and o! this small world

Home.

I have seen so much; each small pocket of the world seems connected only by a flight through the air above 35,000 feet. Each sphere is special with its wonderful people and fantastic landscape, unique in their own way.

It was hard to leave England, especially because the weather was so warm and lovely, when Scotland had been so spectacular. Loch Lomond, Glencoe, Edinburgh, and Glasgow -- it's definitely a place I would like to return to.

Glencoe, Scotland

When I arrived in Halifax, it was raining harder than it had been while I was in England. But Joel was waiting on that other side.

I had the opportunity of meeting many special people while in Nova Scotia; the people who Joel can call family. I was greeted in the congregation as someone who was already known and accepted. They are amazing people - they ought to be, as they managed to coerce me into playing ball hockey. (Ps, I scored.) After being apart for four months, to be together again, to have conversations without an ocean in between, was an incredible blessing. Our goodbye this morning was only for a week, as he's coming back to Ontario next weekend for a very brief visit.

at Peggy's Cove, Nova Scotia

And now I'm home. Another pocket of family. Back to a semblance of what is considered to be 'normality'.

But life's always an adventure, no matter where you are.

at the end of the day

I dreamed a dream, and tonight it came true. The 25th anniversary of Les Miserables at the Queen's Theatre in London, England.

Extremely contented sigh.

Now for less than four hours of sleep, and we're off again.

my bags are packed, but i'm not ready to go

This past week has been an absolute blur. Monday concluded our exams, and Tuesday marked our last day to wander through Oxford (doing the last minute touristy stuff like eating at the Eagle and Child and going to one more service at Christ Church).

We were introduced to Wednesday with extensive drama practice from about 9.30 in the morning to roughly 10.00 at night (with long breaks in between, don't worry). Thursday was a repeat. Friday showed us that we can actually put on a performance with amateurs and limited practice time. Looking back, it was a lot of fun and we did end up enjoying ourselves, the mistakes and the bloopers and the small things going on behind the scenes definitely made the evening memorable.

the cast plus Glena, our director

from left to right:

Wickham, Miss Bingley (also Lady Catherine),

Lydia, Mrs Bennet, Mr Bennet,

Elizabeth, Mary (also Charlotte),

Jane, Mr Darcy, Mr Bingley (also Mr Collins)

The goodbyes started on Saturday; we cleaned the church, dissembled the room which had been our little home at the Baptist Church, and then lay about soaking up the sunshine for the rest of the afternoon (yes, some of us actually have tans. Take that, Canada. It's 20 degrees here, and it's only April), wandering about the town and fawning over the lambs frolicking in the fields - although I still haven't seen one prancing about.

Marion and Andrew opened up their home to us again for the "last hurrah" - a traditional meal of fish and chips.

And now it's Sunday. We've said farewell to the Baptist congregation, our flights and hostels are booked for Scotland for the next week, I, at least, have my bags packed and weighed (and am still under the limit, which means I could have bought those books at Blackwell's), and all that is left is to put the finishing touches on my essay which is to be resubmitted. And tomorrow we leave. They say time flies when you're having fun and it really has. I can't believe that three months have slipped away so suddenly.

Our bus leaves at 7.30 tomorrow morning to London.

Until I arrive in Halifax, cheerio!

the road it goes ever on and on

Today was our last day in Oxford.

Time passes so quickly.

i'm still here

It's amazing how quickly essay and exam time rolls around again. This week has been peppered with classes, presentations, fieldtrips to Rousham and Bath, and mad dashes to the library to snag a couple of hours of research time.

Research always leaves you in want of more, but time is restraining.

The essay I am working on right now is relating Bakhtin's theory of the dialogic imagination, that all forms of speech or writing implies a relationship between the speaker (or writer) and listener (or reader), with Jane Austen's use of letters in her novels, as remnants of the epistolary novel which was just dying out when she began writing.

I think it's interesting, but I've heard otherwise.

down and south

I have just spent a wonderful week with mom, traipsing about the English countryside with nothing but a little tourist map. The modes of transportation: trains, buses, steam trains, and foot. Most definitely the latter.

Saturday: train from Oxford to Bournemouth, bus from Bournemouth to Swanage. We stayed in a nice bed and breakfast in the heart of Swanage, as big as it is, and walked to the water in the evening to shake off the itches which come from traveling for some time.

Sunday: a huge breakfast, a quiet morning, a nice service at a local church, one steam train trip to Corfe Castle, one amazing and historic castle. William the Conqueror began building it shortly after his conquest in 1066. Since him, the castle has been added to throughout the centuries, and was finally destroyed by gunpowder in order to prevent people from taking refuge in it (as it is in a prime location for defense).

Monday: today, we walked from Corfe Castle to Lulworth in a very roundabout way, culminating in walking for about nine hours, most of it unnecessary. The sun was out, which truly contributed to our positive attitudes. The search for the best and cheapest place to stay continued our adventure: as Dutch people, we wanted the best deal, but the youth hostel was completely locked up, so we ended up staying in an inn with a delightfully cozy pub which served a satisfying Jamaican hot pot for dinner.

Tuesday: once again, sun! And a chance to see Lulworth in the light. From Lulworth, we walked to Wool in order to get to Lyme Regis by nightfall. The weather could not have been more beautiful; we ended up hiking around in tank-tops because the sun shone so brilliantly.

Wednesday: an early morning amble on the Cobb, once again followed by a hearty breakfast (I have never eaten such large breakfasts in that many consecutive mornings), a last walk about the town before making the long journey home to Charlbury.

Thursday: we had planned to visit Milton's cottage, but it involved a lot of planning and organization, so we went to Oxford to have a proper English tea instead with tea and sandwiches and scones and clotted cream and cake . . . We had walked off the calories on Monday.

Swanage

Corfe Castle

sheep and lambs

Lulworth Cove

Lyme Regis, home of the Cobb

It was truly amazing to see places which have been written about, places that have just been a dot on a tourist map. Time after time of feeling disappointed and thinking that all our plans have been ruined, God provided for us again and again.

This countryside is lovely and I have enjoyed my time here, but the prospect of going home is becoming a favourable one.

"austenacious"

Today was another of these absolutely glorious sunny days here in England, perfect for seeing the countryside and Jane Austen territory. To begin with, we were given a tour of a four hundred year old home which is still inhabited today and has the original thatched roofing. Things like this are so remarkable.

Then it was off to Steventon, where Jane Austen was born and grew up. The home is no longer there, but the church most definitely is.

the church in Steventon which the Austens attended

From Steventon, we went off to Chawton, where the Austens moved after their father died. It was in this house that Austen revised her works and prepared them for publication.

Jane Austen's writing desk

We made a very quick stop at Chawton House, just long enough to get the Reader's Digest tour of the house, and then bundled back on the bus to head back to Charlbury.

Chawton House, owned by Edward Austen

The 'food for a rambling fancy' album on the side contains more pictures from today.

a bit of brightening

Our trip to Blenheim Palace was postposed due to the poor weather last week. To make up for the disappointment, today was warm and delightfully sunny.

I wander'd lonely as a cloud

that floats on high o'er vales and hills,

when all at once I saw a crowd,

a host, of golden daffodils;

beside the lake, beneath the trees,

fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

Continuous as the stars that shine

and twinkle on the Milky Way,

they stretch'd in never-ending line

along the margin of a bay:

ten thousand saw I at a glance,

tossing their heads in sprightly dance.

The waves beside them danced; but they

out-did the sparkling waves in glee:

a poet could not but be gay,

in such jocund company:

I gazed -- and gazed -- but little thought

what wealth the show to me had brought:

for oft, when on my couch I lie

in vacant or in pensive mood,

they flash upon that inward eye

which is the bliss of solitude;

and then my heart with pleasure fills,

and dances with the daffodils.

- William Wordsworth

a wonderful time of the year

It's course selection time :)

This means trying to fit as many courses as possible into a single school year. Right?