Submitted by Arielle Linn on the 2014 winter session study abroad program in London, England sponsored by the Department of English and the Department of Theatre…
This week was a lot of fun! On Monday after class I went to Camden Market and bought some souvenirs for family and friends. We then met up with another friend studying abroad in London for the entire semester. On Tuesday, we didn’t have class because of our long busy day! We met at the steps at St. Paul’s Cathedral at 12:30 and went on a “Shakespeare walk” learning about important places in London dealing with Shakespeare. We ended up at Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre and took a tour of that as well. It was so cool to see a theatre in the open air. The decoration was so intricate and it was interesting to listen to the way the Globe was built. After this, we had a little time to ourselves and then we saw the Shakespearean play Richard II. On Wednesday after class, a few of my classmates and I went to the Jewish quarter and visited the Jewish Museum. It was interesting to learn about Jewish history through a British Jew’s perspective since I’ve only heard it in the past from Americans and Israelis. After this, we saw the ballet Swan Lake and it was spectacular! I’ve heard so much about the ballet as a child and it was amazing to see it live. It had a really cool modern twist on it since men were playing the parts of the swans instead of women. On Thursday after class, I went to Leicester Square to walk around and then stopped at the Covent Garden Market to get some food. Little did we know that there is a food market on Thursdays in Covent Garden and I ate a delicious Swedish meatball sandwich. That night me and a few friends bought tickets to see the show Matilda. It was THE BEST play I have ever seen and I am so glad I saw it here. This weekend, I went to Edinburgh, Scotland with seven other girls from my program. We walked on the Royal Mile, ate Scottish salmon, went into the Scottish Museum, toured the Edinburgh Castle, and of course did some shopping. The city was absolutely beautiful and I’m really glad I went. I’m so upset this next week will be my last full week in London, but I have a lot of great things planned