Disaterous morning

This morning I looked at the clock and it read 858. and I had class at 9. Well, needless to say, I made it to class by 910. and if I was at deis, i would have been on time. and in fact, she had started 5 minutes late so I only missed one slide. So no worries! It may have been the fastest I've ever moved tho. It seemed like a bad omen for the day, so ive decided to stay inside today and get some research done for my first paper which is due on feb 22. Basically, Ive figured out how my papers are laid out over the next couple of months and I basically have 6 papers and one week to write each one... not bad. so because I'm gunna be in paris, im getting a head start! wish me luck! and a better alarm clock!

Longest day ever

So today I had to get up early (740) to go to a GIS tutorial in one of the archaeology labs. Basically we spent the hour being instructed on how to use this mapping software to find trends in the landscape data and find sites. It was pretty cool but I really needed coffee that early in the morning. Then I spent a few hours in the library before my meeting with deitrich stout, my affiliate advisor here. It was my progress report meeting and we just basically talked about my upcoming trip to paris. funny. but he did tell me when the dig was, may 19th. so thats good to know. Then I came home, took a 3 hour nap to make up for the sleep I didnt get on my day off and then went to the UCL Amnesty International meeting which was soooo cool. It actually felt like a real meeting, which i havent been to in a while. It was really good. So now, i'm back, trying to get myself to do my reading, when all i really want to do is watch dr quinn on youtube. I have an early day again tomorrow which sucks but i'll try to get to bed early. oh! and in less then a week we're in paris!!!!

Yep. that sucks.

So i'm not going to talk about the outcome of the game because it is ranking up there in disappointments with not going to belize. Anyway, an amazing amount of brits turned up to watch the game and it was one of the funniest things ive ever experienced. They shouted at the wrong times. Cheering for Brady when the defense was on the field and screaming things like "you carry that ball". and asking the best questions like "can you just dropkick the ball when ever you want?" that one stumped the boys for a few minutes. and they cheer different. we scream "gooooo!" or "yeah!!!" they scream "love it!" and "bugger!" It was great. except for the crushing defeat. anyway, it was quite an experience to watch it with the brits who know very little about the game at all.

and remind me why i stayed up until 3 in the morning for that?

Notting Hill (sadly not like the movie)

So this weekend we got up early on saturday and took the tube to notting hill. Which is not very exciting. The food was great. Tons of vendors onthe streets... I had great chicken paella and a half a pound of cherries. sooooo good. we saw george orwells house (one of many in london) and sneered at the tourists taking a picture of the pastel colored house with a sign that said blah blah lived here. blah. and then we walked through the crowds for ages. almost bought a sweater.... but not without trying it on. It was antiques day and just as we were leaving I saw an amazing booth. it looked like dads shop. antique hand tools everywhere. it was awesome. almost bought something but had no idea what dad was missing in his tools. so best I could do was sneak a picture. Here!

Are you ready for some football?

Evil Parent. (this is a joke for those of you who cannot understand some simple sarcasm.)

Evil Parent got the whole restaurant singing. And to think I almost forgot to go. And its like weeks since my birthday so I was singing and the lady had to tell me that the cake was for me. It was reallllllly good tho.

I have learned a lesson

Don't walk the whole city during the day and then go out dancing. Evil combination. My feet hurt sooooo much. But they shall recover.

For More Pictures

http://picasaweb.google.com/avivaann/SurreyAndWinsor

I hope its easy to view!

Windsor and Surrey!

In Shere
In Shere



Eaton College
The House Kayla and I stayed in
Windsor Castle

Shakespeare Walk

A pub that Shakespeare ate at
The original spot of the globe
The Globe!

Pictures of the Archaeology Building and Park

The Archaeology Building!

The Archaeology Building!

Update.... Walks and Family Home Stay

Alot has been going on since I last updated. Lots of class obviously, actually spending time in the library reading. I have my first paper due on Feb 22 and its going to come fast, I'm sure. This week Alexandra and I went on a "Shakespeare's London" walk where a tourguide showed us the parts of london that Shakespeare definately hung out in. Including the original locations of the Globe and others and also their new locations. I didnt realize that the Globe wasn't in the same spot or really the same thing. But it was built exactly the same way as the globe was (with the added features of water sprinklers in case the thatch roof catches on fire). The walk was fun except it was getting dark and we couldnt see everything and my camera didnt want to take pictures in the dark.

Then I went on my home stay with a great family in Woking, a town in Surrey. Kayla and I stayed there with the mom and dad and 3 kids. They have been hosting people every weekend and all summer for 11 years. Thats hard to believe. They were great and very nice and all the kids were polite and fun. They cooked for us... which was sooooo good to have a home cooked meal, but the lunch was weird. Anyway, the first day, Saturday, butler took us to Windsor Castle, which was so amazing. We saw one of the most amazing chapels (big enough I think to be a cathedral) and the queen's doll house which was amazing and huge and had real miniature everything, including the crown jewels. We got to go inside and see the state department rooms which were just amazing. For the first time I got one of those audio tours so I got to listen to interesting things about each room. We saw the castle, which was magnificent, but no changing of the guard... I'll have to wait for Buckingham Palace for that. We explored the town of Windsor and then walked to the town of Eaton which is where Eaton College is and where Prince Harry goes to school. But it was a Saturday and sadly no boys in uniform. We went back to our homes and had a home cooked meal. Watched a movie and went to bed. The next day was a day with the family and they took us into the countryside (like one minute from their house) and we hiked a little and went to the town Shere which is sooooo old and where they filmed the movie the Holiday. Amazing town. We then came back to London! It was a great time. Pictures to follow!

Other then that, my summer plans seem to have changed and I am not (i think) going to Belize, which is so disapointing. Anyway, thinking about other field schools, maybe Iroquois.

Good news is that Alexandra and Amy and I booked tickets to Paris and a cheap hotel to stay in. I am sooooo excited for that! Really I just want to see the tower and the Louvre. Just going to stay 3 nights. and then come back and write a paper!!

Friends!

the girls laughing at something
a bunch of us!
willy and I at "ghetto"

Pics from the bus tour

the london eye!
tower of london bridge!
big ben and the parliament

TV Licensing

So i got a scary notice, along with everyone else in the building that i was illegally operating a TV in my room and would be fined 1000 pounds if discovered. well, being the only american who actually read the welcome packet and knew that this was coming and was not that serious, i was the only american not to freak out. if they read the fine print, it says live TV and its the law in the country. People need to realize that they are not at home, they chose to live in a different country for a semester or year and there are different ways of life in different places. one of the huge reasons i wanted to study abroad. they have to realize that this is a country without a constitution and they can tax anything they really want, including watching tv. so everyone here will recieve a visit from the tv officer to confirm that we dont have a tv in our rooms, no big deal. ok thats my rant for the day. and i love that the brits call goalies, keepers.

so yesterday we got up early which was painful to go and take a bus tour around london, which made me love the city so much more because you actually can see everything at once and realize how magnificent the buildings and landmarks are. whats also great is that almost every building in the city is OLD. and i mean reallly old. its nothing like nyc where the buildings are new and skyscrapers... they are old buildings that make you think that you are back in time.... and its just by walking down the street! its awesome! anyway... today i think we are taking the boat tour down the thames which will be nice and hopefully the battery on my camera will last... im just going to put up a few of the pictures from yesterdays tour, because i plan to return to each landmark and take better pictures....

We are marching to Trafalgar Square, oh yes oh!

Today we went to Trafalgar Square and the National Gallery and as soon as we got there I had the song stuck in my head... Oh Camp K and the songs they teach us. It was a great day... seeing all the paintings that I studied in High and Late Renaissance class at the 'deis. I also got to see 5 Renoirs which made my day... No pictures allowed in the museum tho... which is wierd.. in the met you can!

Pics!

Today we're marching to declare that bomb has got to go!

me in front of the national gallery and with the lions of trafalgar square
us in front of the national gallery
the traditional london phonebooth shot
trafalgar square!
us in trafalgar square!
lions of trafalgar square and big ben in the background!
national gallery in trafalgar square!

More pics

the archaeologist and the rosetta stone!
dancing my bday away!
it looks like there were no people at the gay club... but about 30 minutes from then we were surrounded by gay dancing fools!

Some pics

in Regents Park

Birthday night # 1

So last night a whole bunch of us decided to accompany Willy to a gar bar.... well the bar was dead so we ventured some more to a gay club in central london called the ghetto. interesting.... i got in for free... dont really know why... i didnt bring any money... so they were nice. anyway... we spent the night trying to arrange Willy with random guys and the girls found companions as well... which is interesting because the guys arent supposed to be into girls... anyway... i tangoed with a flamboyant irishman... it was amazing...

Today I went to Regents Park and explored the grounds and the scenery... which will be amazing in the spring... now tho, the pond is beautiful with the black swans and other birds and the shrubbery. oh i cant wait to see the rose gardens in spring....

Tonight I think we are going to the Ice Bar.... Where its kept at -5 degrees (i think celcious) and they give us parkas.... the whole bar is made of ice, including the glasses and the seats. it should be awesome.... I'll update on that later. if you are interested... http://www.belowzerolondon.com/icebar/index.html