I was excited to see that Marks & Spencer (my favorite food shop while in London) has a limited range of Christmas-themed items that we can get this year in the U.S.! Check out their range here at Target and consider getting some of your friends and family some U.K.-based items for the holidays this year.
My favorites are definitely the yummy shortbread cookies (in tins that look like London double-decker buses, below, only $14.99) – and the nice luxury tea in a light-up house (only $9.99)!
All courses are held in the mornings, leaving the afternoons free for scheduled excursions, study, and exploration. Students choose two 4-credit courses for a total of 8 credits:
First period (9:00-10:15 am):
• ENGL 265 (380 by application to the Chair of English at Rhodes only): Topics in English Literature: Gender and Literature in Modern London (F4, F9)
• MUSC 230: Early Music and Drama in Britain, 1600-1800 (F4, F5)
Second period (10:45-12:00 pm):
• MUSC 105: Topics in Music: Listening to London (F5, F11)
• HUM 201 (Search): Class, Identity, and Art in Britain (F1, F11)
Some of the highlights this coming summer:
A tour of the famous Houses of Parliament!
Watching the King’s Guard march to Buckingham Palace!
A Shakespearean play at the Globe Theatre!
Viewing the Rosetta Stone, the Sutton Hoo treasure, Egyptian mummies, and much, much more at the British Museum!
Visit some of the world’s most amazing museums and art galleries (like the National Gallery)!
A day out to historic Hampton Court Palace!
A day trip to to see prehistoric Stonehenge!
More excursions will be announced in due course… stay tuned!
We have the classes determined for this coming Summer in London!
Students take two classes, one from each time slot (each are 4 credits, for a total of 8 credits):
9:00 AM – 10:15 AM:
MUSC 105: “Music and Art in Contemporary London” [F5 pending] (Dr. Ryann Donnelly, University of Sussex)
ENGL 265: “Gender and Identity in Modern Literary London” [F4, F9] (Dr. Michelle Meinhart, Trinity-Laban)
10:45 AM – 12:00 PM:
HUM 201 (Search): “Class, Identity, and Art in Britain” [F1] (Dr. Vanessa Rogers, Rhodes College)
ENGL 265: “The Bawdy Politic: Literature and Culture of the English Restoration”[F4 and F9 pending] (Dr. Kelly Malone, Sewanee, University of the South)
Note: The English courses are available for 300-level credit by prior approval of the Chair of the English Department at Rhodes College.
(Rhodes students: All seminars are Rhodes courses and will hold Foundation credits. You will also receive the F11 for Study Abroad.)
Have you seen the 2022 tourism video for Britain? It features a lot of quirky off-the-beaten-path activities in the U.K., including the Dare Skywalk at the Tottenham Hotspurs Stadium (yikes!) and the floating hot tubs off of Canary Wharf (wow!). Check it out here:
A few other wild things you might want to try in London this summer:
Discover a tiny hidden island in the Thames, Eel Pie Island
Climb up to the top of the O2 Arena for some amazing views
Take some parkour lessons
The first virtual reality arcade is here in Camden!
Sign up for a one-of-a-kind scavenger hunt / crime puzzle outing with your friends
Visit an actual curiosity shop (very Victorian-inspired – and creepy!)
Obsessed with all things royal? Visit Buckingham Palace – INSIDE (it only opens up during the summer). I am told that this is an amazing experience, and a very unique one, too!
Go to Wimbledon! And if you can’t get tickets ahead of time, plan on just showing up outside and eating strawberries and cream with the fans on the lawn (there are also same-day tickets available).
LONDON PRIDE is happening at the beginning of July – the biggest LGBTQ+ celebration in the U.K.! Check out English gay icon Quentin Crisp’s solo show on 8 July (a once-in-a-lifetime event!) or show up in Trafalgar Square to see the awesome Pride Parade and celebration on 7 July.
Love music? You must check out one of London’s many cool music festivals. You can find a list of those happening in July here. Maybe you are more of a classical music aficionado like me? You have to see the BBC Proms, a long-running festival of classical music in the gorgeous Royal Albert Hall. You can get standing-room-only tickets to hear the world’s classical superstars for only 6 pounds – unbelievable! There are amazing other artists on the docket, too, like Buena Vista Social Club and Youssou N’dour.
Shakespeare’s Globe announced last week that the Shakespeare productions for 2018 will include Hamlet, As You Like It, The Two Noble Kinsmen, The Winter’s Tale, Othello and Love’s Labour’s Lost. (It looks like the Search and Shakespeare and Performance classes will be reading Othello – and maybe The Winter’s Tale, too!) This year will be Michelle Terry’s first season as Artistic Director, and the season has been hotly anticipated.
The Globe announced the plays together with its plans for a year-long programme of events “exploring the history and future of theatre censorship, as well as a series of events looking at race, refuge and refugees in relation to Shakespeare.” Sounds fascinating!
(…We will be here ⇑)
Rhodes College’s deadline for financial aid for summer study abroad is this Friday, December 1!
Students should apply for their preferred program in order to be considered for financial aid. (Note that your deposit is completely refundable up until January 15!)
Go get that $$$!
The Rhodes in London Summer School is going to Paris! Our itinerary is set, and it includes the Arc de Triomphe, walking down the Les Champs Elysees, and a visit to the Louvre (Friday), as well as seeing the Beaubourg area (with the Georges Pompidou Centre), the Ile de La Cite and Notre Dame (Saturday). We will also have time for lunch in the Latin Quarter and a boat cruise on the river Seine on Saturday, too.
Happily, there is also some free time built in so that you can plan your own adventure in Paris!
What would you suggest I see during these short pockets of free time, you ask? Well, I would recommend that you do one of the following:
Find the perfect Parisian cafe, ideal for catching up on your reading and for people-watching. Nosh like a true Parisian with a café crème and a yummy flaky croissant – or a tartine with Échiré butter.
Take the metro to Saint Paul and meander through the Marais district, collecting french cheeses, a baguette, and maybe even a bottle of wine as you go. Make your way to Place des Vosges for an impromptu picnic.
Stop off at a chocolaterie to grab some treats to take back to London.
Stroll in the Jardins du Palais Royal behind the Palais Royale and the Comédie française.
If you are an art lover, try the Galleries Lafayette and maybe visit the Degas Ballerina at the Musee de Orsay.
Visit the Catacombes de Paris – these are incredibly creepy underground ossuaries which hold the remains of more than six million people the ancient Mines of Paris tunnel network.
Walk down to the Seine and along the eastern end of the Ile St. Louis. Maybe get a glass of a lovely French wine at the terrace at the western tip of the island, by the bridge that connects it to the Ile de la Cite, and drink in the wine and the view at the same time.
Check out the bohemian Montmatre district, where Monet, van Gogh, Picasso, Toulouse-Lautrec, Verlaine, Debussy, Satie (and more) lived or partied with their artistic friends.
Sample some Parisian nightlife (maybe a cabaret show at the Moulin Rouge?).
Check out the Palais de Tokyo (Europe’s largest contemporary art space), which is open until midnight every day except Tuesday.
Take your time walking along the Seine and visiting everything along the way – finishing with the Eiffel Tower. If you time it right, you could enjoy a bottle of champagne in the Parc du Champs de Mars while watching the Eiffel Tower light show at 11pm.
As an American living in Britain, it is important to understand that there are MANY English words that we Americans do not know! Many will be exceedingly funny to us. In any case, it is helpful to understand how to order properly in the U.K.
Let’s begin with some common food and drink-related words:
Banger – This is a British sausage, and it is usually much bigger than an American version. It is served for dinner with fried onions and gravy, in batter as toad in the hole or for breakfast with eggs, back bacon, mushrooms, black pudding (a type of fried blood sausage), fried potatoes, grilled tomatoes, toast and marmalade. There are also many regional sausages that combine different meats, herbs and spices. And don’t forget good old Bangers and Mash (sausages and mashed potatoes with gravy, mmmm!). The vegetarian versions of Bangers and Mash are not bad, either!
Beer – Normally called bitter, this is the most popular alcoholic beverage of the UK male drinking population. It is served in pints at just under room temperature (Real Ales, however, are served at room temperature). Real Ales are non-carbonated beers made from hops and barley. Lager is sort of what you call beer in the U.S. This is much stronger than American beer and drunk from pint glasses rather than bottles. It is served cold, but not that cold. Cider (an alcoholic drink made from apples since the time of the Roman invasion) is served cold, and a pint of this is terrific when it’s hot outside (just watch the incredibly high alcohol content!).
Bickie – Short for biscuit. Usually said by/to kids and means cookie. (By the way, biscuit can also mean cracker, for instance you could see “biscuits for cheese” in the supermarkets, which are assortments of crackers.)
Bubble and Squeak – An old English breakfast dish made from frying up leftover greens and potato. Yum!
Buck’s fizz – champagne and orange juice (mimosa).
Chips – Fries. Fish and chips is still a favorite throughout Britain. They still taste best hot from the bag, liberally dosed in salt and malt vinegar.
Clotted cream – This cream looks a bit scary at first. It is yellow and crusty on top. It is thicker than single cream or double cream and totally delicious. It is served in blobs with cakes or spread on scones.
Cornish pasty – a meat pie for on-the-go. Many outlets (especially in train stations) sell what they call “pastys” but they are cheap imitations. A real pasty from Cornwall is a pastry in the shape of a half circle, filled with spiced meat and potatoes.
Cream Tea – You must try this while you are in England – especially if you visit any rural little villages. A real cream tea consists of a pot of tea, some fresh warm scones that you spread with homemade strawberry jam and top with thick, yellow, clotted cream. Delicious!
Doner – Short for a doner kebab. The closest thing in the US is a gyro. Kebabs in England, whether shish (meat on a skewer) or a doner (lamb on vertical spit), are served in split pitta bread with salad. The doner is generally sold after 11pm in England to young people, after the pubs close and after 8 or so pints of lager. Usually served with extra hot fresh chilli sauce and on greaseproof paper so the oil is funnelled back onto your trousers, it is usually enjoyed standing up.
Fairy cake – This is a cupcake.
Herb – Herb. The Brits pronounce the “H”.
Jacket potato – Baked potato in America. A very typical cheap lunch food at English cafes!
Lemonade – Lemonade in England is a clear, sparkling, lemon-flavored drink. Note: Seven-up and Sprite are both considered lemonade in England.
Mushy peas – An English tradition. They are often served with fish and chips, or on their own with mint sauce.
Off Licence – Beer, wine and spirits are sold in supermarkets in England, though the off licence still thrives. It is the place that you go to buy alcohol or snacks in the same way that you would from a liquor store or convenience store in the US.
Pie – Unless specified otherwise, a pie would default to a meat pie with a pastry lid. Of course, there are still apple pies and so on. Pies always have lids. No lid – no pie! That’s called a tart.
Pint – You would ask your mates if they wanted to come to the pub for a pint. In this instance it means any form of beer or cider that could be purchased in quantities of one pint. The British pint is bigger than the pint in the US. 20oz rather than 16oz, demonstrating that not everything is bigger in Texas!
Porridge – Cooked oatmeal that you would have for breakfast.
Pudding – Dessert of any type is called pudding. Sometimes this is also called afters.
Rasher – You always a couple of back rashers with a proper English breakfast. You would call them slices of bacon.
Rump steak – This is what Ameicans call sirloin steak. And if that isn’t confusing enough – their sirloin steak is an American porterhouse!
Scotch egg – These are hard-boiled eggs surrounded in a half-inch layer of sausage meat and coated in breadcrumbs and deep fried. Usually you eat them cold at picnics.
Shepherd’s pie – Originally made from leftovers, this is minced lamb, cooked with some veggies and topped with mashed potato (sometimes with cheese) on top and grilled till brown. Not to be confused with Cottage pie which is almost the same, but with minced beef.
Spotted dick – A kind of pudding with dried fruit. It is excellent with custard.
(This is spotted dick. Not scary at all, is it??)
Starter – This is the appetizer on a menu.
Sweets – Either another word for dessert or also the candies you give to kids.
Take-away – This word has several meanings. First it is the place that only sells food to take out. You might go to the take-away for an Indian or Chinese. If you got a take-away for dinner it would mean the meal itself. Also, if you go to a restaurant (or a Starbucks) you might be asked if you want to “eat in or take away” instead of (in the U.S.) “here or to go?” If you plan to sit at a table you want to say “eat in” (or “drink in” at a cafe) as they charge you extra for a real mug/dishes and they clear your table for you.
White – When someone in the UK asks you how you take your tea or coffee you should say “black”, “white without” or “white with”. White means with milk and the “with” and “without” bit refers to the sugar. For example, if you want coffee with cream and one sugar you say “coffee, white with one.”
Yorkshire pudding – Not a pudding/dessert. It is a light batter that rises when it is cooked. The middle can be filled with anything from sausages and beans, to soup or stew. Traditionally, these are served with roast beef, as an accompaniment with horseradish sauce and gravy, roast potatoes and veggies. Sometimes called pop-overs in some parts of the US.
Summer School in London 