Time to go?

Well it is official... the semester is over. I had my exam yesterday (which I am confident that I did pretty well!) and my bags are almost packed. And now upon the eve of my departure, I reflect upon the memories of the semester... the things I miss at home and the things I will miss when I leave. I have very mixed emotions and have a pit in my stomach.

This semester was amazing. I think I will reflect upon what I learned in my next blog, which I will write when I get home. Instead, I will try to be positive and think about what I miss from home so I do not have to think about leaving these amazing people and wonderful town.

First of all, I really miss the people at home. Some more than others, and so I will not name names so nobody feels excluded. You know who you are anyway.

I really miss open space. The freedom of a back yard or grass in front of the campus building is refreshing. I miss being able to walk on grass or pick wild flowers. I miss trees that grow in yards and boulevards.

I miss the US dollar. When I get home, I will think everything is so cheap. The pound really hurts, but I still do have money left over, so I guess it wasn't horrible. Still, I look forward to not having to double the price in my head.

I miss the Mississippi River. Although I frequently visit the Thames, the Mississippi is my home and school river. It is a close friend.

I miss Minnesota in general. The twins, the Packer trash talk, the right way of talking... People in England and from the East and West coast of the US just don't know how to talk! Just kidding. I have become very aware of American accents. When I'm here and hear an American...I yell out, "That's an American!"

I miss the laxness of our society. I miss the annoying loud cars and ipod earphones. I miss the business of the St Cloud campus.

I miss Target and other stores that I can buy a variety of items for fairly cheap. It is so convenient to have a big store and one-stop shopping.

I miss American portions of food and American food in general. I think I have gained weight here because we don't eat very often and then our portions aren't good so eat a lot of snacks. The meat here is different, and I just want American beef. I miss American pop and American produce.

Looking at all this, I really don't miss any of it too much (besides the people that is). I am forcing myself to look at it like this. I will miss the culture here so much. I like the idea of going to a pub for an hour. I like walking to a kabab stand at night. I like that I live in the same buildings as my best good friends. I like the convenience of always having them here. I do miss my phone, though... things would be a lot easier if I could call people.. especially Jonathan. I will miss watching British TV and chatting with our junior dean. I will miss the British lectures and system of education. I will miss public transportation. I will miss the business of Cornmarket Street and all the musicians on the street. I will miss the spontaneous planning of a day or weekend trip; the easiness of going to another country for cheap! And I will miss saying that I am a University student and all the privileges that go with that. I will miss learning of the history of Oxford.. I still know so little! And of course, I will miss the friends I have here.

I came to Oxford unsure of how I would like it socially. I was surprised and happy to find the people I now call my friends. I first bonded with Hannah, then Kristen, then Rashelle, Brittany, and Sean. My roommate, Sarah, has also been amazing and I enjoy all the time we spend talking in our room. We have had our ups and downs, our fights and drama. But we are all still friends now. There is tension and sometimes, especially recently, I think it is probably a good idea that we will have a bit of separation... things got a little overwhelming with just issues that I don't need to get into. Anyway, as we pack our stuff, I can't help but be terribly sad. It doesn't seem real that we will be 500-1000 miles apart in just a day. Each of these people have given me something that I cannot explain. We have our fun and inside jokes, and underneath there is support that makes me know that we will always keep in touch. This support and these friendships are different from any I have had before; I am trying to watch my words so I don't offend anyone, at home or here. Just know that this was not what I expected, but I love it. And I know that things will always change, but I love the time we had together so much and am so thankful that God put people like you into my life :)

So this is probably enough of a blog for now. I will reveal the deeper issues of what I learned later. For now, I must soak up the last 14 hours I have in Oxford.

I've Done So Much...

Hello again. It has almost been a month since my last entry. Visitors came, I left the UK, and now finals have begun... so my life has been non-stop... and I love it! And I will try to catch y'all up!



So soon after my last post, my Jonathan came to visit me; he arrived on Saturday the 15th. When he got here, we relaxed for the rest of the day. Then on Sunday, 16th, we went to London. We went to Kings Cross Station, home of Platform 9 3/4, St Paul's Cathedral, the Shakespeare Globe Theatre, the PRIME MERIDIAN, Big Ben/Parliament, and Buckingham Palace.

(Above: Jonathan and I at Platform 9 3/4; To the Left: Me at the Prime Meridian)


We tried to go to a club, but missed the free entry time by four minutes. So we ate at Pizza Hut instead and caught the train back to Oxford. The next day, lectures began. In the afternoon, we went around Oxford. Then Tuesday, 18th, we took a run to Wolvercote Cemetery, to pay respects to the dear writer, John Ronald Ruel Tolkien. On the way there, Jonathan rolled his ankle, but he kept going, despite the pain, but it bothered him the rest of the trip. Then we had a nice dinner at C. S. Lewis' Pub, the Eagle and Child. On Wednesday there was a field trip for us CMRS students. Happily, there was an extra seat and so Jonathan got to come! We went to Hampton Court Palace. It was first lived in by Henry VIII, and is south east of London on the Thames. It consists of three large courtyards and huge gardens. Our professor lead us through the kitchens, and we toured the state apartments and gardens on our own. There was also an exhibit of Katherine of Aragon (Henry's first wife) and Caesar (kind of random for an English palace). It was a fun day. On Thursday, we just hung out in Oxford again. Our librarians threw a social, and Jonathan got to come. I think he enjoyed listening to their stories. Mrs Fenley attended college when Clinton did, and apparently she and her friends were invited to Paris for the weekend with him. Thankfully, she declined. Then sadly, he left on Friday the 21 :(







(To the Right: Hampton Court Palace)





About two hours later, my mother arrived in Oxford. We walked around the city and called it a day. Then on Saturday, 22nd, my mom and I went to London. We saw the changing of the guard, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, Tower Bridge, and the Tower of London. On Easter Sunday, Mom and I went to Stratford-upon-Avon, where Shakespeare was born. We saw his birthplace, the place where his New Place home stood, the Nash Home, the Hall-Croft home, and Holy Trinity Church, where Shakespeare is buried. There was an amazing little diner/cafe that had chocolate croissant, which was huge and covered in warm, yummy chocolate :) ! Then on Monday, Mom and I went to London again to find a tour bus. And man did we hop on a good tour.



(To the Left: Mom and I in front of Shakespeare's home; Below: Windsor Castle)




First we went to Windsor Castle, the summer home of the royal family. It is also their vacation place and so they were all there for Easter! Because of that, we couldn't tour the state apartments (that, and the fact that an important Frenchman was coming), but we did see Queen Anne's Doll House and St George's Chapel, where many of the more recent of the royal family are buried. Then we went to Bath, home of the Roman Bath. The water is naturally heated by the Earth and once bubbled out of the Earth in a bog. The waters are said to have healing powers. Legend has it that a prince was once banished from London because he had leprosy. He became a pig herder; his pigs then developed leprosy. His pigs wandered into the swamp and the prince could not get them out. He went in after them and as he carried them out, he noticed that they were pink and healthy. He then examined his own skin and found it pink and healthy. He was accepted back into London with his father, the King. The Romans turned this ancient bog into a magnificent bath. Once the Romans left, it lay deserted for many years. Then in the eighteenth century, Queen Anne visited bath because she was frequently sick and heard the legend. From that point on, Bath became a fashionable city for the nobles. The whole town was built from the same stone (Bath stone) and most of the buildings are in the Georgian style (many houses in a row). I love Rome, and this city looks Roman, and so this was amazing.



(To the Right: The Roman Bath)





Our next stop was the one I was looking forward to the most: Stonehenge! We walked around this circle of old rocks and it was amazing! We couldn't walk within the circle, but we did get to touch some rocks and feel the power of the ancient Welsh stones. I think it was wonderful... which is good because I had heard bad reviews about it.

(Below: Stongehenge)



On Tuesday, 25th, we went to Blenheim Palace. It is really beautiful and the gardens are supposed to be spectacular, but we were tired and didn't feel like walking around. We took a tour of the palace and headed back to Oxford. We ate at the Eagle and Child to celebrate a good trip. She left on Wednesday and shortly after I left to go back to Bath with CMRS.





(To the Right: Blenheim Palace; Below: Cologne Cathedral and bridge from across the river)









Bath the second time was fun. I got to see more of the town and see the expressions of my friends when they admired the work of the Romans. The next day, I relaxed, but felt lonely. I went on a field trip in Oxford to Merton Library, one of the oldest libraries in Oxford. On Friday, 30, I started preparing myself for the weekend. I had to read a book and pack. Pack for where, you ask... Germany! We left Friday night at one and arrived in Germany around 10:30 am. Kristen, Rashelle, Sean, and I had to wait for until 1230 to catch a bus to Cologne. Cologne was amazing and beautiful. When we got there, we found our hostel and then went to go get some good German food! We found a biergarten that was wonderful! Our waiter translated the menu. I had a french pizza-like thing; it was good. Then we wandered around town and found a carnival-like thing that had chocolate covered strawberries. I didn't get any, but I tried Rashelle's and they were amazing. The next day, we visited the Cologne Cathedral. We climbed the spire, which was the tallest building in Europe until the Eiffel Tower. Then we ate lunch, I got snitchel.. yum! We rode cable cars across the river and walked around the city more. We ate at a pub for dinner (coincidently named St Peters, the college where we eat here in Oxford) and then headed back to the Carnival for chocolate covered strawberries. This time, I got some. Fresh and delicious. The next morning, Monday 31st, we headed to Frankfurt, the place where Rashelle was born. We traveled by train and the countryside was beautiful; there were castles on top of many of the hills! Frankfurt, despite its reputation, was beautiful and very German. We visited the Cathedral and then walked around town because the river cruises and museums were closed. But we ate Frankfurters and stopped at another cute restaurant. We then went back to the airport and then to Oxford.





(To the Right: A view downstream of Cologne; Below: A square in Frankfurt, by City Hall, with the Cathedral in the background)





We missed a colloquium on Monday, and had to write a three page paper because of it. So I stayed up when we got home at 4am and finished it. After that, there was no reason to sleep, so I stayed up. I planned to nap after lecture, but wasn't tired. Tuesday night I went to pub quiz, which is a quiz at a pub... very complicated name, I know. It wasn't my first time going, but I haven't mentioned it until now. We go with our junior dean and, as Americans, struggle to answer the questions. But we usually do quite well and it is fun to go and just hang out. Wednesday we had our last field trip. We went to Kenilworth Castle, which was owned by a lover of queen Elizabeth. The Castle lies in ruins, but it is still magnificent. Then we went to Stratf0rd-upon-Avon. We saw Shakespeare's birthplace and grave site. When my mom first came, I was a little sad that I would have to repeat trips. But I am really glad I went with her because we didn't get to see much of Stratford. On Thursday, I tried starting my final paper. Yesterday, I went punting, which involves pushing a boat with a big stick. We had so much fun punting! It was really hard to steer the boat and halfway through the current switched and we had to push hard to keep going forward! The person punting stands up and in my boat we took turns so everyone who wanted to could have a chance. We struggled again to make it back to the boathouse, but we made it! Along the way, we hit the bank many times, got made fun of by British people who passed by, got videotaped by the British who thought we were comical, went backward for half the trip because it was too hard to flip around, ran into two or three trees that forced me to duck and jump back in the boat, dropped the pole in the water, and got all wet and muddy. Another boat of CMRS students, however, struggled greatly. We passed them when the current shifted and waited a half hour for them. We saw them coming in, but then the never showed up. They disappeared. Then another half hour later, the same thing happened. They called for help, for they couldn't punt in, but the boathouse was busy so they had to wait. I found it somewhat comical, but I guess they were freaking out. Now don't you freak out, the water is only four to seven feet deep and the crew did promise to go get them soon. Finally, after some more time, a guy went out there and punted them in. They were a little weary, but I think they had fun. Then we went to New College, where Hugh Grant went to school. It was beautiful, but also made a very long day. To end that, we went to the club one last time. Today I have been trying to type my paper. I also napped, boy did I need that! Now I am wasting homework time to keep you up to date, but I don't feel like writing anyway. I'll figure it out tomorrow!

Things I have learned (or that slightly refreshed my memory):
I can navigate through London pretty well... almost got it down!
It is always cold when there is a field trip or I go somewhere with a guest
It is possible to survive in Germany without knowing German... so I shouldn't have freaked
When punting, be prepared to be laughed at, don't wear nice clothes, don't feed the ducks, be prepared to hit the shore, don't fall off, and don't drop the silly pole!
Writing a 2000 word paper isn't that bad... so relax and work steady to enjoy Oxford!

More Pics to come (I'm tired, Time for bed!)