No, it's not that I couldn't come up with a title, it's that that's what I saw today. :P
I rather quickly put together the game plan yesterday evening, and, not surprisingly, it didn't got quite as planned. I made it to the John Soane Museum (after first finding the alley. It was a little sketchy, but I just kept walking. :) ) right after it opened. I'd found an audio tour and downloaded it to my phone (which I had to switch to airplane mode for the lady at the front) so I had a guide for the house. The museum is literally this guy's house, as he left it. Nothing removed or added. Not that you could add anything, there's no space! John Soane was an architect, he designed the original Bank of England, and he was worried that people would forget him, so he introduced an act of parliament to make his home a museum after he died. It was already open to his students at the university because he had so much STUFF! He had Greek urns, stone lions paws, paintings, Seti I's sarcophogus, Roman funeary urns, random bits of stone and marble and more! The house itself is really neat. He designed it so that you don't need artificial light, even in the basement. He has skylights that go down to the basement, as well as grills and holes in the floor to let light down there. He also has mirrors all over the place, so you really have to look to decide if you are seeing a reflection or another room. By far the coolest thing was the painting room. It's probably ten feet square, with every inch of the walls covered in paintings. BUT, the walls OPEN! Each wall had panels that open to show more paintings! One of the walls opens twice and you can look down into the basement or across to see more paintings on the walls. It was wicked cool.
Having finally made it out of the John Sloane, I was going to head to the Natural History Museum to finish it before going to the Victoria and Albert. However, after standing line for twenty minutes, I saw that I probably still had another thirty before I could get in (it was Friday, can't believe I didn't think about that) so I got out, grabbed lunch and headed to the V&A. I'm so glad I did. I had kind of thought of going to the National Gallery after the V&A, but it took me 4 hours to get through the museum and I just walked through some of the rooms. There's a lot of sculpture, but also a lot of paintings and costumes. It's mostly and art museum, but it also has metal and glasswork on the upper floors. The main and first upper floor are arranged by country, but the upper floors are arranged by medium. They had some really great sculptures, but they also had a room that was the "cast room" because all of the stuff in there is casts of originals. The pictures I took from the ground just don't do justice to the scale. Almost everything in the room was taller than me, generally be several feet, if not by 10 or 20. The only things that weren't were the replicas of the tombs. Luckily I found a view of it from the upper floor and got people in it so you can appreciate the scale.
Both of these museums have the most random stuff in them, but I would definately recommend them. The John Sloane is a little off the beaten path, but can be got through in a few hours and is worth it for the architecture. You have to leave at least a full afternoon and I would almost suggest a full day for the V&A, but it's one of the best museums I've ever been in.
I still want to go back for another day for the Natural History Museum (a weekday this time) and the National Gallery, but that's going to depend on how much of my paper I get done tomorrow.
Friday, July 29, 2011
Thursday, July 28, 2011
Down House
I finally got to where capris! Yes, I know I did other stuff during the day, but that seems a particularly noteworthy fact.
This morning we met for class and headed to Greyfriar's Gardens. The weather for kind of gray, but still warmer than it had generally been. The church was closed when we got there, they're reroofing, so we had class out in the garden. We mainly just talked about the monastic period and some things that McGee suggested we go see, like the exhibition at the British Museum right now called Treasures of Heaven that's about medieval worship. We headed back, and learning that Down House was indeed on (there had been some doubt about this for a little while) I headed out a bit early to get lunch before we left.
We took the train, and while having a small mishap, made it to Orpington and took cabs to Down House, home of Charles Darwin. The inside of the house had been restored, with original furiture if possible, to how it would have been in Darwin's time. The tour was neat, though not spectacular. The grounds, however, are very much worth the trip. There are so many flowers and pretty walks, as well as a green house with carnivorous plants and a beehive. The bees were cool, they had a little comb inside a glass box, so you could see them working, and a tube so they could go outside and pollinate all the flowers.
After walking around Down House for a while, we called for cabs and split the fare between three of us back to the station. Well, to a pub, that it turns out did not serve food. Some of the people hadn't had lunch, so we headed to the main drag and found a cheap cafe that was nonetheless very good. I think I'm going to go back there and try to find the three Harry Potter books I'm missing. They had a lot of the same type of shops as Canterbury where I found the ones I have.
I'm going to attempt three museums tomorrow. I'm going to get an early start, and hit the John Soane museum, finish the Natural History Museum, and see the Victoria and Albert Museum. I found an audio tour for the John Soane that is now on my phone and supposed to be about an hour. I figure about two hours for each museum, but that gives me extra time if I need it.
I'm going to put up pictures now, because it'll be a little while before I can sleep, because it's Thursday and the pub down the street has a college night, which means yelling, screaming, and various cateurwalling late into the night. :P
This morning we met for class and headed to Greyfriar's Gardens. The weather for kind of gray, but still warmer than it had generally been. The church was closed when we got there, they're reroofing, so we had class out in the garden. We mainly just talked about the monastic period and some things that McGee suggested we go see, like the exhibition at the British Museum right now called Treasures of Heaven that's about medieval worship. We headed back, and learning that Down House was indeed on (there had been some doubt about this for a little while) I headed out a bit early to get lunch before we left.
We took the train, and while having a small mishap, made it to Orpington and took cabs to Down House, home of Charles Darwin. The inside of the house had been restored, with original furiture if possible, to how it would have been in Darwin's time. The tour was neat, though not spectacular. The grounds, however, are very much worth the trip. There are so many flowers and pretty walks, as well as a green house with carnivorous plants and a beehive. The bees were cool, they had a little comb inside a glass box, so you could see them working, and a tube so they could go outside and pollinate all the flowers.
After walking around Down House for a while, we called for cabs and split the fare between three of us back to the station. Well, to a pub, that it turns out did not serve food. Some of the people hadn't had lunch, so we headed to the main drag and found a cheap cafe that was nonetheless very good. I think I'm going to go back there and try to find the three Harry Potter books I'm missing. They had a lot of the same type of shops as Canterbury where I found the ones I have.
I'm going to attempt three museums tomorrow. I'm going to get an early start, and hit the John Soane museum, finish the Natural History Museum, and see the Victoria and Albert Museum. I found an audio tour for the John Soane that is now on my phone and supposed to be about an hour. I figure about two hours for each museum, but that gives me extra time if I need it.
I'm going to put up pictures now, because it'll be a little while before I can sleep, because it's Thursday and the pub down the street has a college night, which means yelling, screaming, and various cateurwalling late into the night. :P
Wednesday, July 27, 2011
Off to Battle!
Part 2 of 2. Check the first part (and explanation) down one.
So, Battle Abbey was pretty cool, I'm not gonna lie, but you have to do the audio tour to really get the full effect.
I got up at pretty much normal time, got myself together and headed for the train. I had to change trains twice, and I was hoping the clouds would clear out, which they never did, though it did get decently warm. I did make it to Battle safely. Then I headed up the street and followed the signs to Battle Abbey, the site of the famous Battle of Hastings in 1066, in which William, forever after to be known as "the Conqueror," defeated Harold, King of England, and gained the throne of England for him and his children, who still hold it to this day.
The Abbey, like most abbeys in England, is mostly in ruins, thanks to the Dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. The Abbot's residence became a private residence, and is now a school. If you go, you have to get the audio tour. There is a 30-40 minute (depending on how much you gawk) walking tour that takes you down the hill, around the Norman positions and back up the hill, going through the battle chronologically as you go. The signs are helpful, but the audio tour is awesome.
Since I'm writing a paper on it, I'm not going to give you a synopsis of the battle. It would wind up being a page, single space. But I can say that it was close. The armies were evenly matched and it wound up being luck, missed opportunities, and a day that was just a little too long that caused the English to lose.
After you go around the battlefield, you can go around the Abbey, which was built on top of the hill where the English made their stand. Legend holds that the altar of the original church was placed on the spot where Harold died. It's kind of funny, because the monks wanted to build elsewhere, they said it was too difficult to build on that hill, but William insisted. The abbey is neat to wander around. You can also go up in the gatehouse, where they have a little museum.
It didn't take me as long as I thought it would, so I sat down and ate lunch, then headed into the giftshop, where I found, not one, but two books. But it doesn't count because one if for my paper and one is really small. And funny.
Two train changes later, I made it back to Canterbury, decided I didn't feel like doing much, did convince myself to write up the battle for my paper, then read my book before going to bed. I slept in today, messed around for the morning, went out for lunch (as part of my continued search for the Harry Potter books) and then came back here to get some actual work done.
Actual work shall commence in 3...2...1... well, maybe like half an hour.
So, Battle Abbey was pretty cool, I'm not gonna lie, but you have to do the audio tour to really get the full effect.
I got up at pretty much normal time, got myself together and headed for the train. I had to change trains twice, and I was hoping the clouds would clear out, which they never did, though it did get decently warm. I did make it to Battle safely. Then I headed up the street and followed the signs to Battle Abbey, the site of the famous Battle of Hastings in 1066, in which William, forever after to be known as "the Conqueror," defeated Harold, King of England, and gained the throne of England for him and his children, who still hold it to this day.
The Abbey, like most abbeys in England, is mostly in ruins, thanks to the Dissolution of the monasteries by Henry VIII. The Abbot's residence became a private residence, and is now a school. If you go, you have to get the audio tour. There is a 30-40 minute (depending on how much you gawk) walking tour that takes you down the hill, around the Norman positions and back up the hill, going through the battle chronologically as you go. The signs are helpful, but the audio tour is awesome.
Since I'm writing a paper on it, I'm not going to give you a synopsis of the battle. It would wind up being a page, single space. But I can say that it was close. The armies were evenly matched and it wound up being luck, missed opportunities, and a day that was just a little too long that caused the English to lose.
After you go around the battlefield, you can go around the Abbey, which was built on top of the hill where the English made their stand. Legend holds that the altar of the original church was placed on the spot where Harold died. It's kind of funny, because the monks wanted to build elsewhere, they said it was too difficult to build on that hill, but William insisted. The abbey is neat to wander around. You can also go up in the gatehouse, where they have a little museum.
It didn't take me as long as I thought it would, so I sat down and ate lunch, then headed into the giftshop, where I found, not one, but two books. But it doesn't count because one if for my paper and one is really small. And funny.
Two train changes later, I made it back to Canterbury, decided I didn't feel like doing much, did convince myself to write up the battle for my paper, then read my book before going to bed. I slept in today, messed around for the morning, went out for lunch (as part of my continued search for the Harry Potter books) and then came back here to get some actual work done.
Actual work shall commence in 3...2...1... well, maybe like half an hour.
London Sights
Part 1 of 2
So, I was completely exhausted after this day, and then I got up early the next day, and then I just didn't feel like it, so I've got two days to do posts for, and they're both at least a day late, and they're both big enough to be their own, so I'm going to make them seperate. :)
Oh my... giddy aunt. I saw so much stuff on Monday. Bear with me, because this will be a long one. And honestly, you can probably do better through the pictures I'm *cough* currently *cough* putting on facebook.
So, we, Emily, Mac, and I, headed out early, on the train at 7:10. Decided to go ahead and take the train to Charing Cross, a longer train ride, but it meant we wouldn't have to take the tube to start our sight seeing, so it evened out. And saved money. :) We stepped out of Charing Cross station, where I stopped to get a second breakfast. I got a fruit flapjack, which was amazing! I really need to find another one of those... We walked a block down the street and wound up at Trafalgar Square. It's got a giant statue of Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson, Duke of Bronte. Unfortunately, they were building something, Emily said for an event, so I'm not real happy with my pictures.
We then headed toward Buckingham Palace. I say toward because we took a rather circuitous route. First we were crossing the street back and forth to look at all the statues, then we took a mild detour into St. Jame's Park. The gardens were beautiful and we got to see ducks! And baby ducks! They were so cute! We finally made it to Buckingham Palace and wandered around taking pictures of the Palace, the guards, the Vicoria Monument and the gates.
Then we headed off to Wellington Arch. The arch is in the middle of a small park with a winged statue of victory on it. There's also a statue of Wellington (Arthur Wellsley, Duke of Wellington, Mac was so proud I knew his name) off to the side. As well as a monument to the artillery soldiers and to all the Australians who fought in the two world wars.
We then headed over to Hyde Park, and strolled about the grounds. I got to see Rotten Row and the Serpentine!I got a muffin, then we grabbed lunch, paninis, at a little stand by the Serpentine and continued walking. We went to see Princess Diana's memorial fountain and then we went and saw Prince Albert's monument. I have to say the builder were rather confused. There are roman style friezes and statues, an eastern style (lots of gold) main tower, then two random gothic towers. It's definately got the shock and awe down though.
After Hyde Park I split from Mac and Emily and headed for the Science Museum. I went through the whole thing (5 floors) in two hours. It's a science museum, so it's really a bit too recent for my interest. One cool part, though, was the model ships. They had a gallery full of any ship you could thing of, and I don't just mean the Titanic. They had steamliners, but they also had Chinese Junks, Amazonian canoes, Egyptian river boats, you name it, they got it. It was pretty cool. They also had a math gallery for any theoretical physicists out there, it was a bit beyond the rest of us mere mortals.
I still had a few hours, so I went to the Natural History Museum. There was actually a line to get in, but it moved pretty quickly. I, like every other little kid, immediately headed for the Dinosaurs. Because, let's face it, that's why you go to a natural history museum. The dinosaur exhibit was well done, taking you through the time periods, the various discoveries, theories and the like. However, they had these little animatronic raptors all over the place. And they would turn and look at you and hiss, and the there was low light levels, and it was just creepy. But the bones were cool. :) I made it out of the dinosaurs and made it through the rest of the Animal exhibits, including the requisite Blue Whale. They also have an exhibition going about animal sexuality that I think I'm going to go to when I go back.
At this point I headed for the tube station (after taking some photos from the upper floor of the main hall) and headed to St. Pancras where I was meeting Mac and Emily. I went in the Olympic store to get a souvenier then got a snack (hey, I'd done A LOT of walking) and headed up to the train platform. We met up there, got on the train and made it back to Canterbury at around 8:15. By the time I'd made and eaten dinner, it was 9:30 and all I wanted to do was go to bed. So I did. :)
So, I was completely exhausted after this day, and then I got up early the next day, and then I just didn't feel like it, so I've got two days to do posts for, and they're both at least a day late, and they're both big enough to be their own, so I'm going to make them seperate. :)
Oh my... giddy aunt. I saw so much stuff on Monday. Bear with me, because this will be a long one. And honestly, you can probably do better through the pictures I'm *cough* currently *cough* putting on facebook.
So, we, Emily, Mac, and I, headed out early, on the train at 7:10. Decided to go ahead and take the train to Charing Cross, a longer train ride, but it meant we wouldn't have to take the tube to start our sight seeing, so it evened out. And saved money. :) We stepped out of Charing Cross station, where I stopped to get a second breakfast. I got a fruit flapjack, which was amazing! I really need to find another one of those... We walked a block down the street and wound up at Trafalgar Square. It's got a giant statue of Horatio Nelson, Viscount Nelson, Duke of Bronte. Unfortunately, they were building something, Emily said for an event, so I'm not real happy with my pictures.
We then headed toward Buckingham Palace. I say toward because we took a rather circuitous route. First we were crossing the street back and forth to look at all the statues, then we took a mild detour into St. Jame's Park. The gardens were beautiful and we got to see ducks! And baby ducks! They were so cute! We finally made it to Buckingham Palace and wandered around taking pictures of the Palace, the guards, the Vicoria Monument and the gates.
Then we headed off to Wellington Arch. The arch is in the middle of a small park with a winged statue of victory on it. There's also a statue of Wellington (Arthur Wellsley, Duke of Wellington, Mac was so proud I knew his name) off to the side. As well as a monument to the artillery soldiers and to all the Australians who fought in the two world wars.
We then headed over to Hyde Park, and strolled about the grounds. I got to see Rotten Row and the Serpentine!I got a muffin, then we grabbed lunch, paninis, at a little stand by the Serpentine and continued walking. We went to see Princess Diana's memorial fountain and then we went and saw Prince Albert's monument. I have to say the builder were rather confused. There are roman style friezes and statues, an eastern style (lots of gold) main tower, then two random gothic towers. It's definately got the shock and awe down though.
After Hyde Park I split from Mac and Emily and headed for the Science Museum. I went through the whole thing (5 floors) in two hours. It's a science museum, so it's really a bit too recent for my interest. One cool part, though, was the model ships. They had a gallery full of any ship you could thing of, and I don't just mean the Titanic. They had steamliners, but they also had Chinese Junks, Amazonian canoes, Egyptian river boats, you name it, they got it. It was pretty cool. They also had a math gallery for any theoretical physicists out there, it was a bit beyond the rest of us mere mortals.
I still had a few hours, so I went to the Natural History Museum. There was actually a line to get in, but it moved pretty quickly. I, like every other little kid, immediately headed for the Dinosaurs. Because, let's face it, that's why you go to a natural history museum. The dinosaur exhibit was well done, taking you through the time periods, the various discoveries, theories and the like. However, they had these little animatronic raptors all over the place. And they would turn and look at you and hiss, and the there was low light levels, and it was just creepy. But the bones were cool. :) I made it out of the dinosaurs and made it through the rest of the Animal exhibits, including the requisite Blue Whale. They also have an exhibition going about animal sexuality that I think I'm going to go to when I go back.
At this point I headed for the tube station (after taking some photos from the upper floor of the main hall) and headed to St. Pancras where I was meeting Mac and Emily. I went in the Olympic store to get a souvenier then got a snack (hey, I'd done A LOT of walking) and headed up to the train platform. We met up there, got on the train and made it back to Canterbury at around 8:15. By the time I'd made and eaten dinner, it was 9:30 and all I wanted to do was go to bed. So I did. :)
Sunday, July 24, 2011
Sunny Day... And Bookstores!
Well, I would usually include this in tomorrow's post, but I just felt that today was special enough to get it's own.
I never did figure out what I was going to do today, so I wound up staying in Canterbury. Since I knew I didn't know what I was going to do, I decided I would go to church after class this morning. And never be said that you aren't rewarded for going to church because lo and behold, I found a little shop with two of the Harry Potter books in the window. The shop didn't open until 11, so I headed back home after church and was a diligent student for a few hours, writing up my notes. I finally came up to date on my notes, so I grabbed my stuff and headed out. I decided I might as well get my backpack today (that's what I'm going to put all my books and other heavy stuff in so it doesn't make my checked luggage heavy). Of course, I went by the little shop and had to go inside first. They only had the 4th and 7th book, but I told them I'd come back after I got my backpack. So I went to the chain bookstore to get a backpack. :) The one I wanted wasn't there, but I'm happy with the one I got. It held all my spoils today, plus my jacket and I wasn't even trying to pack it. So I then headed back to the little shop and got the two books. I asked them where I could find the rest and they pointed me to another charity shop down the way where I found the 3rd and 6th book, as well as, rather randomly, the book I'd been using in the Library for my independent study paper. I decided it was fate and grabbed that one as well. I then kept heading in the same general direction and discovered almost every local shop had a bookstore! I didn't find any more of the Harry Potter books, but I did find a good copy of the Canterbury Tales, which I'd been wanting to get, being in Canterbury and all.
Then I saw and M&S, which has food, and I needed dinner, and I was craving pasta. So I have some mezzalunas and tomato and basil sauce, as well as some fruit, mixed melons and pineapple. I'm going to make half tonight and half tomorrow. Though it might last me three nights, it's a lot, even though it says it's for one. The Sainsbury's was closed so I couldn't get my cranberry juice, but I'll get that tomorrow morning.
I have to say that today turned into a beautiful day. I thought my weatherbug was crazy this morning when it was trying to tell me it was sunny, but the sun came out this afternoon and I've got the window open and had to take my jacket off while I was out and about. I'm a very happy person. :)
Tomorrow the plan (notice how I'm saying 'the plan' now? Too many times that things don't go how I expect) is to go to Hyde Park, as well as Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, and Wellington Gate in the morning, then go to the Victoria and Albert Museum in the afternoon. I can't wait to see Rotten Row! (That's in Hyde Park.)
Now I'm going to go back to being a dutiful student and see if I can't get a bit more written. On my last paper for my Anthro class I think. Write again later. ;)
Update: Anthro paper written, and dinner a smashing success, and I was right, it'll last me three days. The Mezzalunes were awesome! And went well with the sauce, and the fruit was amazing, like all the fruit here. :) Now, just waiting to finalize plans for tomorrow.
I never did figure out what I was going to do today, so I wound up staying in Canterbury. Since I knew I didn't know what I was going to do, I decided I would go to church after class this morning. And never be said that you aren't rewarded for going to church because lo and behold, I found a little shop with two of the Harry Potter books in the window. The shop didn't open until 11, so I headed back home after church and was a diligent student for a few hours, writing up my notes. I finally came up to date on my notes, so I grabbed my stuff and headed out. I decided I might as well get my backpack today (that's what I'm going to put all my books and other heavy stuff in so it doesn't make my checked luggage heavy). Of course, I went by the little shop and had to go inside first. They only had the 4th and 7th book, but I told them I'd come back after I got my backpack. So I went to the chain bookstore to get a backpack. :) The one I wanted wasn't there, but I'm happy with the one I got. It held all my spoils today, plus my jacket and I wasn't even trying to pack it. So I then headed back to the little shop and got the two books. I asked them where I could find the rest and they pointed me to another charity shop down the way where I found the 3rd and 6th book, as well as, rather randomly, the book I'd been using in the Library for my independent study paper. I decided it was fate and grabbed that one as well. I then kept heading in the same general direction and discovered almost every local shop had a bookstore! I didn't find any more of the Harry Potter books, but I did find a good copy of the Canterbury Tales, which I'd been wanting to get, being in Canterbury and all.
Then I saw and M&S, which has food, and I needed dinner, and I was craving pasta. So I have some mezzalunas and tomato and basil sauce, as well as some fruit, mixed melons and pineapple. I'm going to make half tonight and half tomorrow. Though it might last me three nights, it's a lot, even though it says it's for one. The Sainsbury's was closed so I couldn't get my cranberry juice, but I'll get that tomorrow morning.
I have to say that today turned into a beautiful day. I thought my weatherbug was crazy this morning when it was trying to tell me it was sunny, but the sun came out this afternoon and I've got the window open and had to take my jacket off while I was out and about. I'm a very happy person. :)
Tomorrow the plan (notice how I'm saying 'the plan' now? Too many times that things don't go how I expect) is to go to Hyde Park, as well as Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, and Wellington Gate in the morning, then go to the Victoria and Albert Museum in the afternoon. I can't wait to see Rotten Row! (That's in Hyde Park.)
Now I'm going to go back to being a dutiful student and see if I can't get a bit more written. On my last paper for my Anthro class I think. Write again later. ;)
Update: Anthro paper written, and dinner a smashing success, and I was right, it'll last me three days. The Mezzalunes were awesome! And went well with the sauce, and the fruit was amazing, like all the fruit here. :) Now, just waiting to finalize plans for tomorrow.
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Canterbury Cathedral
And sure enough, here I am with my second post in one day. The pictures of the cathedral are up and I have to say that the lighting was simply spectacular.
Well, I totally meant to get to the library today, but that's okay because I did type up a bit of my notes. I'm going to continue that after I finish this blog.
Canterbury Cathedral was amazing. The church is light colored stone, but with all the clouds outside, the light inside was beautiful. We started our tour in the quire because they were going to close it soon for choir practice. :) The quire is where the monks went for their daily services and prayers. It's seperated from the rest of the church so the monks could pray in peace. Then we went around to the back of the church as the choir started practice. It was beautiful (not the home choir, because they're on holiday, but a visiting choir) but it made it difficult to hear the tour guide. Not that I was paying as much attention as I should have because I was trying to get pictures. He took us all around the church and showed us the various dead people. (Yes, more dead people. I think it's a requirement for cathedrals. There were a bunch in the Salisbury Catherdral too.) King Henry IV is buried here, opposite the Black Prince. The Black Prince (I don't remember his real name) died before his father, so his son became king upon the death of the old king. However, Henry IV takes advantage of civil unrest to depose, and eventually murder, the Black Prince's son, starting the war of the Roses. Our guide said that Henry IV requested to be buried in Canterbury Cathedral as an apology to the Black Prince for deposing his son.
One of the archbishops is also buried there. He has a two level monument. The top is him in his ceremonial robes, the bottom is just a corpse, the point being to remind everyone that no matter how powerful, you are simply mortal. It was placed across from the archbishop's chair... ten years before he died. That had to be unsettling. We also went and saw where St. Thomas was murdered. Apparently Henry II had ranted and raved about him, because Henry II fought for him to be appointed, and Thomas was supposed to hand over church wealth to Henry, but he didn't, and four of Henry's knights took that as an order to dispatch him. So they came and argued with St. Thomas early in the day, which was when the monks decided he was in physical danger. They had to practically drag St. Thomas into the church, thinking he'd be safe in front of the high altar, but the knights caught them just inside the door and lopped off the top of his head. Not his whole head. Just the top of his head. And then apparently one of the knights stuck is sword in and scattered St. Thomas's brains before declaring 'Yep. He's dead.' It's a story to rival any I heard yesterday at the Tower.
We went down into the tomb and saw a lot of cool stuff, more dead people, plus a chapel that had been bricked up and so preserved the original frescoes. Then we went back to the beginning, where he gave us the history of the church building, starting with St. Augustine, who had the church built, and down through the ages. Some parts of the church, and some of the windows, date back to the 1100's. They have some of the oldest glass in England.
After that we were allowed to wander. I went back into the crypt to light a candle and say a prayer. I feel like I've been going on pilgrimage to some of the these places because they were so important to the Catholic faith, before the Anglican faith even existed. Service was starting, so there was singing even down in the crypt. It was a surreal experience.
Then I headed out into the cloister, the old abbey part of the church, which is important for my next paper. I found the chapter house where the monks conducted business, and then wandered a bit more. I found the garden, and it was really beautiful. There are a bunch of rose bushes, but they'd already finished flowering. It would have been a sight to see while they were all in full bloom. But there were a bunch of other really pretty flowers and I took lots of pictures. I also wandered around that part of the church and found some of the old abbey ruins. I walked almost all the way around the church and finally found myself at the 'front' of the church, which isn't used as an entrance normally.
Then I made my way to the giftshop. I got myself a rosary, because I'd been wanting one from one of the great cathedrals and I found one that was simple, but still beautiful, made of wood. I also got a mug that has a little cartoon of all the kings and queens since William the Conqueror. It's really funny to read their names out loud because there's a point where there's like three Henry's, then three Edward's, then alternating Henry's and Edwards. I also got some stuff for other people. :)
Then I headed home, and ate dinner while putting up pictures. Then I did this. I'm going to try to write up some more of my notes, then I'm headed to bed, because I have class tomorrow. I think I'm going to go to Battle (where the Battle of Hastings ACTUALLY took place) and get some info for my independent study paper. My mom suggested I get a book, so I'm going to go look for one there. I figure they should have a good selection. I'm also planning on going to Hyde park and the three museums nearby over two days. Then depending on how exhausted I am, I might go to Bath on Wednesday.
Kay, time for homework.
Well, having looked, they don't have audio guides at Battle on event days, which tomorrow is. They have a falconry exhibition. Which would be cool, but I think I'd rather have the audio guide. So I think I'll go Tuesday. Maybe I'll go to Brighton tomorrow, which was kind of the original plan, and go to Battle on Tuesday. Though I could do the museums tomorrow and do Battle Tuesday... Hmmm.
Well, I totally meant to get to the library today, but that's okay because I did type up a bit of my notes. I'm going to continue that after I finish this blog.
Canterbury Cathedral was amazing. The church is light colored stone, but with all the clouds outside, the light inside was beautiful. We started our tour in the quire because they were going to close it soon for choir practice. :) The quire is where the monks went for their daily services and prayers. It's seperated from the rest of the church so the monks could pray in peace. Then we went around to the back of the church as the choir started practice. It was beautiful (not the home choir, because they're on holiday, but a visiting choir) but it made it difficult to hear the tour guide. Not that I was paying as much attention as I should have because I was trying to get pictures. He took us all around the church and showed us the various dead people. (Yes, more dead people. I think it's a requirement for cathedrals. There were a bunch in the Salisbury Catherdral too.) King Henry IV is buried here, opposite the Black Prince. The Black Prince (I don't remember his real name) died before his father, so his son became king upon the death of the old king. However, Henry IV takes advantage of civil unrest to depose, and eventually murder, the Black Prince's son, starting the war of the Roses. Our guide said that Henry IV requested to be buried in Canterbury Cathedral as an apology to the Black Prince for deposing his son.
One of the archbishops is also buried there. He has a two level monument. The top is him in his ceremonial robes, the bottom is just a corpse, the point being to remind everyone that no matter how powerful, you are simply mortal. It was placed across from the archbishop's chair... ten years before he died. That had to be unsettling. We also went and saw where St. Thomas was murdered. Apparently Henry II had ranted and raved about him, because Henry II fought for him to be appointed, and Thomas was supposed to hand over church wealth to Henry, but he didn't, and four of Henry's knights took that as an order to dispatch him. So they came and argued with St. Thomas early in the day, which was when the monks decided he was in physical danger. They had to practically drag St. Thomas into the church, thinking he'd be safe in front of the high altar, but the knights caught them just inside the door and lopped off the top of his head. Not his whole head. Just the top of his head. And then apparently one of the knights stuck is sword in and scattered St. Thomas's brains before declaring 'Yep. He's dead.' It's a story to rival any I heard yesterday at the Tower.
We went down into the tomb and saw a lot of cool stuff, more dead people, plus a chapel that had been bricked up and so preserved the original frescoes. Then we went back to the beginning, where he gave us the history of the church building, starting with St. Augustine, who had the church built, and down through the ages. Some parts of the church, and some of the windows, date back to the 1100's. They have some of the oldest glass in England.
After that we were allowed to wander. I went back into the crypt to light a candle and say a prayer. I feel like I've been going on pilgrimage to some of the these places because they were so important to the Catholic faith, before the Anglican faith even existed. Service was starting, so there was singing even down in the crypt. It was a surreal experience.
Then I headed out into the cloister, the old abbey part of the church, which is important for my next paper. I found the chapter house where the monks conducted business, and then wandered a bit more. I found the garden, and it was really beautiful. There are a bunch of rose bushes, but they'd already finished flowering. It would have been a sight to see while they were all in full bloom. But there were a bunch of other really pretty flowers and I took lots of pictures. I also wandered around that part of the church and found some of the old abbey ruins. I walked almost all the way around the church and finally found myself at the 'front' of the church, which isn't used as an entrance normally.
Then I made my way to the giftshop. I got myself a rosary, because I'd been wanting one from one of the great cathedrals and I found one that was simple, but still beautiful, made of wood. I also got a mug that has a little cartoon of all the kings and queens since William the Conqueror. It's really funny to read their names out loud because there's a point where there's like three Henry's, then three Edward's, then alternating Henry's and Edwards. I also got some stuff for other people. :)
Then I headed home, and ate dinner while putting up pictures. Then I did this. I'm going to try to write up some more of my notes, then I'm headed to bed, because I have class tomorrow. I think I'm going to go to Battle (where the Battle of Hastings ACTUALLY took place) and get some info for my independent study paper. My mom suggested I get a book, so I'm going to go look for one there. I figure they should have a good selection. I'm also planning on going to Hyde park and the three museums nearby over two days. Then depending on how exhausted I am, I might go to Bath on Wednesday.
Kay, time for homework.
Well, having looked, they don't have audio guides at Battle on event days, which tomorrow is. They have a falconry exhibition. Which would be cool, but I think I'd rather have the audio guide. So I think I'll go Tuesday. Maybe I'll go to Brighton tomorrow, which was kind of the original plan, and go to Battle on Tuesday. Though I could do the museums tomorrow and do Battle Tuesday... Hmmm.
Abbey and Tower
I can honestly say that I don't really remember much of Wenesday. I kept doing things on Thursday (like going to the library for research) and stopping to think, haven't I done this recently? But when? I was in Nivelles yesterday. It took me a while to remember that it was Thursday and I'd relaxed for Wednesday. I must have been pretty tired, but it was three days of lots of walking and early mornings.
Friday wasn't too early of a morning, though I did wind up getting up way before my alarm went off due to garbage trucks outside. I went grocery shopping so I'd have breakfast this morning and something to eat when I came home if I didn't get something in London.
We took a late-ish train into London, so we didn't get in until almost 11. Then we didn't get into Westminster until 11:30, and we only had 2 hours to look around. There were some really neat parts, mostly the dead people, all the kings and queens since Henry III are buried there, plus other famous people, like Newton and Darwin, Wordsworth, Lord Byron (not Shakespeare), but it was also really cool to go into the Chapter House. For now it's set up as a display on the Royal Wedding, but you can still see the amazing tiles in the floor and the paintings on the wall. The windows were replaced after they were destroyed in WWII, but there's writing along the bottom that tells their story.
Honestly, St. Paul's is more spectacular. It's beautiful and not as crowded. The dead people were cool at Westminster, but St. Paul's has dead people too. Sir Christopher Wren, Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson and Wellsley, the Duke of Wellington. That was pretty cool.
The Tower of London was awesome. It was a lot less fortress-y than I excpected, but then I realized that it's very fortress-y. It has a probably 15 foot high, 30 foot thick outer wall, and a 25 foot high inner wall. Plus it used to have a moat! And then there's the white tower inside, so it's very fortress-y, it just doesn't look it. It also reminded me of the Alamo. It's also a really old building (of course the Tower has a few hundred years on the Alamo) but it's smack in the middle of downtown, though it was in the middle of nowhere when it was built.
The original Tower, the White Tower, was begun by William the Conqueror, then various kings expanded through the years. We went on a tour with one of the Yeoman, and he told us who died where and how and who was imprisoned where and for how long. There were some really good stories. Of course they were about executions, so they are sad, but some of them are humerous in a morbid fashion. There was a bishop that Henry VIII wanted to execute, but the bishop had fled to France, so Henry decided to execute his mother, a 70 year old lady. When she was lead to the scaffold, she refused to kneel and said she'd done nothing wrong. The executioner looked at Henry VIII who told him to 'Get on with it!' The Executioner proceeded to chase the 70 year old lady around the scaffolding until she was caught, held down and executed.
Our guard was really funny.
After the tour, we went and saw the Crown Jewels. Which is where I lost everyone. There are some really big rocks in the Crown Jewels. And a really, really big punch bowl. It said it holds like 41 bottles of wine. After that, I got ice cream, because it sounded good, and now I can say I've eaten ice cream at the Tower of London. It was good ice cream, toffee and butterscotch. Then I wandered around and made it up on the walls. I was trying to get to the princess walk, but made it to a whole bunch of other places instead. I went through the bloody tower, where Edward V and his little brother (they were 12 and 9 at the time) disappeared. The next king, their uncle Richard III, is generally blamed with having them murdered. In the 1700's, two bodies were found and are generally believe to be the princes.
I also made it to a gift shop and got a postcard for me and souveniers for my family. :)
Finally, I made it to the Princess Walk, the only place Elizabeth was allowed outside while imprisoned by her sister, Queen Mary. It has the best views of the Tower Bridge. I ducked my head in the White Tower, which has an armory exhibit, but there was too much to see and it was almost time to go. I headed towards the gates to get a map, and ran into the graduate students. I waited with them for the rest of the grad students (and Ariel) and then we headed home. I had chips (crisps to the people here) left over from lunch and a chocolate au pain for dinner. I'd been craving one for like a week now. It was amazing. On the way back, the grad students discussed plans for Monday, and they're going to Hyde park. I think I'm going to go with them and also look at the Victoria and Albert Museum, since most of them are going to the British and I've seen it before. I wouldn't mind going back, but there's so much other stuff to see.
Today is Canterbury Cathedral, so I'll probably have another post and some more picture up this afternoon. Now I have to go get batteries for my camera and chips (or fries to us) for lunch.
Also, John wanted to be in my blog, so a shout out to John. :)
Friday wasn't too early of a morning, though I did wind up getting up way before my alarm went off due to garbage trucks outside. I went grocery shopping so I'd have breakfast this morning and something to eat when I came home if I didn't get something in London.
We took a late-ish train into London, so we didn't get in until almost 11. Then we didn't get into Westminster until 11:30, and we only had 2 hours to look around. There were some really neat parts, mostly the dead people, all the kings and queens since Henry III are buried there, plus other famous people, like Newton and Darwin, Wordsworth, Lord Byron (not Shakespeare), but it was also really cool to go into the Chapter House. For now it's set up as a display on the Royal Wedding, but you can still see the amazing tiles in the floor and the paintings on the wall. The windows were replaced after they were destroyed in WWII, but there's writing along the bottom that tells their story.
Honestly, St. Paul's is more spectacular. It's beautiful and not as crowded. The dead people were cool at Westminster, but St. Paul's has dead people too. Sir Christopher Wren, Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson and Wellsley, the Duke of Wellington. That was pretty cool.
The Tower of London was awesome. It was a lot less fortress-y than I excpected, but then I realized that it's very fortress-y. It has a probably 15 foot high, 30 foot thick outer wall, and a 25 foot high inner wall. Plus it used to have a moat! And then there's the white tower inside, so it's very fortress-y, it just doesn't look it. It also reminded me of the Alamo. It's also a really old building (of course the Tower has a few hundred years on the Alamo) but it's smack in the middle of downtown, though it was in the middle of nowhere when it was built.
The original Tower, the White Tower, was begun by William the Conqueror, then various kings expanded through the years. We went on a tour with one of the Yeoman, and he told us who died where and how and who was imprisoned where and for how long. There were some really good stories. Of course they were about executions, so they are sad, but some of them are humerous in a morbid fashion. There was a bishop that Henry VIII wanted to execute, but the bishop had fled to France, so Henry decided to execute his mother, a 70 year old lady. When she was lead to the scaffold, she refused to kneel and said she'd done nothing wrong. The executioner looked at Henry VIII who told him to 'Get on with it!' The Executioner proceeded to chase the 70 year old lady around the scaffolding until she was caught, held down and executed.
Our guard was really funny.
After the tour, we went and saw the Crown Jewels. Which is where I lost everyone. There are some really big rocks in the Crown Jewels. And a really, really big punch bowl. It said it holds like 41 bottles of wine. After that, I got ice cream, because it sounded good, and now I can say I've eaten ice cream at the Tower of London. It was good ice cream, toffee and butterscotch. Then I wandered around and made it up on the walls. I was trying to get to the princess walk, but made it to a whole bunch of other places instead. I went through the bloody tower, where Edward V and his little brother (they were 12 and 9 at the time) disappeared. The next king, their uncle Richard III, is generally blamed with having them murdered. In the 1700's, two bodies were found and are generally believe to be the princes.
I also made it to a gift shop and got a postcard for me and souveniers for my family. :)
Finally, I made it to the Princess Walk, the only place Elizabeth was allowed outside while imprisoned by her sister, Queen Mary. It has the best views of the Tower Bridge. I ducked my head in the White Tower, which has an armory exhibit, but there was too much to see and it was almost time to go. I headed towards the gates to get a map, and ran into the graduate students. I waited with them for the rest of the grad students (and Ariel) and then we headed home. I had chips (crisps to the people here) left over from lunch and a chocolate au pain for dinner. I'd been craving one for like a week now. It was amazing. On the way back, the grad students discussed plans for Monday, and they're going to Hyde park. I think I'm going to go with them and also look at the Victoria and Albert Museum, since most of them are going to the British and I've seen it before. I wouldn't mind going back, but there's so much other stuff to see.
Today is Canterbury Cathedral, so I'll probably have another post and some more picture up this afternoon. Now I have to go get batteries for my camera and chips (or fries to us) for lunch.
Also, John wanted to be in my blog, so a shout out to John. :)
Wednesday, July 20, 2011
Nivelles, Belgium
After a very early morning and a very long day yesterday, I chilled out today, so I'm only now getting to putting everything up.
My alarm went off at 4, but I didn't get up until 4:30. Luckily, I had everything I needed, so I still made it to the train station with plenty of time to spare. Eileen cut it a little close, but we made the train to Ashford. Of course, she forgot her tickets for the Eurostar, but the ladies at the help desk were able to find her reservations and give her a pass for the trains. We made it to Brussels without any problems. Because of the way that we booked our tickets, Eileen and I were a few rows apart, so I wound up sitting next to a guy from Germany, who'd been studying in England. We talked for a bit of the way, talking about what we'd seen and what was worth going to see, and, as Eileen says, he was kind of cute. Never got his name though...
Once in Brussels, we wandered around (oddly didn't have to go through customs) until we found an information booth, where the guy (who Eileen says thought I was cute) pointed us in the right direction. We got a ticket for Nivelles and found the train stop, where a lady who had a little bit of English assured us that we were waiting for the same train. We accidentally sat in the wrong part of the train, but we just moved when the ticket collecter came through.
Made it to Nivelles, where we stopped to look at the time tables to make sure we knew when we needed to be back at the station to get back to Brussels, and had a mini conversation with one of the staff of the train station, in Spanish, since he didn't know English, and I don't know French or Dutch. We assured him we were fine, and headed off for the church.
We made it to the church, and walked once around to find the main entrance, then walked back to a cafe that had English on the sign. When the waiter came to see us, I asked (in French, one of the few phrases I know) if he spoke English. He just looked at us. Then went to get the other lady working there who spoke perfect English and who got us menus in English. I still didn't know what some of the stuff was, but Eileen and I both got what turned out to be open sandwiches. Mine was really good. Though I'm not entirely sure what was on it. I also got Belgian hot chocolate, which was wonderful.
We had some time to kill, and we saw a souvenir shop marked on a map, so we headed out in the direction we though it was. Though being the operative word there. After walking for about 15 minutes we decided we were probably going the wrong direction and headed back. We still had a little while to kill, so we wandered in the church and looked around. We had just sat down when our guide found us. He was Belgian, but his mother was English, so he spoke decent English. While we were in the office taking care of details, they had a statuette of St. Gertrude (which he said San Jertrude) for sale, so I bought what turned out to be the last one.
He took us all around the church, telling us all about the history of the abbey, St. Gertrude and the town of Nivelles. The tour was awesome, though we did have to help from time to time with some English words. The cloister was beatiful. It has been on all of the churches I seen. It's where the monks used to copy manuscripts, so they had to have lots of natural light. They tour took longer than we thought, but we'd put in a lot of cushion time, so it was okay. We managed to avoid the pouring rain, and it was only sprinkling as we walked back.
When we got to the station, I used a combination of French, English, and hand gestures to get our tickets back to Brussels. It was actually kind of a fun experience. Once back at the Brussels station, we waited in front of a screen until our train had a platform and then went to find it. When we got there, we had to go through UK border control. In Brussels. When the train was stopping if France. 0.o But we got through, even though I couldn't remember the postal code for our address and Eileen had only a phone number.
We got on the train, again in seperate seats. I wound up sitting around a table with three people who were working on business together. They started talking about stuff in the newspaper, and random trivia stuff, then I fell asleep about when they started on business, then, right after I woke up (right before the Chunnel, which by the way, I was right about. It's just like every other tunnel, except your ears pop) they started talking about golf, which was pretty interesting, because I knew all the people they were talking about, and they were talking about the guy who won the British Open.
Made it back to Ashford with no problems. We then figured out where the next train to Canterbury was leaving from and hung out on the platform for a few minutes. Once back, we both headed home. I had some Broccolli and cheese soup and some fruit for dinner (the rest of which I had for lunch today), and then I went to bed. My feet hurt.
Today has been a slow day. I messed around on facebook for a while this morning, then headed out to the library when the cleaning staff knocked on the door. I stayed at the library for a little over an hour, but they were still here when I got back so I grabbed my book and ate lunch in the kitchen, where the other members of my flat were also hiding from the cleaning people. I finished my book, but so didn't feel like doing anything, so I read another book, then I got on here to update everything and upload pictures. Which are now on facebook. And now I'm going to go eat dinner (pizza!) and probably check the schedule again. Because I think McGee got some things backwards.
Zach requested to be put in my blog. So there. Now you're in my blog. :P
My alarm went off at 4, but I didn't get up until 4:30. Luckily, I had everything I needed, so I still made it to the train station with plenty of time to spare. Eileen cut it a little close, but we made the train to Ashford. Of course, she forgot her tickets for the Eurostar, but the ladies at the help desk were able to find her reservations and give her a pass for the trains. We made it to Brussels without any problems. Because of the way that we booked our tickets, Eileen and I were a few rows apart, so I wound up sitting next to a guy from Germany, who'd been studying in England. We talked for a bit of the way, talking about what we'd seen and what was worth going to see, and, as Eileen says, he was kind of cute. Never got his name though...
Once in Brussels, we wandered around (oddly didn't have to go through customs) until we found an information booth, where the guy (who Eileen says thought I was cute) pointed us in the right direction. We got a ticket for Nivelles and found the train stop, where a lady who had a little bit of English assured us that we were waiting for the same train. We accidentally sat in the wrong part of the train, but we just moved when the ticket collecter came through.
Made it to Nivelles, where we stopped to look at the time tables to make sure we knew when we needed to be back at the station to get back to Brussels, and had a mini conversation with one of the staff of the train station, in Spanish, since he didn't know English, and I don't know French or Dutch. We assured him we were fine, and headed off for the church.
We made it to the church, and walked once around to find the main entrance, then walked back to a cafe that had English on the sign. When the waiter came to see us, I asked (in French, one of the few phrases I know) if he spoke English. He just looked at us. Then went to get the other lady working there who spoke perfect English and who got us menus in English. I still didn't know what some of the stuff was, but Eileen and I both got what turned out to be open sandwiches. Mine was really good. Though I'm not entirely sure what was on it. I also got Belgian hot chocolate, which was wonderful.
We had some time to kill, and we saw a souvenir shop marked on a map, so we headed out in the direction we though it was. Though being the operative word there. After walking for about 15 minutes we decided we were probably going the wrong direction and headed back. We still had a little while to kill, so we wandered in the church and looked around. We had just sat down when our guide found us. He was Belgian, but his mother was English, so he spoke decent English. While we were in the office taking care of details, they had a statuette of St. Gertrude (which he said San Jertrude) for sale, so I bought what turned out to be the last one.
He took us all around the church, telling us all about the history of the abbey, St. Gertrude and the town of Nivelles. The tour was awesome, though we did have to help from time to time with some English words. The cloister was beatiful. It has been on all of the churches I seen. It's where the monks used to copy manuscripts, so they had to have lots of natural light. They tour took longer than we thought, but we'd put in a lot of cushion time, so it was okay. We managed to avoid the pouring rain, and it was only sprinkling as we walked back.
When we got to the station, I used a combination of French, English, and hand gestures to get our tickets back to Brussels. It was actually kind of a fun experience. Once back at the Brussels station, we waited in front of a screen until our train had a platform and then went to find it. When we got there, we had to go through UK border control. In Brussels. When the train was stopping if France. 0.o But we got through, even though I couldn't remember the postal code for our address and Eileen had only a phone number.
We got on the train, again in seperate seats. I wound up sitting around a table with three people who were working on business together. They started talking about stuff in the newspaper, and random trivia stuff, then I fell asleep about when they started on business, then, right after I woke up (right before the Chunnel, which by the way, I was right about. It's just like every other tunnel, except your ears pop) they started talking about golf, which was pretty interesting, because I knew all the people they were talking about, and they were talking about the guy who won the British Open.
Made it back to Ashford with no problems. We then figured out where the next train to Canterbury was leaving from and hung out on the platform for a few minutes. Once back, we both headed home. I had some Broccolli and cheese soup and some fruit for dinner (the rest of which I had for lunch today), and then I went to bed. My feet hurt.
Today has been a slow day. I messed around on facebook for a while this morning, then headed out to the library when the cleaning staff knocked on the door. I stayed at the library for a little over an hour, but they were still here when I got back so I grabbed my book and ate lunch in the kitchen, where the other members of my flat were also hiding from the cleaning people. I finished my book, but so didn't feel like doing anything, so I read another book, then I got on here to update everything and upload pictures. Which are now on facebook. And now I'm going to go eat dinner (pizza!) and probably check the schedule again. Because I think McGee got some things backwards.
Zach requested to be put in my blog. So there. Now you're in my blog. :P
Monday, July 18, 2011
Castles and Libraries
So, yesterday was the group excursion to Dover Castle. The morning dawned beautifully, with sunshine coming in my window. But by the time we left shortly before noon, it was looking more like rain. We made it to the train station with only a few drizzles, but right after we got on the bus (the train was down between Canterbury and Dover, so they had a replacement bus running) it decided to start pouring. I got to sit on the top of a double decker bus! First thing on my list done yesterday. Also, the bus went by the cliffs, so I got some good pictures of the whit cliffs of Dover! Second thing on my list done yesterday. Luckily, the rain stopped by the time we got to Dover and had settled down to 25 mph winds.
We went into the secret wartime tunnels where the heads of the military planned during the beginning of WWII. The castle had had tunnels there from the time of Henry II, but they were expanded during WWII. When we got out, the wind was cold and blowing hard enough that I was worried about being blown off the cliff. So we headed inside the little shop for some hot chocolate and I got a scone, which was the third thing on my list that I did yesterday.
Then the anthro class headed up to the old Roman lighthouse, and after a brief history lesson, we were free to explore. I stuck around with Sam and Ariel, and after heading into the gift shop to warm up for a minute, we headed into the castle. They had it set up as a 'working' castle, so you could look into the kitchen and there were a bunch of people arguing. They were pretty funny. They also had a king. Who, when shown on a (12th century) map where Texas was, asked the McGee's if they lived in hell. I told them they should have said, well, for part of the year.
We made it to the top of the castle and the view was great. But you couldn't look over the battlements because the wind was blowing straight up. I took a picture for Ariel of her hair flying straight up behind her. We then went back to the gift shop to get our souvenirs, then decided to head back to the train station because it looked like it was going to rain soon. Well, we made it to the gate just as it started pouring and raining sideways. So we hung out in the gate until it lightened up, then made it to the train station without any mishaps, other than getting splashed by a few cars.
Today I met Eileen in London and we went to the British Library. The Library was pretty cool. They had some amazing works there, several original Shakespeares, a Canterbury Tales, a copy of the Magna Carta (which I'm still not impressed with), a Gutenberg Bible and a 1400's King Jame's Bible. They had a lot of beautiful books, but also some music. They had an original of 'The Wedding March' and a piece of Handel's 'Messiah'. It was cool looking at those and being able to hum them.
They also had a science fiction exhibit going on. They had copies of some of the first science fiction books ever written, apparently by the ancient Greeks! They even had a Tardis (I don't know, ask a Doctor Who fan) as well as a 'draw your own alien' station.
We headed back to Canterbury, where we walked all the way across town, twice. The first time to get Eileen (and her stuff) to the hostel and the second time to find dinner. We stopped at a fish and chips place, where I had chicken (so sue me, I don't like fish, I did have a bite of Eileen's though.) and we talked about getting a pint (well, Eileen getting a pint. Me maybe getting a sprite) but decided we have to be up early tomorrow. So now I'm washing clothes downstairs and then I'm headed to bed. I have to be at the train station at 5:30, so it'll be an early start to the day.
P.S. the thing I'm using for the slideshow is being annoying, so I'm just going to put stuff on facebook from now. Their will still be a pretty slideshow, but no new pictures there. Besides, the caption on my Facebook pictures are so much more entertaining.
We went into the secret wartime tunnels where the heads of the military planned during the beginning of WWII. The castle had had tunnels there from the time of Henry II, but they were expanded during WWII. When we got out, the wind was cold and blowing hard enough that I was worried about being blown off the cliff. So we headed inside the little shop for some hot chocolate and I got a scone, which was the third thing on my list that I did yesterday.
Then the anthro class headed up to the old Roman lighthouse, and after a brief history lesson, we were free to explore. I stuck around with Sam and Ariel, and after heading into the gift shop to warm up for a minute, we headed into the castle. They had it set up as a 'working' castle, so you could look into the kitchen and there were a bunch of people arguing. They were pretty funny. They also had a king. Who, when shown on a (12th century) map where Texas was, asked the McGee's if they lived in hell. I told them they should have said, well, for part of the year.
We made it to the top of the castle and the view was great. But you couldn't look over the battlements because the wind was blowing straight up. I took a picture for Ariel of her hair flying straight up behind her. We then went back to the gift shop to get our souvenirs, then decided to head back to the train station because it looked like it was going to rain soon. Well, we made it to the gate just as it started pouring and raining sideways. So we hung out in the gate until it lightened up, then made it to the train station without any mishaps, other than getting splashed by a few cars.
Today I met Eileen in London and we went to the British Library. The Library was pretty cool. They had some amazing works there, several original Shakespeares, a Canterbury Tales, a copy of the Magna Carta (which I'm still not impressed with), a Gutenberg Bible and a 1400's King Jame's Bible. They had a lot of beautiful books, but also some music. They had an original of 'The Wedding March' and a piece of Handel's 'Messiah'. It was cool looking at those and being able to hum them.
They also had a science fiction exhibit going on. They had copies of some of the first science fiction books ever written, apparently by the ancient Greeks! They even had a Tardis (I don't know, ask a Doctor Who fan) as well as a 'draw your own alien' station.
We headed back to Canterbury, where we walked all the way across town, twice. The first time to get Eileen (and her stuff) to the hostel and the second time to find dinner. We stopped at a fish and chips place, where I had chicken (so sue me, I don't like fish, I did have a bite of Eileen's though.) and we talked about getting a pint (well, Eileen getting a pint. Me maybe getting a sprite) but decided we have to be up early tomorrow. So now I'm washing clothes downstairs and then I'm headed to bed. I have to be at the train station at 5:30, so it'll be an early start to the day.
P.S. the thing I'm using for the slideshow is being annoying, so I'm just going to put stuff on facebook from now. Their will still be a pretty slideshow, but no new pictures there. Besides, the caption on my Facebook pictures are so much more entertaining.
Saturday, July 16, 2011
A Foggy Day (In London Town)
Well, off and on rain all day. The rain held off at the important times though, so it was okay.
Got up and made it into London with Katie (an anthropology grad student) by 10:20. I took the tube for the first time today. It's not that difficult if you know where you're going. And I have to say the Oyster cards are handy. We got a little turned around coming out of the station, and it took us a while to figure out that the Museum was on the skywalk, but after that, we made it to the Museum fine.
The Museum of London begins at that end of the last ice age and works it's way to present day London. Some of the stuff was really neat, but I enjoyed the gallery after the Roman gallery (which is what I primarily went there to see) which took you from the Anglo-Saxons, through the Normans, and up to King Henry VIII. It seamlessly took you through a whole lot of time in a fairly small space. I liked the museum, but I stopped after the Great Fire so I could go to St. Paul's.
St. Paul's was AMAZING! If you are ever anywhere near, I highly suggest you go. It's a little pricey to get in, but so worth it. Make sure that you climb to the golden gallery at the top. You can see FOREVER! I was so happy when it didn't rain while I was up there. I was able to take some amazing pictures The church is so beautiful. I'm sad I couldn't take pictures, but I can see why they wouldn't want you to. The audio tour is really good. They take you through the whole church and even explain things that a non-Christian might not be familiar with. The church is absolutely beautiful. They history of it is amazing, and the crypt is a history lesson all in itself. In the main church, behind the high altar, there is a chapel that is dedicated to the American soldiers who lost their lives in WWII in Britain or on the way to Britain. They have all of their names in a book and the page is turned everyday. They also have a beautiful painting that is called 'The Light of the World' and shows Jesus holding a lantern and knocking at a door with no handle on the outside. It's supposed to be an allegory, that you have to let Jesus in. The church is the fourth (or possible fifth) to sit on the site. It was built after the Great Fire of 1666 burned the old one down. It had been hit twice by bombs in WWII, but the dome held, they rebuilt and it is still beautiful.
I made it back to the Museum to meet Katie (she didn't go to St. Paul's and really missed out) and all the rain clouds passed while we were looking around the gift shop, so we actually had sunshine for our walk to the tube station. We went back on the skywalk and got to see these apartments (sorry, flats) that were just beautiful. Almost every balcony was thick with flowers. They also had a pond and a space where you could actually sit below the level of the water. We made it back to the train station and it was pouring rain. Luckily the tube came up in the station so we didn't have to get wet. We made it back to Canterbury and the rain had stopped so we didn't get soaked on the way back, then I made dinner and came in to write up the blog and upload photos. I think I'm going to bed soon. All those stairs (and coming down on iron grate spiral stairs *shudder*) really took it out of me.
Oh, and speaking of amazingness, I got 100 on my first paper! Yay!
Night all. :)
Got up and made it into London with Katie (an anthropology grad student) by 10:20. I took the tube for the first time today. It's not that difficult if you know where you're going. And I have to say the Oyster cards are handy. We got a little turned around coming out of the station, and it took us a while to figure out that the Museum was on the skywalk, but after that, we made it to the Museum fine.
The Museum of London begins at that end of the last ice age and works it's way to present day London. Some of the stuff was really neat, but I enjoyed the gallery after the Roman gallery (which is what I primarily went there to see) which took you from the Anglo-Saxons, through the Normans, and up to King Henry VIII. It seamlessly took you through a whole lot of time in a fairly small space. I liked the museum, but I stopped after the Great Fire so I could go to St. Paul's.
St. Paul's was AMAZING! If you are ever anywhere near, I highly suggest you go. It's a little pricey to get in, but so worth it. Make sure that you climb to the golden gallery at the top. You can see FOREVER! I was so happy when it didn't rain while I was up there. I was able to take some amazing pictures The church is so beautiful. I'm sad I couldn't take pictures, but I can see why they wouldn't want you to. The audio tour is really good. They take you through the whole church and even explain things that a non-Christian might not be familiar with. The church is absolutely beautiful. They history of it is amazing, and the crypt is a history lesson all in itself. In the main church, behind the high altar, there is a chapel that is dedicated to the American soldiers who lost their lives in WWII in Britain or on the way to Britain. They have all of their names in a book and the page is turned everyday. They also have a beautiful painting that is called 'The Light of the World' and shows Jesus holding a lantern and knocking at a door with no handle on the outside. It's supposed to be an allegory, that you have to let Jesus in. The church is the fourth (or possible fifth) to sit on the site. It was built after the Great Fire of 1666 burned the old one down. It had been hit twice by bombs in WWII, but the dome held, they rebuilt and it is still beautiful.
I made it back to the Museum to meet Katie (she didn't go to St. Paul's and really missed out) and all the rain clouds passed while we were looking around the gift shop, so we actually had sunshine for our walk to the tube station. We went back on the skywalk and got to see these apartments (sorry, flats) that were just beautiful. Almost every balcony was thick with flowers. They also had a pond and a space where you could actually sit below the level of the water. We made it back to the train station and it was pouring rain. Luckily the tube came up in the station so we didn't have to get wet. We made it back to Canterbury and the rain had stopped so we didn't get soaked on the way back, then I made dinner and came in to write up the blog and upload photos. I think I'm going to bed soon. All those stairs (and coming down on iron grate spiral stairs *shudder*) really took it out of me.
Oh, and speaking of amazingness, I got 100 on my first paper! Yay!
Night all. :)
Back to Class
So my free days were fun. I finished my essay, made it to the British Museum on my birthday (see below and also, picture are up now. :)) and rested from both Salisbury and the British Museum. So today is back to class. Had class at 8 in the morning and we discussed a bit of scheduling, and then, at 11:30 we are going to the Roman Museum here in Canterbury. We have dinner tonight at 5:30, so it's not quite enough time to go anywhere, so I'm planning on going to the library to get a serious start on the research for my independent study. It kind of makes me sad because it is an absolutely GORGEOUS day outside. It doesn't look like rain and I'm not wearing a jacket! It's been rather cold and always looking like rain for the past few days, so it's nice to see the sun. Everything is so green here, but it all the rain does have a price. I would actually rather be warm and see the sun in Texas than live here year round. Especially since this is the first day IN JULY that I've been able to go out without a jacket. It's a nice break from heat, but I am not a cold weather girl.
Tomorrow at some point we are all supposed to go to the Museum of London to see their Roman stuff, which is the unit we're on for my anthropology class. Since a bunch of people are taking an 11:45 train to see the Freud house, we've discussed the whole class leave at 9 or so and seeing the museum before they go to the Freud house. Since I'm not going to the Freud house, I'm planning on going over to Hyde park and maybe Covent Gardens. I hope the weather stays nice, but I brought heavier jacket so I'll be alright to be outside either way, but I'd rather have a sunny day to walk around and take pictures.
I've discovered that I absolutely LOVE salt and vinegar chips. They have them everywhere here so I can get a bag with lunch. Half the time I save them for a snack later. I'm currently eating a bag I bought with lunch yesterday at the British Museum and never got to. They'll hold me over until I can eat lunch after the museum. I'm going to hold this post until then and finish when I get back.
Well, I accidentally left this until this morning. Oh well.
The museum was pretty cool. We went down stairs so that we were at the level of Roman Canterbury, which is about 15 feet below modern Canterbury. They had displays of what the city would have looked like in Roman times, as well as before and after. They had also excavated part of a house and you could see the remains of it in the museum, because they'd put up glass and left caverns where the foundations and a couple of mosaics were.
I made it to the library to get started on the research for my independent study, then dinner and bed. Today I'm going to see the Museum of London and St. Paul's cathedral.
Tomorrow at some point we are all supposed to go to the Museum of London to see their Roman stuff, which is the unit we're on for my anthropology class. Since a bunch of people are taking an 11:45 train to see the Freud house, we've discussed the whole class leave at 9 or so and seeing the museum before they go to the Freud house. Since I'm not going to the Freud house, I'm planning on going over to Hyde park and maybe Covent Gardens. I hope the weather stays nice, but I brought heavier jacket so I'll be alright to be outside either way, but I'd rather have a sunny day to walk around and take pictures.
I've discovered that I absolutely LOVE salt and vinegar chips. They have them everywhere here so I can get a bag with lunch. Half the time I save them for a snack later. I'm currently eating a bag I bought with lunch yesterday at the British Museum and never got to. They'll hold me over until I can eat lunch after the museum. I'm going to hold this post until then and finish when I get back.
Well, I accidentally left this until this morning. Oh well.
The museum was pretty cool. We went down stairs so that we were at the level of Roman Canterbury, which is about 15 feet below modern Canterbury. They had displays of what the city would have looked like in Roman times, as well as before and after. They had also excavated part of a house and you could see the remains of it in the museum, because they'd put up glass and left caverns where the foundations and a couple of mosaics were.
I made it to the library to get started on the research for my independent study, then dinner and bed. Today I'm going to see the Museum of London and St. Paul's cathedral.
Wednesday, July 13, 2011
Birthday at the British Museum
Word to the wise: Do NOT try to do the British Museum in one day. It was amazing, but my feet hurt. A lot. And there's way to much to see to pay attention to half of it when you're trying to pack everything in. But it was still awesome. Kiki (one of the girls in the program, who was actually supposed to be my roomate, before we got lucky and both got singles) came with me and I'm glad she did. Museums are more fun with somebody, so long as they know how to be about a musuem. Kiki was a lot of fun. She even let me look around the bookstore. :) I didn't get anything, but not for lack of looking. While both of the Egypt halls were packed with people all day, the rest of the halls were reasonable and we could look around at our own pace.
I had two favorite galleries. The first was the gallery that was themed 'Enlightenment'. It was almost a history of the museum! But is was really how scientific thought developed through the early 1800's. The room was set up like a giant study, with floor to ceiling bookshelves filled with books and stuff! And the stuff was so cool I forgot to look at the books. They had a Rosetta Stone that you could touch. Which was good, because I think I elbowed people so I could just see the real one. They had a bunch of busts and statues of people, as well as random stuff, like stuffed birds, canopic jars, Moche pottery, astrolabes, the usual.
My other favorite room was the hall of Egyptian statues. Not the Rosetta Stone, necesarily, that was kind of a pain, but the really big people were cool. There was guy whose head was as big as I was!
I am slowly realizing that I'm a bit punch drunk and if you want proof, you should look at the descriptions for the pictures I took today and put on facebook. To spare the world a similiar fate here, I'm going to bed. I have a productive day planned for tomorrow. We'll see how well that turns out. :)
Oh, and pretty much nothing happened yesterday. I ate lunch and wandered a bit, read a book and went to bed. It felt wonderful.
I had two favorite galleries. The first was the gallery that was themed 'Enlightenment'. It was almost a history of the museum! But is was really how scientific thought developed through the early 1800's. The room was set up like a giant study, with floor to ceiling bookshelves filled with books and stuff! And the stuff was so cool I forgot to look at the books. They had a Rosetta Stone that you could touch. Which was good, because I think I elbowed people so I could just see the real one. They had a bunch of busts and statues of people, as well as random stuff, like stuffed birds, canopic jars, Moche pottery, astrolabes, the usual.
My other favorite room was the hall of Egyptian statues. Not the Rosetta Stone, necesarily, that was kind of a pain, but the really big people were cool. There was guy whose head was as big as I was!
I am slowly realizing that I'm a bit punch drunk and if you want proof, you should look at the descriptions for the pictures I took today and put on facebook. To spare the world a similiar fate here, I'm going to bed. I have a productive day planned for tomorrow. We'll see how well that turns out. :)
Oh, and pretty much nothing happened yesterday. I ate lunch and wandered a bit, read a book and went to bed. It felt wonderful.
Tuesday, July 12, 2011
Stonehenge!
Well, after 12 hours of sleep I'm finally ready to write this post.
We had dinner last night as a group, and I had lamb and roast potatoes. Both were very good, but it was way too much to eat in one sitting. Then to bed early because...
I was up at 1:45 the next morning to get ready for the bus. We got a knock on our door at 2, loaded the bus (which the Brits call a coach) at 2:15 and were on our way at 2:30. It was cold. All so we could get there an hour before our tour started. But it was okay because we took a mini field trip to the round barrows that you can walk to from the parking lot at Stonehenge. We started walking as the sun came up at 5:15 or so and I got some really cool pictures of the sheep in the field. They were so... sheepy. And sheepish for that matter. Then we had to walk through a cow field to get to the barrows. McGees says that we have cows back home, to which his daughter replies, 'yeah, but these are dairy cows. We only have meat cows.' We were all rather punch drunk at the time and as such, this was a hilarious statement.
The barrows were really cool. Their are a lot of them around Stonehenge. They've found a lot of stuff buried with the people in the barrows and as our guide said, this was kind of the 'Valley of the Kings' for prehistoric Britain. While we were on the barrows, the fog started to lift and we could sort of see Stonehenge in the distance. I got some neat pictures of Stonehenge just peeking out of the fog.
We went to meet our tour guide, and thankfully it had started to warm up as the sun came out. Our tour guide was a nice old lady who had done the tour for the Texas State group for seven years. She took us to various stones and explained what they were and why they were called what they were called. She explained the current theories on what Stonehenge was used for as well as where the stones came from and the various building stages. Then we got to wander around and take pictures. She also gave us some dowsing rods to play with. They were nifty, but I think my hands were too cold for them to work properly. I got a bunch of pictures. The color of the stones is wonderful with the green green grass and the blue sky.
We then got back on the bus to be dropped off at a youth hostel in Salisbury, where we ate breakfast. We then walked to Salisbury Cathedral, which was so beautiful. The church is huge. I don't usually like people in my photos, but I had to have some just for scale. I was on the edge of the green space around the cathedral and I could barely get the front in the picture. The inside is split into a bunch of smaller areas. There are little rooms off the sides of the cathedral and the main center area is split up by the altar in the middle and the columns running down either side. They also have a copy of the Magna Carta, but I honestly don't remember seeing it. They also had a 400 year old King James Bible, turned to the beatitudes. They had a lot of displays about the Magna Carta, but that's not really my area.
Then, to the gift shop! I found a bunch of post cards and a bell for Grandma. :) They also had a couple of Stonehenge post cards, so I got one. Then I hung out with some people for a while while we were figuring out who all was doing what. The group that was going to the museum for anthro was all going to bath, and the people who were going home weren't going to the museum. So I went through the museum (which was alright, but I think I was too tired to properly enjoy, and they didn't have some of the info I was hoping they'd have, though they did have a cool model of sunrise on the summer solstice at Stonehenge) and then went home by myself. I asked the guy at tickets the easiest way to get from Salisbury to Canterbury and he printed me out a timetable with the appropriate trains on it. I was lucky because the next train for London (where I had to change) left three minutes after I got there. Then I got on another train at Waterloo station in London and came home. I actually made it here ahead of the people who left before I went to the museum. They tried to take the high speed train, which necessitated going all the way across London and then waiting an hour for a train.
At that point I uploaded photos, talked to Mom, and went to bed. 12 hours later, I'm feeling more like a human being and I'm going to have to start in on my essay. Fun!
We had dinner last night as a group, and I had lamb and roast potatoes. Both were very good, but it was way too much to eat in one sitting. Then to bed early because...
I was up at 1:45 the next morning to get ready for the bus. We got a knock on our door at 2, loaded the bus (which the Brits call a coach) at 2:15 and were on our way at 2:30. It was cold. All so we could get there an hour before our tour started. But it was okay because we took a mini field trip to the round barrows that you can walk to from the parking lot at Stonehenge. We started walking as the sun came up at 5:15 or so and I got some really cool pictures of the sheep in the field. They were so... sheepy. And sheepish for that matter. Then we had to walk through a cow field to get to the barrows. McGees says that we have cows back home, to which his daughter replies, 'yeah, but these are dairy cows. We only have meat cows.' We were all rather punch drunk at the time and as such, this was a hilarious statement.
The barrows were really cool. Their are a lot of them around Stonehenge. They've found a lot of stuff buried with the people in the barrows and as our guide said, this was kind of the 'Valley of the Kings' for prehistoric Britain. While we were on the barrows, the fog started to lift and we could sort of see Stonehenge in the distance. I got some neat pictures of Stonehenge just peeking out of the fog.
We went to meet our tour guide, and thankfully it had started to warm up as the sun came out. Our tour guide was a nice old lady who had done the tour for the Texas State group for seven years. She took us to various stones and explained what they were and why they were called what they were called. She explained the current theories on what Stonehenge was used for as well as where the stones came from and the various building stages. Then we got to wander around and take pictures. She also gave us some dowsing rods to play with. They were nifty, but I think my hands were too cold for them to work properly. I got a bunch of pictures. The color of the stones is wonderful with the green green grass and the blue sky.
We then got back on the bus to be dropped off at a youth hostel in Salisbury, where we ate breakfast. We then walked to Salisbury Cathedral, which was so beautiful. The church is huge. I don't usually like people in my photos, but I had to have some just for scale. I was on the edge of the green space around the cathedral and I could barely get the front in the picture. The inside is split into a bunch of smaller areas. There are little rooms off the sides of the cathedral and the main center area is split up by the altar in the middle and the columns running down either side. They also have a copy of the Magna Carta, but I honestly don't remember seeing it. They also had a 400 year old King James Bible, turned to the beatitudes. They had a lot of displays about the Magna Carta, but that's not really my area.
Then, to the gift shop! I found a bunch of post cards and a bell for Grandma. :) They also had a couple of Stonehenge post cards, so I got one. Then I hung out with some people for a while while we were figuring out who all was doing what. The group that was going to the museum for anthro was all going to bath, and the people who were going home weren't going to the museum. So I went through the museum (which was alright, but I think I was too tired to properly enjoy, and they didn't have some of the info I was hoping they'd have, though they did have a cool model of sunrise on the summer solstice at Stonehenge) and then went home by myself. I asked the guy at tickets the easiest way to get from Salisbury to Canterbury and he printed me out a timetable with the appropriate trains on it. I was lucky because the next train for London (where I had to change) left three minutes after I got there. Then I got on another train at Waterloo station in London and came home. I actually made it here ahead of the people who left before I went to the museum. They tried to take the high speed train, which necessitated going all the way across London and then waiting an hour for a train.
At that point I uploaded photos, talked to Mom, and went to bed. 12 hours later, I'm feeling more like a human being and I'm going to have to start in on my essay. Fun!
Sunday, July 10, 2011
Church Day
Warning: This post (and a couple others) has been edited and added to. That'll show me to make a post in the middle of the day. So, there's new stuff here. :)
Compared to the last few (and tomorrow), today is a pretty slow day. I had class this morning, where we talked about Neolithic Britons and the henges, after I made it there, of course. I got a little bit turned around and had to find the rest of the class to follow to make it to the cafeteria.
Afterward, we met to go on a walking tour of the churches. First we went to St. Martin's Church. St. Martin's church has a wonderful history. It was built by the Romans and used by Queen Bertha, a Christian princess from France who was married to the pagan King Ethelbert. Pope Gregory sent St. Augustine to King Ethelbert to bring Christianity back to the British Isles, and St. Augustine used St. Martin's as his main church, expanding it. Later, the Norman's added on to the church, but the church is supposed to be the oldest continually used Christian church.
Then we went to St. Augustine's Abbey. The abbey was built by St. Augustine on land given to him by King Ethelbert. The Anglo-Saxon buildings were mostly torn down by the Normans, who built a larger abbey on the grounds, rededicating it as St. Augustine's Abbey (originally it was dedicated to Sts. Peter and Paul). Then, Henry VIII broke with the Church and the abbey was destroyed and some of the larger buildings were used as a palace for Anne of Cleves. Elizabeth I and Charles I also used the palace, then it passed out of royal hands and eventually was abandoned. The ruins are uncovered now and make a very peaceful place to visit. There is very little of the walls still standing, but quite a bit of the crypt is still there, including a chapel with some painted tiles and an altar with crosses carved into it. One of the signs showed a picture of a coconut that was held in silver because it was so rare and valuable. To which I had to immediately begin "Where'd you get the coconuts?" "We found them." "In Mercia?!" I also got to try some Honey Mead. It was just too English of a thing to pass up. Besides, that was the one thing that I'd always wanted to try. It tasted like honey, but it had a bit of a kick.
I found the Catholic Church today! It was actually only a block or two over from how we get to the train station, so once I saw the spire it was easy to find. It's called St. Thomas and it's named for Thomas a Becket, who made Canterbury a pilgrimage spot. It actually has relics and a shrine for St. Thomas. It's a beautiful old church, but I didn't take any pictures. I'll have to when I go back. The choir was just starting practice when I got there. I was sitting there for a while when they started playing 'Here I Am, Lord.' I was off to the opposite side of the church, so I sang along softly. I love that song. They have a lute! It makes for a beautiful sound. I got a postcard and I'm going to go look at the little store that they have.
I've started on a bit of homework and looked at how to get to Battle to see the Battlefield for the Battle of Hastings (which didn't actually take place in Hastings) and the Abbey that William the Conqueror built there. I'd also like to see Hastings Castle, but I don't know if it's open. From Google, it looks amazing. McGee suggested that I invite the military history specialist and he's agree it's something he wants to see.
Tomorrow is Stonehenge! I'm so excited! I was thinking of taking Tuesday to crash, go to daily mass, write my paper and run errands and then go to the British Museum on Wednesday (my birthday!). I know another girl who is planning on going to an art museum or might go with me to the British Museum, but I'd be able to at least ride the train up with her. The house is emptying out for our free days, but I don't mind. I'm trying to think if there's something I want to do Tuesday afternoon and I still need to find something to do on Thursday. I don't want to sit around here. I can do most of the stuff here after a class day, so I want to get out to see England while I can. Maybe I'll go to Dover Tuesday afternoon...
Compared to the last few (and tomorrow), today is a pretty slow day. I had class this morning, where we talked about Neolithic Britons and the henges, after I made it there, of course. I got a little bit turned around and had to find the rest of the class to follow to make it to the cafeteria.
Afterward, we met to go on a walking tour of the churches. First we went to St. Martin's Church. St. Martin's church has a wonderful history. It was built by the Romans and used by Queen Bertha, a Christian princess from France who was married to the pagan King Ethelbert. Pope Gregory sent St. Augustine to King Ethelbert to bring Christianity back to the British Isles, and St. Augustine used St. Martin's as his main church, expanding it. Later, the Norman's added on to the church, but the church is supposed to be the oldest continually used Christian church.
Then we went to St. Augustine's Abbey. The abbey was built by St. Augustine on land given to him by King Ethelbert. The Anglo-Saxon buildings were mostly torn down by the Normans, who built a larger abbey on the grounds, rededicating it as St. Augustine's Abbey (originally it was dedicated to Sts. Peter and Paul). Then, Henry VIII broke with the Church and the abbey was destroyed and some of the larger buildings were used as a palace for Anne of Cleves. Elizabeth I and Charles I also used the palace, then it passed out of royal hands and eventually was abandoned. The ruins are uncovered now and make a very peaceful place to visit. There is very little of the walls still standing, but quite a bit of the crypt is still there, including a chapel with some painted tiles and an altar with crosses carved into it. One of the signs showed a picture of a coconut that was held in silver because it was so rare and valuable. To which I had to immediately begin "Where'd you get the coconuts?" "We found them." "In Mercia?!" I also got to try some Honey Mead. It was just too English of a thing to pass up. Besides, that was the one thing that I'd always wanted to try. It tasted like honey, but it had a bit of a kick.
I found the Catholic Church today! It was actually only a block or two over from how we get to the train station, so once I saw the spire it was easy to find. It's called St. Thomas and it's named for Thomas a Becket, who made Canterbury a pilgrimage spot. It actually has relics and a shrine for St. Thomas. It's a beautiful old church, but I didn't take any pictures. I'll have to when I go back. The choir was just starting practice when I got there. I was sitting there for a while when they started playing 'Here I Am, Lord.' I was off to the opposite side of the church, so I sang along softly. I love that song. They have a lute! It makes for a beautiful sound. I got a postcard and I'm going to go look at the little store that they have.
I've started on a bit of homework and looked at how to get to Battle to see the Battlefield for the Battle of Hastings (which didn't actually take place in Hastings) and the Abbey that William the Conqueror built there. I'd also like to see Hastings Castle, but I don't know if it's open. From Google, it looks amazing. McGee suggested that I invite the military history specialist and he's agree it's something he wants to see.
Tomorrow is Stonehenge! I'm so excited! I was thinking of taking Tuesday to crash, go to daily mass, write my paper and run errands and then go to the British Museum on Wednesday (my birthday!). I know another girl who is planning on going to an art museum or might go with me to the British Museum, but I'd be able to at least ride the train up with her. The house is emptying out for our free days, but I don't mind. I'm trying to think if there's something I want to do Tuesday afternoon and I still need to find something to do on Thursday. I don't want to sit around here. I can do most of the stuff here after a class day, so I want to get out to see England while I can. Maybe I'll go to Dover Tuesday afternoon...
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Two Days In!
So, Wow! Long two days. I've managed to cram a lot in. Friday morning I woke up and went to my first class. We met in the courtyard and then went to the cafeteria. We mainly talked semantics. Afterward, McGee was going to the i-zone (IT) and it's in the same building as the library, so I tagged along and found the books on the Normans (my independent study topic). I ate lunch a cute cafe with a couple of the other girls and found out that lemonade is actually funny tasting sprite. Then we went on a walking tour of Canterbury. We saw the city walls, some of which were knocked down by Cromwell's army, Dane John's hill, which used to be a Norman palisade, some bomb shelter's from WWII, Canterbury Castle, which was amazing, and then we went to the Greyfriars' Garden. It's the garden of an actual monastery and is absolutely beautiful. Then we took a tour of the Pilgrim's Hospital and were off for tea. That night was one of the girl's birthdays, so we went out to the Penny, a pub less than a block away from the House and everyone (but me) had a pint.
Today, we went to London. We went a took a tour of Parliament, which was really neat. The building is incredible and the traditions are pretty cool too. If you aren't a peer, you can't sit in the House of Lords. Which was sad because our feet hurt from waiting in line. I got a couple of post cards and I got Mom a thimble. We had a really cool experience just as we got out. We were standing around eating our snacks outside the cafe in Parliament when Big Ben started ringing. If I'd been smart, I would have had a video going, but I didn't think about it until it was almost done ringing. Then, we went to the Imperial War Museum. They had a gun out front with shells bigger than I was. I also looked through the spy exhibit. At that point, Sam and I couldn't find anyone we knew, so we headed back to the train station. I got some pictures of Big Ben and Parliament from across the Thames and we made it on a train back home, where we ran into some very drunk Englishmen, who proceeded to give us advice on the best pubs in Canterbury. They were rather vulgar, but actually pretty funny. It was definitely an experience.
My feet hurt from all the standing and walking and I am definitely tired.Tomorrow is a walking tour of the churches of Canterbury and Monday is STONEHENGE! Up at 2 in the morning, but so worth it.
Today, we went to London. We went a took a tour of Parliament, which was really neat. The building is incredible and the traditions are pretty cool too. If you aren't a peer, you can't sit in the House of Lords. Which was sad because our feet hurt from waiting in line. I got a couple of post cards and I got Mom a thimble. We had a really cool experience just as we got out. We were standing around eating our snacks outside the cafe in Parliament when Big Ben started ringing. If I'd been smart, I would have had a video going, but I didn't think about it until it was almost done ringing. Then, we went to the Imperial War Museum. They had a gun out front with shells bigger than I was. I also looked through the spy exhibit. At that point, Sam and I couldn't find anyone we knew, so we headed back to the train station. I got some pictures of Big Ben and Parliament from across the Thames and we made it on a train back home, where we ran into some very drunk Englishmen, who proceeded to give us advice on the best pubs in Canterbury. They were rather vulgar, but actually pretty funny. It was definitely an experience.
My feet hurt from all the standing and walking and I am definitely tired.Tomorrow is a walking tour of the churches of Canterbury and Monday is STONEHENGE! Up at 2 in the morning, but so worth it.
Thursday, July 7, 2011
I'm Here!
I finally made it to Canterbury! Yay! However, due to messes with the internet and getting the slideshow up and running, I'm now posting this at 8 o'clock Canterbury time. Or 20:00 as they say here. Luckily, I brought a notebook that I've been writing in all day, to prepare for this, so I still have my initial impressions down. :)
By far the coolest thing about the plane ride was watching the sunrise from 37,000 feet. You can actually see the point on the horizon where the night is giving way to day. Due to being up at dawn, my internal clock has been reset, and despite getting at most an hour of sleep on the plane, I'm actually not quite ready to go to bed. However, knowing how that will catch up with me, I'm going to finish this, then take a shower and bed for me.
When we left the airport, it was raining, but by the time we got here, the sun was shining and while a bit chilly (somewhere in the mid-60's F, I think) it turned into a beautiful day. We had pizza for lunch while going over the basics and then we received the necessaries for our stay, like food money. We were given a break to settle in a little (though not to nap) and then we were off.
The group made two forays out into Canterbury today. We split into two groups, one to go with Dr. McGee (or McGee, or His Excellency) and one to go with Mrs. McGee (which she doesn't answer to, only Stacie). I went with McGee first and got a bit of a walkabout for Canterbury. He showed us where to get sim cards for our phone so we can get a local number as well as the best place to exchange money. We took a small detour to Canterbury Cathedral, but we'll get a full tour later. He took us in to meet the owner of the Jolly Sailor, a pub near our flats that has, I kid you not, hung a Texas flag to celebrate our arrival. We also got to see what seems to be the main tourist shopping district in Canterbury where even our relatively large group of 15 blended in with no problem. It has a Burger King, a McDonald's, and a Claire's. As well as a street that (minus the subway) could be a dead ringer for Diagon Alley.
The second foray was to the supermarket. Where I got batteries for my poor camera and muffins for breakfast tomorrow. I figure I can go back tomorrow for lunch or try to make it to the school cafeteria. I have discovered two things from this trip. The first is that people in Britain are not nearly as quick as Texans to try to get out of your way. They move fast and they expect that you'll get out of the way either by jumping forward or back. Or of course, like the natives, by never getting in the situation in the first place. The second thing I learned is the the front door to Lefranc House is hard to find. I walked past it three times before I figured out where it was and another two times before I figured out how to get in.
Of course after this, I rather desperately needed the internet, not only to post, but to let my mom know that I was alive. So I managed to get a cord by going to talk to the resident people, but then I had to go to the computer lab to sign in because the internet didn't feel like working. Which, in hindsight, was completely unnecessary because the problem was the internet not the sign in and I fixed the internet rather quickly when I got back. But that's life. And now, I'm going to unpack a little and go to bed.
P.S. If you click on the slideshow, you can go to my flickr account and see all of the pictures in a slightly bigger format as well as comment. I look forward to hearing from all of you. :)
By far the coolest thing about the plane ride was watching the sunrise from 37,000 feet. You can actually see the point on the horizon where the night is giving way to day. Due to being up at dawn, my internal clock has been reset, and despite getting at most an hour of sleep on the plane, I'm actually not quite ready to go to bed. However, knowing how that will catch up with me, I'm going to finish this, then take a shower and bed for me.
When we left the airport, it was raining, but by the time we got here, the sun was shining and while a bit chilly (somewhere in the mid-60's F, I think) it turned into a beautiful day. We had pizza for lunch while going over the basics and then we received the necessaries for our stay, like food money. We were given a break to settle in a little (though not to nap) and then we were off.
The group made two forays out into Canterbury today. We split into two groups, one to go with Dr. McGee (or McGee, or His Excellency) and one to go with Mrs. McGee (which she doesn't answer to, only Stacie). I went with McGee first and got a bit of a walkabout for Canterbury. He showed us where to get sim cards for our phone so we can get a local number as well as the best place to exchange money. We took a small detour to Canterbury Cathedral, but we'll get a full tour later. He took us in to meet the owner of the Jolly Sailor, a pub near our flats that has, I kid you not, hung a Texas flag to celebrate our arrival. We also got to see what seems to be the main tourist shopping district in Canterbury where even our relatively large group of 15 blended in with no problem. It has a Burger King, a McDonald's, and a Claire's. As well as a street that (minus the subway) could be a dead ringer for Diagon Alley.
The second foray was to the supermarket. Where I got batteries for my poor camera and muffins for breakfast tomorrow. I figure I can go back tomorrow for lunch or try to make it to the school cafeteria. I have discovered two things from this trip. The first is that people in Britain are not nearly as quick as Texans to try to get out of your way. They move fast and they expect that you'll get out of the way either by jumping forward or back. Or of course, like the natives, by never getting in the situation in the first place. The second thing I learned is the the front door to Lefranc House is hard to find. I walked past it three times before I figured out where it was and another two times before I figured out how to get in.
Of course after this, I rather desperately needed the internet, not only to post, but to let my mom know that I was alive. So I managed to get a cord by going to talk to the resident people, but then I had to go to the computer lab to sign in because the internet didn't feel like working. Which, in hindsight, was completely unnecessary because the problem was the internet not the sign in and I fixed the internet rather quickly when I got back. But that's life. And now, I'm going to unpack a little and go to bed.
P.S. If you click on the slideshow, you can go to my flickr account and see all of the pictures in a slightly bigger format as well as comment. I look forward to hearing from all of you. :)
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