Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Dreams Really Do Come True

Hello!

It's been almost a month since my last post, which is hard to believe. I was doing so well on regular updates for awhile. Regardless of my inconsistency, I now have an extended update! (mostly because I forgot to write anything about the weekend before last) So, buckle up and get ready for a whirlwind tour of the last two weeks. 

If any of you are longtime readers, you will remember my excitement about Mary Queen of Scots from Manchester. But, guess what else I was obsessed with as a child? If you said Henry the VIII and his numerous wives you'd be right. This last weekend I was able to fulfill a childhood dream of visiting the Tower of London (that's normal right?)

Our first view of the Tower of London

Two of my housemates and I took the bus into London and spent the whole day exploring the city a bit more. Our first stop was the Tower of London, and we spent a good 4 hours there. Some of the highlights, besides all of it, were: the Crown Jewels, the White Tower, the site where they discovered the bodies of the two princes,  and a re-enactment of the trial of Anne Boleyn. It felt a little bit like Disneyland, expect with darker themes. (I'm also a huge fan of Richard III and recited a little for my friends-they did not like it)

The White Tower, the oldest part of the Tower complex

The building that houses the Crown Jewels

The Shard over Tower Green and the scaffold site, the site of many executions

After the Tower of London we went to the National Portrait Gallery to spend the afternoon indoors (it was rainy). Again, throwback to a Manchester blog! It was so wonderful to go back, and they had a new exhibit! It was all about the Suffragette movement (one of my favorite things). After getting our fill of art, we wandered around Covent Garden before going to a musical. We saw 42nd Street and it was absolutely AMAZING! It's a parody of 1930's musicals, so it has lots of over the top tap numbers and dramatic costumes. I loved it! Definitely one of my favorite shows that I've seen. 

Tower Bridge from the Battlements

Post musical selfie (we can't take trips without at least one group photo)

The week in between my two weekend adventures was pretty normal for Oxford. Although, it did hold the last meeting of my secondary tutorial, so now I'm only in one class. It's hard to believe that it means we are halfway done with the school term we are in right now. I don't like thinking about it. To top off the sadness, this course was one of my favorite classes since I started at PLU. We also had our last formal dinner, which means it was our last opportunity to have fancy dinner as a group. 

All dressed up for our last formal

Now, on to weekend adventure #2. A few weeks ago, a friend and I were talking about my undying love for Jane Austen and she suggested we go to Bath together. I jumped on that opportunity, so this weekend off we went!

It was an absolutely gorgeous day, perfect for exploring a new city. Our first stop once arriving to Bath was a tour of the Roman Baths. They are so cool! Once again, I cannot understand how old they are, I can barely comprehend the Regency period let alone the Romans. Visiting the Baths were amazing, we even tried the "healing waters" Bath is famous for. (spoiler alert, they do not taste that good). Small detour, since taking the "healing waters" I've had a four hour migraine and a head cold. Something does not feel right about this picture. 

View down onto the Baths

Up close and personal with the "healing waters"


Bath Abbey from the Roman Baths

Back to the weekend, our next stop was, you guessed it, the Jane Austen Centre. It was so cool! All of the staff are dressed up in Regency garb and have name tags of the characters. For example, Captain Wentworth gave us an introduction and Mr. Bingley discussed the portraits. I'm not going to lie, I didn't really learn anything new but it was so cool to see a whole museum about Austen.

Signs to prove I was actually there

The Jane Austen statue that greets all the visitors

Our time in Bath ended with a trip to Mr. B's Emporium of Reading Delights. It might be the best bookstore I've ever been to. I'm so glad my friend suggested it as a stop on our tour of Bath. After spending far too much time looking at books (is there such a thing?) we wandered around Bath with ice cream before heading back to Oxford. It was such a lovely day and I am so glad I have friends to enjoy days like this with!

The outside of Mr. B's

The Parade Grounds (a popular Regency spot)

Any Northanger Abbey fans? This was a huge draw during the Regency period

We have just under four weeks left in Oxford, I can hardly believe the time has flown by this quickly. 

Madeline