Grecian Urns at the British Museum

There were so many great pieces of art at the British museum and I was particularly blown away by the Ancient Egyptian exhibits. However, the Grecian Urn exhibit was of particular interest to me.
I spent a great deal of time in the Grecian Urn exhibits with “Ode on a Grecian Urn” by Keats in mind.  For anyone interested in reading the poem, here is a link to a website that discusses the poem and displays a copy: http://englishhistory.net/keats/poetry/odeonagrecianurn.html
I began searching for urns that might inspire me, and found several.  I captured two of my favorites:

I think what is most intriguing about these urns is that each tells its own story –it’s no wonder Keats was so inspired.

Comedy of Errors at the Globe Theater

This production of a Comedy of Errors is the only one I have seen of this play;  to have seen it in The Globe, then, was a truly wonderful gift.  While most of our group would admit that we had an obstructed view of the stage due to the placement of some pillars, it was still a really great experience and a really fun, lively performance (as Shakespearean comedies should be).  While I wasn’t particularly blown away by the stage set up, I can appreciate the simplicity of it: the actors were very interactive with the front of the house, and made strong efforts to break down the “fourth wall”…and, eventually, part of the stage as well!

A Discovery on a Tour of Jack the Ripper

A small group got together after a few days in London and decided we should like to take the Jack the Ripper tour.  The tour revealed a lot of information I hadn’t known prior to the trip, and while it was fascinating and tragic, we made a really interesting discovery when the tour guide stopped under an archway:

It reads: “This structure marks the location of the historic Aldgate–where Chaucer lived from 1374-1386–and the start of High Street 2012, the route to the Olympics at Stratford.  The Design of a “Palace on Pillars” by Studio Weave is inspired by the two dream poems written by Chaucer while resident in the rooms above the gate: “The House of Fame” and “The Parliament of Fowls”.

I think it is so great that despite the tragedies being discussed on the tour, we came upon a really cool piece of history (and literature!!)
(I researched the poems recently and decided it would be best not to post the 2,000+  and 700+ line poems (; )

St. Bartholomew-the-Great

During an unforgettable walking tour of Shakespeare and Dickens, we stumbled upon a church at West Smithfield in London.  There was great debate as to whether or not we should all go in, as we had neither planned nor set aside money to tour the inside of the church.  After brief deliberation, however, Richard, our completely lovely tour guide admitted to us that it would surely be a wonderful experience.
Once again my camera work does not do the subject justice, but it’s still worth sharing.  This church was a truly haunting, beautiful surprise: many of us were brought to tears upon entry (and that wasn’t completely due to the absolute haze of incense).  I daresay no one spoke for a few minutes because it was such a full, overwhelming experience:

Upon first entry-Priory Church of St. Bartholomew

This church was first established in 1123, and the walls simply radiate with age.
It was difficult when we had to leave.

The British Library

The King’s Collection

If I may be excused for the poorest angle ever taken, we can focus on what is partially captured in this photo:
The King’s Collection [Library] in the British Library certainly stole the tour (with the exception of setting eyes on the original Beowulf manuscript).  These texts are encased in a six-story structure. This collection was assembled and belonged to King George III and contains over 65,000 volumes of literature which ranges from a copy of the first edition of The  Canterbury Tales to various Histories.  That King George III understood the importance of these texts and valued literature came to a surprise to our group, but it was an enlightening, lovely surprise at that.

Oh, yes, and at the end of the tour I certainly ate like a king…and paid for it (on peasant’s wages):

Expectations for My Time in London and Rome

What am I not expecting? I am fully expecting (and somehow certain) that I will find a home in London.  I have always felt drawn to England and I can’t wait to fulfill a lifelong need to visit.  As for Rome, I am ready to be awe-inspired by the buildings, the architecture, the art.  The sheer antiquity of these places, past empires, the history that lives on through these cities, is what draws me. I think overall I am ready to begin a quest, to steal from a previous post, for questions that I believe all of us have. I can’t begin to decide what I think my own life means to me if I haven’t experienced other parts of this planet.

As for fears: I fear only that it will end. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Art of Travel

In Alain de Botton’s Art of Travel, the particular section which really struck me was section 2 of “On Anticipation”:

If our lives are dominated by a search for happiness, then perhaps few activities reveal as much about the dynamics of this quest–in all its ardour and paradoxes–than our travels.  They express, however inarticulately, an understanding of what life might be about, outside of the constraints of work and of the struggle for survival…

 

This is a huge statement, but it is one that I feel (and can only hope) is true.  I feel that our travels (most especially mine which are to come in just days) begin my quest  for “happiness”, and for questions that probably will go unanswered. At the very least, they are questions I will get to ponder even further through the simplicity of going somewhere new. I think that is something we can all be sure travel will do: teach.  If we don’t step outside the confines of our daily lives, how can we ever be sure to get at what it really means to “live”.  That’s an abstract question, indeed. But it is a question I will always strive to answer, and the art of travel is one of the best ways I see fit. 

Miribilia Urbis Romae (The Marvels of Rome)–X

 

Trajan’s Column

 

In part X of The Marvels of Rome (a Medieval text), is a short discussion of “The Pillars of Antoninus and Trajan, and the Ancient Images of Rome” where it is stated that all of the statues and pillars and sights in Rome are “so beyond measure that people who came to the city had good reason to marvel at Rome’s beauty” (X, The Marvels of Rome).  I would make a small amendment to that and say that these images must be so beyond measure that people still have good reason to marvel, even today.  

 

The Aeneid

The Aeneid is such an interesting read not only for its antiquity, but also because the poem uses Roman gods who were influenced  by Greek mythology.  I think that alone proves that a good story can live on and be recycled numerous times…people are still capitalizing on myths and are fascinated by the stories, and the Aeneid must surely be no exception. 
Despite this “founding poem” being myth, there are still elements within the text that I think readers today can still relate to.  The most notable being Dido’s love and ultimate rejection by Aeneas.

Not to mention, it’s written beautifully  (at least, translated beautifully): 

What good are shrines and vows to maddened lovers?
The inward fire eats the soft marrow away, 
And the internal wound bleeds on in silence. (Book IV)

 

Spring–Four Seasons

Spring in Rome

In the Spring, after Doerr’s wife is hospitalized for fainting, Doerr is contemplating his time in Rome and what he has thus far gained from the experience: 

We came to Rome because we’d always regret it if we didn’t, because every timidity eventually turns into regret.  But the enormity of what I don’t know about this place never ceases to amaze me…we ought to understand the earth we live on, its skies, its stones.  We ought to understand why we live the lives we live.  (140)

Despite Doerr’s fears of not yet understanding Rome and his back and forth contemplation in the remainder of this passage, I think this quote encapsulates the very reason for travel; it’s a way to fulfill the need to explore and try to understand the planet on which we live. Hopefully by doing this, we can better understand each other (and ourselves).