Pt. I Windsor, Stonehenge, Bath

The difficulty with blogs is that if you neglect them for too long, they’re hard to go back to. It’s not necessarily because the blogger is inexcusably lazy, nor that it’s somehow hard to pick up one’s previous train of thought. The main problem, at least in my experience, is that covering more than two or three days’ worth of activity and subsequent musings proves to be an altogether daunting task.

In order to prevent this from becoming an insurmountable obstacle to my blog’s longevity, I am opting to break this into smaller chunks—say two or three reasonably-sized parts. So if the continuity between my entries seems less than desirable, it’s because I’m attempting the uphill climb (which, as you will see, is going to be a common thread throughout these entries) and making up lost ground.

On Saturday (the 4th), I went with a large group of my girls from Biola on a bus tour to Windsor, Stonehenge, and Bath. I had actually already visited the last two sites during my sophomore year of high school, but I thought it’d be nice to go again. I think I mostly slept or listened to my ipod during the bus ride. Our tour guide gave her entire presentation in both English and Spanish.

When we first boarded the bus, Jennifer had tried to smuggle some chips (better known as “fries” in the States) on board in her purse, to munch on in secret. Our scrupulous tour guide, however, was able to sniff her out. She came to the back of the bus where we were seated and announced, “I smell chips. Whoever brought them on the bus, please keep them wrapped and tucked away until we arrive. Thank you.” It was very difficult to keep a straight face, especially after seeing the look on Jennifer’s face.

Windsor was really beautiful. The castle is surrounded by the quaint little town, and the walls of the castle sit on bright, verdant grass. It’s a striking contrast between the cold, hard stone walls, the carefully nurtured gardens, and the fantastically ornate interior of Windsor. There’s so much history there; we didn’t have nearly enough time.

My favorite part of the entire tour there was the doll house, in which the entirety of Windsor Castle was replicated in miniature, with real working electricity and plumbing. The silver plates had exact mini silver plate replicas, artists donated real miniature oil paintings to match the genuine work, and the miniature crown jewels are just as real as their larger counterparts. It’s really amazing.

Stonehenge isn’t as big or as exciting as the travel guides make it out to be. Last time I went, the most thrilling part was bumping into three of my elementary school teachers by accident. This time was fun because, as we walked around the circumference of the stones, we had a great time taking some really fun pictures. On the plains, the strong winds and sharp drizzle meant that we were happy to be back in our nice warm bus.

By the time we reached Bath, it was raining lightly but steadily. Fortunately, the museum is mostly indoors. My memories of the Roman baths came rushing back to me when I entered the museum. It wasn’t any more exciting the second time around. But it’s still neat to see the kind of technology they employed during ancient times, and to see how the hot springs affected the culture of the peoples who lived there.

On the way back, my friend Sarah P. (to differentiate her from Sarah R.) asked if I wanted to stop at Wagamama’s, one of her favorite London noodle bars. Jessica returned from England singing its praises, so I readily agreed to give it a try.

I was moderately pleased with my chicken ramen. I thought it was a bit bland for ramen, but it’s supposed to be a modern organic, healthy foods kind of restaurant. I think next time I’ll go for yakisoba or something else on the menu. It was still really fun to talk and enjoy hot food on a cold, wet night. To top it all off, we dropped by the convenience store and picked up ice cream bars. Toffee vanilla crunch bars are amazing—even in cold weather.

Monday through Wednesday is the uneventful part of my week, since those are my class days. I spend that time doing nothing but going to class and reading my assigned books. Honestly, I don’t think I even left the flat for two or so days. I might have gone to run an errand or two around campus, but for the most part, I stay in and enjoy the sunlight through my window.

Tuesdays, as always, we have our flat dinner. For me, that’s the highlight of my three working days. Each week, another member of the flat prepares a meal that will feed all six of us. Last week was Amy’s turn, so this week, Toni prepared three homemade pizzas—all vegetarian (meet is expensive) and all delicious. I love feta cheese and pineapple (thanks Ariel) on pizza.

Besides enjoying good food, we always seem to have a good time just being together and having a laugh. I don’t mean this in the way that Rachael usually says it, which translates more into “you’re kidding me.” I mean that we always have a great time just hanging out together. One night, we even sat around a laptop watching Japanese human tetris and Iron Chef on YouTube.

More often than not, we’ll all somehow end up in the lounge, drinking tea and having biscuits. Yes, it makes me feel very British. I’m really thankful for my flatmates—that we not only get along, but that we really enjoy spending time together. They’re such a fun bunch of people, and without them, I think I’d be really lonely. I haven’t made as many friends here as I would like, since I only have two classes and only get to see my classmates once a week.

Besides the flat dinner, the only exciting thing for me is rewarding myself with an episode of an Asian drama. I’ve gotten to the point where the best way for me to get work done is to bribe myself. For every 50 to 100 pages of reading, I get to watch one episode. It works really well, too, because by that time, my brain needs a break, and sometimes, I’ll eat lunch or dinner while I watch. It’s nerdy, but hey, I’m working hard to get ahead in my reading.

Somehow, I feel like that was a really anti-climactic way of ending my entry. Oh well. You can look forward to my next entry. It will cover my trips to both Legoland and the Tower of London. Thanks again for your patience!