A Week in the West

The First Long Trip: Day One

We went to the South and West today; first to the town of Dover to see the Castle and the White Cliffs of Dover. As much as I dreaded leaving my beloved London for the week, I soon realized that getting out of the city is seriously beautiful. Dover Castle has three separate ages of history, first in Roman Times, next in Medieval and then World War Two.  There were tunnels from all three eras. We went to the top of the tower at the castle and saw the most beautiful views of the nearby town and the sea. The ocean and cliffs was one of the most beautiful sights I had ever seen. The water was super clear, so even from the top of the tower you could see the ocean floor.

Next we went to Hastings, to see Battle Abbey and the field where the Battle of Hastings went down. It was so interesting to learn about this turning point in English history. It was the battle where the Normans conquered the English, and the Normans have ruled the British Empire ever since 1066. We were able to walk in the field where 7,000 English men died fighting for their country.  The Abbey was built by William the Conqueror in order to honor all the people who died in the battle when he took England. I think that was so respectful of him.

Next we ate a little late lunch. It may have been my favorite lunch so far. We found this cute little place called the Pioneer Rest, and it looked like it was straight off my pinterest board; complete with iron tables and chairs outside, roses growing up the walls, and a cute little shop full of soap and postcards. I ate the best sandwich ever, like it gave a whole new meaning to “footlong.” A chicken-lettuce-tomato-avacado sandwich on a warm baguette? What could be better? Only that same thing with a diet coke. Yum!

We stayed in not the nicest of hotels, but we were lucky enough to be close to a beautiful backbay, so we took advantage and walked out to it to watch the sunset. Totally gorgeous. We asked a lady to take a picture for us and she continued to talk about the weather for a solid twenty minutes. Classic British people.

Long Trip Day 2

We started off the day by walking across the street from our hotel to a little hidden historical site named “fishbourne palace.” The roman complex was discovered in the sixties when some contractors started digging on the site for a new building. They discovered beautiful mosaic floors and the foundations of a Roman administrative building, dating back to about 100 AD. The mosaics were beautiful and almost completely intact.

Next we hopped back on the coach and took a ferry over to the Isle of Wight. On the ferry trip, I grabbed a sandwich and a smoothie and just sat outside on the top deck enjoying the sun, the ocean, and my friends surrounding me. Sooo pleasant. This is a reoccurring theme throughout this study abroad. I love when things are pleasant.

We next visited Osborne House, which was built for Victoria and Albert as a kind of refuge from their tedious palace life. The more I learn about victoria and Albert the more I like them. They were absolutely in love, and Osborne House displayed many of their gifts to one another. It was a gorgeous house and it displayed things that the British monarchy has acquired from many different places all over the globe. Victoria reigned when “the sun never set on the British Empire” so they had many foreign relations to cultivate. There was a whole room full of Indian relics and many portraits of foreign diplomats.

After the house we dropped our stuff off at the cutest little cottages on the Isle. They were complete with roses growing outside. That night, we hiked to Tennyson Down to read some poetry. The hike took us to the cliffs over looking the Atlantic ocean ocean on the Isle of Wight and it was probably the most spectacular view I have ever seen. All I wanted to do on the way down was sing “The Hills are Alive!!! With the Sound of Music!!” so picturesque.  

Long Trip Day 3

            We jumped back on the ferry in the morning and headed over the Thomas Hardy’s house for a little more poetry. The house was beautiful, but what really made the site interesting was the nature that surrounded it. The front yard of the house had the most beautiful gardens, full of gorgeous roses.

We then went to the beach to see the Cobb, but we stayed and enjoyed the sun for a few hours. I got the best fish and chips ever! Always go for the Haddock. Soooo yummy. For dessert, a double scoop of ice cream while walking along the boardwalk, like how much better could it get?! The answer is none better. It was such an ideal day.

After returning to our hotel, we decided to go see Despicable Me 2, which was totally cute. The best part about the movie though, was free wifi and an extra large diet coke!

 
Long Trip Day 4

            Ah, what a perfect day, I feel like I say that every day here. We woke up early to get to the coast before the heat set in, but by the end of our time at Tintagel Castle it was blistering.  We hiked up and down and up and down these beautiful cliffs over and over again. It was totally worth it though, because once we could see the views from the top, we totally forgot about how sweaty we were. The turquoise water and cliffs that surrounded the bays reminded me of the Little Mermaid; I’m pretty sure this spot is where they got the inspiration for the movie.

            Our next stop was St. Michael’s Mount, the sister monastery to Mount Saint Michael in France, something I have dreamt of seeing since my freshman year French 1 class. In fact, French monks were hired to take on the task of building the beautiful church on top of the island-hill. The home and monastery was beautiful and once again, the views were picturesque.  There were super beautiful gardens and the back drop of the ocean made for the perfect view. After coming down from the hill top, we stopped by a cute little restaurant for the town favorite-cream tea. This basically means a scone with clotted cream and jam. It was the perfect little treat to eat while looking up at the hill from the beach.

Long Trip Day 5

This is my good friend Lindsay.

            Today was dedicated to Jane Austin; we saw her houses at Winchester and Chawton. We also got to see the Winchester Abbey, where Jane Austin is buried. The Abbey was amazing because the Anglo-Saxons in their ancient architectural style originally build it. It was then changed into a gothic style in medieval times. The Anglo-Saxon style included many strong-looking archways while the gothic style utilized those famous flying buttresses. After the Abbey, we grabbed these yummy sandwiches that basically consisted of a classic British meal-pork chops and apple sauce- on a sandwich. Yum! Later we went to Chawton and saw Jane Austin’s home where she wrote Pride and Prejudice, Persuasion, Sense and Sensibility, and other late classics. I couldn’t help but think that Afton would have loved seeing it! 

HARRODS=HEAVEN

           After class Thursday, we happened to see a cute little food market right outside our classroom. After side-stepping some Marxist student groups, we found the most delish pork sandwiches ever, and you can guess by the title, it did indeed have two patties on the most perfect bun in the world. We grabbed some raspberries and had the cutest little picnic in the park with the other co-eds who attend London University College.

            We next visited the British Museum, which I have been excited about since my fourth grade GATE teacher introduced me to their massive collection which is all displayed on their website (As Bumper in Pitch Perfect would say: “Nerd Alert!!”) We saw some sweet Egyptian relics, including Cleopatra, the Rosetta Stone, and amazing Greek sculpture. I think the most fastinating part about the British museum is that most of their collections they just decided to plunder off the people they conquered. Whoops.

           We also headed to "The Monument" which commemorates the great fire that burned 80% of the City of London. We climbed what seemed like a million steps to get to the top but it was totally worth it to see the fantastice views. Lurve it. 

Selfers at The Monument

So Much Food So Much Stomach Space
Lurve me some roomie Zoë

D-VINE white chocolate brownie

"People who love to eat are the best kind of people." -Julia Child

            For dinner, we made a stop at the Harrods Food Halls. When I die, I hope heaven looks like the Harrods Food Halls. That place is perfect. I think I could live my whole life in Harrods and never leave, and still be satisfied. There is anything and everything you could ever need at that store. And besides that, every room you enter is absolutely gorgeous. I ate three desserts from Harrods, and I'm not even sorry. A white chocolate brownie, some delish gelato, and you guessed it, some LaDurée Macaroons. What an ideal day. 

Westminster ABBeY

               

These are my Model Friends

I Love me some Laura and some Abbey

Okay yes I know I’ve overused the whole my-name-is-abby-and-everything-is-called-an-abbey in London thing but guess what I don’t care. We had our first day of class and after being in a hot classroom for four straight hours I think its safe to say I would much rather learn by going to museums and walking around the city, so we went on a walk after class! On our way to our group trip to Westminster Abbey, we stopped and grabbed a sandwich at “pret-a-manger” a little café chain that is all over the place here. In fact, they even have put one in just down the street from my flat and it took them like two weeks to finish it. I’d say they are the equivalent of McDonalds in America. Except they are wayyy healthier and fresher.

            Anyway, our activity of the day was a grand tour of Westminster Abbey. Here are some quick facts I wanted to remember:

-only one  Royal Wedding has taken place outside of Westminster Abbey since it was built, and it was the wedding of Bloody Mary.

-Shakespeare is not buried here, however there is a shrine to him, just like every other Abbey in London.

-Every Knight has their own coat of arms, even Sir Elton John. (The queen has one too, and it includes a unicorn.)

-There are hecka tributes to American soldiers in there because we basically saved them from the Nazis in World War Two. ‘Murica.

-it is enormous! Basically every king and queen of England since the Norman conquest has their own room shrine type thing so it just goes on forever!

            Westminster Abbey was seriously gorgeous. It was totally interesting too, because there are tons of modern additions, including a plaque to honor FDR and statues of “Modern Maurders” one of which was Martin Luther King Jr. once again I say, ‘Murica.

Also, we once again stopped at LaDurée. I think that’s three so far for anyone keeping score. 

I Spy the London Eye!

These are my flatmates Zoë, Emily, Laura, and Kelsey 

Laura and I really really want to go in Buckingham. 

We jam-pack every day here in London, because there is just so much to see and do! We started off the day with a walk around the original walls that surrounded the City of London. These walls are not only older than America itself, but older than pretty much every thing else in England. Built in 1,000, the walls protected what is now known as the “City of London” where all of the finaicial district is located, as well as most of London’s most famous landmarks; including St. Pauls, Big Ben, and the London Eye. We walked to all of these sites Tuesday night and decided to see Buckingham Palace, some cute little red phone booths, and my personal favorite, the London Eye. We went up (right after I ran into the Tenneys!) on the Eye and saw all of London for about 40 minutes. We went up just as the sun was setting, so it was totally beautiful! There were clear views of the Tower Bride, White tower, St. Pauls Cathedral, The Monument, and every cute little street you could imagine. 

Just looking Gingereque on the London Eye!

Pals at Big Ben

I love me some panoramas

 

I'm just so freaking excited!