Cambridge: Heading Home

                Well, I’m sitting on a plane on my way back from Cambridge, home after two more months of study abroad, this time in the UK. Time has gone by so fast, and it’s time for some final reflections before I log off until the fall semester starts in a couple of weeks. First, though, I have a few more adventures to report.

                I had planned to see the Cambridge Shakespeare Festival’s Midsummer Night’s Dream before Berlin, but it was rained out, so I ended up going on Wednesday. It still sprinkled, but it was very good, and certainly better than it had been in the middle of the worst downpour we’ve had all summer. I also went punting with friends on Friday (by which I mean a couple of them punted and I sat in the boat) as well as going to a performance of Much Ado About Nothing, which was excellent and did full justice to the comedy aspect of things.

                In addition, I went to London for a day trip with a friend on Thursday. This time, I took the time to stand in line for an hour to go into the Sherlock Holmes museum at 221B Baker Street, which was tiny but I think worth it, and then we wandered through Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens and took some pictures before rushing back to sit down just in time to catch Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theater, where it originated (they had large discounts for this particular performance). The music was stupendous – not a word I use often – especially for someone who both enjoys epic music in general, and has read the book in question.

                As soon as the curtain went down we rushed back to the train station and Cambridge, which thankfully arrived back in Cambridge soon enough that we could change and take pictures before the final Formal Hall. And after the formal hall my friends here gave me an informal birthday celebration, which included a luxurious chocolate cake. It’s been a busy week - silly me, to think I was going to rest when I finished finals.

                But now, on to final thoughts, not only about Cambridge, but about my six months of study abroad this year. Cambridge has been wonderful – not only for the substantial conversations, deepened philosophies, and budding friendships that have made it such an enjoyable haven for me, but for all the opportunities I’ve had to travel, tour, and learn. Of course, I’m looking forward to coming back to the States, to one-stop general store shopping, single-sex showers, scarcity of spiders, and the social stigma of cigarettes. (I promise I didn’t mean that sentence to alliterate as much as it did.)

                Studying abroad has definitely taught me a great deal. It’s made me more independent, for one thing; I can go on international trips by myself with few worries, catching buses, planes, trains, and taxis as needed, navigating in several different languages, and getting my to-do lists done. I’ve also had the chance to slow down a little because of the reduced extra-curricular and study commitments; for the first time in my college career, I’ve had a lot of time for independent study, touring, relaxing, and hanging out with friends. I’ve had some of the best times in my academic career in Israel and Cambridge.

                I’ve had a great time traveling and touring and learning, but I’ve also been inspired – or rather, my inspiration is getting its second wind, if you’ll excuse whatever multi-lingual mixed metaphor that is. (Maybe I just alliterate when I’m tired?) I was always suspicious of people or organizations who claimed to ‘change the world’. In one sense, the world is always changing, whether you do anything about it or not. In another sense, human nature is not going to change, and Star Trek’s idea that science could somehow jumpstart an altruistic utopia is painfully naïve.

                All the same, I want to make an impact on the world. I don’t particularly want success or fame or power for their own sake – or at least I’d like to think I don’t. Perhaps it’s better expressed, I don’t want to be successful or famous or powerful for its own sake, but I want to be able to get things done and influence people for the better and succeed in doing those things, and the latter might entail the former, if that makes sense. I don’t know what lies ahead as I start my third year of college, but I hope I’ll make it count and live up to my potential.

                And with that, I’m done with my sleep-deprived self-analysis, and I wish you all a good end of summer and back-to-school season until I start posting for the fall semester. See you then!

Pictures: Okay, we made it to North Carolina, so I have time to update now! Thank you to the friends who took my picture!

At the Sherlock Holmes Museum:

Moriarty, Milverton, and me:

Hyde Park/Kensington Gardens

This was one of the dishes at Formal Hall. I know; we had a menu, but we didn't know what it was, either.

Before Formal Hall, in front of King's College Chapel:

My birthday cake :)

A last walk around King's College at sunrise before leaving for the airport:

Birthday in Berlin

                Well, I’m back from my last foray into the Continent for the summer. I had a busy but very lovely time and saw a bunch. And now there are only a few days left until I’m headed home. It’s hard to believe everything’s gone by so quickly – that two decades of my life have gone by so quickly – but there it is. In a couple of weeks I’ll be starting my junior year of college. Enough of the musing, though. On to Berlin!

                It was a rather long trip, quality-wise. I rushed from one final to the other in the morning, then grabbed lunch and rushed to the bus stop for my trip as soon as the last exam was done. It was raining, the bus was late, the plane was noisy, and the trains were just plain confusing, but I finally made it to the hotel, roughly on time, and was able to collapse into bed.

                My first day in Berlin started with a tour of the Reichstag – or at least, of the observation dome on top of the Reichstag. For historical reasons, the German government is very concerned with transparency and decentralization, but at the same time, they have to guard against terrorism, which means that there are windows into all the offices and conference rooms, but visitors just kind of circumvent the actual building and walk around the clear dome on top. It is a beautiful view, though, and the audio guide gives a nice summary of the sites in Berlin, which was nice since it was my first stop.

                After that tour I walked over to some nearby monuments before grabbing something for lunch and heading over to meet my walking tour. I ended up walking to the meeting point, which was simpler than figuring out the public transportation, but also took longer. Also, Berlin seems to have very few snack-bar type restaurants, or even grocery stores, where you can just grab a snack and leave. Everything outside of the American chains is sit-down, which is hard when you’re always trying to get someplace. But I digress.

                The Saturday walking tour was focused on the Nazis, so we went by several memorials and monuments to various persecuted groups and soldiers. We also walked down Wilhelmstrasse, where most of the Nazi government buildings were, but not much is left of them. Berlin in general is very different than, say, Cambridge or Madrid. It was almost entirely destroyed in the Second World War, and then divided, so everything, especially things in the center of the reunited city, is pretty modern, or at least heavily restored.

                After the tour I visited the Topography of Terror museum, named for its location atop the former SS headquarters and beside a remaining section of the Berlin Wall, and then headed over to the Checkpoint Charlie museum before dinner. With all the talk about the Nazis, I’d forgotten how interesting the post-war period is. It always reminded me somewhat of a DI* challengs: get across the wall using only what a poverty-stricken police-watched family can find. People came up with some pretty crazy answers.

                The second day was a day trip to Wittenberg, home to the Luther museum and site of Martin Luther’s living, preaching, and alleged nailing of the 95 thesis onto the door. 2017 marks the 500^th anniversary of the reformation, and Wittenberg (which isn’t exactly the most bustling of cities) has already started a countdown and is gearing up for the celebration. We took a train there, spent several hours viewing the aforementioned sites, and then had a nice lunch at the Brauhaus – they were slightly annoyed when I ordered water and not beer.

                I also got to use my German a little more in Wittenberg, as opposed to Berlin, where people generally switch to English as soon as they hear my accent. I could understand a lot of what was going on, though, and managed several short conversations a day. Apparently the studying is paying off. Unlike Jordan, Israel, or my various Spanish classes, people actually looked at me and assumed I spoke their language, which was rather nice, even if I did have to disappoint.

                On the third day, I went on a walking tour of the main sites of Berlin – the Brandenburg gate, the square where they held the Nazi book burning, the college where the Grimm brothers went to school, a few of the same war memorials, and etc. All of the tours were great. Afterwards I checked out the German History museum, which covered the entirety of, well, German History, and then stood in line for around 45 minutes to get into the Pergamon museum, which housed a really extraordinary collection from Greece, Rome, and especially the Middle East.

                And now, after all that, I’m back in my dorm at Cambridge, with a few days to hopefully calm down and wrap things up before heading back to the States. I could say more about my study abroad, but this post is getting pretty long, so I’ll save it for my final reflection. Have a lovely week, until next time!

*DI – Destination Imagination – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Destination_Imagination

Pictures:

This is just part of a bridge, but it was pretty.

 The Reichstag.

 Inside the dome of the Reichstag.

 View over the city:

 Brandenburg Gate:

 Victory Column:

 Memorial to the Murdered Jews of Europe:

 Berlin Wall:

 Successor to the oak tree planted where Martin Luther burned the Papal Bull:

 Luther House:

The door of the 95 theses:

 Memorial to the Nazi Book Burning, the Empty Library (back in Berlin):

Pergamon Museum:

Coffee in the Crypt: Dublin

                It’s been a very busy week, and this coming week is liable to be even busier as I wrap up my studies here (finals are this Friday) and then head to Berlin for a visit before returning to the States. Before I discuss my plans for the final installments of my summer blog, though, I should let you know what I’ve been up to.

                The first exciting event of the week was the Cambridge Shakespeare Company’s rendition of Macbeth. It was excellently done; the only downside was that it took place outside, and for almost the entire first act it was raining – one of the few times it’s actually rained here instead of drizzling. It wasn’t the rain that was the problem as much as the row of umbrellas blocking my view, but I had a great time anyway, and rediscovered my love of Shakespeare.

                Also this week in Cambridge, I went on a tour of Trinity College (not to be confused with Trinity College in Ireland, which I also visited). They have quite a few famous alumni, including Newton, Frances Bacon, Bertrand Russel, and A. A. Milne.** We saw the hallway where Newton measured the speed of sound, the courtyard where they have the Great Court Run in Chariots of Fire, and part of the Library’s extensive collection. I stayed afterwards for a free student concert, which was nice and helped me rediscover my love of classical music.

                Now, on to Dublin. I arrived around noon on Saturday and immediately set off to begin touring. I started with Trinity College of the University of Dublin, where the Book of Kells*** and a very old Irish Harp can be found. The college is beautiful, also boasting many important alumni, such as Jonathan Swift, Oscar Wilde, and Samuel Beckett.

                After this tour, I grabbed lunch, wandered through Merrion Square and St. Stephen’s Green, and rested for a little while, then headed up to my hotel. After checking in, I visited the Dublin Writers museum, which paid homage to everyone from Shaw to Yeats to Joyce, and then stopped by the General Post Office, where began the 1916 uprising.

                Then (still on Saturday afternoon) I headed across the O’Connell Bridge and associated monument to see the National Museum of Archaeology, which hosted a fascinating collection from all periods of Irish history. After this I went to the National Gallery, because you know by now I can’t resist an Art Museum. Finally, I headed down to Grafton Street for ice cream, dinner, and a few souvenirs before heading back to the hotel around 7:30.

                However, despite my busy day, I was in the mood for action and wasn’t tired yet. There was a movie theater a few minutes’ walk away from me showing Ant-Man, so I decided I might as well go and see it. I wasn’t expecting to like it overly much, but it turned out to be really enjoyable. Marvel has obviously discovered the alchemic formula to turn wacky comic book fodder into blockbuster material.

                The next morning I headed back across the river to St. Patrick’s Park and Cathedral. The church is very beautiful and holds a lot of objects from Jonathan Swift and Saint Patrick’s time. I stayed there for a while before heading down to Christ Church, built on the site of the first church in Dublin, where I stayed for Sunday morning worship. The choir sang beautifully, the scriptures were read in deep voices with Irish accents, and the Sermon was about strength in times of weariness. It was wonderful, although I’m not used to taking the Eucharist with actual wine.

                Before the service (you’re supposed to donate as a tourist, but obviously you don’t pay to come to the service) I went ahead and took some pictures, including of the tomb of Strongbow. After services, they had a short fellowship with tea, coffee, and biscuits (cookies), which would have been perfectly ordinary, except that it was held in the crypt. I chatted for a while and then took pictures of that, too, before heading off again.

                I hadn’t expected Dublin Castle to be open until 2:00, but as it turned out, it opened at noon, so after grabbing a quick bite to eat, I headed over. The State apartments were lovely, but the museum was my favorite part of the trip. Not only did they have beautiful icons, paintings, bible covers, Qurans, and Egyptian love poetry, but they had parts of our earliest copy of a folio containing Acts and the four gospels. They also had part of the book of John dating back to 150-200 AD. Of all the beautiful things in that room, the papyri kept calling my name; I must have gone back to look at it at least four times.

                I still had some time after visiting the library, so I headed over to the Dublin Wax Museum, which was on my way back, and took a few pictures before grabbing a snack and heading to the bus. The trip back went smoothly, and I finished my 30-ish hours in Dublin happily. However, I was still in a touring mood, so this morning I began the day by visiting the Museum of Classical Archaeology and Botanical Garden here in Cambridge.

                This post is really long already, but I do want to explain my plans for the blog before I go. I’ll be spending the end of this week and half of next week in Berlin, so I won’t be posting again until next Wednesday. I’ll post then about my time in Berlin, then post one last time on Friday night or Saturday morning to reflect on my time at Cambridge. And then I’ll be off the grid, but only for a couple weeks – fall semester is just around the corner!

*Peer Advisors: regular students at the college who answer questions, lead recreational activities, and etc. At Harvard they’re called PAFs, for Peer Advising Fellows.

**Author of Winnie the Pooh. I always knew that was intelligent stuff. :)

Pictures: Obviously, this is only a very, very small percentage of my photos, but here they are - enjoy!

Trinity College, Cambridge - this is the courtyard from Chariots of Fire.

 The chapel (where the concert was held):

 The hallway used to measure the speed of sound (clap and time the echo):

 Ready for Macbeth:

 Trinity College, Dublin:

 The Long Room (aka the library, aka my happy place):

 The Dublin Writers Museum:

 GPO:

 National Museum of Archeology:

The lampposts are more artistic than some art I've seen...

 Park:

 St. Patrick's Cathedral

 Christ Church Cathedral:

 The Crypt:

 Dublin Castle Courtyard:

 The throne room:

 St. Patrick's Hall:

 View of the castle from the garden outside the museum (the museum itself didn't allow pictures):

 I usually don't take pictures from planes, but the view is usually fantastic:

 Cambridge Museum of Classical Archaeology (these are plaster casts of many of the famous classical sculptures):

 Cambridge Botanical Garden: