These are pictures from the town itself, including the Royal Crescent.
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
Pictures from Bath, Part 2
Well I owed you these pictures from Bath. Part 2 are the Roman Baths themselves.
Tuesday Morning Part 2
continued....
Saturday evening a group of students and I had a picnic. It was some of the people from the afternoon and a few others who had not been around. We went to the Monoprix supermarket just a few blocks from the hotel (think Super Target) and got some bread, some cheese, some ham, some apples, some white peaches, some cookies, some Madeleine's (oh I love them!) and some Creme Brulee ice cream cones. Okay, lots of food, 8 people, a bottle of wine, some coke and diet coke thrown in, and the total came out to about 4 Euros per person. I don't think we ate that cheaply at any point during the trip. It was more than enough food for everyone, and there was some fruit left over, actually there was soda, fruit and that was about it. The little park across the street was small, but it had park benches, and well, it was a picnic in Paris. After that, we quickly went back into the hotel to change, clean up from the picnic, and then went on a walk along the opposite bank of the Seine to head towards the Eiffel tower. Some of the students hadn't gone up it on Friday night, and they wanted to see it all lit up. We walked along some of the streets we hadn't seen before (and I wish I had brought my camera to take some pictures) and then stood on the bridge in front of the Eiffel tower, cheering the people on the baton mouchees (the river tour boats) and waiting for the Eiffel tower to do its light show at 10pm. After that, it was back to the hotel for a quiet evening (and as I found out, the evening when I knew I was getting sick!).
Sunday was an early morning: leave the hotel by 8:30 for a day out. Giverney, Claude Monet's house and garderns, and then off to the Louvre. At one point during the drive, the bus driver found that none of the bridges could take the buses weight: the recommended one was rated for 3.5 metric tons, while the bus weighed 17 metric tons. A bit more than the recommended weight! So we took a scenic tour to see the French countryside before finding a bridge that could take our weight and then doubling back through small towns which probably never (or hardly ever) saw tour buses. At least one or two of them would have been nice places to stop for 30 minutes or so, but the appointed group meeting time was waiting at Giverney.
The house and the gardens were nice, but I was starting to feel the cold at that point. I hate scratchy throats, and it was getting worse throughout the day. Still, wandering through the house and gardens was fun, and I do have some pictures I will post from there in a short while. After Giverney, it was off to Versailles. The trip there was less eventful, and we had some time before our tour went inside to explore the town. About 90 minutes or so. A small group of students came with me, and we wandered through the back streets looking for a pharmacy to be open but the one supposed to be opened on Sunday was closed. We eventually found the city was shutting its doors around 2pm, so we grabbed some lunch and found a park bench to sit on. My lunch was simple but good: hot, fresh, still steaming baguette and some icy cold diet coke to sooth the aching throat. There is one thing I have to give the French credit for, and that is their bread. Even the bread from the Monoprix supermarket was better than almost any bread I have had in the states, and this simple baguette from a corner bakery in Versailles, hot, cracking the crust to let the steam out, well that was better yet. A few other students joined me in that same sort of simple repast (and I now know what every customer but us in the store bought 2 of the baguettes when they were leaving!). Some of the students wanted something a bit more substantial, so they went to a nearby McDonald's. Okay, even I have to admit I was tempted at one point for the sheer convienece of the McDonalds when everything else seemed to be closing, but that was something I have yet to do on this trip.
Then it was a short wandering through the town, before heading to Versailles and our group tour. Through an odd coincedence, the tour guide at Versailles was the same one at the Louvre! It turns out that she had been doing a friend at the Louvre a favor, covering for her at the last moment, and got our group. Her normal job at Versailles ended up with us again. She was nice enough and took us around and into spots were regular tourists not on groups never get to go. The royal chapel, for example, is roped off and the tourists get to walk down the outside rows-- we mortals got to stand right in the center of the chapel, under the dome. However, when the organized tour was done, it was time to see the rest of Versailles. Bad mistake: 4:30 on a Sunday afternoon, and the place was a disorganized mad house. A couple more of the girls had mass panic attacks (even I could feel the claustrophobia). The guards wouldn't let us out through any short cuts, the nervousness was growing, the stupidity of tourists in a rugby scrum who enter into a massive room, and instead of moving off to one side just stop right there in the doorway...it was all too much for everyone. What normally should have been a 5-10 minute brisk walk through the rest of the palace, was a 20-25 minute brutal push and shove affair. I have to admit, I used elbows, pushes, gentle shoves, etc to get the people out of the way from "my students" who needed to get out. Even outside it wasn't much better, and I have to admit even I messed up at that point. One of the girls wanted to go to the giftstore, and I thought she was alright, but it turns out I was wrong. The other students were in a sorry state, so I took them out of the palace and back to the bus, but I thought Dana would be alright. By the time I got everyone out, Dana had come back to the bus and was in tears. She had been one of the people who had paniced as well, but had kept her expression neutral. When she came out of the gift shop and no one was there...well she broke down. I have to admit, I have been in huge crowds before, but this was just one of those near animalistc herd ones, and not a place to be. I talked with her, one of the other girls talked to her, I made myself into a silly ass and got her to laugh, and well, she eventually calmed down. What caught me by surprise is that she is one of the stronger people I have encountered on this trip, and to see her red eyed and teary, well, it wasn't what I expected.
I promised to by some of them ice cream here in Oxford, especially Dana for leaving her behind. I think I am going to live up to that promise tonight with a trip to G&D after dinner time.
After the Versailles experience, it was time to head back to Paris. A whole bunch of students wanted to go out for the evening, and they got dressed up a bit. They wanted to go to the French Quarter and eat dinner and party. They dragged me along, and I was happy to go. However, I didn't know anything other than how to get there, but we wandered through the crowded streets and eventually found a small French restaurant. Inside, there was a piano player singing and playing American music, and the 12 of us sat down and ordered food. It was about 8:30 by this time, and we didn't leave the restaurant until 11:30, just in time to catch one of the last metro's of the evening. The piano player was a French African who had lived in Hoboken of all places, and with the girls singing along (it was about 8 girls, 4 guys including myself) it was a fun evening for all. He even got a few of them to get up and sing along with him before we left. Remarkably, other than a glass of wine apiece at dinner, it was an alcohol free night, and after the nightmare of Versailles for some of them, they all agreed while waiting on the metro platform, that was the best evening of the night and the entire stay in Paris. It was a great way to end the night...
But when I got back to the hotel, my fever was in full rage (and breaking) and I couldn't sleep. The hotel room was too war, too small, too crowded, too dark or then too light. I eventually fell asleep around 3 am, woke up at 5, then back to sleep until 8, but it was not the best night I ever had. Off to breakfast, packing, and loading the bus before having a free day in Paris. At that point all I wanted to do was go back to Oxford, but we had hours to kill. Outside it was pouring! Gray, overcast and sky opening up. I decided to go off to the military museum at the Hotel des Invalides and to see Napoleon's tomb as well. A few of the students tagged along: a couple guys, one guy and his visiting girlfriend, and remarkably the two most unlikely girls ever, Camille and Lisa. They tend to be the fashion plates on the trip (and they have been nicknamed the Barbies by some of the other students) but they both turned out to be more than interested participants in the experience. I have to say I was impressed by their attention, their own knowledge of history and it put both of them in a different light. However, even by the end of the morning and early afternoon, the cold, wet day was giving way to hunger for them, and they went off to a cafe and I went to wander on my own, the first time I was alone in Paris the entire trip. I hadn't even realized it until then...
I went off to a store near the Sorbonne to look at state of the art French roleplaying games, and while I was impressed, I was sick, and really feeling it at that point, so I didn't really spend as much time with the games as I should have. I actually left the store without buying anything. Got back on the metro and back to the hotel and sat in the lobby talking to two of the students for a while. Then off to the supermarket again to get some supplies, and then the long 7 hour bus ride home. Traffic in Paris, a late student, and well when we got to Calais, we had exactly 10 minutes to use the bathrooms before the train left. The late student, one who was always the last to board (and someone I advised to get back to the bus 30 minutes earlier than she did) was the source of grumbling from some of the students who wanted to burn their last Euros.
Still we watched movies on the bus: Braveheart and Gladiator, and it was an uneventful but wet journey home. So now, this week its back to the rigamarole. Its off to class in an hour or so, then off to town to go to the pharmacy and find a decongestant, to the bank to get rid of 120 or so Euros into pounds (I won't need them for the rest of this trip), a brief jaunt to the supermarket for milk and toilet paper, and then back to class. Tonight is cooking dinner in my hopefully now working oven, and then the ice cream run, before a quiet night back here in Oxford.
Time to post some pictures. Remember, these are just a small selection of pictures from each day, since blogger will only allow 5 pics at a time.
Enjoy!
Saturday evening a group of students and I had a picnic. It was some of the people from the afternoon and a few others who had not been around. We went to the Monoprix supermarket just a few blocks from the hotel (think Super Target) and got some bread, some cheese, some ham, some apples, some white peaches, some cookies, some Madeleine's (oh I love them!) and some Creme Brulee ice cream cones. Okay, lots of food, 8 people, a bottle of wine, some coke and diet coke thrown in, and the total came out to about 4 Euros per person. I don't think we ate that cheaply at any point during the trip. It was more than enough food for everyone, and there was some fruit left over, actually there was soda, fruit and that was about it. The little park across the street was small, but it had park benches, and well, it was a picnic in Paris. After that, we quickly went back into the hotel to change, clean up from the picnic, and then went on a walk along the opposite bank of the Seine to head towards the Eiffel tower. Some of the students hadn't gone up it on Friday night, and they wanted to see it all lit up. We walked along some of the streets we hadn't seen before (and I wish I had brought my camera to take some pictures) and then stood on the bridge in front of the Eiffel tower, cheering the people on the baton mouchees (the river tour boats) and waiting for the Eiffel tower to do its light show at 10pm. After that, it was back to the hotel for a quiet evening (and as I found out, the evening when I knew I was getting sick!).
Sunday was an early morning: leave the hotel by 8:30 for a day out. Giverney, Claude Monet's house and garderns, and then off to the Louvre. At one point during the drive, the bus driver found that none of the bridges could take the buses weight: the recommended one was rated for 3.5 metric tons, while the bus weighed 17 metric tons. A bit more than the recommended weight! So we took a scenic tour to see the French countryside before finding a bridge that could take our weight and then doubling back through small towns which probably never (or hardly ever) saw tour buses. At least one or two of them would have been nice places to stop for 30 minutes or so, but the appointed group meeting time was waiting at Giverney.
The house and the gardens were nice, but I was starting to feel the cold at that point. I hate scratchy throats, and it was getting worse throughout the day. Still, wandering through the house and gardens was fun, and I do have some pictures I will post from there in a short while. After Giverney, it was off to Versailles. The trip there was less eventful, and we had some time before our tour went inside to explore the town. About 90 minutes or so. A small group of students came with me, and we wandered through the back streets looking for a pharmacy to be open but the one supposed to be opened on Sunday was closed. We eventually found the city was shutting its doors around 2pm, so we grabbed some lunch and found a park bench to sit on. My lunch was simple but good: hot, fresh, still steaming baguette and some icy cold diet coke to sooth the aching throat. There is one thing I have to give the French credit for, and that is their bread. Even the bread from the Monoprix supermarket was better than almost any bread I have had in the states, and this simple baguette from a corner bakery in Versailles, hot, cracking the crust to let the steam out, well that was better yet. A few other students joined me in that same sort of simple repast (and I now know what every customer but us in the store bought 2 of the baguettes when they were leaving!). Some of the students wanted something a bit more substantial, so they went to a nearby McDonald's. Okay, even I have to admit I was tempted at one point for the sheer convienece of the McDonalds when everything else seemed to be closing, but that was something I have yet to do on this trip.
Then it was a short wandering through the town, before heading to Versailles and our group tour. Through an odd coincedence, the tour guide at Versailles was the same one at the Louvre! It turns out that she had been doing a friend at the Louvre a favor, covering for her at the last moment, and got our group. Her normal job at Versailles ended up with us again. She was nice enough and took us around and into spots were regular tourists not on groups never get to go. The royal chapel, for example, is roped off and the tourists get to walk down the outside rows-- we mortals got to stand right in the center of the chapel, under the dome. However, when the organized tour was done, it was time to see the rest of Versailles. Bad mistake: 4:30 on a Sunday afternoon, and the place was a disorganized mad house. A couple more of the girls had mass panic attacks (even I could feel the claustrophobia). The guards wouldn't let us out through any short cuts, the nervousness was growing, the stupidity of tourists in a rugby scrum who enter into a massive room, and instead of moving off to one side just stop right there in the doorway...it was all too much for everyone. What normally should have been a 5-10 minute brisk walk through the rest of the palace, was a 20-25 minute brutal push and shove affair. I have to admit, I used elbows, pushes, gentle shoves, etc to get the people out of the way from "my students" who needed to get out. Even outside it wasn't much better, and I have to admit even I messed up at that point. One of the girls wanted to go to the giftstore, and I thought she was alright, but it turns out I was wrong. The other students were in a sorry state, so I took them out of the palace and back to the bus, but I thought Dana would be alright. By the time I got everyone out, Dana had come back to the bus and was in tears. She had been one of the people who had paniced as well, but had kept her expression neutral. When she came out of the gift shop and no one was there...well she broke down. I have to admit, I have been in huge crowds before, but this was just one of those near animalistc herd ones, and not a place to be. I talked with her, one of the other girls talked to her, I made myself into a silly ass and got her to laugh, and well, she eventually calmed down. What caught me by surprise is that she is one of the stronger people I have encountered on this trip, and to see her red eyed and teary, well, it wasn't what I expected.
I promised to by some of them ice cream here in Oxford, especially Dana for leaving her behind. I think I am going to live up to that promise tonight with a trip to G&D after dinner time.
After the Versailles experience, it was time to head back to Paris. A whole bunch of students wanted to go out for the evening, and they got dressed up a bit. They wanted to go to the French Quarter and eat dinner and party. They dragged me along, and I was happy to go. However, I didn't know anything other than how to get there, but we wandered through the crowded streets and eventually found a small French restaurant. Inside, there was a piano player singing and playing American music, and the 12 of us sat down and ordered food. It was about 8:30 by this time, and we didn't leave the restaurant until 11:30, just in time to catch one of the last metro's of the evening. The piano player was a French African who had lived in Hoboken of all places, and with the girls singing along (it was about 8 girls, 4 guys including myself) it was a fun evening for all. He even got a few of them to get up and sing along with him before we left. Remarkably, other than a glass of wine apiece at dinner, it was an alcohol free night, and after the nightmare of Versailles for some of them, they all agreed while waiting on the metro platform, that was the best evening of the night and the entire stay in Paris. It was a great way to end the night...
But when I got back to the hotel, my fever was in full rage (and breaking) and I couldn't sleep. The hotel room was too war, too small, too crowded, too dark or then too light. I eventually fell asleep around 3 am, woke up at 5, then back to sleep until 8, but it was not the best night I ever had. Off to breakfast, packing, and loading the bus before having a free day in Paris. At that point all I wanted to do was go back to Oxford, but we had hours to kill. Outside it was pouring! Gray, overcast and sky opening up. I decided to go off to the military museum at the Hotel des Invalides and to see Napoleon's tomb as well. A few of the students tagged along: a couple guys, one guy and his visiting girlfriend, and remarkably the two most unlikely girls ever, Camille and Lisa. They tend to be the fashion plates on the trip (and they have been nicknamed the Barbies by some of the other students) but they both turned out to be more than interested participants in the experience. I have to say I was impressed by their attention, their own knowledge of history and it put both of them in a different light. However, even by the end of the morning and early afternoon, the cold, wet day was giving way to hunger for them, and they went off to a cafe and I went to wander on my own, the first time I was alone in Paris the entire trip. I hadn't even realized it until then...
I went off to a store near the Sorbonne to look at state of the art French roleplaying games, and while I was impressed, I was sick, and really feeling it at that point, so I didn't really spend as much time with the games as I should have. I actually left the store without buying anything. Got back on the metro and back to the hotel and sat in the lobby talking to two of the students for a while. Then off to the supermarket again to get some supplies, and then the long 7 hour bus ride home. Traffic in Paris, a late student, and well when we got to Calais, we had exactly 10 minutes to use the bathrooms before the train left. The late student, one who was always the last to board (and someone I advised to get back to the bus 30 minutes earlier than she did) was the source of grumbling from some of the students who wanted to burn their last Euros.
Still we watched movies on the bus: Braveheart and Gladiator, and it was an uneventful but wet journey home. So now, this week its back to the rigamarole. Its off to class in an hour or so, then off to town to go to the pharmacy and find a decongestant, to the bank to get rid of 120 or so Euros into pounds (I won't need them for the rest of this trip), a brief jaunt to the supermarket for milk and toilet paper, and then back to class. Tonight is cooking dinner in my hopefully now working oven, and then the ice cream run, before a quiet night back here in Oxford.
Time to post some pictures. Remember, these are just a small selection of pictures from each day, since blogger will only allow 5 pics at a time.
Enjoy!
Tuesday Morning 7/24
Well, all I can say this morning about how I feel is that I slept last night. I slept pretty well, from about 12:30 until 6, then from 6 until 8am. I feel miserable, but my throat doesn't ache like it did yesterday and there was no return bout of the sweats. Now, its just that general cold malaise: aching body, runny nose, cough. I am sure it has turned the corner, but how much longer this will last for is not quite known. Most of the students said a couple days, and I hope I am right as rain when we head off to Edinburgh on Friday. This is a short week for me: today, tomorrow and thursday, then off Friday from Edinburgh around noon. The flight isn't until 4:15, but we need to go through the hour long trip to Heathrow, then checkin and the endless security loop. Hopefully it won't take that long and we will have plenty of time if we get there by 1:30.
So, the sun is out and it seems to be drying out in Oxford today, or day in which is should be drying out. Temps once again approaching 70, and lows in the mid 50s. If it were like this year round, I would be a happy camper. However, the muggy Florida weather is awaiting me in a little more than two weeks. I can't believe how time has flown. Still, I have more than two weeks left in England, and lots to see and do. Last night, while checking email, I learned that the event I was supposed to be playing in at the August 4th convention was cancelled due to the time commitments of the actress who was supposed to be attending. Gah, I had been hoping to have some fun on that day, but now I think I am going to spend the day here in Oxford sightseeing and packing up stuff before heading off to London on Sunday morning, August 5th, before flying home on the 8th or 9th (I forget which). Now I regret not booking the extended vacation to Finland for that second weekend in August. Maybe next year...
Paris--I love France, but I dislike Parisiens. I was going to say I hate them, but that is too strong a word. Perhaps its the simple fact that even if you do speak French, if its not up to their standards, they immediately switch to their broken English rather than letting you get by or practise in their French. Or, they give you a condescending attitude and repeat what you said in "perfect" French...its not a question, because they are getting what you want, or what you ordered, etc., but they want to correct your French. Or perhaps its because everytime I go to Paris I get sick: usually some sort of cold or virus. This time was almost as much of a doozy as the last real bout of sickness, and my ears are still recovering from being congested and traveling through the Chunnel's pressurized transit system. At one point, my ear would not pop and it hurt like hell. Eventually it did, and the pain was even worse at least in the short term. I need to make sure I am less congested before flying on Friday or its going to be an unpleasant experience.
So what did we do after the last post? Well, lets see: Saturday morning was spent traveling to the Louvre, where we had a tour of the highlights of the museum. The tour guide was a nice enough woman, but the crowds at this time of the year were horrendous. We saw all the major things you are supposed to see at the Louvre, including the Mona Lisa. There, one of the female students had a panic attack from the huge crowds and I went with her off to one side of the room trying to calm her down and help her relax. She did manage to do so, for a while, and the 15 or so minutes we spent just chatting and distracting her from the anxiety was well spent, until the tour moved onto another room, where it was packed as hell. She had a flare up again, and two of the students decided they would go with her and off to see Paris. From what I understand, they did the tourist afternoon with Notre Dame and a few other churches on their agenda and all felt much better.
After the formal tour was over, I and a small group of students went back into the Louvre and we went to see Napoleon III's formal suite of rooms, Napoleon I's throne, and some 19th century exhibits, along with some medieval statuary. We also wandered around a bit of the museum and I was acting as tour guide for the 10 or so students who tagged along. It was a fun afternoon, which ended up in the massive food court of the Louvre shopping complex for lunch. I had a gallette Montagnard, basically a plain crepe with ham, potatoes and creme fraiche. It was quite good, and something uniquely French, even if the cooking to order took longer than I thought it would. The other students ate an assortment of food, before we headed off to Museum d'Orsay, the great Impressionist museum of the left bank. This is when tragedy struck for one of the students. As were wandering down the banks of the Seine, Brendan realized he did not have his wallet anymore. It was gone! It had been in his front pocket, and Brendan is one of the more absent minded students. Had he left it behind? He knew he had it in the food court of the Louvre, but after that, he did not know where it was. Since there were 10 or so students still with us, one of them, Jesse, volunteered to go back with him to search for it, while I took the others to the Museum d'Orsay. We ran into Heather and her son Ben headed to the museum, and I told her what happened. When we reached the museum, Heather took the students into the museum and I waited for Brendan and Jesse to return. About 30 minutes later, and sitting under a statue of a rearing horse to stay in the shade, they returned.
No Luck! I took Brendan back to the hotel, while Jesse ran into the museum to join up with the others. Brendan and I walked for about 5km back to the hotel (we hadn't thought of trying to figure out the Metro, using the time to talk and get things settled down as we walked back to the hotel.) Once back at the hotel, Brendan called his parents, I got the numbers for the banks which two of his credit card companies were from off the internet, and I loaned him about 40 Euros to try and tie him over until Monday. (I have since also loaned him 30 pounds until he gets his debit card sent to him by Bank of American fedex, which should arrive today or tomorrow at the latest!). He is a nice enough kid, and I didn't mind that my afternoon got spent as chaperone/substitute parent/fix the situation adult rather than seeing the d'Orsay. I still haven't ever been in: some day it is a reason to try Paris for a 4th time! Hopefully there won't be a 4th cold.
to be continued...
So, the sun is out and it seems to be drying out in Oxford today, or day in which is should be drying out. Temps once again approaching 70, and lows in the mid 50s. If it were like this year round, I would be a happy camper. However, the muggy Florida weather is awaiting me in a little more than two weeks. I can't believe how time has flown. Still, I have more than two weeks left in England, and lots to see and do. Last night, while checking email, I learned that the event I was supposed to be playing in at the August 4th convention was cancelled due to the time commitments of the actress who was supposed to be attending. Gah, I had been hoping to have some fun on that day, but now I think I am going to spend the day here in Oxford sightseeing and packing up stuff before heading off to London on Sunday morning, August 5th, before flying home on the 8th or 9th (I forget which). Now I regret not booking the extended vacation to Finland for that second weekend in August. Maybe next year...
Paris--I love France, but I dislike Parisiens. I was going to say I hate them, but that is too strong a word. Perhaps its the simple fact that even if you do speak French, if its not up to their standards, they immediately switch to their broken English rather than letting you get by or practise in their French. Or, they give you a condescending attitude and repeat what you said in "perfect" French...its not a question, because they are getting what you want, or what you ordered, etc., but they want to correct your French. Or perhaps its because everytime I go to Paris I get sick: usually some sort of cold or virus. This time was almost as much of a doozy as the last real bout of sickness, and my ears are still recovering from being congested and traveling through the Chunnel's pressurized transit system. At one point, my ear would not pop and it hurt like hell. Eventually it did, and the pain was even worse at least in the short term. I need to make sure I am less congested before flying on Friday or its going to be an unpleasant experience.
So what did we do after the last post? Well, lets see: Saturday morning was spent traveling to the Louvre, where we had a tour of the highlights of the museum. The tour guide was a nice enough woman, but the crowds at this time of the year were horrendous. We saw all the major things you are supposed to see at the Louvre, including the Mona Lisa. There, one of the female students had a panic attack from the huge crowds and I went with her off to one side of the room trying to calm her down and help her relax. She did manage to do so, for a while, and the 15 or so minutes we spent just chatting and distracting her from the anxiety was well spent, until the tour moved onto another room, where it was packed as hell. She had a flare up again, and two of the students decided they would go with her and off to see Paris. From what I understand, they did the tourist afternoon with Notre Dame and a few other churches on their agenda and all felt much better.
After the formal tour was over, I and a small group of students went back into the Louvre and we went to see Napoleon III's formal suite of rooms, Napoleon I's throne, and some 19th century exhibits, along with some medieval statuary. We also wandered around a bit of the museum and I was acting as tour guide for the 10 or so students who tagged along. It was a fun afternoon, which ended up in the massive food court of the Louvre shopping complex for lunch. I had a gallette Montagnard, basically a plain crepe with ham, potatoes and creme fraiche. It was quite good, and something uniquely French, even if the cooking to order took longer than I thought it would. The other students ate an assortment of food, before we headed off to Museum d'Orsay, the great Impressionist museum of the left bank. This is when tragedy struck for one of the students. As were wandering down the banks of the Seine, Brendan realized he did not have his wallet anymore. It was gone! It had been in his front pocket, and Brendan is one of the more absent minded students. Had he left it behind? He knew he had it in the food court of the Louvre, but after that, he did not know where it was. Since there were 10 or so students still with us, one of them, Jesse, volunteered to go back with him to search for it, while I took the others to the Museum d'Orsay. We ran into Heather and her son Ben headed to the museum, and I told her what happened. When we reached the museum, Heather took the students into the museum and I waited for Brendan and Jesse to return. About 30 minutes later, and sitting under a statue of a rearing horse to stay in the shade, they returned.
No Luck! I took Brendan back to the hotel, while Jesse ran into the museum to join up with the others. Brendan and I walked for about 5km back to the hotel (we hadn't thought of trying to figure out the Metro, using the time to talk and get things settled down as we walked back to the hotel.) Once back at the hotel, Brendan called his parents, I got the numbers for the banks which two of his credit card companies were from off the internet, and I loaned him about 40 Euros to try and tie him over until Monday. (I have since also loaned him 30 pounds until he gets his debit card sent to him by Bank of American fedex, which should arrive today or tomorrow at the latest!). He is a nice enough kid, and I didn't mind that my afternoon got spent as chaperone/substitute parent/fix the situation adult rather than seeing the d'Orsay. I still haven't ever been in: some day it is a reason to try Paris for a 4th time! Hopefully there won't be a 4th cold.
to be continued...
Monday, July 23, 2007
Back from Paris
I am back from Paris and exhausted. I also happen to be sick as a dog. Everytime I got to Paris, I get sick. I don't know what it is about that city, but it makes me sick. Anyway, I have a lot to post and will do so tomorrow. Didn't sleep well last night at all, but I think the worst of this darn cold/flu/strepthroat is on its way out. I am hoping for a more peaceful evening tonight.
Anyway, lots of pics to post, and some make up posts to finish. It should be a long and busy day. I am glad I am back in Oxford.
Matt
Anyway, lots of pics to post, and some make up posts to finish. It should be a long and busy day. I am glad I am back in Oxford.
Matt
Friday, July 20, 2007
Friday night, part 2
Well, its about 10:45 CET, or Central European Time, and I am exhausted and hurting. After we checking into the hotel around 4 pm local time, it was off to my room, which was way too hot and way too warm. I closed the curtains, checked some email, and then went off to meet up with Heather, Andrew and bunch of students for dinner on the Rue Cler. It was a bit of a walk from the hotel, a couple of kilometers, but it was worth it. We walked past the Eiffel Tower (more about that in a while), then through some parks and back streets to get to this small pedestrian only shopping district. Lots of little restaurants, cafes, and assorted shops. I ate with the Cudmores in a small cafe (and it was my turn to pick up the bill!) and had a wonderful fried duck quarter, with roasted potatoes, a small salad, and we shared 2 carafes of white wine. It was quite good, while the students ate in a small cafe just across the way that served Italian food. After dinner, we wandered around the district, and then eventually got some desert from a small bakery. I had a pistache macaroon. Not exactly an american style macaroon, but something that was amazingly tasty. That and a diet coke, it was the ideal dinner.
Then it was off to the Eiffel Tower. We chose the shorter line, which was to walk up to the first level, a total of 325 steps. Its a lot more than it sounds, and by the time I got to the top, my right calf was driving me crazy. Last night we went to see Macbeth in Stratford, a performance by one of the Royal Shakespeare Companies. It was a semi modernized version, but it was loud, and my original seats on the balcony were so cramped that for the first hour and 20 minutes, I was in pain from a leg cramp, including the one that developed in my right calf. I had been hoping it might have been worked out, but the climbing of the Eiffel Tower set it throbbing. I was smart enough to pay the extra money to go to the second level, but I did have to walk down and walk home about 2 km back to the hotel. I am hurting, and I think I may call it a fairly early night since I got very little sleep last night. I have lots of pictures, but I left the cable behind in Oxford, so hopefully I will post a bunch of pictures on Monday night (depending on how late it is when I get back) or on Tuesday morning.
Tomorrow is off to the Louvre, and then a bit of a free day. Perhaps it will be off to see Napoleon's tomb, then dinner at a Japanese restaurant in the Rue Cler. Either that, or I will spend some time in my small guide book and find something to do. However, it does depend on how my leg is doing. I think some tylenol should make it feel better. Keep your fingers crossed cause it hurts like a bitch.
Then it was off to the Eiffel Tower. We chose the shorter line, which was to walk up to the first level, a total of 325 steps. Its a lot more than it sounds, and by the time I got to the top, my right calf was driving me crazy. Last night we went to see Macbeth in Stratford, a performance by one of the Royal Shakespeare Companies. It was a semi modernized version, but it was loud, and my original seats on the balcony were so cramped that for the first hour and 20 minutes, I was in pain from a leg cramp, including the one that developed in my right calf. I had been hoping it might have been worked out, but the climbing of the Eiffel Tower set it throbbing. I was smart enough to pay the extra money to go to the second level, but I did have to walk down and walk home about 2 km back to the hotel. I am hurting, and I think I may call it a fairly early night since I got very little sleep last night. I have lots of pictures, but I left the cable behind in Oxford, so hopefully I will post a bunch of pictures on Monday night (depending on how late it is when I get back) or on Tuesday morning.
Tomorrow is off to the Louvre, and then a bit of a free day. Perhaps it will be off to see Napoleon's tomb, then dinner at a Japanese restaurant in the Rue Cler. Either that, or I will spend some time in my small guide book and find something to do. However, it does depend on how my leg is doing. I think some tylenol should make it feel better. Keep your fingers crossed cause it hurts like a bitch.
Adventures in Paris
Well, we have finally arrived in Paris after one very long bus ride. All I can say is that the hotel looks very nice, but the room is godawful hot, even though the A/C is set at the lowest rating possible. I mean it must be near 80 in the room, if not warmer, and I have the afternoon sun.
We will see how this goes once the curtains are closed and the A/C has some small chance of trying to cool the room.
Matt
We will see how this goes once the curtains are closed and the A/C has some small chance of trying to cool the room.
Matt
Off to Paris...
I owe you folks some blogs. Macbeth was last night in Stratford, and I also need to download some pictures. However, it is way to early in the morning and we are getting ready to head off to Paris this morning. It is far too early to be up...
I will post more later on, hopefully this evening from my hotel in Paris.
I will post more later on, hopefully this evening from my hotel in Paris.
Wednesday, July 18, 2007
Wednesday Evening
Not much has happened the last two days...get up, do work for classes, teach a class, get lunch or go wander and do errands, and then teach another class, dinner, then some online time. Tuesday was a little more exciting than today since yesterday involved:
a) a walk to Jesus College to get the world's smallest fan for the conservatory where we are now holding classes since the room originally set up was too small;
b) buy my second piece of luggage for this trip, one that I will be using on Friday for the Paris trip and next weekend for Edinburgh;
c) a mid afternoon walk to get to know the neighborhood better, eventually wandering down a street called Walton Street, in a neighborhood called Jericho. The neighborhood is famous for where a lot of the Inspector Morse murder's took place in the novels.
d) a brief jaunt off to Sainsbury for bread, milk, diet coke...
and
e) burning my dinner.
Turns out the oven wouldn't work, so I tried using the grill (ie broiler) and it burnt the food I was cooking. However, the maintenance guy came by and fixed it for me today. A simple switch had to be thrown that I didn't know about. It now seems to work...we shall see on Tuesday when I next cook dinner. Why Tuesday? Well tonight I will be having the free dinner on the main campus, tomorrow I will be in Stratford for dinner, Friday through Monday I will be in France or on the way home from France, so Tuesday will be the first day to cook again.
I did manage to whip something together, so it all worked out. Last night was laundry and dealing with a card that kept getting rejected and laundry machines that work a little different than those at Jesus College. They work, but I have to get used to the timing cycles which are very different.
Today, well other than dinner, it was up in the morning, work, class, work again on a project that is not academic (I am writing more gaming stuff), class and now off to dinner. So since today is boring day, I figure I will give you more pictures. Two sets of pictures, this time, from Bath on Sunday. Enjoy!
a) a walk to Jesus College to get the world's smallest fan for the conservatory where we are now holding classes since the room originally set up was too small;
b) buy my second piece of luggage for this trip, one that I will be using on Friday for the Paris trip and next weekend for Edinburgh;
c) a mid afternoon walk to get to know the neighborhood better, eventually wandering down a street called Walton Street, in a neighborhood called Jericho. The neighborhood is famous for where a lot of the Inspector Morse murder's took place in the novels.
d) a brief jaunt off to Sainsbury for bread, milk, diet coke...
and
e) burning my dinner.
Turns out the oven wouldn't work, so I tried using the grill (ie broiler) and it burnt the food I was cooking. However, the maintenance guy came by and fixed it for me today. A simple switch had to be thrown that I didn't know about. It now seems to work...we shall see on Tuesday when I next cook dinner. Why Tuesday? Well tonight I will be having the free dinner on the main campus, tomorrow I will be in Stratford for dinner, Friday through Monday I will be in France or on the way home from France, so Tuesday will be the first day to cook again.
I did manage to whip something together, so it all worked out. Last night was laundry and dealing with a card that kept getting rejected and laundry machines that work a little different than those at Jesus College. They work, but I have to get used to the timing cycles which are very different.
Today, well other than dinner, it was up in the morning, work, class, work again on a project that is not academic (I am writing more gaming stuff), class and now off to dinner. So since today is boring day, I figure I will give you more pictures. Two sets of pictures, this time, from Bath on Sunday. Enjoy!
Tuesday, July 17, 2007
Weekend Pictures, Part 3
More little car pictures. I will post some pictures from Sunday later on today.
Weekend Pictures, Part 2
These are from the little town of Burford and the Cotswold Wildlife Park.
Looking up Burford High Street
Looking down Burford High Street
A monkey
A peacock. I couldn't get it to spread its fan of feathers.
The smallest car in the world. Its name is remarkably a Messerschmidt, after the WWII fighter aircraft. We say it parked on the street, and while we were eating, the owner in the blue shirt came by. A couple of the students wanted to try the car, and he was nice enough to allow them to. The funniest with Andrew Busse, in the picture above, who is 6'8 or so. I don't think the roof/lid of the car would close for him. I have another picture of another student in the car when the roof is closed. The owner said that car can do about 55 or so, though he did manage to get it up to 70, once, on a motorway. Its three wheeled, and I will post a few more pics in a seperate post.
Weekend Pictures, Part 1
They only allow me to post 5 pictures or so at a time. These are from Saturday morning at Blenheim Palace.
Blenheim Palace 1
Blenheim Palace 2
Students at Blenheim Palace
The Maze
Lavender in the gardens of Blenheim Palace
Tuesday morning...longish
Well the long awaited update has arrived. Yesterday too proved to be a bit of a whirlwind and I didn't get much time to just sit down and relax. Not until the daunting prospect of writing this blog came about. By that point it was close to midnight, so I decided to put it off until the morning when I can think clearer and get my day going right. So what has been happening these past four days? I won't try to bore you too much with all the nitty gritty, but I will try to give you a bit of an overview.
Friday:
The day began as usual, waking, breakfast, make sure everyone knows we are headed off on Saturday quite early, and then back to my room to get some work done before classes. Class, run errands, a very fun class on Industrialization and Beer Making as the first modern industry, and then dinner. After class, I went back up to the new dorms and showed a few students from my History of Science class where things were and how they worked. I figured showing five of them might be a start to make things easier on Saturday morning when we were all in a rush. Remarkably, or perhaps better unsurprisingly, it really didn't help very much. Then I went back to campus after a brief stop for the best ice cream in Oxford (G&D homemade icecream). Then I packed my stuff to move myself early so I would have less to do on Saturday morning as I got the move organized. Heather gave me the task of making sure everyone was organized and ready to go and I think things came off with only the smallest of hitches. However, I wanted to be sure I wasn't worried about moving my own gear on Saturday morning. Let me also tell you, though I bought a new suitcase, it obviously is somewhat smaller than the ruined one, and thus it made it all the more clear I need a second suitcase. I haven't bought very much despite all the money I spent, and I am going to have to mail some books home to save weight and space (despite the cost!) but I will need a second suitcase, if nothing else for the trip to Paris this weekend, and Edinburgh the next. I rolled my suitcase to the bus stop and the expense of the suitcase paid off as I rolled it through the streets. I also had a second shoulder bag full of stuff, and took the bus to Stephen's Close. Unload and unpacked (and even changed rooms once to a different room since I have my choice of three at the moment) and finally made it back to the main campus around 10ish. I went to my room, and it was quiet as most of the students had decided to go out for the evening and I think almost all of them took advantage of the first night they were in Oxford as a group.
Saturday:
Last breakfast and then making sure everyone was at the Porter's Lodge by 8:20, to board the bus by 8:30, and then make sure we were on our way by 8:40. It didn't work all that well, but we were still on our way by 8:45. The bus' hold was full...I mean full to the brim even with expert packing as many of the other students had more than one bag or had one massively stuffed bag. We made the shift to Stephen's Close and almost everyone once again was on time and we were back on the bus by 9:15 and on our way. It worked out quite well, and we actually arrived at Saturday's first destination: Blenheim Palace by 9: 40 or so. We got let in early--our group was the first tour of the day--and we spent until 1:30 wandering the palace and the extensive grounds of the huge palace built for the Churchill family, the first Dukes of Marlborough. I will post up some pictures in a seperate post. There were also extensive gardens, a few special exhibits, the constantly played up connection with Winston Churchill who was born there in 1874, and some extensive gardens. They also had a special tour of a part of the house still lived in by the current 11th Duke, but it was full at the only time I could have gone with our schedule.
After Blenheim Palace we took a drive through the Cotswolds, the rustic country area to the northwest of Oxford. We stopped for an hour break or so in a small town called Burford. A very typical Cotswold town with one main high street, a fair number of tourists, and some very good food shops. I got an excellent sandwhich and a special almond tart made in the town for desert. I think about half the students managed to eat in the small restaurant/bakery/takeaway place. The bread, homemade, was excellent, and I still kick myself for not buying a loaf to take home. After that short break, we went to the Cotswold Wildlife Park, a kind of zoo set in a natural environment. It was an interesting change of pace, and since I used to work as a volunteer at the New York Zoological Park (ie the Bronx Zoo) when I was living in NYC after undergrad graduation so long ago, I have had my fair share of zoos. However, I did manage to wander around the zoo and take a lot more pictures than I thought I would, before taking a well deserved rest before boarding the bus once more. Our last stop was to head to a super large Sainsbury in Witney (a town about 20 miles from Oxford) where we did grocery shopping since all the students are cooking in their new flats. The shopping expedition, originally meant to take just 45 minutes, took a lot longer, close to 75 minutes as everyone and there mother found that trying to shop without a list and with the Saturday night crowds took much longer than we thought it would. The bus driver, Brent, put up with it all, and we managed to collect a tip from all the students (plus what Heather and I threw in) and gave him a rather substantial tip of 35 pounds for staying with us at the supermarket an hour past when he was supposed to be off duty and for helping with the loading and unloading. I managed to by 55 GBP of groceries, and then realized that while I had to buy a lot of basics (aluminum foil, plastic wrap, sponges, dish detergent, etc) that will probably not be used up by the time I left, I had managed not to buy very many groceries. So I went back out after we got back to Oxford and went to the local supermarket (the mini Sainsbury I have talked about before) and got some frozen vegetables to go along with the meat and pasta that made up the rest of my earlier shopping. So add another 10 GBP, and I spent 130 bucks for groceries. I should still have a lot of it next week...
BTW, remember I think I mentioned earlier that if you don't think about UK prices, they seem pretty comparable to US ones? You can buy a 2 litre Diet Coke, on sale, for 1.50, or bread for 65 pence a loaf, or milk for 3 pounds per gallon? But when you double it, you realize how much more expensive it all really is? Well here are two little tidbits to put the living expensive into perspective. One of the girls was stuck behind a woman in line (she was the last to get on the bus) who had a single trolley full of groceries, meant to last a week for her family of five, and the bill was more than 255 GBP! (about $520). The other was a T-bone steak, about 12 ounces or so of prime British beef. I thought, maybe I will treat myself to a steak one evening, instead of the chicken and pasta now dominating my cart. I looked at the price: 9.85 and thought, that's not too bad. About what you might...whoa, wait a second, that's 20 bucks for a single steak! It went back on the shelf once I realized that was more than I would pay for the same steak out in the average restaurant in the US. A lot more. So no steak at the moment...back to chicken, pasta and some other simplier fare. Dinner that night, after all the running around and it being so late, was at 11 and consisted, deliciously but not healthily, as scones, raspberry jam, and vanilla flavoured clotted cream. YUM!
Sunday:
Sunday was another fairly early morning. Up 8:45 ish, though the bus was late this morning as the driver had picked up a bus that had been out the night before and not been refueled before he picked us up. It was the grand day off to Stonehenge and Bath. We drove through the wet and cool morning to Stonehenge, seeing more people at Stonehenge when we arrived about an hour later than I have ever seen in my life. I have been to Stonehenge twice before, and both times it was relatively uncrowded. This time, not so much, and it was so crowded that they told several tour buses to come back later as the carpark was completely full! Anyway, after a brief 45 minute stay, it was back on the bus, through the countryside and to Bath. We passed by the Salisbury military barracks, through a bunch of small towns on the back roads, and finally arrived in Bath: the city famous as a spa town in the late 18th and early 19th century, setting of Jane Austen's novels and the city where she lived much of her life, and home to the famous Roman Baths. We arrived around 1pm, and had until 3:15 when our appointment was for entry to the Roman Baths. I went off and wandered a good portion of the city, heading off to the famous Royal Crescent, went into #1 Royal Crescent, set up as an 18th century townhouse during the heyday of spa Bath, but regretfully, you could not take pictures and I couldn't even sneak them as their were docents in every room. Oh well, then back out into the grey and overcast sky, out and about the city wandering through its hilly streets, in and out of a few bookstores, then grabbing some lunch from Marks and Sparks, dodging even more tourists, then into the very crowded Roman Baths at our appointed time. I always love the Roman Baths, and spending time there can really transport you back in time. I spent an hour and half going through the museum and the baths themselves, before stopping into the gift shop and buying my first real purchase for myself: a book on Roman London and southeastern England. They it was to the bus at 5:15 (we left promptly, hooray!) and the nearly two hour bus drive back to Oxford through the countryside.
It was an interesting ride home and then a quiet night dealing with students problems: one of the big ones was how did the hot water work, and that required dragging the caretaker Neal out of his bed and showing us how it worked in one of the flats. I went around to all the others and fixed them for the other students, except for those who went out immediately and cold showers still on Monday morning. We also had no internet all weekend, so it raised that interesting problem for many of them: what do we do? Even I thought to myself, I have been spending a lot of time on the computer since there is no tv, or other real distractions (movies are a maybe 1x only expensive here at nearly 25 bucks a person once you add in snacks and soda, or about 15 dollars without that expensive). I love to read, which is what I did, but when that is your only option, it does seem kinda hollow at times.
Monday:
Okay, back to school and work today. The morning was spent meeting the new scout, who doesn't speak a lot of English, but did a really good job in cleaning the bathroom, mopping the kitchen floor, empty the trash etc. I still haven't quiet figured out the shower yet myself: I have two settings, way too hot, hot enough to boil an egg, or cold enough to play a new game of find your missing testicles. ::laugh:: Actually its not that bad, but the shower is either way too hot or lukewarm at best. I'll take the lukewarm over the boiling hot. Then it was off to class in the new temporary class rooms, but the class was too big for the room, so from today onwards we are going to meet in the conservatory at Stephen's Close. Hopefully it won't be that warm. I do have to wander off this morning (Tuesday) and go get the fan from the porter's lodge, but I want to finish this blog first. After classes, it was stuck around my room, trying to get MAC addresses from all the students so their internet would work and sending them off to the IT people at Jesus college to register them. Then it was my afternoon History of Science class (which is going to be held in my living room most days), and then off to dinner at Heather's house. Heather made Indian style chicken and rice, and it was quite good. I am not that keen on most Indian food, but this was good. Then we sat around and chatted, getting to know each other better, until around 10:30 when I left to head home.
I got home, and I couldn't sleep. It was the first night I was up until late, like 1:00 o'clock or so, before heading off to bed. Got up my normal time of 7:30 and then signed on to the do the posting and read email. Now its off to the showers, run down to the porter's lodge before the exam starts (it was supposed to be on Monday, but with the computers down, and most of the exam questions were posted via internet, we gave an extension until today) and then give the exam. I have a few errands to do as well, but the whole trip down and back shouldn't take more than hour. Plenty of time before the test.
Tonight is a stay around and cook for the first time night. I haven't been exercising first thing in the morning, but most days I have been walking miles and miles. However, yesterday I didn't, so perhaps now that we are in residence and the classrooms are just a hopskipjump away, I think I need to get out and walk again. I do need to do laundry again, so that is another reason to head down to the main campus and get my laundry card refilled.
I'll post more tomorrow...and some pictures in just a few. I can't believe its week 3. Thursday its off to see the "scottish play" in Stratford (you aren't supposed to say the name aloud!) and then an early morning (6 am) start on Friday to Paris. We will be in France over the weekend, so I am not sure if I am going to bring my laptop or not with me, but I probably will.
Talk to you all later...
Friday:
The day began as usual, waking, breakfast, make sure everyone knows we are headed off on Saturday quite early, and then back to my room to get some work done before classes. Class, run errands, a very fun class on Industrialization and Beer Making as the first modern industry, and then dinner. After class, I went back up to the new dorms and showed a few students from my History of Science class where things were and how they worked. I figured showing five of them might be a start to make things easier on Saturday morning when we were all in a rush. Remarkably, or perhaps better unsurprisingly, it really didn't help very much. Then I went back to campus after a brief stop for the best ice cream in Oxford (G&D homemade icecream). Then I packed my stuff to move myself early so I would have less to do on Saturday morning as I got the move organized. Heather gave me the task of making sure everyone was organized and ready to go and I think things came off with only the smallest of hitches. However, I wanted to be sure I wasn't worried about moving my own gear on Saturday morning. Let me also tell you, though I bought a new suitcase, it obviously is somewhat smaller than the ruined one, and thus it made it all the more clear I need a second suitcase. I haven't bought very much despite all the money I spent, and I am going to have to mail some books home to save weight and space (despite the cost!) but I will need a second suitcase, if nothing else for the trip to Paris this weekend, and Edinburgh the next. I rolled my suitcase to the bus stop and the expense of the suitcase paid off as I rolled it through the streets. I also had a second shoulder bag full of stuff, and took the bus to Stephen's Close. Unload and unpacked (and even changed rooms once to a different room since I have my choice of three at the moment) and finally made it back to the main campus around 10ish. I went to my room, and it was quiet as most of the students had decided to go out for the evening and I think almost all of them took advantage of the first night they were in Oxford as a group.
Saturday:
Last breakfast and then making sure everyone was at the Porter's Lodge by 8:20, to board the bus by 8:30, and then make sure we were on our way by 8:40. It didn't work all that well, but we were still on our way by 8:45. The bus' hold was full...I mean full to the brim even with expert packing as many of the other students had more than one bag or had one massively stuffed bag. We made the shift to Stephen's Close and almost everyone once again was on time and we were back on the bus by 9:15 and on our way. It worked out quite well, and we actually arrived at Saturday's first destination: Blenheim Palace by 9: 40 or so. We got let in early--our group was the first tour of the day--and we spent until 1:30 wandering the palace and the extensive grounds of the huge palace built for the Churchill family, the first Dukes of Marlborough. I will post up some pictures in a seperate post. There were also extensive gardens, a few special exhibits, the constantly played up connection with Winston Churchill who was born there in 1874, and some extensive gardens. They also had a special tour of a part of the house still lived in by the current 11th Duke, but it was full at the only time I could have gone with our schedule.
After Blenheim Palace we took a drive through the Cotswolds, the rustic country area to the northwest of Oxford. We stopped for an hour break or so in a small town called Burford. A very typical Cotswold town with one main high street, a fair number of tourists, and some very good food shops. I got an excellent sandwhich and a special almond tart made in the town for desert. I think about half the students managed to eat in the small restaurant/bakery/takeaway place. The bread, homemade, was excellent, and I still kick myself for not buying a loaf to take home. After that short break, we went to the Cotswold Wildlife Park, a kind of zoo set in a natural environment. It was an interesting change of pace, and since I used to work as a volunteer at the New York Zoological Park (ie the Bronx Zoo) when I was living in NYC after undergrad graduation so long ago, I have had my fair share of zoos. However, I did manage to wander around the zoo and take a lot more pictures than I thought I would, before taking a well deserved rest before boarding the bus once more. Our last stop was to head to a super large Sainsbury in Witney (a town about 20 miles from Oxford) where we did grocery shopping since all the students are cooking in their new flats. The shopping expedition, originally meant to take just 45 minutes, took a lot longer, close to 75 minutes as everyone and there mother found that trying to shop without a list and with the Saturday night crowds took much longer than we thought it would. The bus driver, Brent, put up with it all, and we managed to collect a tip from all the students (plus what Heather and I threw in) and gave him a rather substantial tip of 35 pounds for staying with us at the supermarket an hour past when he was supposed to be off duty and for helping with the loading and unloading. I managed to by 55 GBP of groceries, and then realized that while I had to buy a lot of basics (aluminum foil, plastic wrap, sponges, dish detergent, etc) that will probably not be used up by the time I left, I had managed not to buy very many groceries. So I went back out after we got back to Oxford and went to the local supermarket (the mini Sainsbury I have talked about before) and got some frozen vegetables to go along with the meat and pasta that made up the rest of my earlier shopping. So add another 10 GBP, and I spent 130 bucks for groceries. I should still have a lot of it next week...
BTW, remember I think I mentioned earlier that if you don't think about UK prices, they seem pretty comparable to US ones? You can buy a 2 litre Diet Coke, on sale, for 1.50, or bread for 65 pence a loaf, or milk for 3 pounds per gallon? But when you double it, you realize how much more expensive it all really is? Well here are two little tidbits to put the living expensive into perspective. One of the girls was stuck behind a woman in line (she was the last to get on the bus) who had a single trolley full of groceries, meant to last a week for her family of five, and the bill was more than 255 GBP! (about $520). The other was a T-bone steak, about 12 ounces or so of prime British beef. I thought, maybe I will treat myself to a steak one evening, instead of the chicken and pasta now dominating my cart. I looked at the price: 9.85 and thought, that's not too bad. About what you might...whoa, wait a second, that's 20 bucks for a single steak! It went back on the shelf once I realized that was more than I would pay for the same steak out in the average restaurant in the US. A lot more. So no steak at the moment...back to chicken, pasta and some other simplier fare. Dinner that night, after all the running around and it being so late, was at 11 and consisted, deliciously but not healthily, as scones, raspberry jam, and vanilla flavoured clotted cream. YUM!
Sunday:
Sunday was another fairly early morning. Up 8:45 ish, though the bus was late this morning as the driver had picked up a bus that had been out the night before and not been refueled before he picked us up. It was the grand day off to Stonehenge and Bath. We drove through the wet and cool morning to Stonehenge, seeing more people at Stonehenge when we arrived about an hour later than I have ever seen in my life. I have been to Stonehenge twice before, and both times it was relatively uncrowded. This time, not so much, and it was so crowded that they told several tour buses to come back later as the carpark was completely full! Anyway, after a brief 45 minute stay, it was back on the bus, through the countryside and to Bath. We passed by the Salisbury military barracks, through a bunch of small towns on the back roads, and finally arrived in Bath: the city famous as a spa town in the late 18th and early 19th century, setting of Jane Austen's novels and the city where she lived much of her life, and home to the famous Roman Baths. We arrived around 1pm, and had until 3:15 when our appointment was for entry to the Roman Baths. I went off and wandered a good portion of the city, heading off to the famous Royal Crescent, went into #1 Royal Crescent, set up as an 18th century townhouse during the heyday of spa Bath, but regretfully, you could not take pictures and I couldn't even sneak them as their were docents in every room. Oh well, then back out into the grey and overcast sky, out and about the city wandering through its hilly streets, in and out of a few bookstores, then grabbing some lunch from Marks and Sparks, dodging even more tourists, then into the very crowded Roman Baths at our appointed time. I always love the Roman Baths, and spending time there can really transport you back in time. I spent an hour and half going through the museum and the baths themselves, before stopping into the gift shop and buying my first real purchase for myself: a book on Roman London and southeastern England. They it was to the bus at 5:15 (we left promptly, hooray!) and the nearly two hour bus drive back to Oxford through the countryside.
It was an interesting ride home and then a quiet night dealing with students problems: one of the big ones was how did the hot water work, and that required dragging the caretaker Neal out of his bed and showing us how it worked in one of the flats. I went around to all the others and fixed them for the other students, except for those who went out immediately and cold showers still on Monday morning. We also had no internet all weekend, so it raised that interesting problem for many of them: what do we do? Even I thought to myself, I have been spending a lot of time on the computer since there is no tv, or other real distractions (movies are a maybe 1x only expensive here at nearly 25 bucks a person once you add in snacks and soda, or about 15 dollars without that expensive). I love to read, which is what I did, but when that is your only option, it does seem kinda hollow at times.
Monday:
Okay, back to school and work today. The morning was spent meeting the new scout, who doesn't speak a lot of English, but did a really good job in cleaning the bathroom, mopping the kitchen floor, empty the trash etc. I still haven't quiet figured out the shower yet myself: I have two settings, way too hot, hot enough to boil an egg, or cold enough to play a new game of find your missing testicles. ::laugh:: Actually its not that bad, but the shower is either way too hot or lukewarm at best. I'll take the lukewarm over the boiling hot. Then it was off to class in the new temporary class rooms, but the class was too big for the room, so from today onwards we are going to meet in the conservatory at Stephen's Close. Hopefully it won't be that warm. I do have to wander off this morning (Tuesday) and go get the fan from the porter's lodge, but I want to finish this blog first. After classes, it was stuck around my room, trying to get MAC addresses from all the students so their internet would work and sending them off to the IT people at Jesus college to register them. Then it was my afternoon History of Science class (which is going to be held in my living room most days), and then off to dinner at Heather's house. Heather made Indian style chicken and rice, and it was quite good. I am not that keen on most Indian food, but this was good. Then we sat around and chatted, getting to know each other better, until around 10:30 when I left to head home.
I got home, and I couldn't sleep. It was the first night I was up until late, like 1:00 o'clock or so, before heading off to bed. Got up my normal time of 7:30 and then signed on to the do the posting and read email. Now its off to the showers, run down to the porter's lodge before the exam starts (it was supposed to be on Monday, but with the computers down, and most of the exam questions were posted via internet, we gave an extension until today) and then give the exam. I have a few errands to do as well, but the whole trip down and back shouldn't take more than hour. Plenty of time before the test.
Tonight is a stay around and cook for the first time night. I haven't been exercising first thing in the morning, but most days I have been walking miles and miles. However, yesterday I didn't, so perhaps now that we are in residence and the classrooms are just a hopskipjump away, I think I need to get out and walk again. I do need to do laundry again, so that is another reason to head down to the main campus and get my laundry card refilled.
I'll post more tomorrow...and some pictures in just a few. I can't believe its week 3. Thursday its off to see the "scottish play" in Stratford (you aren't supposed to say the name aloud!) and then an early morning (6 am) start on Friday to Paris. We will be in France over the weekend, so I am not sure if I am going to bring my laptop or not with me, but I probably will.
Talk to you all later...
Monday, July 16, 2007
Quick Update
Action packed weekend...internet not working at the new place until an hour or so ago. So no updates and busy with getting everyone back on track. I will post more later this evening when I have some time do so. Lots of pics, and lots to say, I think.
Matt
Matt
Thursday, July 12, 2007
Ghost Tour Pictures
Ghost Tour Group of Students
Location where the Oxford Martyrs where burnt at the stake in 1556, Broad St.
Haunted Street, where a battle between Royalists and Roundheads took place during the English Civil War in the 1640s.
Haunted Chapel, Trinity College
Walled up door that leads to a medieval cemetary, now used as a garden by St. Edmund's Hall college students. I will try to get a picture of lawn chairs set up in and among the grave stones tomorrow.
Oxford Evening Pics
Bridge of Sighs Replica, Hertford College
Carfax Tower, the remnants of an old Norman church
Cornmarket, one of the main shopping streets and a pedestrian only street. Probably the most crowded street in Oxford during the day time.
An Elizabethan shop on Cornmarkter and one of the oldest buildings in the city.
The King's Arms, one of the local pubs and where we ate the second night in Oxford.
Thursday July 12th
Well, today has been another mixed day. Breakfast, work online, class, run to the post office to mail some postcards, then on a little adventure. I went off with Heather, Andrew, their son Ben, and Rosemary from Jesus College to the new flats where we are moving to on Saturday. They are quite nice, about a 15 minute walk from town. Large flats, where three students live, each with their own bedroom, bath, and a shared living area, kitchen and small dining space. I will take some pictures over the weekend for all of you to see. Much more spacious than I thought, and it will be a nice place to spend the last three weeks or so. I will have all three keys to my flat, plus a master key for all of the student rooms if something should go wrong. Unlike the college here in town where there is a porter 24 hours a day, there is a resident porter for some portion of the time, but not really on weekends. The new classrooms for the last three weeks are in coverted flats (they are turning the large living rooms into classrooms) from a 19th century building just down the street from the Stephen's Close dorms. I think the students will like them, though they are not quite so convienent to downtown as the rooms we have right now. One of the girls said that she was just getting settled in when we have to move. I agree with what she was feeling, but I think it will turn out for the best. After my History of Science Class, I ran some errands, had dinner in my room (a sandwhich again, but it was good!), then got ready for the ghost tour. However, they moved the time of the ghost tour, so it started at 8 instead of 7.
The ghost tour cost 5 GBP and was worth every penny. The guide was quite good, the stories were interesting, and the hour and 15 minute walking tour was informative and historical. I learned some things I didn't know, and I will post some pictures of the city from this evening. Oxford is quite beautiful as the sun is setting and the crowds leave for the day. Some of the shots I think are good, even for me, so I will let you be the one to judge. Tomorrow is packing day and getting things ready for the move on Saturday. I might move some of my stuff tomorrow evening, which should give me a head start and I will only have to carry two bags, or a bag and my fan on Saturday morning. Gives me more time to oversee the move and make sure all the students are present and accounted for. Heather will meet me at Stephen's Close when we are ready to leave. Then on Saturday its off to Blenheim Palace, the Costwold Wildlife Park (someplace I haven't been before) and hopefully a brief layover at a supermarket so we can all get some shopping done since our weekend is so busy otherwise. Personally, if we don't do the shopping on Saturday, I don't think I will have a chance to shop for anything before Monday morning or between my classes, whichever becomes free first.
Today's pictures will be posted in another post...
The ghost tour cost 5 GBP and was worth every penny. The guide was quite good, the stories were interesting, and the hour and 15 minute walking tour was informative and historical. I learned some things I didn't know, and I will post some pictures of the city from this evening. Oxford is quite beautiful as the sun is setting and the crowds leave for the day. Some of the shots I think are good, even for me, so I will let you be the one to judge. Tomorrow is packing day and getting things ready for the move on Saturday. I might move some of my stuff tomorrow evening, which should give me a head start and I will only have to carry two bags, or a bag and my fan on Saturday morning. Gives me more time to oversee the move and make sure all the students are present and accounted for. Heather will meet me at Stephen's Close when we are ready to leave. Then on Saturday its off to Blenheim Palace, the Costwold Wildlife Park (someplace I haven't been before) and hopefully a brief layover at a supermarket so we can all get some shopping done since our weekend is so busy otherwise. Personally, if we don't do the shopping on Saturday, I don't think I will have a chance to shop for anything before Monday morning or between my classes, whichever becomes free first.
Today's pictures will be posted in another post...
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
Wednesday Evening
As I said, today was a day spent shopping for a new suitcase. I got one with a warranty, and seems pretty durable, though it did cost 75 GBP. I will get back 14.25% of that price for a VAT refund, but I am also going to buy a smaller suitcase for the Paris and Edinburgh trips next week. I didn't want to sticker shock myself all in one day! After that, it was off to class, then I went out to a larger supermarket a short bus trip away, but it turned out to be an adventure in and of itself. They are doing so much construction here in Oxford, that what should have been a 5-10 minute bus ride home took over 30 minutes. It was so bad that there were 5 more buses all stacked up behind the one I was on because the construction on Magdalen Bridge is so bad. I will try to take a picture of the roundabout construction to show you what a mess it is. But just think, three major roads dump into a roundabout, which in turn, dumps into a two lane bridge. One lane of the bridge is shut down for repairs, and repairs are supposed to take more than 18 weeks. They did manage to repave oneside of the bridge and they are now working on the other, but how long it will take I don't know. Its a good thing the dorm is the opposite direction from that mess.
After that, it was lunch in my room: ham and cheddar (real English cheddar is quite different than anything we get in the states), on a fresh multi grain roll. Then back to class, some work in my room, and then off to dinner. Dinner was the usual once a week semi formal thing, though tonight the dining hall was quite crowded. It was roll and butter, a piece of fish in puff pastry with a nice cream sauce, then a piece of beef with a tomato based sauce, boiled new potatoes with mint, and mixed vegetables heavy on green beans. Finally, desert was chocolate gateau, and it was really good.
Then it was meetings with the students, and we decided what we are going to do on Sunday (Stonehenge and Bath). I tried to convince them to go to Hampton Court, but it was overwhelming the number of students who wanted to go to Stonehenge and Bath. I have been to both places, and Stonehenge is okay, Bath better, but I really wanted to head off to Hampton Court. Oh well, I will get a chance to do that at the end of the month in my free time in London before I fly home.
So now you know what a typical day is. Its now about 9:15, its still light outside, though the sun is finally setting. The weather forecast keeps changing, though we are supposedly due for a real warm up this weekend, into the upper 70s, near 80, though the weather forecasters say it won't last more than a day or two before it cools down again. That should be good news, because the lows around here most evenings have been in the mid to lower 50s, and on Sunday, there are supposed to be in the upper 60s. When it is warm here, it is almost as humid as it is in Florida. Still, I am glad I have a fan and hopefully the warm weather won't last long. The weather has mostly been in the mid to upper 60s, today the low 70s, and the nights comfortably cool. A bunch of the students are getting colds, which is inevitably: not enough sleep, too many late nights, the strange adjustment to the weather, maybe one too many pints. Remarkably, the drinking has been well under control, even on weekends from what I can tell, because of the class schedule that makes most of them stay in a couple nights of the week to get work done. I really am not sure what all of them do at night, but many of them are up and bright eyed and bushy tailed since the first class for many is at 8:15.
Tomorrow is a quite day for me. I am off to go see the new residence with Heather and Rosemary around 2, then back to class in the afternoon. My first grading assignments are coming in on Friday and there is a test and another grading assignment due on Monday. I should be busy for much of next week in the evenings with grading exams and short research papers. It shouldn't take very long: there are only 16 students in the civ 2 class, and they are each turning in a paper and taking a final, and 7 History of Science students who are turning in their longer papers on Monday. I am hoping to have it all done by Wednesday. Tonight its answering email, writing on this blog, and getting some of my own work done. I'll probably post more tomorrow night. I also think I am going to try and get up extra early tomorrow or Friday to go and take pictures while the streets of Oxford are relatively empty.
After that, it was lunch in my room: ham and cheddar (real English cheddar is quite different than anything we get in the states), on a fresh multi grain roll. Then back to class, some work in my room, and then off to dinner. Dinner was the usual once a week semi formal thing, though tonight the dining hall was quite crowded. It was roll and butter, a piece of fish in puff pastry with a nice cream sauce, then a piece of beef with a tomato based sauce, boiled new potatoes with mint, and mixed vegetables heavy on green beans. Finally, desert was chocolate gateau, and it was really good.
Then it was meetings with the students, and we decided what we are going to do on Sunday (Stonehenge and Bath). I tried to convince them to go to Hampton Court, but it was overwhelming the number of students who wanted to go to Stonehenge and Bath. I have been to both places, and Stonehenge is okay, Bath better, but I really wanted to head off to Hampton Court. Oh well, I will get a chance to do that at the end of the month in my free time in London before I fly home.
So now you know what a typical day is. Its now about 9:15, its still light outside, though the sun is finally setting. The weather forecast keeps changing, though we are supposedly due for a real warm up this weekend, into the upper 70s, near 80, though the weather forecasters say it won't last more than a day or two before it cools down again. That should be good news, because the lows around here most evenings have been in the mid to lower 50s, and on Sunday, there are supposed to be in the upper 60s. When it is warm here, it is almost as humid as it is in Florida. Still, I am glad I have a fan and hopefully the warm weather won't last long. The weather has mostly been in the mid to upper 60s, today the low 70s, and the nights comfortably cool. A bunch of the students are getting colds, which is inevitably: not enough sleep, too many late nights, the strange adjustment to the weather, maybe one too many pints. Remarkably, the drinking has been well under control, even on weekends from what I can tell, because of the class schedule that makes most of them stay in a couple nights of the week to get work done. I really am not sure what all of them do at night, but many of them are up and bright eyed and bushy tailed since the first class for many is at 8:15.
Tomorrow is a quite day for me. I am off to go see the new residence with Heather and Rosemary around 2, then back to class in the afternoon. My first grading assignments are coming in on Friday and there is a test and another grading assignment due on Monday. I should be busy for much of next week in the evenings with grading exams and short research papers. It shouldn't take very long: there are only 16 students in the civ 2 class, and they are each turning in a paper and taking a final, and 7 History of Science students who are turning in their longer papers on Monday. I am hoping to have it all done by Wednesday. Tonight its answering email, writing on this blog, and getting some of my own work done. I'll probably post more tomorrow night. I also think I am going to try and get up extra early tomorrow or Friday to go and take pictures while the streets of Oxford are relatively empty.
Even More Pics
Another image from the Bodelian Library, outside the main entrance.
A random door in Oxford near the Sheldonian Theater.
Jesus College Dining Hall and Charles I, benefactor of the college.
Jesus College Dining Hall, looking towards the kitchens. The paneling is early 17th century.
More Pics
Just some Random Pictures:
My Room at Jesus College
My Room at Jesus College 2
Tower Bridge, London (shot from the Tower of London)
The Malmaison Hotel in Oxford, built in the former prison, and possibly the highest quality hotel in Oxford
Some Ducks in Oxford
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