I've spent quite a lot of time in London the past month, or at least it seems like it. I've made a few little trips around England, but nothing too extravagant. It's been really lovely just spending some time with friends, at church events (London Uncover week the end of January), going to the cinema, and taking my schoolwork with me to anyplace in this city that serves a nice cup of coffee. I must admit, I didn't believe people when they said that everything gets a bit gloomy in January and February in London and that everyone feels a bit down. I thought, 'Hey, it's not as cold as Ohio, it's not going to snow really, and you're in a city you love - certainly it won't be that bad?' Well, it's not terrible, but the winter months here definitely bring down your spirits. Some days are better or worse than others, but it is as if a cold, harsh wind blows through the streets and wipes smiles and laughter away for a while. Everyone feels the oppression, the loneliness, the general tiredness that comes from the grey skies, the constant bundling up, and the need to spend more time indoors.
I should also mention that this semester has been quite a bit harder academically than the fall was. I've had more reading to do every week and more papers (longer ones too) to complete early on. The exam situation at the end of the year has also cast a bit of a shadow over the first few weeks of this term, since I will not find out until sometime next month when I'll be able to return home. It could be anytime between the first week of May and 8 June. The not-knowing part is the trouble, since I cannot mentally (or travel-wise) prepare for the coming months.
But moving on to better things...
As I said, I've been spending more time in London lately and have gotten a chance to visit some of the places I've been dying to see. The list is a long one, but I'll mention some highlights:
-The Churchill War Rooms - Easily the most amazing museum I've ever visited. It was fantastic. The underground headquarters has been preserved from the Second World War and it shocks you that the British managed to conduct a war while living like this. There is also a wonderful museum in part of the space dedicated to Winston Churchill that has a TON of his personal possessions - his hat, one of his cigars, his Nobel prize, his military uniforms, etc. He had an extraordinary life, beyond the leadership he gave during the war. I highly recommend that everyone take a trip to London just to see this place. It really made me realize that if my generation today were put in the same position as those in the 1930s and 1940s, we could not achieve what that group of men and women did. Their endurance and hope and courage was beyond anything we could even dream of.
-Kensington Gardens - I finally found the Peter Pan statue. Thank goodness.
-The British Library - While you have to get special access to be in the reading rooms, the Library does have a permanent exhibit called 'The Treasures of the British Library' that is amazing. They have Shakespeare, Mozart, Newton, Austen, a Gutenberg Bible, a copy of the Magna Carta, and so much more.
-Westfield at Stratford - Largest mall in Europe. It is enormous and crowded. Saw 'W.E.' at the cinema there but shopping... well, not so much my thing.
-Senate House Library - The main library for the University of London. It's a huge building that looks like it could be a Soviet prison or something, but it's quite nice inside. The upper floors which house the library's huge book collection have these rickety old tables for students to use for work. There's a little corner in the History area that I made my own for one afternoon.
In other London news, it SNOWED. A few inches one Saturday night a few weeks ago. It all melted by Monday, but still. I went outside about 1:30am that day just to smell it and enjoy the silence. It was beautiful. I didn't appreciate it so much the next day on the mile walk to church, but I enjoyed the reminder of what it's like at home this time of year.
I have, however, made a few trips outside of the city to places around England. I took a day tour on Friday, 20 January to see Leeds Castle, the White Cliffs of Dover, and the cathedral at Canterbury. Leeds Castle is simply gorgeous, even on a cold and rainy day. The ground floor is decorated to look how it would have in the past while the upper stories have been preserved as they were when they were the private apartments of the castle's owner, Lady Baillie, from the 1930s to 1970s. The library was my particular favorite. The cliffs were, well, cliffs, but I could see why the British looked to them as a sign of home - they certainly do stand out against the grey sea. Canterbury was a cute little city and the cathedral there is spectacular. The monument to Thomas a Becket is interesting to say the least.
The last weekend in January, a few other girls and I headed to Devonshire to visit the cities of Exeter and Plymouth. Exeter Cathedral was great - the pipe organ in particular was the most beautiful I've ever seen. The ornate woodwork, the great pipes - it was overwhelming. I also enjoyed the Royal Albert Museum in Exeter, which had some really great exhibits on English history and some gorgeous clothing from the 18th century that looked like it was brand new. We then took a bus to Plymouth, which is on the southern coast of England. You already know my love for sea, so just walking along the coast, hearing the waves and smelling the air, was wonderful. I saw Smeaton Tower (the famous lighthouse), the Mayflower Steps (where the Pilgrims departed from for America), and a wonderful bookshop called 'The Book Cupboard.' Our food for the weekend was a mixture of cultures: American milkshakes, British fish and chips, Thai food, British tea and scones, and Cornish pasties. The only let-downs for the trip were 1. I couldn't get out to Tintagel, the Arthurian castle and 2. it was quite cold and I ended up catching something.
I was quite sick the next week, spending the following Tuesday in bed all day. I decided to head to Oxford on Thursday, 2 February, to get some peace and quiet as well as to visit Norma. We had a lovely visit from Thursday night until Saturday afternoon. Norma cooked for me, made me drink lots of tea, and gave me a warm bed to sleep lots of hours in. The break away from London and from my noisy flat was wonderful and really helped me recover from whatever cold or sinus infection I had. That Friday, I got a haircut in the morning (FINALLY), spent the afternoon at the Costa in Waterstones working on homework I hadn't done during the week, and then went to see 'The Artist' (soooo good) with Norma in the evening. She hadn't been to the cinema in years, so it was really fun to just go out with her and see her excited about something. I had a lovely lazy Saturday morning there, but had to leave early in the afternoon to get back to London before the snow hit.
This past weekend was relatively uneventful as I spent quite a lot of time on papers in order to get ahead for after Reading Week. Saturday evening I volunteered at the Growth Night Shelter again, which was an eye-opening, faith-strengthening experience. The guests I met there this time were really amazing people and I enjoyed talking with them and learning a bit about their lives. God is so amazing - He is providing for the physical needs of those without a home, but He is also fulfilling the spiritual needs both of them and of us that go to help. I cannot tell you how much the hours I spent there have influenced me - I won't ever forget them.
Which brings us to this week. Amazing. Well, today was Valentine's Day - that obnoxious holiday that anyone single will tell you they despise. While not the day of my dreams, I had a fairly extraordinary one. This afternoon as I sat in the cafe at Foyles working on a paper, a man asked if the seat next to me was taken and I, not bothering to look up, just motioned for him to sit. When I finally did look over, I realized that Ben Whishaw was sitting there, right next to me. Ben Whishaw, whose foot accidently hit mine and knee accidently bumped mine, is one of the 'British Heartthrobs.' He's been in films like 'Bright Star' (as the poet John Keats - so beautiful) and 'Brideshead Revisited,' and he's been cast to play the next 'Q' in the new James Bond film. And there he was, sitting right next to me, reading Bleak House by Dickens, twirling the lock of black hair that kept falling in his face, wearing a rust-colored jumper, and quickly downing a cup of coffee. So we sat there quietly for about an hour, he reading and me not willing to say anything to disturb him but not getting any of my work done either. You may think I'm silly, but it was just a surreal experience - imagine if John Keats sat down by YOU on Valentine's Day: the greatest Romantic poet, in my opinion, in his modern day form. It was wonderful, but I've never ever wished so hard that a man was not gay. Oh well, I won't let that spoil the memory of just sitting by him for a little while.
Tonight, Christa organized a lovely girls' night for us - we went out to Nando's for dinner then all piled in her room to cry our way through 'P.S. I Love You.'
The rest of the week is quite busy, including a in-class test for Paradise Lost tomorrow and some more work to be done on the papers I have due after Reading Week. Early Friday morning, I leave for 8 spectacular days in Ireland and let me assure you, I am ridiculously excited. I'll be going with Christa to Cork, Galway, Dublin, and Glendalough, and then heading to Northern Ireland to visit our friend Jilly at her home in Portadown. It'll be a lovely trip, though my first full week living out of a backpack.
Below are some photos from the past month. Enjoy!
Peter!
The Churchill War Rooms
Leeds Castle in Kent
Dover
Canterbury
The British Library
Exeter
Plymouth
The Mayflower Steps - Pointing to America
Tea and Scones (and Hostel Hair)
Snowy night in London
