Weekend Update: September 21
Weekend Update: September 21
Cheers to you if you’re still reading my blog. It is very hard, yet again, to realize that a whole week has passed. I keep blinking and then it’s the weekend. I guess time flies when you’re having fun! Also I got sick this week, so when I wasn’t in class I was passed out in my flat. Also fun fact/story of the week:
There is a weird trend here for adults, like grown-up people with children, to ride razor scooters through the streets of London. I AM SO PUZZLED I DON’T UNDERSTAND THIS. This is not suburban America in the 2000s, London. Please get it together.
Monday:
We had the privilege of being invited to a reception for the students of the London Centre at a picturesque flat in West London. It was essentially an excuse to dress up and get free food. The owner of the flat casually had three original works by Matisse hanging in his living room, along with a Grecian horse from 8000 BC, an ancient Indian sword, and a few other casual collectables. So needless to say, this was a fun way to kick off a week full of CRAZY work and and assignments.
Tuesday:
We had a master class with an talent agent today which caused me to get a stress-induced headache as I was forced to think about the future and employment (all terrifying things). This proved to me once again, that this study abroad program and career path is not for the faint of heart, I’m at the beginning of a marathon, not a sprint, and it is always important to keep that perspective.
Wednesday:
Even having already seen most of this part of London, we had a guided walk from Covent Garden to the West End of London to see the various play houses and hear a little about their history. Our walk went all the way to the end of Shaftesbury Avenue (where Harry, Ron, and Hermione apparate to in HP and the Deathly Hallows Pt. 2) to get a glimpse at the Victorian-style theatres that are here. BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, we found a Five Guys Burgers and Fries, and even though we felt sicker than dogs, we got us some cheeseburgers. I almost wept as I tasted my burger, as it was a reminder of home. If only I could find a Chick-fil-a in London…
Thursday:
After class today, I went to an urgent care clinic to get my ears looked at because I was afraid that I had an ear infection. I was thinking that I would get slapped with a £50 bill at the end, but I was oddly sent away having paid nothing. Good news is that I didn’t have to pay anything because of socialized medicine in this country and only wasted about an hour of my life waiting. Bad news is that they literally don’t write prescriptions in this country, so if I did ever get an ear infection (as I do frequently) I’m probably sunk. Oh well, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there.
Friday:
We had a short day today as we went to go see The Comedy of Errors at the Globe theatre! This is a reconstructed version of the original Globe theatre that was around in the Elizabethan and Jacobean periods when Shakespeare was writing. It was constructed in this century, and is the only building in London with a thatched roof. Although it’s not the same exact size and it’s in a bit of a different location, it still provides audiences with great theatrical experiences. For the cheap price of 5 quid you can stand for 2 hours as a groundling and watch a show as a peasant would have done. It’s kind of fun because you get to lean on the stage. If you feel so inclined though, you can pay for a seat. It is an outside theatre and it rained that day, but David and I were literally the ONLY 2 PEOPLE in the theatre to not get wet because were positioned so close to the stage that we were protected by the over-hang #blessed. Seeing a show here was a great experience, and I’m sad that I probably won’t be able to go there again while I’m here, as the season is almost over. After the show, David, Declan, Katelyn, and I went to get a pint at Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese, one of London’s oldest pubs. It was built in 1538 and then rebuilt after the fire of London in 1666 where it has been since. This was followed by a night of watching Netlfix because we were all too sick to be out in public.
Saturday:
David and I got up to go to French’s, a huge store full of literally every play ever written to find plays for our audition class. I had to travel all the way to London to be told by my audition teacher that I need to get familiar with more American playwrights. So after getting our new plays, David and I went to go see a play adaptation of Jeeves and Wooster, two stereotypically English characters (a bumbling rich man and his clever servant) that have appeared in short stories and television throughout the past 60 years or so. We got a special deal on tickets, they were only £10 because the show was closing that day. Thank God it was because to be honest it was not great. We were however asked not once BUT TWICE for directions, so clearly we have started blending in and look more comfortable in our surroundings. After being a couple of old geezers at a Saturday matinee, we continued this trend back to the flats where we watched Mulan with our friends, because again, everyone is sick.
Sunday:
We went on a brief run today that was interrupted many times by me huffing and puffing as I am almost done being sick, but not quite. We have SHEDLOADS of work as the Brits say, so we have locked ourselves up in a coffee shop where we are obviously being distracted by blogging and Facebook. This is a busy week as we are going to see a show on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. I am very excited to be going to see Mats Ek’s version of Juliet and Romeo at the historic Sadler’s Wells theatre on Wednesday. It should be a fun/busy/productive/memorable week.
Until next weekend, over and out, y’all.
