Coming to the End

Well, yesterday, I gave my last presentation for my Courtauld Class. Tonight is the school Carol Service, and it is all going by so quickly. I am glad that I have made some great friends here, including everyone in my class!!!! I will miss them terribly, and am trying to maximize fun time here at the end with everyone. This includes the family - Amanda and I are jetting off to Munich on Saturday - coming back Tuesday. Another country to check off my list, and a wonderful pre-Christmas treat. I can't wait to see the Christmas decorations and hopefully see snow.

My course here at the Courtauld has really allowed me to not only learn a ton about the transitions between medieval British architecture and the early modern period, but it has also let me focus on my own scholarly habits. I really have learned quite a bit about my strengths and weaknesses in terms of writing and researching. The program here offers so much that it would be impossible to experience it all, but it also teaches the value of individual direction and interest that is key to finding your niche within the scholarly community.

I know I am babbling on, but I will truly be sad to leave this wonderful place in a few short weeks. Everyone here has been fantastic. I have explored, learned and reshaped my own world views during these last few months. I think my Thesis topic is well defined in my mind, but it still needs to be written down on paper. I have produces some great work, and some mediocre at best. I have explored the Loire valley with a van full of crazy french people, traveled to Wells on a dodgy bus [only to discover last week that it was the setting for much of Hot Fuzz, one of my all time favorite movies] eatten more boiled eggs on toast and drunk more tea that ever before, rode the L-Eye on Guy Fawkes night, saw the best fireworks show I have ever seen and watched as the entire city was crowned with brilliant bursts of light in every direction, eaten at some of the most fantastic restaurants and even some great dives, downed the best Champagne at a couple of exclusive London clubs thanks to knowing the right people, visited more than a few of the world's best museums, saw the Staffordshire Hoard and the Sutton Hoo treasures with my own eyes, experienced rememberance day and wore a poppy as everyone should, drew pretty flower pictures at Kew Gardens, nearly froze my hands off in Bristol, became more familiar with Wren, Inigo Jones and so many of the other British greats of the architectural world, saw some brilliant theatre, found time to chill and read some good adventure novels.... and still two and half more weeks to go!

London is truly one of my happy places.