Stories, Histories, and Song

The past week and a half or so, I have been a bit homesick, I'll admit. No matter how many exciting and wonderful things are going on around me and how much I love this experience, when you miss a holiday, you can't help but miss home. That said, I can't wait for you to see what has been happening!

The week before last, I rested up quite a bit. I had some fun at night - one evening I went to a concert for King Charles (he's really fun, if you want to check him out!), and one evening I went to an event called NerdNite, where local people came and gave a short talk on things that interested them. The talks for the night I was there were on several different fun topics, but my favorite was called, "Why is Australia called Australia?"... Do any of you know?

Thursday night, I went ice skating at the National History Museum. They played the Cha-Cha Slide and I definitely almost fell on the ice trying to "Hop three times". It was a blast! I closed the night with gingerbread cookies and hot chocolate in the cafe.

That weekend, I took another bus tour which went to Leed's Castle, Dover, and Canterbury. Leed's Castle, which has been named one of the most beautiful castles in the United Kingdom (and for good reason!!!) It was breathtaking start to finish. When we went inside, we saw the marks of the Tudor family everywhere. The Tudor rose was carved into the fireplace and there were busts of Henry VIII and his three children. If you want a messy family history, check him out!

Outside the castle, there were all sorts of grounds, from stables to a garden maze (which I didn't get to go very far into) and falconry! When we arrived at the falconry, they were showing a small barn owl. I thought it was a gorgeous bird and decided how jealous I was of Harry for having Hedwig (that's the first time you'll catch me being jealous of a fictional character for their pet bird). 

From Leed's Castle, we headed to Dover for a short stop to see the Cliffs. Unfortunately, it was cold and raining and so I just saw them from the bus. Fun fact: The cliffs of Dover are made of the same stone as the cliffs in Cameron Park and they look very, very similar! We then headed to Canterbury where I visited Canterbury Cathedral. This is the oldest church in England that is still in use today. Canterbury Cathedral has been famous throughout England's history for everything that has happened here. This was the church of St. Augustine, a very famous figure in early Christianity. His Confessions are still widely read today. Many people make pilgrimages to this spot even to this day. Speaking of pilgrimages, a very famous work of literature, Chaucer's Canterbury Tales was written about people making pilgrimages to this very spot. 

We drove from Canterbury to Greenwich, England. For those of you who remember learning latitude and longitude at the beginning of the semester, this was the place where longitude was discovered and the city the Prime Meridian runs through! It's just a river ride from there back into London and for those of you that asked, I caught a snapshot from the boat of the London Bridge all lit up at night. 

The next day, we were exhausted! All those stops in one day tires you out. So, on Sunday, most of us rested. We did, however, make a stop at the National History Museum. It would have taken all day to make it all the way through it! 

One of my favorite rooms had all sorts of stone types in it. I saw meteors, moon rock, rocks from mars... but amidst all the jewels and volcanic stone, my birthstone, the ruby, stood out the most!

Other than the room with all the stones, my favorite exhibits were the mammal exhibits. They had a hanging blue whale that took up the entire room! I can't imagine what it must be like to see that creature in the sea. It's bigger than most boats I've seen. Then, I found the elephants, and, well.... this was the result.

Wednesday afternoon, I finally got to do my Texas presentation. Unfortunately, I couldn't use much of what you wrote me in the letters (though I did get to use some!!!!) The Year 2 students were studying animals and plants, so I showed them animals and plants that were native to Texas. I wish I could have shown you their faces! They were so excited to learn about animals that we hardly think twice about. 

Wednesday night was a night of magic, from beginning to end. I got to visit 221b Baker Street, which was staffed by Londoners in full period costume. I really felt like I was walking into the home Sherlock Holmes stayed in! (Don't tell me he's fictional - you'll ruin the magic!) I've been reading The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes on the train all month, so seeing some of the scenes set up was very, very fun. 

Of course, I couldn't resist my own detective picture... 

After 221b, we headed over to the Queen's Theatre where I got to experience something I've wanted for a long, long time... to see Les Miserables live! The show was breathtaking, start to finish, so even though I wasn't feeling very well, I could almost forget that. The actors did an incredible job, and the set was a rotating set! There was a circle in the middle of the stage that spun around to change scenes, show people traveling a long distance, or bring someone into the shadows. I almost felt my heart burst at the final chorus of "One Day More". 

Thanksgiving was a more difficult day, because I wanted to be home with my family - or at the very least, home in Texas. It was really weird to be in a country that didn't celebrate one of the most important holidays of the year for us in America. But, every at the school I worked at made a point to tell me 'Happy Thanksgiving!' and the Year 2 students made me a thank you card that had a turkey made out of their thumbprints and pictures each of them had drawn - although one of these had a pumpkin who was sticking up another pumpkin. I think someone watched too many western movies about Texas... Anyway, for dinner, all of the interns went out to eat together at a place called The Duke of York. It was a lot of fun, though they had their holidays a bit mixed up! The place was decorated for Christmas, there were New Years Eve style crackers (complete with prizes), Fourth of July hats and flags hanging everywhere, and....we were celebrating Thanksgiving?! Still, it was a good meal, and a good time to reflect on the year, the trip, and the things for which I'm incredibly thankful. The list would go on forever! Mostly, though, I was thankful for all the relationships in my life. Whether it's you all in my classes or my best friend or my family, everyone has taught me something and made a difference. I'm so grateful.

(obligatory picture for those of you that wanted to know what Thanksgiving was like in England)

Friday, I finished up at the school and immediately headed out to get home! I had to catch a train to Edinburgh with my friend Audrey. We missed the first train, but there was one an hour afterwards, so it turned out alright. We stayed at a beautiful hotel that felt made for magic and adventures. When we woke up in the morning, we headed into town and went into the Prince's Street Gardens. They blew us away!!

From the Gardens, we hiked up to Edinburgh Castle. Edinburgh Castle has been around since the 12th century -- that's 800 years ago! In this castle lived famous kings and queens such as Mary, Queen of Scots. 

This was the most "fairy-tale" like castle I had been able to visit yet! Complete with portcullis to close the gates! 

Inside the Castle were the crown jewels, which you got to see by going through a historical journey of where the jewels had been. Did you know that the crown jewels had to be hidden for years during the English civil war to keep them from Oliver Cromwell? They were hidden in a large chest and only recovered after a decade of hiding. We also visited the most reverent and respectful war memorial I've ever seen. Inside one of the castle buildings, there were books with the names of soldier who died in each branch of the military. It gave them a small epitaph and it explained how they died. I think, more than most memorials I've seen with simply names on stone, this made us remember.

After the castle, we climbed the monument to Sir Walter Scott, in the center of the city. 287 steps up a winding staircase and through the biting wind, but we got to the top!! There were many incredible views, but I have to tell you, one of the most exciting was of the hill that you see below. This hill is called Arthur's Seat. King Arthur himself is said to have named it, and this is one of the possible locations of Camelot. This has always seemed so mythical to me, so seeing it in person was incredible. 

Apologies for the video being on its side - Korbyn, this is for you! 

In the morning, we hiked up to Calton Hill to see the monuments. My favorite was the National Monument, which is the one you see below with the pillars. I had to make sure to get a picture there!

The next day, we stayed in the Peak District to visit Chatsworth House, where the Duke of Devonshire lived...and also one of the possible places Jane Austen pulled ideas from when she was describing Pemberly, the home of Mr. Darcy. Due to this, the new Pride and Prejudice was filmed here!

Inside, they were celebrating Christmas with displays of Narnia, and I got to meet Mr. Tumnus! 

The sculpture you see here is part of the collection at the home, which has many, many sculptures inside of it. This particular, "The Veiled Bride", has always been one of my favorites. 

But of course, we had to be in the look out for Darcy as well... 

Outside the house, there were many greenhouses. In one of them, I found oranges! It was incredible to see tropical fruit being grown somewhere that is so cold!

From the greenhouses, we went through a walk on the grounds. The forest was absolutely gorgeous!

When we were hiking, we looked down to see that there was a garden maze... of course we had to try it! 

After several wrong turns and almost missing the way entirely, Audrey and I found our way to the center of the maze (and it was every bit as fun as expected). 

I hope you've been enjoying the accounts of the trip! Work hard this week, and I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving break with your families.

Shakespeare, Tolkien, and Austen - A Literary Week!

What an incredible week! Fifth grade, let me just tell you, if you ever head to England, try to give yourself more time. After being at the schools all day, and then trying to have fun at night, I've had the wind knocked out of me! Not to mention the travel over the weekends... 

Well, let's just begin with last week, shall we? When I left you last, I hadn't seen Year 6 (5th grade) yet. I got to visit their classroom on Wednesday. It was so much fun! But it did make me miss you. At this point, I've visited all the classrooms for grades K-6. I haven't gotten to tell them much about Texas yet, but I'm working on my lesson as we speak. 

Thursday night, I visited the Globe Theatre. This theatre is a recreation of the theatre where Shakespeare performed his plays with his acting company. I went with my friend Audrey and she and I had to run to make sure we got there before the sun had completely gone down! In England, the sun sets for the day around 4:30. Can you imagine it being completely black outside by 5:00 p.m.? It always makes me feel tired more quickly than I usually would. 

Anyway, we got to The Globe and went through a mini-museum about Shakespeare and the theatre. There were costumes, props, and models of the city and the theatre itself. Walking inside took my breath away. The theatre was absolutely beautiful. On the stage, a college group was doing an acting workshop, so we actually got to hear a few of Shakespeare's lines. Bonus points: Guess my favorite Shakespeare play! 

One Friday night after school, we went to the Victoria and Albert Museum. This was my favorite museum so far. There were historical pieces from many, many centuries and it had Asian, Middle Eastern, and European art and artifacts. I got to see art by Raphael - paintings so big, they were larger than our classroom! I also saw a knight's armor, vases, old clothing, and old books. My favorite part of the museum, though, was the marble sculptures. The one beneath is of Pandora with her box. Bonus points: Tell me who Pandora is! 

The next morning, we got up early and traveled to Oxford! Oxford is where some of the most famous authors and historical figures studied. Tolkien, C.S. Lewis, and a few of their friends always met at this pub (The Eagle and Child) and my friends and I actually got to have dinner there! 

While we were there, we went up in a stone tower that was over 1,000 years old. When we stepped out of the top of it, we could see the entire city. The picture below is just one example. 

Another author who studied and even wrote in Oxford was Lewis Carroll, the man who wrote Alice in Wonderland. My friends and I went to Christ College. In this dining room, he penned much of the Alice we know and love. No matter where we went, we were surrounded by history! 

One of my favorite stops was "The Kilns", the home of C.S. Lewis. Now, students from the U.S. that are studying at Oxford can stay here and study. Before I did anything else, I had to read a page or two from one of his books at the gate! 

Inside, they have recreated much of what the house would have looked like when Lewis lived there. We were able to hear the story of his family, how he lived and wrote, and the people who were most important to him. 

 In one room, the attic, they recreated what Lewis's playroom with his brother might have been like when he was young. As a nice touch, they have a Narnia wardrobe - it looks real, doesn't it?! When we finished the tour, we were all given Turkish Delight. I loved it! But I don't think I would have done what Edmund did to get to it....

The next morning, we got up before six a.m. so that we could get to our stop by eight. There were problems with the train that we usually use and our bus, so we had to walk twenty minutes to the train station and then take a bus to get to the train to get to the tour bus. We headed then to Stonehenge! For those of you that suggested it, I didn't get to touch the stones. Apparently, that was something they got to do twenty years ago, but not anymore. 

Regardless of this, It was amazing! Bitterly cold, but still incredibly fascinating. We had electronic tour guides that led us around the stones and told us about them. 

After Stonehenge, we got back on the bus and headed to Bath, England. A long time ago, this place was the only place in England with hot springs. The Romans who had come from the Mediteranean loved to come and bathe in the warm waters.  

Many of Jane Austen's novels are set in Bath, and the Jane Austen museum is there! We didn't get to go inside, because they required a tour and we were out of time. But we did get to take a picture with Jane! 

Finally, we went to Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare's birthplace. The house below was his house, and we got to walk through and learn about his family history. It was phenomenal! There's a window in the house with famous names on it of authors, actors, and others who have made the pilgrimage to his birthplace.

I hope everyone is doing well! The last exciting message of this post -- I don't get to visit Ireland, but I will be traveling up to Scotland and visiting Edinburgh! I can't wait to tell you more! 

Every Moment is Magic.

Time certainly flies when you’re having fun! My plane took off almost a week ago, and it seems like I’ve hardly had time to blink. If I told you everything, I would write a whole book. However, I will do my best to give you an overview of the trip each week.

Wednesday, we left Waco around 3:00 p.m. I was already really tired from packing and getting everything set to go, so I slept for the very short flight to DFW. From DFW, we headed on a plane over the Atlantic (about 8 hours!). For those of you that haven’t traveled overseas, they almost always have in-flight movies you can watch. My best friend and I started one at the same time so that we could watch it together.

The next morning (around 9:30 in British time), I looked out the window to see my first view of England. I was completely overwhelmed. After dreaming of this for so long, it was finally here.

We spent the first day getting settled at the Warwick, finding the schools we would be working at, and resting.

Friday morning, we woke up and headed straight into London. I did have the full English breakfast, which, for the record, is made up of a sausage, bacon, a fried egg, beans, and a cooked tomato.

 We travelled into Waterloo station and learned to use the tube (or the underground) which is like our subways. We were all given a pass that would work on the tube for the whole month! As soon as we stepped out at our first station, I saw Big Ben staring down at me.

It was massive! As promised, I took a lot of pictures. Most of them I’ll show you when I get back. As we crossed the bridge nearest Parliament, we caught a glimpse of the London Eye and a man playing the bagpipes and wearing a kilt for Remembrance Day (bonus points to the first student who can tell Mrs. Gietzen what Remembrance Day is and send me an email!).

We sight-saw for most of the day and stopped by Convent Gardens, Westminster Abbey, and Buckingham Palace. Of course, along the way, we took the obligatory telephone booth photo. (Bonus points number 2: What does obligatory mean?)

After lunch, we went to the London Eye. For those of you who asked, I got a picture from the top!

Afterwards, for those of you girls who wrote me about shopping, we went to Harrod’s, which is the most famous shopping center in London. It was huge! There were nearly six floors and it was as big as any mall you’ve ever been to. Gabby, Olivia, Kendall, Hannah – you would have died.

The next morning, we headed out to Cardiff, Wales. Eubin, I loved your idea about the Lord Mayor’s Show, but it was my best friend’s birthday, and she wanted to go to the Doctor Who Experience! Doctor Who, for those of you who don’t know, is a science fiction show that travels through space and time. It’s her favorite show, and we were able to see the actual set for one of the biggest parts of the show – the TARDIS!

We also stopped into the Cardiff Library. I can’t go anywhere without stopping at the library! It was phenomenal. From the top floor, I could see the whole city. It was an especially exciting day in Cardiff because there was a rugby game (points to the first person who can explain rugby!)

Our last stops of the day were in Bute Park and Cardiff Castle. We were too late to visit the inside of the castle, but I got a few pictures from the outside! Bute Park goes all the way around Cardiff Castle. I hope you enjoy the shots I took!

Sunday we went in to see the National Gallery. Inside, there were paintings by artists throughout the ages. I spent a good amount of time looking up Titian’s work. You should try him! Monday, I visited The Tate Museum of Modern Art. I saw paintings by Picasso and Salvador Dali. It was amazing to see those works up close.

I also got to be in my school, St. Johns. They’re all getting ready for their Christmas program right now, so there’s a good deal of rehearsing going on. They sing carols and act out the nativity. I haven’t worked with the equivalent of fifth grade (Year 6) yet, but when I do, I’ll make sure they know how excited you all were to hear about them and hear from them! On Monday I was in a Year 5 class (4^th) and this morning I was in Year 2 (1^st grade).

I can’t wait to tell you all more about it! I miss you!