Air, Austen, Aliens, and Ale: Further Adventures to Acknowledge

Hey gang! It's been awhile hasn't it? In my defense, I think I'm in some sort of time warp where things go faster and slower at the same time. It doesn't feel like that much time has passed over all, but when I look back the gaps between weeks seem much longer than weeks. It's weird, I know. For both our sakes I'll just do a brief roll of the highlights:

1) Oxford University - gorgeous, gorgeous, gorgeous. If I could go anywhere for postgrad studies, Oxford it would be. To add to the architectural beauty is the fun facts of how much Harry Potter was filmed there. I'm not going to go into details because there is the possibility (and by possibility I mean definite chance, but I want you all to still be surprised) of a Harry Potter special after I get a few more key photos. Check out this old time feel:

2) Hyde Park - the largest park I have ever been in. One of these days, I have to go running there. Alas, I forgot to take my camera when Nikki and I ventured there. Just picture a really pretty park that goes on for miles.

3) Edinburgh, Scotland - My study abroad group and I got to spend a weekend there. It was fabitty fab fab to the max. I thought bagpipes and kilts were just a stereotype, but I saw at least ten bagpipe players out on the street and countless kilts...even in the bar we went to. They rock it there, and I 100% approve. It was also a nice change from the fast-paced living of London, and there was a beautiful view from atop the Edinburgh castle:

Other perks of the trip included a visit with Sarah Albert, my University of Iowa friend who has been studying abroad in Edinburgh since September, a spiffy hotel room with real beds! (as compared to my student housing ones), and a surprise discovery of a store with Doctor Who merchandise. Needless to say, I now wake up every morning to David Tennant's foxy good looks sticky tacked to my wall.

4) This past Saturday was a bus trip to Stonehenge and the city of Bath. I literally had the perfect day. Not only did I get to absorb fresh air and sunshine and walk around in GRASS!!! (good God I didn't realize how much I missed it until I saw it stretching out in a gentle wave of green...this is how excited it made Meghan and I:

oh and this is Stonehenge:

)




but I also got to see a town where Jane Austen (author of Pride and Prejudice and Persuasion -- two of my all time favorite books) lived for some of her life. After seeing the namesake of the town (the Roman bath, a natural hot spring with supposed healing powers although now it's more harmful than helpful with all the lead and stuff in it 

) we visited the Jane Austen Centre and had tea in a room decorated in the Regency style with a portrait of Colin Firth's Mr. Darcy on the wall. I had tea and crumpets. For real.

 The crumpets are these bread things in the corner. They're English muffins with honey basically. Only better because they're not American English muffins.

And my latest adventures have been with the wonderful Kelsey Dallas and Adam Winters (roommate and replacement in #3 Ridgeland) who have traveled across the pond on their spring break. We spent yesterday roaming around Westminster after a St. Patty's Day parade and then indulging on a truly British pub experience at the Compass where I had roast chicken, mash, roast veg, Yorkshire pudding, treacle tart, and a nice mug o' ale.

During our Westminster adventures we wandered to Westminster Abby where we somehow got in even though it was closed. And we found Britain's oldest door. Can you spell E-P-I-C?

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Ooh and this is the view from St. James' Park. One of my favorites. It's right near Buckingham Palace.

Today we woke up for a meander to the British Museum and ended up staying there for six hours. I don't think I've ever stayed in a single museum that long before. They had maps that led you to around the museum to find 100 objects that summed up the history of the world and we hit a good 70 of them at least. I got to see Olduvi handaxes aka the first human stone tools (I learned about them last term in Human Origins so that was especially cool), mummies, statues from the Parthenon in Greece, giant horse statues,

etc, etc, etc x 6 hours. Whew, I'm collapsing into bed as soon as I finish this post. Kels and Adam are off to Dublin until Thursday, but I can't wait to see what this weekend brings!
And with that, I...ZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ