The Weekend and My First Week of Classes

Big Ben
The London Eye
Trafalgar Square
Piccadilly Circus
Covent Gardens
Buckingham Palace
The above were all a part of an insane scavenger hunt that took place on the first Sunday we were in London. I have pictures of all of them now, but I know almost nothing about them. As we were walking past Big Ben, I realized that I had no idea what it even was. (It's attached to the build that houses parliament.) So, we took our typical tourist pictures of all of them and I promised to return soon so I could become acquainted with who they actually were. The scavenger hunt was impeded by some type of bike race taking place from Picadilly Square to Big Ben, so we did a lot of extra walking to get around fence barriers.

Covent Gardens - Very crowded on Sunday

Big Ben - Always Crowded

The London Eye - We only got this close because we were exhausted by the time we got there 

Buckingham Palace - No Queen today

Classes
I'm a nerd. I didn't realize how much I loved learning until I got here. I actually promised that I would only take 14 hours this semester so  I could make sure I have time to see the sights. Well, guess what - I'm in 18 now, and in 4 units that won't even be for credit. Why? I'm a huge, unashamed nerd. Here's a list of the classes I'm taking and why I love them.
1. British Literature
Probably the most important of my classes as it actually counts towards my major, but also probably my favorite. I mean, how much better can you get than studying British Literature in London? It's an English major's dream. I mean, Charles Dicken's house is in London, the first word in Bleak House is London. (Tale of Two Cities is my FAV book) Shakespeare. The Globe. (for which I have tickets to in October :D)
2. Humanities
Mostly a class on art in the medieval times and the renaissance. This is a topic I know very little about and am eager to learn as much as possible. I have not one, but two incredible professors for this class, one of which meets us at the National Gallery every Monday night and shares with us the history of several paintings. All I can say is that I now have a huge interest in art. Amazing.
3. History of the English Monarch
This is the class that doesn't actually count for anything, which is sad because more people need to be in this class. We went to Buckingham Place for the first class. Not around it, not next to it, IN IT. Guys, I've walked on the same steps as the Queen, and I get to be more than an observer of these things, I get to engage with them and learn the personalities of the past kings and queens of England. Last week we walked the perimeter of the Whitehall Palace, or at least the ghost of it, (Whitehall was the biggest palace in Europe but was burned down. In it's place are the modern government buildings, including the prime minister's house.) I can't rave enough about this class.
4. Theater Appreciation.
I love theater soooooooooooo much and now I get to see 6 plays in the birthplace of theater. It's unthinkable, but it's happing to me. Also, it's a very small class with only 3 people and I love how intimate it is. I love the plays we've read and the insight they give into the minds of the more modern English person (the 1940's is modern in my mind now).
5. Science as a Way of Knowing
Well, we can't all be winners. I actually love science, but this class apparently translates to sport science, which - ughhhhh. I appreciate the professor and his attempt to appeal to the greatest number of people, but he couldn't have picked a worse topic for me. The important thing about this class is that I counts for my lab science and doesn't really contain that much actual lab science.

There they are. I thought it was going to be hard to do classes and travel at the same time, but I love almost all of my classes and I think they will enrich my time abroad, not hinder it. Besides, I only have 4 days of classes a week and I'm done by noon on Thursday. It's really and incredible opportunity.

Alright, now that we've actually gotten through the first two weeks, be excited for even more things to come in the future.

Cheers,
Sarah

My First Week in London

Actually, I've been in London for almost a month (whoops). I don't feel bad at all because I've been too busy to reminisce. It's been all go, go, go since I stepped off the plane, but I do have a few moments right now; I'd thought I'd throw a post together so I can look back on this and remember my crazy year in London one day. This will probably be more like a digital scrapbook than anything else.

So, week one:

Flight number 1
Can you tell it's over Lubbock?

   I traveled for almost 24 hours straight to get here. I took a plane from Lubbock to Dallas, Dallas to Los Angeles, then finally Los Angeles to London. I left at 9 am on September 9th and arrived in London on September 10th. There was an eight-hour layover in LA, the flight to London was ten hours, but the hours don't seem that bad anymore. I took a sleeping pill and experienced the best sleep I've had in a public place. However, I do have to say that I've never been more cramped in my life. "Oh, international flights aren't as small as your everyday southwest flight" Right. It's smaller. So, so little leg room and my backpack took up more than it should have, but I made it Heathrow at what would be 10 a.m. in Texas (8 a.m. in LA) and was actually 4 p.m. in London. After successfully getting through customs, (I still have nightmares about the visa process) we took a coach to our new home: 56 Princes Gate

The London House

   It's an amazing house, and I've loved living here. I lucked out and got a two person room with my long-time friend, Rebecca, which is amazing considering I could have wound up in a six person room. There are two beds, two wardrobes, and oddly only one desk (which we rarely use anyway). It's a small space, but since we managed to pack ourselves into 1 and 1/2 suitcase each, we aren't cramped and it's actually more spacious than my freshman year dorm (*shudders*).
The house itself is 5 stories high and it's hard to capture in pictures how cool it is. It's decorated from the Victorian era and there are replicas of some amazing paintings hanging on the walls. We call it the London House, but it is a school in itself; offices, classrooms, faculty flats are all under this one roof. All of my classes meet in one of the two classrooms, and I finally get to stay away from cafeteria food, as there is a kitchen in the basement.

South Kensington

Hyde Parke; it's hard to tell,
 but there are at
least three monuments in this picture

   London House is located in South Kensington, A beautiful part of central London. The House is seconds away from 3 museum: The Science Musem, The Victorian Albert Musem, and The Natural History Musem. Also, only a few minutes walk away, Hyde Park is nearly in our backyard. I've spent a few days just wandering around the area outside our house and looking at all the history contained in just a few blocks. If you're ever in London I have to recommend you stop by Kensington Crepes, tour the Victorian Albert Musem, and take a walk by Kensington Palace in Hyde Park. It's absolutely wonderful, especially now, because the weather is still really nice (and by that I mean it's been hovering in the 60's and it doesn't rain everyday). London in September is beautiful.

Another Monument,
this time it's King Albert
 and behind him, the Royal Albert Hall.

   There are a lot of monuments in London. I would be hard pressed to try and remember all of their names. What is really amazing though is the way that they come out of nowhere. In Lubbock, you can see everything coming for miles ahead, but here huge pieces of history are hiding behind trees and buildings. It is a breathtaking moment when you are just walking along and suddenly come across something like a giant golden statue of King Albert. It's hard to put into words, but seeing these things in real life is much different than seeing them on a screen. In a picture, even a good one, you don't feel the weight of what you're seeing.

We took a walking tour of South Kensington on the second day in London and become official brits by purchasing our Oyster Cards. (Tube passes, like the subway in New York.) We found out that Tube is pronounced like 'choobe' and that you must stand on the right side of the escalator and walk on the left. Also, it is very hard to orient yourself and remember which way cars are coming from when crossing the street. So far, there haven't been any crashes, but we've come very close a few times.

Stonehenge - the coolest pile of rocks in town

And that brings us to Stonehenge and Salisbury, our first day trip out of London. Stonehenge was amazing. If you go, I think it can be hard to really understand why this pile of rocks is so cool, so if you do go I recommend going with a tour guide, or watching a documentary on the site beforehand. Also, there is a 'magic line' associated with Stonehenge where some people claim to feel an unusual sensation when standing on it. Find it, and see if you can feel it. No reports of unusual feelings from me; unless you count the satisfaction of standing in a very historic area.

Salisbury Cathedral

 Salisbury is a small town with a big historical footprint. The cathedral was amazing, and a real mark of architectural progress, as it was built in under 40 years. A true representation of the gothic period, Salisbury cathedral is a beautiful piece of history. It is also home to one of the original copies of the Magna Carta. (1 of 4 copies in existence today.) It was insane how the cathedral just appeared out of nowhere and I don't think the picture I have really tells you how immense it is.

Me, looking like a real tourist on a
random street in Salisbury. Good times. 

The picture of me standing on a random street is Salisbury is one of my "look at how good I am at photography" Instagram posts, where I try to come up with fun poses instead of the normal stand and smile. It's going well, but I have definitely had plenty of strange looks and a few "you can't take pictures here. Please get out of my alley."

That about wraps up my first week, but I haven't even made it to the weekend yet, so there's more good stuff to come. Hopefully I'll get the chance to check in again soon, so I can actually write down things before I forget most of them.
And I just like to take a moment and be a cliche for a moment. I am so incredibly blessed to have this opportunity. Thank you, thank you, thank you, for everyone who helped me get here.

Although I haven't been posting on it for regularly, you can feel free to check out my other blog where I put some of my short stories/poems here

Cheers,
Sarah