Cambridge

Okay, I haven't posted for a while (although, if you think about it, I never post when I'm back home, so I'm doing pretty good here), so hopefully I can get some good pictures up here. Since my last post, I've hit Canterbury, Cambridge (as seen below), St. Augustine's Abbey, Phantom of the Opera, Glastonbury, Stourhead, Bath, Beethoven's 9th at Saint Paul's (most likely my favorite part of this trip so far, but then again, every day becomes my new favorite day), the Tower of London, and on Monday we head to Paris! It's been crazy for sure, but I love love LOVE it. :) Today I have three papers due, and I am only halfway through the first, so I will have to catch you up on all of it later.

So, last week we spent some time at Cambridge, which actually made me want to continue school (which is strange, since I am so beyond excited to graduate in December). It was beautiful there--but then again, everything here is beautiful. My favorite part of course was punting on the River Cam. Punting, in case you don't already know (I didn't), refers to boating in a punt (of course!).

"A punt is a flat-bottomed boat with a square-cut bow, designed for use in small rivers or other shallow water.Punting refers to boating in a punt. The punter generally propels the punt by pushing against the river bed with a pole. A punt should not be confused with a gondola, which is propelled by an oar rather than a pole." (Thank you Wikipedia).

We were the only ones out of our entire group that went punting on our own--everyone else went in the big boats with a tour guide (so you just relax and enjoy the scenery), but since we're just so cool we wanted hands-on experience. Of course, we made Dr. Seely go first--punting is certainly not as easy as it looks!
Eventually I did get my turn--the pole was at least three times taller than me and surprisinly heavy.
But I did it, and by the end of our ride I had the best arm workout of my life and had become an expert punter. :)
How would you like to live here? Some of the dorms are there on the right--they live right on the edge of the river! I would go punting every day. Beautiful.
After punting we sprinted across the campus to make it to King's College Chapel just in time (barely) to hear the boys choir sing Evensong. Those boys hit notes that I never knew a male voice could reach, they were spectacular!

The ceiling of the chapel has one of the best examples of fan vaulting I have ever seen--and I actually can say that, because I have seen several cathedrals/chapels/churches/abbeys now, and it's only been two weeks! It really was quite a sight.

Museum of London

After St. Paul's we visited the Museum of London--we barely made it through one exhibit and were there for hours, but it was so fun. We went through the history of London, starting with Prehistoric London. My favorite were the skulls with holes in them--I know there's a reason they used to do this, but I'll have to research it to find out. I had to laugh, because I have a hole in my skull, so maybe in a billion years my head will be in a museum--yup, I'm morbid like that. ;)

I always wanted to ride one of these.

This is a 1920's flapper, and what is actually really cool is that I wore one almost identical to this (but black and purple) when I was in high school--it was my grandma's or great-grandma's or something cool like that.

I had to take a picture of this just because it's a hedgehog, and I love them.

Old treadle sewing machine--cool because it's sewing, and sewing is as everyone knows the coolest thing around, but also cool because my mom has one in her room. :)

I want an old candlestick phone--much more fun than these little cell phones with buttons too small for my fingers.

and me talking some more--anyone surprised? ;)

St. Paul's Cathedral

Well, yesterday we went to St. Paul's Cathedral, which was quite the experience. All of my pictures are either in front of it or on top of it because there is no photography inside of it, but you can use your imagination. We split up into 4 groups and got a personal tour, which was really fantastic. The lady was so cute and showed us all the things that I always find interesting--the history, the details, the cool gee-whiz facts, etc.

First we went down the "Harry Potter Stairs" below one of the clock towers; apparently this particular staircase is used in several movies, including Harry Potter and Sherlock Holmes. I'm going to have to go back and watch these films again so I can find it and say that I've been there. ;)

There were so many wonderful and interesting things there, but my favorite was the American Memorial Chapel down at the East end. During the Blitz a bomb fell through this east end of the cathedral, and when it was rebuilt Eisenhower and the Prime Minister and other important people decided to dedicate the chapel to the members of the US forces based in Britain who gave their lives during WWII. There are three stain-glass windows with a section for each of the 50 states--Utah's is a beehive. It surprised me to see how proud the British are of this little chapel; although generally we joke back and forth about Great Britain and the US and this sort of rivalry you might call it, in this case they have quite an admiration for the US.

After the tour we hiked up the the 576 stairs to reach the top of St. Paul's.

The first stop is 259 steps up the dome into what they call The Whispering Gallery. Somehow the acoustics here are super special and if you whisper against the wall you can here it on the other side of the dome. It sounds crazy, but it really does work. Another 100 or so steps to the Stone Gallery, which is where I was able to finally take a picture.

The last stretch was the worst, not because it was long or hard, but because the Golden Gallery--the very VERY top--it so tiny. If we were in America they would never let anyone up there, it violates so many public codes and regulations, it's slightly terrifying to be up there in my opinion. The Golden Gallery runs around the highest point of the outer dome, and it really does have a wonderful view. The day was clear enough that we could actually see the view too, we were extremely fortunate.

St. Paul's is probably my favorite place so far, most especially because it combines art, religion, and even America and the war--a few of my favorite things. ;) I believe we are going back in a few weeks for Beethoven's 9th, which should be very exciting! :)

Just before dinner

Rachel and I had some spare time just before dinner yesterday so we took a short stroll through Hyde Park--it's quite literally just across the street, seriously, which is quite fun. I have gone there a few mornings to go running, and each time I go I take a different path and always find something completely new--I swear it is changes each time I go, the paths remind me of the moving staircases in Harry Potter, because even though it seems like you're taking a familiar path you always wind up in a new place; I'm not sure I could go the same way twice even if I tried, but that's what makes it so interesting. Since we didn't have a ton of time we spent most of it near Round Pond (original name) and Albert Memorial, which is actually in Kensington Gardens I think (the two overlap). The memorial is of course is dedicated to Prince Albert, commissioned by Queen Victoria back in the 1800s.

check that off the list

I'm not against having lists--I am very much a descendant of Captain-Make-A-List and live up to that with flying colors. However, there are good lists and bad ones; in my opinion, the sight-seeing lists that all the girls here seem to have are a good example of bad lists. The items on these lists vary from person to person, but it's not so much what's on the list but rather how they are treated--it's this mentality that you have to see something so that you can say you did. For example, the changing of the guard: I hear it's actually pretty cool, but with thousands of people and no visibility, blazing hot sun and no chance of actually seeing it? Doesn't seem that great to me in that case, but these girls still have to be present so that they can check it off their tourist "oh yeah I've been there" lists. Well, I could say I've been there without actually going there--it doesn't take much to say something. And just because every tourist sees it doesn't make it all that worthwhile--like the Statue of Liberty, has anyone actually gone up that thing and ENJOYED it? No one likes it, and yet that's the thing to do in New York--when you could go to somewhere like Ellis Island and get so much more out of your trip! And yet it's all about icons. Sheesh. Just sayin'.

So yesterday we were given this "London Exploration Exercise," which basically was to help us learn to navigate the Tube and the bus. We were all completely exhausted, so I'm afraid that my first outing in the city wasn't quite as enjoyable as it could have been, but I still have several weeks here. :) Our first assignment was to visit Buckingham Palace and see the changing of the guard at 11:30am. We got there about 10:30am, so we had to wait. I had absolutely no desire to wait, as I observed that the place was already packed with people and it has been unusually hot here, but the group was decided--they had to check this off their lists (as previously stated, I hate the whole checking things off a list mentality, but whatever). I'm too much like my dad, in a good way; It might be cool to watch the changing of the guard, but it's not one of my life ambitions and with the heat and that many people I saw absolutely no point in the endeavor. I stayed though, because I didn't really want to finish the assignment alone, and I'm trying to work on patience and bonding with my fellow London peers (you should be proud, haha). Of course we didn't actually SEE it--at all--but I think I might have gotten a couple pictures (think because I couldn't see--I had to just raise my camera above my head and hope that I got something). It was completely worthless, but fortunately it didn't last forever, and I know that when I'm settled in more and feeling better (aka more energy) I won't be such a grump about it.

Tomorrow I start class--wish me luck! :)

Look at those lovely fake smiles. ;)

SO. MANY. PEOPLE. EVERYWHERE.

Don't we all look so excited to see the changing of the guard?

Yes, so excited indeed.

And there it is, the moment we've all been waiting for--little red bugs through prison bars.

I finally got close enough to stick my arm through the bars so my camera could at least get a glimpse of the spectacle.

Thank goodness for digital AND optical zoom.

I couldn't really see them, but the band sounded pretty cool.

P.S. I want a big furry hat and a machine gun.

The London Centre

So this is the place I will be calling home for the next six weeks--yes, Rachel and I (while all the other girls were out shopping) took pictures of just about everything in this building, so you can kind of get a feel of my temporary home.

Here is the BYU London Centre!

There are chandeliers everywhere.

The stairs that I DO NOT have to climb every day--we are on the bottom floor, just through that door on the right, thank goodness!

The library.

The sitting room.

Kitchen.

Yes, I took a picture of the toilet, only to show you that it really is a closet! and even the handle to flush is on the wrong side!

The showers

And my lovely room.

I sleep on the bottom bunk.

And my closet--can you imagine if I had more than a week's worth of clothes here?

Patience and Gratitude

There are two wonderful lessons I learned today: patience and gratitude. Well, let me rewind a bit: I'm here! I made it to London in one piece, which is pretty amazing if you know me--my luck is always causing fun surprises in life. ;) The flight wasn't the greatest--I was sandwiched between a guy with horrible breath catching flies and an old woman watching all the love scenes off the movie menu--but it sure beat missing my flight and getting lost like I did last time I traveled! (had some issues getting to Mexico) Plus, I can never argue with free movies, especially since I NEVER go to the actual movie theater. My favorite on the flight was HOW TO TRAIN YOUR DRAGON--if you haven't seen this one you must! Something about Toothless the dragon reminded me of my Little Guy back home (most especially his personality), so of course I shed a tear or two for that, but all in all I thought it was an adorable movie with a good message, and I even laughed out loud a few times.
But the most wonderful part of the past 24 hours is that I'm here and I'm whole! I am exhausted and hungry and have a headache, but I realized something to do that humbled me yet made me feel just wonderful. Four of us shared a taxi to the London Centre, which was about a 30 minute drive, so we got to talking; one of the girls happened to go to Provo High, and it turns out she is the little sister of a girl I went to high school with. In and of itself this isn't all that exciting, but my old high school peer happens to be a fellow Chiari-survivor, and there aren't many of us! She actually had her surgery back in high school, years before I had mine, and I was always a little jealous, thinking that she healed quicker and was better off for it, being in the prime of life and all. I was only a few years older when I underwent surgery, but from my extremely impatient perspective, it's been a LONG road to recovery, and there were several times I wondered if I would be sick for the rest of my life.

So as I chatted with this girl, she explained to me that her sister (Chiari patient), although her surgery was years ago, still suffers quite a bit even now, especially with migraines--she pretty much has to deal with them every day, and talking even a small vacation is difficult on her; if she were to take a flight to London like I just did, she would definitely have to dope up on sedatives and painkillers galore, but even then she may not make it--at least she would suffer for it for several days following. And there I was, surgery only a year ago (my hair still hasn't fully grown back), coming off of a long and unusually turbulent flight to London, just chilling without any problem at all. I did have a slight headache, but I soon discovered it is more from lack of food and sleep than anything, and even then it's not debilitating. I used to suffer from killer migraines every second of every day, like this girl still does, but now only a year later I have absolutely no trace of Chiari, minus a scar up the back of my head and neck, but even that is rapidly fading.

I can barely believe that it was just a year ago--I thought the torture would never end, and anyone who knows me well knows how impatient I was about the whole thing (and still am--patience isn't one of my better virtues, that's for sure). I thought I would never be the same, but I can honestly say that I have never been better! I didn't know if I would ever be able to fly, and here I am 13 flight hours later and I'm just fine. It easily could have gone another direction, like it did for this girl--but miraculously for me, I have been blessed beyond measure. It didn't come quickly or easily in any way, but here I am, ready to take on the world and without any health problems (knock on wood) to hold me back. It's moments like these that you realize just how blessed you are and just how wonderful life really is. Thank goodness for such a loving and patient Heavenly Father, an understanding and healing Savior, and for the two most stubborn gene pools on the planet (thanks Mom and Dad): it really does pay to be a Snouston... or a Ho. ;)

Good Things to Come

Do you ever have those days where you just want to go to bed so that tomorrow will come and today will be over forever? Yeah, it happens--not every day is filled with sunshine and rainbows. But you know, there are only 24 hours in a day--a good day or a bad day--it can't last forever, and the beauty of life is that as bad as things may seem, the best is always yet to come.