Author: Lindsey

laundry day

Work Abroad

Monumental achievement today: did my first load of laundry since arrival. Total cost: £13.30. Equivalent to $21.30. Exchange rates are DUMB. I’m combining whites and darks next time I don’t even care.

Apart from that morning adventure, I have sat in my room eating cookies and pretzels, reading My Trade by Andrew Marr, and trying and failing to lay off the internet. The only reason I’ve laid around today is because I am TRYING to get research done on my term paper (due Thursday) but really, who ever heard of me getting anything done earlier than the night before? I do not understand why I even kid myself.

Tomorrow: class 9-1 and more staying in.

Camden

England

Camden Market was FANTASTIC today. Rachel, Melissa, and I were drawn to pretty much everything. Some of it was really touristy, but other stuff was chic, hip, vintage, grungy, and really cool!

And you KNEW it was cool, because they sold (replicas of) Banksy.
replicas

A pretty scene where, along the edge, they sold lots of ethnic food.
river

They had the coolest bench seats overlooking the river.
seats

Above ground market.
market1

Getting deeper.
market2

And underground. The ceiling for a music section.
guitars

The WEIRDEST store of my life. Words cannot describe what’s inside. I’m going back, obviously, to buy something just to prove that stuff it holds really exists for sale. You have no idea.
cyberdog

I can imagine most, if not all, of my shopping sprees happening in Camden. I need to say that it is a MIRACLE that I managed to not buy a single thing… except when we went back to Covent Garden and I had to buy paella.. AND cookies from Ben’s Cookies to keep my tummy happy.

All in all, a day well spent. Tonight will involve more hanging out with the girls over a pint at Imperial. Tomorrow: Cambridge and Punting!

HP Itinerary

Geeky Obsessions, Travel

This is a record for the amount of times I’ve posted in a day, but since I’m sitting in my high bed with nothing to do and no motivation to get down, I might as well write something useful.

So, after some extensive research, I’ve decided to list the locations used in the films of my beloved Harry Potter ❤ And as a personal challenge, I will try to visit as many of them as I have time to. Ready? Okay.

LONDON:
Regent’s Park Zoo: (HP1) The Zoo where Harry first learns he can talk to snakes. Tube: Camden Town
The Leaky Cauldron: (HP1) 42 Bull’s Head Passage (underneath Lloyd’s Building), Leadenhall Market (now the Glass House)
Diagon Alley: (HP1) Leadenhall Market. Tube: Monument
Millenium Bridge: (HP6) When the dementors attack Tube: Embankment
King’s Cross: (HP1) Platform 9 3/4. Actual filming between Platforms 4*&5.  Tube: King’s Cross
Gringott’s Bank: (HP1) interior of Exhibition Hall at the Australian House. Tube: Temple
Grimmauld Place: (HP5) Lincoln’s Inn Fields in an old square tucked away. Tube: Holborn

NEAR BATH:
Gloucester Cathedral: (HP1) hallway where they spy the troll, (HP2) girl’s lavatory (HP2) Enemies of the Heir Beware hallway.  Westgate Street, Gloucester GL1 1LR
Lacock Abbey: Sacristy: (HP1) Snape’s classroom, Warming Room: (HP1) DADA room, Chapter House: (HP1) Mirror of Erised. Lacock, Chippenham, Wiltshire SN15 2LG

OXFORD:
Christ Church College: (HP1) stone staircase, dining hall St Aldates, Oxford OX1 1DP
Duke Humfrey’s Library: (HP1) Restricted Section
Divinity School (downstairs): (HP1) Infirmary
Bodleian Library: (HP4) Malfoy becomes a ferret Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BG

NORTH YORKSHIRE:
Goathland Station, Goathland: Hogsmeade station.

NORTHUMBERLAND:
Alnwick Castle, Alnwick: exterior Hogwarts, Quidditch match, broomstick lesson within ramparts The Estate Office, Alnwick, Northumberland NE55 1NQ

BERKSHIRE:
4 Privet Drive: 12 Picket Post Close, Martins Heron

DURHAM:
Durham Cathedral: snowy quadrangle where Hedwig flies

EDINBURGH:
JK Rowling completed the first book here. Nicolson’s Café now Chinese restaurant 😦 However, another one of JK’s haunts, The Elephant House, still stands and a coffee with a bagel here is a must for any fan.

Work Abroad

Journalism class involved watching a media piece on coverage of the royal family, which was pretty interesting. I am really THE WORST blogger ever because I won’t tell you about any of the stuff I learned about anything, but it would take too long! Read at the library for a bit, worked on my JO358 test (which involves googling everything, and really ridiculous) I came home, took a long nap, made a HUGE pot of penne pasta, ate it! then went back to the room to read a bit. Probably going to bed early because I am a loser!

Journalismmm

Work Abroad

My journalism class today went by faster than usual, because we watched a movie on why people and the media are obsession with celebrities. Kind of interesting, anyway. Tomorrow we will be discussing the obsession with royalty. And taking a test yikes. I didn’t do much but read in the library and get some bread after class, and am now home thinking about dinner. I’m going to gain about 50lbs on this trip I swear. MLIA omg. Tonight will probably be a pub night. I think Chelsea’s playing tonight, which could get interesting.

But I don’t even care about these boring days. I cannot imagine a life out of this country.

Class at the National Gallery

Art, Class, Fashion, Museums

Today, more AH388 class at the National Gallery. We looked at van Dyck, Hogarth, Gainsborough, Rubens. After class, I ate some lunch at Harrington Gardens, did a little bit of work at the library, then headed off to Portobello Road where I bought a bag, necklace, and new headband. None were very smart buys 😦 Came home, read a little, took a nap, made some dinner and worked on my paper. Then at 9:30 I went out with the boys and girls to Sports Café, which turned out to be cheap drink-wise but was far too hot, smelly, and American. Pictures are on everyone else’s cameras.

This is pretty much the week of homework. Next week: last series of classes. Week after: exams. The first half of this semester flew. Really scary.

Stonehenge & Winchester

England

This blog is seriously the best thing to procrastinate with since the discovery of Facebook. Today: Stonehenge and Winchester. And guess what? Yup, no rain. Beautiful pictures. Happy Lindsey. The long bus ride through the countryside was enjoyable, and I was actually awake this time. Took some out-of-the-window photos, which didn’t make the cut here but I still saved them. Stonehenge was really cool but very quick. Walked around once and got back on the bus. But still managed to get pictures!
mestones1

mestones2

I give the sun credit for how this one came out.
stonehenge

Then we rode another 45 minutes to Winchester, home of the Winchester Cathedral!
cathedralinside

(I figured you could find outside photos online, so only inside ones here)
sunlight

Which holds the grave of the brilliant Jane Austen. This is her memorial, which stands right beside it. We also saw the home where she spent her final days. It was very yellow.
austenflowers

This is the Bishop of Winchester’s official residence, also: Wolvesey Castle.
castle

And up Winchester High Street, we entered the Great Hall to find King Arthur’s Round Table! 13th Century and oldddddd.
roundtable

In back, a beautiful little garden.
garden

The girls, minus Andrew, who sadly had to take the picture.
girls

Hurray!

ETA: Pictures have FINALLY been uploaded to my entries at Buckingham Palace and St. Paul’s/Covent Garden/Tower of London. Have a look!

cabin fever

Uncategorized

Today, I did not leave my room! Something I swore never, ever to let myself do here, but I did. I feel sort of bad, but after last night, not THAT bad. I slept till noon, and then laid around and read a little and relaxed a little and napped a little and surfed the net a little. Tonight, I made some more fish sticks for dinner along with some bread and butter and eventually an apple. Took a shower, uploaded some pictures from Melissa’s computer, and got ready for tomorrow: Stonehenge & Winchester! Here’s to tomorrow being much better spent.