The "Foundation" at Lake Windermere (Krista, Ather, Marie, me, Emily, Amanda, Melissa, Lis, Jessica).
My time in London was unbelievable. Some of my greatest memories are from those 4+ months spent there. Let me list some reasons why...
1)* We had two stellar professors who made our experiences so memorable. They planned trips outside of London each week so we were able to see more of Britain than is humanly possible in such a short period of time. We also had one crap professor. He provided us with comedy and anger.
2)* The "BYU London Centre" is two row houses in Notting Hill (27 Palace Court Rd. W2 4LP, to be precise). You couldn't wish for a nicer neighborhood. Even if you wished for it, you couldn't afford it. BYU bought them in the 70's. Praise Heaven.
3)* I met some of the greatest girls alive. Yes only girls. Boys don't tend to apply to this program. Ather, Emily, Amanda, Marie, Jessica, Melissa, Lis, and Krista are some of my favorite people on earth. Still.
4)* I learned A LOT. Seriously. If you live in London and can't find something to keep your mind busy every day, you are officially an idiot. Either that or you have a torn meniscus that keeps you in the centre (this happened to poor little Anne Marie).
5)* I FELL IN LOVE with British literature. Mostly with Jane Austen. Really, really in love. It's amazing how much more you can love something or someone when you actually see where they lived, or get to exist for a bit in the modern day version of their world. I'm giddy just thinking about it!
6)* We got to be mean girls for one last time. Don't inhale sharply! EVERYONE knows that when large groups of girls get together they fight. It's the law. There was just something about our particular coven that really ticked some of the others off. We never started anything. Swear. But we were really good at finishing. Mainly we just talked under our breath. A lot. We conquered by our wits. It's the only way. Also, the professors (two of them) liked us, so we got away with a good deal. Yay us!
7)* I got to have my hair cut at Vidal Sassoon and Toni and Guy. To the average human being, this may not sound like much. To me (a hair freak), this was astounding. They have innumerable hair schools in London (duh) and the students need people to practice on. I was only too willing to oblige. My cut at Sassoon was done by an instructor for a class and was the BEST, most precise cut I've ever had in my life. My cut at Toni and Guy was done by a hair "grad student" (it's a thing), whose name was Robin and he was literally from Nottingham. Like Robin Hood. Also, that location was in Sloane Square. As in "Hair Dresser on Fire" Sloane Square. Hilarious.
8)* I discovered some of the most delicious food on the planet. Anyone who tells you British food is crap is a moron. It's wonderful. Nowhere on earth can you find such an amazing array of foods. We're talking Indian, Thai, Chinese, Lebanese, French, Greek... And English food IS great. Give me a ploughman's lunch any day of the week and I'll be a happy girl. Or a pasty! Oh I love me a pasty. And do NOT get me started on the sweets. Don't.
9)* It gave me a new appreciation for the fact that just because things are different, it doesn't mean they're inferior or less. I had this notion that my way was the very best and all the other ways were crap. Not so. Once I realized that it was like a huge weight was lifted from my shoulders. Does that sound crazy? It sounds a little crazy. I LOVE that other cultures do things so very differently than I do. Ultimately we're all after the same thing. We ARE all after the same thing, right? ;)
10)* I realized that I have a serious crush on Britain. It's become and illness. I am the biggest Anglophile you'll ever meet (maybe a few readers of this blog tie with me). When I continue my education it will be to get a Master's degree in Humanities and will likely be in some Britishy thing of my choosing ;). La di da. It makes me smile to think of it.
Below are some of my favorite pictures of my time in England (the greatest of all the lands).
What else? Abbey Road. We never did get that shot quite right. (Me, Amanda, Marie, Ather)
Hilarity in the North Country. There is nothing more worth while than putting the camera on auto timer ;) (Krista, Marie, Ather, Amanda, me).
Rain Forest Cafe. Not one of the finer culinary choices London has to offer. But fun, nonetheless. (Ather, Amanda, me, Krista, Emily, Melissa, Lis, Marie).
Some abbey. I REALLY should have written on the back of those photos. (Emily, Ather, Jessica, Krista, me, Melissa).
More hilarity in the North Country. (Krista, Ather, me, Amanda, Marie).
Hampton Court. Very cold. Very. I adore the Hershey's Kiss trees. (Lis, Krista, Emily, me, Amanda).
Our last night in the Centre. Packin' up. It was cargo instead of luggage at this point. (Amanda, me, Melissa, Krista).
What a fabbity fab experience London was. What a fun post to write. Now I shall have it forever remembered in my "journal". Huzzah! To my girls-I love your stinkin' guts! Always. Love, the Pres.
16 comments:
I'm so jealous! I want to go to London.
Sigh.
Heidelweiss,
What a fun post; your smile shines through your words.
The Heroine, over here, is also an anglophile. She did her undergraduate and graduate work at English universities in the North and in the South.
Hong Kong is an interesting mix of anglophile and anglophobe, a bit like India.
I am thinking you and the chief legal counsel of BL industries need to get out and see other sides of Britain; their colonial possessions, past and present. Why? Because it is a heap of fun.
I belong to a private library (Well, actually I have a membership to it, I am not actually its chattel...) which has a collection of journals and books of and by early explorers and builders of Hong Kong and its environs... Some turgid, some delightful finds. There are many, great finds over here.
Tschuess,
Chris
I LOVE London! Maybe we should meet up in London some time?
Fun!
Check out these snuggle sacks. I thought of you when I saw them. I know you could do this if you haven't already.
http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5565800
You have the best memory! I couldn't have told you where half those pictures were...I feel like a retard. What fun times...what good memories...I am feeling very nostalgic all the sudden. I want to go back and have a reunion...who I am I kidding, even if there were no reunion I would want to go back. I remember making a certain roommate mad when I made a chore chart...ah, what good thoughts....:0) Oh and going on a run in the evening with like 6 of us....we were a pack of runners through the city.
Oh and you really always have had the CUTEST hair ever invented. :) I didn't know you went to the school and had it cut...remember that one who did that, what was her name? and it was pink and awful...she just kept wearing hats!
ok i'm laughing my arse off over here. will asked me why i was laughing so hard and i couldn't articulate why anne marie homebound in the centre was so funny/tragic. then he asked me about the mean girls thing and i launched off like an f'ing teenager about how awful they were without remembering a single anecdote. he looked at me like i was crazy and said, i bet YOU were the mean ones, right? i forgot so many of those things. but it made me really nostalgic....oh to be young(er) again.
honestly, you're the best prez ever (not including our new one). do you remember the rest of the cabinet positions? or why we even named ourselves the foundation to begin with?
Yes, I can see how London planted seeds of the Heidi we know and love today.
She will always be and has ever been the Heidi we know and love today. Her Heidiness was simply heightened by the experience. (I chose the word "heightened" because if begins with H-E-I.)
I know you know this, Kara, but did the rest of you know that Heidi bought land in Scotland for me last year just so that she could say she is married to a Scottish Laird?
Now when I say land, I really mean it. Huge tracks of land. We own a 1 foot by 1 foot parcel in Kincavel, Scotland. That's not so grand as Pemberley, I grant you, but come on. I am the Laird.
Very very cool prezy from the prez I must say.
Those clothes and hairstyles! Just makes me laugh.. and then I started wondering where I was in February 1999 and got all distracted.. hehe..
what a fun post to read! this makes me want to go to london all the more... i have always loved jane austen and have wanted to go to her "land". did you get to see where she lived? when i do go i will have to ask you where to go, what to see, what to eat.... all that jazz.
It's yarn!! In my package, that is.. hehe..
I knit fast 'cause: a) no kids, b) no boyfriend (yet) c) no job, d) has to much yarn not to, and e) knitting a lot seems to help on the speed (oh, and the finger makes me sit home feeling sorry for myself, rather then running around in the forest/mountain..)
My conclusion is: don't feel bad about the knitting, you are way better off then me on every other level in life.. *lol*
Official note from Cherub: I don't know what my position was within the group, but I do know that at that abbey everyone started calling me Cherub and it stuck! When people ask me what my interests are I always say anything to do with London or babies! Happy anniversary Foundation! And thanks Prez for documenting the event!
I did study abroad in Jordan while I was in Nursing school and I can totally relate to how you feel about these girls, I made lifelong friends, too!
What a great time you had!
Jordan - as in the middle east? Or South Jordan - as in the middle west?
Ya know, we lived 15 minutes from Hampton Court and never visited. One day, yes one day, when we go together as couples, Darrin and I are going to take you two to the best, yes, best Italien restaurant in Cobham (south west London, down the street from Hampton) called "The Green Piccalo." Reservations only and they assume you are staying for the evening. Meaning= 3-4 hours. I love that. Not like here in America where they expect you in and out in 15 minutes flat! Or to Maidenbower (Crawley) to the "ma and pa" shop for kebabs. Oh I love kebabs (chicken, beef, or lamb). Or wouldn't it be fun to rent a house in Lands End in Stonewall. Oh we just didn't have enough time to do it all... Oh Heidi, my kindred, we must go.
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