It was really fun to watch. There were some impressive snowmen. Some were probably 7 ft tall! Cady and I got cought in the crossfire of a few snowball fights. There was even a snowball fight on the balcony of the National Theatre. Eventually, we spotted the London Eye and figured that was the direction we should have been heading in (definaely not the direction we had been going.) We passed by Westminster abbey and continued towards the river. We crossed the Westminster bridge and continued down the river to Tower bridge. It was a long walk, and it turns out my winter boots are not slush proof, and my feet were quite wet. We stopped at a starbucks to warm up, then headed back to the London bridge to try to find the London Bridge tube station, which took about 15 minutes to find! There were still a lot of suspensions on the lines, and we had to take 3 different lines to get home. Then once we got back to Earl's Court, we walked down the road to the grocery store to stock up for the week. By the time we got home it was after 5:00 and we were pretty dead. We figured out how far we walked, and it was around 10 miles! I slept really well last night! Class was canceled today because of the snow, so the day has been dedicated to catching up on homework for the week, and seeing the play tonight. 

I hope everyone at home is doing well. I miss you all a lot, and I hope you enjoy my little insight into our lives over here in England. Sorry this was so long again, I'm going to try to write more frequently and hopefully my posts won't be so outrageously long. 

P.S. The crazy Turks have left!! No more rollerblading at all hours of the night, and no more freaking out any time our door buzzes! Woo!

Jan 27

Today we had our first actual class of the semester. So far, we haven't had to do anything before 10:00 am, which is pretty ok by me! The class was enjoyable once I got past being incredibly upset at the fact that we do not get stipends for food now. There have always been food stipends, and even our professors thought that we would have them up until yesterday! But it will be ok. I might not get to do field school this summer now though. But, on a happier note, we went to Tesco, one of the local food stores-- and the largest within walking distance of the flat. We got a few days worth of food for about 15 pounds each. Some things are quite inexpensive-- we got a dozen eggs for a pound, and a huge loaf of delicious fresh bread for under 2 pounds. I don't know how much meat is yet, as I haven't gotten any.

We've been pretty good at finding good deals on food. We went down the street to a pub called O'Neils and had an Irish stew with mutton, carrots, and potatoes, and two big slices of soda bread for under 4 pounds. Then for dinner, Cady and I went next door to Mark and Spencer's and found microwaveable pasta dishes that were fantastic and fairly filling. I had spinach and ricotta cannelloni, and a cup of chocolate mousse for dessert and it was under 3 pounds. It was pretty cool to be able to buy a filling meal with 2 coins (a 2 pound coin and a one pound coin.) And then I was able to do that again for breakfast this morning. I got a pain au chocolate (like a croissant with chocolate in the middle) and an apple pastry for about 2 pounds. The food has been pretty tasty, and incredibly fresh.

Cady and I decided to try to find the produce market today. Goron had pointed us in the direction the day before on our tour of the block, but we weren't quite sure which road he had pointed to. We never found it. But we know now that we just didn't go far enough down the road. Along the way, however, we had our first experience with catcalls by European men. It was funny. We just kept walking. 

A few of us decided to head to High Street again (while the stores were open-- see below.) We went to H&M and I got an awesome new hat! We came across a store called American Clothing or something like that, and even though the mannequins and the billboard outside looked kind of sketchy, we went in. It was absolutely HILARIOUS!! I really hope that is not how people think Americans dress. It was straight out of the 80s. I have never seen so much spandex in my life! There were silver leotards, and metallic purple skirts, and crazy leggings, and gold hotpants with matching bra-style top. WOW! Needless to say, we left the store without buying anything and laughing quite a bit. 

The highlight of the day, though, has to be when Cady and I made some new "friends." We were just sitting in our room, when someone opened the door and popped their head in, then left. we were kind of confused. Then a few minutes later, there was a knock at the door, and 3 unfamiliar boys were there. They had very unfamiliar accents, and were asking about how to make the internet work on their laptop. So we tried to explain it to them, but they weren't getting it, so they went up and got their computer, and came back down. By then we had figured out that they were from Turkey. Also, their computer was in Russian! So Cady tried to find the wireless connections and I tried to pull it up on my computer so we could play match the icons. Eventually it worked, and the boys went away. A little while later, after Cady and I made some eggs and toast for dinner, there was a buzz at the door. I opened it and, guess who, they were back! And with large bags of McDonalds in hand. They thrust it upon us, and would not let us refuse. We were grateful nonetheless. But then they wanted us to go out with them. See now, they were probably about 16, so we (the large group who had gathered in our room) found this incredibly funny! We eventually convinced them that we were busy and had homework, and got them to leave. And happily ate the food! 

Shortly after, Fabio, one of our house managers, came down and told us that he didn't want the boys to be in our part of the flat, because they "are naughty little boys who break things." We happily agreed. However, while we were reading the script for the show we're seeing tomorrow aloud, (Stoppard! Super excited!) the buzzer went off again... We sent Andy Peck out to try to get them to leave, which took quite a bit of talking. And now we're all a bit paranoid about running into them again. But they leave on Saturday, and then we won't have to worry about our little Turkish boy stalkers...

One thing that was a pretty big surprise, is that everything here closes by midnight. The pubs mostly close at 11. I thought that we would escape that when we left Ripon, but I guess London isn't a late night city. 

I think we almost have a grasp of the tube system now (the underground train system,) though I would not feel comfortable attempting going places on my own yet, which is ok because I don't really want to go places on my own! The tube is fairly straight forward. You enter the station and have to swipe your Oyster card (a pre-paid card that gives us unlimited access to the 2 zones nearest our flat.) Then, you follow the signs for the particular line you want, and there are signs all over the place showing where each line goes. Yesterday we decided to go to High Street Kensington, one of the shopping streets at around 9:30. Gwen wanted to see if H&M was still open. It wasn't. But getting there to find out that it wasn't open was a fun little adventure! The boys had gotten to the station before us and gotten on a train. The girls got a little confused. There is a station at High Street Kensington, and one at South Kensington, and we went to the wrong one. Luckily, there was a lady who was nice enough to point us in the right direction after hearing us muse about whether we were going the right way. So we got off, then got on another train going the opposite way, and eventually got to High Street Kensington to discover that the shops had closed.

So we decided to go to Piccadilly Circus for the second time that day just to wander around and see the area at night. It was interesting and pretty fun. We walked past a lot of shops and restaurants, then through china town (The Chinese New Years parades will be going on there soon, I'm pretty excited to see them!) We eventually came upon the west end, which is the theatre district. It was fun to see all of the billings outside the theatres. One theatre was showing Grease, and the performance must have just gotten done when we were going past. We saw some of the actors greeting fans at the back door, with their hair still tall and greased back. It was amusing. We also wandered into the gay area unknowingly. There was a man standing on the street who was trying to get us to go to a club, but we weren't interested. So he proceeded to tell us about the time he went to America and a random guy he met at the airport decided to bring him home as "a curiosity to show his friends." Some of the girls were really off put by him, as he was balding and didn't have many teeth, but I don't think he meant us any harm. He informed us that the area we were in had mostly gay bars, and to watch out for pickpocketers because they were prevalent in the area. 

We continued on our way, just walking without any real plan of where to go. As we came to an intersection near the river Thames, we got our first sight of The London Eye, the giant ferris wheel  in the middle of the city. So we continued to walk in its general direction, and low and behold, we ended up at trafallgars square and took some pictures of the fountain, then we noticed that we could see Westminster Abbey in the background, and went there! Then, we saw Big Ben to top it all off! It was pretty awesome to just happen upon these landmarks by accident. Then we decided to head back home, but we weren't ready to go back to the flat. We went to this pub that was celebrating Australia Day, something we had been looking forward to ever since we saw the sign in the window the day before. But it turned out to be not too exciting, so we went back to O'Neils to see what it was like at night. This is when we learned that pubs closed at 11, as it was now 11:15. We ended up going to Burger King and getting dessert. It was pretty dirty, and my chocolate shake was definitely white, and there was a British man who got very upset at the man behind the counter because the bathroom was closed after 10:00. He threatened to pee on the floor... It was an experience. But then it was time to head back to the flat and hit the hay. All in all, it was a pretty fantastic day.