Globes and Ghosts

March 24, 2010

I’m still stuck in my room. And I have been for the entire week!!! Not really, I did get out and get some fresh air, but mostly for class or a walk around the neighborhood. Stupid midterms, presentations, and papers… As of yesterday, we have to have all of our stuff packed up and moving out in a exactly a month… I only have a month left?!?! And I’m still trying to figure out everything I’m doing after the program ends. My roommate from Madison, Kelsie, is studying in Italy this semester and she’s coming to London today. We are going to talk about my few days in Europe after I leave London. Hopefully, everything will work out and I’ll get to see a lot of Italy and maybe France in that time.

Right now... it’s raining. But apart from the today and yesterday, it has been so nice weather-wise here. On Sunday, it was perfect. And we took advantage of it. Hal, Viv, and I packed up our homework and headed up to Hampstead Heath for a day of studying in the sun. Didn’t get much studying done, but my nose got sunburned! Mission accomplished. Before we left, I put on a sundress and put my sunglasses in my bag for the first time. I even debated not bring my coat along, but in the end, practicality won out and I brought it along. Never wore it, but laid it on the grass and sit on it in the park. We almost even packed a picnic, but decided we all just wanted to get there as soon as possible, so we left around 10 after a big breakfast.

Hampstead is about an hour combo walk and Tube ride from London. It is just a few miles north, but seems like a completely different world even though it is still considered London. Hampstead is known for being very eclectic and small town. It attracts a lot of artists and retirees. The place hasn’t changed since a bunch of poets and artist invaded during the Victorian ear. All right in the middle of this huge city. It reminded me of Greenwich or Brighton. London is so diverse!

We walked around the town for a bit before heading to the Heath, Hampstead’s main attraction. As we entered the Heath, which is really London’s idea of a park, I realized how different English parks are from American ones. In the States, you have the swing set and sandbox, maybe a baseball field, and a lot of open areas and trees. In England, a park is basically a big forest with miles and miles of trails, a bunch of old, hidden homes, and a few grassy hills. I felt like I was walking out the back door of my house, into the woods I used to build tee pees in. It was fun to meander through all the trails and see everyone with their dogs. Have I mentioned how much British people love their pets. Everyone owns a dog, I swear! Anyway, the trails were great, but super muddy. My new flats from Hastings didn’t stand a chance. Luckily they were black so I just washed them when we got home. Good as new!

So our little pack of five – Hal, Viv, Laurel, Julie, and I – have been obsessed with the English poet John Keats ever since we bawled our eyes out during the movie Bright Star. Seriously, I love the man. So, part of the huge pull of Hampstead is John Keats’s house. He lived there when he wrote his best works and his fiancé, Fanny, was his neighbor. Of course, we went to the house. It wasn’t anything special, but it still meant so much. He actually lived and wrote there. So cool.

After visiting the house and getting lost in the Heath, we finally found Kenwood House, which is this mansion at the north end of the park that holds banquets and weddings. I don’t think anyone actually lives there. We sat on the huge lawn out front, I ate my apple and bathed in the sun. Hence, the sunburn. It was amazing. As I was sitting there I decided that I’m getting married in Kenwood house and living in Hampstead, at least for a while.

Funnily, while we were eating at the café in Kenwood House, Laurel, Viv and Hal started freaking out. They whispered, “It’s Andy Circus, it’s Andy Circus.” And sadly, I had no idea who this was. They explained, even spelling out his name. Turns out Andy Serkis, who I found out plays Gollum on the Lord of the Rings, was having a day out with his family in Hampstead. Just like us! I kind of recognized him, but not really. He played the boss that dances to Thriller in 13 Going on 30. Hal and Laurel were freaking out. Laurel is a huge Lord of the Rings fan. Her obsession might even rival Amy and Grant’s LOTR Thanksgiving marathon.

After sneaking glances at Andy Serkis eating a sandwich for about a half hour, the birds attacked. Literally, a flock of pigeons descended on our table and I was out of there, leaving the end of my sandwich for them. I don’t think I’ve ever moved that fast in my life. The birds here just love to scare the crap out of all the tourists. Bah!

We walked back across the park after that and found Parliament Hill. This hill is known for its awesome view of London. And you can see everything from Hyde Park all the way over to Canary Wharf. It was amazing. There aren’t very many tall buildings in London, besides the Eye, that you can get this great view.

After that, I think we got lost again and then decided to go home once it started to get dark. I did laundry, made supper and did more homework. Yay.

Monday Monday.. I had class all day. But in the afternoon, for my theatre class, we got to tour Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. Well, a replica of the original anyway. But they built it exactly as it was when it was constructed for the first time in 1599. It burned down several times, was commonly shut down for plague infestation, and eventually dismantled when Cromwell overthrew the monarchy and banned theatre in Britain. But, about 20 years ago, they brought it back. And funnily, the guy that made its revival so successful is from Milwaukee. His name is Mark Rylance and they love him over here. We had the pleasure of seeing him perform the lead in Jerusalem. They call him the new Laurence Olivier.

Anyway, the Globe was very interesting. It is so different from any theatre I’ve ever been to before. It is an open air theatre with a big stage on one side and room for 700 standing “seats” on the floor. It is perfectly round and four levels of seating surround the stage. It is hard to describe, but just look it up. I really wish we could see a production there, but the Globe is only open in the summer. It opens the day we leave… bummer. The gift shop was good.

Viv and I headed over to the Tate Modern, which is right next-door after our tour ended. We saw see an exhibition we’ve been planning to see by an artist named Van Doesburg. He basically invented graphic design. It wasn’t that great, but I’m glad I went. My graphic design teacher will be happy!

That night, we had the unfortunate opportunity of going to see a play called Ghost Stories for theatre class. I hate scary movies. I just don’t watch them or I won’t sleep for a week. I’m still terrified from watching Jaws when I was little. Luckily, Amy reassured her ten-year-old sister that if I didn’t sleep within a foot of the edge of the bed, I wouldn’t get bitten by the sharks under my bed. I’ve been sleeping in a ball in the middle of my bed ever since. Just kidding. But Ghost Stories was no joke. I was terrified the whole time. Everything was really loud and dark and spooky. And then for some reason, Hal, Viv, and I stayed up telling ghost stories to each other for like three hours. I got no sleep…

Yesterday, I finished one paper and went to class. Absolutely nothing exciting.

Today, Kelsie is coming! I have to get my presentation done and print off some stuff, but I’m so excited for her to be in London!

I’ll be back soon to fill you in on our antics. It is sure to be an exciting weekend.

Cheerio,
Kelly