This past week we had a long weekend here at Harlaxton and headed off to Paris, France. Although entirely practical, I think that the fact that we took a coach to the Grantham train station funny. From there we took a train into London King's Cross, then walked across the street to St. Pancreas International where we went through French Boarder Control. Yes, I got my passport stamped for France while I was in London! Then we sat around and waited for our platform to be announced so we could go get on the Eurostar. While waiting I finally found an English keychain! (not British, English!) That definitely made my day. I've been searching for one ever since I got here! We took the Chunnel to France (which I didn't even realize we were in because we were in so many tunnels on the way there! It was a little over 2 hour trip. Then we all (50ish of us) had to hop on the metro and take that to the hotel. Little did we know when we got on that our station was closed! So we had to go down one more and get off there. It wasn't a long walk, so it was fine. It was funny to see Kingsley walk off on his own in order to make sure he knew where we were though! So we eventually got to the hotel and (after some problems) got our room keys to work and dropped our stuff off and headed back downstairs to find dinner. Kingsley recommended a restaurant to us, so we headed there and had some good food! By the time we finished dinner, it was 11, so we went back to the hotel and went to bed, that way we would be ready to go come tomorrow morning!
Thursday started off with some amazing croissants for breakfast (yes, you will be hearing about all my food because it was so good!) and then I headed off with Sarah, Jordan, and Christina to the Eiffel Tower. We too so many pictures!!! It was absolutely beautiful. The sun was shining and made for some awesome pictures. Plus it was warm! (like, t-shirt warm with just the perfect amount of breeze so you don't sweat.) We then proceeded to climb! (that's right, climb) up the Eiffel Tower! It was scary as heck climbing up, but totally worth it. I can now say that I have climbed up the Eiffel Tower. You can only climb to the 2nd level, then you have to take a lift if you want to go to the very top, which we did after taking loads of pictures on the first two levels. It was really cool at the top because they showed you which direction to look for all these countries capitals! And, if you wanted to pay 10 euro (I didn't) you could have champagne at the top! Back down on the second level, I picked up a couple of souviners and waited for them to come back down, then we climbed back down to the first level and Christina and I got a waffle with chocolate/nutella and I wrote a couple of postcards (well, I had to send some from the Eiffel Tower!). Then we went back down to ground level (well, I ran and got there a good 5 minutes before everyone else! It's even scarier going down for me!). Then we took some more pictures and headed off in search of food and one of the Statues of Liberty. We found this take-away place near the Seine, where I had this amazing hot dog! I know, a hot dog in Paris?. But let me tell you about this hot dog. It was in a baguette and had white cheese melted on top. It was sooo good! We ate in this little green area on the Seine, then continued on our way to the Statue of Liberty, stopping to watch a wedding on the way. =) The Statue of Liberty in the Seine is a lot smaller than the real one in New York (obviously) but it was still really cool to see! After that, we headed to a metro station and then to the Arc de Triomphe and Champs Elysees. We didn't go up in the Arc, because we had just gone up the Eiffel Tower, but it was cool to see it! We didn't walk down Champs Elysees either, because someone had told us that more affordable stores were on this street next to it so we went down that one instead (there weren't). We did find a grocery store though and bought some baguettes and nutella and chocolate-covered waffles for dinner though! I loved it. Noming on a baguette is probably one of my new favorite things to do. =) We also found a souvenir shop where I found something awesome for my sister! We went back to the hotel around 6 and just chilled the rest of the night. My feet hurt!
Friday Jordan, Christine, Meredith, and I were off to Normandy! We had some problems getting our e-tickets for the train, but we eventually got them and headed off to Bayeaux! (a 2+ hour train ride.) Once we got to Bayeux, we had about 40 minutes to kill before our tour picked us up from the train station, so Jordan and I pulled out the food we stole from breakfast that morning for lunch, and Christina and Meredith grabbed some food out of the vending machine. Our tour group consisted of our guide who learned to speak English from watching Seinfeld, 2 retired men from Columbus, Ohio, a teacher working on her masters from New York City, and a middle-aged Texan man. Our first stop of the day was Pointe du Hoc, which was a German outpost on the bluffs between Utah and Omaha beaches (the two U.S. beaches). It was really cool to hear the story of how the Ranger had to scale the bluffs and take out all of the Germans in the bunkers and they found the guns that were hidden in a field about 500 meters away and destroyed those too. There must've been some wizards among them! And it was amazing to see the bunkers, which we could go into, and look out over the sea and see what the Germans would have seen in 1944. Plus, there were all these craters from bombs all over the place there! They were massive! And they've naturally filled in over the years, so they were almost twice as deep in 1944!!! I kind of scampered around on my own most of the time we were on the tour, because I tend to just start wandering to wherever I feel like going and look around me 5 minutes later and realize that no one that I came with is there anymore! But that's fine with me, because I get to see what I want to see. Our next stop on the tour was Omaha Beach. It was high tide unfortunately, so it was hard to imagine the sea 500 meters farther out and how far they would've had to run and dodge and they didn't have any shelter except German defenses to hide behind because all of the bombs landed too far inland, on the bluffs, so the guns were still working when the engineers and soldiers landed on D-Day. They do still have some of the gun bunkers there though. One still has a gun in it and there is a memorial to the U.S. National Guard on top of it. It was really cool because all the words were in both French and English. While at Omaha, we also saw the memorial to the first American Cemetery in France from WWII, which was right off the beach. All of the bodies were later moved when the American Cemetery opened up in 1954. Speaking of the cemetery, that was our next stop! The American Cemetery is absolutely overwhelming! When you first walk into it, you walk into a memorial for all the soldiers whose bodies have never been recovered or identified. Each name is listed on a massive wall. If there is a black dot next to the name on the wall, it means that the body of that soldier was found after the wall was built. It was good to see some of those dots. After you pass through the memorial, you are in the cemetery proper. It is absolutely massive! There are almost 10,000 bodies buried there, with around 900 unknown soldiers and 600 or so Jewish soldiers, who have a Star of David gravestone rather than a cross. Just walking through the cemetery made the sacrifice that these men (and women) made so much more real and the numbers made so much more sense. The cemetery is located on top of a bluff, overlooking Omaha beach, where many of them died. The requirement to be buried there is that they had to die in Normandy. Recently, they've started a program with the families in the area where they each get a soldier in the cemetery and bring flowers to put on the grave at least once a year. This tradition will be passed on through the generations. It's a way of remembering the soldiers and all that they did for the people of Normandy and France. On a slightly happier note, I was on American soil! France gave that land to America, so it's technically American soil, so I was home last Saturday! It felt so good to be back. =) We were able to be there for the lowering of the American flags and the playing of taps, which was really cool to see. We also kind of followed the Ohioans around at first because one of them had brought flowers to honor the soldiers and we wanted to see where he would put them. He chose to put them on the grave of a soldier who died on D-Day. He thought it was appropriate. The last stop of the day was Longues-sur-Mer, another German outpost located on a bluff, this time between U.S. beach Omaha and British beach Gold. This one is really cool because all of the original guns are still in the bunkers! So I actually got to touch a German gun! I really liked walking around there and seeing all of this stuff. It really made the war more realistic and I can imagine things better because I've actually seen some stuff! We were dropped off back at the train station and grabbed some food out of the vending machine to eat while we waited for our train to take us back to Paris. My original plan was to go see the Eiffel Tower light show that night, but by the time we got to the metro station it had already started and I didn't want to wait until 11 to go see it, so I just headed back to the hotel, stopping at a grocery store on the way to pick up another baguette (which was even better than last night's one!).
Saturday, Hilary, Lyndsay, Meredith, and I headed off to Versailles (or, as I see that this could be completely plausible, Beauxbatons). We took the metro to the RER station and bought tickets to take us out to Versailles and back. The RER took about 40 minutes or so, but walking out and seeing the palace was so cool! Versailles is so ornate! And crowded. All of the rooms were absolutely gorgeous, but it was so crowded that you couldn't really just stand in the rooms and look around, you were kind of pushed from room to room. But that's ok, because I still got to say I was there and I have some awesome pictures and memories to show for it! We went out to look at the gardens, but we didn't really get to walk around them because it was our last full day in Paris and we all still had stuff we wanted to see back in Paris proper. So we made sure we were heading back on the RER around noon (or as soon as it actually left the station after 12). Meredith and Lyndsay got off to go see the Eiffel Tower, while Hilary and I got off at the same stop and then parted ways, she went to meet some friends at the Opera House, while I headed off to Notre Dame. Notre Dame was absolutely gorgeous. I love all the detail in the stone! And the stained glass windows were beautiful. I was so glad that I went there! I didn't go up and see the gargoyles,because the line was long, but I did walk around the outside and get some great pictures! I also stopped at a souvenir shop and bought some prints of paintings, which are really pretty! I next attempted to walk to the Louvre, but got lost and ended up just finding the nearest metro station and taking the metro there (it's hard to find your way around when street names randomly change, not all of them are on the map, and there's no signs pointing in the direction of the Louvre!). My original intention was just to take pictures of the Louvre, but after doing that, I decided that I actually wanted to go in! So I got my ticket and headed off to see the Mona Lisa, which was cool to see in person, but there was a crowd there, so you couldn't just stand there and look at it really. After that I just wandered, ending up in the Oriental and Egyptian sections of the museum instead of the painting sections. Which was fine because that was more history type stuff, so I'm sure I enjoyed that more than I would've enjoyed the paintings! I actually ended up getting lost in the Louvre and it took me half an hour to find the exit! I finally found it though and made my way to the souvenir shop and bought a couple magnets and a gift for a friend. Then I went to the cafe and got some dinner (another hot dog, a really good pastry with chocolate in the middle!, and apple juice, which was really good.) I was then planning on going out of the Louvre through the pyramid and walking through the garden to the obelisk at the other end, but it was raining! So I stayed inside and walked around the mall instead, stopping to get some really good dark chocolate gelato! By that time, it was about time to go meet Meredith and Lyndsay at the Eiffel Tower, so I hopped on the metro and headed off to that stop. Since it had just stopped raining, there were some great pictures to be taken of the Tower! And WWF was there doing something on the terrace, so that was really cool to see. I almost stole one of their pandas, but I don't think they would've appreciated that too much. Our plan was to see the lights on the Eiffel Tower, but they never came on! I thought since it was dusk it would be fine and they would come on but they didn't! I was (and still am) so mad!!!!! That was one of two things that I wanted to do in Paris, climb up the Eiffel Tower during the day and see the light show at night! And I didn't get to see the lights! We couldn't go back later, because the three of us were going on a pub crawl that we had booked. Sad, I gave up and we went back to the hotel to drop stuff off before heading over to Moulin Rouge (the group was meeting right across the street from it, so we got some cool pictures before the pub crawl started). The pub crawl was a lot of fun! We went to 4 different pubs before we left (we weren't sure whether there was another one to go to or not, but we were tired by that point in time, so we just left). And we got drink discounts at every pub too because we were on the tour! We met people from all over the world, so that was pretty fun. Then, on the metro home, we met a Canadian girl who is a au pair over there! It was fun talking to her and everyone else. We got back to the hotel really late, so we crashed.
Sunday, we packed, and took the metro, Eurostar, train, and coach back to Harlaxton. It was a really fun weekend, even if I didn't get to see the Eiffel Tower at night. Guess that just means I'll have to go back sometime! School's almost done here. I can't believe it went by this fast. My last real weekend trip is this coming weekend when I head off to Northern Ireland!
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Saturday, March 19, 2011
London Field Trip: I Saw the Bridge and This is What Scrimegour's Offices Must've Looked Like!
Yesterday was our third (and last) British Studies field trip, this time to London. The four coaches taking our college to London were supposed to depart at 8 a.m. Two of them did. One waited a while before leaving. While we were left waiting for an hour before the last bus (which had broken down on the way here) got to Harlaxton to pick us up. It turned out to be a double-decker bus, at which point I pulled out more motion sickness medicine to take and offer my friends. We weren't able to sit in the bottom, so we got as close to the front as we could at the top, which made it a lot better! It actually wasn't too bad on the almost 3 hour drive down there.
Our bus (as well as one other) went to St. Paul's Cathedral for the first half of the field trip. I shot off the bus with about half of the other people and went to find a toilet, but it took so long that by the time I got back up there and was about to go looking for Taylor, who was leading my group around, Bujak stopped me and told me to go with that group down there! So I went around the cathedral with Welsh's group instead. St. Paul's is the first truly Anglican cathedral built in England (because all the others were originally Catholic from before the Reformation). It was built after the Great Fire in London in 1666 destroyed the original St. Paul's by Christopher Wren. We started out in the crypt, which had lots of memorials to different people, including Montgomery, Slim, and Wren. The two main tombs down there are Arthur, Duke of Wellington's (he was the one who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo) and Horatio Nelson (who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Trafalgar). They are both massive! Wellington's actually had to be lowered through the ceiling in order to be installed. Interesting story about Nelson's: it was originally made for Cardinal Wolsey, but when he fell from grace and King Henry VIII confiscated all of his property and Wolsey died on the way to prison, he wasn't buried in it. Instead it went into storage until they decided that Nelson would be buried in it. The matching candelabras are upstairs on either side of the high alter. The cathedral itself is gorgeous! The Victorians added beautiful mosaics on the ceiling (they were in Wren's original design, but the London Elders or whatever wouldn't let him put them in). And you can see the entire way up the dome, which is really cool. In the cathedral, there are more memorials to a lot of people, including big ones to Wellington and Nelson. There is also a memorial to the fire brigade that was in charge of putting out the fires that were started by the German's incendiary bombs during the Blitz in WWII. They are responsible for helping St. Paul's escape nearly unscathed, and St. Paul's became an emblem of hope for the people since the Germans couldn't seem to destroy it (even when they do hit it [a bomb fell on the high alter, but it didn't explode, making the impact decidedly less] ). Behind the high alter, at the back of the cathedral, is a big memorial to the American soldiers that served in the Second World War, from the British People. It's a really nice memorial and has a book with all the American soldiers who died in Europe, and, significantly, those who died on the crossing to go fight due to German U-boats. Also important, this memorial was built entirely from donations from the British People, not the Government, so it really is a sincere thank-you for all they did. At the end of the tour, we had the opportunity to go up into the dome, which I took full advantage of. The first stop is the Whispering Gallery, which looks down into the cathedral, and is really cool to see everything from that view. The next stop is outside, which offers some great views of London (even when rainy). I got an awesome picture of the Millennium Bridge from here (yes, the one from the beginning of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince). Apparently there was a third stop, but I couldn't find the stairs, someone told me about it on the bus on the way home. After making it back down all those spiral stairs, and with legs shaking, I met up with Kathryn, Annie Rose, Jon, and Matt and off we went into the rain to try to find the nearest underground station.
The five of us had decided that, instead of going to the National Portrait Gallery and the National Gallery, our time would better be spent by going to the Churchill War Rooms (yes, I started this because I didn't get to go to them last weekend =) ). And the War Rooms were awesome! Everything was set up (largely behind glass) as it would have been when Churchill was fighting WWII out of it. There were even creepy mannequins that we half expected to start moving in many of the rooms. They had some awesome original papers hanging up and maps with all these pins in them showing where everyone was. It was really cool to see. I could totally see Scrimegour having rooms like these to fight the war against the Death Eaters and Voldy (you know, if he hadn't tragically died before an underground government military movement could be launched). I took a ton of pictures in there. I wish I could've spent a bit more time in the war rooms, and we somehow managed to skip the little museum that was in there as well. But it was still fun and interesting!
After that, we were all hungry, so we set off in search as a McDonald's (don't judge, we were really hungry and craving fries!). We ended up walking nearly to Trafalgar Square before we found one, but it was so good and we were so happy that it was totally worth walking by a protest for Libya for it! After that, Annie Rose was still hungry (because she can't eat meat on Fridays, it being Lent and all) so we stopped at a little convenience store so she could get a sandwich. While she's getting a sandwich, the rest of us find the Krispy Kreme's in there and each get one! I got a Kookie and Kreme one (chocolate doughnut with white icing and cookie crumbs on top) which was absolutely amazing and I'm pretty sure we don't have it at home! We were all in heaven they were so good!
Since we were already there, we walked across the street to Trafalgar Square and took some pictures and looked around. Kathryn had us all make a wish and throw a penny into the fountain. Then Annie Rose decided to try out her waterproof digital camera in the fountain. It worked! That was really cool. In the square, they have an awesome countdown to the 2012 Olympic and Paraolympic Games. They also have a really random massive ship in a bottle, which is actually really cool. After spending some time here, we had to head back to St. Paul's so that Kathryn could meet up with Jessica, since they're staying the night in London. Once we got there, I met up with Hope and we went to Pizza Express for dinner. We split a really good garlic bread and cheese pizza. Then we got back on the bus and talked until it was time for the bus to leave at 7 and take us back to the manor. On the way back, the coach driver took us by the Olympic Village, which looks like it's going to be so cool! I want to make it back here so badly for that!
Next week I have a long weekend in Paris, so be looking out for that! I can't believe that there's only 4 or 5 weeks of the semester left!
Our bus (as well as one other) went to St. Paul's Cathedral for the first half of the field trip. I shot off the bus with about half of the other people and went to find a toilet, but it took so long that by the time I got back up there and was about to go looking for Taylor, who was leading my group around, Bujak stopped me and told me to go with that group down there! So I went around the cathedral with Welsh's group instead. St. Paul's is the first truly Anglican cathedral built in England (because all the others were originally Catholic from before the Reformation). It was built after the Great Fire in London in 1666 destroyed the original St. Paul's by Christopher Wren. We started out in the crypt, which had lots of memorials to different people, including Montgomery, Slim, and Wren. The two main tombs down there are Arthur, Duke of Wellington's (he was the one who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo) and Horatio Nelson (who defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Trafalgar). They are both massive! Wellington's actually had to be lowered through the ceiling in order to be installed. Interesting story about Nelson's: it was originally made for Cardinal Wolsey, but when he fell from grace and King Henry VIII confiscated all of his property and Wolsey died on the way to prison, he wasn't buried in it. Instead it went into storage until they decided that Nelson would be buried in it. The matching candelabras are upstairs on either side of the high alter. The cathedral itself is gorgeous! The Victorians added beautiful mosaics on the ceiling (they were in Wren's original design, but the London Elders or whatever wouldn't let him put them in). And you can see the entire way up the dome, which is really cool. In the cathedral, there are more memorials to a lot of people, including big ones to Wellington and Nelson. There is also a memorial to the fire brigade that was in charge of putting out the fires that were started by the German's incendiary bombs during the Blitz in WWII. They are responsible for helping St. Paul's escape nearly unscathed, and St. Paul's became an emblem of hope for the people since the Germans couldn't seem to destroy it (even when they do hit it [a bomb fell on the high alter, but it didn't explode, making the impact decidedly less] ). Behind the high alter, at the back of the cathedral, is a big memorial to the American soldiers that served in the Second World War, from the British People. It's a really nice memorial and has a book with all the American soldiers who died in Europe, and, significantly, those who died on the crossing to go fight due to German U-boats. Also important, this memorial was built entirely from donations from the British People, not the Government, so it really is a sincere thank-you for all they did. At the end of the tour, we had the opportunity to go up into the dome, which I took full advantage of. The first stop is the Whispering Gallery, which looks down into the cathedral, and is really cool to see everything from that view. The next stop is outside, which offers some great views of London (even when rainy). I got an awesome picture of the Millennium Bridge from here (yes, the one from the beginning of Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince). Apparently there was a third stop, but I couldn't find the stairs, someone told me about it on the bus on the way home. After making it back down all those spiral stairs, and with legs shaking, I met up with Kathryn, Annie Rose, Jon, and Matt and off we went into the rain to try to find the nearest underground station.
The five of us had decided that, instead of going to the National Portrait Gallery and the National Gallery, our time would better be spent by going to the Churchill War Rooms (yes, I started this because I didn't get to go to them last weekend =) ). And the War Rooms were awesome! Everything was set up (largely behind glass) as it would have been when Churchill was fighting WWII out of it. There were even creepy mannequins that we half expected to start moving in many of the rooms. They had some awesome original papers hanging up and maps with all these pins in them showing where everyone was. It was really cool to see. I could totally see Scrimegour having rooms like these to fight the war against the Death Eaters and Voldy (you know, if he hadn't tragically died before an underground government military movement could be launched). I took a ton of pictures in there. I wish I could've spent a bit more time in the war rooms, and we somehow managed to skip the little museum that was in there as well. But it was still fun and interesting!
After that, we were all hungry, so we set off in search as a McDonald's (don't judge, we were really hungry and craving fries!). We ended up walking nearly to Trafalgar Square before we found one, but it was so good and we were so happy that it was totally worth walking by a protest for Libya for it! After that, Annie Rose was still hungry (because she can't eat meat on Fridays, it being Lent and all) so we stopped at a little convenience store so she could get a sandwich. While she's getting a sandwich, the rest of us find the Krispy Kreme's in there and each get one! I got a Kookie and Kreme one (chocolate doughnut with white icing and cookie crumbs on top) which was absolutely amazing and I'm pretty sure we don't have it at home! We were all in heaven they were so good!
Since we were already there, we walked across the street to Trafalgar Square and took some pictures and looked around. Kathryn had us all make a wish and throw a penny into the fountain. Then Annie Rose decided to try out her waterproof digital camera in the fountain. It worked! That was really cool. In the square, they have an awesome countdown to the 2012 Olympic and Paraolympic Games. They also have a really random massive ship in a bottle, which is actually really cool. After spending some time here, we had to head back to St. Paul's so that Kathryn could meet up with Jessica, since they're staying the night in London. Once we got there, I met up with Hope and we went to Pizza Express for dinner. We split a really good garlic bread and cheese pizza. Then we got back on the bus and talked until it was time for the bus to leave at 7 and take us back to the manor. On the way back, the coach driver took us by the Olympic Village, which looks like it's going to be so cool! I want to make it back here so badly for that!
Next week I have a long weekend in Paris, so be looking out for that! I can't believe that there's only 4 or 5 weeks of the semester left!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
London, Round 2: Like Walking into Honeydukes for the Very First Time
This weekend I chose not to go on the Lake District trip with the school and stay at the manor, get some work done, take a day trip somewhere. I decided on London, since there were four places that I really wanted to go see that I didn't have the chance to when I was there one weekend back in January. Since everyone is basically gone this weekend, I went into London by myself; not a big deal considering no one would've come with me even if we had gone into the city together, they wouldn't have wanted to go to the same places as me for as long as me. My travels started at 7:30, when a cab picked me up and took me to the train station. There, I grabbed some breakfast, since the Refectory wasn't open before I left (I don't think so anyways). Then it was an hour and 15 minute train ride into London King's Cross Station. I then took the Underground to my first destination: the Tower of London.
I absolutely loved the Tower of London! I literally spent 3 hours in there, just roaming about! I saw everything I could. I saw Traitor's Gate and the Royal Jewels (which were absolutely breathtaking) and Henry VIII's (and load of other people's) armor (you saw Henry get fatter and his codpiece get larger to compensate) and where they kept prisoners and the Tower Green where people like Queens Anne (Boleyn) and Catharine (Howard) were executed and where the Princes of the Tower were found and the chapel where they reburied all those in unmarked graves (traitors). I loved every minute of it. I had lunch at the cafe in the Tower, just odds and ends that were yummy. I also went to the Tower of London Store and bought a couple of postcards to send out, since I hadn't sent any of English stuff yet.
I went to get back on the Underground to head to my next destination, but, turns out my ticket doesn't want to let me in or out of the stations anymore. Luckily there's always an attendant there who'll let you through once you show them your ticket! Not the first time it's happened to me, but it is annoying. The Imperial War Museum definitely made up for it though. It was like the museum of my dreams. Literally over half of the exhibits were World War I and II!!!!! I was in historical heaven. Well, you know, scholar-wise, in reality, those wars were hell. But they had all this stuff that I had read about and to actually see an Enigma machine and a Hitler Youth uniform and to go in replica trenches and see Hitler's plans for the invasion of Poland and oh so much more stuff, I was literally like a kid in a candy shop. I couldn't stop smiling whenever I saw something that I knew about or was related to something that I'd read about. The people next to me probably thought that that was a bit weird, especially when I was smiling over and taking pictures of Nazi stuff, but whatever! I may not like them, but I think getting to see all their stuff is just about the best thing ever. I was surprised there was so much of it there! I guess since Germany can't display or destroy it, Britain took it. That's my guess. To top all this awesome stuff off in the museum, there was an exhibit solely on General Sir Bernard Montgomery! I was so excited! Mainly because I just spent a lot of time researching him and writing a paper about him and how he won the battle that turned the tide that won the war (or however Bujak so eloquently put it). He's the general of the British Army that won the first battle in 3 years against the Germans at El Alamein in North Africa, beating Rommel. As a side note, that's also the last major battle Britain won without American troops (we were just starting to get there and weren't in battle or anything yet). So that was really cool to see all his stuff.
By the time I finished up at the Imperial War Museum, I realized that I didn't have enough time to see both the Churchill War Rooms and the Sherlock Holmes Museum, so I decided that I'd probably have time to see the War Rooms next Friday after the field trip and before the coach ride home, so I just took the Underground to Baker Street and went to 221B. This was awesome. They have this really cool sign outside of 221B Baker St. and someone's dressed up as a policeman from the late 1800s, letting people into the house! So you go in and go up the stairs and Sherlock Holmes meets you in the study! That's right, they have an older gentleman dress up as an older Sherlock Holmes and he tells you what all the rooms are and points out some things. And I got a picture with him! Made my part of the day, that. So the study is really small. It now makes sense when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle writes about how a large man nearly filled up their study! There's Watson's desk and medical bag in one area of the room, and Holmes' chemistry set and violin in another. And on one wall is the bullet holes that Holmes makes when he's bored and needs another case! They're in the shape of 'V R', Queen Victoria's initials. Next door to the study is Holmes bedroom, which was cool to see. Then you go up the stairs and you get to see Watson's, which is a lot tidier than Holmes' was! Also on that floor is what I call the memorabilia room, with lots of Sherlock Holmes stuff in cases and on walls and a very impressive bust of him in one corner. Go up another floor and they've got scenes from the different stories! There must've been at least 10 different scenes, including ones from The Speckled Band, The Gloria Scott, The Red Headed League, and A Scandal in Bohemia. Next door to the museum is a Sherlock Holmes Store, which had so many really cool things that I really wanted to buy. I managed to limit myself to a Sherlock Holmes bear, which is absolutely adorable, and a matchbox that has Sherlock Holmes images and such on it. I'm pretty happy with what I got.
After meeting Sherlock Holmes, it was back on the Underground to Kings Cross, where I picked up some food for dinner before getting on the train back to Grantham, eating on the way. Then it was a cab back to Harlaxton and in for the evening, being very productive on things surrounding this day's travel! I don't really know what will be coming next, I believe my London field trip, as that's scheduled for Friday, and I don't have anything planned for that weekend yet, so we'll see what that ends up holding! 'Till next time!
I absolutely loved the Tower of London! I literally spent 3 hours in there, just roaming about! I saw everything I could. I saw Traitor's Gate and the Royal Jewels (which were absolutely breathtaking) and Henry VIII's (and load of other people's) armor (you saw Henry get fatter and his codpiece get larger to compensate) and where they kept prisoners and the Tower Green where people like Queens Anne (Boleyn) and Catharine (Howard) were executed and where the Princes of the Tower were found and the chapel where they reburied all those in unmarked graves (traitors). I loved every minute of it. I had lunch at the cafe in the Tower, just odds and ends that were yummy. I also went to the Tower of London Store and bought a couple of postcards to send out, since I hadn't sent any of English stuff yet.
I went to get back on the Underground to head to my next destination, but, turns out my ticket doesn't want to let me in or out of the stations anymore. Luckily there's always an attendant there who'll let you through once you show them your ticket! Not the first time it's happened to me, but it is annoying. The Imperial War Museum definitely made up for it though. It was like the museum of my dreams. Literally over half of the exhibits were World War I and II!!!!! I was in historical heaven. Well, you know, scholar-wise, in reality, those wars were hell. But they had all this stuff that I had read about and to actually see an Enigma machine and a Hitler Youth uniform and to go in replica trenches and see Hitler's plans for the invasion of Poland and oh so much more stuff, I was literally like a kid in a candy shop. I couldn't stop smiling whenever I saw something that I knew about or was related to something that I'd read about. The people next to me probably thought that that was a bit weird, especially when I was smiling over and taking pictures of Nazi stuff, but whatever! I may not like them, but I think getting to see all their stuff is just about the best thing ever. I was surprised there was so much of it there! I guess since Germany can't display or destroy it, Britain took it. That's my guess. To top all this awesome stuff off in the museum, there was an exhibit solely on General Sir Bernard Montgomery! I was so excited! Mainly because I just spent a lot of time researching him and writing a paper about him and how he won the battle that turned the tide that won the war (or however Bujak so eloquently put it). He's the general of the British Army that won the first battle in 3 years against the Germans at El Alamein in North Africa, beating Rommel. As a side note, that's also the last major battle Britain won without American troops (we were just starting to get there and weren't in battle or anything yet). So that was really cool to see all his stuff.
By the time I finished up at the Imperial War Museum, I realized that I didn't have enough time to see both the Churchill War Rooms and the Sherlock Holmes Museum, so I decided that I'd probably have time to see the War Rooms next Friday after the field trip and before the coach ride home, so I just took the Underground to Baker Street and went to 221B. This was awesome. They have this really cool sign outside of 221B Baker St. and someone's dressed up as a policeman from the late 1800s, letting people into the house! So you go in and go up the stairs and Sherlock Holmes meets you in the study! That's right, they have an older gentleman dress up as an older Sherlock Holmes and he tells you what all the rooms are and points out some things. And I got a picture with him! Made my part of the day, that. So the study is really small. It now makes sense when Sir Arthur Conan Doyle writes about how a large man nearly filled up their study! There's Watson's desk and medical bag in one area of the room, and Holmes' chemistry set and violin in another. And on one wall is the bullet holes that Holmes makes when he's bored and needs another case! They're in the shape of 'V R', Queen Victoria's initials. Next door to the study is Holmes bedroom, which was cool to see. Then you go up the stairs and you get to see Watson's, which is a lot tidier than Holmes' was! Also on that floor is what I call the memorabilia room, with lots of Sherlock Holmes stuff in cases and on walls and a very impressive bust of him in one corner. Go up another floor and they've got scenes from the different stories! There must've been at least 10 different scenes, including ones from The Speckled Band, The Gloria Scott, The Red Headed League, and A Scandal in Bohemia. Next door to the museum is a Sherlock Holmes Store, which had so many really cool things that I really wanted to buy. I managed to limit myself to a Sherlock Holmes bear, which is absolutely adorable, and a matchbox that has Sherlock Holmes images and such on it. I'm pretty happy with what I got.
After meeting Sherlock Holmes, it was back on the Underground to Kings Cross, where I picked up some food for dinner before getting on the train back to Grantham, eating on the way. Then it was a cab back to Harlaxton and in for the evening, being very productive on things surrounding this day's travel! I don't really know what will be coming next, I believe my London field trip, as that's scheduled for Friday, and I don't have anything planned for that weekend yet, so we'll see what that ends up holding! 'Till next time!
Friday, March 11, 2011
Harlaxton Manor & Southwell Workhouse: Hogwarts and Definitely not Azkaban
Ok, so I was looking through my travel journal and realized that I had actually written about my first field trip to Lincoln in there and it turns out I wrote about it on here too, so I figured I should write about my second British Studies field trip as well! This field trip was to Harlaxton Manor (yes, where I live) and Southwell Workhouse (this should go directly before the post about Barcelona).
We started off the day (well, half of us did, then we switched) at Harlaxton in our seminar classes. There, we spent half an hour learning about the different places that inspired Gregory Gregory when he built this manor. They ranged from houses in England to houses on the Continent, since he collected much of the marble and other items that he put in his house there. Then we had several hours to do a self-guided tour of the manor. Four professors were stationed around the manor to tell us about the different parts and to answer any questions we might have. Dr. Snow was in the library. There she told us about how it used to be the kitchen and how it was run and the food got from there across the manor to the State Dining Room and about the other work rooms on that half of the manor. Next we meandered over to Dr. Green in the Stone Corridor. He told us about the different levels of servants and how to distinguish between the servants quarter and the parts of the house where the family lived (ornamentation and wood floors). He also took us to the butler's room (what's now the Music Room) and showed us the staircase leading from there to the Long Gallery directly above it and the safe where the silver was kept. He also had a view of the drive so he could see people coming, and he had wooden floors and a marble fireplace, meaning that he was the highest servant. Next we went to Dr. Taylor up in the Blue Corridor. There, we got to see Gregory Gregory's room, which is one of the bay windows in the front of the house and is very nice and elaborate. We also got to see where the Governess' room was and how she got from her room down to the classroom and nursery without being seen by the family (another secret staircase). Lastly we got to see the sitting room upstairs, what is now the Senior Common Room for faculty and it is absolutely gorgeous! Lots of bookcases full of books and ornamentation. Then we went back downstairs to Dr. Bujak in the State Rooms. He showed us the various ways that servants got around without being seen and pictures of how the rooms used to look (with actual furniture in them and everything) and the heating system that was put in (a series of vents). After our tour, it was back to the seminar rooms to go over what we learned, then lunch in the Refectory.
After lunch we got on a coach and headed to Southwell Workhouse, about 45 minutes away. I was really excited to see this, because I had learned about the workhouses that the English tried to put into place in Ireland during the Great Famine and really wanted to see one. Turns out that this workhouse is the one that all other workhouses were based on! The workhouse is split, with one half being women and the other half men. The Master and Mistress of the workhouse and the children living in the workhouse lived in the center area. Men, Women, and Children weren't allowed to see each other except on Sundays, where families could meet in the Meeting Room if all of them had behaved that week. They got clothes upon entry and the women cleaned the workhouse and cooked and dealt with the food in the cellars, the men worked in the gardens and did pointless work, just to make sure they were always working. The point of the workhouses was to make them do repetitive, boring labor and reform their morals so that they would go out and get a job and become productive members of society (they also helped them find jobs, especially the orphans). We got to see the work yards, the cellars, the kitchen (on the women's side, bread making was on the men's), the meeting room in the center, the schoolroom, the children's dormitory, the Master's living rooms, the women's dormitory, the Master's study, the inside work/lounge rooms, and the exercise yard (which was actually where they went after dinner to relax. the privy was also out there). It was really interesting to see all of it! The workhouses also were where those unable to work (the poor elderly, injured, etc.) went. They didn't have to do any labor, because they couldn't, and each half of the workhouse was further separated in that way as well. The majority of the half of the building was for the innocent/deserving poor (aka those unable to work) and 1/4 to 1/3 of the half (on the outside) was for the poor that were able to work (their side was smaller because there were less of them and they moved in and out more frequently). The workhouse was very clean when it was run (because the women were always cleaning) and they were fed well, if it was a bit repetitive (they got meat every other day). After visiting the workhouse, it was back to the manor for dinner.
Ok, now that I've written this, I promise the next one will be about my trip to London tomorrow!
We started off the day (well, half of us did, then we switched) at Harlaxton in our seminar classes. There, we spent half an hour learning about the different places that inspired Gregory Gregory when he built this manor. They ranged from houses in England to houses on the Continent, since he collected much of the marble and other items that he put in his house there. Then we had several hours to do a self-guided tour of the manor. Four professors were stationed around the manor to tell us about the different parts and to answer any questions we might have. Dr. Snow was in the library. There she told us about how it used to be the kitchen and how it was run and the food got from there across the manor to the State Dining Room and about the other work rooms on that half of the manor. Next we meandered over to Dr. Green in the Stone Corridor. He told us about the different levels of servants and how to distinguish between the servants quarter and the parts of the house where the family lived (ornamentation and wood floors). He also took us to the butler's room (what's now the Music Room) and showed us the staircase leading from there to the Long Gallery directly above it and the safe where the silver was kept. He also had a view of the drive so he could see people coming, and he had wooden floors and a marble fireplace, meaning that he was the highest servant. Next we went to Dr. Taylor up in the Blue Corridor. There, we got to see Gregory Gregory's room, which is one of the bay windows in the front of the house and is very nice and elaborate. We also got to see where the Governess' room was and how she got from her room down to the classroom and nursery without being seen by the family (another secret staircase). Lastly we got to see the sitting room upstairs, what is now the Senior Common Room for faculty and it is absolutely gorgeous! Lots of bookcases full of books and ornamentation. Then we went back downstairs to Dr. Bujak in the State Rooms. He showed us the various ways that servants got around without being seen and pictures of how the rooms used to look (with actual furniture in them and everything) and the heating system that was put in (a series of vents). After our tour, it was back to the seminar rooms to go over what we learned, then lunch in the Refectory.
After lunch we got on a coach and headed to Southwell Workhouse, about 45 minutes away. I was really excited to see this, because I had learned about the workhouses that the English tried to put into place in Ireland during the Great Famine and really wanted to see one. Turns out that this workhouse is the one that all other workhouses were based on! The workhouse is split, with one half being women and the other half men. The Master and Mistress of the workhouse and the children living in the workhouse lived in the center area. Men, Women, and Children weren't allowed to see each other except on Sundays, where families could meet in the Meeting Room if all of them had behaved that week. They got clothes upon entry and the women cleaned the workhouse and cooked and dealt with the food in the cellars, the men worked in the gardens and did pointless work, just to make sure they were always working. The point of the workhouses was to make them do repetitive, boring labor and reform their morals so that they would go out and get a job and become productive members of society (they also helped them find jobs, especially the orphans). We got to see the work yards, the cellars, the kitchen (on the women's side, bread making was on the men's), the meeting room in the center, the schoolroom, the children's dormitory, the Master's living rooms, the women's dormitory, the Master's study, the inside work/lounge rooms, and the exercise yard (which was actually where they went after dinner to relax. the privy was also out there). It was really interesting to see all of it! The workhouses also were where those unable to work (the poor elderly, injured, etc.) went. They didn't have to do any labor, because they couldn't, and each half of the workhouse was further separated in that way as well. The majority of the half of the building was for the innocent/deserving poor (aka those unable to work) and 1/4 to 1/3 of the half (on the outside) was for the poor that were able to work (their side was smaller because there were less of them and they moved in and out more frequently). The workhouse was very clean when it was run (because the women were always cleaning) and they were fed well, if it was a bit repetitive (they got meat every other day). After visiting the workhouse, it was back to the manor for dinner.
Ok, now that I've written this, I promise the next one will be about my trip to London tomorrow!
Thursday, March 10, 2011
Harlaxton: History of Magic and Care of Magical Creatures
I promised a post on everyday life here at the manor, and since I have some free time before lunch, I thought I'd let you know what goes on here in any given week!
Monday, the entire school piles into the Long Gallery for an hour lecture on whatever topic of British history that the British Studies lecturers have decided on for that day. For example, towards the beginning of the semester, we had a lecture on the Three Edwards, and more recently we had a lecture on Industrialization. We get there early in order to get the seats by the best radiator, since it's so cold in there! After lecture, half the school goes to their seminar, while the other half does whatever until their seminar starts. I usually head back up to my room and get some homework done in that period of time. Seminar (at least for me) is in one of the stone corridor rooms, meaning that it's warm in there. Seminar basically goes into a bit more depth on one point of the lecture from that day, often using primary sources. We all have an individual presentation to give in there, mine was on John Locke and his two Treatises on Government. We also do group work, where we have to meet outside of class to discuss things and make a handout for class. Lunch follows seminar, then it's afternoon classes. For me, this is Marketing, again in a warmer room, where I get to learn all about different aspects of marketing. Following that is Environmental Science (a gen. ed.) where we get to be depressed all class because we're talking about death and destruction all the time, though right now we're talking about the death and destruction of creatures, which makes it a Care of Magical Creatures Class. =) This is located in the State Dining Room, which means that it's cold, which doesn't help the sadness. Following ES, it's either down to the Bistro for free coffee/tea/hot chocolate or back up to my room to do more studying. Dinner is around 5-5:30, then it's usually back up for more studying before a snack and show and bed.
Tuesday and Thursday consist of getting up at a decent time in order to get some work done before lunch and my afternoon classes (Marketing and Environmental Studies). I try to get up in time for breakfast since I get more food that way, but sometime I just don't feel like going down there, so I have some dry cereal in my room, along with some cereal and nurtrigrain bars. There's no free drinks in the Bistro on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I head back up to my room to do some work, sometimes making some hot chocolate myself. The same routine follows for the rest of the day.
Wednesday, all I have is History of Magic (British Studies) lecture and seminar in the morning, like on Mondays. Wednesday is usually the day that I go into town if I need anything after lunch since that gives me the most time. Usually it's just an hour+ trip in for the grocery store, though sometimes there's clothes shopping involved. I usually forget to go down to the Bistro in the afternoon, but Wednesday is the other day that it's open. Wednesday is usually the day that I stop procrastinating on work and get things done, because I am usually gone on Thursday night or Friday morning for my weekend trips.
If I don't go on a trip (which is only happening a couple of weekends this semester) I'll pretty much hang around the manor Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, doing some work, hanging out with friends, going into town for various reasons, ordering food so I don't have to eat the Refectory food all weekend. I have one of my last big projects to complete this weekend, but most of my papers were due last Thursday and this past Monday, which meant that I was hard at work! I'm looking forward to this weekend basically off.
So yes, that's my time here at Harlaxton during the week in a nutshell. Obviously it's a bit more filled out than that, depending on the week. Harlaxton is good about having different events for the students, which are fun to go to if you have time. And everybody knows everybody here since there's literally like 200 people here, including professors! So you never have to eat alone. More in a few days, this time about London!
Monday, the entire school piles into the Long Gallery for an hour lecture on whatever topic of British history that the British Studies lecturers have decided on for that day. For example, towards the beginning of the semester, we had a lecture on the Three Edwards, and more recently we had a lecture on Industrialization. We get there early in order to get the seats by the best radiator, since it's so cold in there! After lecture, half the school goes to their seminar, while the other half does whatever until their seminar starts. I usually head back up to my room and get some homework done in that period of time. Seminar (at least for me) is in one of the stone corridor rooms, meaning that it's warm in there. Seminar basically goes into a bit more depth on one point of the lecture from that day, often using primary sources. We all have an individual presentation to give in there, mine was on John Locke and his two Treatises on Government. We also do group work, where we have to meet outside of class to discuss things and make a handout for class. Lunch follows seminar, then it's afternoon classes. For me, this is Marketing, again in a warmer room, where I get to learn all about different aspects of marketing. Following that is Environmental Science (a gen. ed.) where we get to be depressed all class because we're talking about death and destruction all the time, though right now we're talking about the death and destruction of creatures, which makes it a Care of Magical Creatures Class. =) This is located in the State Dining Room, which means that it's cold, which doesn't help the sadness. Following ES, it's either down to the Bistro for free coffee/tea/hot chocolate or back up to my room to do more studying. Dinner is around 5-5:30, then it's usually back up for more studying before a snack and show and bed.
Tuesday and Thursday consist of getting up at a decent time in order to get some work done before lunch and my afternoon classes (Marketing and Environmental Studies). I try to get up in time for breakfast since I get more food that way, but sometime I just don't feel like going down there, so I have some dry cereal in my room, along with some cereal and nurtrigrain bars. There's no free drinks in the Bistro on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so I head back up to my room to do some work, sometimes making some hot chocolate myself. The same routine follows for the rest of the day.
Wednesday, all I have is History of Magic (British Studies) lecture and seminar in the morning, like on Mondays. Wednesday is usually the day that I go into town if I need anything after lunch since that gives me the most time. Usually it's just an hour+ trip in for the grocery store, though sometimes there's clothes shopping involved. I usually forget to go down to the Bistro in the afternoon, but Wednesday is the other day that it's open. Wednesday is usually the day that I stop procrastinating on work and get things done, because I am usually gone on Thursday night or Friday morning for my weekend trips.
If I don't go on a trip (which is only happening a couple of weekends this semester) I'll pretty much hang around the manor Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, doing some work, hanging out with friends, going into town for various reasons, ordering food so I don't have to eat the Refectory food all weekend. I have one of my last big projects to complete this weekend, but most of my papers were due last Thursday and this past Monday, which meant that I was hard at work! I'm looking forward to this weekend basically off.
So yes, that's my time here at Harlaxton during the week in a nutshell. Obviously it's a bit more filled out than that, depending on the week. Harlaxton is good about having different events for the students, which are fun to go to if you have time. And everybody knows everybody here since there's literally like 200 people here, including professors! So you never have to eat alone. More in a few days, this time about London!
Tuesday, March 8, 2011
Barcelona, Spain: I Bet Hermione's Read the Books
Sorry it's a bit late this week, but school work was calling when I got back, pushing everything else off until it was done. This past weekend my friend (and roommate) Alana and I jetted off to Barcelona (quite literally). Getting there was quite an adventure, but not as much as getting back! We left Harlaxton in a cab around 10:30 on Thursday night in order to catch our 11:08 train into London King's Cross. Once we got to the train station, we actually met up with 2 other Harlaxton girls who were going on the same train as us all the way to Gatwick before each heading off on their separate weekend trips, so they were super excited to find out that they wouldn't have to travel alone. After a train, a bus to a different train station, and another train, we arrived at Gatwick airport around half 2 in the morning, leaving us sitting around the airport and waiting until our plane left at 7. By this time, warm drinks were a must, so we found the closest Costa and ordered up some hot chocolate and coffee. Eventually the ticket booths opened up and we could get our tickets and go through security. Then we had to do some more waiting until they told us what gate to go to! Our gate showed up literally half an hour prior to departure. I was surprised how nice Easy Jet's planes are. I had a good six inches in between my knees and the seat in front of me! Despite this flight being the loudest one I have ever been on (there was a bachelorette party on board), the two of us were out as soon as our seat belts were buckled and didn't wake up until our plane hit the ground in Barcelona. Once we went through customs (yay passport stamps!) we took the Aerobus into the center of town, Plaza de Catalunya. This is where our hop-on hop-off bus tour starts from. We took that around the city, not really getting off much, but getting lots of good pictures! Especially of Gaudi buildings and the Sagrada Familia cathedral (still in construction, which is really cool to see). We got off back at Plaza de Catalunya and had a late lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe because we were hungry and it was right there. And the food was really good! Then we hopped back on our bus, on the other line this time. We didn't get off this one at all, since Alana ended up falling asleep on it (she had a cold and hadn't slept at all last night). So I didn't get to go up Montjuic on the cable cars, but I got to see them and ride a bus on Montjuic, so that was good. We got off the bus at the nearest stop to our hotel, which was still about half an hours walk away. We saw lots of palm trees on the way, and even an orange tree! Our hotel was a couple of blocks off the beach, right across the street from the Forum. We didn't get a chance to go down to the beach because we fell on our beds as soon as we got up to our room and slept for a good hour or two. Once we got up, we walked down to McDonalds so I could grab a little something to eat before we went to bed. We were asleep by 8:30! (yes, we really were that tired.)
The next morning we had breakfast at a little cafe in the mall (Diagonal Mar) right next to our hotel. It was amazing. The hot chocolate literally had a piece of chocolate melting in it and the croissants were dipped in chocolate on either end and had chocolate in the middle! I would eat that meal every day. After breakfast we took the tram line (we had asked reception the best way to get places) to one of our bus stops and got on until we got back to Plaza de Catalunya. We got off there and spent some time on La Rambla, a big shopping/art/tourist -y street that runs from the Plaza down to the sea. It had a big walkway in between the buildings where all sorts of stalls and outside restaurants were set up. We saw a lot of street performers, some of whom were quite clever! I really liked the guy dressed up as a bunch of flowers and the guy sitting on the toilet. There were lots of artist stalls and I totally would have bought some artwork if I would have had a way to get it back to Harlaxton without it being folded up or anything. I did end up buying some really nice rings from a stall, which I really like. Also, a few souvenir things, postcards, key-chain, a mosaic twisty mug. There were also flower stalls, where Alana bought her mom some bulbs. We had lunch at one of the outdoor restaurants, where we split a seafood paella (the rice was absolutely amazing!!!!!!), a four cheese pizza, and a quart of sangria (which was good, and which we finished after finding out how much it cost us!). It was really nice to sit outside there and eat, a really good atmosphere. On our way back to Plaza de Catalunya we stopped at one of the many gelato stalls and had some absolutely amazing chocolate gelato in a cone. I wish I could have had more! After our fun on La Rambla is was back on the bus, first for a quick stop at the Sagrada Familia so we could get some better pictures, then to Mount Tibidabo. We rode the Tramvia Blau halfway up Tibidabo, which is an old-fashioned blue trolley. After getting some pictures there, we hopped on the Funincular Tibidabo (a cable car, on the ground) to go up to the top of the mountain. At the top they have a little amusement park and a church, which you could climb up the out side of to some amazing viewing decks. Barcelona looked so beautiful from up there! I would have liked to spend a bit more time up at the top of Tibidabo, but we needed to make sure we got back down and didn't miss the last bus to take us back to the Plaza. Once back at the Plaza, it was time for dinner, so after asking for directions from the information place, we went off in search of Taller de Tapas, a restaurant recommended to Alana. The restaurant was very nice. I had chicken kebab and potato tapas and Alana had mussels and mushrooms tapas, all of which were good, according to their respective eaters. We finished off the meal with some dessert tapas, chocolate pofiteroles and white chocolate and milk chocolate mousse, and a dessert wine, Moscatell. The dessert was absolutely amazing. If I could have just had double of that for dinner and dessert I would have. And the wine was the first wine that I really, really liked. It was the underground and tram back to the hotel after dinner, our last real meal in Barcelona.
Sunday morning we had the croissants from the same cafe, which we had picked up the night before, for breakfast in our room. Our flight left around noon, so we left the hotel at 8:30 so we would have plenty of time to get to the airport. First, we had to wait forever for the tram to come, and when it did, it only took us one more stop before it was finished! Because of the Barcelona Marathon that was taking place that day, which we did not know was occurring. So we got off and found the nearest subway station and got on to Plaza de Catalunya, where we planned on taking the Aerobus back to the airport. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to start running until 11:30! Out of options, we found a taxi queue and took a cab to the airport. It took longer than it should have because half the roads in Barcelona were closed because of the marathon. You could tell the driver was a bit upset. We finally got to the airport, after a 40 euro cab ride!, around 10. It took a bit to get our tickets, but going through security was quick, and we got another Barcelona stamp on our passports (random, I know, but whatever. plus he put it like 5 pages past the current stamp page.). Once we got to our gate we went to a cafe and got some hot chocolate, and a chocolate muffin for me!, and waited for our plane to start boarding. In the mean time, I went to the duty free store and found the rum that my parents were wanting me to get for them, rom de miel (honey rum), so that's going home to them now. I was excited to find it though, and it was cheap! We flew into London Luton and got some lunch to eat on the train at M&S. From Luton airport we took a shuttle to Luton Airport Parkway, the train station, and took the train to St. Pancreas, crossed the street to King's Cross, took a train back to Grantham, and a cab (that was late picking us up) back to Harlaxton, in time to drop our stuff off in our room before dinner.
I absolutely loved Barcelona and wish I could've spent more time there and really gotten to see everything. Because I, while I wanted to go to Spain in general, I wanted to go to Barcelona because of books. Two of my favorite books, The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game, both by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, take place in Barcelona and I loved getting to see all of the places that I had read about in those books. The Shadow of the Wind has a self-tour in the back of the book that you can do in Barcelona and I definitely would have done it if I had had more time there. These are the books that I bet Hermione has read. You can't go wrong with them, even if you're a witch!
This coming weekend is basically a well-deserved break for me. I'm going into London for one day to see all the museums that I ran out of time to see the last time I was there! Look for that next!
The next morning we had breakfast at a little cafe in the mall (Diagonal Mar) right next to our hotel. It was amazing. The hot chocolate literally had a piece of chocolate melting in it and the croissants were dipped in chocolate on either end and had chocolate in the middle! I would eat that meal every day. After breakfast we took the tram line (we had asked reception the best way to get places) to one of our bus stops and got on until we got back to Plaza de Catalunya. We got off there and spent some time on La Rambla, a big shopping/art/tourist -y street that runs from the Plaza down to the sea. It had a big walkway in between the buildings where all sorts of stalls and outside restaurants were set up. We saw a lot of street performers, some of whom were quite clever! I really liked the guy dressed up as a bunch of flowers and the guy sitting on the toilet. There were lots of artist stalls and I totally would have bought some artwork if I would have had a way to get it back to Harlaxton without it being folded up or anything. I did end up buying some really nice rings from a stall, which I really like. Also, a few souvenir things, postcards, key-chain, a mosaic twisty mug. There were also flower stalls, where Alana bought her mom some bulbs. We had lunch at one of the outdoor restaurants, where we split a seafood paella (the rice was absolutely amazing!!!!!!), a four cheese pizza, and a quart of sangria (which was good, and which we finished after finding out how much it cost us!). It was really nice to sit outside there and eat, a really good atmosphere. On our way back to Plaza de Catalunya we stopped at one of the many gelato stalls and had some absolutely amazing chocolate gelato in a cone. I wish I could have had more! After our fun on La Rambla is was back on the bus, first for a quick stop at the Sagrada Familia so we could get some better pictures, then to Mount Tibidabo. We rode the Tramvia Blau halfway up Tibidabo, which is an old-fashioned blue trolley. After getting some pictures there, we hopped on the Funincular Tibidabo (a cable car, on the ground) to go up to the top of the mountain. At the top they have a little amusement park and a church, which you could climb up the out side of to some amazing viewing decks. Barcelona looked so beautiful from up there! I would have liked to spend a bit more time up at the top of Tibidabo, but we needed to make sure we got back down and didn't miss the last bus to take us back to the Plaza. Once back at the Plaza, it was time for dinner, so after asking for directions from the information place, we went off in search of Taller de Tapas, a restaurant recommended to Alana. The restaurant was very nice. I had chicken kebab and potato tapas and Alana had mussels and mushrooms tapas, all of which were good, according to their respective eaters. We finished off the meal with some dessert tapas, chocolate pofiteroles and white chocolate and milk chocolate mousse, and a dessert wine, Moscatell. The dessert was absolutely amazing. If I could have just had double of that for dinner and dessert I would have. And the wine was the first wine that I really, really liked. It was the underground and tram back to the hotel after dinner, our last real meal in Barcelona.
Sunday morning we had the croissants from the same cafe, which we had picked up the night before, for breakfast in our room. Our flight left around noon, so we left the hotel at 8:30 so we would have plenty of time to get to the airport. First, we had to wait forever for the tram to come, and when it did, it only took us one more stop before it was finished! Because of the Barcelona Marathon that was taking place that day, which we did not know was occurring. So we got off and found the nearest subway station and got on to Plaza de Catalunya, where we planned on taking the Aerobus back to the airport. Unfortunately, that wasn't going to start running until 11:30! Out of options, we found a taxi queue and took a cab to the airport. It took longer than it should have because half the roads in Barcelona were closed because of the marathon. You could tell the driver was a bit upset. We finally got to the airport, after a 40 euro cab ride!, around 10. It took a bit to get our tickets, but going through security was quick, and we got another Barcelona stamp on our passports (random, I know, but whatever. plus he put it like 5 pages past the current stamp page.). Once we got to our gate we went to a cafe and got some hot chocolate, and a chocolate muffin for me!, and waited for our plane to start boarding. In the mean time, I went to the duty free store and found the rum that my parents were wanting me to get for them, rom de miel (honey rum), so that's going home to them now. I was excited to find it though, and it was cheap! We flew into London Luton and got some lunch to eat on the train at M&S. From Luton airport we took a shuttle to Luton Airport Parkway, the train station, and took the train to St. Pancreas, crossed the street to King's Cross, took a train back to Grantham, and a cab (that was late picking us up) back to Harlaxton, in time to drop our stuff off in our room before dinner.
I absolutely loved Barcelona and wish I could've spent more time there and really gotten to see everything. Because I, while I wanted to go to Spain in general, I wanted to go to Barcelona because of books. Two of my favorite books, The Shadow of the Wind and The Angel's Game, both by Carlos Ruiz Zafon, take place in Barcelona and I loved getting to see all of the places that I had read about in those books. The Shadow of the Wind has a self-tour in the back of the book that you can do in Barcelona and I definitely would have done it if I had had more time there. These are the books that I bet Hermione has read. You can't go wrong with them, even if you're a witch!
This coming weekend is basically a well-deserved break for me. I'm going into London for one day to see all the museums that I ran out of time to see the last time I was there! Look for that next!
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