Haven't started classes yet, but getting smarter and smarter every day!

On Thursday, our professor, Ellie, and her husband took us to an Evensong at Clare College. An Evensong is a worship service meant to mimic the experience we will have in heaven - the congregation is listening to God's praise rather than singing it themselves and the members of the choir are like the angels in heaven singing it. At least that's what I took out of the bulletin. It was a beautiful service sung by about 30 students. Did you know that real live students in England (in other words, not just in Harry Potter) wear dress robes? We'd seen a few walking around in them and there was a sign encouraging students attending the service to wear their robes. Someone pointed out yesterday that Harry Potter was based off England and not the other way around, but it's really hard not to compare everything to something in Harry Potter! Then Ellie took us (it's so great having her here!) to the Scott Polar Institute where we got to see the clothing, weapons, and tools of the natives, fur outfits worn to keep warm on the expeditions, a mini outfit for a five year old (so cute!), and read the last letters the members of the expedition wrote when they knew they were dying. We also got to try on a super big, puffy, heavy coat that you wear on a polar expedition- I felt like a kid at space camp. Not mention how cool I looked. Then Ellie took us to her flat in Downing College. There is a huge lawn area surrounded by faculty flats, the Downing Chapel, the Downing Dining Hall and Downing College Dorms. In America, she had compared it to the lawn, but I'll let you judge. After exploring a bit, Ellie had us up to her flat for tea and biscuits (mostly biscuits at this point, but I'm trying!!).

Another part of Cambridge that reminds me of Charlottesville? A bridge that Caity and I found while walking to the city. Emily had given us the directions that we "followed."Later, Emily saw the pictures of the bridge and asked where we found it- whoops! We obviously didn't go the right way...and of course had no idea until then. But, anyway, it's just like Beta Bridge in Charlottesville! Couldn't find it again if I tried, but hopefully we'll stumble upon it again after it's been repainted. It's beautiful!

You know that scene at the end of Love Actually when everyone is hugging and Hugh Grant and that girl he falls in love with are finally kissing, and that adorable British girl is singing All I want for Christmas? Well, today was kind of like that. Ellie plays violin in the City of Cambridge Symphony Orchestra and did a showing of Peter and the Wolf by Prokofiev, Flight of the Bumble Bee by Rimsky-Korsakov and many other children's songs. The music was beautiful and it was so fun to see Ellie perform; not to mention the adorable kids in the audience-"Mummy, can we dance? Mummy, may I have a snack? Mummy, I've got to go to the toilet." Then, Caity and I (sucessfully!! we tried using a map this time...) walked back home and went grocery shopping! Tomorrow we are going on a walk through the Grantchester meadows (cue Pink Floyd. But really - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vfZPNQPNw-U) and then off to a pub for lunch and one of many five o'clock church services!