Hi everyone!
http://myeuropeanjourneyapr.blogspot.com/
I've fallen a little behind on my updates, and with good excuse, considering I have been SOOOO busy! Ever since we got back from Prague, we've been enjoying London and the wonderful weather we've been having.
Once again our weeks are filled with multiple theatre visits. We saw The History Boys and Speed the Plow. Both were good performances, but Speed the Plow was by far the winner. Nothing can really compare to having Kevin Spacey and Jeff Goldbloom on the same stage while you are only sitting 20 rows back. Of course I took pictures when they bowed, got yelled at by the ushers (I thought they were going to have heart attacks!), but everyone in our program is used to me taking pictures in places I'm not supposed to even take my camera out of my purse. Now they say, "Annette, are you going to take pictures here?" My response is always, "Of course!" "Okay, good. I want to steal them from you later." There are just some moments that can't be remembered on an overpriced souvenir postcard from the gift shop of the attraction you just left. The only time I have failed in acquiring a picture is at the Tower of London Crowned Jewels exhibit. Let's be honest...the crown jewels are in a league of their own. I figured if I even touched the glass that there would be a swarm of beefeaters and security guards at my side in seconds. I had a near attempt, but panicked when I noticed that although I did not have my flash on, the yellow guide light still glowed, and the beam could have easily been detected in censors through the glass. So, I have more like a 1/3 of a picture of the crown jewels.
Two weekends ago we took a daytrip to Oxford University. I have to be honest, the prestige is a little overrated. But, I'm sure that if I was as intelligent as the people who go there, I would enjoy it much more. There is a saying that goes, "Oxford men think they rule the world and Cambridge men think they made it." We climbed to the very top of the Mary the Virgin church, where we could get a 360 degree view of all of Oxford. For those of you who don't know, I'm deathly afraid of heights, and as I'm leading 8 girls up a spiral staircase that I was sure would never end, I panicked a little. I should mention that the steps were suitable for a person with size 5 feet, and there were multiple ropes to use as handrails that also spiraled up the staircase. Not safe, and certainly not capable of being a thoroughfare of two lane traffic. One last amusing tidbit about Oxford--my roommate Katie has a friend who is studying there from Cornell University, and she says that Oxford is INTENSE. So intense, that when a window in her college was broken during one of the college's balls, they banned balls for students in that college for 200 years.
Last week a few of us went to the movie premiere of The Other Boleyn Girl. We figured it might be a more culturing experience than reading our History of London books and slowing falling into unconscious boredom. For those of you who don't know, The Other Boleyn Girl is about King Henry VIII and his second wife Anne Boleyn (mother of Elizabeth I), and her sister Mary Boleyn. Henry VIII had six wives. He created the Church of England in order to divorce his first wife Catharine of Aragon. It is all way too complicated to explain---but Henry VIII really liked women---and as the saying goes "Henry VIII had six wives and their fate was: Divorced, beheaded, died.; Divorced, beheaded, survived. At the premiere (which we got to 3 hours earlier than the arrival of any movie stars--but which also guaranteed us amazing seats!) we were interviewed by the Leicester Square TV program, and appropriately, when I was asked what Henry VIII character was like, the only thing I could say was "He really liked women." Although my response was not...eh...the best....did this man really think I was qualified enough to speak on the character of King Henry VIII? I like him in "The Tudors"? He had nice palaces? He was tyrannical and arrogant? (Lets be honest, offending the British in front of the British was not top on my list.) What I said was the only thing I felt knowledgeable about! If you'd like to watch our interview, this is the link: http://lsq.tv/red-carpet/videodirectlink-322.html It is definitely worth a look if you'd like to laugh---and see a little shout out to "Green Bay and Packer Country."
Also, there are some great pictures of Scarlett Johansson (Mary Boleyn), Natalie Portman(Anne Boleyn), Eric Bana (King Henry VIII), and Prince Charles and Camilla (you know, the actual royals) in my London, England the II album.
http://picasaweb.google.com/arolain21/LondonEnglandTheII
Last Monday we had a private tour of Parliament (aka Westminster Palace)....it was fascinating! This has been, by far, my favorite tour in London, and rightly so. Walking into a room where you can still see the signet ring marks on the table where Winston Churchill hit his fist time and time again is like walking into a history most people could only hope to see. Admiring the decadence of the Queen's Robing Room for the opening of Parliament can, for me, only be remembered with the secret door in the wall that led to the Queen's bathroom. Yes, she's human. And, discreet. In the Commons Lobby you can see where the German bomb hit in 1941, because Winston Churchill decided not to remove the black from the walls. You can rub the foot of either Winston Churchill or David Lloyd-George right outside the doors of the House of Commons. Traditionally, MPs rub the foot of the Prime Minister whose party they represented. So, as we walked into the House of Commons, most of us rubbed the foot of David Lloyd-George, the Labour Party PM. Then, almost instinctively, we all ran across the doorway and rubbed Winston Churchill's as well. Let me tell you, their shoes have become very shiny--and we were more than happy to contribute to that cause. We also saw the last remaining room of the original Westminster Palace before it burned down. The room dates back to 1098, and our guide assured us it was probably the oldest room we've ever been in, as it is over 1,000 years old. Well, I did the math (yay me), and the room is only 910 years old. He was new, so I'll cut him some slack. We have been in older rooms, but this one was pretty cool considering it was where Henry VIII used to play tennis. They actually found Tudor tennis balls in the rafters in the 1920s. Apparently he wasn't too great at tennis because those ceilings were vaulted x 10! I have officially fallen in love with Big Ben. He has become my favorite attribute of London...and he's always on time (Ha, sorry. I had to.)
Of course, no week is complete without Wednesday night at Imperial College Union! We are taking advantage of this as much as we can considering that Imperial goes on break from March 19th to April 26th, and therefore we only have a few more weeks to spend with our friends from Imperial.
This past weekend I went to Scotland with Katherine. We went to Edinburgh, Loch Ness, Glen Coe, and the beautiful (and rainy!) Highlands. Scotland is amazing, and it was only appropriate that it was cold and rainy the entire time! Our tour of the Highlands, all the way up to Loch Ness and back to Edinburgh, was gorgeous! We encountered waterfalls, dams, lochs, castles, snow capped mountains, a few highland cows and many sheep! Oh, and we even ate haggis....and enjoyed it. If you don't know what it is, you probably don't want to know. Sunday morning in Edinburgh we climbed the extinct volcano called Arthur's Seat. It overlooks all of Edinburgh from Edinburgh Castle to Holyrood Palace and you can even see the coast of Edinburgh and Aberdeen where they meet the ocean. Since it was FINALLY sunny, the view was perfect, and it got us a little exercise before our 9 hour bus ride back to London.
http://picasaweb.google.com/arolain21/EdinburghTheHighlandsGlenCoeAndLochNessScotland
Once again, as I had suspected, I looked forward to going back to London so much! Scotland air is clean, but London air is perfect. I fall in love with the city a little more each day, and get sadder and sadder at the thought of leaving it so quickly. I've rarely thought about school, though I attend all my classes each week. I enjoy going to class, and there is something to be said about learning about the city in which you live, and then experiencing it the second you walk out the door. I don't think any normal amount of vacation time could even begin to scratch the surface of this city. There is so much to do, see, and experience, that I'm afraid I won't even be able to do it all. I have to say, before I even leave London, I am already trying to figure out when I can come back.
Spring Break starts on Thursday, and I am off with a few friends to Italy (and by a few I mean that about 20 people are going, but we are traveling in groups of four and meeting up at night.) We are spending 4 days in Rome (I am taking a day trip by myself to the island of Capri and the Blue Grotto from Rome), 3 days in Florence, and 2 in Venice. I have to say that I am extremely excited for this trip (and that I wish Laura Bergstrom was coming with me :-( )...especially to see the history of the world before there really was a world anywhere else.
Katherine and I have booked a trip to Greece for the end of the semester---April 25th to 30th. We are spending 3 days in Athens and 3 in Santorini. Please let me know if any of you are interested in joining!!
I'm sure you all have heard about the earthquake here last night. We are all fine. We actually didn't even feel it.
My thoughts are with all of my family today, especially Grandpa. Auntie Joanie was so energetic and fun! I will always think of her fondly. I love you all and miss you.
I hope this email finds everyone happy, healthy, and warm.
Much love,
Annette
http://picasaweb.google.com/arolain21
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