samesies

So, different country is different.  I swear I didn't mean for that to come out as a meme.  BUT the actual city of Bath isn't so much of a different world from the city of Charleston.

THEY ARE EVEN KIND OF THE SAME SHAPE.

Bath is surrounded by a river rather than a harbor, and Bath is significantly smaller, but ISN'T THAT SO WEIRD???  A lot of the sidewalks in Bath are paved with the same flagstones as King Street, and the most posh bits of both cities are located near the tips.  Bath Abbey stands out as 16th Century Norman, but most of the rest of the city is Georgian and dates to the 18th and 19th centuries so even the architecture looks similar to parts of Charleston.  Or rather parts of Charleston look similar to Bath.

I'm living at point A, so the city center is just a short walk down a really steep hill away.  I think the hill might actually be called Beechen Cliff and the stairs down tend to be covered in damp leaves, so don't be surprised if I die or break something.  Point B is my University, which is super tiny and completely lovely.  I've been taking the bus, and though it's only five miles, the commute is about 45 minutes since my nearest bus stop is a 15ish minute walk.  I intend to acquire a bike soon so I can sleep in an extra half hour. :)

 
This is the whole university.  Well, actually this is just the Newton Park campus, but it's the only one I go to.  There are three other campuses--one for arts, one for education, and one for... I want to say nursing or something?  Mine is the main campus and is home to the social sciences and whatnot.  I'm completely obsessed with the fields and hills that surround it, and I'll get some real pictures on one of the deliciously foggy mornings we keep having.

And one last map for the geographically challenged so you can see where I actually am in the world:

JK guys.  I don't think you're actually geographically challenged.  Most people know London and that's it.  If you don't know where England is though, you are definitely geographically challenged and should immediately start spending as much time on google maps as I do.  Bath is about 13 miles from Bristol, which is where they film Skins.  I never got to stalk Rachel Maddow in Noho last semester, but I will absolutely attempt to stalk Dakota Blue Richards.  And Matt Smith should go ahead and start expecting me because there is NO WAY I will leave this country without crashing the set of Doctor Who in Cardiff.

I kind of keep forgetting that Harry Potter is also actually of English origin.  I should add them to my 'to be stalked' list.  But Emma Watson is in Providence, Rhode Island.  She should have been on last semester's list with Rachel. 

meet edgar

 

This sweet little owl is named Edgar and was handmade by a friend of mine!   I decided to bring him with me to the UK as my travel companion/garden gnome and is likely to appear in place of myself in most of my 'tourist' shots as traveling with a tripod is inconvenient and photographing oneself in public is a bit embarrassing.

I named him Edgar on a whim--it was just the first name that cam to me when I saw him--but I found out yesterday that the first King of a united England was Edgar, crowned AD973 at what is now Bath Abbey.  How do I do it?

 

I had a surprisingly late start date of 31 Jan at Bath Spa, so I was lucky enough to be able to spend almost a month in Charleston.  Thank you so much to Becca, Nina, Anna (and Eric and Thea), and Ben (and Laura and Jonathan) for giving me rides and places to stay!  I loved seeing your faces and spending time with you.  I don't know why my writing is so formal right now.  I suppose being in England is turning me a bit posh.  I've started thinking in this really posh accent and it feels weird to speak because it comes out in plain old american.

Look at me being american in america!  I was crazy not to visit the battery or waterfront park while I was there, but I did manage to get down to one of my favorite spots in Charleston--this little lake/park at the end of Bull near the Ashley River.

The thing about Charleston is that I had to leave to figure out just how much I love it there.  Massachusetts was great but it lacked radical and academic queers and I didn't really meet anyone who inspired me to activism the way Charlestonians do.  And I know I'm going to love England (already formulating plans to live in Bristol before even seeing the damn place), but Charleston: