Oh, to bathe with the Romans. What a treat that would be!

My seafood pasta on girl's night!

The Bath Abbey

In front of the Royal Crescent

The Roman Baths

My corset and hoop skirt ensemble

Last night was girl's night in Oxford! For the occasion, we got all gussied up, took cute pictures, and went out to dinner. The twelve of us ate at The Living Room (a swanky little joint) and ate very classy. For my meal, I got the seafood linguini, which had an entourage of shrimps, muscles, scallops, etc. all mixed up in buttery, garlic, white wine pasta. Yeah, it was fabulous. Our group did some research beforehand and we found out that we could get dinner and dessert for the same price as the main course, sooooo I followed up the meal with my favorite desert, crème brûlée. On a side note, that has to do with my crème brûlée obsession, Mom and I decided over the Christmas break that when I get married, I'll have a crème brûlée cake (it'll be like a cupcake cake with all the dishes stacked like a cake, but it'll be more delicious because it's crème brûlée and not cake!!). But it's a huge blessing to have such awesome girls on our trip--everyone's a keeper!

Moving along in time, we spent the day in Bath today! Plenty of bath and bathing jokes made as you might guess. We started out the day in the Bath Abbey where we stared in awe for a while at the high ceilings and flying buttresses that surrounded us. After hanging out there for a bit, we made our way to the Roman Baths. Our tickets came with audio guides, which made going through the baths much cooler.  They told us every thing about bathing protocol (Dad, there was mixed bathing), when they were constructed (65 A.D.), and how to the water was warmed (by gasses in deep in the Earth). We even got to touch water that they estimate is 10,000 years old. Cool. I love being surrounded by so much history. There is a building called the Royal Crescent in Bath, which is a series of giant curved rooms that form crescent shapes. I've never seen architecture quite like it before. But now, before you judge me for being a girly girl, you should know that our tickets from the baths included this museum as well. And this museum was a fashion museum. BTE (better than expected). It had huge ball gowns from the early 17th century, and then it worked its way through the styles of the 20's and 60's up until the modern day. It was fun to see what things came in and out of style, and what, in my opinion, was never in style to begin with. Some of the pieces were even dedicated by prince Edward, Victoria Beckham, or other notable people. My favorite part, however, was probably the interactive room. We got to try on corsets and hoop skirts from the olden days and pretend to be royalty. Jolly good time. The last thing that was included in our tickets was admission into the Pump House Tea Room. This place has had pilgrims traveling to it from all over the world for centuries because it was believed that the waters had magical healing powers. Like true tourists, we went in and got our free glasses of mineral water. It's literally taken right out of a mineral spring because watched our glasses getting filled---but it tastes like it too; it tastes like bath water (pun intended), but it's true too. Hot and dirty tasting. At least I was healed of the ailments plaguing my body. Bath is a great day trip that I would recommend to other Oxford travelers. Cheap, educational, and fun!

Shrove Tuesday

A national pancake holiday? Hmm I think YES. Now I've heard of Ash Wednesday, but yesterday was the first time I'd ever heard of Shrove Tuesday. It's celebrated here in England (and probably other places too) as a holiday tradition from the Middle Ages. The way this works is that families all make lots and lots of pancakes to eat the day before lent starts, since for lent, many people eat more simply and give up sweets. I was told by a lady I volunteer with at the cathedral that we can watch pancake races on TV. And it's not like in Texas where it's an eating contest, and we stuff our faces until we throw up. Here, they run down the street with frying pans, and they have to race each other while flipping pancakes in the pans. Madness I tell you, but, boy, would I love to see that. I'd just never heard of this holiday, so in case you hadn't either, I thought I'd give you a little English religious history. Yesterday was also the 54th anniversary of the peace sign--something only true hippies know! It was also Mardi Gras. With pancakes, peace, and beads all around, I'd say that yesterday was quite an eventful day for many.

Here at the houses it's been a pretty busy school week (10 page research papers to write for core), so the fun had to be put on hold for a bit. This weekend, however, we're going to Bath to see, I bet you can guess--the Roman Baths! How'd you know? It'll just be a day trip out there, but I hope to have some cool pictures to post when I get back. Less than 10 days from now though, I'll be spending my spring break on the beaches in Spain and Portugal!! It's gonna be so much fun. I can't believe how fast this semester is flying by already.

Hermione Granger, beautiful parks, Disney movie marathons---yeah, Oxford actually is that great

Our new hawk friend

Last night I breathed the same air that Emma Watson breathed. Back story: We found out from a friend that  she was drinking cocktails with Emma Watson at a place called the house. As soon as I found this out, I booked it out the door and raced to where she was. To my ultimate dipair, we must have barely missed her. As I mentioned before, I must have inhaled air that was just recently exhaled by Hermione Granger. Yes, I do realize that's really creepy, but I'm not above stalking. It's gonna happen.

Me and Jodi at J.R.R. Tolkien's park bench

Today I went on a ramble for Walking For Fitness in the University Parks with Kait, Jodi, and Audrey. We walked around for 2 hours almost in the many acres of beautiful nature there. While we were walking, we saw a guy holding a red tailed hawk, and we went over to talk to him. He talked to us for a long time about his awesome bird, Scott, that he's had for 12 years. There was a great bridge we crossed over and saw a pair of surprisingly giant swans. We even got to see the bridge where J.R.R. Tolkien wrote while he was in the park, and I can see why--it's such a gorgeous, inspiring place!! When we got back, I went to On The Hoof and I ate "The Cole Bennett" named after our friend and professor. Apparently, when Cole was teaching in Oxford, he always got the same sandwich (pesto chicken, cheese, and cranberry sauce toasted on a baguette). It's delicious. When we came back from shopping in the afternoon, we watched Anastasia, and now we are currently watching The Lion King because Stacy has never seen it! Whaat??!!! Yes, that was my reaction too.

Saint Valentine would be proud

My new friends at Christ Church

Today was lovely. I had my first official day at the cathedral, and it was great. I mostly just greeted people as they came in (I got to talk in French to one guy), and I became friends with the other tour guides at the cathedral. Marjorie, Sally, and Glyn are the three older ladies I had tea with for over an hour after our shift was over. They range in age from 55 to 80, and they are ADORABLE! Sally in particular talks just like Meryl Streep in Julie and Julia--a very jovial English accent. We talked about the Grammy's that came on the other day, and they would say things like, "Did you see Colin Firth up there? Isn't he such a dish?" or other cute phrases. We had quite a laugh. On my way home from Christ Church, I stopped at the Cornwall Pasty place I pass every time, and I decided that I need to try my first English pasty. I got a cheese and mushroom one--yummy! Then for dinner tonight, we ate breakfast tacos before going to see The Vow. It was definitely a chick-flick, but I enjoyed it--it's Valentine's Day after all! One last thing: I was offered a job this week in the public relations office to be a student writer and write the news section on the myACU webpage. I was recommended by Cole Bennett, and it's about 10 hours a week (I could do it on top of Political Science). Thoughts? Advice? I haven't said yes or no yet.

Pre-Valentines fun was a HIT (Pun intended)

In front of a gilded door in the palace at Versailles

Outside of the gardens at Versailles

In front of the stained glass in Saint Chapelle

Bundled up on the bike tour

My awesome family sent me a WONDERFUL Valentine's Day gift package with tons of goodies in it. I passed out the Valentines to everyone in the group tonight at 9@9, and they had a blast with it. Mom sent these things that you smack on the floor, and when you do, a Valentine balloon pops out and makes a loud band. Even though they don't know you, Mom, you're a huge HIT around here.

For this post, however, I mainly just wanted to post a few of my Paris pictures (a few with me in them) for your viewing pleasure. The internet isn't letting me upload anymore than this, but I'll keep adding as the computer permits.

Où est le musée d'Orsay, s'il vous plait?

Paris was incredible!! We had such a fun trip. Here's my recap of the trip that I'm writing on the train back to England.

Day 1: In order to save 20 pounds on a ticket, we left Oxford at 10:30 on Wednesday night for London. The catch was that our train for Paris didn't leave until almost 8 the next morning. The result: 5 of us spent the night at King's Cross Station sleeping in a doorway in the FREEZING cold. It literally was below freezing, but that what poor college students will do to save money. We did get to take pictures at Platform 9 3/4, and we got to see where they filmed Harry Potter. That was very cool. Once we got onto the train at 8, I was exhausted and ready to sleep all the way to Paris, but as chance would have it, I ended up sitting by the most interesting people ever. I sat by two men, a guy and his father-in-law. The guy was in Paris for business to have dinner with the Prime Minister, and his father-in-law came along because the two of them were going to do some sight seeing in Paris together before the dinner. The guy was an Oxford grad and has talked with Prince William. His father-in-law and I talked about pirate radio stations in England (the subject of my honors colloquia) because he was old enough to have actually listened to them in the 60's. Once we got to Paris, we found our hostel and then went to get some lunch. I ate French onion soup with lots of bread and melted cheese in a little cafe. So good. After a late lunch we headed to Saint Chapelle so we could see the stained glass at sun down when the colors shine through the best. Unfortunately, they shut off the line less than 5 minutes after we got to the front. Instead, we went to the Museé d'Orsay, and I saw Monet, Rodin, Renior, Degas, and other masterpieces. It's a great museum. The Eiffel Tower was our last stop of the night, and it looked gorgeous all lit up. I didn't go up, though, since the top was closed due to frost, and I've been up before, so I got to save a little bit of money. On our way back home, I ate merguez (remember when we asked "saucise ou merguez?" about a million times in Lille?).  Mom, remember that cheap place (Tati's) you took Krista and me shopping when we were in Paris, and we had to go under that sketchy bridge with all thr pickpockets? The Friends Hostel is under that bridge, and our hostel ended up being about what we expected--we were offered drugs and a drunk guy peed in our room in the middle of the night, but we had a room together, and we felt safe when we slept at night. Long, cold, fun day.

Day 2: This morning we woke up and headed to a certain famous palace located a little outside of Paris. If you guessed Versailles, you're right! Before heading in, we got lunch (crab soup) and walked around town for a bit. Once we got to the ticket place, we found out that the gardens were closed since there was snow on the ground--did I mention it was realllllly cold this weekend?? We still got to go inside, however, and it was as spectacular and opulent as I remembered it being. I can't believe that anyone actually lived there, but it does shed light on why the French Revolution happened. I'd rebel too if there was such a gap in standards of living. Aesthetically, I loved seeing the beautiful architecture, tapestries, and artwork. Speaking of artwork, our next stop was the Louvre. We planned out our trip well ahead of time, which meant that we went to the Louvre the night that it stays open until 9:30 and is free for 20 year olds. Saved 10 euros there. And now before you judge, I have to tell you that I had the best hot chocolate type thing I've ever had in my life possibly. It was made with lots of interesting spices and real whipped cream--and also McDonald's. The McCafe's here are incredible. They taste like a real bistro and have actual French pastries and drinks. Thier burgers are called the McFarmer and such, and they are made with fresh ingredients and organic veggies. Don't judge. I had a toasted baguette with melted brie and other cheeses at a little place around the corner from our hostel. Great food to end a great night.

Day 3: Today we got up early to see Saint Chapelle that we missed on Thursday. Beautiful stained glass windows. These European cathedrals just blow my mind. We couldn't stay too long, however, because we had to be at the Eiffel Tower by 11 to meet our group and go on a bike tour around Paris. The Fat Tire Bike Tour was great! The guy who took us around knew tons about the city, and he was a very friendly, personable man. A bike tour is a great way to see a city because it's faster than just walking, but more engaging than just riding around in a bus. I'd defiantely do it again (especially once it warms up a bit). When we were walking away from the bike tour place when it was done at 4-ish, I saw a little boulangerie where we all bought baguettes, and then we walked across the street to the grocery store and got cheeses and drinks for dinner. Our dinner was not eaten in a restaurant, however. We ate on the top of a boat while we cruised along the Seine. The bike tour people (I told you they were great) got us a nice deal on a Bateaux Mouche boat tour where we got to see all the Paris lights lit up in the sky. Eating French cheeses on baguettes with great friends is the best way to spend a last night in Paris. Our trip could be summed up as being full of bread and laughter--two of the best things in life!

Day 4: I spent my Sunday morning at mass in Notre Dame. Honestly, as much as I love Minter, it's going to be hard to go back to the white walls and blue carpet after going to church in some of the most splendid cathedrals in the world. Then again, there's no place like home. I'll be uploading and editing  pictures all night once I get back home, and I'll have them posted as soon as they're ready. A miscellaneous note: my French held up pretty well while we were in Paris. I'm the only one who speaks French who went in our group, so I did the asking for directions, ordering, and buying tickets. Although I certainly didn't catch everything, we made it through the city without getting lost oracting like complete tourists. I taught our group a little song to help them remember how to ask for directions in case we got split up. It goes "Où est...le museè...d'Orsay...s'il vous plait?" and it has a nice little tune that I put it to, and we ended up singing it all weekend since the ends of each word rhyme. It's fun to sing. Paris was as beautiful as I remembered it, and I loved experiencing it this time with my wonderful new friends!

Welcome to Christ Church. Would you like me to take you around the cathedral?

 In case you can't guess from the title, I'm a tour guide at Christ Church, which is one of the Oxford colleges. I will be taking people around the college and cathedral showing them all the totally cool things there. I went and learned so much about the college from a man who took me around and showed me everything for almost three hours. Three of the coolest/ touristy things--1. A scene from Harry Potter was filmed in Christ Church. 2. Alice in Wonderland was written by Charles Dodson (Lewis Carroll) in Christ Church about a real girl named Alice who was the daughter of the college's dean. 3. Before he lost his head, Charles I lived in the college, and there is a stained glass window in the cathedral from 1180. Oxford has so much history, and I was really lucky to be able to see and learn about all of it yesterday. I'm planning on making a video of a tour of the cathedral for you all, and I'll post it on here when I'm done. The beginning theme song in the movie Vicar of Dibly is sung by the choir from Christ Church. Today in class, we were actually taught by a bonafide Oxford professor. He talked to us about the communities built by the fans of football teams here in Britain and Europe. It was a great lecture, and it was cool to get an ivy league education, even though it was just for an hour. Tonight we leave for Paris, and I'll talk to you all again when I get back. Pictures and stories to follow.

One window in Christ Church cathedral

The hallway leading up to the Great Hall
the first Harry Potter movie

By seeing London, I have seen as much of life as the world can show--Samuel Johnson

I checked. There wasn't a portal to the
Ministry of Magic inside. 

The group in front of an artist's graffiti. 

In front of Buckingham Palace

Turns out London is AMAZING (not to anyone's surprise I'm sure)!!! For Core, we were required to go out into various parts of London and do sociological research of the people, places, and history there. My group (Stacy, Jodi, Chelsea, Julie, Jon, Austin, and Vance) went to Spittalfield in East London. It's the "dodgy" part of London, but it was also the best! We toured for like three hours with Janine, and she took us to a synagogue, a mosque, the first bagel shop, and other cool places before she set us free to do our own exploring. There were great places to eat everywhere (very ethnic Indian and Asian food mostly), and I got some spicy, delicious chicken curry. We also found this huge park that had a grown-up playground at it. I don't know how to better describe it than that it as a playground, but with everything for the size of adults. If you look at the pictures on Facebook it will probably help---we had such a fun time playing on everything like we were 8 again. We headed to the hostel after we finished around town to meet up with the other groups. Les Miserables was playing in London, so we headed downtown to pick up tickets--sold out. Instead, we found "The Best Nightclub in the UK"according to the travel guide I got from Mom and Dad. It's called Ministry of Sound, and it was so. much. fun. We danced the night away to lots of dub step and rave music. Now I can say that my first real club experience was in London at the best venue in the country. I'd say that's pretty cool. The next morning after sleeping at the hostel, we bought tickets for the rail and headed out into London again. This time we just went around for a little while and saw the touristy things--Westminster Abbey, Parliament, Big Ben, London Eye, and Buckingham Palace. I'd like to go back again and do more, but we did stuff for free because everything is so expensive in London. Late in the afternoon, we got on the train to head back home to Oxford and slept the whole way back because we were so exhausted. When we got out of the train station, we saw that it was snowing!!! England is just beautiful in the snow too! I ate at this place called Nando's for dinner that has Peruvian food (and free refills). My evening activity was watching 3 movies with everyone in the common room together. I love my friends here. We had an amazing two days in London, and I already can't wait to go back.

Hmmm maybe this is why they call East London
"the dodgy end."

Big Ben!

Chicken curry!!

Sometimes we DO get what we want

Yesterday we went again to the awesome open market. I got 8 huge, delicious potatoes for one pound, and I made a baked potato for lunch today. Everyone is obsessed with the baked potato seasoning I brought with me after I let them try it. They all want the recipe, Mom. At the market, there was this little Falafel stand, and since I have never had a falafel before, I decided that I would try one. Turns out, they're great!! Everyone was totally lusting over the one I had. Today in England, it's a special day. We are celebrating the circumcision of Jesus....yeah that's right. I know, I think that's weird too. Anyways, I went with a few friends to St. Magdalen Cathedral to their mass service. I walked inside the church, and I felt like I was in a movie set. The school children all wore the hats and cloaks we see in Harry Potter and stuff, and everything was grand. I'm pretty sure the roof of the cathedral was cramping up God in heaven. I'm telling you, this place was spectacular. We weren't allowed to take pictures there so the only one I have is bad quality since I was just trying to sneak a fast one without anyone seeing me. What also made it feel like a movie was that from the minute we stepped inside, we could hear singing. It was a BOYS' CHOIR!!! I'm not sure why, but I love the way they sound. Good for the soul I think. I always think of my man Jagger when he and that boys' choir sing "You Can't Always Get What You Want." I recorded the boys singing, but I don't know how to upload a voice memo yet, so you should just Google one and get a taste of what we got to hear. Tomorrow morning at 8 we are leaving for London, and I won't be back until lateee Saturday night. I should have some great stuff to blog about and awesome pictures when I get back. Can't wait!!