Europe (Part I): London

10-11 July 2014

Driving from our cabin in the woods of north-eastern Tennessee, the winding roads of the Appalachian passes and the mountainous stretches down I-40 brought me to the city of music: Nashville. After having a night with the ole roommate Grant, my adventure officially began. I left my car at Belmont for the summer; Grant took me to the Nashville airport for the first of many flights.

The plane touched down in Boston at 7:40pm and gave me around two hours to recheck my suitcase and find the international gate. Being alone has its advantages and disadvantages – I do not need to wait around for other people and my time through security was a quick as can be; but I cannot rely on the knowledge of someone close who has travelled out of Boston before (this was my first time traveling to Boston and my first flight to foreign soil). Having never experienced European culture, I was extremely fervent, even rapturous. I have been out of the country, but Mexico, Canada, and the Caribbean are not very different from parts of the States. Thus, wanderlust like never before fulfilled was coming to a boil.

My flight on Virgin Atlantic was tight. I was stuck between two strangers in the middle column of seats. If you've never flown economy international, the room you have between your forehead and the seat in front of you in less than a foot. Cramped. I ended up having too much coffee in the airport and tea on the plane to sleep. I watched The Grand Budapest Hotel and tried to sleep. The prior was fantastic while the latter was lacking. I left the States at 9:40 and landed in London Heathrow Airport at 0920 with maybe a twenty minute nap under my belt.

Customs was a breeze; so was grabbing my checked bag and getting out of the terminal. Finding the group of other CCSA members was another thing: I ended up searching for an hour before giving up and finding the Heathrow Express train to Paddington. Once I got to Paddington, things just went downhill. The Bakerloo was closed at Paddington and I needed to walk a mile to the next station. See, having never been to London and only having been breathing the air of an airport and train, asking myself to walk its streets and find an underground station just seemed ridiculous. Luckily, I made it with all of my luggage to the Edgwood Station and took the Bakerloo north to another station; this was the wrong station, because I was misguided by the Edgwood security officer. I was sent southbound to Baker Street, where I switched to the Jubilee line and was told to get off at Finchley. Little did I know that I still had about three miles of walking and luggage-carrying to go. The campus is far down Finchley and nowhere near the Underground. I only know this in hindsight. By the time I arrived, I had spent three or more hours lost in London. But I'm an optimist and see the good: I know how to use the Underground now and find myself as the navigator of our nightly wanderings.

After arriving with my bags and dripping with sweat, I was finally able to eat some lunch and take a shower. As I was expecting community showers and a roommate and actually had a single room and private showers, I was much relieved after my arrival. A quick tour of campus and the surrounding area, dinner with our classmates, swinging by Parliament and Westminster with Parker (we just met) and an evening at the Black Lion pub in southern Hampstead put a much calmer and secure bookend on the wild adventures of the past 48 hours. I've finally made it and it is jolly good.

12 July 2014

0700: Alarm; rather than frustration, I am enthusiastic and ready to jump out of bed and see a world that is very unknown to me. After a shower and breakfast with friends (You might notice that these "friends" came out of nowhere. Well, they actually did. Although we just met yesterday night, it seems as though we immediately all clicked. There were around ten of us at the Black Lion and we all found each other at breakfast.) I sat down for an informational meeting about campus policy and other useless information: I would much rather be exploring than doing this! The meeting was an hour or so in length and followed by a coach tour.

By bus, we had a three-hour exploration of London and were blessed to have a hilarious and very intelligent tour guide. We saw all the essentials of London. Other than a loo stop at St. Paul's (with a stunning terrace view), we finished up the tour. Having had a view at London, I made a list of "places-to-see."

The tour ended and we had the option to either go back to campus or stay in London and go about our own exploring. A group of us went to a pub/restaurant in town and ordered burgers. After laughter and getting to know each other a little better, Parker, Sam, Amanda, Sara, and Allie walked with me to Trafalgar Square where we spent a bit of time in the National Gallery. Although I personally find the Chicago Art Institute far more impressive, London's art museum was worth the time we spent there, seeing Monet's and Manet's and a plethora of landscapes. Within the museum, it is quiet and reserved; outside of the National Gallery, it is expansive, loud, and hot. We got to watch street performers and take pictures of the Square. From Trafalgar, we walked west and ended up in the heart of Piccadilly. At this point, we were all thinking the same thing: coffee. A very interesting and fancy coffee shoppe was along the road on which we were walking.

Now, I have always been a coffee kind of guy; I probably have at least five cups a day. I've explored the many coffee shoppes in Nashville and Chicago, but today's visit was the first of its kind. Not only was it my first Turkish coffee – very similar to Greek coffee – but it was the first shoppe I have ever had to be waited on for a cuppa joe. Usually we order our coffee at the counter and either take away or eat in; at this Turkish coffee shoppe (the name alludes me, unfortunately) you sit down and order your drink off a menu of more than twenty different combinations of beans, water, and milk. From affogato to macchiato, this place had something for everyone.

From here, we walked around a bookstore in Piccadilly and then took the tube home. After a quick dinner in the refectory on campus, quite of few of us walked to Hampstead, a beautiful and well-off part of north-west London where Maseratis and Ferraris are seen in every other drive. In Hampstead, we decided to go to a recommended pub: The Flask. We found a back room in this very traditional pub and enjoyed conversation and so forth. American bars are so much less sophisticated than English pubs. There is an element of dapper gentleman-ness in the air. Rather than a bunch of guys sitting at a bar and ordering drinks while watching a game on the tele and talking nonsense about women and trucks, the English have no tele and no improper taste. It's more like a sophisticated activity of community rather than a party.

After a late night walk around Hampstead and a swing into Sainsbury's, we headed home and called an end to a long day two in London, England.

13 July 2014

Today begins as every day will: breakfast in the refectory with friends. It is Sunday, and a group of us are dressed up well for the service at St. Paul's Cathedral. Luckily, today's Anglican mass is sung by London's Sinfonia; the service is to Mozart's second most popular work: the Coronation. This service was probably the most beautiful two hours of my life. The Sinfonia was a coagulation of men, women, and young boys. When they sang drawn out melodies, the room filled with the sound of voices; when they sang sharp and quick accents, the room reverberated with a decay that lasted seconds. The walls were covered in frescos and statues and granite friezes, and the ceiling was vaulted and gothic. The cross shape of the sanctuary seemed to stretch to heaven and back. The Eucharist was traditional and the wine was rich. When the organist finished the closing piece, we queued up and headed out to the underground vaults. Here lie many men and women from history that have influenced the church, sciences, politics, and arts. Although I could not visit Churchill's tomb, he was quietly sleeping in the deepest vaults of St. Paul's.

After service, quite a few of us ventured off to a restaurant in town that was constructed with the wood of an old cargo ship. After lunch, four of us took a tube over to Hackney, the hippest part of town. In Hackney, we stumbled upon the spawn of hipsterism: Brick Lane. The buildings are covered in beautiful art (some would refer to this as graffiti). The side streets are brimming with vendors that want to sell anything from old military attire to fresh apples, from restored furniture to portraits of dead people. Probably the neatest and most bustling market in town, the Brick Lane market was culturally appetizing. I felt as though I was seeing a bit of London that doesn't really matter much to Parliament. These people were living in the modern artist's paradise. And we had the opportunity to walk down those back streets, buy little trinkets and knick knacks, and escape this ill world for something better through the medium of spray paint on brick. Their business was art and their lifestyle was bohemian and free. Anarchy!

After misdirection with a cancelled tube line, we made it back to campus for tea forty minutes late. Luckily, tea in England is an event that lasts quite a bit of time. We were still dressed well: me in a suit and the girls in dresses—everything seemed quite posh. We were out on the lawn behind the meetinghouse. People were clustered into small groups and talking about London things, such as what they did that day and what they want to do tomorrow. Today is the World Cup final, so some of us were talking about plans for the night. It's not every day that you get to watch the most important game of football that will take place in four years.

And so after tea, a group of thirteen of us headed back to Hampstead to watch the game at the Flask. You may be wondering: how is it that you are to watch the game when there isn't a tele in the pub? For the World Cup Final, the pub actually brought in a tele and set it up for all of these English folk to cheer and boo whilst Argentina and Deutschland butted heads with the only goal occurring in the 113th minute. Deutschland! Deutschland! Deutschland!

14 July 2014

Class begins today. Although I find class to be fascinating, I do not think I shall bore you with what we discuss for six hours every Monday and Wednesday in very much detail. I will, however, record what books we have discussed and the general topics. In Magic, Mystery, and Mayhem (from henceforth to be referred to as MMM), we conversed about The Moonstone and Wilkie Collins. In C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien (from henceforth to be referred to as Inklings), we discussed the style of Colin Duriez's biography of Lewis and Tolkien and Book I of Mere Christianity. I would like to say that day one of class presented the perfect trial run for how quickly Sarah Ellis and I could run to the nearest coffee shoppe during a ten minute break and make it back to campus. It took longer than we predicted, which led to our five-minute-late return. Classes were good but also very, very long.

After class, a handful of us decided to walk down to Moment Espresso Bar, where we all ordered coffee and talked about our first day of class. I am beginning to find that studying in a foreign country is not solely about the classwork and touristy sights. Rather, just living in town and spending time around locals is what makes the trip memorable. Sure, seeing Big Ben was a fantastic experience and I will never forget how it looms over Parliament like a great protector. When I am out and about with friends and we are laughing and having a good time, trying to do what Londoners do…that is what will last the longest in my mind. The friendships I make on this trip will extend into adulthood and beyond.

After heading back to campus and having dinner, we all went down to Tower Bridge in the heart of London. We walked around the Tower of London, saw the Bridge raise and lower (in 90 seconds), and strolled down the boardwalk to the Eye, where we found a small shoppe to sit down and rest our feet. I ordered my first cider and had a mixed experience: something so childish and adult all-in-one. It was alcoholic but tasted no different than apple juice!

The days seem to be getting longer and longer, which is such a good thing. I'm getting around five hours a night, but as I am finding myself saying more and more "when in London..." I know I will never have this opportunity with these people again, and I know I won't be able to come back for at least two years. I might as well get the most out of this month as possible. Day four comes to a close at around 2330 in the heart of London with people that are just as in love with this city as I am.

15 July 2014

As we took the tube down to the city, my excitement grew stronger. I feel like such a little boy sometimes, becoming so fascinated by other people's everyday surroundings. This morning is devoted to Sherlock Holmes, for the MMM class will take a tour of London through the eyes of Sherlock with a phenomenal tour guide from Edinburgh named Adam. Now, Holmes is fantastic. But you really haven't experienced him until you've heard Adam tell you about Holmesian history in a thick and enthusiastic Scottish accent! I absolutely loved this tour. It took us to places like Covent Gardens, Lyceum Theatre, and the Sherlock Holmes Restaurant. He knew so much about Holmes and Sir Doyle that I learned more than I thought I could about the first detective, the first superhero, the one and only (and, ironically, many varieties of) Sherlock Holmes. London has so many sights that are mentioned in the novels/stories that we could walk the exact path of Watson while he busied down the Strand. The tour finalized at the Holmes Restaurant where we all had fish and chips.

After the tour, some of us went to King's Cross Station to validate our BritRails and see Platform 9 3/4. Let me just say: taking my picture at the Platform and wearing the Slytherin scarf was a huge highlight for me (Yes, I would be a Slytherin. But do not think of me like you would Draco Malfoy. I wouldn't be a death eater or follower of Lord Voldemort; I think I would be very similar to Snape: inwardly good covered with a vale of darkness.). I even fanboy-ed by purchasing a Platform 9 3/4 ticket.

At this point, we all decided to head home, and back at campus I relaxed with two friends. We tried to take it easy, because the constant exploration was taking its toll. After dinner, we got a group together and walked up to Hampstead Heath, where we saw lemurs, deer, an enu, marrows, and a vast garden of flowers. Some of us did some homework, while others just lied in the grass of the Heath. We stayed until dusk and headed back to watch a movie before hitting the hay. Today began with quite a bit of exhaustion and ended on a very calm and contented note. Although I spent the morning running all over London, by nightfall, I felt quite a peace and not sore.

And I think this is a good time to mention that my time here has been wholly satisfying. I'm certainly having an existentially spiritualized moment. There is an entire world out there, and we tend to stick out feet into the concrete of our cities and stay motionless until we die. What life should be lived without walking alongside others in new places? Where the world presents itself is not always in Nashville or Chicago. For me, Chicago has grown quiet; London, though, is shouting at the top of her lungs: "Where have you been? I've been waiting for you and have so much to show you." Why has it taken this long to cross the pond? God did not create me to remain seated. He created me to move and dance and shout for joy and worship Him through his creation. It doesn't take a church service to see God in this country. The country may be post-Christian, certainly. The land though, proclaims the name of The Lord in every tree and corner market and different skyline. I know God was on the plane with me when I left Boston. He is here, too. And I love what He is doing with this place!

16 July 2014

Another day of classes. 0900 to 1630. Inklings class discussed Mere Christianity Book II and The Screwtape Letters. The discussions we have in this class are so very philosophical. I so very much enjoy it. In MMM class, we discussed Sherlock Holmes, Sir Doyle, and The Hound of the Baskervilles. Find it disturbing, but I am coming to fill in the blanks and putting our love of mystery and the subtle sociopathic tendencies we all have together. In MMM class, I presented this argument in light of the natural curiosity and fear that go hand-in-hand when it comes to jumping off a cliff.

After class, we had a quick Edinburgh meeting (going to Edinburgh at the end of the week!) and followed that with supper and conversation. A couple guys wanted to go to Sainsbury's, so I tagged along after dinner. The night consisted of a movie for the Inklings class (Shadowlands) and an evening walk around the neighbouring residences. The shaving of my face (a big deal, for I removed my beard) accompanied the end of the day. It was my official transition into English life.

Although today did not carry too heavy a load, and most of my time was consumed with class and academic logistics, I still had a successfully enlightening day. I have had two classes now, and they are far better than I had thought. Our discussions are very stoic and Socratic. The MMM class tends to fall into literary analysis and psychoanalysis, while the Inklings class seems to center around religion and mythopoeia.

The combination of classes that I have chosen are best suited for me, because the cover all elements of my academic infatuation. J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle Earth is my favourite fantasy series (if not, my favourite books in general), Lewis' theology works are my favourite apologetics, Sherlock is my favourite fictional character, and the story of Snape is my favourite plot twist of any work of literature. I want to write books, teach spiritual formation at a British institution, and become an expert on Middle Earth. As you can see, I'm in the perfect place and in the perfect classes.

17 July 2014

We left campus at 0830 for Westminster Station. The first thing we saw was the supposedly electrically charged statue of Winston Churchill. There was not a drop of pigeon poop upon his statue and not a single pigeon resting on his shoulders. Dr. Thorndike led the Inklings class down Whitehall to a plethora of memorials and dedications. This purpose of this walking tour was to see the impact of World War I and II upon the lives of the British. C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien were involved in the wars and much of it can be found in their works. Mere Christianity was originally BBC radio segments to increase morale during the bombings of London. For any fan of the mythopoeia of the Inklings, a walk through London to visit and pay respect to the people (and animals) of the British memorials would be perfect. We learned about new and old, Victorian and post-modern memorials. From the Prime Minister’s residence at 10 Downing St. to the castle of the Duke of Wellington, my Inklings class was immersed in the military and political life of London.

Some of my favourite sites included Wellington's triumphal arch, the memorial to the animals involved in war, and the Canada memorial. We additionally walked around Buckingham Palace and considered hopping the fence and having tea with her Majesty before requesting cigarettes and being thrown into prison (satire against Michael Fagan). I think all of these illustrious buildings and memorials beautify London and make it far richer in culture and honour in remembrance. I would be proud to be a Londoner!

After lunch at Euston Station, we walked to the British Library. Now – although the majority of the library is inaccessible without a membership card, there is only one room there that really matters: the exhibit of the treasures of the British Library. This room was probably the most impressive room I have ever entered. Lining the walls of this treasury were ancient documents, famous pieces of original literature, degrees from kings and queens, and the original lyrics of some of the most famous Beatles songs (written upon napkins and scratch pieces of paper, of course).

I saw some of my favourite compositions: Mozart, Chopin's preludes, Stravinsky, Beethoven's concertos, Debussy, Bach's inventions. I saw the Gutenberg Bible, an except from the first Hebrew-Greek Bible, containing a segment of Exodus, the journals of Galileo and Leonardo Da Vinci and Sir Isaac Newton. I read the handwriting of Charles Dickens, Sylvia Plath, and Jane Austen. I even gazed upon the Magna Carta, the oldest English document, and the Beowulf. The. Beowulf.

I spent quite some time in that room. And I wish I could go and spend a week there. It was amazing. But after some crazy miscommunication with a group that was supposed to meet us at Charing Cross (while we were "stuck" at the library), we all gathered at King's Cross and headed up to Hampstead to visit Fawkes, a bookstore owned by the relative of Guy Fawkes and the original laundromat for King George. Within this labyrinth of a shoppe, I found the equivalent to my Holy Grail. For £13 I walked home with first editions of The Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. I cannot believe how lucky I am to have purchased these editions for such an amazing deal. I will forever cherish them and take care of them carefully!

After walking home, doing laundry, eating dinner, and chatting with mum, a group of us met up with Oluseun. Oluseun is one of the workers at Hampstead Campus of King's College and he wanted to go out with us bloody American blokes to talk about our similarities and differences. After walking around the O2 Centre (shopping mall), we headed down to The Black Lion where we had a fun night chatting and laughing and quizzing Oluseun on Ameircan movies and terminology. By the end of the night, we had had our fair share of the laughs and leisurely walked home.

Today was a fantastic day full of history, adventure, and friendship.