*waves excitedly*
So I don't know what possessed me to do this, but for some reason, on the day that Jonny and I planned to go to London to watch the Oxford -Cambridge Boat race, I decided that I would film most of it and then make a movie out of the videos I got. And that's what spawned the whole trailer thing and now this. Yes, I am a dork and a geek. I will readily admit that. =P
Anyway, to preface, Jonny and I went to London this past Saturday to view this magnificient boat race. We went up a couple hours early so we could have lunch and fool around in one of my favourite places in London called Camden Town. =) For lunch, we had Japanese food at a Teriyaki Take-Away House, and it was oishii. ^_- We did a bit of shopping (I bought a cute scarf and another pair of black sunglasses since the Isis claimed my last black pair ;_;), and then took about a million trains to get to Putney Bridge to view the race. The race was AMAZING, and can be viewed here. Cambridge are in light blue, and Oxford are in navy blue. And now without further ado (because I think this movie sums up this adventure better than me rambling on) here's Jonny and Megan Adventure Through LONDON.
Cheers,
Megan
Tuesday, 29 March 2011
It's Taking Me Higher Off the Ground
HiI'mbackagaintogiveyouanotherratherquickblogpost. =P
TORPIDS
Wednesday of seventh week marked the beginning of Torpids, Hilary Term's rowing regatta. Torpids is a series of "bumps" races. Unlike head-to-head races (like last term's Christ Church Regatta), the point of bumps racing isn't to try and cross a finish line before another boat; basically, the goal of bumps races is to literally bump the boat in front of you before the boat from behind bumps you. It's a bit tricky to get a bump without getting tangled up with another boat, so I was extremely stressed and nervous during the four days of Torpids, especially since I'm the one that pretty much has to make sure this doesn't happen. Bumps racing requires more luck than skill, so despite the incredible amounts of stamina and skill our boat possessed, we didn't get a blade (a reward given to a boat who has bumped every day of Torpids and does not get bumped), but the boys rowed extremely well. We looked amazing on the water, and I'm sure that next term we'll be a dangerous force to be reckoned with.
The Start of the Race
Our Boat in Action
Me Coxing =P
Torpids Crew 2011
We're featured at around 2:23 in this video. We're the boat with navy blue and white striped gear and white blades with a single navy blue stripe. I think you can actually hear me shouting encouragements. =)
ASIAN DINNER NIGHT
At the end of seventh week, Father Mike and I hosted an Asian Dinner Night for the Blackfriars houses on St. John Street. We made tonkatsu, sesame green beans, kappa maki (cucumber rolls), fried rice, Chinese pickled cabbage and for pudding, mochi and Miranda's awesome chocolate raspberry cake! ^_^ It was a lot of work, but the meal turned out to be success. The food was delicious and made me miss home a little bit less. Since I was cooking, I don't have any photos of this evening, but as soon as I steal some from other people, I'll be sure to upload them! =)
AN EARLY BIRTHDAY AND BENETIAN VENETIAN
Kate's birthday fell on the middle of eighth week, which happened to be Ash Wednesday, a rather depressing day to have a birthday on. So on Mardi Gras, after we made a quick appearance at St. Benet's Hall's Benetian Venetian End of Term Party, which was similar to the Christmas End of Term Party with the food and Original Rabbit Foot Spasm Band except it was Masked Ball themed (we looked awesome by the way ^_^), we threw her a small birthday party. I made my peanutbutter chocolate cake, which I don't think came out as nice as the one I made on my birthday unfortunately =(. Despite that though, it was a nice small get together, and I hope Kate had a good time. =D
The Team Awkward Ladies
A Masked Maggie and Kate
Kate Making a Wish
ITSA ME! MARIO! AN ITALIAN THEMED END OF TERM PARTY
At the end of eighth week, we had an Italian themed End of Term Party. It was a nice chill get-together with lots of board games, Italian appetizers and mustaches! Kate, Jonny, Tom (one of my housemates) and I played Cranium, and the Giggle Twins dominated. =D
Cranium!
Getting a Mustache
Kate and I look like old school evil villains =)
A Close Up of My Mustache
It was nice to spend time with everyone at the end of term, when everyone's work is finished, and to see everyone off before we all go our separate ways for the spring holiday.
AN UNEXPECTED VISIT FROM AN OLD FRIEND
At the end of ninth week, one of my best friends from home Andy came to spend a weekend in Oxford. Unfortunately, we didn't get to do much, because he was pretty jetlagged and came down with something on his last day here. But we did get to explore a lot of Oxford, and somehow got into Christ Church College on a busy Saturday afternoon. Christ Church is a gorgeous college. The architecture is amazing with a lovely quad in the middle. I loved their chapel (it also has an amazing ceiling and beautiful stained glass), and their dining hall was the site for the Great Hall in the Harry Potter films. =)
Christ Church College
The Amazing Ceiling of Christ Church Cathedral
I think it needs a sorting hat =P
I felt bad that Andy didn't get to do a whole lot, but I hope he had a great time in the short period that he was here. ^_^
Sorry for the rushed tone of this post. I just wanted to give a bit of an update before I run off to all my spring holiday travels. Where am I going? Well, the plan is to go to Greece (which I'm supposed to be leaving for in about two hours x_x) for a week, then a few days after I return for the next three weeks or so, I'll be going nonstop from Paris to Switzerland to Ireland. Is Nutmeg crazy? Perhaps. So expect a few more rather adventurous posts after I return with plenty of pictures. =D
I know I'm missing a few events like Scott Pilgrim Night and St. Patrick's Day, so I may have to do a rewind post in the future.
Oh and I haven't forgotten about this:
Until next time then.
Cheers, Nutmeg
Wednesday of seventh week marked the beginning of Torpids, Hilary Term's rowing regatta. Torpids is a series of "bumps" races. Unlike head-to-head races (like last term's Christ Church Regatta), the point of bumps racing isn't to try and cross a finish line before another boat; basically, the goal of bumps races is to literally bump the boat in front of you before the boat from behind bumps you. It's a bit tricky to get a bump without getting tangled up with another boat, so I was extremely stressed and nervous during the four days of Torpids, especially since I'm the one that pretty much has to make sure this doesn't happen. Bumps racing requires more luck than skill, so despite the incredible amounts of stamina and skill our boat possessed, we didn't get a blade (a reward given to a boat who has bumped every day of Torpids and does not get bumped), but the boys rowed extremely well. We looked amazing on the water, and I'm sure that next term we'll be a dangerous force to be reckoned with.
We're featured at around 2:23 in this video. We're the boat with navy blue and white striped gear and white blades with a single navy blue stripe. I think you can actually hear me shouting encouragements. =)
At the end of seventh week, Father Mike and I hosted an Asian Dinner Night for the Blackfriars houses on St. John Street. We made tonkatsu, sesame green beans, kappa maki (cucumber rolls), fried rice, Chinese pickled cabbage and for pudding, mochi and Miranda's awesome chocolate raspberry cake! ^_^ It was a lot of work, but the meal turned out to be success. The food was delicious and made me miss home a little bit less. Since I was cooking, I don't have any photos of this evening, but as soon as I steal some from other people, I'll be sure to upload them! =)
Kate's birthday fell on the middle of eighth week, which happened to be Ash Wednesday, a rather depressing day to have a birthday on. So on Mardi Gras, after we made a quick appearance at St. Benet's Hall's Benetian Venetian End of Term Party, which was similar to the Christmas End of Term Party with the food and Original Rabbit Foot Spasm Band except it was Masked Ball themed (we looked awesome by the way ^_^), we threw her a small birthday party. I made my peanutbutter chocolate cake, which I don't think came out as nice as the one I made on my birthday unfortunately =(. Despite that though, it was a nice small get together, and I hope Kate had a good time. =D
At the end of eighth week, we had an Italian themed End of Term Party. It was a nice chill get-together with lots of board games, Italian appetizers and mustaches! Kate, Jonny, Tom (one of my housemates) and I played Cranium, and the Giggle Twins dominated. =D
It was nice to spend time with everyone at the end of term, when everyone's work is finished, and to see everyone off before we all go our separate ways for the spring holiday.
At the end of ninth week, one of my best friends from home Andy came to spend a weekend in Oxford. Unfortunately, we didn't get to do much, because he was pretty jetlagged and came down with something on his last day here. But we did get to explore a lot of Oxford, and somehow got into Christ Church College on a busy Saturday afternoon. Christ Church is a gorgeous college. The architecture is amazing with a lovely quad in the middle. I loved their chapel (it also has an amazing ceiling and beautiful stained glass), and their dining hall was the site for the Great Hall in the Harry Potter films. =)
I felt bad that Andy didn't get to do a whole lot, but I hope he had a great time in the short period that he was here. ^_^
Sorry for the rushed tone of this post. I just wanted to give a bit of an update before I run off to all my spring holiday travels. Where am I going? Well, the plan is to go to Greece (which I'm supposed to be leaving for in about two hours x_x) for a week, then a few days after I return for the next three weeks or so, I'll be going nonstop from Paris to Switzerland to Ireland. Is Nutmeg crazy? Perhaps. So expect a few more rather adventurous posts after I return with plenty of pictures. =D
I know I'm missing a few events like Scott Pilgrim Night and St. Patrick's Day, so I may have to do a rewind post in the future.
Oh and I haven't forgotten about this:
Until next time then.
Cheers, Nutmeg
Monday, 28 March 2011
We're After the Same Rainbow's End, Waitin' Around the Bend, My Huckleberry Friend, Moon River and Me
*waves*
So I'm really, really sorry about disappearing from my blog again. I think I might have mentioned before how I would be incredibly busy due to a combination of factors this term, which meant I wouldn't be able to blog as much as last term. Well, it's all over now. I'm into ninth week, meaning that I've completed my tutorials and rowing for Hilary Term, meaning that I'm able to blog about my adventures in England. Wooooo!
So what new cultural adventures has Nutmeg experienced since, what was it, fourth/fifth week? Well, quite a few, actually. I had to pull out my diary just to remember what I've been up to. I might divide my "adventures" up into a couple of posts, just to keep things a bit more organised and easier to read.
So as promised last time, I'll start with my second trip to Bath.
IN WHICH NUTMEG RETURNS TO BATH
On Thursday of fourth week, I went to Bath again, but this time with my friends James and Tom from Blackfriars. We had lunch at a cute "retro" cafe downtown and then explored Bath Abbey, which I hadn't been able to visit the last time I visited Bath. The Abbey is quite large and sits right across from the Pump Room and Roman Baths. Supposedly, this is the Abbey that Jane Austen based her Northanger Abbey after, and I can see why she would want to. Beautiful stained glass windows lined the walls of the Abbey, and along the walls and floor were plaques for the deceased. I have a bit of a soft spot for stained glass (inherited from my mom, probably ^_^), but my favourite part of the Abbey was the ceiling. I absolutely loved the design and the way it worked with the two largest stained glass windows. I think the picture below probably does it better justice than my poor description.
The Epic Ceiling
An Example of the Stained Glass
Entrance to Bath Abbey
Tom also pointed out that the angels beside the entrance are climbing up ladders. Isn't that neat? =)
After exploring the Abbey, I took James and Tom to see the regency houses just past Gay Street and the Royal Crescent. After that, we had a brief walk in the parks surrounding the Crescent then did some quick shopping (I bought nerdy owl socks!) before heading home.
dichotomyDuality
At the end of fifth week, Kate (my friend from Team Awkward) choreographed and performed her own modern dance piece in Oxford University's student-run dance show called Platform. I think most (if not, all) of the pieces were modern dance pieces and were really interesting to watch. Kate's piece, which was about tension we find in objects and in ourselves (I think?), was amazing and beautiful, and someone filmed it so I can share its amazingness with all of you. =)
A TRIP TO UNIVERSITY OF LONDON SOAS
On the Thursday of sixth week, James and I paid a visit to SOAS (University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies) for their postgraduate information evening. (Can you believe it's already time to start looking at graduate schools? x_x) The evening was like any other information day with lectures about the different programs offered and booths passing out application requirements for each area of study. I went to a lecture about Global Relations and one of James's friends, who is a visiting student at SOAS, gave us a quick tour of the campus. In many ways, SOAS reminded me a lot of USF, but that might be because I've grown used to Oxford, which is quite different from the two. The buildings were old but not "ancient" like some of the buildings around Oxford, and their library was certainly more modern than the Bodlean, Radcliffe or Blackfriars libraries. The cafe where the students hang out reminded me a lot of USF's Crossroads with its somewhat "funky" seating and decorations and the student made posters everywhere. I have to admit, being in SOAS student cafe made me miss USF just a little bit.
Anyway, I don't have any pictures of the school, but I do have pictures that I took from the top of one of the double decker buses of some tourist-y sites in London.
Oxford Street, One of the Best Places to Go Shopping in London
A Poor Photo of the Marble Arch
That was basically my second trip to London, and as to my opinion of SOAS, it seems like a nice university, but I'm not entirely sure if it's the place for me. We'll see what my future looks like in terms of grad schools later though, I suppose. ^_^
BLACKFRIARS "START" OF TERM DINNER
The day after my SOAS adventure with James, Blackfriars hosted our Start of Hilary Term Dinner, which should actually be more like the End of Term Dinner, since we had it at the end of sixth week. The dress code was again "smart," but I didn't look very much like a librarian this time. Although Maggie did my hair in an awesome bun that somehow remained that way through the ENTIRE evening. Kudos to Maggie. =)
I'm sure I've said this a thousand and one times, but I love going to events hosted by the friars. All of them are incredibly nice, friendly and above all, fun, and this time was certainly no exception. They served us sherry before dinner and kept checking on us to make sure we were having a good time. At dinner, I was seated at a table with our Vice Regent, Father Conrad, who somehow had discovered that I like puns, so we chatted about that for a while, while we ate a wonderful meal of...I can't remember what it was exactly but I remember it was hearty and delicious. I also remember chatting with Brother Laurence and Brother Mark about all sorts of subjects, some of which were funny and others more on the serious but interesting side. After dinner, we had port, which I'm sorry to report I'm not a huge fan of, and coffee, and we all continued chatting and laughing. At one point, I think one of my housemates and fellow Blackfriars student, Dr. Peter Power, challenged one of the friars to a tie tying contest. And the friar won. =)
The Tie Battle
Some of the Blackfriars Visiting Students
Father Mike, Me & the Great Dr. Peter Power
All in all, it was a great evening, and I was certainly very happy that I was able to spend time with the friars and my fellow Blackfriars students.
I think I'll leave it here for this post. In the next one, expect more rowing trials and tribulations during Torpids, an East Asian cooking extravaganza, an unexpected visit from a friend from home and this...
Cheers,
Nutmeg
So I'm really, really sorry about disappearing from my blog again. I think I might have mentioned before how I would be incredibly busy due to a combination of factors this term, which meant I wouldn't be able to blog as much as last term. Well, it's all over now. I'm into ninth week, meaning that I've completed my tutorials and rowing for Hilary Term, meaning that I'm able to blog about my adventures in England. Wooooo!
So what new cultural adventures has Nutmeg experienced since, what was it, fourth/fifth week? Well, quite a few, actually. I had to pull out my diary just to remember what I've been up to. I might divide my "adventures" up into a couple of posts, just to keep things a bit more organised and easier to read.
So as promised last time, I'll start with my second trip to Bath.
On Thursday of fourth week, I went to Bath again, but this time with my friends James and Tom from Blackfriars. We had lunch at a cute "retro" cafe downtown and then explored Bath Abbey, which I hadn't been able to visit the last time I visited Bath. The Abbey is quite large and sits right across from the Pump Room and Roman Baths. Supposedly, this is the Abbey that Jane Austen based her Northanger Abbey after, and I can see why she would want to. Beautiful stained glass windows lined the walls of the Abbey, and along the walls and floor were plaques for the deceased. I have a bit of a soft spot for stained glass (inherited from my mom, probably ^_^), but my favourite part of the Abbey was the ceiling. I absolutely loved the design and the way it worked with the two largest stained glass windows. I think the picture below probably does it better justice than my poor description.
After exploring the Abbey, I took James and Tom to see the regency houses just past Gay Street and the Royal Crescent. After that, we had a brief walk in the parks surrounding the Crescent then did some quick shopping (I bought nerdy owl socks!) before heading home.
At the end of fifth week, Kate (my friend from Team Awkward) choreographed and performed her own modern dance piece in Oxford University's student-run dance show called Platform. I think most (if not, all) of the pieces were modern dance pieces and were really interesting to watch. Kate's piece, which was about tension we find in objects and in ourselves (I think?), was amazing and beautiful, and someone filmed it so I can share its amazingness with all of you. =)
On the Thursday of sixth week, James and I paid a visit to SOAS (University of London's School of Oriental and African Studies) for their postgraduate information evening. (Can you believe it's already time to start looking at graduate schools? x_x) The evening was like any other information day with lectures about the different programs offered and booths passing out application requirements for each area of study. I went to a lecture about Global Relations and one of James's friends, who is a visiting student at SOAS, gave us a quick tour of the campus. In many ways, SOAS reminded me a lot of USF, but that might be because I've grown used to Oxford, which is quite different from the two. The buildings were old but not "ancient" like some of the buildings around Oxford, and their library was certainly more modern than the Bodlean, Radcliffe or Blackfriars libraries. The cafe where the students hang out reminded me a lot of USF's Crossroads with its somewhat "funky" seating and decorations and the student made posters everywhere. I have to admit, being in SOAS student cafe made me miss USF just a little bit.
Anyway, I don't have any pictures of the school, but I do have pictures that I took from the top of one of the double decker buses of some tourist-y sites in London.
That was basically my second trip to London, and as to my opinion of SOAS, it seems like a nice university, but I'm not entirely sure if it's the place for me. We'll see what my future looks like in terms of grad schools later though, I suppose. ^_^
The day after my SOAS adventure with James, Blackfriars hosted our Start of Hilary Term Dinner, which should actually be more like the End of Term Dinner, since we had it at the end of sixth week. The dress code was again "smart," but I didn't look very much like a librarian this time. Although Maggie did my hair in an awesome bun that somehow remained that way through the ENTIRE evening. Kudos to Maggie. =)
I'm sure I've said this a thousand and one times, but I love going to events hosted by the friars. All of them are incredibly nice, friendly and above all, fun, and this time was certainly no exception. They served us sherry before dinner and kept checking on us to make sure we were having a good time. At dinner, I was seated at a table with our Vice Regent, Father Conrad, who somehow had discovered that I like puns, so we chatted about that for a while, while we ate a wonderful meal of...I can't remember what it was exactly but I remember it was hearty and delicious. I also remember chatting with Brother Laurence and Brother Mark about all sorts of subjects, some of which were funny and others more on the serious but interesting side. After dinner, we had port, which I'm sorry to report I'm not a huge fan of, and coffee, and we all continued chatting and laughing. At one point, I think one of my housemates and fellow Blackfriars student, Dr. Peter Power, challenged one of the friars to a tie tying contest. And the friar won. =)
All in all, it was a great evening, and I was certainly very happy that I was able to spend time with the friars and my fellow Blackfriars students.
I think I'll leave it here for this post. In the next one, expect more rowing trials and tribulations during Torpids, an East Asian cooking extravaganza, an unexpected visit from a friend from home and this...
Cheers,
Nutmeg
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