Hump Day Eighth Week

Good evening from the 'shire. I've been super busy these last few weeks. Some of the highlights:

- February 13th I went to Stratford-upon-Avon. It was pretty disappointing. It might possibly be the town where Shakespeare was maybe possibly born and raised. Well, that he was born there is really all historians know for sure. The rest of the story is implied and a little hazy; that's why it's a little disheartening for tourists. It kind of feels like you're being tricked into a Shakespeare narrative that is not supported by any primary sources. I did get a sweet picture with the live Shakespeare statue though.

- February 19th my brother arrived for a short visit. We had a BLAST! I kept him pretty busy in Oxford, then we ventured to London for a football match. The game was Fulham v. Birmingham City. The score was 2-1 Fulham. We were rooting for Fulham, so it was really thrilling. Also, Fulham has had a rough season, so it was one of the first games in a while where they've scored. It heightened the excitement.

- February 25th I had my last British Women Writers tutorial. I was so sad to see it end. My tutor was wonderful; I learned SO much! Both of my tutorials have ended (Philosophy ended yesterday).

- March 4th my parents arrived; they just left today. We had a fabulous time. I really wore them out between running them around Oxford and a day trip to London. I am so glad they came to visit; I just wish they could have stayed longer. In London we started at the Eye which was REALLY cool. Then we watched parliament for a bit. From Parliament we crossed the street to Westminster Abbey. We had a wonderful audio tour there. From there we took the tube to the reconstructed Globe Theater and crossed the Millennium Bridge to St. Paul's Cathedral. We ended the day at Harrods. While they were here I preformed Beethoven's Mass in C and his Choral Fantasia with the OSUC. I'm so glad they got to see me sing again.

- March 6th I had my last OPUS excursion for this term to Bath. Bath was awesome. Before we got to Bath we stopped at a typical Cotswold village. I'm still confused as to why the Cotswolds are famous, but they are really pretty as you can see in the picture. The Roman Baths themselves are pretty cool, but there is also a Cathedral and a bazillion other museums to explore. I started at the baths. I even went to the Pump Room and got myself a glass of the water... it tasted gross. Then I went to the Bath Cathedral, it was beautiful. Next I found a great free gallery. The Victorian Art gallery was small, but a real gem. I jetted into the Jane Austen Center before ending the day at the Fashion Museum. The Austen Center was actually located in one of the four residences of Ms. Austen from her time spent in Bath. The center did a great job of reviewing Jane's life, and they didn't shy away from the fact that Jane actually didn't like her time in Bath (which was nice). The Fashion Museum was super cool. It included Bod Dylan's outfit from the cover of "Freewheelin'" and an exhibit on shoes. We all know how I feel about shoes.

Tomorrow I'm seeing Judy Dench in a "Midsummer Night's Dream", and Friday I'm heading to Germany. It should be great fun!