Medieval England – There and Back Again

Our Time in London

One of the places I was most excited for during this trip was London. I was very curious to visit and compare what I saw to New York City. And while there is some things that are very similar because of modernization London has such an interesting blend of old versus new architecture while New York City is all modern. Also the transportation in London is a lot easier and convenient to navigate than New York as well.

These pictures were taken of and in the Tower of London. It was built in 1066 by William the Conqueror to show the superiority of Normans over the British though not all of it was built during this time, it has been expanded a time passed. And it certainly is impressive to look at and walk in. Also this is where the Crown Jewels are located, but you are not allowed to take pictures of them and they are as impressive as they sound. After this a few of us went to food and then a play that is centered around the presidential election of 2024 that put Kamala Harris and Donald Trump against each other, and the majority of it was great with the actor of Donald Trump doing a top tier impersonation of him.

The next day we started with going to Westminster Abbey, and while walking there we got to see Big Ben. Westminster Abbey is a beautiful example of Romanesque style architecture and was built in 1060. It is absolutely massive and a person could spend hours inside admiring it. Out of all the places we went to in England this is up in my favorites because of how amazing it was. After this awesome visit we went to the Tate art museum, but I have no pictures showing the amazing artwork that was inside.

After the Tate the students planned our own excursion to the London Eye. It was an amazing experience and provides the people on it with a 360 degree view of London. It is most definitely one of the most memorable moments of the trip.

After a day spent in Canterbury we had our day in The Globe Theatre for a tour and to see Much Ado About Nothing. It was a great experience to hear about the history of the Globe and Shakespeare. And the play was amazingly done and very humorous. They even took people from the crowd and had them go up on stage. All in All the play was enjoyed by all of us.

Sadly all good things must come to an end. Our final day started with a trip to The British Museum. It is one of the most impressive museums I have ever seen. They had artifacts from all over the world and from all different time periods. Some examples are the Rosetta Stone, the Elgin Marbles, and the Discobolus. And this is only three of the thousands of items that they store in the museum. After a few hours in the museum we had a few hours before we all had our last hurrah at the Admiralty Restaurant. It was delicious, both my meal and my dessert. And then we went back to the hotel.

The trip overall is one I will never forget. And I would recommend it to anyone that is considering to go.

Much Ado at the Globe

Of course my first blog post is going to be about seeing Much Ado About Nothing at THE Globe theater. Seeing a play at the Globe is something that I’ve dreamed about since I was about seven or eight years old (thanks dad, for inducting me into the Shakespeare fandom at such a young age). This was my fifth time seeing Much Ado, and there was no other experience of seeing the play quite like this one. The ambiance, the rows of wooden benches (with the option to purchase a cushion if you were so fortunate), the sun beaming down through the open hatched roof, and the mob of people in the pit gathered in front of the stage as if it were a concert all felt like amazingly authentic details; I felt like, aside from the modern technology and such, I was seeing a play the way it would have been performed during Shakespeare’s time. It was a surreal experience and I couldn’t get enough of it. No matter where I looked in the theater, various characteristics popped out, from the replicated paintings around the box seats to the intricate golden-marble Romanesque columns framing the stage, every inch of the theater was planned out as to accurately represent how Shakespeare himself experienced it. All this being said, I can safely say that this version of Much Ado was one that I will forever remember; it was such a once-in-a-lifetime experience and I am still stunned that I saw a play here.

And what I better play to have seen than Much Ado. Definitely one of Shakespeare’s funniest plays, with characters that I have always loved (Beatrice, of course…no one can beat her fiery spirit), joining the audience in laughing at any of Dogberry’s rants, or at Benedick and Beatrice’s tiffs was harmonious. And the actors were phenomenal, as expected at a Globe production. For example, the one who played Claudio was honestly a highlight for me; Claudio usually drifts into the background of this play because I usually find him bland and a bit ridiculous (he just instantly believes Don John and disses Hero in front of her family, come on). However, this actor really brought Claudio to life. His performance really stuck out to me, but of course Beatrice and Benedick (and Dogberry) still stole the show. Benedick was probably my favorite character this production. He was ridiculous in the best way, I mean, hiding under a tree (a tiny tree, I might add), and thinking he was being so slick about it was hilarious. Simply the tone that the actor used added so much more to Benedick’s charisma and humor. I will say, witnessing the actors warm up was a bit unexpected, and I’m sure that those exercises somehow helped them execute their roles so well. I’d never seen anything like that before; they were having full volleyball matches while singing or doing yoga and belting vocal warmups simultaneously. It was sensory overload in the best way, and I loved seeing the before and after as the actors brought Shakespeare’s pages enthusiastically to life.

From reading the kid’s picture-book version of Much Ado to watching the animated cartoon version with my dad (where Don John was blue for some reason) to seeing it at the Globe, this really brought my Shakespeare experience full circle.

— Anna Bender

Our Time in York

One of the places on my bucket list to travel to during my life was England. So when I saw that there was a study abroad to England that would also count for credits toward my major I knew that I had to sign up. The entire trip was an amazing experience but some of the best moments that I experienced were in York. York has a rich history throughout all of England’s history. From the anglo-saxons to the Romans. Because of this history it had an appeal that was unique to it that no other place we traveled to had.

This picture was taken from the wall that surrounds parts of York. These walls are unique because they were built by the Romans to provide them protection from attackers. It is one of the last standing of its kind in England. We are walking along it to get to the York Minster church to receive a guided tour.

The two pictures above are from the York Minster Church. This combined with the surrounding buildings is a beautiful example in the change of architecture over time. We were given a guided tour of the church and it was absolutely beautiful. It is very old and because of that has a very different style of architecture than that of churches in the United States. On top of that the stained glass was one of a kind and all of it we saw in England was very unique.

After the tour we were done for the day and had the rest of the day to ourselves.

The next day we woke up bright and early and got ready for the day ahead, and what a day it was. We started by walking to the Jorvik Viking Centre and it was amazing. They had you get on a ride that guides you through what archaeologists have found and recreated of a viking settlement. The animatronics were all throughout the ride simulating tasks that viking people would have actually done in the past. But watch out the actions are not the only thing that the creators have simulated. They have also recreated the smell of the excavation site when it was discovered. And let me tell you that it does the job, it smells like one would guess it would… really bad. But it did provide us with a more authentic experience in throwing us into the past.

After this we got to visit Barley hall which is a reconstruction of what a medieval town house would look like. Sadly I did not take any pictures of it. After this excursion we had a few hours free until we had our final planned event for the day.

Finally after a day full of fun we had tea at Betty’s Tea Room. It was an amazing experience with especially since I love drinking tea. We had a great time with the various foods, desserts, and teas that we ordered. I especially loved the desert. I also had two pots of tea, one black blend and one mint blend.

Overall the time we spent in York was a blast and I I would definitely go back if given the chance!

…And in my eyes

My last blog post seemed to stroll further and further away from the academics of this trip with each paragraph that I wrote, so I will try and stick to the more educational features of this trip for this blog post, as this was something that I enjoyed equally as much (almost, anyway.)

And what better place to discuss academics than the lovely Cambridge. To stroll through this city of a campus just felt right to me, and I wish out of any place we were able to spend more time here. I was fascinated by just how grand it felt with the stories of prominent figures in history like Stephen Hawking and Isaac Newton that the University held, and yet within all of that glory I felt grounded and a part of it by hearing of the lore that certain parts of the city held, such as the bar/inn that must always have the upstairs window open no matter the circumstances, or hearing from our tour guide that one of the university buildings holds the original copy of Winnie the Pooh. I was also more than intrigued to hear that a Master’s degree takes all but one year to acquire over across the pond, and it definitely has me considering my options as that stage of my life looms a little closer with each moment.

I of course couldn’t mention Cambridge without at least mentioning one of my favorite moments of the trips, which was our punting trip that I allowed us to see much of the cities beauty from the relaxing position of sitting in a boat with friends at a slow, soothing pace. While our guide didn’t provide us with a ton of information like it seemed the other boat may have gotten; I didn’t mind one bit. I enjoyed being able to see everything and take it all in at my own leisure, as much of the structured parts of the trip is go, go, go, it was nice to stop and smell the roses for just a moment with some of the people I had now grown very fond of at this point.

Shifting cities, I couldn’t go two whole blog posts without bringing up The Globe. At one point on the trip I had made the argument that while we can see and hear about all of these different aspects of history and various time periods, but we will never know what it will be like to experience an authentic point of view from that moment in time. While I still believe this to be true, the Globe made me realize that all of which I just spewed is almost inconsequential. There is no need to focus on what we cannot achieve when what we can achieve is right in front of our very eyes. That I was able to take in the magnitude and emotions that arose from being in the Globe and seeing one of my favorite Shakespeare plays is more than enough, both in contributing to my understanding of literature and history and just in general. I once again have a lack of words that can describe what it felt like to be apart of that moment, in our own time, was just immeasurable, and it made it even better to be surrounded by people who felt the same exact way.

Playing Dress-Up in York

York was the city I was least excited about prior to this trip. However, it happened to be one of my favorites (despite the fact that a bird pooped on my head while being there.) York was absolutely beautiful and unlike any city, I have been to before. There were people singing in the streets, everyone was walking their dog, and overall the city radiated positive energy that was unmatched.

On the first day of York invited us to tour York Minster, which had the most beautiful stained glass windows, each of which told a story of its own. There was a lot of scaffolding being done on the cathedral, but it did not take away from its beauty. Although we saw a lot of cathedrals throughout our trip, York Minster is the one I remember the most.

On the second day in York, we went to the Jorvik Viking exhibit, which was definitely an experience to remember. To learn about the Vikings and their way of life is one thing, but to move around and see (and unfortunately smell) models of what life was actually like provided an entirely new perception for me. The experience of seeing the history behind the Vikings brought to light new ideas and also helped me reflect on my prior knowledge.

After our time at the Jorvik Viking exhibit, we headed over to Barley Hall, a reconstructed medieval townhouse. This, like the Viking exhibit, created the same type of scene where we got to see the history rather than read about it, inviting a new type of learning. I am starting to realize this as a theme for the entire trip: how one’s understanding of history and literary events change when you are standing in the setting yourself. Barley Hall was such a hidden gem, as we got to embrace ourselves in a small portion of the culture from this time period in our history. My favorite part of Barley Hall was dressing up in clothes inspired by the medieval period. I am always in for a game of dress-up, especially when it includes a long and flowy dress.

Later that same evening we went to Betty’s Tea Room, where I again got to dress up. There, we were able to choose from a selection of English evening teas and were served a selection of scones, mini sandwiches, and desserts. Although some of my classmates may disagree with me, I found everything to be absolutely delicious. I love trying different foods from other countries, and going to a tea room felt like I was living my princess dream. This was probably my favorite meal we did as an entire group throughout the whole trip.

Overall, York was definitely a city I will always remember. After our excellent academic tours, we were given time to ourselves to explore and enjoy this wonderful city. As this part of the trip was in the very beginning, this is where my friendships blossomed, and because of that, I will always hold a special place in my heart for York.

England is in my ears…

Ever since I was ten years old, I’ve had a longing to explore everything that England had to offer. This is in large part due to my ever-growing obsession with British musicians, starting with the Beatles and carrying on to Bowie, the Smiths, Harry Styles, all the way back to the Beatles again. I’d be lying if I said that being closer to this scene wasn’t a main motivation of mine when learning about the possibility of this study abroad trip. I of course got so much more out of it, but I’d be doing a disservice to myself to not indulge you in all the stuff that sparked my passion for this country in the first place.

Beginning in the city of Manchester, which I believe became incredibly underrated due to jet lag and only getting one full day there, we had a lovely little stop in the John Rylands Library. Prior to our visit, Dr. Insley had us think about what came to our minds when we thought about Manchester, and I’m still upset about not bringing up the Smiths and earning those brownie points with him, but regardless I was able to get a taste of the Smiths and more at this library. The pop culture section was more than likely not where I was supposed to spend the entirety of this visit, but I just couldn’t

help myself. The library was chock full of artifacts and articles regarding some of my favorite musical acts, memorabilia across the board, but the two coolest pieces in there came from Manchester’s own. One being a scroll of sorts in which you can see the genius of the band New Order unraveling as your eyes glide down the piece of paper. And the other, which was my personal favorite, was being able to see Johnny Marr’s guitar in the flesh, a guitar on which he wrote some of my favorite early Smiths’ songs (‘Accept Yourself’ and ‘Handsome Devil’ are great cuts off of Hatful of Hollow.)

The surplus of record stores over there was immaculate, and I would recommend that any music fan indulge themselves at least once, although not any more than that. If you do, you leave the country with 20 records that you have to stuff in your carry on because you don’t trust the airlines to take care of them in your suitcase and your left with insufferable back pain and a hold on your bank account because, much like dollars, pounds do not grow on trees (it was all worth it.) Not only was I able to see how much the people here cared about their music through the number of shops, but in the way the shops operated as well. Most record stores had to put out only the sleeves, and they give you the actual records after purchase as a result of preventing theft. One shop store owner said without doing it that way, they would have to have security guards patrolling every store. I also don’t take my record store

trips for granted as this was one of the few times I was able to strike conversations with locals, and I received plenty of tips regarding whatever city I was in as well as plenty of music recommendations that I would’ve never heard otherwise.

Perhaps the most gargantuan moment of it all for me was getting to cross Abbey Road, which if anyone in the future cares to visit, do not, I repeat, do not take the tube to the station called Abbey Road, it is 10 miles away from the actual road and you will be sad. But once we eventually got there, I mean to be in the presence of where some of my heroes stood and recorded some of the greatest music of all time was nothing short of surreal. Not only that but to see the people that were there from all over the world to bask in that glory as well, it was quite breathtaking, and I don’t think words can aptly describe the amount of emotion that I felt in that very moment, heels and toes touching the surface that is immortalized on my own record shelf and millions of others.

Paul McCartney walking across Abbey Road (2022 Colorized)

No matter where I went there was always something for me to engage in musically. Whether it be the woman’s gorgeous rendition of ‘Don’t Think Twice, it’s Alright’ (American I know) outside of the York Minster or the man I saw going absolutely ham on the keys in the tube station. There was so much not only to see in England, but to hear, and the only thing I can say I regret is not hearing more of it.

P.S. Happy birthday Sir Paul McCartney!

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