News from London

Hi everyone!

Sorry for such a long delay between posts -- I am trying to be out and about as much as possible, but I know I need to keep up to date on my activities here for all of you back home. So here we go!
Last week we departed London for some time out in the countryside, which was a great change of scenery. Our first stop was Stonehenge, which was fun to see and take pictures of, and just be looking at something that has been there for that long. We then made our way into Bath and took a tour of the Roman baths, which were really cool. Lots of history and beautiful scenes there, and the town of Bath is really like a blast to the past. I loved every minute of it. Our final stop of the day was Bristol, where we had a night of luxury in the Bristol Hotel.

The next morning we took a tour of the Old Vic, which is a wonderful old theatre that is currently being refurbished. We then hopped back in the bus and were on our way to Stratford. We arrived in the afternoon and checked into two bed and breakfasts. We had the nicest owners you could wish for, and also a dog to cuddle with named Harry. After checking in we wandered out to Anne Hathaway's cottage, where we encountered the tour guide who was probably my favorite of the trip so far. She knew every little detail about life back in the days of Anne Hathaway and Shakespare, and truly brought the house to life. (and she also had a terrific sense of humor). We also went to Shakespeare's birthplace, which wasn't quite as scenic or enjoyable but still fun.

The next day we took a tour of the Royal Shakespeare Company building and theatre, which was fascinating and made me (and many others in our group) want to work in a professional theatre. Our tour there was followed by a production of Matilda the Musical, which was outstanding in every sense of the word. Terrific music, amazing acting, and just pure enjoyment for everyone. As an added bonus, the actress playing Mrs. Honey was the original Violet from the musical Violet, who I spent a LOT of time listening to this past fall. For the rest of the day we just walked around Stratford, taking in the sights, and had a relaxing evening.

On Friday we drove back to London, and after dropping off some luggage at our hotel for the following week, embarked on our free weekend. Six of us stayed at a youth hostel here in London, and upon arriving there, discovered we had to ascend to the 4th floor, up 99 steps, with our suitcases. Needless to say, it was no easy feat. We got there eventually, and after catching our breath, set off for an afternoon at the British Museum. They had a lot of cool exhibits on Ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome, and I was able to put by Great Con knowledge to work. For dinner we went back to Regents College, since the food is cheap there, and then came back to the hostel to work on our journals and relax.

Saturday was a fairly relaxing day. A few of us spent the morning in the Natural History Museum, which was very fun. Lots of dinosaurs and a cool exhibit on human evolution and Darwin. I really enjoyed it. After lunch at Regents we spent the afternoon in the hostel working on journals, and I also spent some time looking into summer internships, jobs, etc. On Sunday Ben, Katie and I got up and took a nice walk through Hyde Park to Speaker's Corner, which did not quite live up to the expectations we had. However, we walked down path to the coffee stand, got mochas, and sat on the bench and had a nice long chat about the scariness of going into the real world and living on our own. We then went back to Regents for lunch, and on a whim, Ben and I booked tickets for the matinee of Jersey Boys. It was one of my favorite shows of the trip. The music was fantastic, and the actors were absolutely phenomenal. I’m so glad I saw it. Sunday night we hung out and had beers in a pub for a while, and then headed back home.

Monday we all met up again and checked in at the Umi Hotel, where we are staying for our final week. A few of us took a stroll down to Abbey Road to see it and get a picture in the crosswalk, which is a harder than you might think. We chilled at the hotel for awhile after that before grabbing a quick dinner and heading to King Lear at the Roundhouse. My review has just been posted.

Finally, today we had class for the first time in over a week, and then went over to take a ride on the London Eye, which is a huge ferris wheel that brings you way up above the city. It was pretty cool. Tonight we saw A Flea In Her Ear, which had as all laughing from the moment it started. Review coming shortly.

Sorry for this Moby Dick of a post, but I wanted to include as much as I could. Only three more days!

Cheers!