Brighton revisited

It had been hot in England a few days before July 5th, and this was good for us because I had had a plan to take my friend to Brighton and enjoy sea bathing together on that day. The last time I visited Brighton, the beautiful scenery struck my heart very much, so I decided to go there again to show it to my friend also. The temperature was also high when we took a coach at the Victoria station as those of the previous days had been. So when we got off the coach in Brighton and checked in the hotel, we felt like running to the beach immediately. There were no air conditioner in our room, and it had just a large fan on the ceiling. I had been satisfied with the ocean-viewing room, but I regretted that I had not made sure in advance that it had an air conditioner. My friend complained about it, but I could not help it. Under these circumstances, getting relaxed in the hotel room for just a few minutes, we headed to the beach without delay. It was good for sun-bathing but the water was too cold to swim for a long time. As a matter of fact, it was only for the first few minutes that we got in the water. For the next few hours, we spent our time just in the beach and closely saw the tide was getting higher. Only experiencing such a natural phenomenon became our unforgettable memory. For a while we could play with a stray dog, which faithfully brought back a pebble to any thrower. It was a so cute little dog that I think I should have taken a picture of it. When we agreed to go back to our room in the hotel, we felt a bit cold. On returning to our hotel, which was located within the distance of a few minutes' walk, the receptionist asked us how we had enjoyed the sea and beach. We just answered, 'it was a bit cold to swim'. After talking a hot shower, we got dressed and went to the restaurant to eat delicious fish and chips. We still could have a sea view from our table. Having dinner in this way, we walked around the Brighton Pier, and played some arcade games there. It was a wonderful night, indeed. Back in the hotel, we watched a comedy movie on DVD titled Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgandy, which had been put in the room to entertain the guests. I could neither catch up with the speed the actors speak nor understand the story well, I fell asleep in spite of myself while watching. The following morning, we had an English breakfast in the cafe near the beach, and went to the Royal Pavilion; but before we headed to the Pavilion, we had to go back to the hotel so that my friend could get some more clothes; the second day was cloudy, windy and cooler. As for the Pavilion, this time, I could go inside the building and saw wonderful rooms and furniture. There was Queen Victoria's room because the Pavilion itself was built for the seaside retreat of King George IV, her uncle. The banquet room was so gorgeous but it was not allowed to take any photographs. That's why both of us bought official guide books. We looked around the rooms listening to the audio guide, and we could learn about the historical building and the royal genealogy as well. Leaving the pavilion, we looked around the city centre, and headed to Brighton Marina, the huge shopping mall with some restaurants and amusement facilities. There we killed time until our coach was coming. Before we got on the coach, we had a Italian dinner in the restaurant near the coach station. Anyway, in Brighton, we enjoyed such a wonderful summer experience.

3 days in Madrid

On June 28th, I and 'D' left for Madrid; we flew out of Heathrow at 2pm and arrived at Barajas airport around 5pm in the local time. Then, we took a subway to Atocha station which is the nearest to our hotel, Hostal Barrera. I forget to mention that she paid for the hotel and airplane tickets because it was her who had asked me to just come with her to Madrid and see how her sister was doing. Therefore, literally, I had only to accompany her; I cannot speak Spanish as she does (not castellano but español), and I had not researched the city in advance. Nevertheless, I have been to Madrid once at the age of 18, so I could remember a few things such as useful expressions in Spanish and the location of the museums. We checked in the hotel late but it was still bright outside. When 'D' contacted with her sister, 'J' told her that she would wait for us with her friend from Netherlands at Plaza Mayor and have dinner with us. So we headed to the square soon after we had got ready. There were fairs and street performances still going on, and we enjoyed looking around the Plaza. Finally, we could meet them in the restaurant, and had dinner together. It was around half past 10 when we went back to our room. This is the outline of Day 1 in Madrid.
The following day, 29th, we saw lots of famous paintings by visiting the 3 museums in Madrid, Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía, Museo del Prado, and Museo de Thyssen Bornemisza. In the first one, which was the nearest to our hotel, we could appreciate the famous Guernica by Pablo Picasso (right above). The last time I saw it in 1995, I did not understand at all what each motif signifies; but this time I got some knowledge of the masterpiece on the Internet and transferred that information to my mobile phone. By referring to it, this time I think I could understand the painting better, and even explain it to my friend. Again I was impressed by the great work of art, but this time it was not only the impression but also the story behind each objects in it that I could learn. I thought that I could really enjoy appreciating the picture. As is well known, Museo del Prado has many Spanish masterpieces. Even visiting this museum only would be a wonderful experience; here you can see Las Meninas and Rendicion de Breda by Diego Velasquez, La Maja Desnuda and La Maja Vestida by Francisco Goya. When I saw Guernica, I felt the joy of having some knowledge of the pictures in advance and appreciating them by consulting some notes in my mobile phone. Therefore, I did the same thing to appreciate these well-known pictures in the Prado museum. I found a few pages about these masterpieces on the Internet with my mobile phone, and saved them first. Then, referring to them, I watched the pictures carefully to see what the explanations say of them with my own eyes. Of course, the best way to get information about the pictures in the museum is to buy the official guidebook; but I did not have enough time to read through it in English, so at least at that moment using the Internet was a better way. Seeing the paintings at the museums was not boring any more but it did become exciting by such an active reading. I think the experiences of Day 2 stimulated my brain very much. Also this evening, we had dinner with 'J' and her friend in the restaurant near our hotel. I think I had the famous Spanish cuisine, paella.
In Day 3, 30th, we looked around popular tourist attractions in the city, such as Palacio Real, Plaza de España, and Estadio Santiago Bernabeu or the home stadium of the famous soccer team Real Madrid. Of these three, I've been to Plaza de España where the statues of Don Quixote and Sancho Panther stand; but visiting other two places was brand new to me, so I really enjoyed them and could learn the Spanish history a bit. These historical sites were very beautiful and the fine weather made the scenery more fantastic, though it was hot. The blue sky and the white buildings made a beautiful contrast. In the stadium, we could see not only the playing ground, but also the press room, the locker room, and even the shower room which David Beckham and Zinedine Zidane would definitely use. There was also a museum, in which you can learn the history of the most popular soccer team. Through these 3days, I think we had a really good time in Madrid.

Madame Tussauds and St. Paul Cathedral

• On June 26th, I took my friend to the famous wax museum, Madame Tassauds, and St. Paul Cathedral. This was because we would have liked to visit these places this March but we couldn't. I had known that the admission fee for Madame Tassauds was very expensive, so I had bought a discount ticket on eBay in advance. It was a season-limited ticket and called '2 for 1 coupon', which means that we can enter for the price of one adult, though it still costs 25 pounds.
  
• As for St. Paul Cathedral which we visited first, both of us could enter for the student price. I had not expected her student ID worked because she was a part time student in another country. But the receptionist did not ask any questions about her card. St. Paul Cathedral was indeed magnificent; we could see many tombs of the well-known British in the crypt, such as the Duke of Wellington, Sir Christopher Wren, William Turner, and Lord Nelson. In addition, there were also in the same floor some memorials of famous people, like William Blake, Florence Nightingale and John Donn. I wish I could have taken pictures inside! There were lots of objects I wanted to capture. One of them was an allegorical painting by William Holman Hunt, The Light of the World, because I had already learned in the class of the graduate school that Charles Dickens severely criticized it; but I cannot remember the reason now. Despite his criticism, I was really impressed by the image; it was bigger than I expected from the copy I saw in the class, and seemed to be very special and significant. After looking around the ground floor, we went up 259 steps to the Whispering Gallery and 119 steps more to the Stone Gallery where we could have a panoramic view of the London city and shoot the scenery. It had been 24 hours before we left for Spain, and from that time on we could reserve the seats for the airplane, so my friend did it through the Internet with my mobile phone while having a seat in the Whispering Gallery. Thanks to that procedure, we could sit side by side in the plane to Madrid. After that, we went outside in the Stone Gallery and took some beautiful pictures.
  
• Exploring Madame Tassauds's exhibitions was really fun! We could see many famous figures there, from Shakespeare to Tom Cruise, and shot lots of funny photographs. This was the third time for me to visit the museum, but still I could really enjoy it. The wax dolls were lifelike, and the exhibitions were, of course, updated. The last time I went there, I remember that there used to be some Japanese figures such as the Sumo wrestler, Chiyo-no-Fuji, and the old prime minister, Shigeru Yoshida; but this time, I could not find any of them, though I thought that I might see a Japanese major leaguer, Ichiro, because he, in my opinion, is now worldly-famous. What surprised me most was the special exhibition for Michael Jackson, who had been dead just the previous night. They were playing his songs loudly and built a tribute corner for him, streaming some video clips background. I did not expected that they reacted to his death in this way so immediately. The horror room and a ride tour had not changed since I experienced them when I was twenty.

Tourist Attractions in Greenwich

• The picture files I took with my digital camera help remembering what I did in the past because they have information of the exact date when they were captured. To make this entry, first I referred to them in my portable data storage. They indicate that it was June 25th when I showed my friend around Greenwich. Furthermore, I can trace back in which order what we saw because the files have also information about the time when I shot.
• The first place we visited on that day was The Royal Observatory Greenwich (left above), which, I think, is worldly famous. It had several exhibitions in it and the admission was free. Needless to say, the feature is the prime meridian of the world. We could take pictures of us with one foot in the east half and another foot in the west half of the globe, and felt that we were in the very centre of the world. The line was showed up with a special object (right above) and lots of tourists gathered around it.
  
• The observatory is located on the hill called Blackheath, and if you take a train you have to climb it up; but this time we took a no. 53 bus from Woolich Arsenal and got off at stop called Greenwich park which was on the hill. A few minutes walk took us to the attraction site and we could command a magnificent view from there.
  
• You can see in the foreground Old Royal Naval College (left rear), National Maritime Museum and Queen's House (left front), and further, across the river Thames, you can observe O2 Arena (a white dome in the right) and the office buildings in Canary Warf in the centre. Of these places we visited the first two attractions after enjoying the exhibitions in the observatory.The Painted Hall and Chapel in the ORNC were worth seeing, indeed. The ceiling painting and the picture in the wall were awesome, and the chapel was very beautiful. Some of the buildings were used for the Greenwich college and some music college, so when we were walking in the site we could hear somebody practice playing his or her instrument.
  
• In the National Maritime Museum, we could not only learn about ships and the sea, but also appreciate some paintings which have something to do with them. The Queen's House was also brilliant; the 17th century building itself is worth visiting, and it has several important pictures inside. I regretted that I had not enough knowledge of the history of buildings and paintings to appreciate them. After fully enjoying these tourist attractions in Greenwich, we took DLR (Dockland Light Railways) to Canary Warf, where many buildings of the finance-related companies are located.
• O2 Arena is an huge event hall, in which Michael Jackson would have held his concert in this July; and it was that night that we heard a sad news of his death on TV. The first one we got was that he was in a coma, but several minutes later, it has been changed to the report of his death. When I watched Dorian Gray, I saw the trailer of the movie of Michael (below You Tube clip), This is it, before the main feature. It impressed me so much in spite of a few minutes clip that I reserved a ticket immediately when I was home. The movie is going to show from tomorrow for only two weeks. Now I'm looking forward to seeing it this Sunday.

Looking back on this summer

(Left:Sea View from Spinnaker Tower in Portsmouth)
(Right:Stonehenge in Salisbury)

• How time flies! More than 4 months have passed since I wrote in the last entry on June 17th. July, August and September were mainly spent on writing up the dissertation. On September 30th, I could manage to submit it, and finally I have finished the course on that day. Now I'm waiting for the result. I'm told that the stuffs are going to have a meeting in November, in which they will decide whether or not the students are entitled to get a degree by judging chiefly from our dissertations. To be honest, I'm very anxious about it. Of course, I did try best, but I don't know my work is good enough or not. However, since I have handed it in anyway, I cannot help it now.
  
• I think, instead, it's better to reflect on my experiences I have had for these four months. Most of the time, as I wrote, have gone for the thesis, but still I could travel to some places. Here's the overview. My friend 'D' came to see me on June 24th, and stayed with me till July 13th. This time, we went to Madrid in Spain from June 27th to 30th after I had showed her around Greenwich and the central London for the first few days, because she wanted to see her sister who had been learning Spanish in that city. Her sister 'J' had finished the course, so we could come back together to London. About eight hours later we arrived at Heathrow, 'J' went home by taking another flight to her country early in the morning. Returning from Madrid, I and 'D' made a few journeys to Brighton, Howarth and the Lake District. Each trip has made many episodes, which are worth while noting down here.
  
• So I will write them in this blog from now on for the next four days. From September 9th to 21st, my father came to England for his annual field work, that is, visiting the places relevant to English literature, so I also joined his first 3-days trip to Portsmouth from 10 to 12th. We were blessed with fine weather during all the time our sightseeing there, so this was also very enjoyable. After leaving Portsmouth, we parted; my father went to Exeter, and I went back home to continue the dissertation writing. However, we saw each other again at the Globe theatre to see Troilus and Cressida. I said good-bye to him at Paddington that night, and the following day, he left for Japan.
  
• After submitting the dissertation, I became just a Japanese tourist. First of all, on October 3rd, I watched the movie in Leicester Square, Dorian Gray, the latest film adaptation of Oscar Wilde's novel. I posted the trailer below. Next, I went to Bath and Salisbury, the former for Jane Austen Centre and Roman Bath and the latter for Cathedral and Stonehenge. I stayed two nights for each place from October 6 to 10th, and on my way home from Salisbury, I decided to go to Oxford and Gloucester for the next round. The plan was carried out soon; I visited Oxford on 15th and stayed 3 nights to 18th. The purpose of this short trip was, of course, looking around the famous colleges, seeing Christ church and joining the Bodleian library tour. I could do all these things, and I've learned a lot.
  
• In addition, before going to Oxford, I went INSIDE Kensington Palace on 13th, which means I paid the expensive admission fee and enjoyed seeing the rooms, exhibitions and halls inside the palace. That was what I had hesitated to do when I was living in the college hall in Paddington, even when I could go there by several minutes walk. So even though I've seen it many times, I just looked at it from outside. On second thought, however, Kensington Palace was still important to me studying the Victorian culture because Queen Victoria was born there. That's why I visited it. The last one for this month was Stratfor-upn-avon from 20 to 22nd. I saw Twelfth Night by RSC (Royal Shakespeare Company) at the Courtyard Theatre on the night of 21st. Watching the RSC's performance in Stratford-upon-avon where Shakespeare was born had been my dream since I read his comedies in the first year of my master class in Japan. This dream was also realized, and visiting Shakespeare's birthplace and his wife Ann Hathaway's cottage was amazing. I got so absorbed in my literary sightseeing this month so I decided to take rest this week. Now I have the time to look back on my experiences this summer and autumn by writing them in chronological order on this web diary. The journeys I mentioned here were full of episodes, which I do like to record. That's all for today.

Winchester and Chawton

• On 12 June, Friday, I visited Winchester and Chawton. This time, I took first a coach to Winchester so that I could save travel costs; the price of a railway return ticket to Winchester was £28.30 whereas the fare of coaches (the national express) was only £16.70. The cost could have been reduced more if I had bought a ticket a few weeks in advance. I've learned that if you plan your journey well ahead you can save every kind of fee. The coach I have to get on was scheduled to leave Victoria Coach Station at noon. So first I had to go to the station by local buses. The final destination of the coach was Portsmouth. The coach made brief stops at Heathrow Airport and Winchester. It took just two hours to get to Winchester.
• When I got off the coach, I saw a statue of Alfred the King of West Saxons; the station for coaches was located in front of the statue. I knew that I had only 4 hours to look around Winchester and visit Chawton, I hurried up to the bus stop for Chawton in order to check the time table. As I searched the route the previous night, I had to take the bus X64 from Winchester to Chawton. Finding the terminal and timetable, I learned that the bus had just left and the next one would leave in one hour. Therefore, I decided to look around Winchester first.
• I headed to Winchester Cathedral (the left above), in which Jane Austen was buried. Showing my student ID at the reception, I could enter the cathedral at the student price £3.50. The man at the entrance asked me where I came from, and I answered I was from Japan, then he gave me the brochure in Japanese. Thanks to it I didn't have difficulty in finding Austen's tomb. There were little people around it, so people would pass by without realizing. Fortunately, I could see the live performance of the orchestra for free there ; Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra was rehearsing in the chancel for that night. I was very impressed by the resonance. Many people were sawing their performance with enthusiasm.
• After looking around the cathedral, I went back to the terminal bus stop. Then, I waited for the bus about 10 minutes. When I got on the bus, I bought the return ticket to Alton Butts. It took about 40 minutes to get to Chawton. Originally I tried to go to Alton Butts, but I saw the sign when the bus went around the roundabout near Chawton, so I got off the bus there though it was on the way to Alton. 15 minutes walk from the nearest bus stop took me to Jane Austen's house. It was easier to get there than I expected because I had only to follow the signs. Here again, I could go in the museum at a student price, which was just £3.00. The house (the right above) was wonderful, and I took some pictures of it. Walking through the exhibition, I could learn Jane's life again. What impressed me most was her writing table (the left below); it was a very tiny round table, from which she sent her imaginative stories to the world. According to an explanation on the panel, she always wrote her stories on it after breakfast. 30 minutes were enough to look inside the house.
  
• Coming back to Winchester, I walked to another house where Austen lived her last days and died. It is now a personal residence (the left below), so tourists are allowed to take a picture of it only. I wanted to go to the Great Hall where the Round Table noted in connection with King Arthur was hanging, but I couldn't, because it was closed at 5pm, and it was 6pm when I arrived at Winchester. The final coach for London leaves at 18:50. So I took it to the station in London. I got very tired of a long bus ride.
  

Brighton and Seven Sisters

• On 31 May, I went to Brighton. It was in Jane Austen's Mansfield Park where I saw the name of the town for the first time; it is the place where Mr Rushworth and Maria Bertram visit on their honeymoon, or in Pride and Prejudice, where Lydia Bennet's romance with George Wickham begins. When I referred to my travel book, I realized that I could make a day trip to Brighton. From the novel I learned that it was the favorite resort of all London, so I decided to visit there to make the most use of the fine weather. I could see that the atmosphere was indeed enjoyable as I expected from Austen's description; being invited to stay at Brighton, Lydia imagines what excitement awaits her there:"a visit to Brighton comprised every possibility of earthly happiness. She saw with the creative eye of fancy, the streets of the gay bathing place covered with officers". Although Brighton in Austen's works is associated with immorality, I just went there for fun as a tourist.
• Reading through the chapter of tourist attractions in the south coast, I found that Brighton was near to Seven Sisters, where you can see the most popular white cliffs of Great Britain. Finally, I made a plan to visit the two places within a day.
• There were some other reasons why I wanted to go to Brighton; there is a famous building, Royal Pavilion which Queen Victoria's uncle George IV had built over 40 years; since he came to the town, he liked the site very much and made up his mind to have a retreat there. The building is really unique as you can see. In addition, I would like to see the clock tower which was presented to the town of Brighton by James Willing Esq, in commemoration of the 50th year of Queen Victoria's reign. Furthermore, for Seven Sisters, I hoped to get some pieces of chalk rocks of the cliffs as a souvenir.
• From Woolich Arsenal, I transferred two times at London Bridge and East Croydon. It took about 2:30 hours to get to Brighton, and costed £21.90 for a return ticket. Arriving at Brighton station, I could even see the ocean in the distance, so I got excited heading to the beach. On the way to the beach, I met the clock tower that I was willing to see. Getting to the beach, I was impressed by the magnificent scenery. In spite of a premature season(still the end of May), the beach was already filled with sun-worshipers because of the fine weather. The scene reminded me of William Powel Frith's Ramsgate Sands, though I knew that it described a different beach. Since the weather and the place created a beautiful pictures, I shot lots of photographs.
• The idiosyncrasy of the Royal Pavilion did surprise me very much. I thought that I had never seen such a palace in Britain since I came to this country. It did derive from the very mixture of the Oriental and European tastes.
• Looking around the busiest part of Brighton, I took the bus no.12 to Seven Sisters. It took longer than I expected. You have to estimate about 40-50 minutes to get there. Getting off at a stop called Seven Sisters Park, I started walking to the viewing spot by following signs. Since the walking course is very popular, I saw lots of visitors coming back. The footpath was also fantastic, you can see one of the most beautiful natural panorama on your way to the beach. Although I had to walk 40 minutes at least, I was not bored at all because I could see the lamb and cows. The breathtaking scenery somewhat reminded me of the wallpaper of Windows XP. As a matter of fact, it was better than that definitely. When I got to the beach, I looked up the cliff and felt awed by the magnificence. I could pick up some pieces of chalk rocks and put them into my backpack as important souvenirs. Leaving the beach, I climbed up the hill, and this time I looked down the beach, which was really scary.
• I wanted to take a picture of seven linking cliffs because the name was derived from it, but I couldn't because I was on the spot. I've learned from another website that if you want to see the whole cliff, you had better go to Seaford and climbed up the hill facing the cliff. Anyway, I had a really good time in Brighton, and I will never forget this fantastic experience.
  

Dulwich Picture Gallery

• Britain had fine weather last weekend, so I went out on 30 and 31 May in a row. On Saturday, I visited Dulwich Picture Gallery; since I came to London, I had found pleasure in a literary walk. As a result, about one month ago I asked my father to send some books about literary walking in London. In these days, I had been reading a book about Soseki Natsume's footsteps in London; and I've learned that he has been to the gallery. First of all, he liked the site Dulwich very much, and wrote his impression in his diary:"when you come to this area, you would see comfortable elegance even in Britain"(此辺ニ至レバサスガノ英国モ風流閑雅ノ趣ナキニアラズ).
• Furthermore, what interested me was the fact that this gallery was the oldest public museum in Britain; it was opened in 1811, which is earlier than National Gallery by 13 years. Learning about the gallery in this way, I felt like going there very much. First of all, I took a bus to Lewisham station, and then got on a P4 bus to Dulwich. There was a stop under the same name right in front of the building. It took about 20 minutes, as far as I remember. When I got off the bus, I could easily understand what Soseki felt there. Of course, what I saw there was not exactly the same as what he had enjoyed, but still I did like the area very much. At the entrance, I showed my student ID, because the admission was free for students. If I were not, I must have paid 10 pounds. The gallery itself was not so big, 30-40 minutes would be enough for general visitors. The most famous picture is Rembrandt's "Young Girl Leaning in a Window-sill"(the left below). When I saw it for the first time, I felt awed by the very artistic style. I think Rembrandt's creative power overwhelmed me.
• Since I wanted to see the same pictures as those Soseki did, I transferred the images to my mobile phone, and tried to find their originals in the gallery by referring to them. Soseki mentions Joshua Reynolds's "Mrs Siddons as the Tragic Muse"(the right below) and commented on it: "the eighteenth-century world is very classical as a whole. ...but the theme of this portrait is not at all. Reynolds would take an intermediate position between the classical and modern to harmonize both the present figure Mrs Siddons and the classical character the Tragic Muse, and created such a classical work as meets the taste of his time"(十八世紀は一面にクラシカルな世である。...所が今言ふ肖像画は決してクラシカルな題目ではない。レノルズは此中間に立って巧みに此の二者を調和して彼の画を時勢に応じる程のクラシカルなものにしたのである。)
• I've learned another interesting episode concerning this gallery; Giles Gilbert Scott has got the idea for the design of telephone booth by seeing the decoration on the mausoleum at the backside entrance of this gallery. I could take the pictures of both, and now I think they are indeed comparable.
  

Tunbridge Wells and Pooh Country

• One day trip to Hampton Court had been so wonderful, so I decided to go out the following day as well. I had wanted to see the original site of Winnie the Pooh since I learned about it in my travel book. That's why I headed to Hartfield without question. The book showed the two ways to get to the destination; the first one is to take a train from London Victoria to East Grinstead, and the second is from London Charing Cross to Tunbridge Wells. For me, it seemed to be easier to leave from Charing Cross, so first I arrived at Tunbridge Wells around 3:30pm. I knew that it was a bit late to start looking around the town. When I first saw the name of the city, I thought that I had ever heard of it somewhere, but I couldn't remember why I knew the name at that time.
• What troubled me first there was that I didn't know how to take the local bus Metroline to Hartfield. So I walked around a lot the bus stops in front of the station. I learned from the guide book that I had to take the bus 291 to Hartfield, but didn't know where I could get on and how to pay the fare. Therefore, to begin with, I followed the signs showing the tourist information in order to get any information how the local transportation system works. However, all I got at the centre was the local map and a walking tour map titled 'Heritage Walking Trail'. I didn't figure out the way of riding on buses. Finally, I gave up learning about the public transportation, and went back to the station. But this time, I found the bus stop for 291 right in front of the station, and knew that the next bus would come at 5:12 pm. It was still 4:30 when I was there. So I decided to wait for it, reading the map for the walking tour, which made me excited very much; the map shows that a few miles away from the stop, there is a house where Thackeray has stayed! Knowing about it, I got clear on the name of the town. Yes, there is a scene set in this place in his The Virginians, which I read two years ago. Consequently, I ran to the house because there was little time until the bus would come. I had to look for it for a while, but I could find it in the end. The house is now called "Thackeray's", and I felt something special to see it. The map has a short comments about it; "William Makepeace Thackeray, author of Vanity Fair amongst others, lodged and wrote in this little tile-hunting house, then known as Rock Villa and now a restaurant. Staying at the house for an extended period, his works include an essay about Tunbridge Wells, and part of his novel The Virginians is set in the town. Thackeray also spent part of his childhood in the town, staying at a cottage on the Common".
• I really got excited, but I didn't have enough time to appreciate it. I had to go back to the bus stop hastily. Eventually, I made it to the bus and could go to the village. I felt really nervous when I get on the bus, because I was not sure exactly how to get the ticket. So first I watched carefully what other passengers were doing, and understood that I had only to tell the driver where I'd like to go, and 'single' or 'return'. Then, I told the driver, 'Can I have a return to Hartfield?' and got the ticket to the destination. The price was 5.40 pounds, and I thought to myself that it was very expensive because in London, a single fare is just 90 pence. Hartfield is located in East Sussex, I forgot telling you this important information. However, the bus ride was worth the price, I thought soon after. I don't think I have ever seen such a rural area in my life. The magnificent scenery was beyond description. I was impressed very much, indeed.
• I didn't know where I should get off so I asked the driver, 'Is this Hartfield?'. Finally, seeing that I was a stranger, a gentleman told me where I needed to get off. Leaving the bus, the man asked me if I was going to the Pooh corner, and I answered, Yes. Then, he was very kind to tell me where it was. I had known that I couldn't enter the corner because it closes at 5 pm. It was 5:30 pm when I arrived there. Therefore, I walked to the Pooh Bridge. Although I had some difficulties to find the foot path to the bridge, I could manage to get there in the end. It took about 30-40 minutes. The neighbourhood around the bridge was in good order, and I dropped a stick from the bridge to a stream. Of course, I also took many pictures there.
• Resting there for a while, I went back to the bus stop, but I got another problem there; the last bus to Tunbdirge Wells had already gone, so I had to take a bus to East Grinstead station; I really regretted that I had bought a return ticket. From Hartfield, the last bus to East Grinstead on Saturday leaves at 7:33pm. I should have come earlier, I thought.
  

Hampton Court Palace

• The empire reading project was over on 21, last Thursday. As its assignment, each group had to make a presentation for all of students and staffs. Our team talked about the role of the river Thames for British Empire. We started with reading of the lines from Conrad's Heart of Darkness, and introduced the development of docks and the life of the Victorians around the river, showing the relevant pictures background with PowerPoint. Although I contributed little to making our arguments, I could help using the computer to project the images. However, I felt bad because I couldn't give my members any good idea for our presentation.
• The general meeting was supposed to be the last class of our course. So the professors provided us drinks (including alcohol) and snacks, and we enjoyed our session very much. I was also a bit excited and very impressed with the final speech of the course director. The course was just eight or nine months long, but I think that I have learned a lot. My frame of reference did enlarge, but I think that I should have tried to communicate with other members more positively. As a matter of fact, I'm still ashamed of my communication skill in English. Has my English improved? I quite doubt it. When I was on my way home, I felt like working harder on it.
• The following day(22, May, Fri.), I went to see Hampton Court Palace to celebrate the end of the course. First, I took a train to Waterloo station, then transferred from there to Hampton Court. I had to pay 14 pounds to look around the palace, but soon I knew that it was worth the money. The magnificent site really impressed me very much, as some of my pictures show. I could learn a bit about the life of Henry VIII by going through Kings Apartment and Chapel Royal. The garden was huge and splendid; nevertheless, what I found the most interesting was Tudor Kitchen; it looked familiar but every room was very large and specialized in each section; butcher, wine cellar, grilling room. It is said that the kitchen needed to serve 800 people when the palace was used as a residence. I think I could see the power of the Tudors through the facility.
  

Cheaper and better!

• I have been very busy moving for these weeks. Since May 3rd on Sunday, I have enjoyed a comfortable life in my new room.
• After I submitted the essays on April 22nd, I started looking for a better environment. It was not for my luxury, but for economy and comfort. I just wanted to save money because I had known that the rent was relatively high. My friends also told me that the rent I was paying was expensive compared with that of them. So I tried to find a nice lodging at a cheaper price. In addition, I had got some problems there; my room faced the front square, which had been refurbished since I arrived there; and the engineering works made lots of noise. Even at 8 am in the morning, the workers use their power saws and electric drills. It did not only wake me up, but also made me almost crazy. Moreover, the smokers always gather and talk loudly in front of the building because it's not allowed to smoke inside; and when I open the windows, the smokes and their hilarious chatting voices come in my room directly. It, needless to say, disturbs my concentration. Besides, some bad fellows talk and sing loudly in the corridor, and some of my stuffs in the fridge at the communal kitchen have been stolen a few times. I can't believe the moral of such fellows!
• Fortunately, I had already received the statement which allowed residents to terminate the contract before the due date; you can leave your room if you don't feel comfortable under the condition that you notice your moving 28days in advance. Therefore, while I had been working on the paper, I had already had the idea to move, and finally told my intention to the bursar at the beginning of April. Then, I searched and viewed 2 rooms to let, and decided to leave the university hall by the end of April.
• I have to say I prefer the current lodging very much; the rent is cheaper by more than 100 pounds; the neighbourhood is very quiet because the building itself is located in a residential area in the suburb; now I have my own fridge, microwave, and heating cooker hob so that I can cook with those facilities. Cooking myself leads to save money again. Sleeping in the double bed is really comfortable, and the bathroom, which is very clean and quite brand new, is also only for myself; I can take a shower anytime, which is very powerful and supplies hot water plentifully. Furthermore, the landlord is very nice and generous; he showed me around the town when I brought my belongings to my room for the first time, and lets me use his washing machine, vacuum cleaner, and heater. The other day, he gave me a Day Travel Card because he didn't use it any more for that day. I had to attend the meeting at my college that day, so I really appreciated his kindness and made the most use of it; he knows I have to go to the college on Thursdays.
• I like the location of my room, but it takes one and half hours to commute to school. This will be only the demerit of the cheaper rent. Now I'm living in the south of the Thames, near Greenwich. I moved from the west to south east, which gave me a totally different environment. The old accommodation was very near the central of London, which would be very good for those who like an urban life and excitement; but for me, who was born and raised in the country, I found that the suburb would be more suitable. I walked around the neighbourhood last weekends, and took lots of pictures of the Thames, which are shown below.