Christie's Away!

The End!

2008-05-18T19:31:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone, I hope your weeks are going well. I have now been back in North Carolina for a little more than a week, and it's nice to be home. I have a bunch of random pictures from London that I still need to share, so here is the link:

London Pictures #4

I had a great semester, I hope you did too! Thanks for checking my blog and maybe I'll have more adventures to share with you soon!

London and Scotland

2008-04-26T15:30:00.000-07:00

Hi everyone--
Here are a bunch of pictures that I've taken in past couple months. The first group is from London since mid-March. The weather is really starting to warm up, so there are some good pictures of spring in the park and around the city. Please ask if you have any questions!

London Pictures #3

AND here are all my pictures from Scotland last weekend! I went to Edinburgh and the highlands with my friend Joe (the trip was supposed to include our friend Shannon, but she had to back out last minute due to a medical problem--she's fine now!) The trip was great and we had a lot of fun--take a look!

Scotland Pictures

Note: I took a lot of pictures over the weekend in the highlands, and I just decided to go ahead and share most of them with you. There's a lot, but they're great!

Italy, finally!

2008-04-19T23:46:00.000-07:00

Hello everyone! Dell sent me some repair discs over the weekend and one of my friends helped me get my computer up and running. So, this post is coming to you from my very own laptop :)

My friend and I went to Scotland for the past couple days--we had a great time, and I'll post pictures of the highlands as soon as I can!!

Here are the long-awaited spring break pictures. I still have a lot of pictures from around London and the movie premiere to share with you, but those might have to wait for a few days. I'm sorry it's taken so long, and the explanations aren't very detailed, so please leave me a comment if you have any questions about the trip! These pictures are from Rome, Florence, and Venice the week after Easter.

Enjoy!

Italy Pictures!

p.s. If there aren't pictures of something (i.e. the catacombs, Sistine Chapel), it's because cameras were not permitted.

I'm Sorry!

2008-04-08T13:02:00.000-07:00

I'm so sorry for the delay in pictures and updates. I'm still waiting for the discs needed to repair my computer, but I'll be posting here again as soon as the problem is solved!

Just a few things that have been going on in the last week:
*Today I went to Leicester Square to stand by the red carpet for the London premiere of the film Leatherheads. My friends and I were able to get pretty close (within 3 feet) of George Clooney and take some good pictures, and Renee Zellweger was also there interacting with the fans. It was an exciting experience! Pictures to come!

*A couple of friends and I went to Westminster Abbey last Saturday and took a tour to learn some of the history and see the tombs and memorials of famous people. We stood beside the coffins of monarchs (Queen Elizabeth 1 and her sister Mary Queen of Scots, Edward the Confessor, and Edward the Longshanks Braveheart>); scientists (Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, William Rutherford), and literary/artistic geniuses (Geoffrey Chaucer, Handel, and Charles Dickens). Another tomb I was able to see belonged to William Wilberforce--those of you who have seen the film Amazing Grace will know to whom I am referring! The Abbey was beautiful and I really enjoyed the morning. Later we ate lunch and walked around Covent Garden and the market for a while.

*On Sunday (my dad's birthday!) a friend and I went out in the wind and snow (!) to attend a morning service at St. Paul's Cathedral. The service was very beautiful and extremely formal. Almost the whole thing was sung by the English Baroque Choir, except for the scripture messages. It was a great experience, but we later went to our regular church for more participant-friendly worship.

*Yesterday I met up with my good friend Sierra who is also studying in London this semester. We had lunch at a pub and later walked through Regent's park to see the beautiful rose gardens, pond, and hundreds of ducks and pigeons.

It's nice to be back from Spring Break, and I'm having a great week so far. I hope you're doing the same!

Spring Break

2008-03-30T11:58:00.000-07:00

My fellow travellers and I safely arrived at our flats in London around 4am this morning. I am very exhausted and a little sunburned, but very satisfied with how spring break went. We were able to see a lot in each city and we didn't have too much trouble with the transportation or accommodation. It was a great experience in planning, traveling alone, and making the most of our time. I am not able to post pictures yet, but as soon as my computer is fixed, I will go into much more detail as well as provide pictures of the trip. I hope all of you have a blessed week!

Happy Easter!

2008-03-22T21:40:00.000-07:00

Wow! It's been an embarassingly long time since my last post, so I apologize to all of you. Everything is going very well here, and I've been able to keep busy with school projects and doing things around the city. Unfortunately, my computer crashed a couple of days ago, but my computer-savvy friends tell me that it's nothing that cannot be fixed. I hope to have that taken care of soon! Don't worry, there is a desktop in each flat, so I am still able to email and work on papers for school. What I won't be able to do, however, is post pictures of spring break here until the problem is solved. I am leaving today for Italy with three of my friends and we'll get back late Saturday night. We're going to be able to visit Rome, Florence, and Venice and I am very excited!

I hope everyone has a blessed Easter and a wonderful week ahead of you! I love and miss you; thanks for all the prayers!

Brighton and Oxford

2008-03-08T16:08:00.000-08:00

I'm sorry about the long week between posts (for those of you who check regularly). It's been a really good, busy week. I had a great day at Winton Primary school last Monday, and the teacher is giving me a lot to do with the students. I saw the musical 'Wicked' on Monday night for my theater class, and it was phenomenal! Classes are going well, too.

Last weekend (March 1) was a trip to Brighton through the international student house. It was a lot of fun, especially since it's on the beach. Today (March 8) I traveled to Oxford with my art history class, and it was a really great trip, as well. Here are some pictures (Oxford first, then Brighton):

Brighton and Oxford Pictures

Real Worship

2008-03-02T16:08:00.000-08:00

I have some thoughts that don’t really have anything to do with my experiences here in London, but I guess that’s the overall purpose of a blog, right?

The past few days I’ve had a bit of a cold—nothing serious, just a sore throat and a cough. My cold has made my talking voice low and scratchy and my singing voice is incoherent and almost an octave lower. Worship in church today was an interesting experience, but I had a great revelation through the songs and prayer: God doesn’t need my voice to tell Him that He is great. He wants me to worship Him with all I have (little that I have), but if no one on earth praises Him, the rocks will cry out because of His amazing love and power. My normal voice is no different from my sickly, rough tone if I am worshipping with the same spirit. Tonight’s experience also taught me not to listen to myself so much when I am praising God; am I praising myself, or praising Him? Worship is for telling God how great He is and for thanking Him for all He has done, not for a personal faith experience. He often blesses me during worship, but I need to make sure that it’s not the reason I lift my voice. Focusing on this purpose clears away all the other distractions during worship, such as singing for myself and worrying about what others think.

These are just a few things I thought about today, so thanks for allowing me to share with you.
I hope you all had a blessed weekend, and I’ll be posting soon about what has been going on around here, hopefully with a new set of pictures after next weekend. Have a great week!

Winton Primary School

2008-02-27T09:16:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone! I'm having a great week, and I hope you're doing the same! Monday was my first day in my education practicum here in London. I have been placed at Winton Primary School, in the Emerald room for third and fourth years. My cooperating teacher is very nice, and she's actually an American from Florida. She graduated from college, moved over here, met an Englishman, and is now pregnant with five years of teaching behind her! The class is extremely diverse, and I had so much fun learning to pronounce each person's name. There is a lot of middle eastern influence in the school, and many religions are represented in the student body. Through our education seminar, we (teaching fellows) have been learning about how the UK curriculum is different from the typical US curriculum, and mandatory religious education in English schools is definitely one of these differences. I'm excited to observe and get to know all my students and interact with them for at least five more full school days.

Please don't hesitate to ask any questions about what I'm going to be doing at Winton, and please visit their website www.wintonprimaryschool.com.

This week I have also become a member of the Westminster Libraries, and I have my own library card and everything. After working in a library for a full year and a half, it was fun to go to one here, and I plan on visiting it often!

I hope everyone has a great end to their week, and I will be posting again soon!

More Pictures!

2008-02-23T11:48:00.000-08:00

Here is the third installment of pictures. It's a random bunch of things that I've been doing the past two weeks, and there a few of the inside of my flat. I really hope the link works this time!

London Pictures #2

2008-02-21T16:42:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone, I hope you all have had a great week! It's been a good one for me, and I am still very much enjoying my classes. Yesterday my art class visited an area of the National Gallery, and our teacher knows an incredible amount about early Christian art. I am quite sure that she is a Christian, and it's great to have an art professor who recognizes and discusses the countless spiritual allusions represented in ancient art.

Today I journeyed from my flat to the British Museum. It was about an hour walk through crowded and noisy streets, but it was exciting to find something on my own and go on my first adventure around the city. I walked around the museum for a while for a class project, and then spent a little time in the National Gallery for another class assignment. It was a really great afternoon, out by myself. Tomorrow a group of us are going to the Tower of London, and a close friend is celebrating her birthday weekend with Phantom of the Opera, and I think I will be going with her! I'm looking forward to this weekend, and I hope you all have a great one, too!

Weekend Update

2008-02-16T14:08:00.000-08:00

Hello everyone, I hope you all had a great Valentine's day and are having a great weekend. Just a brief update on my activities this week. All my classes are great, and our group is coming up with plenty to do around the city. Yesterday, a friend and I walked around Picadilly Circus for some shopping and a few of us saw Les Miserables last night. It's probably one of the coolest things I've been able to do yet. Today some friends and I explored a couple of the markets around the city, and tomorrow we're going to visit Harrod's and go back to Holy Trinity Brompton for church. I'm still having a great time and I appreciate your thoughts and prayers!

Packages

2008-02-13T08:53:00.000-08:00

Yet another post...but this one is important. If any of you are interested in sending a package (under no obligation), it must be marked "used goods" so it won't be opened or confiscated. I'm not exactly sure the reason for this, but please keeep this in mind! Thanks!

Stonehenge, Bath, and Classes

2008-02-12T13:29:00.000-08:00

Okay! Here are the pictures for Stonehenge and Bath! Let me know if you ever have trouble with these links or if you have questions about any of the pictures.

Stonehenge and Bath Pictures

I started classes today and I'm very excited about the opportunities and professors that I have. My first is a global studies course with a professor from Elon. We are studying identity through cultures and the class in groups will do a project about a people group in London. My second class today was a theater course in which we will see plays almost every Monday night and come in to discuss them on Tuesdays in class. We are going to see plays like Wicked, Much Ado About Nothing, and Speed the Plow (with Kevin Spacey and Jeff Goldblum). I will have my third class tomorrow; it's similar to the theater one except we will be learning about various art works and visit them in galleries around the city. I am very excited that I have these courses available to me!

I hope everyone is doing well back in the United States. Please feel free to get in touch with me!

Pictures!!

2008-02-11T08:45:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I was finally able to upload some pictures, but I hope to have some more sometime soon. Tomorrow is the first day of classes, and I've had a great time site-seeing so far. This morning, I went to a French Impressionist museum with a few friends, and I went to a student travel agent this afternoon! Yesterday was Chinese New Year, and a big group of us went to the parade and festivities on Trafalgar Square.

A few friends and I also found a great church that was recommended to us called Holy Trinity Brompton. If any of you have ever heard of the Alpha Course, the creator Nicky Gumbel is the head vicar there. The worship was amazing, and it was indescribable to be standing in the cathedral-like building singing modern (and familiar!) worhip songs with people from London and around the world.

Here is the first group of pictures, and I also have an album from our Stonehenge and Bath trip that I will post soon. I hope this link works for all of you!

London Pictures #1

It's Going Well!

2008-02-08T09:25:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, I'm sorry about the delay of pictures and details, but I had a technology malfunction and cannot transfer pictures until it is resolved. I promise that I'm taking pictures, and I will hopefully be able to upload them soon.

The neighborhood is very nice and quiet, and the buildings are beautiful. The flat is tiny, but comfortable, and all my flatmates and I were good friends even before the trip. There is a grocery store about 2 minutes in one direction, and a tube stop and post office just as close in the other direction (and there are pubs in every direction!). This week we've done most of the tourist-y things, and tomorrow is a trip into the countryside to see Stonehenge and the city of Bath.

I am having a great time here, and I hope everyone at home is enjoying your very fine weather! It's been nice here, too!

Please let me know if you have any questions that you want me to answer, and please feel free to email me at csmith42@elon.edu!

I'm here!

2008-02-05T04:32:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! Our plane safely landed at about 7am this morning, London time (at 2am for you all on the east coast) and we arrived at the flats at about 10 or 10:30am. I am pretty tired, but really excited to be here! More to come on my neighborhood and daily schedule...

Christie's Away!

2008-01-19T15:19:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone--thanks for visiting my page!! I'm leaving for London soon, and this seems like a good way to keep in touch with you all. Please feel free to email or instant message me anytime, and here are my addresses while I'm there, if you would like to send me mail:

(Letters--6 to 10 days)

29 Clifton Gardens

Little Venice

LONDON W9 1AR

(Packages--2 to 4 weeks)

Elon University Program

22 Bloomsbury Square

LONDON WC1A 2NS

I'm leaving on February 4th, so I hope to see you before I go!

Love, Christie