Lambently London

Hello All!

Icons of London*

Lambent - glowing or gleaming with a soft radiance.

The year will be over in a few hours and I feel obliged to at least finish telling you about my London adventures by then.  Since I originally started to write this post on Dec 15 (vacationing around Europe after London was very hectic), I will finish it in the tense I started ... it'll be more exciting that way, I promise.

I am so sad that my program has come to an end, but it’s also a relief to be finished with the semester.  My parents and boyfriend, Ben, have joined me on these continuing adventures and, boy, what a last weekend in London it was!

Friday was a bit of a mess.  After moving all my stuff from one end of South Kensington to the other (out of the dorm to our hotel), we all went to the Western Marble Arch for a very lively and extensive Shabbat dinner.  I think they served six or seven courses!

Challah and dipping sauces

Fish

Matzo Ball soup

Chicken and veggies

Whiskey (yes, this was served all by itself, which we thought implied the end of the meal … haha, WRONG!)

Red meats

Dessert

With extremely full bellies and lots of jet lag, we all fell asleep pretty quick that night.  But, at the tender hour of 1:28am, the fire alarms started to blare in the tiny hallways of the hotel.  We threw on our coats and tried not to trip down the stairs as all the visitors filed outside onto the sidewalk.  I'm not sure how much my coat actually helped because I was still standing in 30 degree weather in shorts.  Apparently someone had been smoking in their room.  One man voiced his discontent by loudly informing everyone around him that he had to get up very early for work the next day ... like any of us could do something about it.  Long story short, we were eventually allowed back inside.

Santas in front of The Sherlock Holmes

The rest of the weekend was filled with fun visits to the Victoria and Albert Museum and the British Museum (both free, by the way).  I highly recommend the V&A - there are so many cool things to see there and the exhibits are always changing or rotating what is on display, which is probably why I found myself there so often.

After a delicious meal out in Soho on Saturday night, Ben and I ventured out in a very windy and somewhat wet London in search of a good time.  Our first stop was the Sherlock Holmes pub, located just a block off of Trafalgar Square.  The interior was decorated with SH everything and there were even specialty ales on tap named after Holmes and Dr. Watson.  But, the best part of our visit was unique to that night: there were a dozen or two people dressed up in Santa suits!  When we asked them what was going on (because we had already seen a number of people on the streets in similar garb), they told us that there had been a Santa-Con (convention) that night.  In fact, every year on that night there is a Santa-Con in London.  They turned out to be super cool people and we ended up staying a few drinks longer than we expected!  A bunch of them were particularly fond of Ben's newly acquired bowler hat (he literally picked it up between dinner and the pub that night).  In fact, upon learning that we were American, one of them said that because "that is a great hat, I could forgive anything in that hat!"  They liked the hat so much that when they asked me to snap a picture of all of the Santas together, Ben was pulled into the shot.  And thus the bowler was immortalized .... as you will see in this and later posts, that hat became the most iconic item on our magical mystery tour across Europe!

Big Ben, Westminster

The Bowler

I realize that I don't look as dapper in the hat as Ben, but it IS a great hat!

We ended our night down at Westminster, listening to Big Ben strike 11pm.  Due to the less than optimal weather, there weren't many people about, but we were approached by a Chaplin man who wanted us to pay him to act like Chaplin.  I have to say other than the white face and Chaplin mustache, he didn't really look like the famous Charlie ... about 100 pounds too fat, in my opinion.

I really hope you enjoyed reading about London and experiencing it with me.  Of course, I could not cover everything in these posts, but I tried my best to tell you the most exciting parts.  It was certainly a lot of fun to write these posts (don't worry they don't end here!), and I hope they've inspired you to take your own to trip to London.


* "Icons of London" photo: I really love this photo because it has the Red Telephone booth, a Red Route Master bus, a glimpse of the Houses of Parliament, and the stairs of Westminster Tube station ... the very same steps that Daniel Craig vaulted up onto Whitehall Road in Skyfall!

Earth Shard-ering Views

Hello Readers!

What a BEAUTIFUL day it is in London today!  The clouds are thin and wispy today, which means that Londoners have the rare chance to enjoy the blue skies.  As for me, I am currently sitting on a bench in Hyde Park – I just cannot get enough of it.  Now that winter is near, the squirrels are FAT, and their escapes from pursuing dogs become even narrower.  It’s quite entertaining to watch!

The Shard, ground level

The Shard, floor 72: open observation deck

Today was my last architecture trip and we went to the top of the Shard building!  At 306 meters (1004 feet) and 72 stories high, the Shard is the tallest building in the UK and Europe.  Going to the top was such a treat for my last week here in London because, after getting to know the city pretty well, it was just amazing to be able to see it from a seemingly impossible angle!  I saw more of St Paul’s at once than anywhere I’ve stood on the ground, the Globe Theater looked so tiny, the HMS Belfast (first ship to land at Normandy, France, towards the end of WWII) so grand, etc.  Because it is such a clear day today, we were able to see all the way out to Wembley Stadium in the northwest, with its iconic arch, Olympic Stadium to the northeast, Battersea Power Station to the south, Hyde Park / Notting Hill to the west, and the Thames Barrier WAY to the east.  As cool as the panorama was, being in really tall buildings gives me a bit of motion sickness because of how the building sways (some of my classmates were horrified to learn that all tall buildings are built to sway).  Plus, it didn’t help that floor 72 of the Shard is OUTSIDE!  Because the Shard, designed by Italian architect Renzo Piano, is made to look like a shard of glass sticking out of the ground, the ceiling of the top deck is semi-open to the elements, which meant it was quite windy and cold up there.

Hyde Park. Can you spot the Shard?

An aside: while most of the modern “skyscrapers” in London were built by Brits, namely Richard Rogers and Norman Foster, this massive addition to the skyline is by an Italian.  There are mixed feelings among Londoners about whether that adds to the identity of London as a world / international city or if it hinders the British feat of having the tallest building in Europe.  Plus, because buildings go up so quickly here, some locals didn’t even notice until it was finished, and are a bit indifferent to its presence.

Personally, I think the Shard is a bit plain … really, nothing spectacular.  It’s just not interesting in the way a Rogers or Foster building is, but Piano’s design won the competition.  The consolation is that when you’re up there looking at the panorama, you don’t actually have to see the Shard – you get to see all the more interesting buildings of London!




What am I looking at?!

Northwest view from the Shard

I will do my best to clearly indicate the major landmarks in these pictures ... if you don't know London, it all just seems like a big jumble!  Also, I apologize for any unclear pictures -- the window washers were MIA.

Northwest view: Pretty much smack-dab in the center of the photo is St Paul's Cathedral.  Starting from the bottom, the three bridges are the Cannon St train bridge, Southwark Bridge (pronounced Su-thuk), and Blackfriars Bridge.

North bank: the City, Tower of London, HMS Belfast

North bank: The tall building on the far left is what Londoners call the Walkie Talkie (from another angle it looks like a giant radio-ing device!).  Behind that building and to the right, the spiral/striped building is The Gherkin (built by Norman Foster), and one of my favorite buildings in London - certainly, it was the one I was most excited to see.  On the river is the HMS Belfast, and the Tower of London is on the far right of the photo on the north bank -- can you see the white rectangles? They are some of the many ice rinks assembled for London's holiday season!

Awesome story about the HMS Belfast ... King George VI really wanted to be aboard when the Belfast landed on Normandy, but Churchill convinced him that it was a bad idea for the Britain's monarch to do that.  Instead, Churchill fancied himself on the Belfast for the landing on Normandy.  It was President FDR who talked him out of that one -- not necessarily because it was irresponsible of the PM to do it (which it was), but really because Church was simply too fat!

West: Tower Bridge, City Hall, Canary Wharf

West: Tower Bridge is iconic and honestly hard to miss in this one.  You can also spot part of the Tower of London on the far left.  Across the Thames from the Tower of London is City Hall - it is round and looks a bit lop-sided.  The tall buildings in the center of the photo is Canary Wharf (see my previous post).  It's hard to tell, but the Thames bends around Canary Wharf and creates a peninsula (Isle of Dogs) ... you may see that it continues beyond the tall buildings.  It may be too hard to tell from this photo, but the Thames Barrier (installed to help with flood control; the Thames is a tidal river) is visible.  I have not made it out there -- it's pretty far ... think of the Tube fare! -- but I hear it's really cool.

I hope you enjoyed these panoramas.  Thanks for reading and come back soon!

Hidden Halls of Greenwich & Cadmium of Canary Wharf

Yikes!  It's been an entire week of radio silence, but in that time I've completed my semester-long research paper (which I submitted just a few minutes ago) and seen some pretty amazing things.  The submission is bitter-sweet.  On one hand, I am so glad not to be worrying about it anymore and I'm quite pleased with the product (hopefully my professor and graduate assistant agree!).  On the other hand, because I've lived and breathed this for MONTHS, I guess I'm having a little separation anxiety.  But, never fear, because I still have to prepare a presentation for my next (and final *sniff*) class.

Pedestrian tunnel beneath the Thames

But enough of that because I am here to catch you up on my London adventures.

On Monday, I returned to Greenwich via Canary Wharf and the Isle of Dogs with my architecture class to see some incredible interiors that I missed last time (week 1 seems like forever ago!).  These interiors are part of Christopher Wren's Naval building, which sits on the riverfront, down the hill from the Royal Observatory, and straddles the meridian line.  Today, some of Wren complex is still the Royal Naval Academy, and the others house the University of Greenwich.  (We walked under the Thames through the pedestrian tunnel that connects the Isle of Dogs, which looks like a peninsula because of the sharp bend in the river, to Greenwich.  It felt and looked like a never-ending passageway ... I wouldn't fancy being down there if the lights went out!)  The Painted Hall is inside the Western Hemisphere building (the building has a real name, but this is more interesting), and was painted by Sir James Thornhill.  It is one of the most beautiful buildings I've visited!

Just across the courtyard, we visited a chapel in the Eastern Hemisphere building.  This interior was actually done by 18th century Pennsylvanian James Stuart.  Before we stepped inside, all I could think was "there is NO WAY this could top the Painted Hall."  I don't think it did, but the chapel was very impressive.  The best part was the white marble sculptures along the wall of the balcony section (I think this is the choir section) ..... but wait ..... they weren't sculptures at all!  These Athenian style figures were PAINTINGS made to look like 3D sculptures!  It honestly felt like I was losing my mind before I realized what was going on.

Chapel, Greenwich, Eastern Hemisphere

Painted Hall, Greenwich, Western Hemisphere

I know I went out of order in this post, but I just had to mention Greenwich first.

JP Morgan (left) and (probably) another bank, Canary Wharf

We actually started our adventure at Canary Wharf, the newest part of London, in a matter of speaking.  Located east of the City and east of Tower Bridge, Canary Wharf is where London's first tall buildings appeared ... ahem ... thank you, Mrs. Thatcher.  This part of London is where the Thames starts to get significantly wider and therefore the perfect place for the docklands.  When the docks started to shut down, Thatcher wiped the slate clean by implementing ZERO building restrictions in this area (which is why there are so many sleek tall buildings); remember those protected sight lines in the City? They don't exist here.  In fact, many of these buildings are built ON the docks, which means that every time a new one goes up, engineers have to make sure they don't overflow the canal.

Layers of Canary Wharf

Canary Wharf is what my professor refers as "Corporate America London" because it is a planned area, with straight streets and a layered look.*  The irony, though, is that the "center piece" of Canary Wharf (the tallest building) is One Canada Square ... a whopping 50 stories!**  And, if that wasn't enough, it is flanked by the Bank of America tower on one side and Citi Bank on the other.  In my opinion, it looks a bit like Chicago, with a canal running through the center, bridges, and elevated trains.  You would NEVER see this amount of layering in the City of London.  There are underground parking structures and train stations that weave between the buildings - you never really know if you are, in fact, standing on the ground level.  Also, there is no trace of old architecture - everything is covered with metal and glass.***  The only reason why the City of London remains the real financial center of London is because the Bank of England is still there.  Also, the Canary Wharf Tube station was designed by my professor's husband, Gerard Evenden, and it even won the award for best transportation center design in 2001 (I believe the station was built for the millennium).  It feels like a huge concrete cavern.  I know that sounds strange, but the design lets in a LOT of natural light, which is really nice because the Underground primarily operates underground.

Canary Wharf Tube, South Entrance

And, speaking of tall buildings, my last architecture field trip is over London Bridge to the top of the tallest building in Europe, THE SHARD.  And, while Londoners are quite proud that it is in their city, it was designed by an Italian architect - practically the only skyscraper in London NOT built by Rogers or Foster!

I didn't realize this was going to be such a long post!  Thanks for reading!


* It is this way because it was planned by a group of American and Canadian developers, which is also why the buildings are not as fantastic as the ones in the City of London.
** You would recognize One Canada Square from any movie with London - it has what looks like a big white pyramid on top.
*** Cadmium is an element on the periodic table (#48) and is a silvery-white metal.

Happy Thanksgivukkah

Hi Everyone!

!חג שמח

I hope you are all enjoying your Thanksgiving break and Black Friday extravaganzas!  Yesterday / last night was a whirlwind of fun for me, as well.

Battersea Power Station

In the morning before class, I ventured south and west to the Battersea Power Station and got lost in Chelsea on my way back.  Fortunately I didn't have class until 2.  But why Battersea Power Station?  Well, I am currently working on a term paper (which I always seem to be doing) for my architecture elective on the life and career of Sir Giles Gilbert Scott.  You may remember him from one of my Liverpool posts.  Not only did he design and work on huge projects like the Anglican Liverpool Cathedral and parts of the Battersea Power Station, but he is also really famous for designing the Red Telephone Booth!  And, if I'm being honest, that is the real reason why I chose to write an architectural profile on him.  But, as it turns out, he was quite revolutionary for his time: he mixed Classical and Gothic designs.  Unfortunately, the power station is no longer operational.  I think there is talk about transforming it into either a museum or art gallery (similar to the Tate Modern, which is also an old industrial building).  Further down the river from the Battersea Power Station is another power station that was build to power the whole Tube network!  Of course, the Underground system has grown significantly since then (first line built 150 years ago).

Albert Bridge, Battersea

I was actually in this area a few nights ago with my architecture class to visit the architecture firm of Norman Foster, which was a huge deal because he has built some awesome buildings in London, as well as all over the world (including Manhattan).  Imagine working out of an office with this view of the Thames and its prettiest bridge (Albert Bridge).

For some reason getting through Chelsea to Battersea wasn't a problem, but getting back was definitely a challenge.  I think it may have been because Chelsea is just this huge residential area full of cul-de-sacs and dead ends.  What a nightmare!  Oh man, I was just about to say I prefer navigating the streets of Boston .... such a LIE!

In any case, I'll tell you about the more exciting parts of the day:

Hanukkah in front of the National Gallery, Trafalgar Sq

For the second night of Hanukkah, Chabad of London arranged this big celebration in Trafalgar Square with giant dreidels and free jelly donuts.   They even invited the Lord Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, to light the alleged "largest hanukkiah in the whole of Europe."  His words.  The lighting itself was a bit underwhelming, but there was fun music and dancing to make up for it.  Various shul choirs sang, and even TINY children's choirs!  UH too cute!  I also ran into someone I went to high school with at Akiba, which was really nice because I haven't seen him for three years.  The whole event was actually a lot of fun and the atmosphere was very homey.

After candle lighting, I jumped back onto a spankin' new Bus 9 and headed home for THE BEST Thanksgivukkah* feast!  There were 10 of us in total (7 students, 3 parents).  Starting from the front, moving clockwise around the table: Zein (kudos to her for taking this picture), Seanne, Seanne's mom, Courtney's father, me, Liz, Courtney's mom, Sarah, Eunice, and Courtney.  We all had such a good time and there was so much laughter.

Thanksgivukkah Feast selfie

My contribution was a fruit salad in cranberry sauce, as well as sweet potato latkes.  Other dishes included turkey and stuffing (of course), green been casserole, brussels sprouts, a sweet potato/banana/pecan dish, and a green salad.  Dessert was birthday cake!  I don't think any of us have consumed that much food before (and there are SO many leftovers), which is saying something for me because all Jews know how to do is eat.  I wasn't even hungry for breakfast this morning!

All I have to do now is save room for round 2: a Thanksgivukkah Shabbat dinner for 20- and 30-somethings at a shul in North London ... just around the corner from Abbey Road studios!

Thanks for reading and happy holidays!

* Apparently another "Thanksgivukkah" won't occur for another 79,000 years ... and it must be true since wikipedia says so.

Tales of Troubled Turkey-Day Travels

I am absolutely positive that most of you have heard at least one of the following stories, but because I'm so thankful for NOT having to travel this Thanksgiving, I feel obliged to explicate my past experiences.  Retrospectively, some of them are quite funny, while others remain nightmarish, the likes of which I hope I never have to experience again!

Disclaimer: No matter how hard you try to avoid situations like these, just remember that no situation is impossible on Thanksgiving travel days!

Thanksgiving 2008.

This was the start of all my Thanksgiving travel woes.  The Wednesday before Thanksgiving is traditionally a half-day of classes for the majority of high schools in the US.  For those of you who don't know, I commuted to/from high school on the lovely Philly regional rail, SEPTA (Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority), over an hour in each direction.  On that particular Wednesday, I stopped at Temple U on my way home to pick up a new pair of glasses.  When I returned to the platform, the electronic board told me that the train was running 12 minutes late.  Well, that sucks, I thought, but I wasn't too worried (though I would have been had it not been a notoriously busy travel day) because it was still mid-afternoon.  Not only was the train later than the posted delay time, it did not even stop at the Temple platform!  I don't pretend to know how SEPTA operates, and I've lived in Philly my whole life!  Let me lay it out for you:  missing a SEPTA train is probably the worst feeling when it comes to regional transportation because, for some reason, SEPTA trains come every 30 minutes .... so, if my train that was due in 25 minutes never actually stopped at the station, then I have to wait a total of 55 minutes for a train, provided the next train is running on schedule.  A clue: IT WAS NOT!

I forget how long I actually stood on that platform, but what I can tell you is that by the time a train actually came, the sun had already dipped below the horizon, there were approximately ten thousand people on the platform, and the Temple platform is definitely open to the elements.  Despite the tardiness and the chill, I was super relieved to see the slowing headlights of the arriving train.  However, those warm fuzzies were crushed again when I looked into the train and saw nothing but people!  Every seat was filled (some even twice), and people filled every standing place available, including the vestibule areas between the cars.  The train was so densely packed that I couldn't see across the windows on the opposite side of the carriage.  And, it was like this down the whole train (all 6 or 7 carriages)!

As I ran up and down the platform, desperately looking for a place to put my foot on the train, all I could think was there is NO WAY I am missing this train!  I'm pretty sure I was the last person on the platform at this point.  And, like the crazy person I am, I picked an entrance, took a few steps backwards for a greater runway, and I, quite literally, launched myself into a wall of people.  I was absorbed into the group like a marble in peanut butter: soft landing, but nowhere to move once I made it; I cannot say I've ever been plastered to a stranger's chest that long in my entire life.  Fortunately, that very tall man, with the low, grumbly voice, played it very cool at the time.

This is how I coined the term sardine travel hour (little did I realize, this happens everyday on the Tube.  See my Ordinary Ordeals of London Life post).

With each stop, the density of people lessened minutely, and those of us in the vestibule became well versed in creating space out of nothing in order to let people off the train.  At one point, the door on the opposite side of the vestibule opened.  I couldn't see who came through, but people started jerking uncomfortably.  Suddenly this tiny old lady (think of the oldest Russian grandma you can!) appears at my waist, exclaiming in heavily accented English "I chav to reeech my 'usband!  Heeez een ze other car!"  The aforementioned really large man: "Sorry, ma'am, there just isn't enough space to let you through."  Long story short, she wormed her way through and managed to open the door and pass to the other car.

When the train finally reached my stop, I squeezed my way out and took my first deep breath in over an hour.  Getting off that train was like being born.

Thanksgiving 2011.

This was my freshman year of college.  I had planned to spend Thanksgiving break in Birmingham, Alabama.  I was optimistic when I boarded my plane at Boston's Logan Airport, and even more so when we left the gate on schedule.  The skies were blue and all would be fine .... haha, yeah .... no!  Because of bad weather in Philly (it just so happened that I was connecting through Philly), we sat on the runway for 3 hours!  So, not only did I miss my flight out of Philly, there were no more flights available for the next 36 hours from Philly to Birmingham.  Fortunately, my mother got me on a 6-am flight on Thursday morning to Huntsville, AL, 2 hours outside Birmingham.*

I guess the silver lining was that I got to spend 5 hours at home that Thanksgiving - a nice "treat" for my mother.  Unfortunately, even though my father was home that night, he was still asleep during the hour of my arrival and departure to/from home.

I made it to Birmingham in one piece, and had a great time!  But, a word to the wise: do not, if you can avoid it, fly on Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving 2012.

I blame this story on my being a cheap college student who did not recall her last disastrous bus ride from Boston to Philly.  Booking an 8am bus from South Station is brutal enough because no one enjoys getting up at the crack of dawn.  Getting there wasn't a problem.  No.  The problems began 10 minutes after the bus was suppose to leave: there was no bus.  Apparently something happened to the bus that was supposed to make the Boston to DC run, and the only spare bus was on its way from the bus depot in NYC.  Normally the drive from NYC to Boston is 3 to 4 hours.  Care to guess how many on the day before Thanksgiving?

My bus didn't leave until 12:15pm.  And, because of this late start, we hit every traffic jam known to man!  It probably took 3 hours just to get out of Massachusetts, another 2 to get to NYC, where we sat in a parking lot known as the Bronx for 90 minutes or longer, and finally another 2-3 to get to Philly.  Left 4 hours late from Boston, and arrive 6 hours (9:30pm) late to Philly.

I think my favorite part of the trip was when we stopped on the outskirts of Small Town, Connecticut, on the corner of McDonald's and Burger King.  I kid you not!  There was literally nothing for me to eat, and I wasn't about to buy a drink with the unknown duration of the bus ride.

On the bright side, I took advantage of the long hours to start and read about half of The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo.  It is really well written with a compelling story, and I highly recommend it (and the other two novels)!

Moral of the story: NEVER EVER take the bus on Thanksgiving travel days.  Because of this experience, I no longer regret spending a little more money on Amtrak.  (Heck, when I went to Scotland, I gladly paid more for a 5 hour train ride over a 10 hour bus ride).


Best of luck and happy Turkey Day!  Fin.

* A shout out to my boyfriend, Ben, who did a 4-hour round trip drive to pick me up!

The Designs of Meaningful Occupation

Dear Readers,

More than anything, the one experience I wanted out of college was study abroad.  Obviously I made that happen, but because of the rigidity of BU's Occupational Therapy program, I had to work ahead in order to clear out a semester.  By doing so, I could go abroad anywhere and study any subject.  Of course, my love of writing and history landed me in this research-intensive program (and let me tell you, I love it!).  Essentially, this semester is my school away from school: no sciences this semester (though I do miss them) nor any obscure humanities.

In the midst of all this history and culture (both of which Britain has a great wealth), I didn't realize how much I really do see the world through OT lenses.  Today my architecture class went to the Design Museum, located on the south bank side of Tower Bridge.  Its collection is quite unique and does a nice job illustrating the evolution of certain items, especially chairs and fashion.

Fun fact: did you know that Isaac Singer built the first Singer sewing machine in Boston in 1851 for Prince Albert's Great Exhibition in London?!  Yeah, I thought that was pretty cool, too!

In addition to the interesting exhibitions at the Design Museum, the gift shop there has some incredible items.  Lots of books about fashion, bicycle designs, interior designs, and some household gadgets.  But, the item that caught my eye just might have been the smallest one there:  a paintbrush that fits onto your finger like a finger puppet would!  My first reaction, which I did voice aloud, was, "oh my gosh, these would be perfect for someone who has difficulty holding a regular paintbrush.  In fact, you could also fashion this to be a pen or pencil!"  My professor looked at me and said that she was so impressed by this initial reaction to what was marketed as a tool for a children's activity.  And, as luck would have it, a man standing nearby remarked that he was a PT and has always been impressed by OTs' ability to adapt seemingly regular objects into tools for meaningful occupations.

I bought two of these finger brushes to remind myself that I really have found my passion ... and to help me brush crumbs from between the keys on my keyboard!

And, now, I'm off to continue writing my five-thousand-word research paper on the origins of abolition (of the slave trade) in Britain.  If you're interested to hear more, comment below.  Thanks for reading!

Sincerely,

D

PENTATONIX

I don't care what I've said in previous posts, but what happened this past Thursday night topped every list I've ever made.

Covent Garden shopping area

The original plan was to tell you about how funny Book of Mormon was and how you should definitely see it.  I was also going to mention how Covent Garden is completely decked out for the holidays, and that Piccadilly Circus now has a huge snow globe in the center, with Xmas lights everywhere, but you know what?  None of that seems all that significant now.

Thursday afternoon.
This week in my research seminar class, we all had to bring in what we had written so far for peer criticism and suggestions.  We mostly covered introductions and basic opening arguments for the rest of the paper.  My GA (graduate assistant) selected mine as the "citation and footnoting authority," as well as the model to follow.  Woah!  I like praise as much as the next person, but usually when it's written as a comment in the margin of a draft I've submitted.  I was expecting lots of criticism because it was the first draft that I'd produced since ceasing active research.  Nevertheless, I left class feeling encouraged and ready to have a great night!

Thursday night.
After a very quick dinner and swift costume change for warmer weather, I embarked on yet another Sardine Travel Hour adventure.  This time to the O2 Academy (concert venue) in Islington, north-central London, to see Pentatonix perform!*  When I arrived at the Angel Tube station, I was so excited that I was practically running through the station to find the exit.  Little did I know when I mounted the escalator on the left side (the "fast" lane) that Angel station has the tallest escalator of any Tube stop in London.  Yeah ... ask me how I felt at the top!  Stepping onto the sidewalk outside the station entrance was a breath of fresh air, but only until my contact lens decided to shrivel in my eye.  In all my wisdom, I tried to put it back in right there on the windy sidewalk.  After a few tries, I was getting really worried about not getting a good spot in line outside the concert venue, so I went back inside the station, found a mirror and popped my super dry lens back in.  At that point, it was like being shot out of a canon - my shoes chewed up the concrete underneath my feet, and I was surprised to find that the line for general admission was not terribly long.  Yay!

L-R: Avi (bass), Kirsty (alto), Scott (baratone), Mitch (tenor), Kevin (percussion)

Being the person with the "exotic" accent is shockingly new to me, but it definitely helps spark conversations.  I was quickly adopted by two Brits, Jeremy and Rachel, who were there to see Pentatonix for the first time.**  Accepting their invitation was the best decision I've made yet.  We had a great time at the concert (Pentatonix is SO SO SO great live) and decided to unwind at the pub across the street afterwards.  Meanwhile, Jeremy was chatting with Mitch (member of Pentatonix), via direct messaging on Twitter, and casually suggested that they join us for a drink.  The three of us didn't expect anything, but after 45 minutes or so who should walk into the pub but Mitch, Scott, Avi (the Pentatonix tenor, baritone, and the deepest bass on the planet, respectively), and some of their tour people (one of whom was from Horsham, Pennsylvania, just 10 minutes from my own hometown)!!  Kevin, the vocal percussionist, joined a little later.  Kirsty was the only member who didn't join us.***

IS THIS REAL LIFE?

L-R: Mitch, me, Scott, Jeremy, and Rachel

I honestly still cannot believe I spent an evening chatting and bar hopping with the members of Pentatonix!  It was so surreal, especially because these guys are my age.  But, the craziest and most shocking thing about this whole encounter was this: throughout the night, each member came up to me, and after establishing that I was not British, they each said

"Hey, are you that girl from Boston?!"
"I ... uh ... yeah, I go to school there and have seen you guys perform there twice already! ... How did you know Boston?"
"All the Brits here are telling us about this girl from the States who has seen us a bunch of times already, and, also, Boston is probably our best US audience, which is why we do two shows there every time we tour."
"Wow, well, you guys are really good, and what I want more than anything is to be that girl in the chair!"
"We can definitely make that happen!"

Let me explain, during each of their performances, a lady is selected from the crowd to sit in a chair on stage while Pentatonix serenades her with Marvin Gay's "Lets Get It On"!  I want to be that person so badly.

We all said goodnight around 2am, which is when their tour bus was leaving for Manchester.  (There is a good chance we'll be hanging out with them again after their second London performance on Monday).  At that point, Rachel, Jeremy, and I just looked at each other in disbelief.  I'm pretty sure (and sincerely hope) that we'll remain trans-Atlantic friends for a while, not just because of this incredible thing that we experienced together, but also because they are really fun people.  And, as it turns out, they bought tickets to see Jude Law in Shakespeare's Henry V the same night in I did!****

Still in utter disbelief!  Thanks for reading!



* Pentatonix is the a capella group that won the sing-off (a capella competition show).  If you don't know them, find their stuff on YouTube!  They are incredible and I could go on and on about their technical skills for ever.
** "Jeremy" and "Rachel" are pseudonyms for privacy
*** I think someone said she was taking an online class, and was doing work before they headed out to Manchester for their next show.
**** I'm pretty sure Jeremy is still in disbelief over this coincidence.