V&A/Stratford/Warwick/Oxford

So the Internet has been really naughty lately and won’t work for me!  But I have a lot to catch up on over the last couple of days.  On Tuesday after class Sarah and I wanted to take advantage of the free couple of hours before dinner.  Instead of taking the tube we walked through Kensington Gardens to the Victoria and Albert museum.  This is my new favorite museum because there is so much to see there.  In the time we had we only got through two rooms and a hallway.  We saw Raphaelite paintings and awesome stained glass windows.

On Wednesday we left for our first overnight trip.  First we visited and walked around Chipping Campden, which is this adorable little village.  After that we visited Anne Hathaway’s (Shakespeare’s wife, not the actress) house, Shakespeare’s grave, and Shakespeare’s birthplace.  I got dad a souvenir at his birthplace, which I think he’ll appreciate but I haven’t sent it yet so I can’t say what it is.  I can tell you though that only our family will get a chuckle out of it.  My friends were really confused as to why I was buying this something for dad but it’s a family joke.  So dad, get excited.

Anne Hathaway's Cottage

Shakespeare's grave in the Trinity Church

Shakespeare's birthplace 

Stratford-Upon-Avon 

That night we went to the Taming of the Shrew performed by the Royal Shakespeare Company.  I have mixed feelings about this play.  Parts of it were really funny and other parts were just unnecessary.  After a long day I finally got to crash at our bed and breakfast.  It was so nice to be somewhere where I don’t have to share a house with 45 other people.  The traditional English breakfast that we were fed in the morning was also really good.  The breakfast consisted of an egg, some Canadian bacon, tomato and mushroom (which I opted out of), and baked beans.  The baked beans were surprisingly good with the breakfast.

The second day we went to Warwick and Oxford.  Warwick is this castle that Madame Tussauds bought a while back and so it has kind of been Disney-fied. Seeing wax figures everywhere was interesting but it was cool to see what the castle would have looked like with real people in it.  From the top of on of the walls I saw my first British grass tennis courts.  It made me want to play tennis soooooooooo bad.  I’ve played on every type of court except grass so it looked really inviting.  After Warwick we stopped and toured Oxford.  It was bone-chilling cold and of course I forgot to pack my leggings even though I brought like 6 to London.  I was less impressed with Oxford than I thought I would be.  The buildings were pretty and all but because there are 30 some odd colleges there it was hard to see all the cool stuff.  Our tour guide did lead us to two Harry Potter film spots though.  We first visited the outside of the library and hospital wing and then the courtyard where Cedric Diggory sits in the tree in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

The real waxy Queen Elizabeth

Just hangin' out with King Henry, his wives, and the Mason girls

Britain's version of Candid Camera

Grass tennis courts 

Warwick Castle

The very spot where Mad-Eye-Moody turns Malfoy into a ferret in
HP and the Goblet of Fire

Me, Becca, and Ashley

The Harry Potter hospital wing and library 

We are definitely not in Provo anymore 

Courtyard in HP 4

After we finished the tour we had about an hour and a half to tour the town.  We walked around a cute inside market, passed the first Ben’s Cookies, and ended at the store designed for tourists who want a sweatshirt.  I bought my first large purchase: an Oxford England tee-shirt that cost £5.

Today after 105%ing my London Walks final Cami and I spent the day shopping.  Most of my purchases came from Primark.  The most important being Kate Middleton’s engagement ring.  That’s right; Cami and I both bought one for dirt-cheap.  The good news is I saved my future fiancé £28,000.  The bad news is now I have to get someone to give me the ring.