Theatre Week

Ok so I have been incredibly lazy and I haven't blogged all week. As I started to go back and write each day's blog I quickly realized that this week wasn't too interesting. There were only a few things that really stuck out so I decided to put everything in to one big post. I had class everyday and we saw 2 shows for theatre this week. Those are the two big things I want to talk about.

On Monday we went and saw a show called "Sizwe Banzi is Dead." It was, by far, the best show we have seen. The show was about a man in South Africa who tried to move to the city from the country. He received a stamp in his passbook that required him to go back to his village in 3 days. But, he finds a dead man's passbook with all of the proper stamps and has to make the decision whether or not he wants to take it. It was amazing. We walked in and were immediately segregated into  "White" and "Non-white" which added a very real element to the play. It was funny and meaningful and I think all of us really enjoyed it.

The second performance we saw was Punchdrunk. It was one of the weirdest/best experiences I have had in my entire life. It's incredibly hard to explain, so bear with me. The theatre is an old warehouse with 5 floors. You walk in and are given a mask to wear. They then take you up an elevator and let you out on all different floors. You walk around on the set. The entire building is the set. I stayed with Jill and Becky because we were a little afraid of going by ourselves. We touched everything and explored until we found actors and they would act around us. Most of the time they pretended that the audience wasn't there but every once in a while they would interact with someone. It was terrified when we started but I fell in love with it. Because the space is so big there is no way to see everything and all of the story lines that are happening at the same time. So, when we met and discussed it it was really cool to hear about what everyone saw and did.

Tonight, Jill, Dyllan and I tried to watch a DVD for Crime Fiction but nothing really wanted to cooperate with us. Eventually, we were able to watch it. The worst part was that it wasn't even very good. When we finished we headed up to the kitchen to make macaroni and cheese and watch better TV. We had a really good time just hanging out and eating. It has been great meeting so many new people and really getting to know them.

JessLynn

Zoo Day

Today we went to the London Zoo! It was just Dyllan, Dan, Jill and I. We had such a good time!! There isn't a whole lot to talk about because zoos are all kinda the same but I took some pictures. One of the really cool parts was the monkey area. We were able to walk through an area covered with trees and little monkeys were running on ropes above us. They got really close to everyone and they were so cute. We got to the zoo at 1pm and stayed until it closed at 5:30. I had a really good, chill day and I'm glad I got to spend it with such chill people. 

One of the cool parts of the day was going in to the reptile house. One of the scenes from the first Harry Potter movie was filmed there. (The one where he sets the snake free, obviously) While that was really cool to stand in the same spot it was filmed, Dyllan and I are not the biggest fans of snakes so we weren't able to spend a whole lot of time there. It's cool seeing all of these places that I've seen on TV and movies in real life.

After, we ran to the grocery store to pick up a few things and headed home. My evening was really relaxed. I'm going to wrap Sunday into this post as well because I didn't do anything. I stayed in my dorm all day and relaxed. I was so tired from the past two days that a day off was really great. 

JessLynn

We didn't drop that thun thun thun.

This morning we got up early and hopped on a mini coach bus. We were headed for Stonehenge and Salisbury. It was a trip for only the Lawrence students so it was sure to be fun. We drove for a while before arriving at Stonehenge. We could see it as we approached on the road and then drove around to the visitor's center. We got our tickets and hopped on a bus to the actual site. It was incredibly cool and almost impossible to grasp how old it actually was. The site was constructed over 5000 years ago, which I still can't fully comprehend.

Jill and Me

Mitch and Me

One of the 42 pictures Jill accidentally took while trying to take a picture of me and Mitch.

I have had two songs stuck in my head all day. This is one of them thanks to a Miss Portia Turner. (Unfortunately, the actual movie scene isn't on youtube.) (The second was thanks to Dyllan. He managed to make Don't Drop That Thun Thun our anthem for the day and sang it every chance he got.)

After spending some time at Stonehenge, we went into the gift shop and cafe. Then it was back on the bus. Our next stop was Salisbury. We went right to the Salisbury Cathedral. It was absolutely beautiful. There were some pretty cool artifacts in the cathedral also. We were able to see one of the oldest clocks in existence and a copy of the Magna Carta. 

World's oldest clock.

A fountain in the middle of the cathedral.

After the cathedral we had 3 hours before we needed to get back on the bus so a few of us went to a pub and chilled for a while. We found a pub that had been originally opened in 1411 and was called The Old Ale House. It was a really nice place and there were only a few other people there. Mallory, Ben, Jill, Dan, Dyllan, and I ate some food and had a drink. I love pubs because we sat there for 3 hours and no one cared. Once you have a table, it's your until you decide to leave. We had an amazing discussion about religion, politics and the misspelled sign by the bar. It was so great to just relax and have a nice time with everybody. We walked back to the bus and met up with everyone else and headed home. Once I got home I put on pjs, climbed in to bed and tried to get warm after being in the rain and cold all day.

JessLynn

Secret Adventure

Today Becky and I went on a mini secret adventure. We took the tube and walked a bit. When we were finished, we walked down King's Road looking for some lunch. First, we passed a million "World's End" places. We stopped at this little Italian place where we had the weirdest experience ever. The restaurant itself was odd. It had a row of booths and then another row built on top of them. It was so bizarre but really funky and cool. The waitress was really nice and we ordered really simple food so it was no big deal. Halfway through our meal, the manager got a phone call and started pacing up and down the length of the restaurant. He was yelling and we were super uncomfortable. We were also the only customers for a while. We finished eating and paid for our food. On our way out, the manager completely changed his tone and was super sweet with us. It was so weird.

The inside of the restaurant.

We then caught the bus and headed to class. After class, we went to the High Street to browse and do some shopping. We weren't there for very long before we headed back to Metrogate. This evening I've been chilling and not doing much. Tomorrow we go to Stonehenge and I am so excited!! Also, I am actually posting this blog on the right day so that means I'm all caught up from being in Scotland! yay!!

JessLynn

Floor Chats

Today was pretty boring. I had class during the day and in the evening I just chilled at home and relaxed. I really needed a day of nothing. My last mid term paper was due today so I have been furiously working and finishing them. So it was nice to sit and not think for a while. Towards the end of the evening, Jill, Becky, Mitch and I sat on the floor in the hallway and talked. It was really nice to hang out with everyone. It reminded me of being back at Lawrence because that is a pretty regular pastime for me there. We have a lot of floor chats. I can't wait to get back and see everyone but at the same time I really don't want to leave this amazing city. I'm going to be a wreck when I fly home.

JessLynn

Regents Park

Today Jill and I were going to watch the changing of the guard. It turns out they weren't changing on today. They only do it every other day. So, we made plans to go to the zoo. We walked to the tube and it took an hour to get there. With walking to the zoo, we didn't have enough time to actually see everything at the zoo. So instead we went to Regents Park. We walked around for a bit and then headed to class. Class was nice and pretty uneventful. Our class for the evening was cancelled so Jill and I went to the library to do some work. We worked for a bit and then headed back toward Metrogate. On our way back we stopped at Byron Burger for food. It was one of the best burgers I have ever eaten in my entire life. I finished all of my homework and I'm headed right to bed.

JessLynn

My Last 9 Posts Have All Stated With "S"

This one starts with "T" instead. Today was.....interesting. This morning I had Politics and this afternoon I had Theatre. Both were good, same as usual. Then this evening, Brian our Theatre professor, invited us to his class before we went and saw the sow for that evening. It was his last meeting with another one of his classes so they were watching Macbeth and just hanging out. We were offered a glass of wine (Jill and I learned we do not like wine) and had a good time. Then when his class was over we only had a little bit of time to make our way to the theatre for our show. We walked very quickly to the Underground station and just made our train. We had to switch trains and the 9 of us ran through the stations so we wouldn't miss our chance. It was absolutely hilarious and we all jumped on laughing and out of breathe. Once we were on the rain we realized it was delayed and we wouldn't be leaving for another 5 minutes but it was an adventure anyway. We quickly walked to the theatre and made it there with plenty of time. The show we saw was one of the most peculiar things I have ever seen. It was a drag show about the conflict in Israel. Yes, you read that correctly. The trailer is HERE in case anyone is interested. After the show we caught the bus and headed home. Driving through the city at the top of a double decker bus is so cool. I still can't get over how beautiful this place is.


JessLynn