School for Scandal vs. Charles Dickens

This morning in class we discussed School for Scandal, a humorous play by Richard Sheridan, and part of Oliver Twist by the wonderful Charles Dickens. Then, we headed off to visit the Charles Dickens museum a few streets over from Bedford Square.

The house was very quiet and quaint, and we almost walked by it because it was so unadvertised. We were able to look through four floors. In the basement, I watched a film chronicling the life of Charles Dickens, and then got to wander through a library full of Charles Dickens books, of varying editions and titles.

The rooms of the house were furnished much like they would have been when Dickens was living in the house, and one room showcased a recent production of Oliver!

I really enjoyed looking at the details of the set and costume construction, some of which were featured in this glass case. There were also a couple costumes on display, and a miniature layout of the set design. My days from Lancer Productions came back to me, and I got a little homesick for the theater.

The house also had a tea shop and garden in the back of the house, where some there were several small tables and some beautiful flowers.

After we all looked through the museum, we headed off on a little walking tour of the area, where we saw some areas that are featured in Oliver Twist. The idea of the walking tour was good, though a little unorganized. We broke from our tour in the early evening, heading off to different places for supper before we all gathered to go to a showing of School of Scandal. One small group of students went with Doctor G down to eat dinner on the river. My group, one that met back at Bedford place before leaving, left with what we thought was plenty of time to reach the theater.

We arrived at the theater at 7:20, and discovered the show started not at 7:30 but at 7:15. Normally, latecomers are not admitted at all, but since our group was five minutes late, and the other group one minute late, they agreed to let us in at the first break. Being a theater individual, I was seething. Not only is it disrespectful to show up late to ANY show, but being Americans, I felt it was an even greater disgrace. My anger kept growing, not only at the lack of organization and miscommunication concerning the play, but the disappointment of what I had thought would be the perfect 'night at the theater.' However, in the dark, waiting to enter the theater late, I took time to give my anger to God, since I could not enjoy the show with anger. God took my anger, and allowed me to not only enjoy the play, but also allowed me to release some previous anger.

The play was wonderful, a combination of modern and historical staging and costuming. Having read the play for class, I was able to catch up quickly and anticipate some of the events.

Another pleasant surprise was that one of the characters in the play is the actor who played Dudley Dursley in the Harry Potter films. Cue another Harry Potter geek moment for HP fans in the class.

What can I say? We're Americans and we've been deprived of seeing the sights of Harry Potter for far too long (at least in my group's case).

For now though, I'm just appreciative of going to the theater. It's such a wonderful experience every time, one that I should do more in the States. Two more shows are planned for the class - Shakespeare's Much Ado about Nothing and Chekov's The Cherry Orchard. And who knows, maybe I'll go to one more mystery show when my Mother joins me!

Stratford and Shakespeare

Welcome to Stratford, Shakespeare's birthplace!

After a two hour train ride, we arrived in Stratford and walked to Shakespeare's house.The house has undergone great renovations in order to preserve the house. Many houses in Stratford are as old as Shakepseare's house, and require a great deal of work to preserve the house.

The house was furnished, some with original furnishings, and some with furnishing from the time. One of the interesting items in the house was a glass window where some of the first visitors to the house in the 1800's would scratch their names, including some famous authors and individuals. In the garden behind the house were several actors, playing music and chatting with the visitors about Shakespeare and life in Stratford.

After touring Shakespeare's house, we took a bit of a hike to Anne Hathaway's house on the outskirts of Stratford. Anne's house, popular because of her marriage to William, was beautiful. Her parents were sheep farmers, so the house has all sorts space for gardens, which are beautiful.

Another view of the gardens at Anne Hathaway's cottage.

There was also a beautiful wood walk near the rear of the property that was extremely peaceful and beautiful. Some local schoolchildren had made pictures and figures to represent characters from some of Shakespeare's work, which were hung throughout the path.

 In addition, the gift store had these AWESOME magnets, which cost a bit more money than I was willing to spend. However, I thought a photo would help me remember, and even make my own magnets. Gotta love Shakespearean insults. 

In addition, these Shakespearean love quotes were also interesting, though not as funny as the insults. Which do you prefer, the love quotes or insults? And which one is your favorite?

 After we walked back to the main part of town, our group stumbled across this wonderful little shop.

 Note, please excuse the brief Harry Potter focus but it's necessary. 

While I don't believe that this is the actual recipe for Butterbeer (it's not dark enough in color), it was still very delicious, especially after all the walking we had done earlier.

The shop was very cute, selling many different types of magical items mentioned in the books, including a large selection of WANDS! Needless to say, several people of our group were 'geeking out' in their excitement.

Alex also found this very fun sign - facial expression not included however. N

For supper, we went to eat at the Black Swan as a group. It was a lovely restaurant, and  we were seated on an enclosed patio.

Now for a new quiz: What's England's favorite dish?
A. Curry
B. Fish and Chips
C. Meat Pies

If you answered Curry, you're right! I was surprised to learn this fact from one of our guides, and was a little nervous to try the dish. However, I thoroughly enjoyed the curry, especially with the rice.

We left Stratford at about 7:15, and occupied ourselves reading a couple papers we picked up along the way. I loved riding through the countryside - the land was so green, the small towns quaint, and farms and hedges lining the roads picturesque. I was so thankful for the opportunity to get out of London, to see more of England than just the populated areas.

Maybe on my next overseas visit, I'll stay in the country. Perhaps even in the Lake District, with only an occasional visit to the 'big city.' Guess you can't take the country out of the girl

Museum Monday

Today was the first official day of class, and all 16 students and our two professors were settled into our flat's living room. It's a little crowded, but it's more comfortable than most classrooms with everyone settled on couches, chairs and even the floor. Definitely more conducive to discussion.

We met at 10:00, took a break a little after 11 for tea, and ended around 12:15 for our lunch break. We had lunch individually, then met out front with the rest of the class for some afternoon sightseeing. We took the tube over to the London Museum, and spent the afternoon immersing ourselves in British History.

The museum was full of interesting displays, like this display of Shakespeare's Globe, and all sorts of historical information. I loved walking through the the later historical parts of the museum, especially the interactive garden, and mini town square. I'm hoping to get back to visit again at some point, since there's no way I saw everything.

During class this morning, we talked a bit about the great fire, and the plague. So it was cool to see the displays within the museum. This helmet and bucket were the main tools firefighters had to use when fighting the fire.

After we finished looking through the museum, Jen and I decided to look around the area, since remnants of the London Wall were still standing. The contrast between the old wall and the new buildings was particularly interesting.

I also liked trying to guess what the wall used to look like at some point. The circular shape of the these remains make me believe this was one of the watch towers.

Jen and I kept walking around the area of the museum, and came across another section of  the wall that had been incorporated into an apartment garden. We weren't able to go into the garden, since it was reserved for the apartments only, but from what we could see, it looked beautiful.

On our way back to the tube, we saw this awesome Union Jack taxi. The whole flag was made up of different words relating to London, most of them sights and places.

Jen and I stopped at the grocery and got a few more items - noodles, spaghetti sauce, juice,and green tea. My interest in tea has increased tenfold since I've come to England, not only because it's more popular, but because it keeps me hydrated and helps alleviate hunger.


The rest of the evening was back at the flat, having supper and hanging out with some of the other students. I'm probably going to go to bed soon, since my jet lag is starting to kick in a little more. Tomorrow we're off to Stratford, to visit the home of Shakespeare.

Portobello Market

The first weekend was definitely full of all sorts of things. My last post detailed some of sights we saw while touring around London. However, we didn't just tour and sight see all weekend. We also did a little shopping at a local market. Portobello Market is one of the largest markets in London, stretching over two miles through widing city roads to the north of London.

The streets were full of people from all over the world. I heard different languages, accents, saw different styles of clothing, shops, and food choices!

One of the first sights I saw while walking through the Market was a store whose windows were full of singer sewing machines. I thought it was a really creative idea to a clothing store, though it was amazing how they must have found so many old machines.

I also found this interesting display - care to take a guess what it is?
A. Pens
B. Bookmarks
C. Hat Pins
Got your guess? They're hat pins! Isn't it interesting? I'd love to wear hats with hat pins at home, but hats are definitely more of an English style than an American style.

Jen and I wandered around for quite some time, walking all the way to the end of the 2 mile market before heading back for the food area for lunch. We stumbled across a wonderful bakery stall with pastries, bagels, and sandwiches. The bread on my sandwich was amazing (as most of the bread in England has been).

We also took a small break in a nearby park, where we found some lovely flowers. Jen was convinced that these were the same flowers used in the Harry Potter movie. I'm not near the Harry Potter fan that Jen is but it was fun to see her excitement. I just thought they were pretty, especially with the intricate coloring on the inside. 

One of my favorite sights from the Market was this gentlemen here. We saw him several times throughout the market, always with his dog hanging out on his shoulders. The ease with which these two walked around showed how often this was their normal way of seeing the sights. The gentleman even shared his drink with his dog, holding up his glass for his dog to have something to drink. It was a heartwarming sight to see the companionship. Too bad my dogs are too big and heavy for that sort of friendship.

So, in addition to the sights of London, the market, and my relaxing Sunday, it has been a busy weekend!

London Sights

One of the first things we did when everyone finally arrived on Friday was take in some sightseeing. Dr. Post and Dr. G. thought that if they kept everyone busy for the remainder of the afternoon, everyone would be less tempted to sleep and ruin their transition to European time.

About 4 o'clock, we headed out and caught a double decker bus, with an open top, to view some the sights of London.

 Here's Madame Tossaud's, which doesn't look terrible impressive from the outside, aside from the large cue of people. However, Madame Tossaud's contains wax figurines of many famous individuals, including the Queen, Prince Charles, David Beckham, Lady Gaga, and President Obama, to name a few.

We also drove along Baker street, past the fictional location of Sherlock Holmes. Many people believe the character to be real, and 221B Baker Street receives over 1,000 letters a year asking for helping finding things or solving crimes. We didn't stop to visit, since it looks to be very touristy, but it's still fun to see the setting of these books.

We also drove a building where H.G. Wells once wrote. In addition, we saw one of the more original Routemaster buses, which reminds me of two enjoyable movies - Harry Potter's Night Bus and the bus fight from the Mummy (please be appreciative Emily!).

Here's a shot of the American Embassy. It was hard to get a fully shot of the Embassy, since the Embassy looks over a park full of many trees. According to our guide however, the Americans will be driving a new embassy soon, since the congestion costs are becoming unmanageable. The funniest part of seeing the Embassy is that President Obama was visiting London on this particular day. Imagine, the closest I'll ever be to President Obama was in London, and not the U.S.

We also passed by Her Majesty's Theatre, where the Phantom of the Opera is currently playing. This is one show I'm particularly keen to see. This theatre changes its name when the leading monarch's sex changes. It started out as the Queen's Theatre, became the King's Theatre, and over time eventually became His Majesty's Theatre.

Trafalgar Square is a busy part of London, with many iconic sights known to London. Here is one of them, the National Gallery. There's also a large square where many people often congregate for festivals, rallies, or even to have lunch.

 In order to keep the area fresh, a new art display is used. This year it's a ship in a glass bottle. Not sure what the significance is but I found it interesting how often the art was to change. 

For all you Harry Potter fans, we also drove by the location where the Ministry of Magic scene was filmed for the seventh movie. Geek out!

Here's one of the Horse Guards in front of an entrance to St. James Park by Buckingham Palace. According to our guide, sometimes soldiers from Prince Harry's regiment will be mounted guards as well. The color of the uniform indicates which regiment. I believe a blue uniform indicates the soldiers belong to Harry's regiment, although I may be mistaken in recalling what the guide related. 

 My first view of Westminster Cathedral.

The bus tour let us see parts of the cathedral, but I plan to visit again to get a better view - and better pictures! It was still breathtaking from what I did get to see.

As beautiful as the cathedral was, I felt ever more awed by the House of Parliament and the intricate
 work in all the architecture. That, and Big Ben, of course. We got off our tour bus after we crossed Westminster Bridge and walked back across, which allowed me to see the House of Parliament much longer.

And here's me, on the boat cruise, with Big Ben in the background :)

 

 The London Eye, which is a highly recommended attraction for all visitors. It takes 1/2 hour to complete a full revolution, and supposedly has an amazing view of London from the top. I might have Mom try this when she comes to London!

Our boat ride to Greenwich was a lot of fun. The captain wasn't really a 'professional tour guide' as he called himself, but he was gracious enough to point out several different landmarks and historical spots along the wa. I thoroughly enjoyed his commentary. This building for instance, was the first building to advertise on the river. When it was built, advertising on the river was not allowed. However, using the windows and balconies, they spelled out OXO, a brand of food products. Ingenious, no?

Here's a view of the four spires of the Tower of London, a very historical spot for London, since many prisoners were kept, tortured, and even killed here. Now, it's a tourist attraction both for it's history and for the crown jewels that are kept inside.

In addition to London Bridge, which is wonderful, Tower Bridge also decorates the skyline. I was more impressed with Tower Bridge than London Bridge, which is the next bridge over. Tower Bridge opens about 1,000 times a year to let boats through, and was converted from the original form so it could open. 

We ended out trip at Greenwich, at the Royal Observatory. Besides some very interesting displays and exhibits, the scenery from the top of the hill was wonderful!

Oh, and so was straddling the international date line!

Congratulations if you've stayed with me for the entire post. I'm sorry it's so long, and that it's taken me A WEEK to post it. Hopefully you've enjoyed this mini tour of London, though there's much more to see. Stay turned for more sights!