7.31.2006
In retrospect: Weekend Update
STRATFORD UPON AVON
Saturday really began at about 1pm. We boarded the bus and headed to Stratford upon Avon. After our arrival, we were taken on a brief walking tour of the city by a member of the Royal Shakespeare Company (who will actually be performing in Love's Labours Lost for us next week). Once that was completed, we were on our own to wander. I actually wandered most of the city on my own, which made it very peaceful and undramatic!
The city itself was a joy to wander around. Rather small, there were inviting cafes, shops and sites along nearly every street in the middle of town. I visited the birthplace of Shakespeare:
I visted Holy Trinity Church, where both Shakespeare and his wife Anne are buried.
I then wandered town until my feet were so exhausted I had to take a break. Luckily, this was near the "Dirty Duck", the most famous of pubs in Stratford. During rehersals for plays, you can often find the actors grabbing a pint after a long day. Too bad I couldn't have spent an extra few days!!!
It was then time to head into the theatre.
The Tempest was amazing. The production was a very unusual interpretation of the play - causing we first timers to love it and those who had seen it before to cry foul. At any rate, it was fantastic, Patrick Stewart was amazing, and the overall experience kept me in goosebumps for a decent chunk of the production.
We returned to Oxford by about midnight, where I promptly found my pillow. But it was up and away by 9:30 the next morning, as I was off to Winchester.
WINCHESTER
Only seven of use decided to take on this trip, which actually allowed it to be a very relaxing day. I ended up wandering the city with my friends Martha and Michael. We started the day by heading over to Winchester Cathedral.
We arrived just as 11:15am mass was beginning, so we decided to stay. I think that mas my first mass in probably 10 years. And it was definitely my first high Anglican mass. Once we had suffered through our confessions and repentance, we wandered the cathedral, looking at the various monuments and tombs. This classic photo has been entitled "Martha, Michelle and Jesus." (if I lighten the photo, you can see the big crucifix hanging in the background - but you will just have to imagine)
One person buried in the church is Jane Austen - and I am seen here smiling in front of her grave. What an odd sort of picture you take at a grave. Are you really supposed to smile???
After our church visit, we headed off in search of King Arthur's Round Table. I had to take a picture in this very pose, as it is totally expected by some (ahem, Mike). So here is me, in classic Michelle form, goofing off in Winchester Castle, showing off King Arthur's Round Table.
By this point, it was after 2pm and we were starving. Found a local pub, had some food and a soda, then just wandered a few other parts of the city. We took a lovely walk down a beautiful medieval river carved through the city.
I wandered off on my own to explore some and work on some writing. In my travel's, I ran across some castle ruins;
and the home where Jane Austen died.
It was time to wrap up the day, so I retired to a park to wait for the bus.
And that was the trip to Winchester.
I hope you all enjoy the pics. OH - I shared another poem in class yesterday, but i need to fix it up before I post it here. I will probably share that tomorrow :)
7.29.2006
About to depart for Stratford-upon-Avon
Anyway, here are a few pics. Excuse me if I don't have all the names down yet. My mind gets a bit foggy when it comes to names, so i may not have a title for everyone in the photos!!!!
Here is the group of ladies that embarked on ladies night Wednesday. We hit a restaurant called "Old Orleans" which specializes in American food. For us, that meant fajitas. Which I guess are Mexican food, but Americanized, then made English here in Oxford. Even after all the interpretation, the end product was quite tasty :)
This my friend Abbi and I about to enjoy our tower o'fajitas. Abbi is just finishing her undergrad degree at Vanderbilt.
After dinner, we all went to a nightclub called Escape. Notice in the photos that it is still light outside - these photos were taken between 9 and 10pm. The sun does not set until late here.
That's the whole group I have been running around with here. Crazy group of ladies!!!
And here are just some random shots from the evening:
The photo above is Jordan, Abbi and myself. Laura - I don't know if you read any of the Chicago gossip columns, but Jordan writes one in some local magazine in your area! She reports on the comings and goings of celebrities and socialites in downtown...
Excuse my double chin in this photo. This picture is one of my favorite type - the arm outstretched self group portrait. I'm straining a bit here to reach out and take the photo. It's a bit cute anyway...
Mandy is on the left, and she is one of the programme's administrators. Then Jordan, Martha, one of the Indian women here (I can hardly pronounce her name, let alone spell it - once I find the correct spelling, I will post it here). In the back is Heidi.
Okay folks, I need to go grab some cash (yet again - I think there is a hole in my wallet) and wait for the bus to Stratford. I look forward to telling you all about the play when I return.
Ciao!
7.27.2006
Show and tell
If you feel like you want to, let me know what you think (good or bad). So, here goes:
Scissors
by Michelle Newman
Take this here, take this there
Put it away.
Return it to the place it belongs.
But it longs to be used
To slice, to cut.
Not to lay dormant and unmoved.
Hallway dark and shadowed
Its cave hidden.
The journey too long to bear.
The shine of the metal
Glimmering so.
The handle fits perfect in the palm.
Fingers grasp the device
Holding firmly.
Walking, moving down the hallway.
Arriving so quickly
No time to think.
The weapon moves to its prey.
Sliding soft between blades
The plastic sheet.
A smooth slice is made in the curtain.
Stopping and listening
I did nothing.
There was no decision to make.
Shaken and afraid of -
Of punishment.
But it was not my choice.
Made to alter and cut
The job was done.
No fault of mine for its function served.
Left to its resting place
Fleeing the scene.
I am no culprit but an accessory to purpose.
That is my first poem in a very long time! I will probably clean it up a bit and maybe add a few more stanzas, but overall I am pretty happy with it. And if you don't know the backstory, the poem is based on a little incident when I was about 6 years old, and Mom had just purchased a brand new shower curtain. She had asked me to take the scissors and return them to a drawer in the bathroom. Upon arriving at the location, for some unknown reason, I cut the shower curtain - to Mom's serious dismay. The poem above is a recollection of that event. The assignment was to write about a childhood confession. Here I attempt to "confess" the shower curtain was cut, but I take no responsibility for the actual cutting. I blame it on the scissors. What a silly girl am I.
I hope you guys enjoyed it. Hopefully there will be something a bit more substantial to share later!!!!
7.26.2006
More photos
Here is a photo of me in my room with my window to the quad in the background. Not a bad view! And please excuse my glistening from the sweat accumulated after hiking through London with a 70 pound suitcase, taking a bus 45 minutes to Oxford, then carrying the damn suitcase up two flights of stairs to its home. I was smelly and feeling gross by this point...
Here is yet another glisteny self portrait taken while I was out on one of my morning walks. It is still rather steamy here, so again, I have a "European Glow" - I'm not "sweating." The building in the background is the Radcliffe Camera. I didn't see a shutter anywhere - so I'm not sure why they call it a camera. (Terrible joke, I know). I am taking a walking tour of Oxford on Friday, so I should be able to give you the building's full story on the weekend.
My weekend plans are shaping up nicely. Friday morning I have a half hour tour of Exeter, and that afternoon, I have a two hour walking tour of Oxford. Saturday I am off to Stratford upon Avon for a town tour and an exciting performance of The Tempest by the Royal Shakespeare Company (http://www.rsc.org.uk/onstage/plays/2193.aspx). Patrick Stewart is starring - which I am thrilled about. I had no idea Captain Jean Luc Picard was a character from Shakespearean drama!!!! (you don't have to laugh - but I know you giggled) Sunday I am off to Winchester for the day to see Winchester Cathedral and King Arthur's Round Table.
Jane Austen is buried in the Cathedral, which is fitting for my current studies. Since I must humbly admit I have never read Jane Austen, immediately after class last night, I went to the book store and bought Pride and Prejudice and Mansfield Park. I am over 100 pages into P&P. yay, me. Once those are done, I will be shifting to Bronte's Wuthering Heights. Yes, folks, I be readin some books here in Englund. Actually, I need to get these knocked out so I can hold a knowledgable conversation with any Oxford literature professor without them thinking I am a brute from the USA.
Ok, I better get back to work. I have to buff up my poen for its grand debut in class later. I look forward to sharing it with you. cheerio, ol chaps.
7.25.2006
Finally, some photos...
To lighten the mood a bit (at least for me - as I have two writing assignments patiently waiting for me to complete), I will share some of my photos. YAY! I have been looking forward to posting these, but today was the first day I could get them transferred from the laptop to the computer lab where I have internet access. So here is a small glimpse at my stay in England so far.
The photos above are of my lovely room here on Staircase 13 at Exeter. The first set of open doors on the left hand side of the bottom photo are my sink basin. The other set of open doors is my closet!
And currently, the photo loader here in the blog has just crapped out on me. I promise I will add more photos later tonight or tomorrow!!!!!
7.23.2006
Checked in at Oxford
I have been taking photos here myself, but I haven't put them on a drive to send them over to the computer lab at the University. Just to give you an idea on where I am, here are some photos I found on the internet - and they adequately represent what I have seen so far. First, here is a photo of the main quad at Exter. This photo is taken from the back corner of the quad, facing the entrance of the college and of the chapel.
The next photo is of the dining hall. So far, this is the coolest room I have found here. We had our opening dinner here tonight, and we actually have all of our meals in the space. It is definitely as cool as it appears here. Once I can post my own photos, I will!
My classmates seem great so far - people from all over the world. There are students from Argentina, Greece, Bermuda, Australia, England, USA, India, Sri Lanka, Japan - and that is just all I can remember at the moment. I truly believe that this will be a wonderful experience.
But it is now 11:20pm here, and I should wrap up and get a good night's sleep. Classes start tomorrow, and I want to sound semi-intelligent. Hope everyone is well, and I look forward to hearing from you!
7.22.2006
I made it!!!
UPDATE: So, I took a bit of a nap for a few hours, which I think was well used. I managed to find a "Shakespeare Pub" where I had a lovely apple chutney and cheddar sandwich with chips - and a guiness of course. Still trying to figure out a way to call home though - that hasn't worked out so well to this point....
7.20.2006
My itinerary
http://www.thewestminsterhotel.com/
10:40am
Approx
http://www.conted.ox.ac.uk/courses/international/creativewriting.asp
Monday, July 23 –9:30am Check out of room at
Hotel The Westminster Hotel
Sunday, August 13, 2006
9:00am Depart hotel for
http://www.la-boheme-amsterdam.com/
Hotel The Westminster Hotel