Final day in Stratford and first day back in London

That title is a little misleading...we weren't really in Stratford for the 3rd day of the trip.

We left Stratford at 9am to go see two more cool sites before going home (?) to London that evening. Our first stop was Blenhiem Palace.

This palace is still lived in by the 11th Duke of Marlborough and his family: it's been the home to the Dukes of Marlborough since the first one, Sir John Churchill. Seeing a palace that is still in use is flabbergasting. I can't believe people really live here! Of course, we didn't actually see the places where people live, we just toured the rest of the palace, but still. As an interesting historical note, it's the place where Winston Churchill was born. His mother and father were visiting here, and she unexpectedly went in to labor 6 weeks early, so the whole affair was rather spur-of-the-moment. I guess they even had to borrow baby clothes from someone in the nearby town who'd just had a baby, because they had nothing to dress him in!
The most impressive things I think I saw in the palace were the tapestries. They are all handmade (in Norway, if I remember right) and depict various battle scenes in which the first Duke of Marlborough fought. He's an incredibly important figure in English history, by the way. Anyway, these tapestries were made specifically for the rooms they still hang in, so they fit the walls perfectly. They're huge, and absolutely stunning. It's amazing that people made them by hand! There was a great deal of antique furniture in the many rooms we passed through, and our tour guide told us about many of them. I remember in particular a very pretty pair of 18th century french desks made of inlaid tortoise shell and ebony. Um, can you say LUXURY??
While I was at the palace, I also walked over to one of the many gardens. This particular garden had a maze, and of course, I went through it. It was really fun! I've never been through a hedge maze before, so it was a new experience for me. I kept thinking about the final task of the triwizard tournament...fortunately, these hedges didn't close behind me or try to eat me!

After Blenhiem Palace, we went to Oxford for the afternoon. Since we only had a few hours, I had to rush around and choose which highlights I wanted to see. I wish I'd had more time to explore, but as it was, I still saw some really fantastic stuff. First, I went to the Oxford Museum of Natural History, and saw the skeleton of the Oxford dodo. Cool, right? Then I went to Christ's Church College, which is particularly interesting over the other colleges that comprise Oxford for one reason: the dining hall is the Great Hall of the first two Harry Potter movies! So, I have another thing to add to my list of Harry Potter tour sites I've visited! It was really cool, and I'm definitely glad that I spent the few pounds and went in to see it. I'm really jealous of the Oxford students who can eat there whenever they want... ;) After the hall, I went to the Eagle and Child pub. This pub is where the Inklings met weekly to discuss their writings and other things with each other over a cold pint or two. Who were the Inklings, you ask? Well, none other than JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis, to name its most prominent members. I sat in the room where they liked to sit, and enjoyed an order of chips (fries). I could almost feel the literary genius seep into my brain as I sat there... :) After that, it was time to board the coach and head back to London.

Today was a busy day too! Since I only have a week left, I'm starting to feel really anxious to get in all of the sites I still want to see. This whole trip I've felt like I have all the time in the world, and I'm starting to realize that I don't. So, I'm pushing myself to get up and stay up to see lots of things before I leave!

This morning I went to the British Library, because a number of students in the group said it was really cool and recommended that everyone go, if they get the chance. The reason to visit isn't because it's a particularly large library, or a really old library, but because of one special room inside of it. This particular room is a treasure trove of ancient manuscripts - including the Magna Charta, the original manuscript of Handel's Messiah (he had AWFUL penmanship), the original Beowulf manuscript (10th/11th century), Charlotte Bronte's Jane Eyre manuscript, pages from Da Vinci's notebooks, a Gutenberg Bible, and the Codex Sinaiticus Old and New Testaments (the earliest manuscript of the complete New Testament - Greek, from about AD300 - and a slightly later partial manuscript of the Old Testament). Seeing all of those famous works and books in person was a little overwhelming! You aren't supposed to take pictures in the exhibit, which was annoying; but shhh, don't tell, I managed to take two pictures, one of the Messiah and one of the New Testament Sinaiticus. :P

After the library, I went to the parish church of St. Mary Aldermary's, because I have some ancestors who worshipped there and I thought it would be a good thing to see. When my ancestors (they're on Dad's side - the Allertons, primarily) were there, it was a different church than the one I was in today, but that's because the one they worshipped in was destroyed in the Great Fire of 1666. Fortunately, the parish records survived, which is probably why we know about them. I've seen copies of the records, but not the original - I don't even know where that is. Anyway, it was a pretty church, and it was cool to think that my ancestors came to that same place to worship.

After the church, I grabbed takeaway sushi for lunch at ate at a little park (with everyone else in London, because the weather was gorgeous today - it was hard to see the grass underneath all the picnickers!). Then I headed back to the flats to write a paper due tonight.

After (almost) finishing the paper, I left to go catch a show: Les Miserables! It still astonishes me how much cheaper musicals are here compared to Broadway. I mean, London's West End is of the same caliber as Broadway, and plays many of the same big-name musicals, but it's so much more affordable. I got my ticket straight from the theatre box office for 15 pounds - about 23 dollars. There's no way I could get into Les Mis on Broadway for less than $75, even in the nosebleed seats (like the 15 pound ticket I bought tonight). When I got to the theatre, I was lucky enough to be able to slyly switch to a better seat because it wasn't sold out. So, instead of my original seat, where about 2/3 of the stage was obstructed unless I sat really far forward and craned my neck, I was on the front row of the 2nd balcony. Even though it was really high up, it was a fabulous seat. Since I was on the front row, but on a balcony, there weren't any heads in front of me, and I could see the whole stage without craning my neck up (like the front row of the ground seats). Anyway, I'm really glad I went and saw it. I hadn't seen any musicals in London yet, and I'd never seen Les Mis, so it was definitely worth it. Enjolras was positively to die for - his voice had just the right amount of vibrato, and it rang beautifully...and he was really attractive too. :) Javert and Jean Valjean didn't fail to impress either, and Cosette hit the high notes effortlessly. My only complaint was Marius. One of the guys from the choir program who saw it a few weeks ago nick-named him goat man, and now I know exactly why. Every time he got angsty, he'd get really tense, his vibrato would turn into a really rapid bleating, and his head and shoulders would literally shake. When he didn't get tense, he really had a nice voice...he just needed to relax sometimes! :) Anyway, I'm really glad that I went to see a just-for-fun musical here. It was very worth it!

Oh boy. It's late. :P Love you all! Can't wait to see you again!