Another Week in Paradise

Last week, though less busy, was still full of amazing things. 

On Monday, a couple friends and I went to the National Gallery again for our final assignment there (sad!). This time, we were charged with seeing the Impressionists, who are probably my favorite group of artists. This one, called Wheat Field With Cypresses, is another treasured Van Gogh painting of mine. Thing is, I'd never actually seen or heard of it before! Its bright and cheerful colors called to me, and I could see what Van Gogh did when he painted it. Even now, this painting cheers me up. 

I saw this building as we walked back from the Tate Britain museum. It just screamed for me to take its picture. 

The next day, Tuesday, we hopped over to Oxford University. This is the Church of St. Mary, the first building we stopped into after buying some university sweaters. Fun fact: this church has stood for more than a thousand years. Incredible, isn't it?

Hi there, Bodleian Library! It was the second library on my list of must-see libraries around the world. (The first was the Library of Alexandria, but seeing as how that hasn't existed for roughly two thousand years, I had to skip it.) Our tour only took us to the oldest part--but oh, what a treat it was! I didn't take it, but the middle picture shows the interior. During our tour inside, all I wanted to do was curl up with one of the ancient tomes on the shelves and read for the rest of the day. Dark, near silent, and smelling of paper and ink, the library reminded me what a treasure knowledge and books are. 

Here are a few miscellaneous pictures from around Oxford. The dignified intelligence was palpable. 

These are several pictures from Magdalen College, which housed a certain C. S. Lewis during his university days. I walked where he walked! On aesthetics alone, it isn't difficult to see why he chose it. As we walked around, I was seized by this burning desire to attend Oxford. What would it be like, to traverse these grounds as a brilliant, young student from England? I could see myself living a different life there, and it made me sad. I had to remind myself that my life, the one I have right now, is full and lovely, too. 

Last Friday, we toured St. Paul's Cathedral as a program. I loved it. No photography was allowed inside, so my apologies for not sharing the love. I will tell you, though, the inside blew me away. St. Paul's is immense, boasting gorgeous murals, mosaics, statues, and gold detailing. Of course, the dome's interior take the cake. The detail on it was stunning. One of my favorite parts was standing above the dome and overlooking London--my beautiful, beautiful city. If you look closely at the middle picture, you can see the London Eye. Afterwards, my friends and I grabbed some lunch from Paul's right next door. My sandwich and chocolate tart were a perfect finish to the day.

All these pictures came from Camden Market last Saturday. I never knew a street market could have such breadth and depth! It seemed to go on forever. Markets like this remind me just how vast a city like London is--as huge as the market was, there were people enough to fill it. Also, can we take a second to appreciate the hilarity of that sweater? Home Alone, anyone? How strange to think that Christmas is so nearby...