I'm Back!

I tell ya time just flies out here. Wasn't yesterday February 1st? Is it really March? Crazy how fast time goes by when you're having fun! Thus my apologies for my extended absence.

Here is some of the fun I've been having these past few weeks:

Greenwich

These are my best girls right here (above and below)

I was in two places at once and was trying to channel my inner Mandy Moore from A Walk to Remember. You can see my struggle.

The whole crazy group! Forty-one twenty-something girls, and somehow we're still smiling!

I'm still so incredibly grateful that I get to call London, England home for these next 6 weeks. I know that I'm going to blink and I'll be home. But right now I'm here and I feel so blessed.

xoxo

An Inside Look

The Need-To-Knows of the BYU Winter 2016 London Center:

As of this Friday, tomorrow, I will have been here a month! Can you believe it? Me either. And after that we only have two more months. Craziness.
With one month behind us we have become pretty close, which will happen to you after living with 50 other people within a few floors and two townhouses.

Something you learn pretty quickly about one another is their food preferences:

Food staples of the London Center kitchen

• peanut butter
• Nutella
• butter
• rolls

First thing gone at breakfast: the bread and Nutella and peanut butter, not necessarily in that order (I don't even want to think about how many jars of that stuff we go through a day).

First thing to go at dinner: the rolls and the butter.
Girls will start bargaining with other tables for left over rolls, that is if there is any.

With one month down it's nice to finally be in a routine; running, classes, meal times, city exploring, etc. we have finally found our own jive. That said every day is an adventure, which is what is so exciting about being here! We are a part of a thriving and energetic international city for the next two months. That might sound long, but I know that I'll be home before I know it. And with something new happening every day it's impossible to do it all! But even with all the exploring, I've found a few of my own personal haunts:

My personal favorite spots in London

1. Regents Park
2. Ben's cookies
3. South Kensington tube stop
4. the park benches
5. and street markets! 

So. Good. They're huge and gooey and have large chunks of chocolate in them.

They're perfect.

Each bench had an inscription on it. Each more charming than the last.

My ultimate happy place. Next to the parks, I feel like the market places are where you get to feel the spirit and the energy of the city and the people the most.

Bonus: I just had to add this because, just look at it! Best Chinese food I've ever had.

Period.

The food is brilliant here, but I'm not sure if that's because it really is (it is) or because I'm in London (it is).

So there's your little introduction to the BYU London Center. It's a home away from home that I wish I could share with you all personally. But this will have to do for now until you all decide to come visit me!

xoxo

El Fin to Paris

Paris is amazing, superb, wonderful, favorite, incredible, stunning, fascinating, awesome, brilliant, fabulous, excellent, fine, magnificent, phenomenal, sensational, etc. 

Obviously I could go on and on (don't get me started on London) about Paris, but one afternoon we were able to go out into the French countryside! One word: beautiful. Chartres, France is everything you think a little French village should be like; if you've ever seen The Hundred-Foot Journey picture that town, it's perfect.

I present to you:

Chartres Cathedral

The tree may be in the way, but the towers of the cathedral are from 2 different eras, Gothic and Renaissance, but the actual building itself is Medieval. Even more amazing, it's the most intact Medieval Cathedral in the world, stone, stained glass, everything is original.

This rose window is positively gorgeous, but see how the sun shines through so brilliantly? That's because they've just recently been cleaned! The cathedral is going through an extensive cleaning process right now. If you look in the picture above you will see the stark difference between the white and gray stone on the left. The gray is from years, hundreds of years, of pollution buildup. During Medieval times when the great cathedrals were being built, Chartres, Notre Dame, etc, they were made entirely of white stone. 

This fact literally blew my mind. But doesn't it make sense, these were religious people, who built magnificent buildings of worship to their God who they loved with all their heart and being, they wouldn't have built Him a deep dark gray stone but a magnificent pure white building that they could ascend into heaven in.

The above picture shows a portion of the cathedral that has been entirely cleaned, look how it sparkles and shines, notice the color! When entering the chapel from the foot of the nave they would paint the ceiling blue with gold stars to symbolize your entering into heaven. Along with their cleaning of the interior and the stained glass, they are also repainting portions of the inside so that it will look just like it did when it was first built.

It's just such a wonder and I feel so blessed that I was able to see it in person!!

(Fun fact about the stained glass windows: during both world wars each pane of glass was taken down individually and stored to preserve them from the threats of war. So all of the stained glass is original, thanks to those who took the time to preserve them.)

Okay enough of the history stuff, back to pictures of me in present day Paris ;)

Eiffel Tower, speaks for itself.

The Pont des Arts, aka the bridge of love (which you would have noticed because of the several thousands of locks and the heart shape of my hands).

The bridge has actually started sinking because of all the extra weight of the locks. Thank you lovers!

The Louvre.

Try not to get lost in there.

Versailles.

There are no words. The gardens, my favorite - no matter the season!

Victor Hugo in La Sorbonne.

We may or may not have bribed a guard with our smiles to let us into this courtyard - thank you Greg for being fluent in French!

Notre Dame.

I couldn't not start and end with two of the most famous cathedrals in France.

Okay I promise I'm done with continent trip! I should be, I've been home from it for two weeks now...

Which means I've been across the Pond for a month now! So I believe it must be time for me to better acquaint you all with London!

xoxo

Monuments Men

On my flight to London I watched two movies (showing some serious restraint as I could've watched 5 given the length of my flight!) and they were The Theory of Everything with Eddie Redmayne - my new favorite film! - and Monuments Men with George Clooney and the rest of his all-star cast.

I quickly realized that these were the two most perfect films I could have chosen to watch (from the flights selections) as I began my study abroad adventures. The Theory of Everything simply because it is about a British man and his family and his studies, which were primarily in England, and then Monuments Men because it deals with famous works of art in Western Europe during WWII. I'm in England and I'm studying art history! Thus they were the most perfect films to watch in preparation for my England adventures.

So I'm here to study art history primarily and I love great works of art -- whether they are so proclaimed or I proclaim them so -- but as I've been learning more and more about art history my appreciation of these great works has only grown and grown. With that here are some of the Louvre's finest masterpieces:

Whether it was Hercules who knocked off her arms or not, she's still stunning!

Winged Victory, isn't she beautiful?! There's nothing quite like her. 

Just look at how she moves while still be stationary, it's breathtaking, awe-inspiring.

This comes to us from the North, the Northern Renaissance painters precisely, look at the detail! So beautiful!

Here she is, in person! She's not very big, but the technique is flawless, thank you DaVinci.

And there was only something like twenty people in front of her as opposed to the usual masses of society! My favorite part is that just opposite her is a painting that takes up the entire wall, she's only slightly larger than a 20X24 painting! But hey, she's the Mona Lisa.

You can't see the painting very well in this light, but it's an original Caravaggio! Even though you can't see it extraordinarily well - my apologizes - you can see its drama and depth of color. Caravaggio was commissioned to paint the Death of the Virgin by the Church, but once it was complete they didn't accept it. Why?! Because he made everyone in the painting look so ordinary! He also had based Mary's looks off of a drowned prostitute and the church was not happy about that. The people were used to everyone being idealized in paintings so they were not used to people being made to look realistic. The Renaissance was the beginning of the change from idealistic to realistic.

Fascinating stuff.

This is a favorite of mine, a true Classic, and that's with a capital 'C'! This is Psyche Revived by Cupid's Kiss and isn't it beautiful? Although I love paintings I have a special place in my heart for sculptures. It is my dream to one day see Michelangelo's David in Florence! One of these days...

Now we move to Rodin, another master of sculpture:

Gates of Hell by Rodin

The Thinker by Rodin

Like I mentioned above I love sculpture. Michelangelo was a master of stone, he felt that there was a spirit within that way trying to get out and it was his responsibility to bring it out of the stone. His unfinished sculptures for Pope Julius II are truly remarkable, they show spirits trying to escape from the human body, and they are just awe-inspiring. 

But Rodin is a whole other beast! He doesn't understand the human body like Michelangelo and he leaves his sculptures with a rough finish, they're not polished, but his themes run deep. What is it about The Thinker or The Fates of Hell that speak to us? They're by no means happy works of art, but they remind us of something deeper within ourselves. I especially love the rough quality he leaves on them because it makes them more human.

As you can see I'm really loving and eating up all this art history stuff! And I'm not even a huge museum person, but once you start explaining the significance and meaning behind a work of art it takes on a whole new life to me. And that's what this whole experience has been for me, bringing life back to art.

xoxo

Parlez Vous Francais

We enter Part 2 of the continent week. I don't mean to make it sound like it was dreaded or terrible, it was positively a dream! And Paris was everything and more.

People write songs about Paris and they make it sound like it's their everything:

I love Paris in the springtime

I love Pairs in the fall

I love Paris in the winter, when it drizzles

I love Paris in the summer, when it sizzles

I love Paris every moment

Every moment of the year

I love Paris

Why or why do I love Paris

Because my love is near.

Thank you Cole Porter.
And yes this song was running a constant loop in my head while I walked those cobblestone streets. It was perfect.

Let's begin with the best part, the food:

 

While we were looking for the Musee d'Orsay - the best museum in Paris in my opinion, right behind the Rodin Museum, because it used to be an old train station! Anyways, my friend Abby says that she just wants to go to a fancy chocolate shop. So we found one and let me just say, Europeans know how to do chocolate. Sorry Hershey, but you got nothing on the Western Europeans. These fabulous macaroons are a sublime example, they not only look amazing but taste even better. They give up nothing and only gain everything.

I bow to their talents.

Okay I admit to fully copying my friend Rachel for this picture. But how could I not show off my french fry skinny french mustache in France?!

This beautiful sandwich came from Chartres, France (post to follow) and it was amazing. Why doesn't America make sandwiches in baguettes? It's so much better that way, simply because it is a baguette.

And if I didn't have a croissant in France then what kind of person would I be?

I also apologize for all these pictures of food in front of my face, but it would be so boring if I only took a picture of the croissant and this way my mom is pleased because it means more pictures of me physically documenting my trip!

Okay more on Paris to follow, just to give you a taste you can expect:

• Versailles
• Chartres
• Group pictures
• Monuments
• and much more!

xoxo

Big Summer Blow Out!

Remember in high school sports when you'd be training in the summer and there was always the dreaded week of "hell" week? 

Ya, here we call it the continent week.

• 2 cities
• 6 days
• 41 girls

I don't think we were ever running slower than a sprint as we dashed across those glorious cities, Amsterdam and Paris! Also I'm not using hyperbole here, with our professors we were always walking at a hastened clip through those cobbled streets, nothing short of a jog, and we covered roughly eleven miles on foot everyday!

But when its negative three degrees Celsius, you're grateful to be walking so quickly. Keeps the blood moving and the body warm; its when you stop that you realize how cold it is outside.

But even in the crisp air you can't deny how beautiful it is.

The Netherlands: canals, bikes, itty-bitty streets, and the tallest, smallest, quaintest houses.

I repeat, the tallest, smallest, quaintest houses.

The inside of a church in the Begijnhof, beautiful!

Looks like a palace right? It used to be the post office, now it's a mall. What?!

Come on, even at night with those twinkle lights you can't help but just fall in love with Amsterdam! And don't get me started on their bikes!

(Definitely more likely to get hit by a bike than a car; though I almost got hit by a train twice -- there is no telling the difference between the sidewalk and the street so keep your wits about you!)

Now we all remember in When in Rome when Will Arnett's fake Italian character brings his car over and says that it is a very big car in Italy? Okay, I found it's working counter-part:

Fingertip to fingertip! This car is only 5'6", and that's on a good day! Thank you Fisher Price for your contribution.

Even though we may have looked like we were doing a revival of It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World by our running through the streets of European cities we did indeed have class. And I found myself, again, in front of some very impressive and beautiful masterpieces

Girl with a Pearl Earring by Vermeer

The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Tulp by Rembrandt

(an absolute favorite of mine)

Self-Portrait by Rembrandt

Not to mention these two wondrous contemporary beauties on the ceiling of the Mauritshuis (museum)

Though it is not a masterpiece of fine art this was probably a huge highlight of my trip to The Netherlands. The Dutch do breakfast right, chocolate shavings atop your toast. Delicious.

As we wrap up these glorious two days I share my two favorite parts:

The iconic tourist sign I couldn't not take a picture in front of!

I amsterdam

And the most delicious thing I've ever consumed. I may or may not have eaten my weight in these delicious stroopwafles, as shown by the ecstatic brightness of my gigantic eyes!

The street ones are far better than the grocery store ones by the by.

Days 1 and 2, check. 

Days 4 to 6 in Paris to follow!

xoxo

Things Half Way in Shadow and Half Way in Light

Mornings start early over here:

6:30 - run in Hyde Park

8:00 - breakfast

9:30 - class

This week consisted of what can only be described as a highlighted tour of what to expect this semester. From roughly ten to noon we follow our professors around museums while rapidly taking notes as they explain Classicism and the Renaissance through art and architecture. Once we start our legitimate classes our group of forty-one girls (zero boys) will be divvied up into our prospective classes, so it won't be a massive group taking up the entirety of the exhibition rooms. 

After class we are set lose on the city till dinner at 5:30.

Our evenings after dinner are also ours as well to do as we wish.

So what does one do with such copious amounts of free time in the city that is the cross roads of the world?

Portobello Road.

Street markets,

Where there are so many flower stands.

Fresh flowers are my favorite!

Eat good food.

Note this delicious Tapas Bar 

Geek out over British movies you love.

The travel store bookshop in Notting Hill with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts

See plays on the West End 

And enjoy what the city has to offer.

The Lumiere Lights

For this week only, from the 13th to the 16th, London hosted the Lumiere Lights; they asked several local artists to create works of art around the city that toyed with light. From Covent Gardens to Piccadilly Square to Trafalgar Square you would be greeted by something extraordinary.

The above was from Piccadilly Square and below was Kings Cross and Covent Gardens.

All in all there is just so much to do, it just comes down to when you're going to do it! Every day I find something new that is wonderful and something new to explore.

I am so full of gratitude for the opportunity I have to be living and studying here in London with BYU and I do not intend to waste a moment!

xoxo