Hello Facebook friends! Sorry I have not written for a long time, but each week has progressively gotten more and more intense. Plus, I seem to have the weakest immune system while I am abroad, so I have been fighting colds, coughs, and now an ear infection. Like I have told all of my friends abroad, if I had been alive in the Tudor period (which I have been studying all term) I most surely would have died already. But, thanks to modern medicine and the helpful Boots pharmacy, I’m a survivor!

At the moment, I have two more papers to write for my Oxford tutors as I enter into the 8th week. By the end of this term, I will have written 7 papers on the political consequences of the English Reformation and 7 papers on international law. Plus, I have written 3 lengthy outlines. As you can imagine, it is hard to motivate myself to do any additional writing like this blog. But, I have not just been in the library these past few weeks. I have explored Stratford upon Avon, Warwick Castle, Hampton Court, and London (again!). Stratford upon Avon was worth the day trip. Below is a picture of me and the “American Fountain” which was paid for by an American to honor Shakespeare. 

While in Stratford upon Avon, I visited Shakespeare’s birthplace, his home, and his grave with a friend from the OSAP program named Marie.

(Above is a picture of the very room Shakespeare was born. The guide told us that in this time, the bigger bed in the photo is where at least 5 people would sleep in order to keep warm at night. After all, in this time, England had a time of the night when all fires had to be extinguished. In fact, the french origin of the word curfew means fire cover, so the time the fires went out would be the time when people were meant to sleep. The main reason behind this was to limit the chance of fires in the night. )

(Above is a photo of William Shakespeare’s grave in Holy Trinity Church. Holy Trinity Church is where Shakespeare was baptized, married and buried. )

(Above is a picture of me in front of Shakespeare’s birthplace. For many years authors would make pilgrimages to visit this site. I’m not author, but it was still very cool to see.)

It was the perfect day to do the walking route to all of the famous locations because the sun decided to show up! We also stopped to have afternoon tea which has become a favorite activity of mine. Who knew that tea time was so much fun!

Onto the next adventure! Hampton Court have been on my list of places to see for quite some time. Hampton Court was built by Cardinal Wolsey, but ultimately gifted to Henry VIII.

This giant palace was a favorite residence of Henry VIII and holds traces of all his eight wives. A stone doorway still shows the symbol of the marriage of Catherine of Aragon and Henry VIII whose ultimate divorce required Henry VIII to leave the Catholic Church.

There is some leftover molding in the great hall which bears the crest of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn that was accidentally not destroyed after her execution.

Jane Seymour, often considered Henry VIII’s favorite wife, mostly due to the fact that she provided him a male heir, Edward VI, sadly died during child birth. Henry VIII was so in love with her that he placed her heart beneath the stone alter of Hampton Court’s Chapel. Plus, the ghost of Catherine Howard is said to haunt a hallway where she attempted to beg the King for her life prior to her execution. In the end, Hampton Court is a place of grandeur, but one where your proximity to Henry VIII could have landed you on the chopping block.

Next Stop: Warwick Castle

Warwick Castle was a recent discovery of mine, but in a way a full circle moment of my life. As many of you know, ancestry has been a passion of mine for quite a few years. In addition to constructing quite a large family tree, I even took a DNA test last winter. In my research, I discovered a link to ancient English royalty and nobility through my Pop’s great-grandmother Idella V Ward. The Ward line can be traced all the way back to the Massachusetts Bay Colony and back into England. Thomas Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick, is my 20th great grandfather and he was born in 1314.

(Above is a representation of Thomas Beauchamp)

Guy de Beauchamp, 10th Earl of Warwick, is my 21st great grandfather and he was born in the year 1272. Obviously the line continues farther with William Beauchamp, 9th Earl of Warwick, who is my 22nd great grandfather, close friend of Edward I and first Beauchamp earl of warwick. William Beauchamp inherited Warwick from an uncle named William Maudit, 8th Earl of Warwick.

(Above is a picture of the family crest in a window of Warwick castle)

While the Beauchamp family had ties in Warwick Castle, Thomas Beauchamp, 11th Earl of Warwick, is also known for having contributed the funds to rebuild the Collegiate Church of St. Mary’s. For this reason, Thomas Beauchamp and his wife have a effigy in the center of the Church which I was able to see.

When traveling with my parents, I hope to continue the trend of tracing the steps of my ancestors by visiting the Tower of London, which was where my 15th great grandfather, Edward Neville Lord van Bergavenny was executed for treason by Henry VIII. Unlike my executed 15th great grandfather, I only received a light punishment with some time in the the stocks. 

Elizabeth Beauchamp was married to Edward Neville. Via the line of Edward Neville, Edward I King of England is my 22nd great grandfather, Edward II King of England is my 21st great grandfather, and Edward III King of England is my 20th great grandfather. One thing Guy Beauchamp was most known for doing was murdering the favorite of Edward II, Piers Gaveston. This means that my two 21st great grandfathers hated each other. Clearly, this is pretty confusing to most of you, but I think it’s interesting to try to share.

(Above is the crest of Edward I, II, and III)

Last weekend, my friend Jessie who is studying abroad in Rotterdam, Netherlands took the long trek to the UK to pay me a visit, so I got to use my skills as a tour guide to show her around Oxford.

We climbed the top of the university church and had an amazing view of the city.

We visited the famous Turf Tavern where ghosts roam, Harry Potter Cast drank, and where Bill Clinton did not inhale.

Also, we visited Oxford Castle, which was built by the Normans and used as a prison from 1785 to 1996. It is now a tourist attraction where a man dressed like John Snow will guide you through the tower, the old prison area, and old chapel and crypt.

It was a fun weekend and a nice break from the stress of tutorials.

My friend Alex from Mason and I will be traveling together to Reykjavik, Iceland and Helsinki, Finland from March 10th to March 18th. I am looking forward to the thermal lagoons, a game of thrones filming tour, and exploring new countries. After all, I am only in Europe for another 2 months. The goal is to travel as much as possible. After my spring break, I have a 3 week long Mason led anthropology course which should be interesting. With three weeks includes 3 weekends and possible trips to Dublin, Paris and maybe even Rome. After this 3 week intermission, I will be traveling to Amsterdam and Rotterdam to visit my friend Jessie and experience her home away from home. If everything goes well, I will be traveling to one more country before my parents arrive in Heathrow airport April 14th. I plan to give my parents a taste of my time in Europe by showing them Oxford, London, and exploring an unfamiliar city for me, Edinburgh, together. Alright everyone, this is me signing off. I’ll write again soon!

Hello!

Sorry it’s been awhile since my last post. Sometimes life just really hits you hard and by life I mean books. Not like I’m counting, but I somehow built a library of 20 books in my room. This past week has been busier than usual because I did not do week for three days! I took a long weekend and traveled to London with my fellow Mason students. Let me tell you, I’ve never felt more guilty about not doing work than here at Oxford. But, I keep reminding myself that studying abroad does not mean you only have to study. After all, I am already finishing week 3 of my 8 week long tutorials. This weekend trip to London reminded me of my long travel list that I want to shorten.

My housemate Alex and I got on a 2:00 pm bus to London last Friday and arrived at the Marble Arch around 4:00. After checking into the hotel, we met up with fellow students to take the underground to Piccadilly Circus to get food and then go see a show.

We saw The Comedy about a Bank Robbery which had me laughing SO HARD. This musical/play adheres to mischief theatre making for very funny moments on stage. Between the car chase with a swivel chair motorcycle and laundry bin car and the random seagull attacks, it was a night of laughter.

(Below is a picture of the beginning of the show- a jail break)

Saturday was a brand new day with a long schedule awaiting me. I began the day with a visit to St. Paul’s Cathedral which has served as a church for 1,400 years. Granted, this exact church has not existed in London for that long, but the land always housed a church. The cathedral we see today was built post-Reformation by Christopher Wren. Interestingly, the cathedral actually is more Catholic in design using Renaissance architecture than Protestant design which used the Gothic style.

Inside the Cathedral, you realize how massive it is. It’s size is overwhelming.

I toured the Cathedral for 2 hours with my audio set and I still did not view every possible exhibit. I did make sure to take the time to make a wish and to light candles for loved ones. In the basement of the Cathedral are memorials and the resting place of some important individuals. I took a picture of the Florence Nightingale memorial just to make my Mom and Alexis happy #NursingPower

After we were down touring the inside of the Cathedral, Alex, Yeonah, and I started our walk towards the Museum of London. We got a little sidetracked taking pictures along the way though…

After we stopped taking photos, we found ourselves at the museum of London. It is in interesting museum which tells the history of London from 450,000 BC to modern day. At the end of the museum, there are even images and videos showing possibilities for what London will look like in the future. Overall, it was an interesting museum which reminded me of how extended the history of British culture is compared the the short lifespan of the United States.

After the museum I headed towards the London Eye where we had a 2:00 pm time slot. With my luck, it began to rain as soon as we entered the queue. Having already ridden the London Eye before, I was not terribly disappointed in the rainy view or the restoration work on Parliament and Big Ben. The main benefit of going on the London Eye a second time is that you know where you can take the best photos.

After our ride on the London Eye, Alex and I ventured towards the underground to travel towards food and the mecca of shopping, Harrods. As we walked across the bridge the rain and wind were more intense. I think the photo below encapsulates the weather in London on Saturday.

I do have to give a shout out to my Switzerland Sisters, Gracie and Farheen, for training me in the art of taking photos and looking for great photo opportunities. With their lessons, I found some cool shots of London which make it look beautiful on a rainy day.

Once we actually got on the underground, our severe hunger began to set in. After a long day filled with tourist activities, a break in a pub was just what I needed. In the picture below you can see a photo of my food before I devoured it.

After we ate, we made a pilgrimage to one of the most outrageous shopping destinations, Harrods. For those who do not know, Harrods is more like a museum of beautiful jewelry, clothes, shoes, and purses because it seems unthinkable that anyone could actually afford these items. I have to say, I did enjoy my trip to Harrods more than the Museum of London, so if you ever have to make the choice between the two, Harrods is the way to go. Plus, both of them have free entry!

I made the journey back home to Oxford Sunday afternoon and was very excited to sleep in my room and my big bed. It is crazy how quickly one can find comfort in a room or city that they have only been in for a few weeks. I can already tell that leaving this city is going to be a very difficult thing to do.

Anyways, I have been writing this for awhile as I sit in Christ Church library with four more books that I need to read for next week. With that being said, I’m going to wrap this blog up for today. I’m hoping to post about my membership in the Oxford Union in the next few days and share some pictures of famous Harry Potter sites here in Oxford.

Thanks for reading!

…Alicia

 

Hello again! Thank you to everyone who read my first blog! It was a nice confidence booster to get so many compliments about it. In this blog post I want to share a bit about where I’m living here in Oxford.

Last time, I talked about what I’m studying, but I completely forgot to talk about where I live. I live on St. Giles St. which is a very central location in Oxford. I can get anywhere I need to go in 15 minutes which is super convenient. According to my apple watch, I am walking about 8 miles everyday, so luckily I brought booties made for walking. Below is a view of the street I live on.

There are two famous pubs 1 minute away from my house. Eagle and Child is a pub where many famous writers gathered including C. S. Lewis who wrote the Chronicles of Narnia and J. R. R. Tolkien who wrote the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings. As a quick side note, many writers found their inspiration for their novels here in Oxford. See if you can get the reference from the photo below.

[For those of you who are not in love with Chronicles of Narnia, you might not see Mr. Thomas in this door frame]

The other famous pub is Lamb and Flag. C. S. Lewis was seen a lot at this pub with his writing group called the Inklings, which makes sense because the two pubs are across the street from each other. On the way to my international law tutorial, I take the Lamb and Flag passageway and below is a picture giving new meaning to an alley-way.

Sorry for the tangent, I just have so much to share! Now we’re back to business. My house is a historic 18th century Georgian mansion which means that it is extremely beautiful and most likely haunted. Did I mention we have an old cemetery across the street? It embarrasses me to say that one night the combination of the creaking of the steps and the thudding winds against my windows caused me to sleep with my desk light on. BUT, you can’t be too careful with ghosts haha. If I’m not imagining the presence of ghosts, I hear the late night conversations of intoxicated British people walking by my house on their way to the nearby pubs. My favorite quote of last night was “I’m not as drunk as you think I am” – anonymous man at 1:30 am. While this might seem annoying, it is actually filling the void in my life left by reality television.

(P.S Don’t bring up Celebrity Big Brother, Project Runway, or Married at First Sight with me right now)

Here’s a close up shot of my house.

Even though I’ve been calling this place “my” mansion, I live with 7 other visiting students. I got really lucky in my housing because they are who I share most of my days with. I have a single room on the 1st floor (in the States we would say 2nd floor) and my room is legit bigger than my room at home. Sorry Mom and Dad! Of course, I sprinkled some decorations in my room to make it feel more like home. Since I know everyone is so curious, here are some pictures of my room.

Soooo that’s where I will be living and breathing for the next few months. If anyone wants to send me mail or a gift (if you’re feeling the love) please send it to the address below.

Alicia Muir

C/O Washington International Studies Council

3rd floor, Chester House

Oxford

Oxon (you might not need to include this, but this is the county)

OX1 2AY

United Kingdom

Until next time!

…Alicia

Hello to everyone back in the States. It is currently 11:20 pm here in Oxford and I am writing this first blog as a break from my first two Oxford papers. (sometimes your mind just needs a break)

I plan on using this site to keep my family and friends updated on my adventures abroad. First, I received my tutorial assignments and I am lucky to have received my first two choices. While at Oxford, I will be studying the political consequences of the Reformation and Public International Law. I meet with each tutor for one hour a week for 8 weeks (I’m currently in week 2) where I have to hand in a paper, explain my arguments, and discuss the assigned readings. While this may make it seem like I have oodles of free time here at Oxford, I can assure you, studying for these weekly tutorials is essentially a job. In order to do well, I am in the library 9:00 to 5:00 almost every day.

(Below is my favorite spot in Christ Church library…P.S. those book stands are EVERYTHING)

My tutor for my history course is a Chaplain and probably one of nicest and funniest religious figures I have encountered. At our first meeting we walked out in the main square of Pembroke College to look at the parts of the building James I of England commissioned since we were just discussing his reign in his office. Also, he gave me 10 pence to read the Latin inscription on the coin and told me to keep it to remember our first meeting haha. So essentially he gave me a tour and a tip for doing so well.

Plus, being a chaplain, he granted me an invitation every Sunday night to attend Pembroke’s evensong, drinks, and dinner. Of course, I have gone the past two Sundays since all of it is FREE! Plus, I get the chance to interact with students and Oxford and sit in a beautiful chapel. WIN, WIN, WIN

(Below are two pictures of the inside of Pembroke’s Chapel)

I have not spent much time with my second tutor, but we met last week at 9:00 am. She proceeded to tell me she was flying to the Hague in the Netherlands in a few short hours to work with the International Criminal Court on an ongoing project. From that moment, I knew I was going to be learning from one of the best. I’ll keep you updated!

While I am studying at Oxford University, Oxford is actually comprised of many smaller colleges. I am an associate member of Christ Church College which is one of the biggest, oldest, and most photographed out of the colleges in Oxford.

Below is Tom Tower. This is the main entrance into Christ Church. Every night, tom tower rings its bell at 9:00. However, Christ Church runs on “Oxford Time” which means it is five minutes behind London, so it actually rings at 9:05. Anyway, this bell rings 101 times ,one ring for every original student, every night. This tradition began as a curfew for students who had until the last ring of the bell to get back to Christ Church before the gates closed for the evening. For me, that just means I’m getting used to reading over the bells.

Christ Church began construction under the supervision of Cardinal Woolsey, but when he ran out of money, Henry the VIII stepped in to foot the bill. For that reason, his portrait is hung at the center of our dining hall. Plus, my tutor is friends with the Dean of Christ Church who lives in college. Since he lives in college, he does not have much of a choice when it comes to decorations. He once complained to my tutor that he hated having to see a gigantic Henry VIII portrait at 1:00 am in the morning because he doesn’t like a sociopath staring at him on his way to the loo.

Also, if the picture below reminds of Hogwarts, you are kinda right. The Christ Church dining hall was used as inspiration for the Great Hall in Harry Potter, but no filming actually happened here. In a future post, I will post some pictures where filming actually did take place.

Honestly, it is almost midnight here in Oxford and this girl has more writing to do. I will continue to post on this blog (daily if I’m good).

Thanks for reading!

…Alicia

Thanks for joining me!

Good company in a journey makes the way seem shorter. — Izaak Walton