If I'm Here, Then Where Is Mr. Darcy?

On the lookout for Darcy... 

Like many women, I dream of the world of Jane Austen. Where gentlemen still exist and court women around. Where you can go on walks wearing classy dresses surrounded by nature's green greatness. And where a Mr. Darcy can ride in on his horse, like a real man, and sweep you off your feet. I was fortunate enough to visit the World of Austen for a day.

It started with going to the quaint village of Chawton where Jane Austen finished most of her great novels. We explored her church and then her home. I was pretty excited (that was definitely an understatement). It was awesome to be in the place that inspired all these amazing stories and to learn more about her life. There was an incredible energy about the whole experience. I was like a kid in a Cadbury candy store. I bounced from room to room saying things like, "Jane Austen ate breakfast here!", "Jane Austen warmed up by this fireplace!", and "Jane Austen probably stumbled on these steep stairs too!" I even sat down and took a jab at the piano forte, imagining that I was Marianne in Sense and Sensibility. It was pretty cra cra! 

           After tearing myself away from the Austen residence, our next stop was a place called Stourhead. This is famous as the estate where a fabulous garden is located. But this is not your typical grandma's garden…this is beauty at work. It is a gorgeous depiction of romanticism in a very rich person's estate. It was stunning. It wasn’t the uniform garden that I have seen at palaces. It was a purposely-untamed environment. However, its most famous role was in the newest edition of Pride and Prejudice starring Kiera Knightley. The scene where Darcy first proposes to her in the rain is here. Yes, freak out now, Jane Austen fans… And yes, I made a boy reenact the scene with me. Not that I had memorized all the words or anything… And I may have taken a quick jog across the bridge she runs over. It had grass on it, and the grass was greener ON the bridge. It was a very important day in my travels thus far.

            After those grand adventures, we went to BATH!!!! Bath is beautiful. I want to live there. But, all you need to know about the Roman baths is this: The view from the bathroom of the Roman baths in Bath was fantastic (I love puns.) And I drank purified bath water (gross). Then we sprinkled the bath water on our heads so we could say that we took a shower in Bath...

            Other adventures included looking at the Olympic sites that will be seen this summer. And we also toured Parliament which was AWESOME! And that's pretty much it! Have a great week! Next blog will be about my Northern trip!!!

Just playing the piano where Jane Austen did... 

Jane Austen's room!

Jane Austen's church!

This is Stourhead....

Beautiful day for a beautiful garden! (Notice gazebo in background)

Random caves in the garden.

BATH!!!!

The view of the Roman baths from the bathroom in Bath....bath...

The Olympic sites!

Parliament!

Benny Boo Boo Boo Boo...

The Amazing Race: Paris

Make it through Paris in 2 ½ days? Game on. 

Sunday nights in the Waite house meant family dinner, which was followed by watching the latest episode of the Amazing Race. This realty TV show became all too real to me as I rushed through Paris. The prize at the end was not $1 million, but rather being cultured. Backpack strapped on, camera in pocket, museum pass in other pocket, shoes double knotted and I’m ready to go.

            The first leg of the race: take chunnel, check into hotel, find the Arc de Triomphe, trip in front of Arc de Triomphe, climb the Arc de Triomphe, wander until you stubble upon good food, make way to Eiffel Tower, climb 700 steps of Eiffel Tower. Enjoy the view. Climb down without tripping, but don’t look down. Take a ton of pictures. Go on night cruise of the Siene. Watch the Eiffel Tower sparkle. Find way back to hotel. Sleep five hours

            Second leg of the race: eat the best breakfast ever, navigate metro to find Notre Dame, explore Notre Dame, go to the creepy Conciergerie prison place, Go to Sainte Chapelle and see gorgeous stained glass windows. Go to Latin Quarter and try to choose a place to eat in the heat. Next, find the random Roman French building that no one understands, buy souvenirs, Luxembourg gardens, get yelled at in French to get off the grass.  Get best ice cream ever, meet up with Laura, get crepe with Laura, run to the Orsay, try to see all of the Orsay before it closes, run through the Orsay, beg to get into the Van Gogh exhibit even though it’s closed because you didn’t run fast enough, go stare at the Eiffel Tower more, back to hotel before curfew.

            The final leg: Run to the Louvre, go through the Louvre on a scavenger hunt for the most influential pieces of art in the world, weave through Asian tourist groups to the Code of Hammurabi, elbow and shove way to the front of mob to see the Mona Lisa, fight off more tourists. Jet to the train station, find right train to Versailles, find Versailles, tour Versailles, tandem bike through grounds of Versailles, look at the cutest cottages you will ever see, break tandem bike on way back. Get back in time for one last crepe; the final pit stop is the train station and as winners of this leg of the race, get to sit for two hours on the train ride back.

Walking around for 3 days straight: dead feet

2 Crepes: 4 euro

Tandem bike: 6 euro

The experience of a lifetime: PRICELESS

There is something so romantic about that city. I don’t know what it is, but I’m pretty sure it’s not the smell. I grew up going to Disneyland, but nothing could prepare me for the magic Paris exerts or for the race of cramming everything into the allotted amount of time. My favorite part was seeing the Eiffel tower for the first time. It is most definitely not an overrated site. The Louvre was amazing. My appreciation for the arts and history has grown, as well as my leg muscles. I enjoyed every second of it and I have no regrets. 

You know, just tripping in front of a major historical site. (Cree is standing in the background)

Oh, look! It's the Eiffel Tower!!!

Oh, there it is again!

Bet you didn't see this angle coming!

I looked for the Hunchback... he didn't show... 

Saint Chappelle.. gorgeous!

Lover's Bridge... so romantic...

You know, we're just chillin' in Paris

Point, shoot, go! Code of Hammurabi! 

Just hanging out with Mona... 

the LOUVRE

Massive grounds at Versailles

Marie Antoinette's Cottages!

Kennedy and me tandem biking through Versailles! 

Is This Real Life?

Well, I head off to Paris today. Life is pretty great! I feel like I'm living some amazing dream! Everyday just gets better and brighter! I love it so much and I never want to leave!

            Westminister Abbey is amazing. It is my favorite Anglican establishment thus far. I literally walked over Darwin, Dickens, and other famous bones! It was fantastic and amazingly beautiful. Then that night, we went to see Les Mis… and it was incredible. I enjoyed every minute of it! So well done!

I have found my new love… from Greece… The Parthenon Marbles blew my mind! I loved every moment I spent in there. And I even rebelled and broke the rules by touching a few of them! It just needed to happen. I saw multiple mummies and even the Rosetta Stone. I may have been freaking out the entire time I was in that museum; best museum I’ve ever been too! I need to go back. So much to see, so little time.

Then we went to Brighton and Canterbury! Cree and I were the only ones brave enough to go into the water at the beach there. I nearly froze my feet off. I think I’ll stick to the California beaches where, instead of the painful rocky shores  is soft sand and not painful rocks, as well.

We actually had free time after class on Monday, so we went to the 221 Baker Street to visit Sherlock Holmes! It was way adorable. I never thought I would visit a place just to take a picture with an address. But these things happen when you’re in London. 

Westminister Abbey!

Les Mis!

The Parthenon Marbles in the British Museum

The "beach" at brighton with Cree

Canterbury!

Sherlock Holmes!

That's So Posh...

I brave the rain in style... 

(All other pictures at the end of the following text)

New Phrases in my vocabulary: 

-WHERE IS THE LOU?: They look at you funny if you say "restroom."

-URBAN: My good friend Amanda and I are going on our fifth day of friendship. We have discovered "Urban" as an adjective for pictures we take... Used in a sentence: "That gate and the brick wall combine to make a great urban picture."

-BRITISH: Another one is something I keep saying that is rather obvious about many things here, "British." Used in a sentence: "The sheep on that hill are just so British!"

-POSH: Natalie is a ballerina. That has nothing to do with our phrase, but we refer to things as "Posh" even if it might not be. We still think that it is a good word to describe most things in life.... Used in a sentence: "Your model walk is sooooo posh."

So much has happened since my last post! I have gone to the Tower of London, the Borough Market, Tate Modern Art Museum, walked around the old Roman walls of the city, attended a London Philharmonic Orchestra concert, visited all the Shakespeare sites in Stratford followed by a play, and toured Hampton Court. Yeah, my life is pretty cool right now. I do not wish to bore you with everything I have done, so I’ll just highlight a few points that you might find interesting.

Tower of London

I saw the crown jewels!!!! And almost pet a raven! And had an awkward picture with a Beefeater (the name of the guard/tour guides in funny outfits)            

Other than that, it was neat to explore and just learn a lot of interesting things about the site. Also, I discovered that rain boots tend to increase the likelihood of falling while going down stairs. But don’t worry! It was only the last stair on the set in front of a bunch of other tourists. I think I pulled it off.

The Best Grapes I Have Ever Tasted

            Borough Market: the produce area. I went in and dodged meat stand after meat stand to finally be rewarded by a grand area of fruits and vegetables. I went in to get an apple for my breakfast, and that’s when I saw them. They were beautiful. Everything a grape should be. This was the Mr. Darcy of the grape world. I fell in love.

            And then we went to the Tate… and saw very… abstract things… The grapes were definitely the highlight of the day! Later that evening, we went to a cheap concert in town performed by the London Philharmonic and the dancing conductor. It was absolutely amazing and I was in musical heaven. And the conductor literally dance-conducted. It was fantastic

Shakespeare Day!

            We went everywhere that was significant in old Bill Shakespeare’s life in Stratford-on-Avon. The day started with a scenic bus drive to his wife’s cottage (Anne Hathaway), then his birthplace, his grave, his favorite church, and finished off the day with seeing a fabulous play by the Royal Shakespeare (Twelfth Night). It was a great day and I gained a great respect for who Shakespeare was and his great impact on our society. I keep out my newfound opinion about his private life…

The Real Housewives of Hampton...Court

            This is one of the Royal Palaces. And, needless to say, it was gorgeous. Everything about it was extravagant. The inside was beautiful but my love was the gardens!!!! It has been decided: I want a palace. Not really, but I wanted to run through one of the gardens that looked like a field of flowers, so I did. We also ran into Henry VIII, but that picture isn’t included, so trust me on that.

That’s that! I know this was a longish post, but thanks for reading it! Until next time… Cheerio from London!

-Whit

Enjoy these pictures... of my face... in places... ]

In line to go see the Crown Jewels in London Tower! Even my hair was excited!

A Beefeater and a Vegetarian.... We didn't get along... 

You know, just leaning against a Roman wall... 

These are the grapes I spoke of... 

They repaired the bridge after the Dementors destroyed it! 

Anne Hathaway's Cottage!

I found Vegetarian "Fish" and chips! So good!

Hampton Court!

This is Shakespeare's grave... I wasn't sure how to pose with a grave...This was the best I could do... 

Amanda and I have discovered our callings in life... Urban Modeling... (Notting Hill Station)

Why not run through a field of flowers in a Hampton Court garden...?