Breaking buses and beauty

Day four of the coach tour, and I am sitting in the dining area of the Clachaig Inn in the boonies of Scotland! It is 2.5 miles from Glencoe, deep in the Scottish highlands, and it is completely lovely and unspoiled by man’s “improvements.”

I suppose I should start where I left off though, which was on day two of our tour, in the town of York. Saturday evening we went on a ghost tour of the town. I got scared only once, when our guide suddenly yelled. The ghost stories were pretty cool though. Our guide was an excellent storyteller, and it was clear he enjoys his job. I am not sure if I believe in the classic “ghost” but I do know that there are unexplainable sights, sounds, and visitations, if you will, that could definitely be explained away as ghost activity. After the tour, four of us went out to a club. My friend Megan has wanted to go dancing ever since we have been in Britain, and we finally obliged her in York. We went to a place down by the river called Club Salvation, and spent about three hours dancing. The clubs in the UK are different: the music is very homogenous, while in the US there is always a great mixture of hip-hop, country, techno, and other types of music; the people don’t really dance, they just kind of gyrate, and such gyrations are done in single gender groups; and there is much more drinking of alcohol than I’ve ever seen in any club in Texas. Most people in Texas don’t take their drinks out onto the dance floor, while these Brits do. Consequently, there were broken bottles and liquid all over the floor! Regardless, it was fun to do something that wasn’t scheduled for us. Though we stayed up much too late, and have been paying for it the past few days with incredible fatigue!

Sunday we had breakfast in our hotel. I tried black pudding for the first time. I asked what was in it, and the waitress told me “pig’s blood,” and I stopped her right there. But I tried it all the same! The taste was good, but I just could not get over the fact that I was eating pig’s blood and other “undesirable” parts of animals. I nearly vomited, so I stopped after one bite. The rest of my full English was lovely though! I like having baked beans for brekkie.

After breakfast we loaded up the coach, checked out, and then headed to York Minster for matins. I find sung services very boring and dry…

Then we drove to Edinburgh! We stayed in the Murrayfield Hotel out on the edge of town. We had dinner there, and I had some gourmet macaroni and cheese. Quite delicious. The evening was spent in my room with Diana and Megan watching The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement and snacking. Before we realized it, it was 12:30 am. So much for going to bed early and catching up on the sleep lost the night before at the club! We had to go to breakfast at 7:30! I refused to try the haggis. J We loaded up the coach, and took a bus tour of the city with a guide in a kilt named David. There was just too much to see of the city and not enough time. We ended up at Edinburgh Castle and took a short tour. Then we had 2 hours on our own. We spent one hour in the castle exploring and taking pictures, then walked down the hill to the Elephant Café, where J.K. Rowling began Harry Potter. The food actually was good, and the place wasn’t kitchy at all. It has maintained a unique charm, not changing the décor or general atmosphere to fit with the famous series it is linked to. I really liked that about it. We passed an Italian place that did takeaway ice cream. We just had to stop. I got amaretto flavor. The guy tending it was young Scotsman named Kris, and he was very nice. He even gave us a discount on our treats. Back to the coach, and onwards!

We stopped several times on the way to the highlands. It is a law here that coach drivers must stop and rest for thirty minutes every two hours. We stopped at Loch Ness for one of our thirty minute stops. I did not see Nessie, unfortunately.

About forty-five minutes out from our final destination of Glencoe, the o-ring in the bus broke. Which means no more bus… We were stranded for a few hours until our savior in the form of Willy Stewart came with his bus to rescue us and carry us to Clachaig Inn. We finally arrived at 10:45 pm. No going to bed early again! They had prepared our dinner for us, and had been keeping it warm for a while, so we took our bags up to our room and then headed back down for a meal. I had ordered salmon with veggies and potatoes. Very good, though my dad makes better salmon! We didn’t have our luggage because it was stuck in the cargo hold because the hydraulics system was broken and the doors would not open. So we just had to do without our toiletries and sleepytime clothes, and horrors, no brushed teeth. Willy again saved us when he delivered our luggage at 11:45 this morning!!

We had a free day today, which was primarily meant for our driver, Paul, to rest. Unfortunately he had to stay with the bus all night and day, and the bus still isn’t fixed. So Willy will be our driver for a little while until Paul can get rested and the coach fixed.

I spent the day outside, enjoying the unprecedented summer-like weather Scotland is experiencing. I was just fine in athletic shorts and a t-shirt today! Sunny all day, and just perfect weather. We walked to the village of Glencoe, realized that nothing is really there, and then walked back. We did enjoy the beautiful scenery, and sat at the Massacre Monument and had a hodgepodge picnic lunch while soaking in the clean highland air and sunlight. It reminds me a lot of Colorado with the mountains and water streams and the heather all over the ground. No moose here though.

We had a fabulous dinner again, this time I ordered the Cajun salmon. This was better than the other salmon, and maybe it could give dad a run for his money. I’ve decided I want to be a pescetarian, which is vegetarian that eats fish. Fish don’t have feelings, and they are good protein. Other types of meat, especially what we eat in the US, are just kind of gross. I’m thinking of sausage at the moment. Sausage is probably worse than black pudding or haggis, but we eat it because, well, we don’t know what is in it. Ignorance is bliss. Disgusting  bliss though. We’ll see how this goes…

Well, that is a very general recap of the past few days. So sorry it has taken a while to post anything, the internet is very spotty everywhere we have been staying. Pictures will be added later, hopefully tomorrow! I don’t have my camera with me, and I am feeling a bit lazy and don’t want to go upstairs to procure it. I am going to post this, and then go upstairs and GO TO BED!! It is 9:30, and I am so tired. I am also getting a nasty hacking cough. So I need all the rest (and prayers) that I can get!! We are off to the lake district of England tomorrow!

Cheers,

Faith 

A Research Paper Length Survey Into My Life

Yesterday, I went to sleep at 2 am. Not a perfectly brilliant idea, as I arose at 7:30 to shower and finish packing. At 9am, I was outside and on our coach, ready to embark on our 10 day tour of Northern England, Scotland, and Wales! We travelled to Stratford-upon-Avon, Shakespeare’s hometown, stopping at an English-style rest area on the way. Their travel stops have a grocery store, café, book and magazine store, and even places to buy clothing and accessories. Because everyone needs to buy a leather purse while on a road trip. Diana and I bought some fruit and I purchased a salad in the Marks & Spencer grocery. Goodness, that place is expensive! 

We soon arrived in Stratford, parking beside the Avon River to make a quick trip to Holy Trinity parish to see where Shakespeare and his family are buried. After taking some photos and admiring the stained glass, we headed to walk around the town. 

We ended up sitting by the river reading. I read The Hunger Games, which I literally read in about three hours, and Diana continued reading The Irresistible Revolution by the wonderful Shane Claiborne, a prominent social activist and leader, as well as a member of the New Monastic community, The Simple Way, in inner-city Philadelphia. He is one of my heroes, someone worth imitating. I should mention that he is committed to the imitation of Jesus Christ! Anyhow, I read that book a year and a half ago, and it messed me up, in a wonderfully blessed and good way. If you want to be challenged, go borrow a copy. I have one J Diana stops reading every so often to close her eyes and, I imagine, to pray. She says daily how much the book is challenging her and stretching her views and beliefs. After about 20 glorious minutes of soaking in the sunlight by the river, we went back to the coach to head to the next attraction. 

In the park there were some highschool age boys playing what looked like hackeysack with a soccer ball. They were all still wearing their uniforms of slacks, button downs, and ties. Most of the girls on the trip couldn’t help but admire the novelty of ten English boys dressed like that and playing in the park. I imagine they thought they were pretty cute J. I was more enthralled with the cute doggies that were playing in the park with their owners. I miss my boyfriend terribly. I don’t even have the desire to “check out” other guys. I suppose that is partly growing up and  becoming more mature, and partly because when you’ve found someone like I have, you want nothing more than to save your smiles for him, save your glances and giggles for him. 

We piled back on the coach and drove about ten minutes to the farm of Mary Arden, Shakespeare’s mum. It is a work Tudor farm, with sheep, goats, a horse, falconry, pigs, chickens and ducks, and cows. The air was so nice! Being out of London and on a farm was just a godsend for the senses. There was a veggie garden that hadn’t produced anything yet, but you could tell it was planted for the season. The grass and the animals and orchards were just so nice. I miss the country of Texas. I love that in Texas you can drive thirty minutes and be in a city or the sticks of the country. 

I suppose I could wax poetic all about the pleasures of being in nature and the sunlight, but you can read the previous posts for that! Just suffice it to say that all I need to be happy is sunlight, a garden, and library. Oh, and of course the people that make my life amazing! And Jesus. Goodness, I love him… There isn’t much else that makes me happier than standing (or sitting or kneeling or any body posture really) in his presence and enjoying him. I find that when I “forget” to pray, read my Bible, or just sit and be with him, that something integral is missing from my heart. It is like part of what makes me me is lying dormant and cold. Just thinking of him begin to warm it up again, purposing to be with him unfreezes the soil of my heart, and meditating and enjoying him lets the garden begin to bloom again.

We fully enjoyed the farm for a few hours, acting like kids again and taking some silly pictures, and watched a falconry display with Izzy the barn owl and Brennan the European eagle owl. Then we again piled on the coach and drove back into Stratford to unload and go to our respective hotels. Diana and I stayed in a twin room at a cute B&B called Ashgrove Inn. After being in a hostel for two months, I felt like we had checked into the Waldorf when we entered room 1. We had our own bathroom and the beds were soft! We immediately figured out where to eat, using the handy “Welcome to Stratford” binder that was filled with leaflets of local places. 

We decided on a restaurant called AvonSpice, which is Indian and Bangladeshi. We called ahead to reserve, but when we arrived we saw that wasn’t exactly necessary: There was no one there! But better safe than sorry, right? I am generally ignorant of Indian food, never having ventured past curries. I think our waiter thought we were rather silly! I got a lamb tikka curry, which was incredibly mild. But still, very good! At the end of the meal, the owner brought us complimentary Bailey’s Irish Cream. Well, the funny thing is… Megan does not drink alcohol, like, ever, which I totally respect! And Diana had never had anything either. And I am giving up alcohol for Lent. However, because it was on the house, I felt it would be rude not to drink it. So I drank mine and Megan’s! Diana did what I did, and drank the whole shot at once. That was pretty funny, because it has whiskey in it, and it burns a bit going down. She didn’t expect it at all! It wasn’t too strong though, so I suppose a good first drink? (Don’t feel obligated to drink it again if you don’t want to, Di!) Anyway, the Indian place was yummy! We had to run to the Royal Shakespeare Theater because the curtains were at 7:15, and we didn’t get our bill until 7:00. But we made it!

We saw Twelfth Night, which is a hilarious comedy. I found myself comparing it to “She’s the Man” half the time, though it really isn’t the same. They modernized it a tiny bit, wearing modern costumes and having modern things like a motorized cart, telephone, and disco ball used during the performance. The funniest (and perhaps grossest?) part of the performance was when Marvolio came onto the stage wearing the “yellow stockings, cross gartered.” What was hilarious about it is that the stockings went up above the knees, then the garters were leather, and all of his privates were stuffed into a leather cup thing, while his butt was completely naked! He had to waddle around stage. The point was to make Marvolio look like a total idiot. I’d say, “Mission accomplished.” You’d have to see it to understand.

After the performance, I went back to our hotel and quickly got to bed. Oh my goodness, the lack of sleep had caught up to me! I slept well on our lovely beds.

And that, my dears, was my first day on the coach tour. Right now, I am on the coach typing on my laptop. We are headed to York, which is still two and a half hours away. This morning we had a real breakfast prepared for us! Then we went to Kenilworth Castle, which are completely lovely ruins. They’re rather reminiscent of Cair Paravel. We took tons of pictures! 

Then we stopped in Coventry to see the bombed cathedral. It was very powerful to see the sanctuary, the walls of which were still standing, though the roof and everything inside had been destroyed during World War II. They still use the sanctuary on Friday afternoons. The theme of the altar is forgiveness and reconciliation. Beautiful. 

There was a statue that pictures two people embracing, titled “Reconciliation.” Reconciliation for the bombs dropped upon Nagasaki and Hiroshima. I literally almost began crying as I looked upon this statue. War is an ugly thing. What we did to Japan in WWII, while it ended the war and did spare lives, was disgusting. Innocents died so others could be saved… War is a messy thing. And it hurts. It still hurts, seventy years later. I feel that the wound is still fresh. But won’t it always be? It is part of man’s nature to wage war. How does one determine the value of someone else’s life over another? How does one justify “collateral damage”? How does one justify dehumanizing someone to make the actions of war admissible? These are hard questions. There are no whites and blacks, just many strange, tinged shades of greys and grays. I long for a day when war will no longer happen, when the world will be at peace. I long for it, but will it happen? I doubt it. I hope, I pray, I yearn, that war will not be declared upon Iran. Because of people, because of love, because of the brotherhood of humanity. I don’t want people to suffer because of the fears of governments. No one should have to live in fear of a bomb being dropped on their home. For that matter, Palestinian Arabs should not have to fear having their home bulldozed to make room for Israeli settlements. Citizens of Syria should not have to flee their homes for fear of their lives. War is an ugly thing. Reconciliation. Such a beautiful word, such a beautiful idea, not yet unattainable. There is always hope.

We spent two hours in Stamford. I spent the time eating in a little café with Diana. I had vegetable soup with buttered bread, black coffee with cane sugar (which reminds of me Haiti!) and we shared four truffles. Yummy. Then we went and checked out a carnival that was in town! We decided on one ride, paid the 3 pounds, and enjoyed ourselves. After all, how many Texans can say that they rode on a carnival ride at a carny in Stamford, United Kingdom?! We then walked and sat by the river under a weeping willow. The country and towns outside of London are just fabulous. If I were to live in England, it would have to be outside of London. It is just so beautiful.

Well y’all, that’s the recap. I will be picking up the posting, since I only have less than a month until the trip is over!! Wow, the time has flown by. I’ll give you all a play-by-play of the coach tour, since that is probably the coolest thing we get to do on this trip. Pictures are down below J thank you for reading this incredibly long post. It is longer than most papers I have written for school. That is a feat in itself. If you made it to the end, congratulations, you’re awesome J

Cheers!

My mom was right... Percy Pig exists.

I'm a true scholar.

Ummm, acting like a child

Wrong way.

The Shadow Proves The Sunshine

I must live in a place in the world where it is sunny at least 80% of the time. That place would not be London, of course. It could possibly be Texas. The sun is one of the best things about being outside. I understand why the ancients worshiped the sun as a god. There is something heavenly about basking in its warmth, feeling the light upon your face shining from millions of light years away. In my last post I said I never feel closer to God than when I am in garden. I'd like to amend that, and add "being in the sunlight."
The lack of sunlight here in London is disheartening. God knew I needed the light, for when I awoke this Sunday morning, there was the brilliant ball of gas in the sky, beckoning me to come and enjoy. I got dressed, combed my hair, grabbed my Bible, journal, and the book "Hudson Taylor's Spiritual Secret" and headed into Bloomsbury Square. There are fewer trees, therefore more sunlight! On my way to The Onion, a cute little coffee shop that I frequent, a random man said hi. That normally doesn't bug me. Then he asked my name. Weird. I was pretty rude and told him I was going to get coffee and walked away while he was still talking to me. There was something really strange about the way he was asking and trying to get me to have a conversation at 9 am on a Sunday morning. I got coffee and a croissant, and purposely walked in a roundabout fashion to avoid this man. He never left the square the entire time I was there, though he didn't notice I was there again!
Anyway, back to the sunshine... Wow, I felt the presence of Jesus in that sunlight. In reading the book about Hudson Taylor (I'm about halfway done) I just couldn't stop crying and thinking, "God, forgive my unbelief and my lack of faith." Darth Vader may have coined the phrase "I find your lack of faith disturbing," but I feel like Jesus has every right to say this to almost every believer ever. Hudson Taylor lived a life of constant faith and prayer and belief that God would provide. And He did, every single time, usually at the last minute, when all our faith is gone and we begin to take matters into our own hands. Hudson Taylor never let matters leave the hands of our most capable Savior. Lord, forgive my unbelief. I have been worrying about virtually everything lately, thinking about how in the world everything will work out, from dealing with the financial aid office to moving out of my home when I return to Texas. But the life of this missionary to China reminds me: God provides if we ask, if we expect, and if we believe. Hudson Taylor felt it perfectly normal to expect God to provide temporal necessities as well as spiritually. Money, food, shelter, he left it all to God. God came through in the most beautiful ways imaginable.
A life given to prayer, to belief, to working for the good of the kingdom of heaven. This is what I am called to, and the rest will be provided.

The video above is by one of my favorite bands, Switchfoot. Worth watching, and it has to do with my post :) two great reasons to check out this amazing band!

Living the Life

Hello friends, family, and the occasional random individual:
It is a lovely morning here in London. 10:20 am, the sun actually is peeking through the clouds, and I am going to go running in a little while. I have definitely let myself get out of the habit of running, and that is just not acceptable! I am quite busy, yes, but I shouldn't be too busy to take care of my body.
Last night, our group had the honor of seeing Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty's Theater in Haymarket. Wow. The set design was incredible, the costuming exquisite, and the singing, my goodness, the singing! When they sang "Music of the Night" I just got chills. Beautiful performance. I would go back and see it again in a heartbeat, even if only to see the beginning of the play. It opens in an auction scene where all the old memorabilia of the opera house are being sold off. The broken chandelier is the last to go. The transition from the auction scene to the height of the opera's heyday was amazing. The lights shut down, the orchestra began playing with a mix of a rock band and organ, and the chandelier rose to the ceiling. My pathetic description does it absolutely no justice. All I can say is, you must go see it. Chills were to be had throughout the entire performance. The music was just so beautiful, too beautiful for words. The level of talent and creativity that goes into creating a masterpiece like that could only come from God! And a fun fact: the show has been running continuously at the same theater since 1986. That is longer than I have been alive. Make anyone feel old?
Tuesday I went to Kew Gardens with the group, but spent the whole time with Carson and Diana. It was cold and the trees have not leafed out yet, so it was a little sad. But the springtime flowers that were blooming were lovely. I would like to go back when it gets warmer and the trees have leafed. I'll say this though: I like Fort Worth's Botanical Garden more... I just love a mixture of trees, water fountains and streams, and benches coupled with flowers. The paths in Fort Worth are paved, and much more narrow, and the trees seem to be much closer together. I like the closeness of it all. Kew was very spread out and much too "groomed" for my tastes. And it costs money. The Botanical Garden in Fort Worth is :cough: free. I'll be glad to go back and sit and read a book on a bench in the shade of an oak and surrounded by the roses and fountains.
I believe I am no nearer to God than when I am in a garden. He had to have placed Adam and Eve in one for a reason. Being that close to natural beauty, away from the buildings, electric lights, and trash of the city (which did not exist at creation) gives one such peace in any circumstance. At least to me. I feel solitude, not loneliness, when I find myself alone in a garden. Solitude is being in the presence of the Divine, the presence of His creation, and feeling utter peace and contentment.
With that said, I am going to run in Russell Square, the nearest thing I've got to a free garden in Central London :) Enjoy the pictures!

The Sensory Garden: Our favorite part.

Paying homage to Ralph Macchio

Joy :)

We are hiding...

In the Treetops!

We tried very hard to get this picture :)

Waiting for Phantom to start!

Dr. Hooten is visiting for the week! My favorite professor :)

I Have Begun to Think in Verses...

A lamp in a corridor of Hampton Court Palace

One of the doors to a kitchen larder

A garden bed in the palace gardens

This Reads Like a Diary Entry.

I've been in the British Library for about 3 1/2 hours in the same spot. The reason for this is because outlets to plug my computer into are incredibly hard to come by in the library. I've actually never found an empty space to do so. So now that I have claimed a spot, I will NOT be moving. Until hunger or nature makes that impossible. 

So we only have six weeks left here in England. I'm probably more excited than I should be. I miss home! Mainly I miss the people that make my life amazing. I'll be getting back to it soon enough though :)

Tonight, the group is going to our first opera! It is called "The Tales of Hoffman" and is apparently three operas in one. We have been told to "look fabulous" as this is a dressy event, so I will be posting pictures of my "fabulousness." 

Today has been very nice. I slept in (the construction workers decided to be a bit more quiet this morning) and ate a very nice big breakfast of eggs and oatmeal with blueberries and strawberries. As soon as I was done eating I packed up my stuff, walked to the bus stop, and got on board # 59 towards King's Cross. The British Library is literally about seven blocks away from where I live. I take the bus because it actually takes a while to walk because of the crossings. And it is cold outside.

Classes are beginning to pick up. I must say, this is the weirdest semester I have ever had. We are not at a university here, so it really feels like a three month long holiday with some homework assignments and lectures attached. Not really what I expected, honestly. It has been very hard to maintain a "studious" attitude here. We are constantly doing other things that are program-related that it often feels like we have no time for schoolwork! It is also hard to "care" but I am working on it! I definitely want to get all A's to keep my GPA up. I know my GPA is technically great, but I know I could have done better on some classes that I dropped the ball on. Sometimes a B is genuinely your best. Sometimes it isn't.

This Friday our day trip is Hampton Court Palace, where Henry VIII lived. Only my favorite person ever...

The architecture and palace in general is supposedly very beautiful, so I am looking forward to it. On Thursday my Music Appreciation class is going to see the Museum of Asian Music. How cool is that?! We don't often (okay, EVER) get exposed to Eastern instruments in our Western culture, so this should be a very cool experience.

Last Sunday night I attended the Budapest Festival Orchestra. In London. Great opportunity! The orchestra was wonderful. The conductor was incredibly passionate, and his faces and noises that he made were fantastically hilarious. We had seats directly to the side of the orchestra pit, so I had a great view of every instrumentalist except for the first violins and some percussion. If I leaned forward, I could just see them. Later on this semester, we are going to attend the London Symphony! While this semester has been weird, I cannot say it hasn't been incredible in terms of cultural and artistic experiences I have allowed to have! It's been very great, and a wonderful blessing.

Another aspect of this trip has been the Monday night Bible studies six of us have been having in the Common  Area at the Pickwick. We called it "JTAP." Jesus is Totally Awesome Party. Silly, but pretty honest! We play an opening game, sing worship, and get into the Bible and discuss it, often praying over each other at the close of the time. It's been so cool to get to share that with my fellow students. They really challenge me to do better and to grow as a person and spiritually.

Well, the Internet is becoming spotty, and I am getting hungry, so I shall sign off for now! Hope you all enjoy being updated on my life, even if it isn't written so poetically as I would like.

Miss everyone back home!!

Cheers :)

Dancing into a Destiny

12:34 AM here in London. I'm not sleepy, though I am tired, so I am updating with a much-needed post.
The homesickness I was experiencing the first month has, for the most part, worn off. I am no longer on the verge of tears every five minutes and isolating myself from everyone, wishing I was back in Texas. I am now, dare I say, enjoying myself?! That is truly a blessing. I have made friends with some of my trip mates here, and become very close to a girl from UMHB named Diana. She is so awesome and been such a wonderful encouragement to me! We are pretty much inseparable these last few weeks, from grocery shopping and preparing meals together to spending day-trips and theater time together. It has meant a lot to me to have a good friend here in London. I am so glad she goes to my university so we can continue our friendship when we head back to Texas!
Today, we took a trip to Oxford. Diana and I poked around in the "Religion" section of a four-story Waterstones, which is the UK version of Barnes & Nobles. I bought a book by C.S. Lewis (appropriate, no?) called The Four Loves and a compilation of writings by John Henry Newman. I want to eventually own all the C.S. Lewis books. My favorite is The Screwtape Letters, followed by The Great Divorce. He was such an amazing man. I love that he was an atheist, and then he found Jesus! So beautiful. John Henry Newman was a leading figure in the Church of England until, causing great controversy, he converted to the Catholic Church because he couldn't deny its truth anymore. On that note (Anglicanism versus Catholicism), I must say that I prefer the Catholic church for this reason: the Church of England was founded by a man who, though devoutly "religious," was ridiculously selfish, worldly, and unfaithful, both to God and his wife. Of course I am speaking of Henry VIII (my personal opinions!). A church founded for that reason I can't help but have a deep seated issue with. I know that the Church's history is very colorful, nowhere near perfect, and often downright disgusting at times in the way it has perverted Christ's message. But I still would rather be Catholic than a part of the Church of England...
After Waterstones, we went to the Tesco and procured sandwiches, rice pudding (not so good; too sickly-sweet), and soda, sat on the Martyr's Monument, and ate lunch. At high noon, we had a tour of the heart of Oxford. Our tour guide, Rob Walters, was quite funny as well as very knowledgeable of his city. All tour guides must be of course. We got to see the inside of one of the 38 colleges of Oxford University, Trinity College. So neat! The education system of Oxford, as well as Cambridge, is incredibly unique: in addition to lectures, which are not mandatory, and can consist of over 100 students per lecture, the student also meets weekly with a Tutor. These meetings are one-on-one! The student prepares an essay each week, and must read it aloud. The Tutor is a professional in the field (no Grad-student TA's at Oxford!). I think that this system is brilliant, not to mention so much more conducive to true learning. It made me reconsider grad programs here in the UK... We'll see ;)
Well, I think I am ready to go to bed!! It is impossible to sleep in the mornings because there is construction going on a few houses over. That means about thirty feet over. They don't mind crashing and banging about as early as 7:30 AM during the week! The walls and windows are very thin here, so all sound travels, even up to my fourth floor room. I often hear motorcycles or talking people in the wee hours of the morning. I do miss the serenity of a suburban neighborhood!! Seven more weeks :)
Goodnight!