ASK Musings

No matter where you go, there you are.

Monthly Archive: April 2010

Wednesday

21

April 2010

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Spring Break Part IV – Kentucky

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When I got to the airport Thursday I checked on my flight to see if the upgrade I requested had any chance of coming through. The gentleman at the counter was very kind, but replied “upgrade? Honey, we’re going to have to downgrade people.” The volcano had erupted the night before, and all flights to London were suspended. My flight to Chicago was meant to continue on to London, so they changed planes to avoid flying such a large one a relatively short distance. Unfortunately, that meant that nearly 20 people were left behind. I was not one of them however, and I made my way to Louisville and met Justin, who picked me up as he drove in from DC. We later picked up his girlfriend Vanessa, in on a later flight. We stayed over in Louisville and crashed at an airport hotel.

The next morning we drove to Lexington, before first stopping at a waffle house. The staff was nice, although we felt a bit out of place as we were dressed for the races and thus done up a bit more than the Waffle House crowd. Our server was nice, although when she brought Vanessa her chocolate milk, she asked if she wanted sugar or Splenda for it. Hmm…

We checked into the hotel and then went on the Keeneland for the races and met up with the bride and groom, Herman and Kathleen. They seemed great – so relaxed and happy. Friends of theirs have a box at the races, so we all gathered there, placing bets, some of us even winning money! That evening we gathered at Kathleen’s family farm for a BBQ. It was so great to see so many of my NYC friends!

Saturday started well – Erin, Bonnie, Kathleen and I (the original half-marathoners) met at the farm for a morning 5-mile run. It was such a great way to start the day. I was meant to go on a bourbon tour, but spent some time on the phone to my airline checking on my flight. That afternoon we headed out to the farm on a shuttle bus provided.

The ceremony was so beautiful. Kathleen looked utterly gorgeous, and Herman was cool as a cucumber. The readings were great, the weather was absolute perfection, and it was just … wow. Not over the top, and suiting them both so well. The tent for the reception was decorated with flowers from neighboring gardens, and lovely spring colors. The NYC folks were seated near the dance floor, as was appropriate. The food was delicious – all manner of amazing southern delicacies, plus red velvet cupcakes, including gluten-free ones for Jonathan (my wonder twin and date for the evening). We danced into the night, having such a great time. It was another wonderful wedding, and I’m so excited for the happy couple!

In the midst of all of this, I learned that my flight home to London was cancelled. Yikes. We figured out that I would hitch a ride to DC with Justin and Vanessa, staying there for a couple of nights, then take a bus up to NYC and stay in Herman and Kathleen’s apartment, where I am now, as they are on their two-week honeymoon. Sunday I’ll take a bus back down to DC, where hopefully I’ll take a flight out of Dulles Monday night and back to London, just eight days late. It seems like air space is open now, so hopefully by next Monday I’ll be all set! Pictures of all adventures will follow as soon as I can get them off of my camera …

Wednesday

21

April 2010

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Spring Break Part III – Seattle and San Juan (the island, not the city in Puerto Rico)

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I flew into Seattle via Denver on the 8th, and had a very nice and easy time of it. If you fly United I recommend changing in Denver, especially if you come in via an international flight. The baggage claim / re-check is rather convenient and stress-free.

I spent the first two evenings with my friends who kind enough to take me in when I move at the end of the summer, and I brought with me a suitcase full of my winter clothes to leave with them. Friday Renee and I did what we seem to do best when I visit: shop! We also had lunch with her mother, and then finished the day with some Beatles Rock Band (or Guitar Hero?) and dinner with Megan.

Saturday I got to see baby Jesse and oh man, she has grown quickly. I realize that’s what kids do, but it was amazing to see. It was also great to spend time with Jamie and Mike, as we strolled around Greenlake, went to a local waffle house and enjoyed the beautiful weekend weather. Sunday evening I met up with a couple of friends from college, then headed up to visit Reagan.

She took me to San Juan Island as a belated birthday present. Such a great adventure! We drove up to the ferry, and took it across over to Friday Harbor. We stayed in a beautiful place overlooking the harbor, patronized a local Mexican restaurant and rented a DVD (the Illusionist) and just relaxed. Tuesday we got up early and drove around the island. We started at the American Camp, which was set up to deal with the Pig War conflict of 1859. We were the only ones hiking around, and the views were phenomenal. We spotted a fox, but possibly the best was a rock that was in honor of one Robert, best known for Robert’s Rules of Parliamentary Procedure. Reagan and I are complete dorks, as that was a major high point of the trip. We made our way up the coast to a park where we could see the tails of some porpoises. It was peaceful and very cool, and I think at one point we could even hear them ‘talking’ to one another. Finally we headed up to the British Camp, then back to Seattle.

Wednesday Jamie, Jesse, Mike and I went to the Tulip Festival. It was an early bloom, so there were not many fields, except at Tulip Town. We also visited an Alpaca farm, which was awesome. Seriously, alpacas kick ass. They are so adorable.

Thursday I made my way to the airport, when part four of my adventure continued …

Monday

19

April 2010

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Spring Break Interrupted

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I had a great time in the Pacific Northwest, and a wonderful time at the wedding in Kentucky, both of which I’ll yammer on about later. Now I am here on the East Coast until at least next Monday, as my flight last night was cancelled due to the volcano. I’m super tired and running a bit low on clean clothes, but luckily I’m at my friend Justin’s place, and he has a washing machine! Tomorrow I’m taking a bus up to NYC so I can see some more of my friends, then heading back down here Sunday to catch (hopefully) a flight back to London Monday night. I have access to the interwebs, and have a copy of my thesis on a thumb drive, so I can even do some work. Which means I should get up and get moving – it looks lovely here today.

Plus, it could be so much worse. Yeah, I’m not really able to properly study this week, and yeah, my body is sort of stiff and exhausted from all the different forms of travel / sleeping accommodations, but at least I’m not stuck in an airport in a country where I don’t speak the language. At least I don’t have to pay $150/night to stay in a less than stellar airport hotel, or rely on food vouchers from an airline. And the best part is this reminder of what amazing and generous friends I have – putting me up in their homes, giving me their keys while they are out of town, and just generally offering whatever help they can. It’s pretty awesome, to say the least.

Tuesday

6

April 2010

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Spring Break Part II – Birmingham

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Good Friday and Easter Monday are Bank Holidays here in England, so most people clear out of town. Kate and Richard decided to head up to the Midlands to visit his mum, and invited me along for the trip. We left Friday afternoon and after a sadly unsuccessful attempt to find some white eggs for dying, we made it to Birmingham. I had my first good fish and chips ever, and it was pretty fantastic. Saturday the three of us set out – with the assistance of a very posh-sounding TomTom guide – to visit Ironbridge. Ironbridge is a World Heritage site, and is apparently where the industrial revolution in England began. It was pretty cool town, actually, and one I’d visit again. It almost reminded me of an Italian village, the way the homes were built into the hills. We visited the Gorge museum, but there are nine others one can see, and I’d imagine they’re all pretty interesting. The bridge itself – the first built from cast iron in the world – is quite a site.

That evening we saw Clash of the Titans. In 3-D. It’s entertaining. And kind of a fun reminder both of boring Saturday afternoons when nothing else was on TV as well as my 10th grade mythology section.

Easter Sunday we took the Kraken (aka Holly, the most beautiful German Shepherd EVER) to the Lickey Hills. That’s right, England has some hills. These ones are gorgeous. After regrouping back at the house Richard’s mum joined us for a visit to Aston Hall, a lovely old manor house built during the Jacobean era. The owner, Mr. Holte, was a Royalist, but somehow the house was not burnt to the ground by the parliamentarians. There is, however, still a scar in one of the staircases from cannon fire. The only bummer is that it is right next door to the football club that shall not be named. Fellow Blue Noses must hold their lunches down to make the drive in, but once inside the estate it is easy to forget about the Villains. Of course, they are easy to forget anyway!

Yesterday before heading back to London we stopped by to see the Staffordshire Horde. Yeah, I hadn’t heard of it either. But it is amazing. A local man who likes to use a metal detector to find old coins and such discovered it in July last year, and it is one of the only finds of its kind. It’s by definition a treasure, so it technically belongs to the Crown, but Birmingham was able to raise the funds (over £3 million) to keep it in the Midlands. Right now there is just a temporary display of some of the items from 700 CE, but they are an absolute sight to see. Such intricate detailing. One of the staff members said it will take about ten years to go through it all, clean it, attempt to identify it, and work it into a display.

Tuesday

6

April 2010

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Spring Break Part I – Two Weeks in London

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I have been done with classes now for over two weeks, and have been attempting to spend my days studying in the mornings and exploring in the afternoons. So far I have managed the first go-round of review for my courses – the re-reading of lecture and reading notes, review of past exam questions at a very basic level, etc – and have made a lot of progress on my thesis. And by progress I mean a load of words that may or may not all get edited or deleted.

I have definitely been successful in exploring London. My first day off I spent a few hours just wandering along the south side of the river Thames. There’s a great path along the water, and there are loads of cool buildings, museums and restaurants. I snapped quite a few shots that day, including a sand serpent being constructed during low tide. The next day I attempted to see the Van Gogh exhibition at the Royal Academy but the line was already 90 minutes long, so instead of joining a queue of old aged pensioners, I went into the main hall to see this exhibition of old photographs of London. Lately I’ve been finding old photography to be the most fascinating art, and so am seeking it out wherever I can find it. So naturally my next stop was the National Portrait Gallery for an Irving Penn retrospective. Very simple photos but so beautiful.

Later in the week I finally made it to the Hunterian Museum, which is just next door to my university. Is it wrong that I spent more time in this tiny space than I did at the Uffizi in Florence a few years ago? Possibly. But it was so fascinating. Loads of preserved specimens, a history of surgery, and the bones of an Irish giant. Very cool stuff. And free!

By the end of the week I dragged Kate (who was kind enough to play along) to the 50th anniversary of Carnaby Street exhibition. It was not exactly … large. There was a long shadowbox filled with some interesting photographs and artifacts, a few excellent pieces of clothing from the 60s, and … that was about it. But it did mean that we were able to scoot next door to explore Liberty of London, which is this fantastic old department store that carries things like components for hat-making, designer clothes, and artisenal chocolates. Browsing was a real treat. Even more of a treat? The Diner we went to around the corner, which serves excellent milkshakes and onion rings. I have an appointment to go back there for some french toast soon. The we met up with Stefani, who has just started a new job, which is very exciting, especially in this economy in this city.

A week ago Sunday I made it over to the Photographers’ Gallery, which is currently exhibiting the Deutsche Borsche Photography Prize finalists. Shocking absolutely no one, my favorite was Donovan Wylie, a Belfast man who was nominated for his work on documenting the demolition of The Maze prison in the North of Ireland. He also has a great book called Scrapbook, which shows some clippings and images from The Troubles.

Finally I ended the week with a tour of Somerset House. This place is fantastic. It’s a bit unassuming from the Strand – it just looks like another of the great large buildings here – but inside the courtyard is a gorgeous former palace with an amazing history. They give free tours twice weekly, so I latched onto one and learned so much about the place, and some other things, like the Great Stink of 1858. My favorite little tidbit was the story behind four statues on the upper level of the north side facing inward. They are personages representing Asia, Africa, Europe and the Americas. The first three are bringing gifts to the Kingdom, but since the statues were commissioned around the time of the revolution in the states, the Americas are bringing fire. Awesome.

There is SO MUCH to see and do here, and I’ve just barely scratched the surface. Sometimes I make plans but don’t end up going, and that worked out to my benefit on Friday – I was supposed to go to the American Apparel Rummage Sale on Brick Lane, but as you can see, that would not have been a lot of fun.