Settling In: or, How Scones and Scandalous Plays Helped Me Leave the Tourist Phase (Rhyme Unintended)

The long awaited second post has finally arrived along with a new plan of attack for this blog!! For some reason, I thought that I would have loads of time to create the perfect online collage of every memory that I make during my time abroad. This is simply not the case, and for good reason! Since my last post, I have been completely overwhelmed with incredible new experiences, sights, foods, conversations… perfect fodder for memories! After an entire week, however, there is so much information to convey that the task of creating a massive blog post is a little daunting. As this is the case, I am planning to post more often – let’s say every couple of days – with the compromise of making the posts shorter. This one, however, will likely be very, very, long. So buckle in.

When we last left our story, it was Friday evening of my first week in Oxford. That seems so long ago now! As it was the end of a sporadic few days of travel, settling in, scheduling classes, joining clubs, etc, Dr. Anderson and Dr. Snyder treated the MSU crew to dinner at a restaurant nestled right on the side of the Thames called The Folly. It was one of the first times on the trip that the entire group was in one place at the same time. Good food. Good conversation. Oh, and, watching the sun set over the Thames wasn’t bad either. But if there’s one thing I’m going to remember from that dinner, it was the sticky toffee pudding (no shame). Dr. Snyder insisted that I try this English favorite - a warm spice cake drizzled with toffee, buttery sauce and complimented with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Simply put, I don’t want to live in a country that doesn’t offer this in every supermarket.

The MSU crew :)

Ok, this wasn't actually my plate. It was gone before I could get a picture! But I thought this might help you appreciate the delicious goodness of this dessert.

On Saturday, I finally slept…and slept…and slept. It was a glorious thing, and when I woke up I FINALLY felt that my jet lag had been conquered. *Note: If you’re traveling internationally any time soon, don’t doubt the serious effects of jet lag. If you are staying in another country for several weeks, be cognizant of the kind of activities you schedule in the first few days. You may want to take it easy.* After a good night’s rest and an afternoon of Jane Eyre, I was feeling ready to take on Oxford and anything else England threw my way. Or so I thought…

Later that evening, Dr. Anderson and Dr. Snyder invited us to see one of the many plays that Oxford’s various acting troupes are performing this summer. Normally, the title of the play – ‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore – would have tipped me off about the content of the story line, but I was under the spell of being in another country and was just excited to be trying something new. You can imagine my surprise when I witnessed the play in full, an interesting tale about incest, murder and adultery conveyed to the audience with the help of much nudity and gore. Certainly not something that I ever imagined witnessing beside my professors, but this is another culture and a work written in another time. It certainly set the tone for our study of some of Shakespeare’s more violent works. 

A tame picture from the play

*Note: The professors did take us out for ice cream, secondhand bookstores, and a tour of the Jericho area afterwards so we could sleep without nightmares!*

Onto Sunday morning! A group of the MSU crew and our two professors woke up early to attend a service in the cathedral at Christ Church College. While I am not a religious person, I thought it unwise to waste the opportunity to view as many of Oxford’s beautiful churches and listen to as many of their renowned choirs as possible. I have to say, the cathedral on Christ Church’s campus is positively breathtaking. I was so in awe of the towering stained glass, the flawless harmony of the choir, the architecture and the holy relics. The pictures below were taken on a separate day from the service (and do no justice to the building itself!):

The stained glass was my favorite part! 

The floors were marked with several gravestones and monuments such as this one

I couldn't get over the color and detail

Look at that ceiling!

This is the main part of the church where I sat during the service

Many of the windows had Latin inscriptions that Alex and I had fun deciphering

The organ of the cathedral 

After the service, we attended a party held by the OSAP/WISC office in Trinity’s gorgeous garden. It was an excuse to wear sundresses and enjoy champagne and strawberries but also an opportunity to meet students who study at various Oxford colleges full time. We ended up meeting a few very nice (and intimidatingly intelligent!) students from New College who took us out to lunch and later escorted us on a walk around Christ Church’s meadow all the while engaging us in discussion about religion, politics, philosophy, and much more. I came away feeling very enlightened and very lucky to be in a place where academia is entirely inescapable.

Around the meadow

The path alongside the meadow

Christ Church in the distance across the meadow

Monday was the day of new adventures in food. Lien and I woke up early to enjoy our first official “English Breakfast” which we had been hearing so much about. I should have taken a picture of Lien’s plate which more closely resembled the traditional style of the dish, but I got the vegetarian version and was very pleased. 

My English Breakfast

The cafe where we ate

We were on a mission to find all the books she needed for her Oxford tutorial (because I, sadly, still hadn’t heard anything about mine). So we started at Christ Church’s library, drifted on to the Bodleian (which was closed because of a holiday in the UK called “Spring Bank Holiday”…curious!), and eventually wandered into a little pub for warmth. And that’s where it all began. I drank a hot cup of Earl Grey tea with milk and sugar after trudging through the drizzly streets for hours… and it was pure bliss. Since then, I’ve been dying to have this tea multiples times a day and at meal times. (Am I starting to sound British yet?) We finished off our food adventures with a stop at a local café later in the afternoon for scones with clotted cream and jam. Hey, don’t knock the cream until you try it!   

Proof that it was a cold and drizzly day. But Christ Church is breathtaking nonetheless.

My first scones in England. Clotted cream on the left! (It's not actually that yellow hue in real life)

On Tuesday we returned to our Shakespeare class, and panic started to set in after not hearing back from my tutor or receiving any information about my Oxford tutorial. All of the other MSU students had already met with their tutors and were busy with work for their first paper! Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do except wait… and wait…and wait. To help myself feel somewhat productive, I spent the afternoon planning ahead for my first Shakespeare paper and reading Jane Eyre in the comfort of the Radcliffe Camera, a circular library near the center of Oxford with ridiculously high security measures. To my relief, I received an email from my tutor later that evening specifying the time and date of our first meeting. This still puts me several days behind all of the other students, but I was happy to do away with the uncertainty of waiting at last.

Radcliffe Camera Library. A lovely place to read, wouldn't you say?

I thought an aerial shot might help you get your bearings. See the circular building there in central Oxford? Also, do you see how many colleges there are in very close proximity?

Wednesday marked my favorite day of my adventures abroad thus far: our trip to London and to the Globe Theatre. All of the WISC students got up at the crack of dawn (or so it seemed!) and huddled together on a drizzly corner of Oxford awaiting our *double-decker* bus to London. The trip, which normally would have taken an hour, turned into a three hour affair due to extreme traffic both in and outside of the city. But at least it gave me an opportunity to survey the gorgeous British landscape. In my sleep-deprived state, I half expected to see Catherine and Heathcliff running out from the hedgerows. When we got to London we had only a short time to look at major historic landmarks (the London Eye, Westminster Abbey, Big Ben) before we were expected at the Globe Theatre. Don’t worry though! We’re already making plans to go back for more exploration in the coming weeks! 

Bulldawgs abroad in London!

Art outside of Hyde Park

The London Eye

Big Ben

Seen in Hyde Park

British Flag above Westminster Abbey

Greater London

When we found the Globe, it was another one of those special moments for me. Here I was, an English major, studying Shakespeare and about to view one of his plays in the city where he wrote and first performed it and in a reconstruction of the very stage it was written to be performed on. Our first tickets were for Shakespeare’s Antony and Cleopatra. Normally, his historic plays are not favorites of mine, but how could I not be mesmerized in this theater with Egyptian incense burning all around and pigeons periodically flying in and out of the building? I felt transported back hundreds of years. 

The Globe Theatre

Inside the Globe

Later that evening, we returned to the Globe to see the play that I was most excited about: one of Shakespeare’s earliest, Titus Andronicus. For this play, I decided to be a “groundling” which means I chose to stand in front of the stage for the three hour duration of the play so that I could have an unobstructed view of the performance. Although my feet felt the pain later on, being down in the pit was a terrific experience. The actors ran through the crowds at times and sprayed water onto unsuspecting audience members. The play itself was all I could have asked for, a delicate balance of action, romance, humor, and, of course, special creative flare that altered the way I had previously understood and applied literary theory to the play. Can’t I just enjoy the play for its entertainment value, you ask? IMPOSSIBLE.

So here’s the interesting information I alluded to earlier on my social media pages: Yes, several audience members did faint, vomit, and leave the theatre during the performance of Titus Andronicus. Why? The play was highly graphic and dealt with some really sensitive issues. At its most disturbing moment, the audience witnessed a young woman only moments after her brutal rape and mutilation. Without hands and without a tongue, she stood on stage crying, convulsing, and covered in blood. (See the image above on the right). It was very realistic, very disturbing, and, understandably, too much for some members of the audience.

Exhausted from a day in London, we finished the evening with a walk across the Thames on a bridge lined with colorful lights and got a breathtaking view of the city at night. I cannot believe that people are fortunate enough to live in this place and to experience this culture on a daily basis. I felt lucky for every moment I had there.

London at night, St. Paul's Cathedral in the distance

London at night

Bridge across the Thames

Thursday brought more exploration of Christ Church college, my first experiences eating fresh English bread and butter (which I ate an entire loaf of by myself… don’t judge) and… was this the first time I tried European candy? Don’t believe what people say. It’s delicious and sweet, and you should try the strawberry-shaped gummies if you ever get the chance. I finally attended a dinner at Christ Church (which you have to RSVP for) with Lien and Alex. We tried to contain our foreign-ness, but they serve you in courses, dismiss entire tables at a time, and, did I mention that they seem to only eat with the back of their fork? I have yet to master this talent.       

This may be an ordinary tree or it may be the white tree of Gondor... just saying

A side view of the cathedral

Faculty rooms and offices at Christ Church

Christ Church library

Pathway to Christ Church's garden

Then the day finally came. Friday: my first meeting with my Oxford professor. I woke up incredibly anxious, knowing that in a few hours I would be facing a brilliant mind in my field of study. Could I ever meet Oxford standards? Would I like her? I knew this experience could make or break my stay here. Luckily, after a very long walk to her office in St. Anne’s college, I met briefly with Dr. Johnston who proved very kind and enthusiastic about the Bronte sisters. She is even letting me write my first paper on Wuthering Heights (my personal favorite!) and giving me creative freedom to choose my own topic. I think this is the beginning of a beautiful relationship!

When I got out of my tutorial, a mile away from the center of Oxford and even farther from my cottage, it occurred to me that, for the first time since my arrival, I was alone in the city. I felt oddly brave and adventurous and almost as if, in my black flats and dark peacoat, I was separated from the glaring American-ness that seemed to draw so much attention to me during my first week. Even the guards at Christ Church, who had before hassled me each time I tried to enter the college, were starting to recognize me and wave when I walked by! No longer self-conscious about fitting in, I spent the afternoon collecting books for my tutorial (in Blackwell’s, one of the largest bookstores in the world, might I add!), picking out a few postcards from a street vender, walking through a small museum, and having a cup of tea at a little café.

Blackwell's bottom floor. That's right, the bottom floor has separate floors.

 To help convey the kind of effect this particular afternoon had on me, I’ll note that, when you walk through the streets of Oxford, you see artists working in various mediums and talented musicians singing just because they love to do it. You smell fresh bread and pastries cooking in the little shops and people of every race and religion conversing in different languages and accents. I told a friend that being here and taking in all of the wonders around you feels a little like falling in love in the beginning when everything is new and exciting and perfect.     

We spent this morning at the Summer Eights, a huge rowing competition between all of Oxford’s colleges. There’s tailgating, chest painting, all the works – it reminded me of an MSU football game! Because I’m a member of Christ Church College, I got to sit on the rooftop of the Christ Church boat house to watch the proceedings. It was fun to be surrounded by college students just like us and to root for *our* team. I think we all finally felt a part of something here in Oxford.

The boats aren't racing in the traditional sense of the word. They only try to "bump" the boat in front to move up in rank.

The course of the races

Me, Jamie and Sally on top of the Christ Church boat house

The revelry!

Unfortunately, I can’t spend every day basking in Oxford’s beauty or attending sports events while I’m here. I have work to do, and I think the amount of that responsibility just hit me today. My second week was exhaustingly exciting! And there’s so much left for me to see and do here. For now, I feel the weight of school work looming over me, but I want to be careful not to let it take over the whole experience. Four weeks; seven papers; one group project; a million new experiences. I got this.