Valpo Voyager

Student Stories from Around the World

Category: England (page 6 of 26)

Last Days in London

London is an amazing city. There are so many things to do and places to see. Some people say that if you get bored in London, that means you’re bored with life, just because there’s so much to explore. I could never get tired of London. Even now, after living her for almost nine months, there is still a list of things that I haven’t seen yet that I want to see.

Greenwich, London

Greenwich, London

On a sunny Saturday, I attempted to cross some of these things off my list. Brendan and I headed to London for the afternoon. Our first stop was Greenwich to see the Queen’s Palace and the astronomy tower where the Prime Meridian is. It was a gorgeous day outside, so the walk up to the astronomy tower didn’t seem so bad. We sat up on top of the hill for awhile, talked, and looked out over London.

The Monument at Trafalgar Square

The Monument at Trafalgar Square

Our next stop was Trafalgar Square. I have been to London dozens of times, but believe it or not, I had never stopped and walked around Trafalgar Square before. We took some time and walked around the lion statues before stepping inside the National Gallery. Our art professor had recommended going into an art museum and staring at a piece of art for ten minutes, and then leave. The purpose is to try and find a piece of art that speaks to us, and see what we observe. We decided to try it, and only spent a few minutes in the National Gallery, looking for art that spoke to us. For me, any painting that has the ocean or water of some kind is something I gravitate to.

MI6

MI6

London from MI6

London from MI6

From Trafalgar Square, we walked down to Westminster Palace and Westminster Abbey. Then we walked along the river to see MI6. Brendan and I are both fans of James Bond, and seeing MI6 was pretty cool. Obviously, we couldn’t go in, because it’s so heavily guarded and has lots of barbed wire around it. We just enjoyed seeing the building.

Regent's Park

Regent’s Park

We finished our day with a trip to see 221B Baker Street and a walk through Regent’s Park. 221B Baker street was just a door with a sign referencing Sherlock Holmes, but it was still cool to see where he was written to have lived. We walked through Regent’s Park near sunset, so it was glowing in the light, and it was so pretty.

There are still more things that I want to do in London, but this was a start at completing my list. I had a lot of fun walking around with Brendan, and I can’t wait to go back to London for one final time before I leave in May!

Another London Trip

As some of my friends were off on the continent of Europe, I decided to stay back and go to London.  I just love the city so much.  I saw my favorite places and I even swam in the London Olympic Pool!

London, England

London, England

London, England

London, England

St. James Park, London

St. James Park, London

Buckingham Palace, London

Buckingham Palace, London

London Olympic Aquatic Centre - Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

London Olympic Aquatic Centre – Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

London Olympic Aquatic Centre - Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

London Olympic Aquatic Centre – Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

London Olympic Aquatic Centre - Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

London Olympic Aquatic Centre – Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

A Walk to Grantchester

If you stroll along the river Cam towards the south for about two miles or so, you run into the lovely village of Grantchester.  It is beautiful to walk along the fields and see the country side.  We even had to make our way through several cows as they grazed along the path.  It was lovely to see a village that is less commercial and truly more British.

On the way to Grantchester

On the way to Grantchester

Tea Garden in Grantchester

Tea Garden in Grantchester

Grantchester, England

Grantchester, England

Mom and Me: My Mother’s Visit to England

During the second part of second break, my mom flew overseas to stay with me for a week. I have currently been abroad for eight months, and have not seen any member of my family until she came, so it was nice to see someone after only using FaceTime for eight months. I got the chance to show her where I live and the things that I do for fun, which was really exciting.

St. Paul's Cathedral over Millennium Bridge

St. Paul’s Cathedral over Millennium Bridge

On one day she was here, we travelled to London for the day. We lucked out and had absolutely beautiful weather when we were there. It was sunny, with just a few clouds in the sky, albeit a little windy. Our first stop of the day was to take the Tube to Black Friars, and walk over Millennium Bridge. The last time my mother was in London, Millennium Bridge didn’t even exist, so this was a first for her. I love it when you cross the bridge to the other side and see St. Paul’s Cathedral on the other side.

Shakespeare's Globe Theatre

Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre

We called it our day of theatre, because everything we did related to theatre in some way or another. We went and visited Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre. I have never been there, and, again, the last time my mother was in London, the reconstruction of the Globe did not exist either, so this was a first for both of us. It was a lot smaller on the inside than I had expected, but I really liked how it looked very much like it belonged during the Tudor period, and how exact they were with those details. If I had more time (and money), I would love to go see a play performed there.

Our other theatre-related event of the day was to see Wicked. I have already seen it once, but I loved it so much that I knew that I had to take my mom to see it. She had wanted to see it a long time ago, and never got the chance, so this was the perfect opportunity. We enjoyed an afternoon matinee of witches and munchkins and the Land of Oz, which was even better than the first time that I saw it.

Burghley House

Burghley House

On the last full day of my mother’s time in England, we travelled up to Stamford and visited Burghley House. It is one of the largest Elizabethan houses in England, and it was used as the setting for Rosings Park in the 2005 version of “Pride and Prejudice.” It was a two mile walk from the train station, which, after not being used to walking everywhere, made my mother very tired, but it was totally worth it. The outside of the house is beautiful, and the inside holds a lot of really interesting art, and a room dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I.

I had a good time with my mom, but her visiting me reminded me that I’m going to be going home soon, which I am not quite ready for. I’ve been here a long time, so long that it’s my home now, and so going back to the US is going to be very strange. But before then, I’m going to make the most of my days here!

Sweden Part 2

I felt like a mariner on the second have of my Swedish adventure.  I spent a couple days out sailing in the Stockholm Archipelago, visiting beautiful islands.  This is a top vacation destination in the summertime.  Stockholm is also lovely while covered in fresh snow!

Stockholm, Sweden

Stockholm, Sweden

Stockholm Harbor - Royal Palace

Stockholm Harbor – Royal Palace

Stockholm Archipelago

Stockholm Archipelago

Vaxholm Fortress

Vaxholm Fortress

Finnhamn Island

Finnhamn Island

Finnhamn Island

Finnhamn Island

Stockholm Archipelago

Stockholm Archipelago

Sweden Part 1

I loved Scandinavia so much that I had to return!  Over our two week break, I explored Stockholm and its archipelago.  I spent my first few days just in the city.  The harbor is gorgeous.  I saw the famous (or infamous) Vasa warship from the 1600s and the largest IKEA store in the world (IKEA is a Swedish company).

Stockholm Harbor

Stockholm Harbor

Stockholm Harbor

Stockholm Harbor

Stockholm Harbor

Stockholm Harbor

Vasa warship - Stockholm

Vasa warship – Stockholm

Vasa warship - Stockholm

Vasa warship – Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm

IKEA - Stockholm

IKEA – Stockholm

Back on American Soil (for a couple hours)

After World War II, a great cemetery was constructed in honor of the American men and women who fought to help protect their English allies.  Technically the ground is American soil and we saw our first real American flag in a long time.  It was a proud and patriotic moment for all of us.

American Cemetery - Cambridge, England

American Cemetery – Cambridge, England

IMG_8564

American Cemetery – Cambridge, England

 

American Cemetery - Cambridge, England

American Cemetery – Cambridge, England

IMG_8571

American Cemetery – Cambridge, England

IMG_8570

Luck of the Irish

Hello again! For the past almost two weeks, everyone at the Center has been on Spring Break! We’ve all been very excited for this break, and we’ve all been traveling to so many different places. For me, the place that I have always wanted to visit is Ireland. I am part Irish, and I wanted to spend a good amount of time there, more than just a weekend.

Dublin Castle

Dublin Castle

To start the break, four of us travelled to Dublin. We visited Dublin Castle, Dublin Gardens, Trinity College, St. Patrick’s Cathedral, Christ Church Cathedral, and the Guinness Storehouse, just to name a few things. None of us really knew much about Irish history, so having a tour of Dublin Castle was very educational, because we got to learn a lot about Irish history. The most interesting things had to do with the 1916 Easter uprisings, which  led to the eventual independence of Ireland a few years later.

Giant's Causeway, Northern Ireland

Giant’s Causeway, Northern Ireland

The next day, the other three went on a Cliffs of Moher bus tour, but I went on a bus tour to Belfast and Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland. Giant’s Causeway was definitely my favorite part of the entire trip. The causeway is made of up hexagon-shaped volcanic rocks coming up out of the ocean. Some are a few inches big, while others are several feet tall. It was so much fun to climb over all of them and look out over the view of the sea and the rocks. I could even see the coast of Scotland from the causeway.

Galway Bay

Galway Bay

After another night in Dublin, I split off from the group and travelled to Galway on the western coast of Ireland. Galway is a very small town, and is most famous for the Claddagh friendship ring and the “Galway Girl” Irish folk song. I enjoyed walking around the small town and popping into pubs to hear the live Irish music. My hostel was right in the center of the city, so I was within walking distance of everything.

Dunguaire Castle

Dunguaire Castle

I travelled on two bus tours while I was in Galway. The first was a Cliffs of Moher and the Burren tour. Unfortunately, the rain and fog were so thick, and the wind was so strong, that I could barely see ten feet in front of me, and the Cliffs were not visible. However, I did enjoy seeing the Burren, which is the rocky landscape that covers the area. Our tour guide told us that the Burren has the same landscape as that of the moon, so that was interesting to see. I also got to get out and see Dunguaire Castle, which is iconic in that region of Ireland.

Kylemore Abbey

Kylemore Abbey

The second tour I took was of a northwest part of Ireland called Connemara. We stopped at Kylemore Abbey, which is a castle right on the edge of a lake in the mountains of Ireland. It was a gorgeous day (besides being cold and windy) and I got to walk around the grounds and explore the gardens. We also stopped and saw the Killary Fjord, which is 16 miles long, Loughs Mask and Nafooey, and the town of Cong, where they filmed the movie “The Quiet Man” starring John Wayne and Maureen O’Hara. I got to see the mountainous parts of Ireland on this tour, and it was absolutely gorgeous.

I had a fantastic time in Ireland, and have had a great time staying at home in Cambridge for the rest of break and hanging out with people here. Up next is my week with my mom, who is visiting from the US!

Castles Trip Part 3

On the last leg of our journey, C-95 journeyed to Stonehenge, one of the most famous prehistoric landmarks in the world.  One of the interesting things about site is that the stones frame the sunset on the Equinoxes and we were there the day after the equinox so the sun would have been framed fairly well at sunset.  However we were there in the middle of the afternoon.  After Stonehenge, we visited Hampton Court Palace on the southwest side of London.  This was the palace of King Henry VIII, and the monarchs William and Mary.  It was a beautiful estate, both inside and out.

Stonehenge - (left to right) Emily P., Jessica, Sarah

Stonehenge – (left to right) Emily P., Jessica, Sarah

Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Stonehenge

Hampton Court Palace

Hampton Court Palace

Main Dining Room - Hampton Court Palace

Main Dining Room – Hampton Court Palace

a courtyard - Hampton Court Palace

a courtyard – Hampton Court Palace

Castles Trip Part 2

For the next part of our journey, we traveled to Stratford-upon-Avon (the birthplace of William Shakespeare) and saw the play “The Jew of Malta.”  The next day we traveled to Bath and saw the ancient baths that the Romans built on top of the natural springs in the southwestern part of England.

Live performances outside Shakespeare's childhood home

Live performances outside Shakespeare’s childhood home

Stratford-Upon-Avon downtown

Stratford-Upon-Avon downtown

Cathedral in Bath

Cathedral in Bath

The Roman Baths

The Roman Baths

The Roman Baths (statues of emperors around the top viewing gallery)

The Roman Baths (statues of emperors around the top viewing gallery)

Roman Baths

Roman Baths

The Royal Crescent

The Royal Crescent

The Royal Cresent w/ Emily P.

The Royal Cresent w/ Emily P.

The Royal Crescent w/ Emily P.

The Royal Crescent w/ Emily P.

The Royal Crescent

The Royal Crescent

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