my adventures in england

did you know that peanut butter is a liquid?

2008-05-09T12:25:00.000-07:00

yes, i had a rough time in airport security when jenn and i flew from venice to paris. not impressed. my carry on was completely emptied and searched. now, for some this may not be a big deal - but you see, ryanair has a ridiculously low weight allowance for luggage, so jenn and i worked very hard to jam as much stuff into our carry on's as possible. meaning, when mine was overturned, it took forever to put back together. and it means that they threw out our peanut butter - our staple for lunches while travelling. so you may be able to understand why i am not too impressed about this. however, i am doing my best to throw away all the negative feelings and try to focus on the positive:

right now, i am sitting in a hotel in paris. (okay, we are talking two star budget hotel, but cmon, its still pretty cool) and i just came from venice - which i have to say i am headoverheels in love with. venice is simply beautiful. canals weaving through the city that is filled with tiny alleys and mismatched houses. it really is utterly adorable. jenn and i were able to take a gondola ride!!! how incredible is that! we got together with two guys who were in our hostel and were able to split the cost four ways (a whole lot cheaper than paying the full 80 freakin euros...wow). so i am super pumped that we were able to do that.

and venice also meant getting to see tim kirk and derek again! what are the chances that we would meet up twice in europe....very very cool. and we had such an awesome time! our first night, after settling into our hostel, we met up with them for some gelato and beer and chilled by the canals. and tim bought jenn and i a rose - what a sweetheart!

the next day we all hung out together, visiting the national art museum, playing poker in a park, and goofing around on the playground. in venice!! sooo much fun.

the next day, after our gondola ride, jenn and i ventured out on a water bus and visited mirano island - the island of glass blowing - and burano island - the island of cool houses and lace making. i have to admit tho, after a lot of time on that boat, we both felt a little sick at the end of the day.

so theN we toured around venice the following day with a guy from the hostel before the incredibly awful experience with the airport, and struggled to get to our hotel. who apparently didnt have our reservation. again, not impressed. then we awoke to step onto the bustling streets of paris! we checked out le louvre and the park nearby as well as the notre dame cathedral (love "the hunchback of notre dame" and enjoyed seeing the cathedral in "real life"). then we pretty muched soaked in the interesting french style and fell in love with paris fashion.

yep, its pretty great over here. then we settled into our hotel with a baguette and nutella - truly submersing ourselves in the french culture :)

tomorrow we meet up with danielle (super pumped!) to go to the very top of the eiffel tower (which i believe jenn may be a little scared to do considering her intense fear of heights....but you are only in paris once right?). then i think she is going to show us the moulin rouge area and take us to her apartment. so i am really excited for tomorrow and to see her! its really going to be incredible!

im not sure if i will update this before i am back on canadian ground again - so if i dont i want to say thank you to everyone who has faithfully read my blog while i have been gone for the past for months and also to those who have read it once and awile :) it really means a lot to have so much support behind me. see you back in canada very soon!

and everyone from abuoxford programme that is reading this - email me cuz i miss you all sooo incredible much its unreal!!! i want to hear all about your travels and summer stuff!!

BYE!!

love italia!!

2008-05-04T12:30:00.000-07:00

this place is wonderful! we are having such an amazing time and absolutely loving italia! now, we are in firenze (florence) and tomorrow will take the train to venezia (venice). and i discovered that at our hostel i can post pictures so.....most are from our wonderful time in roma and a few from today in firenze. yeah!!!

us in the colosseum!! this place was ridiculuos! jenn was my tour guide through the whole place, as she recited facts from her roman civilization class! yeah!!!
madre teresa!

the food here is like nothing i have ever tasted - i have had so much pasta and pizza and gelato!! ...the italians definately know what they are doing! incredible....

the mouth of truth

beautiful trevi fountain...we made two wishes :)

the beautiful view of florence! we love it here!!

jenny has been one of the coolest people to travel with and we have had some hilariously funny moments! love her!!

CIAO!

2008-05-01T09:48:00.000-07:00

hello from rome! ridiculus!! we are loving the weather and everything there is to see here. i still cannot believe i am here with jenny! yeah! she wants to say something: this is such an honour! to have my words posted for lots of people to see! ROME IS AMAZING! i couldnt be happier. the hostel isnt my favourite place in the world, but rome is definitly an amazing city to see! and the food is to die for!

yeah, the hostel is kinda brutal but i am excited for all you can eat pasta and all you can drink wine!! good times! i wish i could post some pictures but for some reason of course this is not working. but we did a lot of walking today and got to see a ton! we are lovin rome!!!

JENNY!

2008-04-29T04:59:00.001-07:00

things have been amazing! i have had the best time in the netherlands with sheryl and bryan and i have to say i was sad to leave! i have seen and done so much while ive been there...and i got to see tim, kirk, and derek (tims cousin!) ridiculus! we had an awesome time! and now.....jenn is coming! i will see her in less than 24 hours and i cannot believe that we are going to see italy and paris together! we are going to have a blast, no doubt, and i cannot wait to see her! only about two more weeks and i will be in canada...where has the time gone?? LOVIN IT!!!

2008-04-19T05:45:00.001-07:00

ive discovered that when in the mountains, time moves at a much slower pace. i can feel like ive been hiking for 7 hours, when in reality its only been 3. or i can stare at the view for eternity, but the clock will tell me its only been a mere minute. this, i love. i have been forced to spend time on my own, thinking and contemplating. i have nothing else to do but stare out at the towering mountains, at the villages below me, and at the peaceful town surrounding me. this is precisely how i will remember my experience here. not rushed around, trying to get all the sites in one day. but relaxing, reading a book, and soaking in life.
i love it here, i truly do. today i dished out big money to take the cablecar up to schilthon - piz gloria. this is the very top of the mountain, one of the highest peaks in this area. i honestly could not get over the extreme beauty. i arrived and made my way up to the piz gloria restaurant where i paid a ridiculuos amount of money for a coffee and a bowl of wonderful vegetable soup. this restaurant is revolving with glass windows (you know, like the one at the top of the cn, but 500x better!!). so there i sat, sipping my coffee watching the mountains and skiers as i slowly revolved around. what an experience. then i went outside to the lookout. you would think, considering i am canadian, that i would dress warmly enough for a snowcovered mountain that is over 9000 feet in the air. nope, i didnt. so i suffered the cold to simply stare out at the view. there is no way i can even begin to explain to you what it looked like. i have never seen anything like this ever and i dont think i ever will again. i really didnt want to leave, but i realized that unless i wanted to pay for another ridiculously priced bowl of soup (which was the cheapest thing on the menu i might add) i had to begin my journey downward. on the way down, i began to talk with this older man who is from the middle east. we were talking about how beautiful it is and he said "you know, you look at something like this, and you have to know there is a creator. i mean, until you get out into the world you can never really understand. too many of us get comfortable in our own little lives in our own part of the world and never witness the gloriousness of what the creator has made" (paraphrased...cmon thats a lot to remember word for word)
isnt that wonderful? AMEN!

switzerland!

2008-04-18T05:47:00.000-07:00

well, i left barcelona behind a few days ago. i had a wonderful last day there, taking in all sorts of attractions and spending the afternoon on the gorgeous beach!! i also met a spanish street dancer who thought he could convince me to get a drink with him by simply wiggling his man boobs. i think he was serious but i burst out laughing at him and continued on my way. i then caught a flight at 645 (meaning i had to get up just after 3...brut) and landed in Zurich.
i remember on the plane, when we got closer you could look out the window and see mountains. when i did, i got sooo excited and stared out the window as little excited giggles erupted out of my. i tried to control myself for the sake of the other people on the plane, but boy was i excited. than that turned into tears because it was so gorgeous. then i realized that i really needed to get some sleep. yikes.

i arrived in zurich, took the trian into the centre of the city, jumped on a trolley bus and toured the city for two hours. it really wasnt that special, ill be honest, but it was cool to stop by zurich lake (which i learned was formed during the ice age when the glaciers melted...cool) and stop by the old market square. while i was trying to enjoy a peaceful bus tour, the guys in the back thought it was necessary to make conversation with me. and of course, before they left, they had to snap a pic with me. what is it with europeans???

after, i began my mega long journey into gimmelwald. this consisted of a train, transfer to another train, transfer to another train, transfer to another train, transfer to a bus, then up the cablecar to gimmelwald. and all of this took place within three hours. it was intense. on one of the trains, i met this super nice lady who had a suitcase the same size as mine. i knew how much i was struggling and i was baffled at how she could manage it. well, she couldnt. so i helped her get off the one train and on to the other. and as a thank you - she gave me a handful of real swiss chocolate!!!! i already had one and they are like nothing else you will ever have. incredible.

so i get off the cablecar and i stop dead in my tracks. i am competely surrounded by towering snowcapped mountains. all around me. i have to keep pinching myself to make sure this isnt a dream. gimmelwald is an adorable little town. quiet and peaceful. and surrounded by mountains. its honestly ridiculous. i look out the window of my hostel and i see mountains. crazy!!
today i went for a hike. i had great ambitions to go on this intense one up a mountain to the highest point of this area. well, yeah, lets just say i wasnt too successful. and considering i was walking by myself, i thought it a wise decision to turn around and try an easier one. just as i decided to do this, i fell. yep. now i have a huge bruise and scrap on my leg and tailbone. not fun. but the hike i did afterwords was wonderful. very snowy but supercool that i was hiking through a snowcovered mountain. and all along the way i was surrounded by mountains on teh other side. crazy!!! i dont know else to describe it here. sooo beautiful! heather, i am so excited for you to come here, you will love it!!

barcelona baby!!

2008-04-15T11:36:00.000-07:00

I LOVE BARCELONA.
wow, this place is ridiculous. i have been having such an amazing time here and ive only been here one day!! i dont want to leave! its not just the touristy things that are cool, its just the whole city in general. the people are all so nice (well, except the pick-pocketers but i havent run into any of them yet) and the place is just beautiful!

i started off my day with a wonderful breakfast at my hostel...seriously this place is more like a hotel than a hostel (well, except for the 11 other people jammed in the same room as me).
then i stepped outside into the beaming sun, whipped out my sunglasses, and began my journeys with the biggest smile on my face. i began to head in the direction of the coast and just see what i would stumbled upon. sure enough, i found a huge hill. so naturally i started to climb. i reached the top (very hot and sweaty by the way) and was greeted to a glorious view of barcelona. this is the precise moment that i fell in love with this city. it was spectacular.

i then began my descent and continued on to the coast. on an imulse decision, i decided to jump on a boat tour which takes you along the coast of barcelona. GORGEOUS. i stepped on, grabbed myself a barcelonian 'beeresco' ( i dont really know if thats what it is...im just guessing), sat out in the sun and let the wind blow my hair as i sailed along the coast of barcelona...then i realized that it was only 1100 in the morning and maybe a little too early for a beer? oh well, im on vacation so its okay! ah, satisfying.

the relaxing was over as i grabbed a cup of coffee for energy and began to hit up the touristy places. the first thing that struck me as i began to walk, was the gorgeous buildings. i wish i could post pics to show, but its not working. so you will just have to trust me that the architecture and design of their buildings is unlike anything else. seriously, i want to live here :)

i walked up to the 'Museu Nacional D'art' and my breath was taken away. there is no way i can even begin to describe this to you. wow. after climbing a kazillion stairs (it seems that no matte what you want to see, you always have to climb up to see it) i sat on the steps of the museum looking out over the city as i was seranaded by a man playing spanish music. wonderful.

i continued on my way to the 'Teatre Grec' (i saw a bunch of stuff on the way but these are just the highlights of my day). this was incredible. thank you amanda wrigley for teaching me about greek drama which made me appreciate this so much more. i just sat there, in an ancient greek theatre, for probably 15 minutes just taking in the whole experience. i could almost see oedipus rex being peformed....

then it was off to the 'Estadi Olimpic' from the '92 olympics (correct me if im wrong...). this was really really cool. and of course i managed to find the 'camp de baisbol' - call me a nerd but i had the biggest smile on my face when i managed to find the actual olympic baseball stadium. way to neat.

i wandered around for a bit more but eventually had to call it quits. i hobbled back to the hostel (im telling you, there is a ridiculous amount of stairs!) and now im sending a few emails and will head to bed soon. tomorrow - its the beach!! cant wait!!!

did i mention how much i absolutely love barcelona?

the final days..

2008-04-15T11:15:00.000-07:00

well...right now im actually in barcelona...but i feel i need to wrap up the trip to england before i move on to other things. so...we all said goodbye monday morning. wow - that was so hard. there was some full out sobbing going on. it really really sucked. and i miss them all already. but we had an amazing night on saturday to end it all with a bang. unfortunately i cannot upload images with this internet connection so i wont be able to show you them until later...but ill talk about it anyways.

Banquet - so much fun! a bunch of girls came over to my house beforehand and there was a whole lot of primping going on! then we walked down to the baptist church for pre-dinner drinks and conversation. we were then treated to a wonderful dinner (sooo good). after dinner, speeches began. this was when my tears began. we recieved our certificates and i bawled on stage. yep. i was the only one. anyways...

after all the gifts and awards were handed out, we began to dance!! we had such a blast!! even mad, marion, peter, and andrew joined in and they were a hoot! i loved it soo much! after everyone came back to my house for some more wine and chilling.
and thats it. its over. crazy.
i wouldnt trade any experience i had for the world - i had the best time of my life in england and i cant wait till i can see everyone again in september and then the rest in february! and england...well i hope one day i can come back.
everything im trying to say about the program is all jumbled up inside my head...and attempting to explain will not do it justice. so im just going to end it with a big
"Pip Pip Poppets" - its been amazing!!!!!!!!!!!

procrastination...

2008-04-11T10:49:00.001-07:00

well, essays have to be done for tomorrow at 12...i will get it done but some things like sleep will have to be cut out. oh well! i blame most of my lack of sleep on the jays and all their late games....
and so, instead of papers, i painted my nails and wrote a poem. laura suggested i post it on my blog and i thought that was another wonderful way to put off finishing my papers...so i hope you guys like it! i cant believe this is almost over!!

In my mind
Exists a manuscript
Catalogued epoch
Submersed in
Cobblestone memories
Sunny snapshots
Ripples of laughter
Explode in colour
A simple smile
A wave
Words of kindness
Etched in recollection
Many books
One chapter
Distinctive characters
Pages overflowing
Words written
Capturing life
Love
Timeless memories
Kept forever
Tucked away
To reminisce
Of friendships
Everlasting
Though roads part
Stories
Continue to be written
We can
Never erase
A single segment
Of exclusive
Chronicles

Melodious Memories

SNOW!

2008-04-06T13:35:00.000-07:00

so, yesterday was exams...and well lets say i am extremely glad they are over! now papers...

to celebrate the end of exams, i went to ree's house to watch the jays game on my computer with beer and a pizza - i felt like i was back at home! cant wait to see the jays this summer!! anyways, then we got together with everyone at the church to watch 27 dresses (yes, i watched it again - "come over here"...hehe those of you who have seen it know exactly what i am talking about!) after the movie, a few of us went to the pub here in charlbury. and after a pint...a man appeared at the window asking us to let him in...the sweetheart that she is, alisha opened the door for him. he was extremely grateful to her and to pay her back he bought her a glass of wine. he proceeded to sit down with us and buy us all a round! what a character! we had such a hilarious conversation with him, i think around charlbury he is known as 'father christmas' - hehe hilarious! anyways, poor tim was being made fun of for his 'tea cozy'. so much fun! after another round on him, i was ready to head to bed. much to my surprise, jodi and i were awoken by ree at 830 in the morning telling us to look out our window - when we did there was a foot of snow on the ground! ridiculous! okay, maybe not a foot, but a lot! check it out...is this really england?

after getting ready for church, i bounded over to ree's house to play! she was itching to get out in the snow so i didnt have to do much convincing!

all the kids in the charlbury flocked to the hill by her house and we convinced one kid to lend us his sled...so ree and i got to show them how canadians sled! well...except i made some people doubt we actually were canadians cuz i wiped out hard! and i think ree said "c'mon sharon! we're canadians! this is what we do!" oops...oh well, we still had such a fun time!!!

seriously, is this even england or are we in canada? what is this?

it was beautiful! a little taste of home...but wait, didnt you guys have 13degree weather the other day? isnt your snow all melted?!?! thats okay, cuz ours has already melted too!

oh by the way - i think laura is probably one of the most amazing people in the world!!

happiness!!

2008-04-01T15:30:00.000-07:00

i never thought i would be the person to post random blogs not about anything in particular, but simply about whats on my mind at a specific moment. And yet here i am…not much new to report to you…but i just feel so contented and happy that i wanted to share. gabby, laura, jodi, and myself just came back form watching “27 dresses” in the theatre (yes i know, movies come out much later in England) and we all left with permasmiles plastered across our faces laughing at the most random and stupidest things. But its great! And when I got home, although I should have been doing homework, I went through pictures and videos from the whole semester…truth be told, I got a little teary-eyed. You see, this program is almost over, and its really hard to believe. It really has flown by, just as everyone predicted. I have made 11 amazing friends in the past 2.5 months, friends that I will never forget and who have sincerely touched my life in ways they may never be able to comprehend. When I was going through hard times up here, every one of them stood behind me and supported me. I know, being away from all my family and friends back at home, I would not have made it through and stayed so strong had it not been for them. I remember one time, back during drama week, I was a nervous wreck. I had never acted before and am terribly frightened to speak in front of a crowd. As we were doing a popcorn prayer before we went out, mark singled me out ask God specifically to help me through this - and it is things like this that I cherish. I will miss this entire group so incredibly…more than I ever thought I would. Well, this has turned a little depressing somehow, but I want to get the point across that I am so happy here and seriously have had the best time of my life. Honestly incredible. I still have that permasmile on my face. So I want to leave you with a few pics (okay, a lot of pics) of all of us. And now, time to watch the jays season opener…its after 12 at night, halladay is pitching, I have chocolate and starbursts, and im lying on the floor of the church with my fuzzy blanket watching it online - life could not be any better…Go Jays Go!

neon and tights - its the 80's!

2008-03-30T14:46:00.001-07:00

last night, we were all treated to an evening of glow-in-the-dark bowling by peter for his birthday! but, to make it even more fun - bee thought we should all dress up in 80's attire! how fun! it was absolutely hilarious - i just wanted to share this pics with everyone! love it!

bee and leash looked absolutely amazing! straight from the 80's - no kidding!

pro-bowlers for sure!

redeemer vs abu - we kicked their butts!

gabby's hair is amazing! seriously, how did she get her poof to stand that high? ridiculous!

what will we think of next? hope you like the pics!

a week of crazy adventures!

2008-03-29T07:14:00.000-07:00

thinking about the past week...i am left baffled as to where i should even begin this blog. it has been such a crazy, fun, adventerous week that i almost cant believe it actually happened! so i suppose the most logical reasoning would be to begin in chronological order....here it goes!

tuesday, after classes and shopping :) tim, beth, megan, and i were invited to harry and caroline dodd's house for supper. we had such an amazing time! they were absolutely wonderful hosts and had the best dogs!! seriously, we had a wonderful supper (lamb, which i really do like!) followed by wine and great conversation. we discussed interesting topics and we learned even more about the english culture. the evening, pierced with laughter and jokes, flew by before we knew it. even though im sure we all wanted to stay longer, we realized it was a little late. instead, megan and i went to beth's house for coffee and reading. however...after a distraction from the cat, not much reading got done. you see, once megan gets talking, its impossible to end a conversation! she honestly is such a cool person to talk to and we had some great conversation about our pasts and futures and everything in between. good memories!

wednesday night...after another day of classes, we stayed in oxford to see "measure for measure" that night. as we walked along, pretty pumped to see another play, we were suddenly drowned in a torential downpour! as we only had one umbrella among 9 people, we were completely drenched. that is not all, the rain soon began falling mixed with hail which pelted our exposed faces. im not kidding. this is just the kind of weather you can expect in england...you just never know what will happen. needless to say, when we arrived at the play, we were incredibly wet and uncomfortable. yet, the play was beyond excellent and we all enjoyed it immensely. it brought shakespeare into a modern time period and dealt with issues of prostitution and sex before marriage. very interesting and really well done! i'd say it was my favourite play of the year.

here we have made it to the play...but are clearly not impressed...

thursday was ree's 22nd birthday. we all planned to throw her a little surprise party at my house. this required a lot of lieing, talking behind her back, and unfortunately making ree feeling slightly bad that mostly everyone was too bust to get together...but it was worth it! she came it totally surprised and so excited!

ree is reading her homemade card here...the card was a crayon picture of everyone from the group and we all wrote special messages beside our person. too cute and she loved it!

laura made this ridiculous chocolate triffle with virtually every amazing chocolate treat in it. wow. absolutely delicious.

aw ree, we love you! you are the best!

friday afternoon, we were taken to broughton castle. although its not the biggest castle we've been too...it was definately the most fun! it is here where the movie 'shakespeare in love' was filmed (which of course we had to watch last night after we visited it) - that was pretty cool. the inside was really gorgeous and was filled with things from virtually every century! awesome!

sick garden!

this was our tour guide. her husband and her own this castle and still live in it! she gave us a sneak peak into her living quarters through a very secret door. that was cool. she was such a wonderful and interesting lady and we had a blast walking through it. it really was beautiful!

after our official tour, we were sent outside to walk around the grounds. which turned into more of 'play time' rather than touring! we had such a blast hanging out and acting stupid...there was such wide open green spaces and we couldnt resist playing a few games.

this is the group (unfortunately mark couldnt be here cuz of homework and alisha was sick) and mad who is looking absolutely adorable in this pose!

we feel that jumping always makes for an excellent photo opportunity!

the redeemer girls!! lovin it!

an incredible tower of people - gabby is quite strong!

here we are playing toss up or something - essentially someone would jump into everyone's arms and toss them up into the air. straightforward but fun!

leap frog!! a classic!

just chillin at broughton castle by the moat lovin life!

after the castle we walked over the margaret conway's house, her husband was the vicar of the nearby church and she served up the most amazing desserts ever! i definately ate too much but it was so good! and they were actually from canada - it was weird to hear other people talking like us! fun!

and so, that is the week so far...but there is more tonight! and i am so excited i can barely contain it! lets just say it will involve glow-in-the-dark and the 80's...hehehe i cant wait!

a stable, a talent show, easter dinner, and snow!

2008-03-24T13:12:00.000-07:00

this past weekend was jam-packed with adventure and good times! friday morning, we were picked up by marion and andrew by a minibus, shoved it full of our backpacks, and began our three hour journey to stourhead. this estate is a 18th-century landscape garden and palladian mansion (modelled after one in venice). while there, we stayed the entire weekend in the grounds stableyard - which thankfully has been converted into a guest house. the girls all bunked in a huge room and it also provided us with a kitchen and common room. it felt like we were at camp! so much fun!

after unpacking when we arrived friday afternoon, we all went out to explore the grounds. this place is utterly gorgeous!! "Stourhead is one of the finest landscape gardens in the world. Designed by Henry Hoare II as a place to entertain, the garden was laid out between 1741 and 1780. The magnificent lake is central to this iconic garden of classical temples and follies. Its lakeside paths and backdrop of colourful, rare and exotic trees reveal many beautifully contrived vistas, capturing the imagination of visitors for over two centuries" - definately took this info off the internet...but yep this is what the grounds were. i dont even know how to describe how beautiful the walk we took was.

gorgeous!

our very first stop on our tour, was to the temple of apollo. although we had some difficulties locating it (somehow our map failed us and we were forced to climp an old stone bridge where laura ended up getting hurt by stinging nettles). our exasperations vanished as soon as we all approaced it - this is the place where they filmed the 'almost' kiss of lizzie and mr.darcy from pride and prejudice!!!!! after a few enactments and photos, we continued on our tour to discover many more awesome sights!

this is the river god's cave seen from the grotto. the grotto is a large manmade cave that is absolutely stunning inside. you'll notice in the picture that the statue's hand is outstretched - apparently this is to directs visitors out of the grotto and on towards the pantheon.

posing to capture another of our cool discoveries. for some unknown reason, perhaps inspired by the sheep we had seen, mark posed as a old shepherd!

like kids, we had a blast climbing all the trees!! thankfully, there was only one casualty (tim - but he's okay!). im a little baffled at this pciture...whose hand is in the back behind alisha and laura? all our arms are accounted for...creepy!

on saturday morning, we piled back into the bus and drove out to stonehenge!

here is stonehenge...were our audio guide informed as that they do not actually know a)how the stones got there b)when the stones got there and c)why the stones were put there. hm, oh well, the myths are fun and the stones do look incredibly amazing

that night, after dinner, we ate the easter cookie that my mom had bought for everyone! they were so happy and wanted me to say "thank so much mrs. heuving, you are the best!" yep, she is the best for sure!

getting into the mindset of camp, we held an inpromtu talent night that evening. beth, jodi, and i began with a rendition of avril's "hot" by painting eyes on our chins and mouthing the words with our heads upsidedown...cmon, you know what im talking about! then we had a cheer from beth, jodi, and megan, a hilarious cooking show, improv 'freeze', a round of big booty, and zipzapzop. who knew it could be that fun!!!

sunday we woke up anticipating attendance at a church in the nearby town. when we poked our heads out the door we were greeted with SNOW!!this is our first (and probably only) snowfall here in england! it stayed for a little while before melting - but it was so pretty! although, i can say that i do not wish i was back at home waist deep in snow...but a little is nice!!

that afternoon/evening, laura and gabby (helped by megan and heather) prepared the most amazing easter dinner ever! we had ham, potatoes, salad, veggies, and a delicious apple pie (laura, you will have to make me one of those soon okay?). it was honestly delicious.

today (monday) was awesome! marion had bought chocolate eggs for us which some of us went out in the morning to hide in the courtyard. then, we had a massive easter egg hunt (with megan as victor)! it was hilarious to watch everyone frantically running around and knocking into each other in an attempt to find the eggs! we really are just a bunch of little kids!!!

then, marion and andrew prepared us an amazing brunch to fill us up before we hit the road. on our way back to charlbury, we stopped at bath to see the roman baths...which we actually didnt see because it was too expensive. oh well. bath is awesome anyways!

while in bath, a few of us checked out the jane austen museum (there are some people who are very obsessed with pride and prejudice!). in this pic the girls are posing with an austen replica...but i think laura might be getting a little too friendly with the display. yikes!

this is the royal crescent...its a crescent of buildings which form an entire circle. neat to see - it definately looks cool!

overall, we had such an amazing weekend! im beginning to learn more and more what an incredible group this is! its so awesome that we have all become so close within such a short period of time. they are all such wonderful people and such a blast!

Fun on St. Patrick's Day!

2008-03-24T12:13:00.001-07:00

yes, i realize that st.patrick's day was a week ago...but amongst the business of my mom coming to visit, classes, and preparing for this past weekends adventures, i have not found the time to post pictures until tonight. however, we had such an awesome time together that i thought you still might enjoy seeing a few pics.

everyone arrived at our house decked out in green attire - jodi made sure that no one entered if they were not wearing green! jodi and laura spent days preparing a list of food for the night and the spread included fruit, veggies, candies, and virtually anything green along with a delicious cake! yum! and or course their decorations were beautiful.

the night was filled with stories, limricks, poems, irish music, and even a dance. yes, i showed everyone how to do an irish jig. no, it was not good. but fun! we also played a few intense rounds of murder and cranium (at which point we discovered that mark has the wrong idea of what a flower girl is...). whenever we play games together it gets a little heated as many of us are quite competitve! and of course my mom stopped by to meet everyone! all in all, a very good st.patricks day!

mom...in ENGLAND?

2008-03-19T12:44:00.000-07:00

yes...as hard as it may be to believe...my mom came to england to see me! isn't that incredible? for those of you who do not know her that well, you must first understand that mom has not left canada and does not enjoy flying one bit. yet, she put that all aside and suffered seven hours of intense sickness to fly across the ocean to see a glimps of my life here in england. both my parents (i know dad would have been here too if he could have and we missed him a lot over here!) are completely amazing people and i love them more than ever! what an experience, not only for mom, but also for me - i was able to share this incredible experience with someone who means the world to me. how exciting! if you are confused about how all of this could happen, i will take some time to explain just how she was able to surprise me. you see, i have one cousin living in london (colleen) and another living in holland (sheryl). this past weekend was sheryl's birthday - so colleen asked me to come down to london where they were going to have a surprise party for her. little did i know, colleen was also in on this little scheme. so when i arrived at the london train station, i was greeted by not only my aunt (who surprised sheryl) but shockingly enough my mom as well. when i first saw her...i completely froze. i mean my heart stopped and my feet would not move - i didnt move an inch until she came to me to give me a hug at which point i began to sob uncontrollably into her shoulder. this whole time my mind is attempting to comprehend exactly what is happening and if by some chance i took a train back to canada somehow or if it really was my mom in england. incredible.
but not only was i breathlessly excited...my mom was too! she was so happy to actually be here with me. it was amazing to have someone from that 'world' back at home to be in this 'world' with me here. mom and i had a blast for the past few days! i really think she loved the english life and culture. and i made sure that i packed our days together with plenty to see and do. although she wasnt here for too long, mom had the chance to see three completely different and unique cities - london, oxford, and charlbury. because we did do so much, this may be a long blog...but its not everyday mom comes to england so i want to include as much information and pictures as i can! so here goes...

the first few days of her journey were spent in the heart of london and also on the outskirts where colleen lived. below is a picture of the church we went to close to colleen's home. although there was a service going on, that did not stop aunt cora and mom from going in after it was finished to snap a few pics (i tell you...those two together...you never know what will happen). this was also a perfect day for mom to experience true england weather - cold and rainy. yeah!

while in london, we also got to see st.paul's cathedral, which as i noted in a previous blog, is utterly breathtaking. so, this is us sitting on the steps of the cathedral enjoying the business of london and the beauty of its history.
here we are in front of tower bridge...although we did check out london bridge we concurred that tower bridge is a much better photo opportunity!
colleen took us to covent garden market which was very busy and also incredibly interesting. despite the disgusting smell of blue cheese, we purchased some amazing bread and goodies. fun!

while in london, we also checked out millenium bridge, the globe theatre, trafalger square (which was filled with people celebrating st. patrick's day) and of course buckingham palace! i think mom was a little disappointed that the queen didn't come out to see her.

we took the train sunday night to charlbury - boy was my mom glad to see fields and trees again! she definately loves the country! although i dont think she liked climbing the hills with her luggage that much. our touring of charbury began the next day with a double decker bus ride through the tiny country roads. i love double decker buses and i think mom really did too! its like a cheap roller coaster ride. that in itself was quite the experience for her!

we took the bus out to blenheim palace and walked the grounds (it cost thirty pounds to go into the castle so we jointly decided not to do that!). so we walked all over the grounds...almost getting lost and ending up in a neighbouring town...saw some deer and pheasants...and overall had a lovely brisk morning stroll.

this tree was super cool and mom loved it...it looks like it had at one point been struck by lightening - the whole inside was singed and it left a huge hole which of course mom had to climb into! :) the rest of the day was spent walking all around charlbury and the country side. for supper, we went to the bell (only because the bull was closed...) and shared a meal of rocket and parmasen salad, toasted goats cheese, and chips (which in canada are fries). mmm...so good!

on tuesday, we went into oxford to check out the sites. mom spent the morning shopping (she was in love with primark!) and then we got together for lunch at regent's park college. so she was able to see the place where i have classes during the week. and we met some ducks. i then attempted to become a tour guide for the afternoon and show mom all i could in only a few hours. we got to see the outside of oxford castle...but didnt make it in time to tour the inside. we also got to check out magdelene college...but didnt make it in time to see deer park and addison's walk. oops. maybe i need to work on the tour guide thing a little more! BUT we did check out the bodleian library which mom was pretty excited to see, simply because that is where i work on my essays.we also went into the natural history museum which was super fun as i had never actually been inside either. we saw lots of stuffed animals, which we could pet...a little creepy. and dinosaurs, whales, rocks, bugs, and birds. lots and lots of cool things! it was definately fun!

we also went up carfax tower, which was originally build in 1032 as part of a church. so we walked all the way to the top (an incredibly long and tiring way up) and the view of oxford was amazing! ive never gotten the chance to see it from that high up and it was neat to be able to point out different buildings. this is the view:

the night drew to a close with a stop at christ church. and to our surpise, we discovered evensong was singing right at that moment. so we were able to go inside the church. listening to the choir of young boys was chilling and amazing. my mom and i both loved it immensely.

to end the long day, we headed over the the eagle and child (the pub where lewis and tolkien met to discuss literature) for a hot meal and a cold beer.
wednesday was going home day. so, we woke up early to a beatiful sun and took a walk along the famous charlbury country walks. i must say, it was a little too early for me - but i figured i could do this for mom! although...she really tired me out and i need to go to bed early tonight...but it really was beautiful.

and so concluded our adventures in england together...it was sad to see her leave so soon! but i know that everyone missed her back at home and are incredibly glad to see her again! i had such an amazing time with her! it was so great to see her and know that my family is supporting me so much through everything and would do everything in there power to let me know that and to show me how much they really do care! before you know it...i will be home again and will be able to see you all! THANKS MOM AND DAD!!

football and playgrounds

2008-03-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

when you are feeling angry or frustrated or bogged down with life - there is absolutely nothing better than a good 'ol game of american football with a bunch of girls in the mud and rain. honestly so much fun! we all put on our trusty rubbers and headed to the field for a whole lot of tackling! i have to say though, that alisha is incredibly strong and there were points when i was afraid of her! lee (laura's host) showed up to watch and snap a few photos (she is such an awesome lady). im starting to realize that my time in england is flying by and yeah i probably should have been at home reading shakespeare, but these are memories that will last forever. and let me tell you, we had such an amazing time! it was so much fun - despite a few pulled muscles, bruises, and ripped pants :) after football, we went to the playground and were able to become kids again. so i just thought i would post a few pictures from our evening because they make me smile and i hope they will make you smile too! what a blast!

check out jodi's butt (sorry jod) but its funny cuz she fell.

sorry for constantly drawing attention to you jodi...but her look of horror is incredible! apparently she was afraid of falling and breaking some bones...

hehe - laura honestly looks like she is five in the picture above..aww so cute!

the spider!

just a note for future references - rubber boots and slippery bridges are not a good combination. again, jodi was frightened beyond belief!

alisha is one of the coolest people ever - before we left to warm up with a cup of tea, she dove and slid head first into a mud puddle! she is so much fun!

and so this is what we do when we cannot handle another word from shakespeare! which, unfortunately i have put off for too long and must read...

next stop...hollywood!

2008-03-10T03:36:00.000-07:00

drama week was a success! after a full week of memorization and practices, the production went off well. sure, a few lines were forgotten and scenes altered, but all in all we are all so proud of ourselves! our directors were amazing people and definately full of patience with a group of people of whom most have never acted before. glena is off to the left between mark and alish and marion is beside me. when i broke down earlier in the week because i couldnt remember my lines, marion was right there to give me a hug! she is such a sweetheart. and glena is so incredibly talented - she was so encouraging and because of her i believe that i have discovered a new passion! despite the incredible nerves (i was definately the most scared but everyone said a special prayer for me and that meant a lot!) i really had a good time. and the feeling you get when the production is over and you know you have done it, is the best feeling in the world! so, glena insisted that i must keep acting and perhaps i will! thanks glena and marion for everything. after, we of celebrated with pizza and wine! such a good night!

but all of this happend after my trip to scotland and ireland...which i know i still have not filled you in on! but i will, dont worry! right now however i have to pick courses for next year and classes have started again for us - so back to the readings!

im back!!

2008-03-03T07:36:00.001-08:00

HELLO!! i am back home (to my home away from home, dont worry mom, i will come back!). i am very excited to be back in charlbury and to see everyone again and hear all the amazing stories from everyone's adventerous reading break trips!! and i am sure that everyone is curious about my trip with jodi to scotland and ireland. well, i have come back with plenty of stories and pictures to show you! unfortunately, there is so many that i will have to space my blog postings or else no one will ever have enough time to check it all out! so....our break actually began with a group trip to london for two days. we all had such a wonderful time!

Day 1 in London:

first thing thursday morning, we jumped on the crowded train to head into london, switched over to the tube which made us very very late for our morning at the parliament buildings. regardless, when we went in, we entered into the oldest part of the buildings which was 1000 years old. crazy cool for sure! this is the room:

then, we were given the opportunity to sit in on the house of commons and the house of lords, which is apparently something that not even alot of british have the opportunity to do, so it was quite thrilling. after, we had an interesting lunch with three mp's discussing british, canadian, and american politics. when we approached the topic of americans influence on canadians, things got a little heated! it was very fun though!

After, we were given the afternoon to do what we wish, so ree, tim, alisha, beth, mark, jodi and myself went out to explore the city of london. this is what we found:of course we went to see big ben!!

we made our way down to trafalger square. i wasnt sure of its significance, so i asked jodi and her reply was: "i dont know...its just like a square". hm, sometimes i wonder about her...

in trafalger square, we went to the national art gallery and saw gorgeous works from all throughout the years. some of these paintings are utterly incredible and can never compare to our 'modern' art. honestly beautiful!

i went to buckingham palace twice - although it was less grand then i anticipate it too be. we looked everywhere for the gaurds with the big fuzzy hats but found them no where - a little disappointing. and sorry cindy, but the queen had urgent business and missed our tea date ;)

on the steps of buckingham palace, i think contemplating how cool it would be if ree's boyfriend could discover how to become a cloud and fly over london to visit her...and of course what it would be like to be the queen. you know, the usual conversation that girls have!!

Day 2 in London:

we went to the globe!! how amazing is that!! it was so beautiful. i mean, i know the original burnt down, but this was still a surreal experience. our tour was a wonderful lady who told us all about the type of theatre, staging, and audiences in a production at the globe. it was incredible!

after our trip to the globe, we were officially on our reading break. most of us had decided to spend the day in london, and so we toured around. this is the london tower where king henry the 8ths wives were beheaded and apparently a lot of other people too. it was too expensive to go in, but luckily laura had the other day with her dad and gave us all the information - for free!

westminster abbey is indescribable. honestly - it is breathtakingly beautiful. when we arrived there, visitors hours were over but we were just in time for evensong. listening to the choir in this holy place of worship was an experience like no other. it literally gave me goosebumbs. beautiful.

to conclude the day, weary and exhausted we made our way to st. pauls cathedral. also indescribably. it is larger and more grand than you can imagine and better than i could ever describe. no picture could do it justice.

that concluded our trip to london. so much fun! after, we were all ready to embark upon our journeys. jodi and i were walked to our bus station while laura and ree wished us goodbye. it was crazy how much i knew i was going to miss everyone.

so, jodi and i jumped on the bus at 11:00 that night and prepared for a nine hour bus ride to scotland! that, i will save for another time. this has been long enough and i really need to keep learning my lines for our play. the production is this friday night and i have a huge part!! stressing!!

farewell!

2008-02-20T12:30:00.000-08:00

i just wanted to send out a quick good-bye to everyone. tomorrow we all head out for two days in london and then on friday jodi and i are off to scotland and ireland! first, we take on overnight bus to edinburgh where we stay until monday. then, we have a flight out to dublin. spend a few days there, take a train up to belfast. while in belfast, we plan to take a bus up to northern ireland to see the giant causeway by the ocean. i am so excited!! we are going to have the best time ever. for one, we each only have a backpack...so yes we are going to get a bit grungy. but i am ready and willing to embrace the role of tourist until i arrive back in charlbury next sunday. essays are done...now its time to travel!! so, i will not update my blog for quite some time...but trust me, when i do next, there is going to be so much to show you and tell you! and for all of you who are transfers over from jodi's blog because hers hasn't been updated in a long time, she also says farewell and will update as soon as she gets back (yeah right!!)
i cannot believe it!! soooo much fun!! yeah ireland!

valentines day, lewis, and tolkien

2008-02-17T06:31:00.000-08:00

valentine's day in charlbury!! it was a blast. we decorated the church in red and white streamers, balloons, and candles. the night was filled with poems and readings, songs and skits from a few local charlbury talents and of course all of us! as you can see, jodi and i manned the bar for that evening (and did quite a good job!). it was a nice, relaxing break from exam studying!

well, i wrote my last exam yesterday morning and after only 8 hours of sleep in two days, i was quite relieved! now...essay. but before i

continued with those, we took a break and went into oxford for the day yesterday. dr. loney (laura's dad), who had come in to england just a few days before, is well known in this program for his cs lewis and jrr tolkien tours. so, for a few hours in the afternoon, he took us all around oxford to the schools, chapels, houses, and other places associated with the two famous friends in some way. we went to see so many different places and dr. loney knew all the facts about what stories they wrote when they were at certain colleges, when they attended college, when their friendship had begun, and so on. very very interesting!! so i posted a few pictures below of our afternoon out:

above is university college. this place is actually closed to the public...but dr. loney was very convincing and they allowed us to come in and check it out!! we were very excited. apparently, lewis wrote the entrance exam for this college and was rejected - so that makes me feel better!
this is laura and myself in the university college chapel where lewis attended. like all chapes in engalnd, it was breathtaking!

this is fellowshall - where lewis actually lived for awhile! his windows are apparently the two just above those people walking. and then we went on addison walk which was very much enjoyed by lewis who actually wrote about it in one of his poems i believe. and of course we saw deer park which, as the name implies, is a fenced off area filled with deer. mom you would have loved it!
this is an area of one of the colleges (i think university college) that lewis would have walked through every day - the gargoyles that surround the entire area are actually characters that he put into the chronicles of narnia. he got the idea of them from these!

we also saw some other neat and random things not quite so relevant tolkien and lewis, but still interesting. the the left is jodi making her confession...i just like this picture. what happened after the picture was not so funny though...sorry jodi!

the picture below is a building we passed in which the first living cell was identified by robert boyle and his assistant robert cooke. crazy!to finish the tour, we went to the lamb and child for a pint - one of the pubs where lewis and tolkien's group called the 'inklings' met to discuss literature. it is right across the street from the eagle and child where we had gone before.

afer, we went to see cloudcuckooland in oxford. it was so hilarious! it was intended to be a childrens production, but because it was adapted from aristophane's greek play the birds, it of course fit into our course! it was about a bunch of birds who are tired of the pollution that humans are creating. so, in order to get them to stop, they make a plan to, well, to poop on everything until they give in. you can just imagine how funny

this play would be! it was so much fun, i felt like a kid again. a great stress reliever!

after the play, we all went to an italian pizzeria nearby and the pizza was amazing! so good and the perfect ending to a wonderful day! but now, unfortuately, i can procrastinate no longer...back to the essays!

more adventures!

2008-02-10T11:49:00.000-08:00

so, i determined that if i was to be completely honest in my blog, i should begin by saying that i am a tad bit homesick today. i mean, i am having an amzing time here in england and i absolutely love it...but there is something about a warm hug from your mom and dad or a sloppy kiss from a little four year old girl that you begin to desperately miss when you can no longer have them. and so while i am here, across the ocean, i miss everyone terribly and wait in anticipation for the millions of hugs i will get when im back! but for now i just got a wonderful hug from beth....that should tie me over for awhile!

well, the weather here is absolutely beautiful! we have been walking in the blazing sun, gazing at all the flowers beginning to bloom. life is good and spring just may be here!!

this past friday, jodi, laura, heather, alisha, and myself went to formal hall at regents park college. before cathching the train, we of course had a modelling shoot in which heather turned out to be a budding model!! we had a few good laughs looking at the pictures after! at regents, we began supper with a questionable salad...there was a creature in it...i think it was an oyster...but thats unsure. all the food that followed, however, was delicious and not abnormal in any sense. we had a wonderful dinner conversation with some friendly brits who were more than enthused to discuss american politics with us (apparently they follow it really closely here...who knows!). it was a fun evening ending with a hitchcock movie at laura's house.

the next morning we set out for stratford - the city that shakespeare put on the map! we began our explorations at anne hathaways cottage (shakespeare's wife's family home) - a quaint, picturesque cottage filled with scandolous stories of shakespeare and anne during their courtship (according to our enthusiastic, quircky tour guide)! after a packed lunch by the avon river, we walked over to the birthplace of shakespeare - the house where shakespeare grew up....very very cool!!

above is a picture of shakespeare's house

and here i am touching the handle that shakespeare along with billions of other tourists have touched. hey, he still touched it at one point right?

although cameras were not allowed, i managed to snap a picture of the famous folio, which was published in 1623 - the first pulished compilation of all of shakespeares works.

after, we continued to explore through out stratford and visited the nash house/new place.

new place was purchased by shakespeare in the late 1500's during his retirement. it is at this house where he passed away in 1616. the house was then given to his daughter, elizabeth, who married thomas nash (hence, nash house). i loved the gorgeous gardens behind the house. following, we went to halls croft (pictured to the left). this is where shakespeare's daughter, susanna, and her husband, john hall lived after they were married in the early 1600's. it was really intriguing to walk throughout the house because the oldest part of it has been dated back to the early part of the 15th century. absolutely beatiful inside.

after touring around, we all congregated back at the holy trinity church in stratford. this is the chuch where shakespeare along with his whole family was buried. interesting to see - i wonder if he ever thought that centuries after his death, billions of people would still be coming to look at his gravesite. kinda weird, isnt it?

regardless, below is a picture of his actual grave which is located inside the church.to conclude the day, we stopped in long compton on our way home to look at the rollright stones. there is a myth that some king from long ago, was told by a witch that if he took 7 paces and saw the town of long compton it would all be his. unfortuntely, the witch caused a hill to rise up and he could not see so he along with his whole group of soldiers were turned to stone. or something like that. so this circle is thought to be all of his soldiers.

check out the country side - no matter how many times i get to see views like this, they still take me breathe away ever time. God is amazing!

just briefly...

2008-02-07T12:52:00.000-08:00

well..this was the exciting thing that i had mentioned before...this car!! isnt it amazing! one of the older gentlemen that came to dinner at lee's house had this car and it is from 1924...1924!! how amazing is that? and he took laura, mark, and myself for a drive around the country and we had such a blast. every person that we drove by we waved to...good times! it really was incredible - not the fastest car bust still so much fun!

this week i have gone to do research at the bodleian library. which, besides the fact that i had to do school work, it was a neat experience! i had good intentions of going again tonight...but well i went shopping instead (and bought some adorable shoes by the way - i love england)!

last night, we went to see "a trip to scarborough" at the oxford playhouse. what

a play!! i laughed so much. after the initial confusion of three different time periods occuring in the play and characters leaving and entering the stage a lot...i absolutely loved it! it was such a great production. i realized that before i came to england, i had never gone to the theatre (and jenn, the movie theatre does not count!) - and i feel like i really missed out! so, when i come home i want to keep seeing plays! definately, it is such a great time. so, the guy to the left is lord poppington (well thats his character in the play, i kinda forget his actual name right now) and he was by far the best actor in the production. alisha and i (along with our driver peter and kay - two wonderful people!) stayed after the play to chat with the cast. that was really cool. and afterwards and went to talk to this guy and get his autograph. fun!

before the play, we all went to the eagle and child (which as i mentioned before was the place where jrr tolkein and cs lewis used to meet over drinks to discuss literature). the person at the head of the table the the right of me is lynn robinson and she is the academic coordinator of the program. she will also be our tutor in shakespeare later in the semester. it was really wonderful that she came with us. when beth and i heard that swan lake was going to be in theatre at oxford, she said that she would look into the price of tickets and she would go with us! i thought that was very sweet of her!

okay, well, besides school work, things have been quieter around here. tomorrow night is formal hall at regents park college and on saturday we will be spending the day touring around stratford! i cant wait!

what fun!

2008-02-02T15:17:00.000-08:00

what a weekend! i just got back from an evening of entertainement at The Shed (and yes it actually is, as its name implies, a real shed) followed by a pint at a local pub (our way of truly engaging in the english culture :)). to my surprise, charlbury is streaming with talent! we watched the locals belt out tunes, recite poetry, and even crack jokes about george bush. until tonight, i was oblivious to the amount of talent that hid behind virtually every door in this small town of 3000. the people here are wonderful and brilliant!

the day began with a trip out to warwick to visit warwick castle - the most significant medieval english castles. it was so amazing to be walking through the castle grounds that had hundreds of years ago been walked through by earls and duchessess of medieval time. it was quite an adventure! built way back in 1294, warwick castle is submersed in a rich history!

this picture to the left is "the mound" which is the oldest part of the castle and grounds as it was first built in 1028 - crazy!!

much of the castle today has been transformed into a virtual reality that allows us to truly grasp the medieval way of life. the rooms were intricately put together and the people were extremely life like! each room was so detailed and beautifully constructed. there was also the peacock gardens to visit, the party room (where a few of us girls spent a lot of time playing dress-up) and the dungeon (which was very sombering). all-in-all warwick castle was quite the entertaining experience and i thoroughly enjoyed myself!

after our time at the castle we went just outside of warwick to the conventry cathedral. the cathedral was absolotely stunning - filled with beautiful artwork and craftsmanship. the whole cathedral cried out "holy" and sacred - it truly felt like God's house.

after viewing the new cathedral, we walked across to the first cathedral which had originaly been built in the 14th century but had to be rebuilt after it was bombed in WWII. as i walked through the remaining shell that was once an acient and glorious cathedral, i felt the devastaton and despair. but i also felt God truly dwelling in that building, in his house. it was an experience that cannot be described but it truly touched me and moved me deeply.

this picture to the left is the 'monument' displayed at the front of the tattered cathedral. it was made from the charred remains of the original roofing that had fallen after the explosion and landed in this shape.

this monument was also placed in the old cathedral, was given as a token of reconciliation 50 years after WWII. the incription reads: "Both sculptures remind us that, in the face of destructive forces, human dignity and love will triumph over disaster and bring nations together in respect and peace".

Enough said. Good Night!

where did the week go?

2008-01-31T13:46:00.001-08:00

we have all been having such an amazing time here in england! i find it hard to believe that it is already thursday - this past week has flown by! and so i just realized that i have left everyone wondering what new adventures i might have embarked upon recently. well, the week did not appear to start off well when we had our first drama auditions. poor jodi and i were freaking out about having to perform and it was well justified - lets just leave it at that. today we had intense rain and wind - jodi's poor umbrella did not survive. but with that being the only casualty and the fact that we have had wonderful weather so far, i cant complain.

sunday afternoon, after a riveting sermon at the baptist church from the president of regents park college, i was invited for lunch at laura's hosts house. there are no words to describe the food and arrangements that met my eyes when i walked in the door. the table was set with her finest china and lunch was an amazing beef dish followed by a hungarian apple pie for dessert. absolutely delicious. lee (probably the coolest english lady i have met so far) definately outdid herself. but nothing could surpass the event that occured when lunch was finished....but until i get the pictures from laura i dont think i will fill you in....

last night we went to see henry v in stratford. again, words cannot describe. the performance was spectacular and far exceeded all my expectations. the acting was impecable and i sat on the edge of my seat while laughing most of the night. shakespeare in stratford - it doesnt get better! jane and jefferey (our host) drove jodi and myself to the play and surprised me with a pink feather shakespeare pen which i am also pretty pumped for!

earlier in the week peter took us on a tour of oxford to the places we hadnt seen yet. even though i walk through the city almost every day, i am still amazed at the beauty of the buildings and the history that can be found around every corner. we saw so much but here are only a few of the pictures:

this is the pub where c.s. lewis and j.r.r. tolkein used to meet for lunch and discuss literature - super super cool!! definately going to eat there sometime soon.

this is the original wall that used to surround oxford - it was buit in the fourteenth century (old!!) and this is the portion of it that has been best preserved. very beautiful.

this is new college - one of the oxford colleges. im not too sure the significance but the architecture of the building is stunning, dont you think? i would also like to draw your attention to the colour of the grass - and its january. incredible. hows the snow by the way?

this is an actual COBBLESTONE STREET that cars actually drive on. now thats just cool.

so, in new college, we went into its church. WOW. so incredibly beautiful. absolutely amazing. to make the whole experience that much better, there was an organist playing. the moment was surreal. the statue below is of lazarus and was made by some famous guy.

check out the wall...i dont think i need to say much about it. the effort that went into this wall alone is mind boggling. it is utterly breathtaking. amazing. gorgeous beyond words.

so...thats the week so far in a nut shell. in between it all we have of course been going to classes and doing homework. this weekend is warwick castle and some other things. unfortunately however, tomorrow morning is part two of drama auditions....

It's the weekend!

2008-01-26T12:43:00.000-08:00

HELLO!! so the weekend is here and it has been fun! last night a few of us had a game night and played bucaneers. quite amusing! and after a morning of sleeping in a few of us headed out to blenheim palace in woodstock. but FIRST the day began with a frightening ride on a double-decker bus. the roads in england are not very big so it often felt like we were going to hit either a car or a tree. but quite the experience for sure!!
blenheim palace was originally built in 1704 by john churchill, the first duke of marlborough, as a gift from the queen for defeating the french in the battle of blenheim. it was the birthplace of winston churchill in 1874. the current duke of marlborough (i dont who he is) lives there right now. crazy! it is absolutely gorgeous. we walked around the whole grounds. unfortunately, the palace and garden grounds were not open so we didnt get to go inside. the gardens are one of the most amazing aspects of the palace - so we will definately go back although next time we will have to pay! but this palace is huge and absolutely gorgeous!!

we had such a fun day. also on the grounds was a monument that was erected for i think the defeating french...but that is some information that i seem to have forgotten...sorry! but the picture is nice! hahaha

well...thats all for now..but thanks again for checking and ill update you again soon!!!

miss everyone lots!!!

January 24th

2008-01-24T11:47:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone! I just came back from supper and a quite fancy hotel restaurant here in Charlbury, called The Bell. The food was excellent! Our classes have been very interesting as well. We have only two right now, Shakespeare and Drama. Although the workload is quite significant, I am excited for everything that we will learn!

So, we have not done much else from the last time I wrote, so I figured that I would post a few from my past excursion throughout Oxford.
The picture on the right is of Oxford Castle - although I have not had the chance to go inside, I will soon! The next few pictures are of the Bodleian Library - specifically the courtyard. The round builing is the Radcliffe Camera - this is the actual building of the library where the literature books are housed and where we will be doing the majority of our studying and essay writing. Looking forward to that ;).

I am glad that everyone has been checking out my blog - I will try my best to update it on a regular basis. I have recieved quite a few emails from everyone and I just want to say thank you to all who have. It is great to hear from people back at home and know that everyone has been thinking and praying for me. I really appreciate the emails! It means a lot! Until next time...

Tuesday, January 22

2008-01-22T14:20:00.000-08:00

Wow - things have been so insanely busy here! Already the workload is piling on for our classes and I still just want to tour around and see England :)! But the classes are amazing! And Oxford is absolutely brilliant and stimulating. After taking our first train ride into Oxford, we walked through the whole city and saw things like the Oxford Castle and many other beautiful historical buildings! As well, we went to the Bodleian Library (this pictgure is the entrance into the main part of the library). This library dates way back to like the 15th century and is perhaps the largest non-lending library - so to even be allowed entrance into the library is quite the privelege! It contains every book that has ever been published in the UK from that century on. There was a small "ceremony" if you will that was put on by the library administrator for each person when recieving their library card. It was very exciting! Monday was definately a day of firsts for us! We also had our first downpour and a thunderstorm while waiting for the train. Fun!
The people here are awesome and everyone in the group is wonderful - I am definately excited for the rest of the semester! Most exciting has been by far the performance put on in the Courtyard Theatre of Stratford last night of Shakespeare's Richard II. To be in Stratford - the home of Shakespeare - an watch an acutal Shakespeare performance was so amazing! It was an awesome performance and the whole experience was quite sureal. Unfortunately, cameras were not allowed and so there are no pictures - sorry! There has been so many other thing that we have done (like I've said - we've been extremely busy!). On Sunday, after a combined church service with all the churches in Charlbury, we went to the Baptist church for lunch. That was followed by a country walk - people from all over this area come into Charlbury for the walks in the country. Although it was beautiful - it was also very, very muddy! The rain is almost constant right now in England. Today has so far been the nicest day with little rain! So the walk took about 3 hours but was concluded by a yummy supper made by our coordinator, Mad.

Well, that is all the time I have for now - but I will update this as soon as I have a spare moment! Right now we are all looking for our first day with nothing planned - Saturday! Until then, we have plays to read, group presentations to present, and quizzes to write - back to the school work I suppose!! The last picture is of the whole group studying here - six from ABU and the other six are from Redeemer.

Sunday, January 20th

2008-01-20T10:20:00.000-08:00

We walked a lot today! After church and lunch we took a long 3 hour walk through the country - it was extremely muddy! And tonight we will have supper with Mad (the coordinator). Jodi and I are living in a very cute house. It actually a garage that has been converted into a little apartment. I will definately post pictures soon, but I just figured out how to use this blog! Tomorrow, we are going to see Richard II in Stratford - very exciting. And we will also spend the day touring around Oxford. Should be fun!