the coronation spoon

Au Revoir Simone and Camera Obscura

2007-04-22T10:54:00.000-07:00

We were in the very front for an Au Revoir Simone / Camera Obscura concert! The concert was at a really cool venue in Camden Town called Koko.

First, Au Revoir Simone:

Camera Obscura!

This is a picture of the press taking pictures of Tracyanne Campbell.

The man in the green shirt is Francois. He was (temporarily, I think) on tour with the band while their band member Nigel was on paternity leave. Both Francois and Nigel were playing at that night's show, which was great. This was Francois' last song, as he had to take a night bus to get back home so he could teach French to schoolchildren in the morning! I had never been to a concert where a band member had to leave early before, especially not for such an adorable reason!

The keyboard player (Carey, I believe) seemed to always be standing in a shaft of light. The lightning in general was great. It was such a fantastic show!

Prague!

2007-04-09T03:50:00.000-07:00

For our independent travel period, Jenny, Rebecca and I went to visit Gabe in Prague! We had an amazing time, and here's a fraction of pictures from the week we spent in the Czech Republic.

Jenny demonstrates the effective balcony door. (Our hostel was awesome!)

Prague is cool, see?

I've always though the phrase "footloose and fancy free" was kind of silly, but that's what I think of when I see this picture of Jenny and Gabe.

I felt really creepy taking a picture in a public restroom, but this dispenser label was so funny I just had to share it with the world.

Approaching the TV Tower. The baby sculptures are by David Cerny, and were made permanent in 2001.

Here's a shot from the observation deck of the TV Tower.

The Kafka statue and a statue on Charles Bridge.

This is from the Old Jewish Cemetary. It doesn't even begin to convey how packed the cemetary is with tombstones. This is a less densely populated area right here, but there are thousands and thousands of stones in a relatively small space.

Terezin

2007-04-09T03:34:00.000-07:00

It doesn't really seem right to put the pictures from Terezin in with the rest of my images from my trip to the Czech Republic. If you would like to read about Terezin, there is a website with information here.

Spring Comes to London

2007-04-09T03:19:00.000-07:00

Jenny and Rebecca during a picnic lunch outside Euston Friends House, where we take our classes.

Here's another view of Euston's garden. The brick building on the left is the Friends house.

This is a sculpture on the ridiculously ornate memorial to Prince Albert, which is right behind the Royal Albert Music Hall. I had the strange privilege of attending the "Classical Spectacular" there. Have you ever listened to "Fanfare for the Common Man" accompanied by lasers and fog machines?

This is me with Beth Ditto of The Gossip! I went to a free Gossip show at HMV (a chain record store in England) and there was a record signing afterward. I was one of the last people in line so it was all very rushed, but Beth was super nice and knew that Michael Jackson and David Letterman are both from Indiana! The security guard took this picture.

Almost every Thursday, my friends and I go to one of the local pubs (John Baird) to play in their quiz night. We decided it would be fun for our team name to be "The Russell Joneses" in honor of my dad. We always do really terribly at quiz night (as is probably obvious by this pathetic card from round 6), but we have a great time. So, Russell Jones, we may have come in last place, but we did it in your name!

still alive

2007-04-07T13:57:00.000-07:00

So, I don't have any pictures to share this time (I am still on my Spring Break in Prague), but I just wanted to give a quick update for the three or four folks who check for new blog entries.

Since the last measly picture-share, I've been to Ireland and Northern Ireland, had a couple weeks of fun and visitors and work back in London, and then have spent the past week in the Czech Republic. Jenny, Rebecca and I stayed in a hostel in Prague for the first six nights, and now are spending the last few days staying with our friend Gabe in his apartment (he's doing a study abroad program here).

Spring arrived in London during the time between Ireland and Prague, and the weather has made my surroundings all the more exhilarating. I've been taking tons of pictures, so I'll have a lot to update as soon as I get back to England. I fly back tomorrow (Easter Sunday--instead of church I'll have the plane, and instead of chocolate I'll have...well, I'm sure I'll manage some chocolate anyway). Monday is a bank holiday, so I don't have to go to my internship and have big plans to watch "The Sound of Music" and upload pictures.

I miss all of you, and I hope you've had good Holy Weeks, Passovers, or plain Spring days.

Cardiff, Wales

2007-03-08T10:50:00.000-08:00

I went to Cardiff, Wales last weekend with my housemates from Earlham. Among the highlights were taking the train (I love taking trains here!) and getting to tour Cardiff Castle.

Jenny on the train.

On the left is a view from our walk to-and-from the hotel. We didn't have enough time to book a hostel, so we saved money by staying in a very nice place that happened to be quite far away from the city centre. So, we had an interesting bus ride followed by an interesting walk. On the right is an example of the interesting juxtaposition between modern and ancient that is so much more common in the UK than in the US. I loved the fact that I could stand on a street lined with shops on one side and Cardiff Castle on the other.

Some shots from the grounds of the castle, and from inside the keep.

Just before heading back to London we went to Mermaid Quay at Cardiff Bay. The second picture is, of course, me under the umbrella that Molly got me as a welcome-to-the-rainiest-country-ever present. It's always a little awkward putting a picture of oneself standing alone on a blog, but here I am. (This one's for you, Dad!)

a monopoly on fun

2007-03-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

We dressed up like old ladies and played Monopoly! Please note the white socks and dress shoes, or, in Rebecca's case, swingin' slippers.

This last one is a) to show off the British Monopoly board and b) so I can remember my fabulous real estate heyday, when I had hotels up on the cheap properties and Jenny hadn't developed Mayfair or Park Lane.

year of the pig

2007-02-25T03:37:00.000-08:00

Last weekend my housemates and I went to Leicester Square to see "Volver" at the cheap and semi-classy Prince Charles Cinema, which has the most comfortable movie-watching chairs I have ever experienced.

Anyway, it was Chinese New Year, and although we were too late to see the celebration itself, a lot of the decorations were still up. Happy Year of the Pig!

I know these pictures are increasing the creepiness factor of this blog about ten-fold, but I really wanted to share the trees outside the National Theatre with all of you. My theatre class sees a lot of plays at the National Theatre, and I also went there with friends to see Samuel Beckett's "Happy Days" (which starred the amazing Fiona Shaw). Every time I go there, I always want to stop and take pictures of the trees. They're very strange because they've been trimmed, but not enough that they've stopped growing. The other night I was early for "Coram Boy" so I stopped to take some shots.

in which we attempt to break away for Hogwarts

2007-02-11T16:10:00.000-08:00

Rebecca and I went to the Victoria & Albert on Saturday, and when we first walked up from the pedestrian subway (!) we encountered a room full of statues and sculptures of the human form. There were tons of people taking pictures, completely fascinated with these representations of shapes such as themselves. And that fascinated me. (The sculpture was great, too.) We were there to see Collect, an exhibit of functional art, but I plan to go back to look at the other exhibits sometime soon.

Our music class took a trip to Cambridge on Sunday to experience Evensong at King's College. We took a train out of King's Cross Station in London, so of course we had to visit Platform 9 3/4 of Harry Potter fame!

I really, really wanted to go on the Hogwarts Express, but I didn't have any luck this time.

After Evensong, we wandered around the King's College grounds. The light quality was honestly stunning; no photograph can do it justice. Still, here are two--the taller building to the right of the first image was the chapel where we attended Evensong, and the picture on the right is a reflection in a puddle.

comments

2007-01-28T15:37:00.000-08:00

Hey everyone--I just realized that this blog was set to allow comments only by registered members of Blogger. Now anyone can comment, so if you just sign your name you no longer have to be signed into Blogger. Sorry about that!

2007-01-28T14:16:00.000-08:00

Our entire group went on a trip to Stratford and Warwick Castle this weekend. We saw a very compelling production of "Richard III" and toured homes where Shakespeare and his family lived. Every bit as importantly, we also made the acquaintance of a beautiful barn owl named Banquo! We also saw precious little pigs...and the house where Shakespeare was born.

At Warwick Castle, there was much to behold, such as a stained glass window inscribed with "Dudley," a dungeon (see Rebecca checking out some kind of torture device). We also climbed a dark, uneven spiral staircase for what seemed like an eternity, though the view was worth it!

Tower of London

2007-01-24T15:38:00.000-08:00

This man is our extremely expressive tour guide. He is a "Beefeater"! This is sadly not one of his more expressive moments; you'll just have to trust me
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Here is a horse statue, also at the Tower.

These figures are Gin and Beer, I believe.

touristy delights

2007-01-24T15:17:00.000-08:00

The London Eye! Last Friday was a day full of touristy things.
It was the perfect day to ride the Eye. Overcast, but clear enough to see the buildings plainly--and without glare from the sun.

You can see the pod that was a little farther along on its journey than ours, and the Houses of Parliament are visible too.

Rebecca, Kathryn, Jenny, and Stephanie! High in the air! I love this picture.

Buckingham Palace. The tiny flag on top signifies that the Queen was in fact home while we were there. I think that's hilarious.

We went to see "The Queen" that night (I hope Helen Mirren wins the Oscar!) and found out a bit more about that flag--namely, the controversy over whether or not to fly it at half mast when Princess Diana died.

the beginning

2007-01-21T13:22:00.000-08:00

This is Rebecca (L) and Jenny (R) during our long wait at the O'Hare Airport. Arriving incredibly early put our minds at ease, and left us with plenty of time to eat overpriced snack food, read trashy celebrity gossip, and take pictures of each other.

Bob Johnstone + Winston Churchill!
This picture represents what is quite possibly the greatest moment of my life, or at the very least one of the most enjoyable parts of the trip so far. Without warning, during a walking tour of some important historical and political landmarks in central London, our professor and program leader Bob provided us with an amazing photo op. Bob does an excellent Churchill impression in general, but he went above and beyond when faced with the man himself.

I kind of liked the look of this random wall in Muswell Hill, which is essentially the neighborhood where I live. The house is technically very nearby in another neighborhood, but we do our grocery shopping, errands, and much of our socializing in Muswell Hill.