at posting. gosh. i haven't posted in over a month! i completely got swept up in this europe business, and updating this blog seemed to be pushed to the back of my to-do list. things have been pretty intense over the last month--we finished tutorials and seminars and are now into the integral period of our semester. just a bunch of lectures, then a paper and test at the end...THE END, by the way = 16 days and i'm freaking out! i'm in love with europe, and i don't really wanna leave. being here has opened my eyes up to just how much of a bubble the states is in. i mean...even watching bbc news shows that american media is terribly censored and biased. blah. so basically...someone's gonna have to snatch me out of my bed on april 12th because it'll be a pretty depressing day.
while writing my seminar term paper, we experienced an EARTHQUAKE! (this was about a month ago...and i definitely should have written about it when it happened) so i was just sitting...talking on the phone and attempting to write about appearance vs. reality in shakespeare, when the ceiling started to shake. i thought i was going completely NUTTER so i just sat there staring at the walls, telling myself to chill out. but apparently there was an earthquake registering 4.2 on the richter scale in southeastern england that was felt in oxford. we were all freaking out though. no one died; but i think a piece of a chimney fell on someone...somewhere. my first earthquake happened in england. how sweet.
Thursday, 27 March 2008
Monday, 11 February 2008
oxford quirks and when in wales...
i meant to update this blog a little more. i'll really try to...instead of writing, i tend to take photos, but i should have some words down too...let's see. since january 20th, i've mostly been doing school work and exploring the streets of oxford. i think i basically know my way around now. i really love the quirky culture around here, just a different vibe from back home. i'm beginning to crave tea and kebabs all the time, and people watching is a pretty fun (creeps?) interest. the girls love their boots and the boys love their scarves. i need to make sure i look the other way when crossing streets. there are no vending machines here...or paper towels/napkins! the bathrooms are called "toilets" and we stand in"queue" instead of line. those cute little red phone booths are called "phone boxes" and when i'm feeling a cold coming on, i'll take a lemsip and a paracetamol (haha). just add "fockin'" before every word you say, and you'll have an automatic british accent. it's true! i love the bells that ring every fifteen minutes. i track my time that way. i love gazing out the window at the beautiful oxford skyline. i'm starting to feel very comfy here. there are so many things i still need to see in oxford. as i see them, i promise to write. sometimes i feel a little isolated from the english people (just because our program is so secluded) so i'll try to do more "oxfordian" activities, just to meet some locals. like going to the ROCK PUB. it was insane, and i wish i brought my camera. we met these cute locals, who were so friendly and welcoming. they told us all about the best clubs and places the chill. we even got their digits haha. maybe we should call them sometime soon? i hearts le rock pub. that friday we made it to this local nightclub called FILTH (lol). it's located above our grocery store, sainsbury's. my friends and i were a little skeptical, but it turned out to be a great time. we danced all night--the music was great. here's a photo of the crew:
i love them! anyway...we're totally going back. we also went to christ church (the college, the actual church, and the dining hall where they filmed harry potter!) it was crazy..here are some photossssss:
i'm so glad we got to see this, and i'll definitely try to visit once more. i also saw a theatre production of "closer" (which is totally one of my favorite movies!) and it was pretty cool to see it acted out right in front of me. i couldn't help saying the lines along with them, and noticing little differences like...the guy playing dan looked a little like jude, the guy playing larry wasn't clive owen-y enough, the girl playing anna needed a bigger mouth, and the girl playing alice wasn't charmingly american like natalie haha. nevertheless, they all did a GREAT job, and i'm glad i was able to go. we went to the "cinema" that weekend too, and saw "penelope" with christina ricci. it was really cute, and james mcavoy is a new crush of mine lol. note to self: movie theatres in the uk have a very different nacho cheese than in the states. and are even more expensive.
so this past saturday we took a day trip to wales (!). 'r brydferthed caer chan caerdydd, cymru (the beautiful city of cardiff) to be exact. we had to be at the train station by 5:45am so i was a little panicky when i overslept...but it was all good, i went turbo speed and got ready in time. it took three trains and a bus before we made it to cardiff around 9:30am. little did we know, we decided to visit cardiff on the day of a HUGE rugby match: wales vs. scotland. rugby is the national sport of wales...and they are intense about it! there's a lot of pride in wales...and you can see it especially in rugby. as soon as we arrived, we were greeted by these rugger fans who were so "terribly friendly" according to courtney. i agree! check out the kilts! they were reppin' scotland...
so awesome. next we made it to cardiff castle. the tour was informative, and really neat. the castle was a remake of an older castle during the norman occupation of wales. it was remade in the 18th century and was lived in until the 1930s...it has themed rooms of different periods in history...like victorian and georgian...it was pretty cool.
after a really steep, twisty-turny climb, i made it to the top of that keep...it was pretty sweet, and we got a nice view of the cardiff skyline.
okay, so after the castle, we decided to go for lunch. everything was super crowded (because of the game), and we ended up in pizza hut. which is crazy classy in the uk haha. it was sooo nuts outside when i went to find an atm...i felt like i was being swallowed in a sea of red. scalpers were out scalping...people were wrapped in welsh flags, i had never seen anything like it. it seemed like the whole country was out in support of their rugby team. and they were really friendly to the scots too! after lunch when we were standing outside of pizza hut, we saw a troop of horses...supposedly princess anne was coming through to see the game! i didn't see her, but my friend sean did, and he was so excited! after this we shopped a little, first a gift shop where i bought a little welsh dragon. i named him idris--after a valiant giant in welsh mythology. then we went to the covered market (though no where as cute as the one in oxford) but still pretty sweet.
next we were off to the national museum cardiff. it was nice...everything was in welsh and english as usual...there was a lot of natural history there, and i liked it. but by this time, all the exploring had caught up to us--we were definitely falling asleep haha. after leaving the museum, we decided to find cardiff bay. while walking, we came across this merry-go-round, it felt so surreal:
after walking for a while, we got really confused as to where to catch the bus to the bay. we walked in circles and started to freak because we wanted to get to the bay before sunset. so paige found this chartered bus man to ask for directions. he tried to explain how to get to the bay, but gave in and decided to give us a ride there! he had an hour free, so he took us there out of the kindness of his heart. we tried to pay him, but he told us to buy a drink on him. what a niceass. wales is a country full of niceasses! so the bay was beautiful...the sun was just setting as we arrived.
there was a really neat church there where roald dahl was baptized, so they named the plaza 'roald dahl plaza' in honor of him. we basically just walked around...took pictures...chilled. it was really beautiful there, and i have to go back again. after the bay, we were ready for dinner, but the game had just ended (wales won!) and everywhere was crowded again. we were looking for some traditional welsh cuisine, but because everywhere was PACKED we had to settle for fast food. we circled st. mary's (!) street what felt like a thousand and billion times finding suitable places to eat. everyone was out on the streets...completely drunk and still excited from the big win. even the scottish fans were having fun. one thing about the streets of cardiff...NO TRASH CANS! haha, everyone was just throwing their trash around...piling them up in corners...a river of beer flowed down the streets while everyone stood in queue for chips or crowded into clubs. it was so overwhelming yet completely amazing feeling. i would trade that feeling for anything.
now here's the tricky part. our group of nine split into two groups: me, rashelle, sean, kristen and courtney...and then laura, kathryn, paige and angela were the other group. we separated cause our group needed to find food, while the other group wanted to get to the train station to wait for our train home. when my group got back to the station...the other group was no where to be found! we were really worried because we had no form of communication with them--we wanted to make sure they were safe. after searching, we concluded that they took an earlier train home, so we got on the train to bristol. OMG so, we were on a "quiet car" but not on this night...the train was full of drunken rugger fans, coming home from the game. this really nice family started talking to us...richard was the dad, and tom was the son. there were englishmen, welshmen, scotsmen...all together having a really fun time. they absolutely loved us, made us tell jokes...we even sang the american national anthem together! they were so obsessed with me and rashelle's matching hats...they even tried it on!
haha amazing. everyone was so nice...we all felt very welcome. the crew invited us to a pub in bristol since we had an hour layover there...but they seemed to skip out on us. it was fine...we decided to walk around the streets of bristol until we had to be back at the station to catch our next train. we ran right into bristol cathedral and took some photos...being in a new place is sort of like being born again, everything is completely new and fresh. your mind just snaps a billion photos a minute just to take everything in (and to keep it with you). we couldn't get a good view of bristol in the dark, and the streets were pretty empty. we ran into this guy asking for a light (which we didn't have) so he asked for a picture with us instead! so he got all of his friends together for a photo with us. turns out he was at the game too! was everyone there? here's the photo: (he was amazing)
we made it back to the station for the last train out to swindon (which would take us to two more transferring buses that we would catch back to oxford). as we're sitting on the train (for what feels like an hour) a voice says over the intercom that the train we were on had been canceled...because they couldn't find a driver! so of course we were freaking out...we got directed to a different track where there was an information booth we went to in order to tell our problem. so the guy takes a look at our tickets, gives us a sheet of paper, and tells us to go in front of the station to get a FREE cab back to oxford. AMAZING. so we skipped all the transferring buses and everything. straight ride home. the driver played a lot of hip-hop and bob marley interviews...and i felt so fulfilled haha. no other word to explain it really...i like this whole country hopping idea. so we got back around 12:30am...a full half hour earlier than we expected to be back. the other group had made it back safely, so we were glad about that. supposedly when they got into the station, it was so full of drunken rugger fans, the station people told them to get on the very next train.
so wales = one of the best days of my life! it really was a treat to see. the people were über sweet, so passionate, just...amazingly cool. if you stuck around to read all this, i commend you. this was a giant post! i'll def try and update more frequently to avoid these overwhelming posts!
i love them! anyway...we're totally going back. we also went to christ church (the college, the actual church, and the dining hall where they filmed harry potter!) it was crazy..here are some photossssss:
i'm so glad we got to see this, and i'll definitely try to visit once more. i also saw a theatre production of "closer" (which is totally one of my favorite movies!) and it was pretty cool to see it acted out right in front of me. i couldn't help saying the lines along with them, and noticing little differences like...the guy playing dan looked a little like jude, the guy playing larry wasn't clive owen-y enough, the girl playing anna needed a bigger mouth, and the girl playing alice wasn't charmingly american like natalie haha. nevertheless, they all did a GREAT job, and i'm glad i was able to go. we went to the "cinema" that weekend too, and saw "penelope" with christina ricci. it was really cute, and james mcavoy is a new crush of mine lol. note to self: movie theatres in the uk have a very different nacho cheese than in the states. and are even more expensive.so this past saturday we took a day trip to wales (!). 'r brydferthed caer chan caerdydd, cymru (the beautiful city of cardiff) to be exact. we had to be at the train station by 5:45am so i was a little panicky when i overslept...but it was all good, i went turbo speed and got ready in time. it took three trains and a bus before we made it to cardiff around 9:30am. little did we know, we decided to visit cardiff on the day of a HUGE rugby match: wales vs. scotland. rugby is the national sport of wales...and they are intense about it! there's a lot of pride in wales...and you can see it especially in rugby. as soon as we arrived, we were greeted by these rugger fans who were so "terribly friendly" according to courtney. i agree! check out the kilts! they were reppin' scotland...
so awesome. next we made it to cardiff castle. the tour was informative, and really neat. the castle was a remake of an older castle during the norman occupation of wales. it was remade in the 18th century and was lived in until the 1930s...it has themed rooms of different periods in history...like victorian and georgian...it was pretty cool.
after a really steep, twisty-turny climb, i made it to the top of that keep...it was pretty sweet, and we got a nice view of the cardiff skyline.okay, so after the castle, we decided to go for lunch. everything was super crowded (because of the game), and we ended up in pizza hut. which is crazy classy in the uk haha. it was sooo nuts outside when i went to find an atm...i felt like i was being swallowed in a sea of red. scalpers were out scalping...people were wrapped in welsh flags, i had never seen anything like it. it seemed like the whole country was out in support of their rugby team. and they were really friendly to the scots too! after lunch when we were standing outside of pizza hut, we saw a troop of horses...supposedly princess anne was coming through to see the game! i didn't see her, but my friend sean did, and he was so excited! after this we shopped a little, first a gift shop where i bought a little welsh dragon. i named him idris--after a valiant giant in welsh mythology. then we went to the covered market (though no where as cute as the one in oxford) but still pretty sweet.
next we were off to the national museum cardiff. it was nice...everything was in welsh and english as usual...there was a lot of natural history there, and i liked it. but by this time, all the exploring had caught up to us--we were definitely falling asleep haha. after leaving the museum, we decided to find cardiff bay. while walking, we came across this merry-go-round, it felt so surreal:
after walking for a while, we got really confused as to where to catch the bus to the bay. we walked in circles and started to freak because we wanted to get to the bay before sunset. so paige found this chartered bus man to ask for directions. he tried to explain how to get to the bay, but gave in and decided to give us a ride there! he had an hour free, so he took us there out of the kindness of his heart. we tried to pay him, but he told us to buy a drink on him. what a niceass. wales is a country full of niceasses! so the bay was beautiful...the sun was just setting as we arrived.
there was a really neat church there where roald dahl was baptized, so they named the plaza 'roald dahl plaza' in honor of him. we basically just walked around...took pictures...chilled. it was really beautiful there, and i have to go back again. after the bay, we were ready for dinner, but the game had just ended (wales won!) and everywhere was crowded again. we were looking for some traditional welsh cuisine, but because everywhere was PACKED we had to settle for fast food. we circled st. mary's (!) street what felt like a thousand and billion times finding suitable places to eat. everyone was out on the streets...completely drunk and still excited from the big win. even the scottish fans were having fun. one thing about the streets of cardiff...NO TRASH CANS! haha, everyone was just throwing their trash around...piling them up in corners...a river of beer flowed down the streets while everyone stood in queue for chips or crowded into clubs. it was so overwhelming yet completely amazing feeling. i would trade that feeling for anything.now here's the tricky part. our group of nine split into two groups: me, rashelle, sean, kristen and courtney...and then laura, kathryn, paige and angela were the other group. we separated cause our group needed to find food, while the other group wanted to get to the train station to wait for our train home. when my group got back to the station...the other group was no where to be found! we were really worried because we had no form of communication with them--we wanted to make sure they were safe. after searching, we concluded that they took an earlier train home, so we got on the train to bristol. OMG so, we were on a "quiet car" but not on this night...the train was full of drunken rugger fans, coming home from the game. this really nice family started talking to us...richard was the dad, and tom was the son. there were englishmen, welshmen, scotsmen...all together having a really fun time. they absolutely loved us, made us tell jokes...we even sang the american national anthem together! they were so obsessed with me and rashelle's matching hats...they even tried it on!
haha amazing. everyone was so nice...we all felt very welcome. the crew invited us to a pub in bristol since we had an hour layover there...but they seemed to skip out on us. it was fine...we decided to walk around the streets of bristol until we had to be back at the station to catch our next train. we ran right into bristol cathedral and took some photos...being in a new place is sort of like being born again, everything is completely new and fresh. your mind just snaps a billion photos a minute just to take everything in (and to keep it with you). we couldn't get a good view of bristol in the dark, and the streets were pretty empty. we ran into this guy asking for a light (which we didn't have) so he asked for a picture with us instead! so he got all of his friends together for a photo with us. turns out he was at the game too! was everyone there? here's the photo: (he was amazing)
we made it back to the station for the last train out to swindon (which would take us to two more transferring buses that we would catch back to oxford). as we're sitting on the train (for what feels like an hour) a voice says over the intercom that the train we were on had been canceled...because they couldn't find a driver! so of course we were freaking out...we got directed to a different track where there was an information booth we went to in order to tell our problem. so the guy takes a look at our tickets, gives us a sheet of paper, and tells us to go in front of the station to get a FREE cab back to oxford. AMAZING. so we skipped all the transferring buses and everything. straight ride home. the driver played a lot of hip-hop and bob marley interviews...and i felt so fulfilled haha. no other word to explain it really...i like this whole country hopping idea. so we got back around 12:30am...a full half hour earlier than we expected to be back. the other group had made it back safely, so we were glad about that. supposedly when they got into the station, it was so full of drunken rugger fans, the station people told them to get on the very next train.so wales = one of the best days of my life! it really was a treat to see. the people were über sweet, so passionate, just...amazingly cool. if you stuck around to read all this, i commend you. this was a giant post! i'll def try and update more frequently to avoid these overwhelming posts!
Sunday, 20 January 2008
how i got here...
i guess i've always been a bit obsessed with england. from watching mr. bean as a child and loving spice girls as a tween, england has always seemed like some kind of wonderfantasyland to me, complete with fish and chips, double decker buses and amazing accents. and i knew one day i'd visit. freshman year, i heard about a study abroad program my school does, the centre for medieval and renaissance studies in oxford, england. yeah, i was pretty hyped about it...so last semester i applied, and got accepted, and here i am. there were a few bumps in the road, and i didn't think i'd be able to come...but alas, fate stepped in...leading me here. i promised myself i'd start a blog once i got all settled in...and this is it!
i've been in oxford two weeks now (i can't believe it!) a few of my good friends from st. mary's are doing the program with me. i'm really glad they're here. i've met some very cool people here, friends i know i'll keep around. so far i've been to london twice--first to see the tower of london, and the second time just to sightsee. i was sort of in awe...i mean, it was something i dreamed of my whole life, and to be standing directly under big ben (!) i felt so complete.
here are a few photos:
at the tower oh london
the tower bridge
double phone boxes
just over the thames
the city of oxford is so quaint and cozy, but it's still a city, so it has many of the quirks of back home. when we arrived, there was a protest around the corner from our dorm because the city was planning on cutting down this really old tree (to build something there i guess). these people were living in the tree; they seriously decorated it and called it their home. last week, the cops swarmed it and removed the people...the tree got cut down the next day. just a little taste of oxford...i was pissed though. it was a very interesting situation, and i wonder what might have happened if it continued any longer. it made me miss st. mary's a little. gotta love social activism.
i live right in the city center...between two malls! my building is awesome...it's so oddly shaped and the colors are pretty spazzy...bright yellow and red all over. i've been to some pubs so far, and they're really neat. i love walking around here...there's so much history and culture and you can never be bored, really. the british people seem to be nice...kind of shy, but i am too...so that's something we already have in common. our program is affiliated with st. peter's college of oxford uni, so we get all the perks of an oxford student...even the *great* food!
so this is my first post! i hope to post frequently on many topics from culture shock to....british boys? haha...so look out for photos and musings and stuff. peace.
i've been in oxford two weeks now (i can't believe it!) a few of my good friends from st. mary's are doing the program with me. i'm really glad they're here. i've met some very cool people here, friends i know i'll keep around. so far i've been to london twice--first to see the tower of london, and the second time just to sightsee. i was sort of in awe...i mean, it was something i dreamed of my whole life, and to be standing directly under big ben (!) i felt so complete.
here are a few photos:
at the tower oh london
the tower bridge
double phone boxes
just over the thamesthe city of oxford is so quaint and cozy, but it's still a city, so it has many of the quirks of back home. when we arrived, there was a protest around the corner from our dorm because the city was planning on cutting down this really old tree (to build something there i guess). these people were living in the tree; they seriously decorated it and called it their home. last week, the cops swarmed it and removed the people...the tree got cut down the next day. just a little taste of oxford...i was pissed though. it was a very interesting situation, and i wonder what might have happened if it continued any longer. it made me miss st. mary's a little. gotta love social activism.
i live right in the city center...between two malls! my building is awesome...it's so oddly shaped and the colors are pretty spazzy...bright yellow and red all over. i've been to some pubs so far, and they're really neat. i love walking around here...there's so much history and culture and you can never be bored, really. the british people seem to be nice...kind of shy, but i am too...so that's something we already have in common. our program is affiliated with st. peter's college of oxford uni, so we get all the perks of an oxford student...even the *great* food!
so this is my first post! i hope to post frequently on many topics from culture shock to....british boys? haha...so look out for photos and musings and stuff. peace.
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