Okay, I'm finally back to blogging about our trip to London. Geez, was it really a month ago we were in the UK? Sure enough...
This post promises to be an extremely long one, as we had an action-packed day. So I'm breaking it up into smaller chunks.
Our second field trip day was to be spent in Oxford, the Cotswolds, and Stratford-upon-Avon. (The last should be familiar to English students everywhere as the birthplace of William Shakespeare.)
We got up early and headed to breakfast, then to the bus. This might have been the morning that the breakfast area was overloaded, so we were redirected to the upstairs restaurant (which, I guess, handles overflow). We managed to grab a quick bite then head out. Once we were properly sorted out at Victoria Station (which is where Evan Evans bus tours departed), our bus headed out... and we were bombarded with the shrieks of one very unhappy baby. Our tour guide acted with astounding speed and courtesy, asking if the couple might prefer to sit out this trip (and get a full refund), given that they would be on the bus for several hours and the baby seemed extremely unhappy. They assented, perhaps sensing that the rest of us were NOT in love with their infant (or at least its antisocial behavior), and hopped off before we got out of London.
The trip to Oxford was about an hour in duration, affording us another view of the countryside. Oxford itself is a fair-sized city that contains 38 different colleges under the very loosest of administrative umbrellas. Applicants apply to the individual colleges, not to the university as a whole, and while the costs are (currently) rather low, prices have been rising sharply in the past few years.
We toured Christ Church, founded in 1546 by Cardinal Thomas Wolsey (advisor to King Henry VII and King Henry VIII). There are about 600 students in total in this college, which is the oldest and perhaps most prestigious of Oxford's colleges.
We visited the dining hall, where there is a stained glass window celebrating Alice Liddell (aka Alice's Adventures in Wonderland), because Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (aka Lewis Carroll) was a mathematics professor there before he became a storyteller to the children of other faculty members and then a novelist. The dining hall was rumored to be the basis for the dining hall of J.K. Rowling's Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry (of Harry Potter fame), but our guide debunked the rumor by saying that there are easily a dozen locations that could make an identical claim. However, part of "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" was shot at the entry to the dining hall in Christ Church, so there.
Our tour continued with a walk through the church that is the heart of Christ Church. It is truly a beautiful building, impressive in every way, with exceptionally friendly reverends on hand to welcome visitors.
We walked through Oxford, taking in other colleges (some of them truly tiny) and enjoying the hustle and bustle of a college town in late spring. Our destination was the Martyr's Memorial, where three men were executed for heresy in 1555. (Supposedly this execution was the basis for the childhood rhyme "Three Blind Mice.") Kat grabbed a sandwich while I snapped pictures.
I was mostly interested in the pub where J.R.R. Tolkien and C.S. Lewis met with their fellow Inklings. Turns out we were to pass it shortly afterward-- it's The Eagle and Child (at least, that was their hangout from '39 to '62). We would have enjoyed going in, but it was well off our touring area. Ah well, maybe next time.
Our trip was then into the Cotswolds, which are truly "countryside" in England. The landscape is rolling and absolutely gorgeous, featuring scattered flocks of sheep and cattle, along with the now-ubiquitous fields of rapeseed plants. Many of the cottages are positively ancient and sport thatched roofs (we heard that the thatch need only be replaced every 10-15 years if done right, but it is costly--probably only slightly less than having a new roof put on a conventional ranch home).
If you're in the UK and minded to get out of London, you should make a point of seeing the Cotswolds.
Tomorrow I'll resume the narrative with our arrival in Stratford-upon-Avon.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Blogging the London trip- Day 5 (part 1)
Blogging the London trip- Day 4
Two days of our trip (Wednesday and Thursday) were set aside primarily for out-of-London field trips. The first of these was to Bath, then Stonehenge, and finally Winchester Cathedral. It would mean a long day on the bus, since Bath is about two hours from London, situated right about on the western edge of the island. It doesn't overlook the various bodies of water that surround England but it is darned close.
On the ride out, our guide described the agriculture of the British countryside, especially the vast fields of bright yellow plants that are called rapeseed or canola. They are grown for export to make biofuels (canola oil) and currently comprise about 11% of the total acreage under cultivation, if I remember correctly.
The British countryside is absolutely beautiful. Seeing the tiny farms, diverse herds of sheep and cattle, hedge rows and expansive farmlands, it made me think of Tolkien's Shire. It didn't hurt that the weather was incredible, with clear blue skies and cool temperatures; there probably isn't any better way to see the land, unless it's flying over it in a small plane (one of my favorite ways to see landscapes).
If the country is beautiful, Bath is ten times more so. The town lies atop a natural hot mineral water spring; per our guide, the water down in the depths has been there for about 80,000 years and is making its way up through some very hot subterranean spaces. We hopped off the bus and had about two hours to view the ruined Roman resort and wander the town before embarking for our next destination.
Bath was built by Roman occupiers who found the hot springs and decided to make a spa. The construction was elaborate, making great use of the Romans' legendary skill as engineers, and enjoyed considerable popularity until the Romans retreated from England. Once that happened, the natives lacked the skills necessary to maintain the buildings, and they slowly fell into ruin and collapsed atop the springs.
Hundreds of years later (12th century, I believe?), a bishop rediscovered the springs and created a resort for himself. It became popular quite awhile later, when Queen Anne was recommended to the hot springs to ease a chronic discomfort. That assured its rise as a place to be, such that the nobles built elaborate houses for themselves and the townfolk prospered.
Bath fell into decline with the ebb of its popularity, but enjoyed a third rebirth when the Roman ruins were found and excavated in the 19th century. Nowadays, the town enjoys a thriving tourist business, trading on its great natural beauty and history. Tours of the Roman baths are fascinating, and though they tell you not to touch the water fresh from the springs, you do anyway. (It's hot--not scalding but warmer than you'd think.) In the Pump Room, you can actually drink the water... which tastes like hot mineral water. No surprise, hm?
We wandered the streets for awhile. The Starbucks in town made one of the best peppermint mochas I'd ever had, and Kat loved shopping in the maze of streets, side streets and alleyways that comprise downtown Bath. We thought about going to Jane Austen's home but that would have been a trip beyond our temporal means-- we would have had maybe five minutes in the building before having to run back to the bus, which is not enough. We settled for buying postcards.
Once back on the bus, we headed for Stonehenge. Our guide gave us the story of the structure, which is the third and last of three great cycles of construction. The most ambitious, apparently, was the second one, wherein the handful of locals carted stone from Wales (about 300-350 miles away) without the use of wheels. Think about that, hauling multi-ton stones that distance. Let's say this: they were motivated.
Stonehenge may not be vast in size but, considering it was built using Bronze Age (or maybe Iron Age) technology, was torn up to scavenge stone by latter-day locals, and yet has lasted about 2500 years, that isn't bad at all. Kat and I, needless to say, were greatly impressed.
Not so much with Winchester Cathedral, our final stop of the day. We didn't pay to go inside, but instead glanced in the vestibule and then walked around the town for a bit. Kat did a little clothes shopping, then we were on the road back to London. We got off at Knightsbridge and busied ourselves with finding a place to eat (which proved to be a challenge). Ultimately we found a tapas place, then bought souvenirs and headed home by way of Pall Mall (taking a peek at 10 Downing Street), the Houses of Parliament, Westminster Bridge and then along the Embankment.
We were ready to crash by 11pm that night, having had an exceptionally busy day.
Blogging the London Trip- Day 3
If memory serves, Tuesday was the day we walked our feet off.
We stayed in London, having no official tour activities but a day of leisure instead. So we made our way around London and saw... pretty much everything.
Our first foray out was a walk to Westminster Abbey. It's about a fifteen minute walk from our hotel. We headed out and paid the ten pounds price of admission (the museums are mostly free but the cathedrals charge admittance during non-worship hours to cover their expenses). The place is staggering in size and roomy, despite being the final resting place of a colossal number of people. I think you could fill a small stadium, honestly. The Abbey also boasts enormous cenotaphs and memoria to great individuals of British history-- Charles Dickens, Winston Churchill and many more have large plaques celebrating their lives and contributions.
Our next stop was the British Museum. A selection of major "ooh" moments:
- a crystal skull (referenced in INDIANA JONES AND THE KINGDOM OF THE CRYSTAL SKULL, no less);
- an amazing Egyptian exhibit;
- the Elgin Marbles (a collection of Greek marble statuary, most of it in fragments, retrieved from the Parthenon and various sites);
- a collection of books and curiosities compiled by the museum's chief patron, Edward III (IIRC); and
- some remarkable items from around the globe including a massive totem pole and Assyrian sphinxes.
We had a late lunch at the museum, then pushed on to the British Library (which is a moderate walk distant). This was a treasure trove, really. The new complex is only about ten years old or so, completely modern, and packed with stuff to see. Our chief goal was the Treasures of the British Museum room (aka the Sir Ritblat Collection), which includes:
- one of four surviving copies of the Magna Carta (and the only one with a vestige of the royal seal), including a copy of the baronial grievances letter that led to Magna Carta;
- one of two surviving copies of the first time Beowulf was written down;
- pages from Leonardo daVinci's notebook;
- a letter from Lewis Carroll discussing his literary Alice;
- the journal of Captain Cook;
- letters from Charles Darwin on his theory of evolution;
- a display of Beatles memorabilia, including handwritten lyrics to "Help!," "Hey Jude" and more;
- and LOTS of other stuff.
If you go to London (or already live in/near there), you absolutely must see this display. You owe it to yourself to see these foundations of our (Anglo-American) civilization.
We then went to Kings Cross/St Pancras Station. Since it was late afternoon by this point, we figured we'd grab an early dinner. We thought we were in the place where they'd filmed part of Harry Potter (the train scenes), but that was obviously the other station. Ah well. Maybe next time.
Next was a walking tour (courtesy of London Walks) of pubs in central London. Being cash-poor by then, we tried to find a Barclays ATM but there were none around (which was aggravating); we hiked along with our tour group and our grim spirits soon lifted as we drank as much as we could afford. We hit a series of pubs, including the Old Bank of England (which was converted from a bank to a pub after WWII-- the Crown Jewels were kept in that building during the War). We saw a bit of the City of London, via Fleet Street, and heard many stories about the legendary journalism wars that are now history. Our tour ended near the home of Dr. Samuel Johnson and one of the pubs he was said to have visited.
After that, it was about 10pm and time to head home. We had to hurry, since the Victoria (Tube) Line was scheduled to close at 10pm for ongoing maintenance... and that was the only Tube near our hotel. Took some jogging and some prayer, but we made it onto the last train, got to Vauxhall Station, and headed home, footsore but exhilarated from a wealth of new experiences and sights.
Monday, June 9, 2008
Blogging the London Trip- photos!
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
Odds and Ends
Hey folks,
Took a short break from blogging the London trip, partly to give Kat a chance to organize the photos. 900 shots takes awhile to manage.
In the meantime, I'll talk about a couple new things...
ANDROMEDA STRAIN on A&E. Based on the book by Michael Crichton, this new four-hour mini takes the story far beyond the Wildfire Lab and poor Piedmont, AZ. A satellite crash is followed by the deaths of everyone in a tiny Arizona town, save two: an old alcoholic and a colicky baby. Cause of death: near-instant coagulation of a victim's blood.
The Army cannot handle this biohazard, so Project Wildfire is activated by Gen. Mancheck (Andre Braugher). A team, led by Dr. Jeremy Stone (Benjamin Bratt), includes an ex-lover (Christa Miller), a military doctor with whom Stone has clashed before (Rick Schroder), a married biochemist (Viola Davis), and a Chinese expatriate doctor with a shady past (Daniel Dae Kim); they have a super-secret and ultrasophisticated laboratory under the desert, where they will try to save the world from this fast-acting and universally lethal organism.
Trouble is, the Army is keeping secrets of its own, not the least of which is a conspiracy between a presidential advisor and an ambitious colonel to secure samples of Andromeda, while a brazen reporter (Eric McCormack) struggles to unlock the mystery of the Andromeda Strain... and survive the conspiracy's murderous intentions when he gets too close to the truth.
The miniseries is well-acted and moves at an appropriate pace. Suspension of disbelief becomes a bit difficult when time travel and suboceanic thermal vent mining and other bits of weirdness are invoked-- Crichton has become a "kitchen sink" type of science fiction writer of late, and this mini plays into those tendencies-- such that the clean, linear storyline (and climactic race against the clock) are souped up with lots of explosions, teams of killers stalking busybodies, and more.
It's definitely watchable, but re-watchable... not so sure.
CAST:
Dr. Jeremy Stone - Benjamin Bratt
General George Mancheck - Andre Braugher
Dr. Charlene Barton - Viola Davis
Major Bill Keane, M.D. - Rick Schroder
Dr. Tsi Chou - Daniel Dae Kim
Jack Nash - Eric McCormack
Dr. Angela Noyce - Christa Miller
President Scott - Ted Whittall
WRITING- I'm getting a bit done here and there. I have two competing storylines that are taking up my thoughts these days. Gonna have to figure out which one I can ride to victory, so to speak. Lucky for me, neither one's been done in the urban fantasy genre.
Speaking of which, I'm pretty damned sick of vampires and werewolves. I know they're popular but c'mon, there are OTHER supernatural critters out there! Argh.
INCREDIBLE HULK- Just read the novelization last week (I know, I'm spoiling the movie for myself, big deal), but if they make the movie Peter David novelized, it'll kick ass. That's all I'm sayin'. Get the taste of Ang Lee's HULK out of your mouth and go see this. Should be awesome.
That's all I have for now. More London blogging soon!