York

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Working from a list of general experiences is my preferred way to travel.  Things like eating in a pub, visting a cathedral for example.  This allows for flexibility, which is key when traveling, as I found out last weekend.  This theory relies on the assumption that the same experience can be found in many different places.  One of the troubles with this is the fact that you need a general knowledge of the area to be able to substitute places on the fly.  Occasionally something is must see and is only in one place (eating at a certain pub, or seeing your favorite band in concert).  Having flexibility allows me to be happier at the end of a trip, knowing I saw and did all the activities I wanted, even if they weren’t at the places I thought they’d be.  

York is how I naively expected all European cities to be, narrow roads, busy streets, small shops, and many historical buildings.  It is a great place to walk around (most of the city center is for pedestrians) and relax for a day.  We climbed (literally climbed) to the top of the Minster.  When it was built people must have been smaller, the stairs were very narrow and steep.  From the top we got our bearings on where we should go next.  The ruins of St Mary’s Abbey Church are part of a park on the riverfront.  The ruins are nice but also sad.  The church was ruined during the dissolution of the monasteries (begun by Henry VIII).  It was a great trip.  (extra photos)

British Museum

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Unexpectedly and happily I explored London yesterday.  My plan was to go to Whitby (sold out), then to Bath (too expensive), then to Cambridge (expensive and odd train schedules), so I ended up in London.  I knew it was the right choice when I walked out of St Pancras train station and saw an Aston Martin in the first parking spot.  I smiled and thought of my brother (he & I really like awesome & usually costly cars).  I turned right & walked into the British Library.  The collection was started by King George III.  They have on display some of Da Vinci’s notes, the Canterbury Tales, fragments of the Gospel of John (on papyrus), a King James Bible, and the Magna Carta.  It was quite impressive.  The importance of the documents on display cannot be overstated.  After wandering around (London is huge), I found the British Museum.  It is filled with artefacts from mostly Greece, Egypt, and Syria, but also Japan, America and elsewhere.  There are numerous marble statues and Egyptian sculptures.  I find the most interesting to be the Rosetta Stone and the East Pediment of the Parthenon.  This was only a day trip, and there are many more things to be seen.  I’ll be back. (bonus photos)

Manchester

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Manchester is a great city.  The city center is vast, and there is lots to see.  We mainly stuck to the historical Manchester.  The Old Wellington is the first English pub I’ve been in, and it did not disappoint.  The food was wonderful (half of a duck in spicy plum sauce) and the atmosphere even better.  This is the England I’ve been looking for.  There are two over arching themes to my study here.  One is historical and the other is cultural.  There is a stark difference between the two and the people interested in each.  On one hand there are my international friends, who want to see historical England (cathedrals, castles, pubs, cozy bookshops).  The other group is comprised of my English friends.  They want to experience the present day culture (concerts, clubs, being university students).  I almost wish England was just as quaint as it seems in travel books.  But it would remiss if I went the entire time without acknowledging, participating, and learning about what is happening in England today.   I enjoy being part of each half and getting the chance to compare the two. (bonus photos)

Wollaton Hall

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I walked around Wollaton Hall over the weekend.  (Aka Wayne Manor in The Dark Knight Rises).  It is right across the street from campus, so it will be a great place to study when the weather improves during the summer.  The grounds are huge.  Walking down the driveway took about ten minutes.  There is a private golf course on the grounds, and a herd of deer.  It is amazing that such a large plot of land still exists in a relatively large city.  Inside is a museum of natural history.  This is an example of what I really like about England.  Right next to wherever you are is a really cool part of history.  The people who live here have always known this (and may take it for granted), but coming from America it is blatantly obvious how awesome this is. (A few more photos.)

Cardiff

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Yesterday I took a trip to Cardiff, Wales with the travel society.  Cardiff is a really nice town on the water, though we never made it to the water due to to long walk.  One of the most noticeable things is that most everything is printed in english and welsh.  It’s a different language but it looks unlike any language I’ve seen.  Cardiff is a large city, the largest in Wales and the capital of Wales.  It was more commercial than I was expecting, but it is a large city.  Cardiff castle is really cool.  It’s the first place we went.  It has a patchwork past and has been owned by many people; this is reflected in the building itself.  Some of it looks like a castle and other parts like a mansion.  I was really excited to see the Cardiff Market.  Markets are always a great place to find local stuff, especially food.  We found a lady selling welsh cakes.  They are like pancakes with fruit inside and covered in sugar, and they are really good.  Their great taste may be due to the cubic food of lard sitting on the counter, but who knows.  Cardiff, like Nottingham, has very old buildings and great architecture in the city center.  It is really foreign to see people not give a second glance to such old, resolute buildings.  There is a compilation of all the photos I took in Cardiff on flickr now (http://www.flickr.com/photos/76513666@N04/sets/72157629293597383/).  I will be posting the best photo’s here and the rest there, so as to not leave anything out.  Main Tumblr page http://www.flickr.com/photos/76513666@N04/?hide_photostream_welcome=1

Student Exchange society

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I suppose England can be dreary.  Seeing deserted streets and overcast skies is depressing no matter how great the architecture is.  Even seeing strangers walking the streets adds warmth to the scene.  The important thing is to make friends, and the friends I’ve made are great.  They really make England.  My friends, both international and local, are really welcoming and outgoing.  The international students are in the same situation I’m in, we don’t really know anyone here, so we need to try to make new friends (though it’s not difficult).  It really reminds me of the first week of college.  Everyone know no one; we’re all trying to meet friends.

I went clubbing with an international society, Nottingham University Student Exchange society.  We all met at the Rose & Crown for drinks and socializing.  I didn’t get the traditional english pub feel from the place, perhaps because there were fifty international students there.

Dessert

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Carrot cake and Macchiato from John Lewis department store and coffee shop. It was as good as it looks. The orange thing on top of the cake is edible and is a type of small orange. It adds a concentrated dose of orange flavor to the dessert. A friend at home advised me that the pastries in the UK are above and beyond what they are in the US, so I’m not passing up an opportunity to try them.

Winter

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It snowed over the weekend! We had a snowball fight and went sledding on whatever we could find.  The hill is littered with many broken dinner trays, plastic bags, cardboard boxes, and even a cabinet door.  The last time I have seen this much snow was probably when I lived up north, almost ten years ago (except for when I have been skiing, that snow was not a surprise, and thus does not count).

City Center

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One major difference is the size of the cars, well really the size of everything in general.  With a population 20% of America on 2.5% of the land, things are definitely not as roomy.  Most people here drive hatchbacks, coupes, or sedans (saloon cars).  While these cars are smaller many are just as nice.  It seems like there are many more Audi’s, Mercedes, and of course BMWs & Mini’s (even some Aston Martins and Bentley’s).  The trend is mostly driven by the tight parking spaces and narrow roads, but also by the green movement.  Hummer Bait Smart Car anyone?  No? Didn’t think so.

If you want to drive in England (or any other country) make sure your insurance still covers you.  If it doesn’t and you want to drive a rental car you’ll need to get insurance from the rental place.  Though you have to be 23-25 years old minimum at most places.