Thank you 2009 HUM1915 UK students

Thank you HUM1915 2009 Elmira College students for enrollling in our course.
Cheerio,
Prof. Gerald Parkhouse
&
Prof. Alison Wolfe

The Last Supper

Tonight was our final night in the beautiful city of London, so we decided to go out in style! We all dressed up, paraded through the tube station with our pretty dresses and dapper suits, and went to dinner in Covent Garden. After a scrumptious dinner we saw the play War Horse and then ended the night with one final group picture.To quote a Michael Buble song "Another airplane, another sunny place, I’m lucky, I know but it's time to go home." It's crazy to think that by this time tomorrow we'll be back home! I guess it's true, time flies fast when you're having fun. Thank you Professor Wolfe and Professor Parkhouse for the trip of a life time... we'll never forget it! Cheerio!

Tea Time!

We started off today by going to the Imperial War museum, which had numerous exhibits on both World Wars, including a trench recreation and blitz-shelter simulation. However, the Holocaust exhibit was probably the most interesting and eye-opening piece that we spent an hour walking through. After the museum, we met up with Professor Wolfe for tea, scones, and sandwiches... yum! Everything was absolutely delicious and at the end of our meal, everyone surprised me by singing "Happy Birthday" to me. Thanks guys, I couldn't have asked for a better day! Cheerio until tomorrow!

The White Cliffs of Dover

It was a rainy morning in the U.K. but we bundled up, put on our rain boots, and took the train to the town of Dover. As soon as we arrived at the coast we were able to see the beautiful white cliffs of Dover and the English Channel. Even though it was a little chilly, many of us still walked along the water and we even saw some people swimming in the Channel! Finally, before we left the coast, we threw some pebbles into the water then headed to Canterbury for some traditional fish and chips for lunch! The chips were crispy and the fish was cooked to perfection! By this time the sunshine had come out and we all went to the Canterbury Cathedral to light a few candles and pray for peace before going back to Regents College for some dinner and much needed sleep. Cheerio everyone!

Hampton Court Palace

The sun was shining, the weather was gorgeous, the temperature was ideal, and it was the perfect day to spend outside roaming the grounds of the Hampton Court Palace. As soon as we arrived at the palace, we chatted with King Henry VIII and Catherine Parr for a little while then walked around the rest of the palace to learn more about dear old King Henry and his obsession with beheading his wives. After all the beheading talk, we had a lovely lunch in the palace then spent the rest of the day finding our way through the maze, walking around the astounding gardens, and seeing the Great Vine that was planted in 1768!Still the best part of the day was being joined by Brittany's parents, who came with us to the palace. Brittany's dad even joined us in our famous "jumping picture".

It took us about a hundred times to get it right, but we finally got the shot! Until tomorrow, cheerio!

Wedgewood

Today we took the train to Stoke-on-Trent, the world's largest and most famous pottery producing city. Here we went to the Wedgewood Visitor Centre and Museum where we were able to see one of the world's most beautiful pottery and china collections. We were even lucky enough to be able to make our own pottery and paint our own cups.

This kindly old gentleman showed Rachel, Ashley, and Danielle the ins and outs of making pots and working with clay. After crafting the day away in Wedgewood, some of us danced in the rain quick, then all of us slept the whole train ride back home to Regents College. Cheerio for now!

Such Great Heights

We began our journey today in Sir Christopher Wren's architectural masterpiece St. Paul's Cathedral. The Cathedral is absolutely breathtaking and its large dome can easily be spotted among London's skyline. As soon as we entered the Cathedral we made our way up two hundred and fifty seven stairs to the Whispering Gallery, which over looks the altar and the entire ground floor. In the gallery, a whisper spoken against one wall can be heard 32 meters away on the other side of the dome. Amanda whispered to us to do the wave and our tour guide even told us that ours was the best wave ever done around the dome! After that we made our way up yet another spiral staircase to the Stone Gallery, which overlooks the outside of the dome and has a picture perfect view of the entire city. Once we conquered our fear of heights, we walked across the Millennium Bridge, ate lunch in the park, and were lucky enough to see the play Romeo and Juliet in Shakespeare's Globe Theatre! Before the play even began, Rachel got serenaded by a few of the actors... lucky girl! Needless to say the play was phenomenal and the actors were pretty amazing too. Benvolio (the cute blond on the left) was our favorite! Finally, we ended our day up in the clouds on the London Eye, the biggest Ferris wheel in Europe!

Well that's all for now. Cheerio, parting is such sweet sorrow!

The Famous Yorkshire Pudding

Today we left from King's Cross Station and took the train to York, where we explored one of England's most historic cities and ate one of its most famous foods. First we took a double-decker bus tour of the city and saw the ancient Clifford's Tower, the beautiful York Minister, and of course the Salvation Army building. Needless to say I was smiling from ear to ear! After all the sight seeing we were ready to try the famous Yorkshire pudding, which we found out is nothing at all like pudding. It's actually a cross between a popover and a soufflé. It's baked in beef drippings until it is golden brown and is then served with a cut of roast beef.

There it is in all its savory, beef dripped glory... yum! As you can tell by the picture below, it was easy to tell who loved the dish and who couldn't stand the sight.

After experiencing Yorkshire pudding, most of us went to the local ice cream shop for some dessert. Then we just spent the rest of our time in York feeding the geese, going to the museum, and having fun until the rain chased us back to the train station. Luckily, by the time we arrived back at Regents College, there was nothing but sunshine! Cheerio for now!

A Place Fit for a Queen

Today we took a train to the Queen's official residence, the lovely Windsor Castle. As soon as we got close to the castle we noticed the royal flag flying on top the Round Tower, which means that the Queen was there! Even though she didn't have time to chat with us over tea, we still enjoyed walking through the castle and seeing all of the beautiful architecture, art, and amazing interiors. Queen Mary's Doll House was one of our favorite sites of the day, which had working lights and pluming. As Ashley would say, "it was gorgeous!" More adventures tomorrow, cheerio!

What a Weekend!

This weekend each of us split into groups and took the U.K. by storm! On Saturday a group of girls went to the ancient site Stonehenge, Kristina and Sara headed off to Manchester, Amanda and Kaitlyn flew to Paris (se magnifique!), and Danielle, Rachel, Brittany, and I went to Stratford-upon-Avon to visit Shakespeare's house. After our separate journeys, most of us met in Liverpool on Sunday to go to the Beatles Museum!

The day was filled with great music, psychedelic pictures, and learning all about the Beatles legacy. So needless to say it was a wonderful weekend! Peace, love, and cheerio until tomorrow!

I Wanna Hold Your Hand

So today was absolutely incredible! We started with breakfast at Regents College then took the bus to Abbey Road, where the famous Beatles photograph for their album cover was taken.

It took us a few tries, but after stopping traffic for five minutes we finally got the picture! Sara, who did her research paper on the Beatles, told us all about the influence the Beatles had on music and the world. All we're saying is give peace a chance, right? After crossing Abbey Road a few million times we spent the rest of the day in Notting Hill shopping and finding great deals on Portobello Road. The Beatles, peace and love, and fabulous clothes... who could ask for a more perfect day? As always, cheerio until tomorrow!

P.S. Happy Birthday Professor Parkhouse!!!!

Good Old Oxford

You guessed it, today we made the journey to the University of Oxford, Professor Parkhouse's old stomping grounds. The University is actually made up of thirty-nine colleges and seven private halls. We took a special tour through Christ Church where Professor Parkhouse attended. After that we had a wonderful lunch in the Great Hall where Harry Potter was filmed! If only Daniel Radcliffe was there too... oh well. Finally, we ended the day with shopping and taking a trip to the British Museum to do some light reading with the Rosetta Stone and hang out with the mummies for a little while. Until tomorrow, cheerio!

One Step at a Time

Today was full of exploring new places, seeing different things, and walking until our legs turned into jello. We started off the day by taking a stroll through Leadenhall Market and taking a tour of the Bank of England. Once we finished regaining our pence and sense we headed over to the Monument to the Great Fire of London and walked up all three hundred and eleven stairs! On the way to the top we sang "Whoa we're half way there, whoa living on a stair" and by the time we got up there we were a little tired and a little scared, but the view was definitely worth the walk. After that we had a quick picnic lunch and then took a boat ride down the River Thames to Greenwich. In Greenwich, we went to the Royal Observatory, home of Greenwich Mean Time and the Meridian Line. Our favorite part of the day was straddling the Meridian Line, which is the center of all world time.

We we're in two time zones at once! So even though we walked until we dropped today, we absolutely had the "time" of our lives. Until tomorrow, cheerio!

Beautiful Bath

After travelling by tube and rail we ended up in the beautiful town of Bath. The first thing we did was take a tour of the town on a double-decker bus.

The wind was whipping up on the top deck of the bus, but we braved the chilly weather and enjoyed seeing the Royal Crescent, Bath Abbey, and the Jane Austen Centre, where Persuasion, one of her most famous novels takes place. After seeing the sights, we moved on to the Roman Baths. There are four main parts of the Roman Baths: the Sacred Spring, the Roman Temple, the Roman Bath House, and the museum. Our favorite part was just walking around the Great Bath outside and posing like the Romans would have.

Well maybe we looked more Egyptian than Roman, but we had fun anyway! At the end of our tour around the Baths, a few of us were even brave enough taste the water, which is said to have natural healing powers. Even though it made most of us gag, we felt great after we got the taste out of our mouths. So who knows, maybe it has some healing powers after all? The rest of the day was spent exploring the town, grabbing a quick bite to eat, and shopping of course! More adventures to come, cheerio!

Churchill Museum, Westminster Abbey, and Parliament... oh my!

We had a really busy and exciting day starting with visiting the Churchill Museum and Cabinet War Rooms. Seeing the actual war rooms and bunkers that were used during WWII was an eye-opening experience. Also, exploring the museum and discovering interesting facts about the late great Winston Churchill was fun too. Danielle, who did her research paper on Churchill, was our little tour-guide through the museum.Our favorite Churchill quote had to be "I have a tendency against which I should, perhaps, be on my guard, to swim against the stream". What can I say, you have to love the man for daring to be different. After the museum we headed over to Westminster Abbey. We spent about an hour walking through the beautiful church and admiring the Gothic architecture, the stained glass windows, and the numerous burial sites and memorials. Finally, we ended the day by spending some time in the House of Parliament and taking pictures with the one and only Big Ben! As always, cheerio!

The Tower of London

Professor Wolfe took us on a trip to the Tower of London and all of us couldn't wait to see it. It was a perfect sunny day and we spent hours roaming through each gate, tower, and palace. We even saw a traditional Beefeater who stopped to chat with us for a while about his duties and such.Even though the Beefeater looked great in his uniform, he still told us he loved Brittany's Ed Hardy jacket. Well after meeting a Beefeater, we were a little hungry so we headed over to the cafe and had scones with clotted cream and jam, muffins, hot chocolate, and a turkey sandwich... I told you we were hungry! Then I decided to end my day at the Tower of London by being beheaded...

I know how you feel Anne Boleyn! So needless to say, we all had an amazing day. Cheerio for now!

Trafalgar Square

We took the tube to Baker's street today to start seeing the many sights of London. Our first stop was Trafalgar Square, which has been known as a central meeting place since the Middle Ages. While in the square a few of us took a tour through the National Gallery and looked at the artwork, while most of the others spent time at Nelson's Column.Ashley W. and Ashley C. we're even brave enough to climb the lion statues surrounding the column! After a great photo shoot by Nelson's Column we walked to The Household Cavalry Museum and Number 10 Downing Street where the Prime Minister lives. Although we were attacked by an army of pollen on the way back to Regents College, we marched on like the Light Brigade and had a great day. Until tomorrow, cheerio!

Leavin on a Jet Plane...

Today at approximately 8p.m. we waved goodbye to the U.S.A. and set off on our flight to the United Kingdom!
Even though the seven hour flight was a little tiresome we definitely had fun... especially when the captain said "Happy Birthday" to Alston over the loudspeaker on the plane. To quote Professor Parkhouse, "We'll that's never happened on any transcontinental flight I've ever been on before!" After the flight, we arrived at Heathrow Airport at 7:30a.m. (London time) and spent the rest of the day getting settled in at Regents College, taking our first ride on the tube, and exploring Piccadilly Circus. More adventures to come tomorrow. Cheerio!