Preparations for Capitals of Europe Tour

       Two weeks from tomorrow, I will be leaving for a 12-day excursion to London, Paris, Prague, and Berlin. Needless to say, I'm ecstatic about leaving the Midwest and visiting four amazing cities that I have never been to before. The whole trip is quickly becoming a reality as I buy new clothes (H&M is a dream. So glad they have them in Europe!), pack up my passport, re-load my Visa Traveler card, and receive a new set of luggage from my grandparents. It's been three years since my trip to Spain, and I am beyond ready to be in Europe again.

       I'm viewing this trip as a little taster of what the next year will hold - a chance to learn a bit about traveling with friends, work the kinks out of my packing strategies (Yep, that will be quite a process, I'm sure), familiarize myself with the transportation systems, and decide where I'll need to go back to (Paris!). I hope to do most of the big "tourist-y" things this time around so that next year I can really explore and not worry about making it to Buckingham Palace just to say I've seen it.  I hope the group of students I'm going with are adventurous and willing to dive into the history and culture of each city.

       This will be a much needed break after the stressful, boring semester I've had. It's been mostly work and little play. I need some play now, and I'm really looking forward to playing in Europe.

Lawrence of Arabia

I read an article today about T.E. Lawrence (http://www.hoover.org/publications/policy-review/article/73171) that I found very interesting and sparked my curiousity. I've seen the film "Lawrence of Arabia" a number of times and find it breathtaking. This article, which reviews a new biography of Lawrence, attempts to give a glimpse of the man as he really was.

I plan on adding one of Lawrence's books to my ever-growing summer reading list. He is such a legendary figure and has such an interesting life story. I'm also intrigued by a phrase from the article above: the "brutality of dreamers" - the military careers of men such as Lawrence and Byron. This idea of the armed poet, the sensitive warrior is something that seems worthy of investigation... maybe a thesis... Hmmm....

New thesis idea -  "Brutal Dreamers: The English Warrior Poet"

Note: Add Lawrence's home is Dorset (2 hours from London) to literary tour!

The BBC

I've started counting down: 5 weeks from today, Capitals of Europe trip. 23 weeks until London. :)

One of the silly things I've really looking forward to is watching shows on the BBC. Over the past year, I've been drawn into watching (and purchasing) all 3 seasons of "Robin Hood" as well as watching the first 3 seasons of "Merlin." The geeky girl in me absolutely loved them, and I will forever have little crushes on Richard Armitage and Bradley James. While I'm in London, I will be able to watch series 4 of Merlin when the episodes premiere, and I am really excited about that.

I of course plan to spend a lot of time traveling, but those one or two nights a week that I stay in to relax will definitely involve BBC. Almost all of my favorite American shows have ended (Friends, Lost) or will be ending (Friday Night Lights, The Office?) soon, so I plan on becoming somewhat of a British tv junky who enjoys watching the quirky shows to learn all about English humor. The process has already begun. For example, I learned some new vocabulary: a "prat" is an arrogant person and  "bloody heck" is a less vulgar substitute for full-out swearing.

I'd like to share a little bit of the Bradley James love that's taken root in my too-impressionable heart. Enjoy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rj__OhnbqxE&feature=related