Yesterday afternoon, before seeing King Henry V at the Globe Theater, another student and I went to the Hayward Gallery to see their Invisible art exhibit. It was an incredibly interesting experience! The various works of art on display were all very different interpretations of the idea of art as invisible. One display was a …
Some Words on Words.
I’ve been living in a smoke of words since arriving on Monday. A good smoke. Not a bad smoke. Not wild fires licking your home smoke, but the other kind. Sweet. Maybe a bit spicy. Edible, floral, make it what you will. Cities are made of words. Or, no, not just cities, such a claim …
Traveling like a Tourist
While I am certainly not as well traveled as most on CC campus, I have discovered over the past year that I absolutely hate feeling like a tourist. The idea of sitting on a tour bus, or merely shuffling around a city, a country looking at all the "places you have to go" seems so …
This is London!
A Taste of the Local Cuisine
GS 554 — Reimagining the Gendered Classics: The Catcher in the Rye
Our discussion of J.D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye spawned the following: Themes: The call and answer (or lack of answer) in Holden's experiences. Holden's preoccupation with protecting innocence. Authenticity versus phoniness. Grief. The importance of human relationships. The commodification of elements of universal human experience. Desperation. Alienation. Connection. Questions: As children/teenagers form identities, …
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Tuppence a Bag
My mother tells me that I went through a phase when I was little where the only movie I ever wanted to watch was Mary Poppins. Every day I asked her if I could watch it. I know the movie by heart. Do you remember the bird lady, who sits in front of St. Paul's …
The National Gallery…Vermeer? Monet!
The Kitchen Maid, A Lady Writing a Letter, and, of course, Girl with a Pearl Earring. All amazing works by the Dutch painter during the 17th century, Johannes Vermeer. His paintings have inspired novels, other paintings, films, and even operas and music. So naturally, as we headed to The National Gallery in London, I was …
Writing Britain
I just returned from the British Library’s “Writing Britain” exhibition. The exhibition is a celebration of the country’s literary achievements stretching back nearly a thousand years, and includes books like the oldest surviving edition of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The exhibition is broken down into sections based on literary themes, such as the …
Here We Are.
I step up to the ticketing counter and heave my duffel onto the scale. “You on the Heathrow flight?” the agent asks. I’m digging through my bag for my passport—flustered—so I only nod. He tags my duffel, then asks, “You from London?” “What? No, California born and raised.” I slide my passport across the counter. …
