Entry 3: July 25, 2008

I cannot believe we have been in London for almost four weeks now, and
I will be home in just a few more days. This last week is not a very busy one for me aside from school work. However this is nice; it gives me time to reflect on all that I have seen and done here.

Last weekend we had a free day so Sarah, Kelley, Chelsie and I flew over to Dublin, Ireland. The first day there I fell deathly ill, well that might be an exaggeration, but it seemed like I was dying at the time. We walked around for the city to get a feel for things before we could check into our hostel. On our walk we found the Hard Rock Café and had lunch. Once we were able to finally check in I had to rest. Being sick is no fun but being sick is Ireland when you are only there for two days is even worse. The next day I was feeling better so we went to check out some sights. Our first stop was Christ Church of Dublin.

The building alone dates back to 1030. It is a beautiful gothic-inspired building, made almost completely of stone and looks its age. We made our way around the church fascinated by all of the by all of the Celtic design and details. I stopped at the Peach Chapel of St. Laud, named for a 5th century bishop. I lit a candle for my friends and family at home. It was very interesting and unexpected, but while everyone was checking out the cathedral on a Saturday, a priest came out and led a prayer from the pulpit. Everyone simply got quiet and listened; when he was done we all went about our touring. I did see one display that caught my eye because of its randomness. It was of a mummified cat and mouse. Apparently while the cat was chasing the mouse they both got caught in the organ pipe. They date back to the mid 1800s.

After we finished at the church we made our way to St. James's Gate Brewery, home of Guinness. Arthur Guinness, we learned, leased this factory in 1759 for 9,000 years paying only 45 pounds a year. The factory was eight stories tall. As we made our way up we learned that the main components of Guinness are water, barely, hops and yeast. At the top floor was the Gravity bar. Here if we chose to we were able to in enjoy one of Arthur's creations, responsibly, while overlooking the city of Dublin. The view was incredible, and I think we might have even found our hotel from up there.

I returned from Ireland still pretty worn out, but with only one more week of classes left. We had a class speaker come for our Muslims in the UK class on Monday. Our speaker was Councilor Tariq Ahmad. He is a member of the Conservative party here in England and represents the Wimbledon Park Ward. He spoke to our class about issues he deals with both as a Muslim and government official. I could see how he would make a wonderful politician, he was very well spoken. Out of everyone I have heard speak between the two classes, Mr. Ahmad was by far my favorite. He made valid points to back up everything, and was quite witty. It was an enjoyable day of class.

Entry 2: July 17, 2008

I have been keep very busy in London. This is easy to do in a city of this size and diversity. Last week was spent running around going to requirements. It just so happens these requirements are the highlights of London.

Sarah and I went to the British Museum, which was packed full of history and school groups. I got a chance to see the Rosetta Stone. I found out from the audio guide that this stone was found by Napoleon's soldiers in 1799. Before this time modern scholars were unable to decipher Egyptian Hieroglyphs. This stone contained Egyptian hieroglyphs, Egyptian demotic script and Greek. The Greek allowed for the decoding of the Egyptian writing. It is since this time we have developed a better understanding of the ancient Egyptian people and culture. I can still remember learning about the Rosetta Stone in middle school, so to be that close to something that significant was pretty incredible. The British Museum is filled with impressive artifacts this one just happens to be my favorite.

Another requirement that turned out to be incredibly interesting was the Cabinet War Rooms of Winston Churchill during World War II. I learned that during WWII Churchill worked out of the basement of the Treasury building. I was shocked to discover that this tiny space had to accommodate over 500 people. The tight quarters were difficult to maneuver at times, and were very grim with the lack of natural light.

The most interesting room was the phone room used to call the president of the United States. This room was concealed to look like a restroom, not even the workers knew what this room was used for. I was surprised to find out that the phones were colored coded, and all of the secure phone lines, in the war rooms, were marked by green receiver.

In the Churchill Museum there was section of famous quotes by Churchill. My favorite was in a conversation between him and Lady Nancy Astor. The quote shows just how quick witted and charming Churchill was.

Lady Nancy Astor: Winston, if I were your wife, I'd poison your tea.

Churchill: Nancy, if I were your husband, I'd drink it.

Sarah and I also made it out to see “The Lion King.” This musical was absolutely marvelous. You had better believe that every song from the movie I sang along to. I have not seen the musical in the United

State but I have a chance to compare the two. I only noticed one British accent in the entire cast, which surprised me.

On Sunday the entire group went to a service at St. Paul's Cathedral. St. Paul's Cathedral belongs to the Church of England, which is something I did not know before partaking in the service. The service reminded me a great deal of a Catholic mass. I discovered that this Cathedral has been the site of worship since 604 AD, which is quite a long time. I was able to not only follow along but I also found the service to be quite enjoyable. The members of the church made me feel welcome and even announced they were pleased to have a group of Meredith College students.

I am so excited because of the travel break that we have this upcoming weekend. Three others girls and I will be flying to Ireland!

Entry 1: July 9, 2008

Sarah and I finally made it to London, England. We spent a few days in
Paris, France seeing all the highlights. We have been going, going, going since our arrival in London. The first day we did a huge bus tour that showed us an overview of the city. Most of the girls had been up for over 24 hours so needless to say didn't take in everything. Our classes started the next day. I am taking Muslims in the UK and it is very interesting to see how our readings relate to the places we visit.

The weather the first few days was great, sunshine almost every day, since then however it has been kind of downhill, with rain almost every day. We have been visiting all kinds of places for our IDS class, few include; the British Museum, Tate Modern, Imperial War Museum, and Kensington Palace. I have also seen two theater shows, “Major Barbara” and “The Lion King.” By far the best thing that I have done while here was go see Wimbledon. I love tennis and went one day with Sarah, we just paid the general admission and watched the matches from the Jumbo Screen outside Court 1. However, I was able to get a ticket to the women's finals on Saturday. I watched Venus Williams play her sister Serena Williams in the finals. This was the most amazing thing I have ever seen and I am so happy I went, even if it was all by myself! I had to watch the men's finals from the TV room at our dorms but you better believe I saw every point!

Another thing that I have really enjoyed is going to the British Parliament. Even though I am not taking the Parliament class, John Rose invited everyone to go. The first visit we got to sit in on both the House of Lords and the House of Commons. We also got the opportunity to meet with some members of Parliament.

Tomorrow I am headed to Brighton with some other girls. I will be excited to see what the beaches are like here in comparison to North Carolina.