Still With Me?

Hi Everyone!

Are you still with me?! I realize it has been a week since I posted last and I am so sorry about that!

I have been doing work for the past three hours today so I decided to take a break, eat some Oatmeal (walnuts and raisins included) and write to you all :)

I was away this past weekend with the group and with mid-term essays and presentations coming up, I have been feeling a bit under the weather! Sore throat, sinus pressure, low energy...all great together. Nothing a Benadryl and prayer can't fix, right? 

My weekend away was so great. Stratford, Oxford, Bath all in one weekend! So much.

**DISCLAIMER: It rains everywhere.. all the time.. at least once a day, so you will see me wearing my periwinkle rain jacket in almost all pictures. 

While in Stratford, we saw the play Macbeth. I have NEVER seen such a gory play. Granted...it IS Macbeth. If you don't know the plot of this play, then basically just think of Macbeth becoming king because he kills the current king, Macbeth killing loads more of people, Macbeth getting killed, plus a few creepy witches being played by children. I honestly had to turn my head a few times. (I've never been a fan of scary things/movies/plays). Let's just say...Macbeth is a tragedy. Afterwards, my theatre class got to speak with the actor who played Macbeth. John is his name and it was SO weird to see the man off stage who i just saw get killed 30 minutes before hand. I think it was a good time for incite in to an actor's life. He spoke on how he keeps his work life separate from his personal life which was something I sure wanted to know. "Easy", he said. Hm...alrighty. 

Morning after Macbeth, our group went and saw Shakespeare's birth place and well as the church he is buried. Afterwards, we went to Shakespeare's wife's, Anne Hathaway, house where it is said that Shakespeare courted Anne. Did you know that Shakespeare was only 18 when he married 26 year old Anne? T'was a "shot gun wedding" they said. 

Being back in Oxford was awesome! Although it came with a few raindrops, I really love being in Oxford. Since i had been in Oxford less than a week before, i recognized a lot i was seeing. I made sure to go back to the market to get some of "Ben's Cookies" I had seen the week before with Jimmie. Literally...divine tasting.

     Staying in Bath grew on me. At first, I was wary of the lack of people, but then i just realized the next day that the whole town must go to bed by seven each night. It's fine. Saturday afternoon, our whole group took a bus tour of Bath and then toured the famous Roman Baths. This is where the Romans would come to not only bath, but most importantly come to socialize and have community. 

bus tour

roman baths

From there on out, we had the whole day FREE. What ever shall we do? We went to Sally Lunn's-fantastic sandwich lunch place that prides itself on being the oldest house in Bath. Tea was had there most definitely. 

roasted vegetables and sun-dried tomato sandwich + House Tea 

We then ventured off to the Jane Austin Exhibition. I have never read any of Jane Austin's books, but after that exhibition, I went out and bought her book, Pride and Prejudice! Of course, i have seen that movie because my suite-mates played it about every week in our suit last year, but as anyone knows...the book is usually better. Can't wait to dive in. 

Sunday, we did a couple things. First, we toured the Wilton House where Pride and Prejudice was filmed. This house was like nothing i have ever seen before. It was so beautiful, big, crisp, and historical. The gardens lasted forever. I felt as though i could get lost in the rose gardens and run underneath the flower arches. Reminded me of the Secret Garden. 

Wilton House

Secondly, we went to Stonehenge. Another unique experience to check off the list! Here is our group picture :)

Throughout these unique travels, it can feel easy to get caught up in the bigness of the experiences (or houses, gardens, cities). However, through these experiences, I remind myself exactly where I really stand. I stand in the presence of God who is guiding me all along the way. We serve a big God! Every day I am reminded of how much he pursues me no matter where I am! I encourage you all to feel his pursuit today.