We Are Family

On Thursday my friend Tori and I went to the Tower of London. It was covered with red ceramic poppies in order to reflect the amount of lives lost in the First World War. The grand total will reach over 888,000 by the end of November. The flowers looked beautiful sprawled across the lawn, but were also rather ominous because of what they symbolized. Once inside we immediately got in line to see “Bloody Tower,” the section of the grounds that housed the torture chambers. We were disappointed by the display because the room just consisted of replicas of torture devices and cheesy sound effects. We were however, very impressed by the crown jewels. I could not believe how much gold is used for simple things like plates and silverware. One spoon used for the coronation process is completely encrusted with emeralds, sapphires, and diamonds. My favorite part was being able to see the crown of Elizabeth the I. It was delicately covered in pearls and diamonds with a sleek purple and white trim. The swords of various kings were also remarkable. Tori and I also went to the armory exhibit where we saw the metal suits of Henry VIII and William the Conqueror.

After the tower, we left to walk across Tower Bridge to meet our friend Lauren outside of Shakespeare’s globe. We underestimated the distance, and ended up walking a little bit under a mile around the city. Luckily we found her and decided to grab dinner at The Anchor Pub, one of the oldest dining establishments in London. From there we walked towards St. Paul’s to see it lit up at night. We decided to cross via the footbridge that was featured in a Harry Potter movie. The last part of our night was spent on a 45 minutes metro ride to the outskirts of the city. Our hotel was right next to the airport so we could hop on a flight to Ireland in the morning.

After almost missing our flight because of mixing our departure time with our arrival time, we finally made it to Dublin. We met up with our other friends flying in from London and boarded a train to Sligo. The trip took three hours but the ride was really peaceful. I managed to get a lot of work done while admiring the countryside. Once in Sligo, we found our hostel and started to explore the town. We went to its cathedral and then to a neighboring candy store. They only charged us 2.50 pounds for 200 grams worth! It was delicious, but made us even hungrier. We spent the evening at a pub recommended by our innkeeper. I had Irish coffee for the first time and loved it. We found out that a summer music festival was going on in the city and decided to check that out. We soon learned that Sister Sledge, the 1979 band that sings “We Are Family,” was performing that night! I guess you can say funk followed us from America to Ireland.

The next morning we woke up and headed out towards Parke Castle. The foundations date back to the 17^th century. The view outside the castle was incredible! It is located right next to the lake with rolling hills and farmland in the distance. We spent most of our time wandering along the shore and taking photos in the bright green grass. Once we returned to our hostel after lunch, we went souvenir shopping and bought t-shirts from the music festival. For dinner, we headed out to Strandhill Beach and grabbed Italian food. The girls and I took group photos while watching the sunset and eating ice-cream. The entire beach was rock instead of sand, so I made sure to pick out a few to bring home. The colors in the sky were captivating and we all started to complain about our studying abroad coming to a close. We cheered up and took a taxi back to town to catch the last night of the music festival! I have so many new bands to follow when I get back stateside; the music was folky and something that I’m not really familiar with back home. 

Sunday morning we headed back to the airport to make our flight to London. Luckily, we made it on time without having to sprint through terminals. When we got back to Oxford, the girls and I went out to dinner for our friend’s birthday. I then spent the night working on a Shakespeare paper.

Monday night was our last formal High Table dinner. Everyone got dressed up and took a massive group photo out in the gardens. Our program director gave a really heartfelt speech that ended up with all of us calling the Dawgs (singing a school cheer). Reality finally hit me that on Friday we would all be heading back to Atlanta.

The rest of this week has gone by so fast. I’ve been consumed with two different papers that I finally finished last night. I plan to spend the next few days taking last minute trips with friends and exploring all of Oxford. I want to make sure I don’t miss anything. Admittedly, I am homesick, but I wish this experience didn’t have to end. I’ve had the time of my life and have made so many new friends.

To stay positive I keep telling myself I’ll return one day. Plus, I’ll still see everyone at school. But I don’t think anything could ever compare to Oxford and this fantastic summer.

I’m excited to see everyone soon! I’ve missed you all. Expect to hear from me come Friday night!

Flowers outside of the tower.

View outside of Parke Castle

Group photo at the beach

All of us at High Table

Rolling Stones and a Bath

Today was an absolutely great time. Friends and I visited Stonehenge, the Jane Austen Centre, and the Roman Baths.

As soon as we arrived to Salisbury, an awesome taxi driver gave us a discount and agreed to drive us to and from Stonehenge. He was raised in the area, so he told us all a lot of really interesting facts about the town. For example, Sting and Guy Richie all have homes in the area! After about a twenty minute drive, we arrived at the site. We immediately hopped on the bus that drives you a mile up the hill towards the ruins.

I was completely shocked. I completely underestimated how impressive Stonehenge would be. I admit, I wasn’t sure how interesting a pile of rocks would be–but it was gorgeous. The hillside is so cool and peaceful; even with other tourists around. I’m really happy we left at 7AM this morning because I think that definitely helped with crowd control. After taking what felt like a billion pictures, the girls and I headed back to the station to catch a train to Bath.

When we got to Bath, we immediately traveled to the Jane Austen Centre. There we learned about Jane’s life and the stories behind her time in Bath. I had no idea that her name was not published on any of her books until her passing. I also had no idea how hard it is to write with a quill. There were various interactive stations set up in the exhibit so not only did I get to write with the ink, but the girls and I also got to dress up in Regency Period attire. I think we could bring it back.

Like Stonehenge, the Roman Baths were just as tranquil and aesthetically pleasing. The waters were a beautiful deep green and the surrounding stone statures we’re such a pleasantly sharp contrast. My favorite part of the baths was the pool filled with coins from visitors–all of the metal glimmers in the water–it makes for a pretty cool picture. I also enjoyed seeing the remnants from a temple that used to be a place of worship for the bathers. The centerpiece is a tribute to the gods that is apparently one of the most well preserved examples from Roman architecture/art. I bought myself a clay model of the design because of how intricate it was.

At the end of the day we ended the trip with a visit to a local pub. I got back to Oxford safely, and will now spend the rest of the weekend doing laundry and writing papers. But I also know I won’t be able to stop thinking about how nice it would be to live in the areas like I visited today. It was just so perfect.

Cheers! Check out my favorite photos below:

Amongst the stones

The main pool

Shimmering pool

Jane Austen Centre

City of Love and Hate

Greetings!

Sorry this has taken so long, this past week has been a whirl of excitement and stress with papers and travel.

On Thursday, my mom came to Oxford. We went out to dinner and walked around the various monuments of town. On the proceeding Friday at 3:00AM, we took a taxi to the bus station in order to catch our morning flight to Paris. Neither of us wanted to miss anything and made sure we used all available time in France. Unfortunately earlier in the week I caught a cold that was going around campus, so waking up early proved to be rather difficult. Luckily we found Sudafed at the grocery store the night before, and I was able to sleep the entire way on the plane.

As soon as we arrived at de Gaulle, I was sort of shocked. Absolutely nothing was in English and there were no signs that pointed to transportation options to take us to the hotel. After finding an information desk and witnessing an airport employee strike, we made it onboard to our late bus and headed to our hotel an hour away in Paris. As soon as we arrived in the city, my mother and I were swarmed by gypsies. Their tactic was to press themselves against you to make you physically uncomfortable and release your bag. Luckily, I scared the women off me, but they still would not leave my mom alone. After a brief but effective interaction with one of them, the gypsies decided it would be best if they stepped away from her. Nevertheless after a rocky start, we persevered and arrived at our hotel just before noon.

Hotel Lumen was absolutely stunning. The lobby was decorated with crystal and black and silver decor. My mom and I had lunch at the neighboring restaurant while we waited for our room to be ready. I had a delicious antipasti salad that had roasted summer vegetables and fruit. Mom and I both had a cold coke with ice and lemon; the drink soon became a regular occurence. Once we were able to go up to our room, we were greeted with a half bottle of wine compliments of the hotel. There were two all white beds and a marble bathroom with fluffy white robes and slippers to match. On the outside there was a winding balcony that overlooked the main street that the Louvre is located off of. Needless to say, after being so sick and so shocked by our fancy accommodations–I could have easily spent the weekend there alone.

My mom and I had other plans, however. Immediately after freshening up, we walked towards the Louvre. Weeks previously my mom bought us museum passes that allow you to skip the long lines and enter at a special location. This was incredibly handy because upon our arrival, a massive line wrapped all the way back towards the Louvre’s front lawn. At the museum we saw The Mona Lisa, Venus de Milo, and Winged Victory. They were all equally beautiful. The crowds however, were not. Sections of the museum had to be closed because of too many people entering the exhibits. The AC was also virtually not working because of the body heat, so everyone was drenched in sweat.  It was rather disappointing so we decided to head towards the Eiffel Tower to take pictures outside of it and to then catch a river cruise. The boat ride was relaxing and cool after walking all around in the sun. We ended the day with a pizza at a local Italian restaurant down the street from the hotel.

The next morning we had a fantastic breakfast at Hotel Lumen and took the train to Notre Dame. The outside architecture was intricate yet simple.  On the inside, my favorite part was the vaulted ceilings and colorful stained glass. Unfortunately the line was too long to climb to the top, so my mom and I headed towards Museum Orsay to have lunch at a cafe. There we ate the best quiche I’ve ever had; it was fluffy and just the right portion size. Once we entered the museum, I immediately knew Orsay would be one of my favorite visits. Formerly a train station, Orsay was roomy and decorated in a super modern fashion. The van Gogh and Monet paintings were quite popular as expected, and I was thrilled that I got to see one of the Starry Nights and van Gogh’s self portrait. Before we returned to our hotel to clean up for dinner that evening, mom and I stopped at Cafe Angelina’s to try the famous macaroons and African hot chocolate. I however, ordered the chilled version of the drink and it was incredibly tasty. It was almost like a mix of dark and milk chocolate with a frothy consistency. My favorite flavor of macaroon was easily the guava and chocolate selection. My mom got a pistachio and raspberry tart that we immediately finished.

For dinner that evening we went to a restaurant that Fodor’s recommended. There was a line literally around the block. After a wait, my mom and I had champagne with steak and mashed potatoes. The meal was wonderful like all our others, but the restaurant was so busy that unfortunately we did not receive the best service. Despite the slowness, we were able to head towards the tower once more to see it lit up at night. We were told by our concierge that the Eiffel had a light show every thirty minutes after dark . This proved not to be quite true though, because after waiting for an hour amongst the aggressive champagne peddlers–the tower only sparkled for a mere five minutes. Despite the disappointing show, the Eiffel Tower was still extremely impressive at night.

Our final day in Paris was spent wandering Montparnasse. There the city has a tall skyscraper that enables visitors to see a 360 degree view of Paris. This was another one of my favorite stops because I got to take lovely photos of major monuments all from the same location. From there my mom and I went to Crêperie Josselin, and finally tried the French delicacy.  While waiting at Hotel Lumen for our taxi to take us to Orly Airport, my mom and I heard lots of shouting at the Louvre. It turns out that the final day of Tour de France was happening and bikers were  passing our street. After killing time watching all the screaming fans and honking cars, our cab arrived and we headed to catch our flight.

After checking our luggage at Orly and looking for a place to have dinner, police officers with machine guns began to run past us. Soon enough we saw the same men using caution tape to seal off our terminal while a French woman announced something. Confused as to why we were not allowed into that wing of the airport, we asked the closest employee what was happening. Instead of trying to help, the gentleman criticized my mom and I for not speaking his language and told us to ask someone else at the information desk. It turns out the reason why the wing was closed, was because there was an unattended bag that the police believed to be a bomb. The woman at the desk was surprisingly casual and redirected us a different way to get to our terminal. All the while the police obtained the bomb and destroyed it outside the building. My mom and I could hear the detonation go off as the task force terminated the bag.

As I’m sure you can tell, I have mixed feelings about my time in Paris. Prior to visiting, I had this romanticized idea of how magical The City of Love would be; yet it fell rather short. Most people would die to visit this place, yet the man at the airport spent the potential last moments of mine shaming me for not knowing French. It was just a completely different culture then what I was expecting.  Servers there did not seem to really care about their customers. Pickpockets and beggars were rampant, while the police presence seemed to be almost inexistent. I was probably most shocked by how unwelcoming and not user friendly the city was. There was a complete lack of signage (yes, even in French) and a lot of the monuments were poorly maintained.  There is no way the amount of people that were in the Louvre all at once would have been legal in the US. Additionally I can only imagine it taking years for someone to be able to navigate those streets.

Despite a lot of the unpleasant experiences, I still had a good time. I loved Museum Orsay, and all of the exhibits within it. I could have also spent hours sitting outside at the cafes with its friendly waitstaff and delectable meals. Montparnasse was rather unknown compared to all the other attractions and it was relaxing to just admire the view. Our concierge at Hotel Lumen ended up being incredibly helpful and one of the locals even made sure my mom and I found our steak restaurant.

All in all though, the thing I enjoyed the most was getting to travel to Paris with my mom. Good and bad, we proved that the two of us could handle it all and still end up on top. She planned everything perfectly and let me have one of the best times of my life right before I graduate college. I could not be more grateful. Once we returned to Oxford, I even got to spend more time with her exploring the city and eventually meeting up to see my dad. Having the two of them here with me was so memorable in itself, and made me truly miss home.

Now  after the great adventure and lessons of Paris, tomorrow I will be visiting Stonehenge and Bath with friends from Oxford. Expect a post about that within the next week.

Wish me luck, and I will see you all in fifteen days!

Eiffel Tower at night

Mom and me at Notre Dame

Notre Dame stained glass

Dad at Christ Church Meadow

Calm Before the Storm

Morning, all!

This past week has been relatively calm compared to the others. I had excursions or field trips in both of my courses. On Tuesday my mass communications class visited the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) as well as The Financial Times. It was an extremely informative trip. For those of you that don’t know, I’ve been slowly considering the idea of pursuing Public Health in grad school. I’d like to get a degree in Disaster Management or a general Masters in Public Health. So needless to say the first stop at the school was a pretty eye-opening experience. Our guest speaker was Dr. Heidi Larson–former head of UNICEF communications and now Senior Lecturer for LSHTM. The theme of her lecture revolved around vaccine confidence and how scanning or monitoring the media is used to determine which countries have negative opinions towards immunization.

In order to do this, Dr. Larson created a team that uses artificial intelligence to scan traditional and social media in a variety of countries for key words that reveal the negative or positive positions on vaccines. She and her team then take this information and share it with places like the World Health Organization (WHO) to create campaigns trying to inform and correct fears or hesitations behind vaccination. The lecture sort of put into motion the possibility of how I could use my advertising degree in order to do something similar for my career. I could very well work for organizations like WHO and be behind the construction of similar projects or campaigns. Having my Spanish minor also reenforced the idea that I could even do this abroad in Hispanic countries.

The next stop at The Financial Times (FT) also solidified my career choice. For those of you who saw, in the blog previous to this I posted the link to my mass communications class’s blog. There I wrote about my experience at the FT and how it made me realize how lucrative the print industry still can be. To summarize and not repeat that post (please click the link on the prior submission to read it), a UGA alumni is doing very well for himself in London and not only gave us a tour of the newspaper building but insight into how a typical day goes for himself and other FT employees. There’s constant last minute changes before major deadlines and a huge necessity for good writers and graphic designers. This stop on our excursion made me want to learn more about graphics but also continuing to practice my ability in writing; especially when it comes to my blogging skills.

As you can tell, the entire day was filled with potential real world applications of my degree. The whole experience made me excited to get out in the workforce. Well really, to start grad school and start specializing in everything to be considered competitive and eventually successful. It was absolutely invigorating.

Throughout the remaining week I mostly spent my time doing school work and preparing for another excursion in my Shakespeare class. On Friday we took a day trip to Stratford where we not only saw the school Shakespeare attended, but also a performance of one of his earlier plays The Two Gentlemen of Verona. The school is called King Edward VI School and has been in Stratford since the 13th century. My class was actually allowed on the grounds (which is not typically open to tourists) and given a tour by one of the school’s current teachers. We were allowed to see the chapel from the 1200s and the school house that Shakespeare himself was taught in. Unfortunately there’s not documentation of him attending the school, but since John Shakespeare (his father) was mayor of Stratford for a time–King Edward VI School is the only place in the area that William would have possibly been educated. Our tour guide told us that upon analyzing William Shakespeare’s works, you can see Latin phrases or other school subjects that are verbatim to the courses instructed at the school during that exact time period. Thus marking the school as “Shakespeare’s school.” My favorite part of the tour was the original paint from 1455. The house roses of the Lancasters and Yorks from the Wars of the Roses still adorn the walls.

After visiting the school, my class went to dinner at a nice restaurant that is actually on the rooftop of The Royal Shakespeare Company Theatre. There I had a delicious three course meal (paid for by the program) of beetroot salad, pasta, and creme brûlée. At 7:15 The Gentleman of Verona began and lasted until about 10:00 that night. The comedy was much funnier live than it was to read. The play was set in modern Milan and Verona. The main characters were dressed in really stylish suits and dresses but still spoke exactly how the play was written. The costume and setting however definitely helped with comprehension and made it more relatable, at least in my opinion.

On Saturday I spent the day writing a review on said play with my friend Sarah. Unfortunately however, our study environment at a quiet pub was interrupted when our two friends happened to show up to the same place. We decided to continue our work on Sunday and grabbed a pint with them instead. Thank goodness we decided to stop working because if we hadn’t, not but an hour after our friends arrived–a large bachelor party stormed in making a stop at their “nineth hole” of an eighteen round pub crawl. Needless to say I saw some local color when a gentleman decided he would try to “chat up” the “clever American girl.” I don’t think he enjoyed it though because I wouldn’t give him the same level of attention. Fun fact-the English know about Mississippi and Kentucky but not Georgia. Thank God.  Luckily the groom eventually called off his dog, and wished myself and my friends a lovely evening. Poor sad bloke. From there all of us grabbed dinner at an Italian place and I concluded the evening FaceTiming my parents back at home.

Today I’ll be working on my review of The Two Gentleman of Verona. I have an incredibly busy week ahead of me because not only do I have another paper to write, but I also have a presentation and other assignments to get done early. This upcoming weekend is excursion free. This means, starting Thursday night I’ll be able to travel anywhere without having to worry about attending any events Friday through Sunday. Because of this, my mom is coming to Oxford where we will head to London and fly out to Paris for the weekend. I’m super excited for the trips; mainly I want to see the Louvre and all of the gardens. After the weekend my mom is staying in Oxford through Wednesday in order to see the sights and visit my college. My dad will also be able to join us again for dinner from his workplace near London.

All in all things have still been going well. The work aspect of studying abroad is in full swing. As I said with so many approaching due dates, I need to get a head start on everything. And fast.

Hoping the best for everyone at home. Cheers and I’ll see you after Paris!

Chapel from the 1200s at King Edward VI School.

Friends on the garden lawn.

The schoolhouse that Shakespeare attended.

Grady College at Oxford

For those who are interested, my Social Effects of Mass Communication class has its own blog. Each student will contribute two posts relating to the topics we discuss in class over the next few weeks. We also write about observations we make about media while traveling abroad. There’s actually some pretty insightful posts. Check it out!

Click here to hear about Grady College at Oxford

All Over the Town(s)

I’m sorry I haven’t written in a while; so much has been going on here at Oxford! To start this past Wednesday I finally got to meet my Shakespeare tutor. Dr. Dutton is really quite nice and remarkably intelligent. I can tell I’m going to learn a lot from her. She typically specializes in medieval literature but teaches Shakespeare as a break from all of that. She’s already published four books and has major research grants and awards. I still cannot believe such talented and borderline famous academics teach us. It really makes me realize how much potential I have now at such a young age. AKA, no more excuses.

Since Thursday was my last day of class for the week, a bunch of us decided to spend the evening out in Oxford. Originally a group of six of us we’re going to meet up at my apartment, play cards, and then go to the famous Turf Tavern. But the next thing you know, I have seventeen people in my dorm playing games and eventually going out together. The pub was incredible! It’s located down a fairly obscure alleyway, but as soon as you round the corner it’s filled with life. There’s a bar area up front in an old cottage, but out back there’s various patio tables and terrace seating. It even has one of the only remaining original city walls of Oxfordshire. Turf Tavern is actually a series of small houses all joined by low doorways and hallways. We only stayed outside to fit all of us—but I eventually returned days later and got to not only sit in new parts, but I even tried the food. It was equally impressive. After the pub we moved on to a club that had themed drinks for all of Oxford’s 38 colleges. My girlfriends and I tried all of those and then moved to the dance floor. We stayed there and danced for two hours and then headed home once we just couldn’t take it anymore. We were all exhausted from the week and realized that Friday was our first day to sleep in past eight! I didn’t do much that day, just caught up on sleep and did reading for my classes.

On Saturday at 6:30 AM a bunch of the girls and I left for London. Leaving so early definitely paid off because we were able to dodge the tourist rush hour and arrive at The London Eye just past ten. The view was spectacular, you could see all of Big Ben and Parliament along the Thames. The city was especially cool because some of the fog was still melting off. From there a few of us traveled across the bridge to Westminster Abbey.  Now that was a site to see! Unfortunately, no cameras were allowed in the church but I got a few from the outside. I saw the tombs of Issac Newton, Elizabeth I, and Henry VII.  Fun fact, Henry VIII is buried at St. Georgie’s chapel in Windsor, not at Westminster! The biggest thing that impressed me at the church was how tall the ceilings are. I especially loved the stained glass windows that adorned them. The light brilliantly shined through them and made the courtyard pictured below even more stunning.

For lunch we stopped at a festival outside Westminster. Once we were done with our hotdogs, we walked all the way to Buckingham. Unfortunately it is not open to the public until the 27th, so we were only able to take photos through the gate. After a break sitting in the grass of Green Park, all ten of us headed back across the bridge to make it for our river boat tour. This was probably my favorite part of our trip. The sun had just hid between the clouds so the upper deck of the boat was cool and refreshing. The tour took us to Tower Bridge (commonly mistaken as the London Bridge) past St. Paul’s, The Tower of London and The Globe.  A group of us decided that we will return on a weekday to visit the remaining three. We may even catch Titus Andronicus. The girls and I concluded the night before our bus ride home with a great meal at a pub off of Baker Street only three shops down for 221B where Sherlock Holmes is based.

On Sunday my dad came to visit! He got in at the train station around 11:00. I gave him the grand tour of Trinity and took him to Oxford’s Covered Market for lunch. We ate at a sandwich shop and grabbed milkshakes afterwards. The day also included a visit to the Ashmolean where we saw one of the largest archaeology exhibits I’ve ever seen. Of course my favorite section was about the Egyptians. My dad and I found a really cool restaurant on top of the museum where we grabbed coffee and overlooked the city. My dad loved the pub I took him to for dinner. It was the same Turf Tavern I went to earlier in the week with the girls. Every Sunday is apparently pot roast night and it’s one of the restaurant’s specialities. Around 7:00 my dad took off and I spent the rest of the night skyping my boyfriend and reading for class.

Tonight like every Monday, we have guest night dinner. We’ll all be getting dressed up again like we did last week, but this time we have a guest speaker who will be giving a lecture on The Napoleonic Wars. I’m excited to go because this time around I’ve made my group of friends and I’m sure a bunch of pictures will be taken. Tomorrow my mass communications class is taking its first excursion by visiting The Financial Times and The London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. Coincidentally my Shakespeare class will also take our first field trip to Stratford where we will see The Two Gentleman of Verona.

Until then, take a look at my favorite three photos from the past few days. You’ll hear from me again at the end of the week. Cheers!

 

All of us on the upper deck!

Beautiful glass.

View from the boat!

 

Around Town

The past two days have been crammed with activities. Yesterday I received a walking tour of Oxford. The guide was awesome; she has family tied to the college dating back to the 1500s. I got to learn interesting facts about Oxford and discover the history behind it as well. For example, Oxford is named after the cattle (oxon) market that originally was held right outside on the street. Farmers would have to cross a shallow river (ford) with the animals before they could sell them. Hence the name–Oxford. Our guide also gave us suggestions for places to eat and stores to visit.

After all of that we had some free time, so a few girls and I went to a pub to grab lunch. I had fish and chips for the first time and it was delicious. It was a white fried cod with fries and a side salad. Admittedly I also tried the pear cider–which was equally tasty.

Around 15:30 (I’m trying to get the hang of this), we went to the Bodleian library. Oxford has many libraries but this is the oldest and most central. Originally opened in 1602, the library has a deal with publishers that every first copy of any book printed in London is sent to the facility. They have over nine million books and have more stacks stored twenty miles out of town.  Since we’re summer students, we are permitted to use the library. But we had to swear an oath that we wouldn’t take any books out of the building or burn it down. We were also given special ID cards for access. You can see a picture of the library below–it was used as the infirmary in the Harry Potter films!

Continuing on through Monday, we had an opportunity to attend a mixer and meet our Oxford tutors (professors) prior to our formal dinner. Weekly we have a “guest night dinner” where we all have to wear dresses or suits and ties. Unfortunately, my tutor was out of town and was unable to attend the gathering. I still however, enjoyed the event while sipping white wine in the gardens with a few of my friends. Following drinks, dinner was served. We had a goat cheese and tomato appetizer, then roasted duck for dinner, and mango brûlée for dessert. I couldn’t believe how much food they gave us, nor how well prepared it was. Dinner was so much fun that a large group of us decided to go out to another pub afterwords where we met a few locals and learned the proper way to order (i.e.-you don’t tip bartenders here).

Finally today I woke up at 8:00 to have breakfast before my 9:00-11:00 Grady seminar. It’s a class on social effects of mass communications. So far it seems to be interesting, and rather challenging. We already have assignments and papers due next week. On the bright side we get to visit The Financial Times and The BBC headquarters soon.

After class and tea time, a group of girls and I decided to visit St. Mary’s (a tower our tour guide recommended). For three pounds we climbed up a narrow staircase to see a view of all of  Oxford. It was absolutely breathtaking. Though the stairs were terrifyingly steep. The photos below are from said climb. For lunch we went to the covered market and found a cheap pasta place that we took with us and ate at a local courtyard.

For now I’m relaxing in my dorm room until dinner starts at 17:00. Tonight I have lots of reading to do so I may visit the smaller Trinity College library that I was given a tour of this afternoon. Jet lag is slowly starting to fade away, but my afternoons are the worst. I start to drag and typically nap or go to afternoon tea for a quick pick me up. Tomorrow is also my first day of Shakespeare (my Oxford course) and I need to prepare for that. I’m nervous what my tutor will think of my writing but hopefully it turns out alright.

I haven’t decided if I’ll have a set schedule for my blogging. I figure it’ll be more frequent at first since so many little events happen in one day. Eventually I’ll space it out and only touch on the big events. For the sake of your eyes, and the sake of my hands. Oh, and more photos to load on Facebook later! I just don’t want to blow up everyone’s newsfeed. I’ll probably upload at the end of the week!

Hope everyone is doing well in the states. Cheers!

Painting inside Trinity’s chapel.

Outside the “infirmary.”

The Radcliffe Camera from the top of St. Mary’s

Arrival

This morning around 11 BST, we arrived at Oxford. The flight was fine; unfortunately I didn’t get as much reading done as I would have liked. I just wanted to relax and watch movies to put myself to sleep. Speaking of, I think I got maybe 20 minutes total. So I think it’s safe to say that I’ve been up for 24 hours. I sat next to a window which was really nice to lean my head against–but unsettling with its noise or when we hit frequent turbulence. Overall however, the food was good and all of the people were nice as well.

The ride into downtown Oxford was absolutely stunning. Naturally, I put all of my Mumford & Sons albums on and just took in all the scenery. All of the houses here are so unique and have a variety of architecture. Plus each home has vibrant landscaping. Even the design of my dorm room is something I’ve never seen before. Honestly it’s more like a small apartment.

I have a twin bed in a small room no wider than 7ft. But what I lack there, I make up for in a private living room. I have my own desk, mini-fridge, bench, and plenty of shelving. I also have a sink in my room, but all of the toilets are a floor below. You have to climb 4 flights of old wooden stairs before you even get to my apartment! Each room additionally has large windows that swing out towards the stone courtyard below. They come in handy because as far as I can tell, the breeze outside is our only source of AC. But hey, for a college built in 1555–it’s pretty great.

This is quite a lot to take in all at once. But luckily I have downtime to reflect and write a quick blog. All of the students were given free time until 5PM; that’s when we’ll have our first orientation and then dinner. I’ve unpacked everything thus far and hung up photos of friends and family. I’ll need a few things in town that I plan to get tomorrow. I’ve basically been killing time until the community shower is open because we also share that downstairs too.

During this time I’ve tried to contact everyone at home, but the five hour time difference is a bit difficult. I just need to keep myself busy so I don’t fall asleep. I really want to lose the jet lag and start getting used to the timezone!

The environment here is really stimulating for creativity. I’m surrounded by nature and beautiful architecture. I’m typing in my bed now with the large window swung open while I can hear the ambient sounds from the city and gardens alike. I understand why famous authors like Tolkien and Wilde wrote here. It makes me believe all the claims about how trips abroad encourage/trigger personal growth.

All in all, so far so good. Class officially starts on Tuesday. Tomorrow is filled with guided tours of campus and the library. For now I’ll spend time showering and taking pictures of campus on my SLR to share in my next post.  Until then here a few below that I shot briefly on my way in today:

 

Hoping to hear from everyone soon.

Today is Two Days

Well. I’m two days out from leaving for Oxford. It still has not quite hit me yet that I’ll be gone for six weeks. It just doesn’t seem real. I guess I’m the type of person who waits to get excited about something until it is the day of event.

But until then, I’ll be spending as much time as I can with those closest to me. Yesterday was spent in Athens for one last get together with all of my friends. We went to a lovely tapas bar and ended up hanging out afterwards as well. My boyfriend and best friend also took me out to the movies earlier that day–so it was a really fun time! The whole thing was a big surprise for me and I couldn’t be more grateful.

Tomorrow I will be spending time with my parents and boyfriend while checking out some Fourth of July events around town. I think we’ll wander around a local square that’s having live music and art booths. We’ll conclude the evening watching fireworks over the city. I’m really looking forward to it!

After all that my flight leaves Saturday evening and will take about nine hours. I land in London a little bit past 9AM. Luckily, I already packed for the trip and will be able to spend the afternoon with family before I head out around 3 o’clock.

I guarantee everything will sink in as soon as I’m on my way to the airport. I’ll actually believe that I am spending the summer studying at such a prestigious university.

Tapas!

Finally packed!

Close up of everyone and me.