London & Oxford

It's around 2:15 in the afternoon, and I've been hanging around Heathrow Airport (Terminal 1) since 1:30. I guess I didn't need to hop on the earliest train back from Oxford, because I can't even check my luggage in until 5:20...Long time, huh? Luckily the tickets were great - four DIS kids were at the train station in Oxford, and the guy at the ticket counter told us with four people we could get a 50% discount on our tickets, so they were only £9.95 - excellent deal. Then from Paddington station, I took the Heathrow Express to get here, and I think those were a little more expensive, something like £16? I'm not sure. Anyway, here I am, and I've stalked down a computer: £3 later, I have another hour to kill online. Unfortunately it won't let me access much, so blogging is about all I can do - lame, Heathrow. On the computer next to me, I've got a really loud, angry British couple, with two super obnoxious children running around. I'm £2.83 away from smacking them. Whatever. Aside from that, it's already really refreshing to be on my own - I've been so sick of DIS, having a constant itinerary and everything. This trip to London and Oxford also reinforced my immense dislike for my core course - Though there are certain people that I enjoy spending time with, I generally hate my class. It's like sixth grade again, where there are six exclusive cliques - and all are just as immature as 12-year-olds, so really, I'm thrilled to get away.

On the flipside, my appreciation for the professors has grown. Unfortunately, I caught the flu in London, and spent a lot of time in bed. I didn't miss any of our educational visits in England, but didn't get to go to any museums or anything. My head was completely in a bubble the entire time I was there, so it was really frustrating. I had a really sore throat, and aches in my eyes (weird, right?), and a terrible cough, which is still kind of here. My core course professor and Virtual Worlds professor, Inger-Marie, was absolutely wonderful while I was sick - cured my flu with some ridiculous British medicine called Nurse, and made sure I was as healthy and as comfortable as I could possibly be. I have enjoyed getting to know her better. Interestingly, Mike has proven to me that he's human - I am able to take him slightly more seriously now that he knows my name.

So I'm sitting here wondering what I thought about London. Not really my cup of tea, I think. Certainly an absolutely lovely city, beautiful architecture, and filled with things to do, but it seems that this small town girl from Vermont will always prefer much smaller cities. The hustle and bustle of the huge city was always loud - so many people always around the tube. I was most definitely overwhelmed by the craziness of the city. Fashionable women in heels and businessmen in pinstriped suits rushing to work made me feel stressed and rushed as well. Good for a few days, but no place for me.

I'm starting to have some faith in my navigational skills - though perhaps the Tube and Denmark transportation are two easy ones. I was able to figure out the tube without a hitch - well, that is, until they closed half the stations. The first day, they closed five or more of the big stations because of so much congestion - and our entire group got split up on the first ride because it was so crowded. Luckily, we were able to find the way to our destination - a visit to the Telegraph. That educational one was interesting...actually, they all were. We went to the Telegraph, the Guardian, Edelman, and were lectured by Inger-Marie at London School of Economics. DIS paid for lunch and dinner (one meal a day, plus complimentary breakfasts), a tour of London by bus, a ride on the London Eye, and to see the performance of Chicago. It was a really well planned out trip. Unfortunately, I wasn't feeling much better until the last night in London, so I spent the week going to bed at 6pm or earlier, with the exception of Wednesday, when we went to Chicago. It was a mediocre version, and I think the movie has ruined all play performances for me because it was so good. The next night when my head had finally (mostly) cleared up, my friend Meg and I went to dinner for a cocktail and meal in the city.

Ah, but I'm forgetting something -

Before dinner, we went to somewhere you'll ALL appreciate....a trip to Diagon Alley! Well, okay, the street where it was filmed in the movie. Awesome. It was a really cool little street, and I'd say the film makers of Harry Potter definitely chose the right place...I'll post pictures eventually, but I didn't bring a cable with me. It's essentially the only picture I took in London, because I was either too sick or had forgotten my camera for the other parts. Sad, but I'm okay with it, as London certainly wasn't my favorite place.

Anyway, on Thursday morning we headed over to Oxford, a place that I enjoy much, much more. It's an absolutely adorable little university town with a cozy feel, and the buildings there are just beautiful. Though neither place in England really reminded me of Denmark, Oxford was much closer. We went to a nice lunch (thanks DIS), and listened to a lecture in one of the buildings at one of the Oxford universities, which was really cool. We also got to see the debate hall ...I'm not sure the significance, but I guess it was a kind of cool place.

You can tell that it's getting to be springtime here in Europe - the flowers are finally starting to come up, and the weather is warming just so slightly. I can travel comfortably with a fleece, which is good because aside from that, I only brought a rainjacket.

I was also able to hop onto a computer in Oxford at a nice little internet cafe, where I began to deal with course registration and all of that stressful stuff - inconvenient timing, since I have NO idea what the internet availability will be like over the next couple weeks.

I'm impatiently waiting for my flight to Dublin - I'm really, really excited. I hope I'll be able to find somewhere to stay. I think I'll hop on a bus tomorrow morning to the countryside, and maybe try to find a little bed and breakfast to stay overnight, then head back into the city to see that part of Ireland.

I have literally nothing else to say, as I've been blogging for more than a half hour, so I think I'll head off to read for another trillion years while I wait for this flight. Thankfully, the obnoxious couple and children have left, and I'm able to think again.

Have a good couple days, and I'll be in contact as soon as possible!

Lots of love from London!