This trip to London was truly an amazing experience and opportunity. There is so much history within one city and so much of it relates back to the United States. It was also interesting to see the blending of so many different cultures, which was made very evident from all of the different types of food on every corner. The architecture was so amazing, and it was really interesting seeing so many different styles of architecture so close to each other. Wandering through a narrow medieval street with lots of old buildings only to find the Walkie Talkie at the end of the street was such a juxtapostion. But when you wander though London, seeing things like that is not abnormal. There is just such a successful blending of the new with the old. But even with all of this, I was slightly underwhelmed, perhaps my expectations were just to high. It didn’t feel like we were in a different country, possibly because there was no language barier or perhaps the fact that a lot of our culture comes from England. I felt like I was just in an older part of the United States where they happened to have different accents, which isn’t unreasonable since every part of the US has a different accent. Overall I really enjoyed the trip and I do want to go back and see everything I didn’t get a chance to, but I would probably go back to Germany or Switzerland first.
Author: Kayla Eland
A Step Back in Time
For our free day I thought it would be interesting to visit the Tower of London and Hampton Court Palace. I am really interested in the Tudor dynasty andtherefore believed that it was necessary to see thsee buildings that were so important at the time. Both of them closed at the same time, so I knew that this was going to be a very busy and fast paced day.
The first thing I did when I got to the towet was go on one of the Beefeater tours. It was really entertaining and pretty informative. What was really nice was that since they live inside the Tower they have some personal experiences and inside knowledge that they can share. After the tour I went through a lot of the tower, but I couldn’t see everything I wanted to because I had a long trip to Hampton Court.
Getting to Hampton court proved to be much more of a hassle then I anticipated, so it took longer then I would have like to get there. Because of that I only got to see the palace and not the gardens, but I’m not to upset because most of them were added after the Tudor dynasty. The palace was fascinating, but they made it a little cheesy and were trying way to hard to entertain people. For example, they had a soundtrack going in the kitChen so that it sounded like there were workers there. Ignoring that fact, I loved seeing the structure and how it would have been set up during Henry VIII’s reign. There were small little details representing his wives throughout the entire palace, showing the progression of when the remodeling was done. I just love the fact that such an important part of history has been preserved so well and the attempt to show you what things actually looked like when Henry lived there. It would have been amazing if I could have seen the tennis courts, but I couldn’t find a way to get to them sadly.
Stourhead
Going to Stourhead was probably one of the highlights of this trip. It was so picturesque and it felt completely surreal being there. All I could think about was the fact that this was someone’s backyard and how amazing it would be to have a yard like that.
We just had so much fun walking around and feeling like children again. There were so many trees that would have made the perfect clubhouses! So many looked so climbable as well! I just wanted to climb one tree and read a book, but it was not the time or place. Hanging out within tight tree groves by the waters edge was something that was acceptable and fun though.
It felt like the grotto was a gem that you stumbled upon when you turn the corner. The stones were so old and beautifully placed, creating a magical cave. The windows framed the other foldies in the garden flawlessly, adding to the picturesque experience of the garden.
I also loved seeing the pantheon follie, but I wish I had seen the real pantheon beforehand. We talked to one of the workers and he told us that the follie is exactly 1/5th the size of the actual pantheon. He also told us about the statues inside and how they represent gods and goddesses from different cultures. It was really informative taliking to him and made the experience in the gardens that much better.
Trip to Greenwich
Today was probably the highlight of the trip so far. Riding on the boat to Greenwich was so much fun, and it really let you see London from a different vantage point. It was a bit chilly, but the view was worth it and the crew was hilarious. I absolutely loved their little tour of the city, they kept their information informative but light.
Greenwich was beautiful, I just wish the palaces that the Tudors were born in were still their. I also really wish we could have gone into the Queens house, but also appreciate that they are maintaining its beauty.
The chapels were absolutely amazing! I loved the detail and intricacy in the painted chapel was unbelievable. The perspective that was created through painting was very impressive. I really appreciate the nods to the nautical lifestyle through out the St. Paul and St. Peter chapel. The rest of it was so ornate and then you would see a subtle anchor or mermaid.
It was also nice to relax in Greenwich with some new friends after we were done for the day. We did a little shopping and found my new favorite store. While we were shopping we had a good time talking to the workers in the store and they recommended restaurants for us to try in the area. Of course, the top recommend place was Jamie Oliver’s Italian restaurant. It was the best food we have had since getting here and we had so much fun talking to the waiters and bartenders. The whole experience was just so enjoyable and really relaxing, exactly what I needed after the long walk yesterday.
First Day in London!
It was very exciting to be in London for the first time, because there is so much history throughout the city. We started our day off with a short walk near our hotel, which included seeing the AA (Architecture Association). Later during the evening and a visiting student who is friends with CeCe gave us a tour of the studios. Seeing the AA was really exciting for me, because I had spent the first part of this semester doing research about it during its prime under Boyarsky.
We took the bus over towards St. Paul’s cathedral, but before going in we walked over towards the Barbican Center. I was so impressed with how well the center was layed out and how pleasent it was to be in the courtyards. I have always know brutalist buildings to be slightly heavy and uninviting, but this complex was a complete gem. It really further deepened my appreciation for brutalism, although I have always been a fan.
On the way toback towards St. Paul’s we saw some parts of the old Roman walls. It helped as a reminder of just how old this city really is and how impressive it’s structures have always been.
Finally we made it to St. Pauls, which was extremely impressive. The sheer size of the cathedral is overwhelming and is by far the largest I have been inside. What was really amazing was that you could climb all the way to the top and get a glorious view of the city’s skyline. The engineering involved in creating the domes is phenomenal amd it was great to see it up close. Although, I do think I preferred the crypts, partially becau
se there were less stairs and partially because they were simply elegent. The ornate decorations of the cathedral are toned down, letting the bones of the architecture speak for itself.
My Bio
Hi, my name is Kayla Eland and I am currently a graduating Senior studying Architecture with a Landscape Architecture minor here at OSU. I grew up in Bay Village, Ohio, which is a small suburb on the west side of Cleveland that is directly on the lake. I am probably most excited about seeing the Tate Modern while we are in London because I have grown to really appreciate Herzog and de Meuron over my past trips to Europe and I also really love large art exhibitions. I am also hoping that I can catch a play on night, becsuse I have grown up going to the theatre and have always heard that London is the Broadway of Europe.