Friday, September 26, 2008
Next up: Scotland
I'm leaving in--well, actually I'm late of course--but we're heading to King's Cross Station for a 10:00am train to Edinburgh. How exciting: the birthplace of plaid!
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Harry Potter Fans, Be Jealous
Platform 9 3/4
A couple of us stopped by King's Cross Station today to pick up train tickets for the weekend, and, of course, made our way to the now-famous Platform 9 3/4 from the Harry Potter books. I must be a wizard, seeing as I'm halfway through the magic wall...
A couple of us stopped by King's Cross Station today to pick up train tickets for the weekend, and, of course, made our way to the now-famous Platform 9 3/4 from the Harry Potter books. I must be a wizard, seeing as I'm halfway through the magic wall...
Monday, September 22, 2008
The First Weekend - Hammersmith, City U, Windsor
Pardon the long wait for the update about my first few days here! Nothing like a sleepless flight and a non-stop first weekend to eat up every possible second of free time, some of which would be otherwise dedicated to this blog.
Day 1/Heathrow to Hammersmith-
Abby and I reserved spots in a hostel in Hammersmith (see map at right!) for our first night, Thursday, because our particular dorm at City U didn't open until Friday. Going through border patrol and navigating our way to the Heathrow Connect train to central London took a while, but wasn't too much of a headache. The Heathrow Connect ends in Paddington Station, though, which is pretty far from Hammersmith. Naturally, lugging two, fifty-pound suitcases through multiple tube stops was nearly impossible. Add to that the fact that we accidentally got split up when Abby jumped on the (wrong) train and the doors closed while I was standing there like an idiot trying to figure out the map, and it was an exhausting affair. If nothing else, we learned just how friendly the average British person is; multiple people stopped to happily help us lug our suitcases up flights of stairs and make our way through the Underground.
Our hostel in Hammersmith was phenomenal. In fact, it was nicer than my dorm here at City U (which, by the way, is not even as nice as a typical McCormick Hall room). Our hostel, which I highly recommend if any of you reading this are thinking about visiting London, was the Globetrotter Inn near Ravenscourt Park. Most of the staff members were young Australians, the place was spotless, and we even got free breakfast. It was on par in pricing with just about any non-cockroach-infested hostel in Greater London, but definitely a home run. Okay, sorry, commercial advertisement over. (Woo! Go Globetrotter!)
Day 2/City U-
We moved into City University on Friday around noon. My dorm room isn't the greatest, but it's a single, it's warm, the bed is decent, and, well, it's in London. As much as I wish I could tell you about the University, it's going to have to wait until tomorrow or maybe until later this week; we don't start orientation until tomorrow, and since most British universities (except for Oxford, Cambridge, Birmingham, etc) have much less "cohesive-looking" campuses, I haven't spent much time exploring the buildings. Put it this way: if those of you Marquette people reading are ticked off about how there isn't much greenspace, come visit City U and you'll think Marquette's in the middle of verdant country pastures. The only semi-interesting thing that I can tell you about City U so far is that their mascot is a carrot. Yes, a carrot. This carrot. Why? Not quite sure--we learn tomorrow.
In case you were wondering (because I was), British people really do say "Cheers!" A lot. Like, all the time. In fact, I've heard them say it as a thank-you more than "Thank you." ...so awesome...
Day 4/Windsor and Eton
Hooray for the first official trip outside of London! Abby, Anthony (also from MU) and I made the 50-minute bus trip out to Windsor, despite the fact that we were all completely exhausted. Windsor is a quaint, winding, medieval village that is home to Windsor Castle, where the British royal family (the Windsors--go figure) have lived continuously for nearly 1,000 years. A whole millenium! The royal family of course has multiple residences, most notably Buckingham Palace in London, but Windsor Castle is unquestionably the most historically important home to Their Majesties. The Castle is known not only for its superior defensive position atop a large hill, but also for its sprawling structure and ornate (read: gaudy but totally sweet) living quarters. I could go way into detail describing what may just be the world's coolest estate, but that could get boring if you're not a geek like I am. So, with mercy, I give you three cool tidbits, and a few PICTURES....
See? I wasn't kidding about the whole 1,000 years thing.
Apparently, the raised flag on the Round Tower means that a Sovereign is in residence. I didn't manage to find Her Majesty, though :(
This courtyard is easily the size of a football field, and hosts the most elaborate processions for certain occasions, including the Queen's reception of foreign heads of state, the march for the Order of the Garter, among others.
At least three Queen's Guards-in-training.
...unfortunately.
The School Yard.
One of the boarding houses.
Not a great picture of the uniform, but you get the idea.
Day 1/Heathrow to Hammersmith-
Abby and I reserved spots in a hostel in Hammersmith (see map at right!) for our first night, Thursday, because our particular dorm at City U didn't open until Friday. Going through border patrol and navigating our way to the Heathrow Connect train to central London took a while, but wasn't too much of a headache. The Heathrow Connect ends in Paddington Station, though, which is pretty far from Hammersmith. Naturally, lugging two, fifty-pound suitcases through multiple tube stops was nearly impossible. Add to that the fact that we accidentally got split up when Abby jumped on the (wrong) train and the doors closed while I was standing there like an idiot trying to figure out the map, and it was an exhausting affair. If nothing else, we learned just how friendly the average British person is; multiple people stopped to happily help us lug our suitcases up flights of stairs and make our way through the Underground.
Our hostel in Hammersmith was phenomenal. In fact, it was nicer than my dorm here at City U (which, by the way, is not even as nice as a typical McCormick Hall room). Our hostel, which I highly recommend if any of you reading this are thinking about visiting London, was the Globetrotter Inn near Ravenscourt Park. Most of the staff members were young Australians, the place was spotless, and we even got free breakfast. It was on par in pricing with just about any non-cockroach-infested hostel in Greater London, but definitely a home run. Okay, sorry, commercial advertisement over. (Woo! Go Globetrotter!)
Day 2/City U-
We moved into City University on Friday around noon. My dorm room isn't the greatest, but it's a single, it's warm, the bed is decent, and, well, it's in London. As much as I wish I could tell you about the University, it's going to have to wait until tomorrow or maybe until later this week; we don't start orientation until tomorrow, and since most British universities (except for Oxford, Cambridge, Birmingham, etc) have much less "cohesive-looking" campuses, I haven't spent much time exploring the buildings. Put it this way: if those of you Marquette people reading are ticked off about how there isn't much greenspace, come visit City U and you'll think Marquette's in the middle of verdant country pastures. The only semi-interesting thing that I can tell you about City U so far is that their mascot is a carrot. Yes, a carrot. This carrot. Why? Not quite sure--we learn tomorrow.
In case you were wondering (because I was), British people really do say "Cheers!" A lot. Like, all the time. In fact, I've heard them say it as a thank-you more than "Thank you." ...so awesome...
Day 4/Windsor and Eton
Hooray for the first official trip outside of London! Abby, Anthony (also from MU) and I made the 50-minute bus trip out to Windsor, despite the fact that we were all completely exhausted. Windsor is a quaint, winding, medieval village that is home to Windsor Castle, where the British royal family (the Windsors--go figure) have lived continuously for nearly 1,000 years. A whole millenium! The royal family of course has multiple residences, most notably Buckingham Palace in London, but Windsor Castle is unquestionably the most historically important home to Their Majesties. The Castle is known not only for its superior defensive position atop a large hill, but also for its sprawling structure and ornate (read: gaudy but totally sweet) living quarters. I could go way into detail describing what may just be the world's coolest estate, but that could get boring if you're not a geek like I am. So, with mercy, I give you three cool tidbits, and a few PICTURES....
- The Round Tower, in the center of the castle, has it's own well dug hundreds of meters into the ground, which allowed the royal family and close advisers to stay hydrated and, well, alive, indefinitely during the worst of sieges.
- Windsor Castle owns more than 500 paintings, drawings, and sketches by Leonardo da Vinci, but only displays a handful at a time. It also houses countless works by Rembrandt, van Dyke, Hans Holbein (the Elder and the Younger) and various other famous artists.
- If Prince Charles ascends the throne following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth (God save her), it is speculated that he may move the entire royal court from Buckingham to Windsor, solidifying its place as the most important residence in Britain both past and present.
See? I wasn't kidding about the whole 1,000 years thing.
Apparently, the raised flag on the Round Tower means that a Sovereign is in residence. I didn't manage to find Her Majesty, though :(
This courtyard is easily the size of a football field, and hosts the most elaborate processions for certain occasions, including the Queen's reception of foreign heads of state, the march for the Order of the Garter, among others.
At least three Queen's Guards-in-training.Finally, across the Thames from Windsor was the village of Eton, most famously known as the home to Eton College. In case you aren't familiar, Eton College is perhaps the most prestigious all-boys preparatory school in the world (no, Marquette High guys, you aren't up there with Eton.) To give you an idea of just how impressive the prestige factor really is, consider the following list of just a handful of Eton College graduates, also known as "Old Etonians"...
King Leopold III of Belgium, George Orwell, Prince William, Prince Harry, Francis Bacon, Ian Fleming (creator of James Bond), Bear Grylls (no joke! I hope their cafeteria had lots of protein), Nepal's Prince Nirajan, 18 former UK Prime Ministers, and so many more.
Unfortunately, most of the campus was closed when we visited, but I managed to snap a few photos, including one of an Eton boy in the uniform of pinstripe trousers, black shoes, false-collared white shirt, white tie, black vest and black tailcoat that has been standard since the early 19th century.
...unfortunately.
The School Yard.
One of the boarding houses.
Not a great picture of the uniform, but you get the idea.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Finally In London
Well, after a long and more or less sleepless flight, Abby--my Marquette travel buddy--and I made it to London at roughly 3:00am Thursday morning, Milwaukee time. I have a lot to type, but I just got internet access about fifteen minutes ago and I have to leave to get some dinner. I'll post more (actual, meaningful content) once I really get settled! Cheers!
Friday, September 12, 2008
Before Leaving
I'm using this to keep in touch I'm gone for the semester in London, studying at City University. I'll be doing my best to embed some photos and update a slick Google Map that will be related to my travels (see right); keep in mind that I'm new at this, so this entire page might look a little messed up from time to time as a result of some experimenting.
My real aim is to have this blog floating around 24/7 so that you can access it as [in]frequently as you wish, rather trying to survive an onslaught of emails from me. However, if you enjoy being bombarded with emails and want to know when a new entry is posted, you can subscribe to an RSS feed at the right side of the page. Also, feel free to post comments on this. Otherwise, email me, Skype me (is that a verb yet?) or send me a Facebook message. Pip-pip, cheerio, God bless Her Majesty, and so on.
My real aim is to have this blog floating around 24/7 so that you can access it as [in]frequently as you wish, rather trying to survive an onslaught of emails from me. However, if you enjoy being bombarded with emails and want to know when a new entry is posted, you can subscribe to an RSS feed at the right side of the page. Also, feel free to post comments on this. Otherwise, email me, Skype me (is that a verb yet?) or send me a Facebook message. Pip-pip, cheerio, God bless Her Majesty, and so on.
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