Bath: Day 26

Hello all. So, despite promising cool photos...I have none. I was planning on doing the Skyline walk, but I was feeling much worse today so I decided to save my energy, write my proposal early and get lots of rest. It's already going to be kind of icky traveling to France while I'm sick so I'd like to not make it any worse. But I did manage to steal some photos from someone that went on the walk to give you guys a bit of an idea of Bath.

Today was pretty typical. Lectures in Jane Austen and then for Sherlock Holmes we had a student presentation for an hour (I already did mine) and the second hour we watched "The Spider Woman"...again. She has had us watch two movies twice over so that we remember things if we choose to write on them for our final paper. But, goodness...it's tedious to watch those things more than once. I met with Dr. Brown briefly after just to verify my topic for my paper (she approved it yesterday) and today she said it wouldn't work. She basically was wanting me to have a topic for analysis that was completely contradictory when coupled with the message behind my "lost" chapter. So I was a tad bit frustrated and decided to scrap that idea because it'd be too much of a headache and start fresh. Hopefully she will understand THIS topic...

So tomorrow I leave for France. Our train is set to leave at 4:13 where we will get another train, the Heathrow Rail, which takes us straight to our terminal. Best part: no checked luggage. Hallelujah!

Glad the headache of trying to figure everything out with this trip is over- knock on wood. I actually am getting out of class 40 mins early so I can make that train. Otherwise the other trains would get us to Heathrow too late for our flight. I'm really only missing a movie which is no big deal to me.

I am not bringing my laptop this weekend, but I will bring something to journal in so I can just blog about it all when I get back. I'm sure I'll come back with some pretty photos and good stories. Not to mention, stronger muscles from walking. I'm going to try to keep in mind that I'm sick and should not be pushing it too much while I'm there, but there is a whole lot to see. Kind of ready to be coming home now though. It'd be nice if I could do this France trip and then be leaving to come home Tuesday of next week. Oh wells.

Sorry this is short- I want to go to bed! Yep, at 9:30 p.m.
xox

Bath: Day 25

So, I forgot to mention the other day that I tried a Turkish Delight. I had no clue what it was- all I knew was that the characters in Harry Potter really liked it and it was a sweet. So when I was in the store the other day, I saw them and decided, why not try one? They were, after all, 59 pence. I got home and was eager to open the bright purple package. What would it look like? Well, it basically looked like a big square of chocolate. So I'm thinking: Yep, that Ron Weasley sure has good taste in sweets- I'm game for this! Until I took a bite. BLUCK! WHAT WAS THAT RON WEASLEY THINKING?! DON'T THE ENGLISH HAVE TASTE BUDS?! I spat it out and threw it away. Inside the yummy-looking shell was some disgusting orange-flavored gelatin, goop. From now on I think I shall pass on English "sweets"...

http://www.retrotuckshopsweetsdirect.co.uk/images/sweetpics%20001.jpg
"Full of Eastern Promise"...of GARBAGE!

Anyhow...going with this theme of sweets. I have also had the (dis)pleasure of trying their "chocolate" here. Kit-Kats. Yeah, not so much. The chocolate here is way too rich for my tumalum.

Got my creative writing piece back today and got an A on it! Yay! I was pretty motivated with work today. Drafted out my entire final paper for Jane Austen and did my regular homework. Tomorrow's goal is to write my proposal for my final paper in Holmes and I can mostly breathe. Also got my flight dialed in for Paris today. It was surprisingly like half the cost of the chunnel. That option would require me to purchase a train ticket to Paddington, then to take the underground to St. Pancras and then hop on EuroStar to Paris. No thanks. Heathrow it is! I'm going to be an old pro at that airport (even though it is still a bit crazy to navigate).

Got my nomnoms today for lunch- La Baguette. LOVE the sandwiches. I really want to go back to Ristaurante Martini and Pret a Manger before I leave, plus I would like to try Sally Lunn's (famous for their buns- ha, but really.) and the Pump Room which is famous. I wrote out an entire list today of to-do's and want-to-do's. It's helpful.

I also did my presentation in Jane Austen today. It went well, despite the fact that my partner was a TOTAL boob. Idiot. He was responsible for basically nothing and he somehow managed to even screw that up! Some people...

Oh, and I think I am getting sick. Throat is super sore and raspy and tight feeling and I am constantly having to blow my nose. I hope not! And if I am...so long as I'm better by the flight home. I think it may just be allergy though since we don't have air circulation in the house and it gets stuffy and allergens stick around.

I should have some cool pics up tomorrow because we have the Bath Skyline walk right after my Sherlock Holmes class. The weather is supposed to be nice for it!

G'night all!

Bath: Day 24

The house of Ralph Allen, man who reformed the UK's postal system.










Becca, Sam, and I in front of the pond in Prior Park.

















Spectacular view of Bath.










So this is Prior Park, where we went for my Jane Austen class today. We were supposed to be examining the picturesque and such. I guess the bridge's architecture is actually of the French style, but the gardens in Prior Park are meant to be in harmony with nature. It was meant to break the strict confines of a traditional English garden: no box hedges or beds in trimmed rows.
It was stunning, but man that was a hike! We had to walk thirty minutes to get here and it was mostly all up hill in hot hot weather. Needless to say, it's not a comfort to do that and walk into a room without air conditioning. :( I'm a pampered American.

Did lots of work today, but it was a relief to get to watch a Sherlock Holmes film in class and to get some air circulation from a fan in the room. Had the best BLT sandwich I have ever enjoyed in my life from Cafe Retro today. The BLT at Honeyfield comes a close second, however.

Everything is a tad bit hectic over here: trying to finalize how we will be getting to Paris (it's a heck of a lot more expensive than what my roomie and I thought it would be...), writing final papers, and trying to cram in the last bits of what I want to do in Bath. So far the agenda calls for: see the Roman Baths (yes, I still need to), go INSIDE the Bath Abbey, have dinner at the Pump Room, eat at Sally Lunn's for the famous buns, and enjoy some choice restaurants some more.

I'm probably going to go out in a bit just for an hour or so with my friends to take a break from this work. It gets tedious!

Sending you all lots of love from England.
XO

Bath: Day 23

This is England's (specifically, Bristol's) sad attempt at Chicago's Bean. I still like ours better, humph.

Today was pretty relaxing. Was able to sleep in until 9 something, but it was not a great night's sleep to my dismay. It's been extremely hot and humid here lately and without A/C in the house...it's brutal. So sleeping while you are miserably hot is not really in the cards. Hopefully it's a bit better tonight.

Took advantage of the one and only free day I will have in these five weeks. Did some errands (goody shopping), caught the England game (that was messy- you could hear the shouts from all over the place), worked on homework and hungout with my housemates. I think everyone is getting a little burned out with work now, but we are only here for thirteen more days as of tomorrow. I basically only have one presentation (which I am giving tuesday) and my final papers for each class left. I'm not looking forward to the jetlag though! It will be hard to not sleep on the plane.

Wrote my missing chapter today to The Hounf of the Baskervilles and I am pretty pleased with it. Hey, I'm no Arthur Conan Doyle, but I did the best I could! I just don't see how my professor could actually give us a letter grade for CREATIVE writing...interesting, right?

So glad I didn't watch the game at the pub today- it would have not been a fun experience. They definitely get super angry.

As you can see nothing much happened today because it was a free day and I needed a break. Aside from the few hours I was out and about getting things I mostly just hung in the house and got things done in preparation for another start to a new school week. Tomorrow we will be going to Prior Park for my Jane Austen class which I have heard is quite beautiful. Yes, I will be bringing my camera along so you should see some pictures of that really soon.

Oh, and I can report happily that there were NO injuries incurred today! :)

Tootaloo!

Bath: Day 22

Welcome to Dartmoor! Home to a rather large prison that held American and French soldiers at one point and many breakouts (including Seldon, the criminal in Hound of the Baskervilles), the setting for Doyle's book, a few humans, and over 1,000 ponies. Those figures are pretty accurate ha-ha!

The first picture is an example of some of the semi-wild ponies found on the moor. The baby was so cute! Picture 2 is just to show you a little of what the Grimpen Mire looks like (it is the treacherous setting in the novel where many a person and animal has died in the sinking peat). Three is a photo of a Saxon cross that monks used to mark their paths to the different churches. Next is just a photo of Amanda and I on some of the natural rocks that came up from the Earth. The next three photos are just to give you more of an idea of what the moor looks like- not quite what I expected. No spectral dogs, fog, or creepy noises. We did find a rave going on in a small farmhouse in the middle of nowhere on the moor though. Kind of ruined the Sherlock Holmes mood we were in. And the last picture is th Sherlock Holmes class, Dr. Brown, and Sherlock Holmes himself.

We actually did a large chunk of hiking yet again today. Got lots more color on me as well and escaped all icky plants! But there were some huuuuge bees (Dad, you would not have enjoyed that bit very much) and weird big bugs I've never seen before. But not much is really out on the moor. There was plenty more vegetation than I thought and there are the occasional ruins of things, crosses left over, and some of the huts still from Saxon tribes I believe. We went out on Fox Tor (which is what the Grimpen Mire is now called) and the Black Tor. Those pathways get extremely narrow and navigating that while also trying to avoid the nice little (or not so little) presents the sheep, cattle, and wild ponies left us was a tad bit tricky. Also, there was extreme changes in the grade of the land so you really had to be careful. Not to mention the gobs of stones and masses of hard grasses that could easily trip you up.

It was really a neat hike though because our guide basically walked us through the story of the Hound of the Baskervilles since it was set there. Interesting fact: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle definitely let his imagination run wild with the story. The "mansion" that the main character lives in is nothing more than a farm house. But it was cool to think we were sort of walking in the literary footsteps of Holmes and Watson. We saw where the "hound" was kept, the reminents of the mines, the house where the Baskervilles lived in, Seldon's house, where Franklin had his observing telescope, etc. Our guide even told us folk lore about "Vixanna," who is kind of like a Siren figure. It's said that she lures men away (with her dancing and appearance) from their groups on the moor, promising to take them on a short-cut out of the fog and into safety. She then leads the men straight into the bogs where they are trapped, drowns them, and then devours them. Lovely, right? Good thing I'm not a guy!

After about three hours of moor exploration we headed to Widecomb on the Moor, another small town, to eat our sack lunches, enjoy the gorgeous weather, grab tea or ice cream or whatever and kind of veg out before we headed back. Got back around 6 pm and was exhausted from all the sun, fresh air, and walking. It was invigorating to say the least. Now just working on my creative chapter for The Hound of the Baskervilles!

Bath: Day 21

Photo 1: Buckfast Abbey
Photo 2: Cute otters :)
Photo 3: Girls and I melting in the butterfly sanctuary
Photo 4: A pretty butterfly! That's for you, Mom!
Photo 5: Holy Trinity Church ruins
Photo 6: Old graves
Photo 7: Sherlock Holmes class


This is a day late because I decided to be smart and not put my laptop in my overnight bag to save my shoulder, so here goes!

We had quite the busy day yesterday. First, we went to Buckfastleigh, a town that is extraordinarily tiny. The initial stop was for the ruins of the Holy Trinity Church where we had to climb 195 stairs to get to it. It actually wasn't as bad as it sounds- there was a "wishing stone" and a "nookie bench"...the English are very odd. Anyhow, so the ruins were awesome. The oldest grave we found dated back to 1790! In fact, Doyle's inspiration for the evil character, Hugo, in The Hound of the Baskervilles is buried here (we saw the tomb). So, being the total outdoor, rough-it, kind of girl that I am...I managed to stumble into some bad plants whilst trying to capture a very picturesque view of Buckfact Abbey from the top of the hill. Needless to say...my legs became red and it itched and burned for a little while. I should really not be allowed to be outside for more than ten minutes- for the safety of myself and others.

From the ruins we got some free time to explore the "town". My whole class grabbed some lunch and ate in the park and then headed to the butterfly and otter sanctuary because there was nothing else to do there. The butterfly sancturary was, of course, a zillion degrees so I did not stay in there too terribly long, but they were gorgeous and the turtles were so cute! And the otters had SUCH funny personalities. I named one of the otters Nigel (the one standing up). We also saw a steam engine that actually still runs which was pretty neat.

Afterward, we went to Buckfast Abbey that is still the home to monks and nuns. It was absolutely stunning, but there was a most unpleasant woman working inside the church. I totally forgot flash was on and I went to take a photo inside the church and it went off. She started yelling at me and then made a point of complaining loudly to her co-worker that "I cannot believe people would not know better!" even after I told her I was sorry and did not realize it was on. So, my temper wasn't very good at that point and I decided to say perhaps they should display signs exhibiting "No Flash" so that they would not have to exhuast themselves telling many people not to use it. Awful woman. But it didn't ruin the experience. The stainless glass and the chandelier were magnificent. The true wonder of the abbey was how it was constructed. The original abbey was burned down and then four monks (only one was a mason) rebuilt it by hand over 32 years. Amazing.

The girls and I and Jonathon, our academic advisor who is really cool, went out to the pubs later on to hang out and just play som pool and chit chat. It was a good time, minus the fact I got glass in my hand...(yes, it was a bad day for my body) While I was talking I threw my right hand down on the table where I did not realize small pieces of shattered glass was and got it stuck in my hand which caused me to bleed for a little while. It was bad luck. THEN Sam, Rebecca, Amanda, and I all got lost trying to figure out our way back to the hostel and there were these creepy cats following us. It went along with the Dartmoor theme.

Unfortunately, the hostel was FULL of little kids at a camp there so we heard little feet running about and it was SO hot and humid that sleep was not really an option. But it was still a cool day nonetheless.

Bath: Day 20

Today we ventured to Bristol, Bath's "ugly" cousin. While Bath was built as a leisure city, Bristol was meant for business. The slave trade was prominent there as well as a station for the militia. It was also a harbor for the trading of goods so many sailors lived here. It was actually a very dirty place to live. It's much better today, but you can really see a marked difference between Bath and Bristol and there is a major difference in socio-economic levels between the two cities.

The first picture is just to get an idea of what the streets look like. The second picture is just me on the docks (yes, it was very windy here). Third is just the water and all the boats- it's still very active. The next picture is St. Mary Redcliffe's Church- very Gothic architecture. The last photo is of the incredible ceiling inside the church.

We did so much walking around Bristol today. My Jane Austen class hopped on a train around quarter to ten and we didn't come back until 1:15. (Oh, there were these weird people at the train station handing out these mini-Coca Colas...like nobody has ever had a Coke before...weird??) So I really did not have much of a break before Sherlock Holmes- just grabbed a sandwich at Cafe Retro, which was great of course. Thankfully, we just watched two adaptations of "Spider Woman" and "The Hound of the Baskervilles" (Jeremy Brett version) in class so my feeties got a break.

For some reason I was just so tired today so after I worked on my presentation for Tuesday with my partner I went back to the house and slept soundly. I'm not quite sure how long I slept for...my roommate woke me up for dinner which really wasn't great because we don't have much in the house and we don't want to shop when we are all going to be out of town this weekend. We also had apple pie which was the only good part of the meal for Becca's 20th birthday. I decided to take the smart route tonight and not go out, stay in and do some work, pack up for Dartmoor tomorrow, and get plenty of sleep.

Sorry for the short blog! I promise to write you a novel for the next two. I will not be bringing my laptop with to Dartmoor because we will only be there one night so I will update the blog Saturday night. Night all!

Bath: Day 19

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pc65gRDFnes
Insight into where I live and the sights I see every day.

Today has been a gorgeous day. This weather has been absolutely perfect all week and it's supposed to continue. My skin is definitely getting some color to it!

Had my Sherlock Holmes presentation today where we led class discussion for an hour. It was a bit challenging at points to force people to speak or other times my professor would chime in and ask very difficult questions that nearly destroyed my brain, but it was good overall. We got an A on the presentation so I couldn't be happier (they don't do A+ here). Tomorrow I will have to meet with my Jane Austen class partner for another presentation due next week. Also got my grade back on my JA commentary: B+ which I will gladly take. In my opinion, it was an utterly useless passage. I can hardly believe I actually wrote 1,200 words on that. The general consensus was that it was not a very significant piece so it was difficult to write on. Everyone I talked to got a B or B+ so OK by me!

We watched some of the England game today as well, but didn't catch the USA game (I hear it was pretty awesome). I'm glad both teams won, but hey...USA clinched Group C :) WOOHOO!! I'm still cheering for our team despite my location! Every pub was jam packed here. Seriously. Some places had TVs outside and you couldn't even move on the sidewalk because the crowds from the pub had spilled onto it.

After that, the girls and I decided to treat ourselves to a girls night in after the hard work this week. We made some tortellini with tomato/basil sauce, garlic bread, ceasar salad, and roast tomatoes with parmesan cheese on top. We did a darn good job. We also turned on a classic chick flick: Love Actually. One of my favorite movies. Did some reading after that movie break as well.
Oh, I also picked up a present for someone today and got a little something for me as well. Both are adorable.

Tomorrow we are going to Bristol for a day trip for class. It will be nice to check that out because it is a much more busy, commercial area. Should be an interesting contrast to life in Bath.

Till tomorrow...XOX

Bath: Day 18

So, you are probably wondering why I put this picture up for this blog entry. Be assured, it has a great purpose. It is proof that I actually used and navigated properly with a MAP in London. That's right, no GPS! I'm not saying we got to every place without any mistakes....but I used one! Hooray!

This whole week is supposed to be in the 70s and sunny so I've been getting some color! Well, when I can be outside. Did not get much of a chance to enjoy the pretty weather today- just about a half an hour because I had to go straight from my morning class to run a quick errand and grab lunch to head back to the main house, Nelson House, to do group work for the presentation tomorrow. We came up with good questions and insights- so I am pleased. Tomorrow I will make a point to enjoy the gorgeous weather more.

Today was kind of a slow day. Class was typical. Discussion in JA and in Sherlock one group presented today which took up the first hour and then we just watched an adaptation of Sherlock Holmes with Basil someone or another. By the time class got out and with all the work we've been having...nobody wanted to cook or grocery shop so we just ordered some pizza and watched Clueless for our JA class (It is the modern rendition of the novel Emma if you didn't know). Ever since then I have just been reading and trying to figure out details for the Paris trip July 1-4.

Once my presentation is over tomorrow I can have a small sigh of relief before I must concentrate on the next big project. Luckily, I came up with a pretty decent idea for our creative writing project due next monday. It only has to be 1-3 pages so I am sure I can manage that.

Goodnight all.

Bath: Day 17

Well hello there! Today has been a pretty normal day. The start of week 3 has begun with lots of work, but also some fun trips. We will be going to Bristol Thursday for Jane Austen and then to Dartmoor Friday-Saturday for Sherlock Holmes. In the mean time, I have lots to focus on.

It was extremely warm today so I got some more color! Always a plus. Class was pretty typical today. Lots of lecture and discussion. We are reading Emma in Jane Austen (the movie Clueless is a version of this novel) and The Hound of the Baskervilles in Sherlock. Decided to give myself a nice break in between class today and enjoy the sunshine a little bit. Emily and I read and ate lunch in our garden behind the house today. We also had a nice little visitor. We have this little orange cat that's always hanging around in our garden. We are all pretty sure it has an owner, despite having no identification, because it always wants to be pet. It kept coming by me- the person who really isn't that fond of cats. Go figure. So I decided to play with him a little and then he wouldn't leave me alone. But he is super cute and personable. I've never seen a cat so into people in my life. He kept rolling over for belly rubs and he didn't try to claw me or anything. He even let one of the girls pick him up so he is obviously socialized and not ferrel. I gave him a little tuna and some water. It was cute. Wherever I moved, he would move with me. He's like my little shadow. We let him in the house for a bit to see how he would react to judge if he really is a pet or not and he seemed pretty comfortable in the home so I am guessing he does belong to someone. But we named him Apricot because he is a really cute shade of orange.

Emily & I decided to try this Italian place I've been dying to try for dinner tonight. It's about 3 minutes from the house and it's an outdoor cafe. Everyone speaks Italian that works there so you know it's authentic. We had THE BEST garlic bread I have ever eaten and I had a great dish of penne bolognese. So glad we tried it.

Tonight just basically consisted of lots of homework and hanging out with my housemates. Nothing too fun, just very relaxed. Got my paper back in Jane Austen that I turned in last week: received an A- on it which is perfectly fine by me. Should it have been during the school year I would have been very aggitated, but since there was not as much time to dedicate...I was pretty pleased with it. That paper constitutes 20% of our grade, participation and in-class writings constitute another 30% of our grade and I have an A for that section. We have two papers left and my presentation weds. so I am sure I will be okay.

By the way, that picture is too demonstrate some of the ridiculous hats there. Okay, so Sam's really isn't even bad. But girls actually where the stupid thing I have on and hats like ten times as big as Sam's. Crazy English!

LOVE!

Bath: Day 16

Pictures: 1) Statues in front of the palace, 2) Big Ben, 3) Me in front of the theater, 4) Me in front of Parliament & Big Ben, 5) The Sherlock Holmes room, 6) In front of part of The Tower of London

So today was absolutely insane. I felt as though I were in a real life game of Mario Kart racing. We tried to cram in as much as possible with our last day. We went back to our new favorite pastisserie, http://www.patisserie-valerie.co.uk/, for an apple turnover to jump kick our day. That sugar was definitely needed and worked off quickly. Hopped back on the tour bus to get back to the Tower of London so we could see the Crown jewels.

Okay, so here's a little funny story. Along the route we have to pass by this attraction called the London Dungeon which is a display/ride/tour that covers England's darker history (i.e. Jack the Ripper) so there are gruesome characters outside. Well, we got stuck at the light right in front of this place. So we're waiting there and just our luck, we had just come down to sit in the bottom because we were turned into icicles up top from the wind. Two of the characters came over to the side of the bus and were banging on it and making scary faces, trying to freak people out. Well, out of nowhere comes this midget dressed in character, trying to scare us. All I could think of was Wayne in Wayne's World when he's trying to scare Garth with The Leprechaun impression. It gets better. He actually ran along side the bus when we started moving for quite a ways. I already get weirded out by midgets, but this was just ridiculous. Wish I had gotten a picture!

Man, was that ever a LONG bus journey. We knew it was all the way across the bridge, but we had no idea that the tour was going to be so long. Yet, it was smarter than getting in a cab and paying a huge amount- the bus was free because our passes were still good at that time. Finally, we made it (thanks to some green lights) to the tower. It was freezing this morning so standing in line outside, waiting to purchase a ticket was pretty brutal. Thank goodness for my wind-breaker (and the steaming hot cocoa I bought). Waiting in line did prove to be worth it, however.

We had this awesome tour guide who made all the history so interesting (as if it wasn't already) and he was so dramatic and funny that is was just appropriate for the location. We got to see where Anne Boleyn and Lady Jane Grey stayed before they were executed and we went into the church where many people are buried underneath in shallow graves such as Anne and Jane Seymour. One story he told us that was horrific, yet interesting was one duke's execution was botched. It took 5 swings of the axe to behead him. After his execution it was discovered that there was never a painting of him for that family lineage so his head was stitched back to his body so a painter could paint the portrait. Guess that was the ideal subject- he never moved a muscle. We also saw the rooms where people were tortured, the site where 1 king and 5 queens were beheaded publicly (in the middle of the grounds inside), etc. But the best part was the viewing of the Crown jewels.

You cannot even fathom the beauty, the ornate metalwork, the craftsmanship and patience that went into creating these dishes, spoons, everything. The gems were absolutely breathtaking- I have never seen jewels of that clarity, color, or size in person in my life. We saw everything for coronations, the crowns of many monarchs, scepters, royal trumpets, orbs, crests of the different royal lineages dating back to William the Conquerer (1066), etc. There are really no words to describe it. Unfortunately, we could not take pictures, but take my word for it. We also found out that all of those precious items are actually removed for coronations and used. How cool is that?
The gift shop was even ridiculous. There were items you could purchase from De Beers up to about 60,000 pounds.

After that we hopped back on the bus to go to Shakespeare's Globe Theater. By this time we were starving so we stopped off at this Italian restaurant where I had some awesome pizza and salad. We also tried Piccidilly Whip which is the ice cream Margaret Thatcher created while she was a chemist (prior to her Prime Minister days). It was so different from anything I have ever eaten. It was kind of like an ice cream mousse. You have to try it one day.

Back to the Globe...the outside is now all modern which is kind of sad, but what can you expect. They do still keep some tradition though. The theater is outside and it is still round, but it is obviously not the original structure. It was kind of a bummer because we were not allowed outside to check it out because a play was going on and we did not have a ticket. And they wouldn't let us out there after it let out because the crew would be setting up for the next show that night. We sort of caught some glimpses at it through a window though.

By this time we still had about 2 hours to kill so we headed off to Oxford Street....with MUCH difficulty. Apparently, London handles their cabs much differently from us. So when we got to the street again...Problem #1: It was deadsville. Honestly, like no cars or taxis. Finally one of the tour buses came and we got on, but were soon getting off. The driver would not let us ride it because our ticket had "expired" like 3 hours before. So we were back to the drawing board. We tried to hail a cab a couple times and that's not hard by any means...or so we thought. When Amanda stuck her arm out to hail the car, the driver just looked confused and then waved. He had nobody in his car or anything. So we asked an elderly couple what we were doing wrong. They told us to do the same thing we had already been doing and that was obviously NOT working. After waiting around for 20 more minutes the man alerted us to a cab that was luckily dropping someone off right there so we hopped in it. We must have looked so dumb because we were sprinting down to it. Not to mention hailing cabs the wrong way or something.

After that mishap we got to Oxford Street where we popped into some London stores that were super cute, but very crowded and crazy. We then got a cab (we did hail it!), went back to the hotel to retrieve our luggage and got to the train station. Once there we had some other ineteresting experiences. While trying to order food in this one place, this man was ranting and raving and causing all sorts of trouble because he didn't think his food was coming quick enough and that he was being mistreated. It was crazy.

The train ride was only about an hour and a half and we had this little English girl next to us who listened to our conversation quite intently for the entire way. She must not have been used to American accents, ha-ha!

Oh, interesting fact: there is some protest going on in London Square where one man has even been camping out there for 9 years protesting capitalism and war, etc. Crazy people are even there. We also saw a bunch of Middle Eastern people walking around dressed like sketchballs protesting the British government (that was on our lovely cab ride to the station- which was a cab ride from hell...the cabbie had no clue where he was going or anything).

Back to classes & reality tomorrow and the start of week 3! Crazy.
Hope you had a wonderful Father's Day, Dad! We can do a post-celebration when I get back! xox

Bath: Day 15

Yes, I finally posted up pictures of London! The top one is what it looks like. My friends Sam, Becca, Amanda, and I went to The Sherlock Holmes pub which was super cool. It was decorated with everything and anything related to Sherlock Holmes. Even the dishes were named after stores or characters. They also had a model room of Sherlock's room. SO COOL. Not to mention the best burger ever and some nice pinot griggio. The second photo is the London Bridge. Third: View of the city from the London Eye, Fourth: The London Eye, Fifth: Us in front of Big Ben and Parliament, Sixth: In front of the Buckingham Palace fountain, Seventh: Statue in front of the palace, Eigth: Us in front of the gates to the palace, Lastly: The change of guard- sooo cool to see this! We watched the whole thing and nudged our way up to the front after awhile so this was one of the better photos I could get. I did manage to record some of it too!

We went alllll over London today- I can't even begin to recall all of what we saw today. We started off the day at Patisserie Valerie, a really awesome French bakery for an apple tart. YUM! We then caught the Original London Tour, a double-decker bus tour that allowed us to hop on and off it whenever we liked. So nice- especially because our bus passes for that (including the river tour) are good for up to 24 hours. We saw Parliament, Big Ben, the Tower of London (ran out of time for the inside tour- we will go tomorrow to see the Crown Jewels), London Bridge, went on the Eye, saw Hyde Park, Westminster Abbey, a zillion other monuments and cathedrals, Nelson's monument, etc. Trafalgar Square, went all about Piccidilly Circus, saw where Mozart first composed his symphony at age 8, the street where J.K. Rowling lives, where Prince Charles lives, where all the beheadings took place (where King Charles I was hanged).

The list goes on and on, believe me. I can't even comprehend it anymore. We covered so much ground. We literally went from one end of London to the other and into Westminster as well. It was all amazing and the architecture is so cool. History everywhere you look- really makes you realize how young a country we really are.

Oh, we also went to this cute little Italian bistro for lunch. It was nomnomnom for sure. I have realized why "English" food is so good. It ISNT English food! They just borrow all sorts of types of food from everywhere else and make it well. The true English food isn't actually to my liking- no pudding, bangers and mash, fish and chips, etc. for Giana. BLUCK. I have tried some of it and it just does not agree with me. I'll be perfectly happy with my fake English food, thanks.

Unfortunately, the weather was kind of typically English today. Freezing, windy, downporing rain and sun in spurts. Lovely for tours, right? Well hey, we still had an amazing time. OH! And before we got on the London Eye (Mom, you would have freaked out with how high we were) we had to do this 4 minute amp-up movie thingermabobber. It was a 4D experience, which I had no idea what that was before doing it. You have to wear these 3D glasses and it's like a typical 3D thing, but the added bonus is the attention to sensation. It was a short clip showing London from the sky- really neat. They actually had bubbles they blew, and misted water on you, and fake snowflakes, etc. going on in sync with what was happening with the movie. It was super cool.

I just can't believe how much we fit into one day! Tomorrow we are going to see the Crown Jewels, Shakespear's Globe Theater, and do a little shopping on Oxford Street and head back home to Bath. We already purchased our train tickets so that's a comfort. London has been a worthwhile adventure that I will remember!

Bath: Day 14

WE MADE IT TO LONDON!

Wow, I can't believe that two weeks has already come and gone!

Today we went to Stonehenge and Salisbury to see the cathedral, etc. My Dad warned me that Stonehenge was kind of lame and not worth the time, but the girls I was going to London with wanted to go so I couldn't bail on it and travel to London all by myself. So, I went.

...It's a pile of rocks with moss.

The highlight to my Stonehenge experience was the rabbit inside the circle of rocks. Not that you can get anywhere near them...but the rabbit can. I snapped some pictures of it anyway to prove I actually went. I guess it's cool to say I've seen it now, but really it isn't much to see. Between the hoards of asian beetles flying about, the ropes blocking you from going anywhere near the big stones, and the rude rush of people in a frenzy to take pictures...it was not a wonderful experience. However, we were only there for an hour so it wasn't that bad. An interesting tidbit of knowledge...this weekend is the Summer Solstice where all the Druid weirdos come out to do their pagan stuff there. We missed them by about a day! Drat.

After we traveled to Salisbury where we saw some really pretty churches. St. Thomas and Salisbury Cathedral are absolutely magnificent. One of the surviving copies of the Magna Carta is housed in the Cathedral and there are many important people buried there. Really some impressive history is housed there. It was weird to see tombstones as the floor of the church as well. I felt like anywhere I stepped would be dangerous for fear I'd be stepping on a grave stone. The architecture and the stained glass are breathtaking. I will be uploading those pictures tomorrow and post some up on the next blog. After we looked at all of this, we got to explore the town. Grabbed some lunch and we headed out to see all the little shops and the river. It was a very pretty day up until about 4.

Unfortunately, the bus driver was an hour and 15 minutes late in getting us back to Bath so the girls and I rushed our tushes off to get everything together, grab food and get to the train station. We got there with a half an hour to spare. The train ride went by super quickly as we were all excited to be going to London. The train was pretty nice- there were tv's for each seat, but you had to pay to use them. First class seating on the train is amazing! If I lived here, that's how I would travel for sure.

So after a 2 hour train ride into Paddington station, we hopped in a cab and got to the Dukes Hotel. It's very pretty and we are in prime location here. Very close to the Palace, Picidilly, the London Eye, etc. We weren't in the room very long, actually. We got here, dropped bags off, got changed and washed up and headed out. We wound up going to some club or another in Picidilly Square (which looks just like NY Times Square). It was a good time with the girls even if there were some mondo creeperinos. And they have these people stationed all over trying to get us to go to other clubs, handing out flyers for other clubs, wanting to escort us to other clubs. It got to the point where we'd either A. Flat out ignore them or B. Yell "NOT INTERESTED" in their face. We were at the one club for a couple hours, danced a bunch, and hung out and we were good to go.

We have to wake up early tomorrow to fit in everything we want to do so I best go to sleeps to have energy! Love you all.

Bath: Day 13

Well, 'ello loves! I luckily found a phone booth! They don't really use them here anymore, but they do keep them around. I guess they like to watch American tourists like me take ridiculous photos in them and then laugh at us.

Man, this was a long (yet quick) week. I can't believe week 2 is coming to a close! Glad to have those two papers off my chest though. Hopefully I will do well on them!

Jane Austen wasn't bad today. Lectured a little and then we got to watch the BBC (Colin Firth) version of Pride and Prejudice. Which I adore. My professor has a very funny sense of humor- the English are actually super hilarious, not something I expected. He's crazy. He tried on a corset at the fashion museum and he was making fun of us girls today for liking Mr. Darcy. I know what you're thinking...and no. He is not.

Tried a new place for lunch today as well- Pret a manger was the name. Got a WONDERFUL prosciutto baguette and grapies. YUM! We just ate outside and people watched and listened to the music playing in the square. There is always music playing here and everyone is very talented so it's a nice way to relax in the middle of the day.

Then came time for Sherlock Holmes. That seemed kind of endless. After we wrote a paper for her she decided to be oh-so sweet and let us out 15 minutes early. Unfortunately, I have a group presentation next week. But I will just tackle as I usually do and do good work.

At least I got a nice rest in today. Went to Victoria Park with my friend and we read and enjoyed the sunshine and took a little nap out there. Also, had a very yummy dinner. Pesto angel hair pasta with chicken, garlic bread, and salad. Went out for a bit tonight to celebrate one of my housemate's 22nd birthdays and then packed up for London. We are first going to Stonehenge and Salisbury and then we will get to London later on. I will make sure to take tons of pictures! You can count on me!

XOXO

Bath: Day 12

Hola Familia!

I must thank the U.S. because you guys definitely sent us all your summer weather in exchange for the god awful English weather. Forecast says sun and about 70 until next thursday...woohoo! Making full use of that while we are in London this weekend!

Okay, so I should probably explain the image to the right, yes? Yes. So this is in the Fashion Museum in Bath. We went with my Jane Austen class to check out some of the Regency wear from the Jane Austen time period. I have NO idea how those women wore this kind of stuff. Not only could I not breathe in that dumb corset (it probably could have even gone tighter, but I would have been less a rib or two...), but that skirt is like a giant version of the cones they put on dogs. I seriously couldn't move an inch without knocking someone over that made the mistake of venturing in my circumference. Imagine balls where every woman and girl was wearing that hoop skirt under their dresses. How could you even get NEAR your dancing partner?! Maybe that was the idea? Tricky..
Some of the other dresses we saw from the Victorian era were just plain ridiculous. One looked like a toaster. It jutted out like two feet on the sides in a rectangular fashion. The others had these awful bustles that made even the skinniest stick look like she had a badonk-a-donk. Baby got back, indeed.

There were also displays of "modern" fashion (I honestly believe, to be a fashion designer requires no eye for taste or practicality). And the coolest part was that were got to go in the Assembly Rooms. That is where all the dancing (sweating, fainting, dying, etc.) and gossiping took place. Even though these rooms are huge on any scale, these people would pack themselves in to be seen in society. The gossip-mongers would stand at the top on the balconies to look down and scope out who was dancing with who, who was talking with whom...yadda, yadda. Pre-Whisteria Lane. But oh my gosh, these rooms are stunning. The chandeliers still had places for actual candles, the crown molding and the attention to detail everywhere is just magnificent. I would brave the heat and exhaustion to dance there for sure.

After my adventure, I went to the train station to get our tickets for London. Had my Sherlock Holmes class (not much to report there), wrapped up my revisions for my Holmes paper due tomorrow, wrote and revised my Austen paper due tomorrow and I am now relaxing. Had biscotti gelato today- to die for.

Okay, it's time for some shut-eye.
Cheerio!

Bath: Day 11

Yep, we are goofballs. We were a little bored at Knightshayes waiting to leave so we decided to do some "yoga"...our rendition at least. We call it the disabled crane. One of the girls here can french braid really cutely though and so I was sporting my braid here. I like it!

Back on topic! Today I gave my presentation in my Jane Austen class. It went well for the most part. It was a little frustrating that we had to be one of the last groups to go so other groups before us started to cover our information and the professor was as well. By the time we got up there, we basically just were summarizing and offering as much new insight as we could that wasn't already mentioned. But, that wasn't our fault so we won't be penalized for it.

Tried a new place for lunch today. Every day after class I have to walk past the Bath Abbey and past these two very french, cute little lunch bistros that I always want to try. Well today Emily, Amanda and I tried the one. I got this one baguette and it was nommy! I will definitely go back there! Plus, it's conveniently on my way back home. After the break I headed down to my Sherlock Holmes class where we did some intense discussion. Sometimes I wonder if the professor is making things up because no way does an author sit there and think THAT much about symbolism or think that deeply about his work. And it always has to have some sexual or gender undertone to it. Whateverrr. Got my grade for my paper proposal in there: A-/B+ which I'm okay with. It's just the proposal and I knew it wasn't as organized as I wanted it to be so it's okay. Finished the draft of the paper for peer revision tomorrow and then I can do the final version.

THANKFULLY, tomorrow I get to sleep in! HALLELUJAH! Seems like that never happens. We will be going to the Fashion Musuem right near our house so since it's such a quick walk and we don't have to be there until 10:30...I'm taking full advantage of my Z's.

We had tacos and spanish rice tonight for dinner. It was tastey and actually pretty spicy! We also picked up some things for pasta and shrimp, etc. so we don't have to live off of frozen food- bluck!

Made my reservations for London today as well--it was a bit hectic trying to coordinate everything with three other people because money is always a factor, but we got it all handled (thanks to my Dad) and we will be staying close to Buckingham Palace, St. James Park, and the London Eye. We definitely want to see the changing of the guards, get on the Eye for awesome pictures, see the Bridge, the Tower, and Big Ben, maybe get to the Globe, Harrods, and Abbey Road. We will see how much time affords us since we will be arriving friday night and leaving mid-sunday. We will make the most of our quick trip! Already got a head start looking at places to stay for Paris which we will be booking this week. It will only be my roomie and I going so less of an issue to deal with. That will be the weekend of the 4th. Next weekend we go to Dartmoor for my Sherlock Holmes class. CREEEEPY!

Well, that's all for now folks. I sure am tired from all this work and finishing my draft so I am off to shower and go sleepies. Sorry to those in Illinois with all the rain, but England doesn't want it back :P

xox

Bath: Day 10

Pictures: Lyndsay and Jonathon (Lyndsay is our social coordinator and Jonathon is in charge of our academics) at the pub watching the game. The second is the entire group at The Lizard.

Well, hello again!

I can't believe I have been here for a week and a half already! Odd.

Today was sort of a typical day during the week here. Grabbed a blueberry muffin on the go for breakfast, had my Jane Austen lecture, hung out and ate lunch on my break, went to my Sherlock Holmes class where it was NOT typical...

My professor has her friend here who happens to have been a past professor of theater at Denison. So today we were discussing the difference between Doyle's book The Speckled Band with his screen adaptation of it and the importance of these differences. So, we did a little talking and then she made us act out the scenes and get into the characters to understand what was being done and the potential implications of it. It was a really nice change up to be a little creative to analyze a work instead of just sitting there talking, reading, and listening. I liked it a lot, though I'm not so sure I should quit school, move to California and try to act...

Then went to the grocery store, phone store, and did a little exploring with my roommate. We went to this cookie shop, Ben's Cookies, that everybody raves about here. I got a lemon cookie and it was fantastic. Not like a traditional one my mom makes, but it was nommy. Also did some scoping out of some of the little boutiques here. VERY adorable stuff. They have some things here that you can get at home: Gap, H&M, something that looks exactly like Abercrombie, etc. So if I am buying something, it better be an England-only brand. Makes it more unique.

For dinner tonight, the guys in the house grilled up some burgers and hotdogs, we had a ceasar salad, and some grapies. It was a super good dinner! But after that I've just been doing some work and caught a little of the Italy game. Lots to do this week that is school-related. Hoping to get to London this weekend if my affairs ever straighten themselves out. I really dislike having to plan things with lots of people, but it has to be done at some point or another.

OH, I do have news: I made it all the way home today by myself after class on my break. Nobody had to give me directions or help me and it is a far walk to get home. I weedled about without any issues. So, Dad...I don't want to hear anymore about me getting lost in a phone booth, mister.