Week 1 Arriving in London
May 1st – 6th
SATURDAY, I flew from Las Vegas to D.C. to Heathrow Airport. Luckily Shelby was on my second leg and we helped each other get through customs. We met up with another girl and found our way to our group leaders. We got our tube pass and rode into town. We then trudged from Gloucester Road tube stop to our Flat, about 4 blocks. The distance wasn’t so bad, it was the weight of four months worth of stuff that made the travel slow. Once we settled in, we took the day to get our bearings.
We actually went to our first show fully jet-lagged. Micheal Frayn’s The Permanent Way was performed as a living newspaper that informed us of all the underhanded ways in which the rail company shirks its responsibilities to the British people who have been hurt by the rail. Most of us missed most of the performance, but we were all awake for at least one scene which involved a multi-media derailing of a train with the loudest accident sounds I have heard. We then sleepily headed home from the National Theater on a trail which would soon become as familiar as going home.
MONDAY was our first classes. I’m going to like this. The homework won’t be too heavy and we only have class in the morning two days a week. We are reading Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Othello and Measure for Measure for the Shakespeare class. We will also see the plays in production (two versions of Romeo and Juliet). We just have a textbook and packet for Theater History that shouldn’t be too hard to get through. I just have to pace myself and not procrastinate. We’ll see how long that lasts.
We saw an interesting version of Cyrano De Bergerac at the National Theater. The set resembled an erector set of pipes with various levels. It was positioned on a revolve stage, so some scenes involved the rotation of the set. The actor playing Cyrano seemed just a little off. Some people thought he looked like he was drunk; he certainly looked addled. I liked the lead female, though her character’s motivations left me wanting. The performance had musical qualities, in the sense that they broke into song a few times, but didn’t really fit the genre. I was not impressed with the show, but I was glad to see more theater.
TUESDAY we saw the London Tower. We were rained on for most of the afternoon, so it really felt like London for the first time. We went in the White Tower first and learned about the various prisoners that were kept there; most of whom were eventually beheaded. The most interesting beheading was Anne Bolin’s. She requested that she be able to kneel and pray, so instead of an axe on the shopping block she got a sharp sword to do the job. She was praying so fervently and the sword was so sharp that when her head came off, her lips were still moving.
Next, we saw the Crown Jewels. The biggest is the Star coming in at a whopping 350 karats. They don’t allow photography in the jewel room so no one can make clear plans to steel anything. Though, I don’t know who would successfully make money off the Star because it is so renowned that no one I can think of would risk buying it. I’m sure England would consider waging war on anyone who tried.
We also walked the Tower Bridge which replaced the London Bridge after it came falling down. There were great photo opportunities, but unfortunately, I forgot my camera. I have been here five days and I still don’t have a picture. I promise to make up for it soon.
After such a cold, wet day, we just hung out at home and worked on homework. Its nice to feel like I really live here and I’m not just a tourist. I’m beginning to recognize the coin money on sight without having to find the amount written on the coin. By the way, pence come in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 in addition to 1 and 2 pound coins. The smallest paper money denomination is 5.
WEDNESDAY was class. Not a lot to tell. We went grocery shopping for the second time to get all those things that just make food more enjoyable like lettuce for sandwiches and nutella for, well, anything. I have yet to find a shop that sells wrist watches to replace the one that died on me the first day. I also need replacement sunglasses.
We learned today that we get our rooms vacuumed once a week, on Thursday. We can also have our sheets laundered if we remove them and put them outside the door. I shower before bed, so I won’t do it this week. Besides, I am on the top bunk and they don’t use a fitted sheet here, so the idea of putting my sheets back on by myself after I get a fresh set is a little daunting.
THURSDAY we visited the London Museum. It chronicles the development of London from the time before the thought of London even existed to modern-day technology. The exhibits were very informational with placards explaining the origin and importance of the artifacts.
I found the money pieces fascinating because they showed the lineage of rulers in the area surrounding London and the rulers of nearby countries involved in trade. The most interesting piece depicted Saint Michael vanquishing the dragon.
There are models of early structures with impressively intricate detail. I love the Crystal Palace model. It was built as a temporary site for a world renowned exhibition and was so large that it was built around trees in the park. I have decided that if time travel becomes possible, I want to see the exhibition at the Crystal Palace.
The walk through took about three hours. I had to take a short sit-down break about half-way through to rest my feet. There was a display on women’s voices from the 1910s to today. Recordings played while photographs showed the people being interviewed. They mostly talked about the extraordinary women in their lives or about their own experiences. It brought home the importance of every-day interactions with family.
We will later visit the Tate Modern museum and the Natural History museum. There are still no pictures yet because you can’t take pictures in the museums.
We saw our third show tonight at the Young Vic. The theater is a black box, so I was not surprised to find the performance to be experimental. The play, Cruel and Tender, is based in the Greek myth of Heracles. He is a war general that brings home a beautiful captive from his conquered country to his wife. Hi wife, having become jealous, gives him a gift that is said to make him faithful to her. The gift has poisonous properties that slowly kill him. When his wife realizes that she has killed her husband, she commits suicide. This modern adaptation makes the husband part of the war on terror. The gift that his wife gives him is a chemical weapon that she naively accepts from an old friend as a last resort to win her husband back. At the end of the play, the husband is taken away to be judged for his war crimes including killing the whole town his mistress lived in.
This was the most captivating piece I’ve seen in a while. The director and the actors made very clear choices that give me a lot to think about. I hope to see more theater of this caliber while I’m here. One of my roommates and I plan to attend another Young Vic show later in the season.
FRIDAY we went to the Roman ruins of an old arena theater to tie in our studies of Ancient Roman Theater in Theater History. It is amazing to think that the Roman Empire once reached this far. Though there was not a lot to see and we couldn’t get close to any of it because the excavation is still ongoing, we spent almost an hour there. It was so nice to be in the country. The land is so green and quiet.
After the ruins, we visited churches. The first was St. Michael’s. It had a pleasant graveyard and played the bells on the hour. Next, we traveled to St. Alban’s Cathedral. It was huge. There was a daily mass going on is a small chapel, so music was playing. Tour guides were showing school children around and dressing them up as monks and bishops to tell the history of the Cathedral. Its origins are steeped in legend. Alban was a good man who helped a priest hide from the Roman government which outlawed Christianity. While protecting the priest, he converted and helped the man escape from soldiers. When he wouldn’t denounce his faith, he was put to death. Pilgrimages were made to the spot of his execution because of its healing powers. The following was so great that the cathedral was built on the spot. It is beautiful. I will be sure to send pictures since I finally remembered to bring my camera.
I took about forty pictures today. I just have to remember that there is a delay between when I press the button and the picture takes. Some of my shots are blurry.
After we got home and rested a little, we went to the Globe to see Romeo and Juliet. We were groundlings, so we stood for all three hours of the show. A pillar was in my way, but I saw most of it. It was great to see a show the way they would have done it in Shakespeare’s day. There was little set to speak of, only a roll-on bed and sepulcher. Otherwise, the actors only had the columns to work with. The acting was mediocre from the title characters, but they worked well together. The director chose to have Juliet clearly play 14, so she giggled a lot and looked out of place in adult activities like dancing at the party and discussions with adults. The best role was that of the nurse played by a burly man. He played dead-pan humor and it worked. The sword fighting was captivating and the dancing was interesting to watch because you don’t tend to see dancing like that anymore. Overall, I enjoyed the performance; even with all the standing.
SATURDAY we slept in until 10:30. Then we got ready and headed to Portobello Road. The street is known for its market place where you can buy most anything. I got a cute red watch to replace the one that died just as I got off the plane. I also got a used copy of Much Ado About Nothing to round out my collection needed to read for class. We then headed to a computer store where a friend had just bought a cheap wireless card. I got it for 30 pounds which is comparable to a good sale price in the US. Now I can email as often as I have time, so expect updates every few days.
Now I am just catching up on homework and trying to figure out how to get to church tomorrow. We have to take the train, so we have to account for travel time.
SATURDAY, I flew from Las Vegas to D.C. to Heathrow Airport. Luckily Shelby was on my second leg and we helped each other get through customs. We met up with another girl and found our way to our group leaders. We got our tube pass and rode into town. We then trudged from Gloucester Road tube stop to our Flat, about 4 blocks. The distance wasn’t so bad, it was the weight of four months worth of stuff that made the travel slow. Once we settled in, we took the day to get our bearings.
We actually went to our first show fully jet-lagged. Micheal Frayn’s The Permanent Way was performed as a living newspaper that informed us of all the underhanded ways in which the rail company shirks its responsibilities to the British people who have been hurt by the rail. Most of us missed most of the performance, but we were all awake for at least one scene which involved a multi-media derailing of a train with the loudest accident sounds I have heard. We then sleepily headed home from the National Theater on a trail which would soon become as familiar as going home.
MONDAY was our first classes. I’m going to like this. The homework won’t be too heavy and we only have class in the morning two days a week. We are reading Romeo and Juliet, Macbeth, Much Ado About Nothing, Othello and Measure for Measure for the Shakespeare class. We will also see the plays in production (two versions of Romeo and Juliet). We just have a textbook and packet for Theater History that shouldn’t be too hard to get through. I just have to pace myself and not procrastinate. We’ll see how long that lasts.
We saw an interesting version of Cyrano De Bergerac at the National Theater. The set resembled an erector set of pipes with various levels. It was positioned on a revolve stage, so some scenes involved the rotation of the set. The actor playing Cyrano seemed just a little off. Some people thought he looked like he was drunk; he certainly looked addled. I liked the lead female, though her character’s motivations left me wanting. The performance had musical qualities, in the sense that they broke into song a few times, but didn’t really fit the genre. I was not impressed with the show, but I was glad to see more theater.
TUESDAY we saw the London Tower. We were rained on for most of the afternoon, so it really felt like London for the first time. We went in the White Tower first and learned about the various prisoners that were kept there; most of whom were eventually beheaded. The most interesting beheading was Anne Bolin’s. She requested that she be able to kneel and pray, so instead of an axe on the shopping block she got a sharp sword to do the job. She was praying so fervently and the sword was so sharp that when her head came off, her lips were still moving.
Next, we saw the Crown Jewels. The biggest is the Star coming in at a whopping 350 karats. They don’t allow photography in the jewel room so no one can make clear plans to steel anything. Though, I don’t know who would successfully make money off the Star because it is so renowned that no one I can think of would risk buying it. I’m sure England would consider waging war on anyone who tried.
We also walked the Tower Bridge which replaced the London Bridge after it came falling down. There were great photo opportunities, but unfortunately, I forgot my camera. I have been here five days and I still don’t have a picture. I promise to make up for it soon.
After such a cold, wet day, we just hung out at home and worked on homework. Its nice to feel like I really live here and I’m not just a tourist. I’m beginning to recognize the coin money on sight without having to find the amount written on the coin. By the way, pence come in 1, 2, 5, 10, 20, 50 in addition to 1 and 2 pound coins. The smallest paper money denomination is 5.
WEDNESDAY was class. Not a lot to tell. We went grocery shopping for the second time to get all those things that just make food more enjoyable like lettuce for sandwiches and nutella for, well, anything. I have yet to find a shop that sells wrist watches to replace the one that died on me the first day. I also need replacement sunglasses.
We learned today that we get our rooms vacuumed once a week, on Thursday. We can also have our sheets laundered if we remove them and put them outside the door. I shower before bed, so I won’t do it this week. Besides, I am on the top bunk and they don’t use a fitted sheet here, so the idea of putting my sheets back on by myself after I get a fresh set is a little daunting.
THURSDAY we visited the London Museum. It chronicles the development of London from the time before the thought of London even existed to modern-day technology. The exhibits were very informational with placards explaining the origin and importance of the artifacts.
I found the money pieces fascinating because they showed the lineage of rulers in the area surrounding London and the rulers of nearby countries involved in trade. The most interesting piece depicted Saint Michael vanquishing the dragon.
There are models of early structures with impressively intricate detail. I love the Crystal Palace model. It was built as a temporary site for a world renowned exhibition and was so large that it was built around trees in the park. I have decided that if time travel becomes possible, I want to see the exhibition at the Crystal Palace.
The walk through took about three hours. I had to take a short sit-down break about half-way through to rest my feet. There was a display on women’s voices from the 1910s to today. Recordings played while photographs showed the people being interviewed. They mostly talked about the extraordinary women in their lives or about their own experiences. It brought home the importance of every-day interactions with family.
We will later visit the Tate Modern museum and the Natural History museum. There are still no pictures yet because you can’t take pictures in the museums.
We saw our third show tonight at the Young Vic. The theater is a black box, so I was not surprised to find the performance to be experimental. The play, Cruel and Tender, is based in the Greek myth of Heracles. He is a war general that brings home a beautiful captive from his conquered country to his wife. Hi wife, having become jealous, gives him a gift that is said to make him faithful to her. The gift has poisonous properties that slowly kill him. When his wife realizes that she has killed her husband, she commits suicide. This modern adaptation makes the husband part of the war on terror. The gift that his wife gives him is a chemical weapon that she naively accepts from an old friend as a last resort to win her husband back. At the end of the play, the husband is taken away to be judged for his war crimes including killing the whole town his mistress lived in.
This was the most captivating piece I’ve seen in a while. The director and the actors made very clear choices that give me a lot to think about. I hope to see more theater of this caliber while I’m here. One of my roommates and I plan to attend another Young Vic show later in the season.
FRIDAY we went to the Roman ruins of an old arena theater to tie in our studies of Ancient Roman Theater in Theater History. It is amazing to think that the Roman Empire once reached this far. Though there was not a lot to see and we couldn’t get close to any of it because the excavation is still ongoing, we spent almost an hour there. It was so nice to be in the country. The land is so green and quiet.
After the ruins, we visited churches. The first was St. Michael’s. It had a pleasant graveyard and played the bells on the hour. Next, we traveled to St. Alban’s Cathedral. It was huge. There was a daily mass going on is a small chapel, so music was playing. Tour guides were showing school children around and dressing them up as monks and bishops to tell the history of the Cathedral. Its origins are steeped in legend. Alban was a good man who helped a priest hide from the Roman government which outlawed Christianity. While protecting the priest, he converted and helped the man escape from soldiers. When he wouldn’t denounce his faith, he was put to death. Pilgrimages were made to the spot of his execution because of its healing powers. The following was so great that the cathedral was built on the spot. It is beautiful. I will be sure to send pictures since I finally remembered to bring my camera.
I took about forty pictures today. I just have to remember that there is a delay between when I press the button and the picture takes. Some of my shots are blurry.
After we got home and rested a little, we went to the Globe to see Romeo and Juliet. We were groundlings, so we stood for all three hours of the show. A pillar was in my way, but I saw most of it. It was great to see a show the way they would have done it in Shakespeare’s day. There was little set to speak of, only a roll-on bed and sepulcher. Otherwise, the actors only had the columns to work with. The acting was mediocre from the title characters, but they worked well together. The director chose to have Juliet clearly play 14, so she giggled a lot and looked out of place in adult activities like dancing at the party and discussions with adults. The best role was that of the nurse played by a burly man. He played dead-pan humor and it worked. The sword fighting was captivating and the dancing was interesting to watch because you don’t tend to see dancing like that anymore. Overall, I enjoyed the performance; even with all the standing.
SATURDAY we slept in until 10:30. Then we got ready and headed to Portobello Road. The street is known for its market place where you can buy most anything. I got a cute red watch to replace the one that died just as I got off the plane. I also got a used copy of Much Ado About Nothing to round out my collection needed to read for class. We then headed to a computer store where a friend had just bought a cheap wireless card. I got it for 30 pounds which is comparable to a good sale price in the US. Now I can email as often as I have time, so expect updates every few days.
Now I am just catching up on homework and trying to figure out how to get to church tomorrow. We have to take the train, so we have to account for travel time.
posted by Sylvia at 12:06 AM
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