Home, I'm Coming Home

I have not very much internet at the moment (15 mins for 50p at the good old hostel) but I had to take a second to just say what an AMAZING day I had today. Lots of details to come but I want everyone to know I am safe and happy and had just one of the greatest days of my entire trip. I do love to go out with a bang :)

See you all tomorrow America, I'm coming home!!

Bright Lights, Bigger City

Okay. I made it. On my own in the big city. It's pretty cool, actually. The hostel is kind of just like an enormous dorm... have plenty of experience with those. I got lunch at this mall a block away, which is very convenient. Then I walked down to the British Museum, which although beautiful didn't actually interest me very much. But I knew I had to go, it's on everyone's like top ten list of things to see in London, so at least I did it. Afterwards I took the Tube (which was dumb, it's not a far walk) to Leicester Square to see the National Portrait Gallery. That, I loved. They had an exhibit called "Glamour of the Gods" that was all old Hollywood portraits. Love it, especially after taking my film history pre-1945 class last quarter. There were some really amazing pictures.

I walked through Leicester Square and considered going to see a musical or something, but pretty much nothing is playing tonight. I had to keep ducking into little shops when it began to DOWNPOUR, but it was off and on so I made it back relatively dry. I also stopped in at Blackwell's, which is a chain bookstore kind of like Borders, and perused the Shakespeare section for a little bit. Good stuff. I got a little lost walking home but no harm done.

Like I said yesterday, I feel like I've started a whole new trip. It is so different being on my own, staying in a hostel, no free Tube (I know, poor me), than the month I just had. On the one hand it's very freeing but on the other it's kind of lonely. Definitely a good test for my independence.

Tomorrow: my last full day! Can't even believe it. I'm going to meet Nicole at Madame Tussaud's to FINALLY use our tickets that we bought like three weeks ago, and then rain or shine I'm heading to the Globe to see Much Ado one last time. I know it's a little ridiculous, but I also know that a month from now I'll be sitting home missing London and probably the thing I will wish I could do the most is go back and see the Globe. And if Much Ado just happens to be playing on my last night, oh well, I guess I'll have to go :)

New city. Kind of.

It was a bit of a nightmare getting over to Matt's flat this morning. Of course the day we have to move they decide to close the Piccadilly line and it rains the hardest it has our whole time here. But we made it, so no harm done.

We decided to take advantage of our last day with an Oyster card and go down to the Borough Market, which is like a GIANT Davis Farmers Market and is right near the Globe (I resisted stopping by to say hello). I had a meat pie, which was on my list of things to do. It was delicious. And the weather cleared up a little for us which was nice. Afterwards we went a little further south to the Imperial War Museum. The area wasn't the nicest, in fact it's the only time I've felt a little uncomfortable my whole time here in London. It also didn't help that the clouds descended right when we got off the Tube. We were together though so we were fine.

The museum was awesome, definitely worth the trip. A little heavy, as you can imagine. The Holocaust exhibit was particularly depressing. But they had some really cool old war memorabilia and some interactive exhibits that were neat. They had one that was like walking through a real World War I trench, and another one that felt like being inside a bunker during the Blitz in WWII. Really interesting. That'd been on my list since the first day so I was glad to finally check it out.

Nicole and Matt went out to dinner with his family so I went and explored the area. It is very odd being on the entire opposite end of the city. It doesn't really feel like the same city, at all. Like I feel like I've begun an entirely new trip. Which I guess I sort of have, just a much shorter one.

Pray that it doesn't rain tomorrow as I move yet again. Not quite that far this time, but still not my favorite way to spend a morning. Still, I'm here!

Kensington, adieu

I'm lying here in my ridiculously squeaky bed for the last time :( I have approximately 2 and a half hours and then I have to leave our wonderful flat forever. Tonight I'm staying at Nicole's boyfriend's--they literally saved me as it seems like the entire city of London is sold out of beds for Saturday night, unless I want to pay like 400 pounds. I move to a hostel for Sunday/Monday nights, and then home Tuesday. I've said most of my goodbyes to my fellow students; a lot of them left yesterday or have been trickling out this morning. It's all just too sad.

Yesterday I spent pretty much all day running around trying to find lodging. I went to the STA Travel office in High Street Kensington and the guy there was incredibly nice and helpful--definitely should have gone sooner and saved the headache. It took a couple trips back and forth but we finally got it worked out, which was a relief. Not exactly how I wanted to spend my last day in Kensington, but that's what I get for waiting until the last minute.

The crew wanted to find a pub called Shakespeare's Head (for obvious reasons), so we trekked out to Oxford Circus to do so. Of course, when we got there it was packed, so Nicole and I got burgers at the most DELICIOUS place, because we were starving, and then met everyone else who had gone to O'Neills, our favorite Irish bar. Then we came back and hung out in the other flat until the wee hours of night, reminiscing and wishing it would never end. I kept feeling like I had something to do, like a paper or reading or something like that. But nope, I'm all done.

The next three days should definitely be more of an adventure than I've had so far. I'm not entirely sure if I'll be able to update much, but here's hoping. Here's also hoping that everything goes according to plan with my hostel and the place isn't completely disgusting or sketchy (this is my first time ever staying in a hostel, so we'll see how it goes). At least I'm in an all-girls room. And I am SO THANKFUL that Nicole is letting me stay with her, I seriously do not know what I would have done. But hey, it all worked out.

Farewell, Kensington! I'll miss you!

Not quite goodbye...

Heavens it's late. The crew and I just got back from seeing Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part Two... that may be the only time in my life I write out that entire title. Too long. Anyway apparently the Brits do not care about Harry nearly as much as I thought they did, because when we arrived to get in the queue (as they call it) at 9 o'clock, there was nobody there. NOBODY. Wait, sorry, there were two girls who went to Boston University dressed in Hogwarts gear and looking just as confused as we were that no one had bothered to show up. We sat there alone until 11:30 when a few people started to gather, but by the time the movie started at midnight it wasn't even full and from overhearing conversations, pretty much everyone seemed to be American.

The movie was pretty great. Maybe it's the lack of sleep but I can't really comprehend that it's all over. Also I didn't cry much, which was unexpected. I think maybe my second viewing will provide more insight. Also: THE DARK KNIGHT RISES TRAILER. Kind of anticlimactic. Except for the quick shot of Bane, which was exciting. But again, maybe it's the lack of sleep.

We had our final dinner tonight as a class with Dobby. That was cry-worthy. It's just been such a wonderful month, and everyone is so great, and Dobby is so great, and I love it. Nikki and Becka leave tomorrow morning early... actually in about 3 hours, come to think of it. I'll miss them dearly. I'll miss this flat dearly. This flat has been very good to us. It's so nice to have a safe little home base to come back to every night.

Last night we went and saw Anne Boleyn at the Globe (I know, I know, back again). Despite how tragic you may think it would be, what with her head getting chopped off and all that, it was actually really funny. And not sad at all. And pretty much the entire cast of All's Well was in it, which was great but also odd. They do that a lot, have a cast (minus the main characters) put on two productions a summer. I just found out that almost everyone in Much Ado (yes, including HIM) is opening another show in about three weeks. I'm terribly distraught that I won't be here.

Second-to-last night in home sweet Kensington. I'm kind of terrified to move out into the unknown land of hostels for three days. Thank goodness I've grown at least a little accustomed to this city. Anyway, I'm trying my best not to stress about it. I'm going to enjoy my last day or so, and now that we've turned in our final and class is done, I am just young and free in England, and that is a great place to be.

Can the world buy such a jewel?

Much Ado Round 2 today, and my goodness was it worth it. That play is so wonderful. I went with Becka and the two of us walked back across the Millenium Bridge arm-in-arm with the goofiest grins on our faces. Top of the world.

But first. I made us book it out of class so we could get there ASAP and hopefully obtain some groundling seats. The short of it (imagine, me, concise): we did. I was thrilled. I had sent Becka to get sandwiches while I waited in line and I went tearing into Eat (that's the name of the restaurant, it's delicious) waving our tickets and smiling like a fool.

So we waited in the next line, the groundling line, and were the fifth people there, which meant one thing: we would be getting great seats. Or, standing spaces. That's what the groundlings do, you stand in this giant pit and get right up next to the stage, literally resting your elbows on it if you want (I wanted). So after waiting in line about an hour and a half we were finally loosed into the theatre and Becka and I went right up to the front, slightly stage left, right in front of the little pool that Benedick would ultimately wash his feet in. No, really, it was great.

Oh, Claudio. In mine eye he is the sweetest man that ever I looked on. I legitimately worried I may faint when he entered. Becka told me I'd better not dare, since then she'd have to leave and all our hard work would be for nothing. Anyone, it was all I could do to look at anything else onstage, but I managed, and was I glad I did because if that wasn't one of the best damn shows I've ever seen. I don't know if it was my heightened level of excitement, our close proximity to the stage, the audience involvement (they were super into it), the fact that it wasn't 1000 degrees as it was the first time I saw it, or that the actors just got a weeklong vacation. Whatever it was, it was spectacular.

It was an entirely different experience than any of my other Globe shows. There's nothing like being a groundling. I think I made eye contact with almost every actor onstage at one point or another (yes, even HIM. But it was painfully short). It's almost a little disconcerting, really. I felt vulnerable, which is ridiculous because they're the ones acting. But when they can see you just as well as you see them, it's definitely a different dynamic. It's also what makes the Globe so wonderful, it is a totally different theatre experience. It's also the best seat in the house, by far (despite it not actually being a seat). You can see every little expression on the actors' faces. You can notice things that you can't from farther away. My favorite: there's a scene where Benedick is eavesdropping on Claudio and Don Pedro's conversation about how Beatrice loves him. He puts on a gardening hat and grabs a hoe, pretending like he's gardening so he can get closer to their conversation. Just then his servant shows up, trying to hand him a book that he requested earlier in the scene before the others show up. He not-so-subtly turns, waves angrily at her, and mouthes f**k off... twice. It was hysterical, largely because it was so shocking, and I had no idea from the Upper Circle. I also managed to grab a souvenir, a piece of gold that Don John throws at Hero after Claudio rejects her and throws her around at the wedding (if you haven't read/seen the play and have no idea what I'm talking about, just don't worry about it).

Anyway, it was all wonderful. I could go into more detail but for those of you who are not fiendishly obsessed with Shakespeare (and I suspect that is all of you), I won't. We have a lot of schoolwork over these next few days, what with class ending on Thursday. We gave our group presentation on Hamlet today. We did a mock trial on whether Hamlet is crazy or not. It was good fun and on the class vote we won for the best presentation. Dobby gave us little Shakespeare's Globe pins. You know I'll treasure mine. Just like I'll treasure... all of this.

Getting the To-Do List Done

The busyness continues. I love it. I feel like with only a week left I'm down to the wire in terms of getting everything done that I want to.

Friday night we went to see Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead in the West End, which was hilarious. It basically tells the story of Hamlet from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern's perspective, who are two very minor characters that we don't care much about in the actual play. The actors were wonderful. It's really fast-paced, really witty--I can't imagine how long that script is. So we had a good time. The only bummer was that I was feeling a little sick (I kept thinking NOT AGAIN) so I couldn't quite enjoy it as much as I wanted to.

Friday night I went to bed terrified of waking up really sick, especially because Saturday we had plans to go to Oxford! The good news was I was fine and able to make the trek up to Paddington station to catch the train.

Oxford was in some ways exactly what I was expecting, and in some ways not. The part I was expecting was the reallllly old architecture and beautiful lawns and small-town feel to the whole thing. I kept wanting to see it covered in snow and on a postcard. The not-expecting part was how really touristy it was. I was surprised at how many chain stores there were and enormous masses of people. It was a Saturday, but still. We also found out that it was "Alice's Day," which I guess happens once a year to commemorate Lewis Carroll (who went to Oxford) and Alice in Wonderland. So there were a lot of people dressed as Alice characters, which confused us for a while until we figured it out.

Cool moment: Having lunch and a half-pint (I wasn't feeling well, okay) at The Eagle and Child, the favorite pub of C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien and their literary group called The Inklings. That was pretty much my number one reason for wanting to go to Oxford, and it didn't disappoint. There were a lot of signs declaring their former presence and we got to sit in these very old booths that looked liked they could have been around when they were. I tried to soak in all the literary magic I could. Loved it.

Not cool moment: Trying to get into Christ Church College, AKA the Great Hall in the Harry Potter movies (at least the first one). They had two weddings scheduled for the day and it was closed to the public. The man standing by the gate was amazingly nice about it, though. He was this cute little man who apologized probably five times and said if we came back at just that time tomorrow we could see the Great Hall and all of it. So we didn't feel too put out. We also visited the Oxford University Press and Oxford Castle before heading home. It was a good trip.

Today we really felt the need to start checking some major things off the list, so we started off the morning by going out to Abbey Road and taking our obligatory crossing-the-street-like-the-Beatles picture. Unlike the Beatles, we had to worry about getting hit by the endless parade of cars that wanted to get by. Those poor drivers. There was a mass of probably about thirty people all perched on the edge of the sidewalk just waiting to jump in and get a picture. It was all very amusing.

Afterwards we headed down to King's Cross Station to try to get a picture at Platform 9 3/4. After wandering aimlessly for several minutes, at one point stalking a Portuguese tour group wearing HP7 Part 2 necklaces who seemed like they knew what they were doing, we finally asked and were told that the platform itself was under construction but we could take a picture with the replica out front. It wasn't quite the same, but they had the half of a luggage cart sticking out through the wall so it looked like we were going through. Some jerk had scratched off part of the 4 so it looked like Platform 3/1. But it sufficed.

Then we went to check off a MAJOR to-do, the National Gallery. I was so proud. We had two hours and saw it ALL. There were some seriously famous works of art there. Van Gogh's "Sunflowers" and Da Vinci's "Madonna of the Rocks" were kind of the superstars. There were a lot that I knew from Art History but probably wouldn't have otherwise. Still very famous, though. Titian's "Bacchus and Ariadne" (this was one of the first ones I saw and I got a picture of it before I realized we weren't allowed to take them), Caravaggio's "Supper at Emmaus," Jan van Eyck's "Arnolfini Wedding Portrait," Constable's "Hay-Wain," Turner's "Fighting Termeraire" and "Rain, Steam, and Speed," Seurat's "Bathers as Asnieres," Holbein's "The Ambassadors"... for those of you who are interested at all in art (I'm looking at you, Maddie), or anyone who took AP Art History with me, it was all really cool.

I cannot believe there is only one week left. I feel like it's gone by so quickly, and yet I've done SO MUCH that it also feels way longer. That's kind of what I anticipated I guess. We have a lot to do school-wise this week, with a project on Hamlet due Tuesday, recitation of memorized lines on Wednesday, and final on Thursday, but come on, I love all that stuff.

So much Shakespeare.

It's been a busyyy couple of days. We had a triple-header in terms of class-related activities, starting with Richard III on Tuesday, then Hamlet on Wednesday, and our trip to Stratford-upon-Avon on Thursday. So much Shakespeare. So much awesome.

So first, Richard III. This was a really cool experience. Richard was played by Kevin Spacey, and he killed it. I actually didn't know much about the play, despite it apparently being the most-performed Shakespeare play (not sure if I believe that). But then of course I read it and got terribly confused with all the characters and was really just only excited to see Spacey, not really the play as a whole. The whole production was phenomenal, though. It was directed by Sam Mendes. It wasn't at the Globe, where all of our other plays have been, but it was at the Old Vic, which is a far more developed theatre. Kevin Spacey has actually been the Artistic Director there for the last 5 years or so. Maybe longer. Anyway, because it was indoors and they had quite a bit of money to play with, they did some very cool things that the Globe cannot. Every time they had a scene change they played this really intense drum music and projected the name of a character on the wall--which was cool as well as helpful to keep everyone straight. One of my favorite scenes is when Richard and his right-hand man, Buckingham, go out into the square and try to convince the citizens that Richard should be the new king. It's all very deceitful of them, Richard is pretending like he's this very virtuous man who couldn't possibly be king and he doesn't want the burden, and Buckingham gets the crowd all riled up and "forces" him into accepting. The way they did it was to have Richard exit upstage, as if he was going into a church to pray, and then they broadcasted him on this huge screen reacting to Buckingham and to the citizens. They placed what seemed to be the entire supporting cast at various places throughout the audiences, who would cheer or boo or yell at opportune moments. It really felt like we were in the middle of this political rally. Spacey was so great, looking all humble and stuff, when in reality we knew it was all a part of his evil scheme.

The end was pretty awesome too. There's a scene where all of the ghosts who Richard has killed (there are about 10 of them... dude's got a lot of blood on his hands) come onstage and curse him the night before his final battle, while praising his enemy, Richmond. It's cool to read but the way they did it was even better. They seated everyone on this long table, as if they were having a dinner party and the curses were toasts. It was a really unique of doing it. Then at the very end, Richard and Richmond are giving these inspiring monologues to their troops, and they had all of the ghosts come back again and stand downstage with these enormous drums. So Richard and Richmond are yelling and the ghosts are playing and it was incredibly epic, like more so than I think it could have even been in a movie. When Richard finally dies, they attach this hook to his shoes and lift him up so he's dangling upside down, just him and Richmond onstage as Richmond delivers his victorious monologue. It was very creepy and great. It was also really impressive of Spacey, who just had to do this super demanding role for 3 1/2 hours, then scream out a monologue, then have this long swordfight, and then to top it off he has to hang upside down for a good three minutes. It was very cool and surreal to give a standing ovation to a guy whose won 2 Oscars. We went to the stage door and were there for all of 30 seconds when a bodyguard poked his head out and said "If you're waiting for Mr. Spacey or Mr. Mendes, they'll not be out this way tonight." Understandable.

So that was Richard III. The following night we went back to my beloved Globe to see Hamlet. With the stakes being so high given it was our last play, and we'd just seen Kevin Spacey, and it's my favorite Shakespeare, it would have been pretty hard to live up to expectations. So it didn't, really. I mean I liked it and everything. I hate having bad things to say about plays because I know that everyone works so hard and unlike in movies, you can see all that hard work displayed onstage in front of you. This production seemed especially tiring, given that they had only 8 actors playing every role. Hamlet was the only guy who didn't play at least 3 different parts. It's a traveling production, they're only at the Globe for 3 performances, so one of the things they've done to make the show unique is to try to emulate actors back in the day, like before there were real theatres. That's how actors would have done it in the past, with minimal actors so they don't have to pay a bunch of people, and they actually rarely went offstage, doing costume changes right there. Most of their costumes were really ratty too, I think again kind of demonstrating the lack of budget that traveling actor groups used to have. So that was a cool aspect, but it just didn't translate great to the Globe. Sometimes it felt more like it was about the costume changes and the idea of it rather than the play itself. It was still good, though, Hamlet did a great job (although we really could not get over how short he was... a Google search when we got home revealed he was 5' 4". FIVE FOUR.)

Thursday was our trip to Stratford-upon-Avon. It was all well and good. We visited 4 different Shakespeare-related houses, including the farm where his grandparents lived and he would visit in the summers (apparently he lived there for a while when the plague broke out in the city), his wife Anne Hathaway's house, his daughter and son-in-law's house, and of course his birthplace. The birthplace was by far the most commercialized, they had this whole Disneyland-esque video introduction thing. They also had his very first Folio, though, which was way cool. They said if he hadn't released that Folio there's a good chance like half of the plays we know today would have been lost. We also visited the church where he and his family are buried, and saw the font that he was baptized in. Stratford as a whole was a cute little city. Practically everything there was Shakespearianized. They had places like Iago Jewellery and Othello Bar... it was great.

Still not entirely sure what the plans are for this evening. We may go to a play or something.

4th of July in the Country That Lost

Yesterday was pretty mellow. I slept in for the first time since I've been here, really, aside from when I was sick. Becka and Nikki (not to be confused with Nicole), my two other roommates, and I planned on going to get Dim Sum in Chinatown, but instead had kind of a lazy morning and then went to the Globe to get tickets for Anne Boleyn and to see if there were any left for Much Ado. Tragedy of tragedies, there weren't. For the entire rest of the time I'm here. I had a very cranky walk back to the Tube.

For dinner we went back to our "local," The Builder's Arms, who had apparently had a very busy weekend given the Wimbledon finals and were almost completely out of food. I had a really overdone burger that was oddly spicy, so I kept piling it with ketchup to counteract the spice. 3/4 of the way through I realize it's the ketchup that's spicy, and I'm just making it worse. To remedy it all a couple of us went over to Nando's and got the best mash in the entire world (the menu actually says "we defy you to find better"), but then they didn't have any dessert so we had to stop for ice cream on the way home. I know this is all terribly fascinating.

Clearly, our American Independence Day isn't a very big deal over here. Seeing as the Brits are the ones that lost the war and everything. We didn't make it a big deal either, really. Class in the morning as usual, and then Dobby took a few of us out to lunch who volunteered to act out scenes from Richard III in class tomorrow (This is the third time I've done it. Just can't stay away). Then since we had yet to actually read the play, my 3 roomies and I hopped the Tube to Northern London, where Nicole's boyfriend lives. We got free burritos because we were American (seriously, they had this 4th of July deal... just had to show our Drivers Licenses) at a Chipotle-like chain and then went to read in a little park. We only got a scene through, though, when Matt (the boyfriend) texted and invited us to a barbecue in a different park, with his co-workers. So we went to that for a while until I started to feel stressed about finishing the play by tomorrow. This is not exactly concise material. We spent the rest of the night reading the play aloud, always an entertaining event. Especially when there are only 3 people to read approximately 30 different characters, half of whom are named Richard, Edward, or Henry.

It's supposed to rain tomorrow, which likely means a) museum or b) sit inside and read plays. We still have one more act of Richard to go before seeing the show tomorrow night, and then we have Hamlet the night following... not a whole lot of time to cram in all that Shakespeare. I'm terribly excited for both, though. Richard III is starring Kevin Spacey and is directed by Sam Mendes, and it's not at the Globe, it's at a theatre in the West End. Very legit. And Hamlet, of course, is my favorite play of all-time (also Romeo & Juliet). Then Thursday is our trip to Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace. So we've got a very packed week.

Also, I got the wonderful news that just because tickets are sold out for Much Ado doesn't mean that all hope is lost. A lot of times they have returns on the day of the show, and if I call in the morning I can usually get a seat. Or if not in the morning, then I can wait in line like an hour before the show and almost definitely get one. So I have faith! I knew there must be a way.

I hope everyone had a wonderful 4th of July--God Bless America!

Adventures Thwarted at Shoreditch, Henley, and the Globe

Public transportation: not my favorite part of cities.

So we've been hearing all trip that the place to go out for locals is Shoreditch. Last night we decided to check it out. I don't need to go into the details, the memory will just make me frustrated and anxious, but we ended up wandering around this neighborhood for hours, trying to find somewhere to go, getting lost, waiting in lines, figuring out maps... it was terrible. By the time 1:00 rolled around we were waiting in line for a bar and just decided to forget it, it wasn't worth it. Plus we knew it would be a fiasco getting home... which it was. Four bus stops, three buses, a long walk and almost two hours later, we made it back to our beloved Manson Place, where I never wanted to leave again. We had spent a grand total of about 45 minutes actually inside a bar and it was 3:30 before we were asleep.

This was a problem, because I had plans this morning to go to the Henley Royal Regatta, which I was very excited about. I got up after 4 hours of sleep, put on my long dress (it must be below the knee to get in... love it), made my way to Paddington station and was ten minutes early to meet Nicole and her boyfriend. After a half hour, though, the train we were supposed to take had left, the one after it had left, and still no sign of them. I was starting to feel very sorry for myself that I was alone in this enormous train station and no cell phone or anything to get ahold of anybody, and then I thought: well, that's okay, I can always go see Much Ado. So I left, hopped the Tube to the London Bridge, and headed over to the Globe feeling really confused about what had just happened but actually pretty okay about the whole thing.

I got coffee and wrote in my journal and embraced the idea of being alone in London, for the first time since I've been here, really. My parade was rained on by the ticket seller, though, who informed me that seats were all sold out for today. I wasn't terribly devastated--I should have known a Saturday matinee in July would sell out quickly--but also wasn't nearly ready to leave yet. So I perused the gift shop, finally buying DVD copies of Romeo & Juliet and Love's Labour's Lost from the 2009 season. Who knows if they'll be any good, but I thought it'd be nice to bring home a piece of the Globe. Also R&J is one of my favorite shows (the other is Hamlet). Also the guy who played Claudio is in both of them. Triple win.

I wrote in my journal again and still couldn't bring myself to leave, so I investigated the sign that said "Exhibition and Tour". I'd already taken the tour with everyone else, so I just paid 5 pounds to check out the exhibition. It was interesting; exactly what I wanted to do if I couldn't actually see the show. They had some costumes from previous performances and a lot of history and it was all quite good.

Finally I thought it might be time to take my leave, so I headed out and started walking towards the Tube. As I was walking, though, I saw the woman who plays Beatrice headed towards the theatre, cell phone and coffee in hand. That makes three times I've seen actors outside of the theatre. Very odd. Anyway, I thought I might sit just a bit longer and see if I could see anyone else, while also writing in my journal for the third time. They closed the gates a few moments later though and I figure it was really finally time to go.

Back at home, my roommates were all terribly relieved to see me. Apparently Nicole's bus had gotten delayed, twice, and they hadn't made it to Paddington until after I'd left. She felt so bad about leaving me that she sent the boys ahead and came all the way back home to get me, assuming I'd come home when I couldn't find them there. I felt awful when I heard that, because I actually thought as I left the station that I should probably go home and check in, but the allure of being on my own and spending time at the Globe was too strong. My other roommates practically had to force Nicole to go, she felt so bad about leaving me. So now of course I feel bad. It's bad all around. I haven't heard from her, but hopefully she met up with the boys and is having a great time. Someday I'll see the Henley, just not today.

Today officially marks the halfway point of my trip. What an amazing time.

Globe Withdrawal

I think Kensington may be the most wonderful place I will ever live. You've got all the perks of the city, like restaurants, and the Tube, and a fun atmosphere, but it doesn't feel like the city, not with its white buildings and trees and clean streets and not a sketchy person in sight. I love it so much. It's getting to the point where getting off the Tube at our station feels like getting home. I can't help it; I'm attached.

I'm also incredibly attached to the Globe theatre, where of course I've been spending a great deal of time and falling increasingly in love with it. I actually miss it when we don't go there at night. Last night, FIE treated us all to tickets to The 39 Steps, the West End play comically based on Hitchcock's movie. It was amusing and all that, but all I could really think about was how much I'd rather be up in the third level at the Globe being treated to some 400-year-old witty banter. And as incredibly excited I am to see Kevin Spacey in Richard III this week, I do wish it was at my beloved Globe (although it will be nice to have seats with cushions--those benches can be brutal). Anyway, we're all finding it terribly ironic that instead of pining for the weekend like normal students, we can't wait until our next class and our next show. I was very close to hopping on the Tube and going to be a groundling (that's what they call the people who stand in the pit-like thing at the Globe, right in front of the stage) for Much Ado tonight, especially when I discovered it's not showing again until next Monday. But I resisted.

I've definitely been getting in my history for the last couple days. Yesterday after class we went to the Tower of London, which was incredibly interesting and also incredibly large. I had no idea there was going to be so much to see. We saw the Crown Jewels, of course, which were amazing and very sparkly. Then we spent the rest of the time exploring the various towers and walking along the wall and checking it all out. There was so much history there. We spent almost three and a half hours, which is by far the longest we've spent anywhere.

Today we continued our sightseeing with a walking tour that took us to Buckingham Palace to the see the Changing of the Guard, then over to Westminster Abbey. How beautiful. It was very fun to stand in the place I had watched at 5 in the morning a few months ago when Will & Kate were married, & of course where good old Colin was crowned in The King's Speech (speaking of The King's Speech: I was told that the woman we saw play Beatrice in Much Ado played Wallis Simpson, the divorced lover/fiancee of Guy Pearce... fun fact). There were also a ton of famous graves, monuments, etc. A lot of famous writers were commemorated there, like Jane Austen and DH Lawrence and Lewis Carroll and Charles Dickens and of course the man of the hour, Mr. Shakespeare. It was nice to get the tour, we got a lot of interesting information we wouldn't have otherwise. The whole thing was three hours, though, so we were pretty tired.

I came home and considered going to the Globe and took a nap while most of my flatmates went to Madame Tussaud's. Nicole and I are going to go some other time when I'm not so tired and my camera isn't dead. It's one of the places I'm most excited to go so I want to be prepared.

Have I mentioned I miss the Globe?

Another Day, Another Play

Yes. I like it here.

Doctor Faustus was sort of what I expected, but really not at all. It was dark, but also funny, and frightening, and really kind of moving.

The play tells the story of Doctor Faustus, who sells his soul to Lucifer in exchange for 24 years with one of Lucifer's right-hand men, Mephistopheles. He becomes rich and powerful and does all these terrible things, but ultimately dies when his years are up, being dragged off by demons to torment forever in hell. All the while he briefly contemplates turning back to God, but Mephistopheles and his Bad Angel (you know, like the one on his shoulder) keep telling him he can't, despite his Good Angel's urging to do so.

The play was super elaborate, with these enormous costume pieces and people on stilts and trapdoors and fire leaping out of books and stuff--things I never expected the Globe could manage. It was all wonderful. My favorite was by far Mephistopheles, who could go from restrained to charming to terrifying at the drop of a hat. I really enjoyed his relationship with Faustus; I felt like Mephistopheles really cared about him and would become jealous, almost hurt, when Faustus considered turning back to God.

My favorite part of the play, though, came probably because it was so entirely unexpected. There is a character at the end simply called the Old Man, who enters, has 3 long lines urging Faustus to turn to Heaven, and leaves when Faustus tells him he can't, it's too late. I didn't pay him much mind when I read the play, but seeing it I got an entirely different perspective. When the man entered, I watched him deliver his lines for a moment, and then my eyes turned to Mephistopheles. He was pinned against the pillar in complete and total terror, almost in tears, struck completely useless by the presence of the Old Man. And I realized: he was God, coming to make one final plea to Faustus to realize his errors and come home. Unlike Mephistopheles, who came in in a cloud of smoke with a red cape, conjuring dancing demons to prove himself, the Old Man came in with nothing, unassuming as always, and simply asked. I cried a little. Seeing Mephistopheles, who was so calm and in control the entire play, suddenly reduced to this frightened child, was a really beautiful moment. And the fact that Faustus rejected him once again finally sealed his fate--we watched seconds later as demons literally carried him offstage into smoky Hell.

Anyway, that was my favorite part. It was kind of when I realized the severity of the material. And I'm finding it very difficult to dislike anything that I see at the Globe--what a problem to have.

To recap the rest of my day, we went to the London Eye before the show, which was a great view of the city but not much else. The plan was the Tower of London, but our professor assigned us a paper on Much Ado due tomorrow so we decided we needed the extra time to work on it before the show. We'll probably go to tomorrow, see the Crown Jewels and all that.

It's a late night in the flat. What with Faustus going a bit longer than the rest of the shows we've seen (it was 3 hours) and only an hour or two to work on our paper this afternoon, we're all cramming a bit. But hey, any excuse to write about my beloved Claudio, I'm happy.

Cheerio!

-Charlotte

Thunder and Fire and Faustus

Yesterday I experienced my first-ever London thunderstorm. Boy this place has weird weather. I went from sweating my eyes out one day to staying indoors amidst torrential downpour the next. Anyway, we used it as prompting to sit in our living room and read Doctor Faustus, our next play, which we are seeing tonight. The wonderful thing about it was that Faustus is this really dark show about demons and Lucifer and all that incredibly cheerful stuff, and it literally says things like "Faustus is in his study. Thunder." and thunder would bang in the background, right on cue. So that was fun.

FIE, the Foundation for International Education, is the organization that is looking after us while we're here--it's their housing and such that we're staying in. Anyway, they had a meet and greet type thing last night over at the Imperial College. I was actually genuinely looking forward to getting to know some of the students from other schools--they have people here from like Santa Clara and Ohio State and U of A who live in our building but we never see--but of course we pretty much stuck to ourselves, had our 2 free drinks, and left.

We went over to Piccadilly Circus, which I had yet to go to and was like a much smaller Times Square, with big video screens and stores and such. There were a ton of people around, despite it being fairly late on a Tuesday. We went to this bar/restaurant called O'Neills that had dancing and a live band and three stories. Definitely one of the most fun places I've been since I've been here. We took the night bus home since the Tube stops at 12, which was kind of an experience.

Anyway, we're back off to the Globe tonight to see Doctor Faustus. I'm feeling more than a little sad that we aren't seeing a comedy, but oh well. We're first going to the London Eye, one of the most overpriced touristy things in London, but still something you've got to do while you're here (kind of like Madame Tussauds, which is also on my list). Should be a good time.

Here's hoping the rain stays away. I hear there's lots of fire in Faustus.

-Charlotte

A Cafe Encounter... that is Much Ado About Nothing

Well I've finally made it back to the land of the living, just in time for it to get HOT. Rainy, cloudy London is no more, this is sweat-until-you-die London (at least for the moment. I actually hear it should rain again tomorrow).

I actually felt better starting yesterday, but decided to play it relatively easy and NOT go to the all-day club that my flatmates checked out (they call it "Church." Get it? Because it's on Sunday? Yeah). Instead, two others and I went to the Royal Albert Hall (built by Queen Victoria's husband, Albert) and saw the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The whole thing was beautiful, from the hall to the music, and to top it all off they did Carmina Burana which is a personal favorite of mine since we sang parts of it at Nueva. Seriously, the whole thing was incredibly gorgeous. It was just what I needed to experience some London culture while still taking it pretty easy (and also not dying in the heat, which had just begun).

We went to dinner at the Gourmet Burger Kitchen, which we discovered is American because they say fries instead of chips, and spent the night finishing Much Ado About Nothing since the performance was today.

This morning instead of class we headed down to the Globe, where we got a tour and a semi-acting lesson from an actor. It was fairly interesting, although the tour was only of the stage, which we'd seen, and most of the facts we'd already learned from Dobby (that's our professor. He forbids us to call him anything other than Dobby). The acting was pretty hysterical, though, mostly watching our friends be subject to his humorously harsh stage directions.

After that, Dobby took us on a short Shakespeare walking tour, including the site of the original Globe, the Rose which was its rival theatre, and Southwark chapel that has Shakespeare's brother's grave (I took a picture before I knew we weren't allowed to). When the tour was finished Dobby took seven of us out to lunch to discuss a couple scenes in Much Ado that we're going to act out in class on Wednesday.

This is where it all got a little weird. Maybe I'm overreacting from this whole thing, but I'll let you be the judge. Here are the facts. We went to this little cafe that was attached to the Globe Education Center or something like that. Basically it's owned by the Globe. So we go in and it's essentially empty, there's one older bald man eating his food, we order our food and sit down, and these 4 men come in after, order, and sit. We start talking about Much Ado. We're going on for a bit and then I look over and the man who'd been sitting there when we walked in is kind of glaring at us, and I see him mouth "shut the f**k up." Like really angrily. So suffice it to say I was sort of taken aback. A few moments later, I notice that the four men at the table next to us are particularly amused by our conversation (it wasn't exactly hard to tell what we were talking about). They keep glancing over and laughing and muttering about "Hey that table's discussing Much Ado." So now I'm feeling really uncomfortable. Then, to top it all off, this very attractive young man with a beard (he's attractive despite the beard, not because of it, okay) comes in and is immediately called over by the other four. One older guy goes "Hey, see that table there, they're doing Much Ado." So I suddenly realize: they're the actors. They're probably having lunch before they do some dress rehearsal or fitting or something, and we're just being terribly amusing to them by going on about the play they'll be performing in only a few hours time.

So, okay. This is cool, right? Except I was so thrown off by the one guy telling us to eff off (he wasn't an actor, by the way, just some guy) and not totally knowing how to react by these guys looking at us and laughing while we discuss their play was just a little too much. I left feeling very embarrassed and hoping that I was wrong, or that maybe they were the actors for a different play, or something. I just couldn't shake the feeling that that guy with the beard was way too handsome to have a beard like that if he wasn't... a Shakespearean actor. Or Brian Wilson.

Anyway, for whatever reason, this encounter stayed with me all day, kind of in a negative way. After lunch we went to the Clink Museum, which was this tiny little thing all about medieval torture and prisons and such. The worst we saw was this big metal boot that they stick your foot in and pour hot oil into it, then make you sit there until your foot literally falls off. Sickening. Afterwards we walked down the Thames to the Tower Bridge and took photos and such (I will be better with the photos, I've just been too lazy to upload them). We walked past City Hall which is this very modern building that looks a bit like an egg that's been sliced and then tilted out in pieces--hard to describe. Then we walked all the way back past the Globe and to this little pub that is supposed to let you drink your pint on the steps leading to the river, right on the shore, but the tide had gone out so it was all rocks, and all we wanted was water to drink anyway (like I said, SO hot out).

We got dinner and finally ran into 2 girls who said everyone was at Starbucks writing in their journals (we have to keep one for the class) and finishing the play, so we headed over there and spent some time before the show started. We also hit up the Globe gift shop, which had my favorite Hamlet quote that I had all but forgotten but now remember: "Doubt thou the stars are fire/ Doubt that the sun doth move/ Doubt truth to be a liar/ But never doubt I love" (I die).

Finally, it was show time, and I found myself nervous, for no good reason whatsoever. I was just really hoping I was wrong and the guys at the cafe were not actors, just randoms who like to laugh at people reading Shakespeare.

Of course, who shows up right on stage, hottie with a beard, playing Claudio, one of the two male leads. I almost died. I kept myself together for the most part, though, and promptly fell in love with him throughout the course of the play, although the whole cafe thing was still in the back of my mind (stupid). The man playing the Friar was the one who was particularly amused by us.

Anyway, the play was great, so funny, a lot more laugh-out-loud moments than All's Well (largely because it's just a funnier play). The guy who played Geoffrey on "Fresh Prince of Bel-Air" was in it! We were all highly amused. I will not go into a plot synopsis like I did for All's Well, but of course in the end everything was well and everyone was happy, this time ending in a sort of double wedding and, of course, a jig. I now wonder if I go back to that cafe on the morning of a performance, if I will be able to re-meet Claudio and set the record straight. Of course, I realize how ironic all this is given the title "Much Ado About Nothing," which I believe is exactly what happened in my head over the course of the day.

I'm a little sad to be done with comedies, especially because we've got some heavy ones coming up. Doctor Faustus, which it appears that nobody has a clue what it's about (not even Dobby) but is very supernatural and all the posters have fire and stuff, then Richard III and Hamlet (my love). Big hitters. It'll all be good though.

It is so wonderful to be back :)

-Charlotte

Sick.

Yeah. In London, sick. How upsetting. I slept like 6 hours today, so no exciting adventures to report, but here's hoping I can shape up for the weekend. I have been having all kinds of fun dreams about Shakespearean kings and stuff... glad to know it's been invading my subconscious.

The Killers are playing in Hyde Park tomorrow. That should expedite my getting better process, right? Let's hope.

All's Well That Ends Well... assuming it ends well

Jeez, I miss one day, and it's like I have a million things to talk about.

Okay, briefly, yesterday:

-Watched Shakespeare in Love in class, which I adore. Also makes me wish I had brought Romeo + Juliet because I always want to watch it after I see the other. It all got me very excited for my first trip to the Globe!

-Went to the Victoria & Albert Museum, which is MONSTROUS. I've never seen something so enormous. We thought we could get all the essentials in 2 hours. False. I did see some very cool Medieval Art & searched for almost 20 minutes when I found out there was a Donatello room (he's one of my favorites)--only to find out there was one little Donatello statue and like 20 "in the style of Donatello" things. My favorite, though, were the "Raphael Cartoons," 6 enormous paintings approximately 12 x 15 feet each, that were commissioned by the Pope and depict stories from Acts. They were all alone in this gargantuan room; it was the only place I went to in the museum where you couldn't take pictures. They were literally breathtaking. Also on loan from the Queen!

-Remember the British comedian I talked about from the pub the night before? Yeah, he went on for like 20 minutes about this place called Nando's that was his absolute favorite. It was a restaurant chain, I feel like kind of on par with a place like Chipotle, except only served chicken. Anyway, we decided we had to check it out and see what all the fuss was about, so we went to our local neighborhood one (it wasn't hard to find; they're everywhere). The food was pretty good, definitely a fun atmosphere. Best mashed potatoes (or "mash," as they say) I've ever had. Also I learned the hard way that they do not say chicken filet, like fil-ay, like we do in America, but they say fillet, like skillet. I have so much to learn.

So that was yesterday. It ended with me going to bed at 9:00, thus no post. Days are long here; the sun rises at 4:30 and doesn't fully set until 10:30. With class in the morning and nonstop activities in the afternoon, it's pretty exhausting. In a good way, though.

This morning I woke up at 7:00 entirely on my own for maybe the first time in my life. I finished reading All's Well that Ends Well, which we were discussing in class (our first real class) and seeing tonight at the Globe.

From my reading, this is what I got as the general plot: a girl named Helena is in love with a newly-appointed Count named Bertram, whose mother the Countess practically raised Helena after her father died. The King is sick and Helena, whose father was a physician, promises to cure him if he offers her one thing: the hand in marriage to any man she chooses. He agrees and she does, of course choosing Bertram. Bertram is a total jerk about the whole thing and argues that she is too lowly for him, but the King insists. The two are married and Bertram runs away to go to war, leaving Helena a letter telling her that if she can get the ring he wears on his finger and become pregnant with his child, only then will he truly be her husband. Off at war, Bertram tries to seduce a commoner named Diana, but Helena interferes and comes up with a plot of her own. Diana tells Bertram she'll sleep with him if he gives her his ring; then later, when he goes to her room to meet her, she has Helena there waiting for him instead. Helena sends word that she has died, causing Bertram to regret how poorly he treated her and return home. There, the whole mess comes spilling out, where Diana accuses Bertram of stealing her virginity in front of the King and everybody. Finally, though, Helena shows up, with the ring, and the pregnant belly, and tells him he now has to be her husband. Bertram agrees and the two live happily ever after.

Yikes. There were also all these supporting characters that supposedly turned it into a comedy, but let's face it: it wasn't very funny. In fact, were it not for nobody actually dying, it really could have been a tragedy instead. They say "All's Well That Ends Well," but the way things are left is really not well at all--I don't care if the two are married, Bertram is still a jerk and doesn't love her.

While I pondered all that, the crew and I took the Tube over to the Globe, which happened to be near 2 other pretty great sights: St. Paul's Cathedral and the Millenium Bridge. The Cathedral is beautiful. Unfortunately, you had to pay to get in, and we were feeling cheap, so the inside will have to wait for another time. The outside was gorgeous though. The Millenium Bridge is a pretty cool-looking modern bridge, that I recognized (and got excited about) because it's the one that the Death Eaters collapse at the beginning of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part One. Also on it was none other than Captain Morgan himself (Houseboats!), who was being videotaped for Facebook or something and asked me all sorts of questions like was I a hippie because I was from San Francisco. I had to sign a waiver to let them use the footage; apparently if you like Captain Morgan on Facebook I'll be up there in a couple days.

Next was the Tate Modern, which was... modern. I'm just really not a big fan of the modern art, if I'm being honest. There were some very cool, very famous artists in there--Picasso, Matisse, Van Gogh, Dali, etc--and I liked those for sheer history's sake, but artistically I prefer something like a big Baroque statue or Renaissance painting. I really need to hit up the National Gallery; that's where my kind of stuff is.

After dinner, we headed on over to the Globe to see All's Well. Our tickets were great--the front row of the last balcony, center stage. It was really awesome to see all the actors legitimately interact with the audience. The theatre looked just how it did in "Shakespeare in Love;" awesome. The show hugely exceeded my expectations. It was actually really funny, and really sweet, and to my delight Bertram didn't turn out to be a huge douche after all--he loved Helena, he just thought they couldn't be together because of their class differences. Our professor said he's always wanted him to be played that way but this is the first time he's ever seen it done. Anyway, it was all great fun, and after the show ended (with a legitimately happy ending, unlike my reading of the play), they did a little jig, which is apparently the norm for all the shows done in the Globe--even the tragedies.

To add one more little fun experience, as my roommate Nicole and I were heading outside from the loo, our favorite character Paroles (who had been our least favorite character when we read the show--funny how that works out) was walking inside and held the door for us. We got to tell him how much we enjoyed the show and especially his part, which was a nice little ending to the night.

I truly cannot believe it's been only a few days since I've been here. There's been so much already--I can just tell that a month is going to feel like forever but it'll whiz by so quickly. Apologies for the novel; thanks for reading!

-Charlotte

Monday Highlights

A highlight of the day's adventures:

-Our first day of "class," which was really just FIE orientation, learning about the ins and outs and how to be safe in London, etc.

-My first British Starbucks experience. A regular coffee is a "filtered coffee" and you can either order it black or white, which is with milk. Also they sell packaged pancakes and marmalade. True story.

-A trip to the West End/Soho/Leicester Square (watch out, here comes the aforementioned occasional photo):

Total highlight. We went to the bookstore to pick up copies of All's Well That Ends Well which apparently they do not sell in the States because nobody could find it. Then a trip to the M&M store which was a massive four stories and featured such beauties as these:

The Bard himself, Billy Shakes.

I know, hot ride. (Apparently I've got a thing for the blue one.)

Also there was this amazing little pastry shop that made me sick with its sweetness (literally) as we ate sitting on a step on the sidewalk. We got some serious dirty/confused looks for that one; apparently it's not okay to sit on steps and eat pastry in London. Also in the West End, oh yeah, MUSICALS. A ton of them. That was definitely my favorite part of London we've visited so far (I know, I've been here SUCH a long time already), and I realllly want to go back. Also see a show.

More highlights:

-Reading/acting out All's Well with 4 other people--makes it far easier and more fun to understand. Also we have to read it by Wednesday.

-Returning to what we are now calling our "local" for Comedy Night and being treated to some good old British humor while we ate our chicken pie and mash.

-Discovering that the other students living in our building are from Ohio State.

...okay the highlight was the cute boys that are from there too.

Words I am now attempting to add into my vocabulary:

-Sorry. Instead of "excuse me." Like when you're in the tiny market with your quart of milk and you have to squeeze by the man in a suit, you do not say "excuse me," you say "sorry." You also say it in a British accent, because it is short enough that you can't really mess it up and people may actually believe you.

-Cheers. We're still trying to totally figure out the context of this one. I was pretty sure it was in lieu of "thank you." Like when you order your food at the pub and they hand you your change and you say "cheers" and then walk away. Then some of my friends thought it was as a goodbye, kind of like "ciao" or something. Which would also make sense in the context I just used. Clearly this necessitates further investigation; I'll let you know as the mystery unfolds.

-Brilliant. This one's my favorite. They use it for everything; even things that are really not very brilliant. "Here's your change." Brilliant. "There's the Tube." Brilliant. "Class starts at 9:30." Brilliant. It's great. Wait, it's brilliant. I need work.

Lovelovelove!

-Charlotte

Just Touched Down in Londontown (for real)

Well, I made it. Quite a journey. I'll call it Charlotte's Travel Saga, Part Two, or: I Begin a Torrid Love Affair with British Airways. After checking out of the hotel this morning (yesterday morning? I have no idea what's going on with time), I grabbed the shuttle to the airport and waited in line yet again for British Airways, which didn't start checking people in until 12:45.

While I was waiting, I ran into my best friend Maddie's cousins Georgie and Fiona, and Fiona's parents. They were on my same flight en route to Spain. Small world. Anyway, I had a minor heart attack when the British Airways man told me they were overbooked because of United sending all their people to that flight, and I'd have to go on standby. Given my luck, I was just positive I wouldn't get a spot on the plane. Georgie and Fiona and I got lunch and ice cream and played cards, and as they headed to security I went to meet my doom.

The man was very nice, he let me skip the line and come straight up to talk to him. I was ten minutes early, so he asked me to step to the side (very politely) and wait a bit. After the ten minutes, I walked up and he said "Hi Miss Livermore," before checking very quickly and saying he was sorry but could I wait just a few moments more (imagine all this in a British accent). Then he left. Right then, another man came walking around asking if anyone was on the flight to London (which by now had started boarding). One person piped up and said she was on standby, and he shook his head at her and said there was no way. So I was feeling very hopeless.

Until my friend came back. He waved me over and said we were all set, handed me my boarding pass, and then offered to escort me to the gate since he was going there anyway. We went to the front of every line, everybody looking at me like I was some special-status something. Or as the guy in the UCSB baseball polo standing next to me in security said, "You must be really important." Anyway, I made it to the gate thanks to the VIP treatment, and finally, FINALLY boarded for London.

Extra bonus: somehow my seat ended up being in "World Traveler Plus," BA's equivalent of Economy Plus. On a ten-hour flight, though, you get a lot more than extra legroom. The man at the door checked my ticket and called me by name, showing me to my seat. There were built-in TVs in every seat. Flight attendants didn't go longer than half an hour without offering water or juice. The meal was easily the best flight meal I'd ever had--some sort of curry chicken rice business. They had a great selection of movies, and TV, and music. The seats went really far back and had legrests that came out. Not to turn this into some sort of British Airways Yelp review, but in short I was impressed. And in love. British Airways has so won my business in the future, along with my heart.

Anyway. London. I got to the airport and made my way pretty easily through customs, etc. The Tube was surprisingly easy as well. Really just... a typical subway. The difficult part was when I got off and had to find my way to the housing place where I was supposed to check in. That was an hour-long process, lugging an extremely heavy bag through the streets of Kensington on 4 hours of sleep. Finally I made it, with a half hour to spare before the walking tour of Kensington, where I finally met most of the people on the trip with me.

The tour was pretty interesting. Our guide was a woman who had lived there for 25 years and whose goal was to show us the side of London that only the locals knew, since we technically would be locals for a month. We saw a lot of interesting shops and an abundance of beautiful old churches. My favorites were the mews, which used to be where the people would park their horse and carriage, and now are small, usually one or two level flats. Despite their small size, our guide said they go for about 2 million pounds--although it's a far cry from the upwards of 25 million some of the seven-story houses get. I'm a little amazed they have student housing in such a nice area; the wealthiest street in London is just a few blocks away from us, right by the Kensington Palace where Will and Kate are going to move later this summer.

By the end of the tour, my jetlag had caught up with me, and I was enormously regretting choosing the three-hour walking tour to break in my new shoes. We made it back in one unit, however, and I was finally able to shower off the 2 days of travel before going grocery shopping. It's still all very surreal that I'm actually here, in a foreign country. I talk to someone and they are surprised at the accent that comes out of my mouth. It's very odd.

My one roommate Nicole and I are getting along great, which is nice. We're in a four-person room, but our other 2 girls we think are the ones who got stuck at SFO with the United crash and won't get in until tomorrow night. We have our first day of class tomorrow. I'm excited! Also my first-ever pub trip tonight, where I'm mostly going to eat because I haven't really had anything since the breakfast on the plane this morning. I figure if I can stay awake until 10 then I can wake up for class tomorrow and fight this whole jetlag thing. My body is mad at me right now though.

Hopefully I have more exciting things to report next time. Thanks for tuning in :)

-Charlotte

PS: If someone would like to give the Giants a kick in the pants from me, I'd appreciate it. Just because I leave the country does not mean they are allowed to start losing to the A's. That is all.

London Calling... and Calling... still Calling...

This is not quite how I anticipated my first blog post about London going... seeing as I am not yet in London.

It's been quite a day, to say the least. Since it's 1:30 in the morning and nothing has gone quite how I planned it to, this will likely be brief (or maybe not). What follows is Charlotte's Travel Saga, Part One, or: How I Left My House at 11 AM and ended up at La Quinta Inn LAX 22 Hours Later.

My flight left SFO on time, 1:24 PM, bound for LAX. I sat next to the two cutest little girls on the plane, sisters, one was going into 6th grade and one 2nd. They kept asking what I was going to do in Hawaii (that's where they were going after their connection). Adorable.

In LA, there was a minor speed bump: the plane I was on was getting in late from Beijing and would be delayed about half an hour. My layover was already three hours, but since I had gotten in early and would now be departing late, it ended up being about four hours. Which was fine, but felt like it would be long.

It was long. The only problem was, as we crept closer to the supposed departure time (6:30), we started to notice that something was not quite right. Flights were not leaving. Any of them. Finally we had a representative come on the speaker telling us that the United computers had crashed and we had to wait it out until they were online before we could do anything--check-in, change seats, board the plane. A quick google search told me this was not just an LAX thing; this was nationwide. Awesome.

As the hours crept by and I slowly realized I would likely be able to watch the Giants game after all (with a 7:10 start time), it became more apparent that I was also likely not going to make it to London anytime soon. At least not in time to make the walking tour of the city we were supposed to have tomorrow (today?). I was with 3 other girls who are also in my program, 1 of whom I'd met but the other 2 I hadn't. They are LA locals, so their Plan B was going home for the night. I had no such plan. (One of the girls actually had a panic attack because of the delays and such; I guess I should call myself lucky.)

I went to charge my phone and watch the Giants game down the terminal a bit and sat next to this young couple watching a movie. Around 9:30 or so (yes, this was 3 hours later), the girl's excited brother came running over to say the computers were back. We were in the money. The flight to Sydney that had also been grounded at the gate next to ours was starting to board. I almost skipped to the gate in excitement.

It was short-lived. The United representative came on the speaker again and said that because of how long we had had to wait, the crew members were not legally allowed to run the flight anymore--the flight was cancelled. Since the other girls hadn't transferred, they were instructed to collect their bags, go home, and call an 800 number to be rebooked. Since I was in the middle of a connection, I was instructed to go to the customer service table and talk to an agent, who would rebook my flight and give me a hotel voucher for the night. I said goodbye to the girls and went to the counter.

The line itself was about as long as a busy day at the security checkpoint--long, but when it moves quickly shouldn't be much trouble. Problem was, it didn't move quickly. I was relatively towards the front, probably around the third bend of people, and I was standing there for two. hours. This was the worst part of my day, hands down. There were TWO agents behind the counter, just two, and for whatever reason it took them a minimum of 15 minutes to help each customer. There must have been almost 100 people in this line. It was agony. I felt particularly sorry for a young couple with twin newborns in a double stroller. They'd been there for 8 hours, just like the rest of us. People started getting testy. At one point the line of angry people formed a little mini-riot and started yelling; I felt like I was on the Titanic, when they bust down the gate that they're locked behind. Truthfully, I was a little scared.

Finally, FINALLY, I reached the front of the line, and right then a third teller decided to show up, and she helped me. I don't know how it happened--I overheard at least five people in front of me get told that there was no flight out until Monday--but she was able to book me on a flight leaving tomorrow at 3:55, arriving in London on Sunday morning. It was the last available seat. I was praising Jesus for that one; looks like reading The Screwtape Letters in line really helped me out.

Anyway, ticket and hotel voucher in hand, I headed over to the La Quinta Inn LAX, a place I never thought I'd be checking into at 1 in the morning. Or ever. The line was yet again out of control; apparently that's where every airline had been sending their customers. I met a man trying to get from Oklahoma to SFO (Go Giants) who missed his flight by 15 minutes, a woman coming back from Beijing (that same plane that was supposed to be mine that got in late) who missed her connection to Portland, and an Australian guy about my age who had flown from Sydney to Beijing to here (same flight as the woman) and then missed his connection to Philly. It was madness.

Ultimately, I made it. When the man behind the counter handed me room 828, I knew my luck had changed. Despite the security guard in the hallway, this place actually isn't too bad. I think it's also the first time I've ever stayed in a hotel completely alone--look at me all growing up. I can't imagine what's going on back at the airport. The way that line was moving, it was looking like it'd take people at least 3 hours to get through them all. I feel very lucky to have gotten that last seat; looks like I may actually make it to London after all (I was worried there for a bit). Here's praying for a much easier experience tomorrow, but hey, at least it was an adventure. I can promise you lots more over the next month.

Stay tuned!

-Charlotte