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.