The World in Britain

Things have been so busy over here that its been challenging to fit in the time to write a blog!  About a month ago now, we went on a fabulous seminar trip to Stonehenge, Bath and Bristol, which you’ve heard about from everyone else, so I’ll just say that it was really a great experience.  We learned a lot of interesting things and had a lot of fun too!

The weekend after the seminar trip, my roommate and I jetted off to Paris to visit our friend Lucy, who is studying there.  It was also a cool trip.  We did all the touristy things like the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre and Notre Dame.  It was a short trip, but it was fun, especially since we were visiting Lucy and because I’d never been there before.  I came back on Monday night exhausted, but really proud of myself that I had gone on a trip that I had planned completely by myself.  I feel so grown up and independent;)

When I got back from Paris, I immediately started work on my seminar paper, which is the big paper that we’re all writing for World in Britain.  I really enjoyed my topic, the danger that Mary, Queen of Scots posed to Queen Elizabeth.  I also thought that my paper advisor, Mrs Joan Dils, was great; she was very helpful and encouraging.  I worked hard on my paper after my return from Paris and finished a week early, which made me the envy of the group;)  The seminar papers were due this afternoon, and they’ve kept us all busy.

Now that the big papers are done, we’re able to focus on classwork for our university classes as well as the exciting things that are happening at the end of this week.  At 153, we’re having a big Thanksgiving dinner.  We just went out today on an epic hunt for a turkey.  Everyone in the house is making at least one dish, and a couple guests are coming over.  Our friend Lucy from RMWC is coming via the Eurostar from Paris to join us for Thanksgiving and Ring Night.  Ring Night is Friday night, so we’re in for a pretty full weekend.  We spent all of last weekend out shopping for accessories and getting our hair cut in preparation for Ring Night on Friday. We’re all going by taxi to a local hotel and there we’ll have a fancy dinner.  After dinner, we’ll get our much anticipated RMWC rings and then we’re having a party at the hotel to celebrate.  Everyone is so excited about this weekend, there’s so much energy on Whiteknights Road since our papers are in and Thanksgiving and Ring Night are coming up!

We’ll all keep you updated about the weekend!

“Seminar trips are required, and they are delightful!” - Dr. Randolph Ivy

Boy oh Boy was that man right! Our first seminar trip was absolutely fantastic! We left Friday, October 31st at an ungodly hour of the morning to go to Stonehenge. It was extremely cold and wickedly windy, but the sight was amazing. In the areas surrounding the massive stones were burial mounds from PREHISTORIC times. :-0!! The stones were not as massive as they appear in pictures, but 1/3 of their size is below ground. They were extremely thick and heavy looking, and were still incredibly large. The fact that they are 5000 years old, and have survived that long is very awe-inspiring. The audio guides we had were pretty awesome and gave a lot of the myths circulating about how they got from Wales to Salisbury. Personally, I think Merlin did it!

From Stonehenge, we went to the Montacute house, which was a stunning house located in a very charming and windy little sleepy town. I personally wished we could have explored the cute town more - until I laid eyes on the gorgeous old manor! The yards surrounding the house is where a scene from Sense and Sensibility was filmed! It was so awesome! There were creepy little secret doors and passageways everywhere, and amazing paneling throughout the house! The yards were definitely the most beautiful part.

After Montacute house, were were on our way to Wells, where we were able to visit our first Cathedral! Wells Cathedral was utterly impressive in every regard! It was incredibly massive, and detailed with the utmost care and extravagance! It was amazing! I am pretty sure I took about 7000 photos of the cathedral alone! The nave was completely gorgeous - as Professor McHardy kept stressing. After we saw the Cathedral, we were able to explore for a little bit. Joanna and I found a MOAT. A real live moat. Amazing! The city of Wells is very tiny, and much more like a town - but it is a city because of Wells Cathedral. I bought some delicious Bailey’s White chocolate fudge on the way to the bus!

After leaving Wells, we went to Bristol - where our Youth Hostel was located right on the water front. It was a really nice hostel, and luckily we were all able to room together. It was freezing cold in Bristol because we were right on the water, but it was a lovely city! Across the bridge was tons of clubs and restaurants with glass windows overlooking the water. Joanna, Curran, and I went out to dinner at the most amazing Spanish tapas place - El Puerto. It was really delicious. Afterwards we went to Shakespeare’s pub and then finally made our way across the water to meet other Readingites at The Pitcher and Piano! It was an awesome environment - but I did not stay out past midnight. We had a really early morning the next day!

The next day we were off to BATH! THE HIGHLIGHT OF THE TRIP! We saw the Roman Baths, and it was completely mind-blowing! Afterwards, we were free to go where we so wanted for about 6 hours. Joanna, Victoria, and I went and explored the Abbey of Bath, Milsom street (where Jane Austen’s characters often shopped), the fashion district, Jane Austen’s HOUSE, royal crescent, a fashion museum, a Georgian house museum, Circus Square, and Gay Street. After the long day of excitement exploring the city where Jane Austen and Charles Dickens frequented, we made our way back towards the Abbey and Roman Baths and found the oldest building in Bath still standing: Sally Lunns. Sally Luns is a bakery and tea room that was built in the 1300s. During the 1500s, Sally Lunn came from France to Bath, and began working at the bakery, where she became famous for her buns! We all tried Sally Lunn’s famous bun - and they were completely delicious! I had mine with clotted cream and homemade Strawberry jam and hot tea. Victoria had hers with homemade Cinnamon Butter, and Joanna had hers in Sandwich form with Brie and Cranberries. They were amazing! It was a sad time when we realized it was time to leave the magical city of Bath - but we were on our way back to Bristol for more nightlife!

Bristol’s nightlife is really awesome, and there are several different clubs - all featuring different types of music. Victoria, Katt, and I were able to go out to dinner at a place called Flavorz. It was amazing! It was a chinese, thai, mexican, and italian buffet style restaurant with a chocolate fountain for desert! Definitely made my night!

The next morning, we were able to explore Bristol by daylight (finally) until 1:30. Joanna, Stevie, and I went to mass at Bristol Cathedral, and it was a very spiritual experience. The choir was really amazing, and actually gave me the chills. The sound capacity in a Cathedral is very moving. The stained glass windows allowed light of every color to dance across the old stone floors and walls as the sermon was chanted. It was very cool! Afterwards, Joanna and I walked up the road and found several American novelty stores: including a Confederacy clothing store, and a Boston Tea room - named after the Boston Tea Party. We made our way to Red Lodge, which is one of the older buildings still standing in Bristol - and was once a girl’s reform school. One room is a completely untouched Elizabethan Oak room! Very cool! Afterwards, we went to Christmas lane and went down the Christmas steps to see the Governor’s house (which looked like something from a Dutch fairytale!) and the War Memorial. The war memorial was in honor of all the foreigners who fought for England in the World Wars. It was small but effective. After paying our respects to those who died in battle, we explored many tiny side streets with interesting old buildings until we found a Chinese Buffet called Cathay’s Rendezvouse in what looked like the Moulin Rouge on the outside. Really tasty food - and a really interesting building. We were able to walk through the Queen’s Square as we made our way to the bus stop!

On our way home from Bristol, we stopped off at Lacock - a tiny picturesque village with the abbey where they filmed HARRY POTTER. :] Yeah, you heard me! The Abbey looked like something out of Emily Bronte’s dreams, and the inside was really old and fascinating. All of us were waiting anxiously though for the moment we could step outside and go see the Cloisters where Harry Potter 1 & 2 were filmed in part. It was really cool to be able to walk the same halls Ron, Harry, and Hermione did! After exploring the Abbey, we were able to wander the adorable Middle Aged village! There was an awesome bakery shop, and a really old barn, and a gorgeous church! The best part of Lacock though was the oldest building in the village (besides the Church): KING JOHN’S TEA ROOM! It was a completely stunning, tiny, old, wooden, thatched roof tea room - complete with a fire place, and delicious scones! After exploring Lacock, we had to once again return to the Charter bus. It had been a long and very exciting weekend! By the time we all got home, we were happy to have our own beds back, look through the amazing photos we took, and be apart from each other!

What an amazing weekend. Here’s what our itinerary looked like:

Friday October 31:  Leave home at 8 am. Arrive at Stonehenge(!!!) around 9:30. Arrive at Montacute House around 12:15. Arrive at Wells Cathedral at 3:30 pm. Reach Bristol (where the youth hostel was located) around 6:15 and have the evening to go out, get dinner, and rest from a long day.

Saturday November 1: Leave Bristol at 8:45 am to go to Bath! Arrive at the Roman Baths around 9:45. Afterwards, we were free to explore Bath, making sure to visit such places as Bath Abbey, Queen Square, the Circus, No. 1 Royal Crescent, the Jane Austen Centre, the Museum of Costume, and the Assembly Rooms. Whew! Go back to Bristol around 5:30.

Sunday November 2: Have a free morning and early afternoon in Bristol. Suggested locations to visit included Bristol Cathedral, St. Mary Redcliffe, Bristol City Museum and Art Gallery, Red Lodge, the Georgian House, and Sally Lunn’s House (for tea and buns!). Reassemble at 1:30 for the hour’s drive to Lacock Abbey and village… known to viewers around the world as certain corridors and classroom at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry! Leave for Reading around 5:30 and be home by 6:45 (depending on traffic.)

I’m certain that all of us will describe our favorite parts of the trip and you’ll all get a more complete picture! As for me, I’ll focus on Stonehenge, the Roman Baths, and Lacock Abbey.

Stonehenge was amazing. It was the part of the trip to which I had most been looking forward, having wanted for years to visit!! Despite Dr. Ivy’s warning that the stones were perhaps not as large as we had anticipated, it didn’t disappoint. We all had audio guides - Elysia’s was accidentally on French, so we switched! The stones themselves were definitely impressive, especially as about 1/3 has to buried underground to keep them standing upright. They looked massively heavy, and it’s amazing that they’re still standing after a few millenia! There were also burial mounds all around, and an obvious track around the site where generations of pilgrims have come - for whatever reason. There were also lots of cows and sheep. I bought myself a t-shirt there, and am still in awe of actually having had the opportunity to visit such an ancient site.

Speaking of ancient - the Roman Baths! Wow! I love any form of water, so this was a special treat for me. The water is still gushing out, and it’s still as warm as ever. The guides warn visitors not to touch it, but everyone does anyway (you just need to wash your hands afterwards)! I sat by the edge of one of the main baths for quite a while, just enjoying the steam rolling off of it. Curtains of steam kept rippling and parting, twisting and disappearing, and it almost seemed like the entrance to a whole other world. I can see why people came here for a spiritual cleansing as well as for physical health! It’s amazing walking around inside a complex that is so old. In part, it made me sad. What used to be alive and thriving with visitors, with laughter and relaxation, with crowds and workers, is now roped off and dead. It didn’t feel that way to everyone else, so perhaps I’m odd, but knowing that it should have been, and at some point was, bustling and alive, made me sad to see it so quiet and dark. That said, I loved being there, and could easily imagine how it must have been in its prime… If you ever come to England, you absolutely MUST visit there!

Lacock Abbey was the last stop of the trip, and I quite liked it. There’s a house associated with the abbey, which was interesting in and of itself, but being in the abbey was so cool… Especially seeing it as Hogwarts. The central courtyard is where Harry lets Hedwig fly loose during a snowy scene in the first film… and possibly also where Ron starts belching up slugs, but I’m not sure. And the corridors are often featured as random hallways, and some of the rooms were used for classrooms, or for the room with the Mirror of Erised. They still have the cauldron that was at the front of the dungeons for Potions class! It was so cool. Unfortunately, by this point I had run out of space on my camera’s memory card (actually, I probably did on the first day…) so I could only delete a couple of photos to make space. Next time I’ll get a bigger memory card!

I won’t go on and on, but it was absolutely amazing. What a fun weekend! And I had an amazing lunch on Saturday - I found a small Japanese restaurant in Bath that had a conveyor-belt type service with the little plates on it… It was a great opportunity to use my Japanese, which is getting rusty, and it was soooo relaxing. There was also a good chocolate shop in Wells… Heh.

Before signing off, I have to mention one other thing - the US elections. I for one am relieved for a change. Traveling abroad makes it abundantly clear(er) how much the image of the US has suffered in the past eight years. Our allies are embarrassed, our ex-pats ashamed, and our enemies self-righteous. I truly hope that a new president will help to heal some of this, and take us in a new direction. And further more, no matter who you voted for, I think that it is a wonderful day when a black man can be elected president of the United States of America. Policies and party affiliations aside, I rejoice for this sign of tolerance and healing, and am proud. The Readingites followed the polls and results avidly, some staying up until the wee hours of the morning (because of the time difference) to see how things would turn out. I think that all of us are glad that the campaigning is over, regardless of the results (about which some are relieved and some disappointed)… And tonight we can continue to celebrate the power of the People with Guy Fawkes night!! V for Vendetta party!