From April 29-May 20 I had the opportunity to visit England and Ireland via the British and Emerald Isles study abroad here at BYU-Idaho!

It’s been a lifelong dream of mine to visit England and Ireland, as so many literary greats are from those two countries. Sadly, we only spent about two days total in Ireland and I didn’t get very many pictures of Dublin. But I definitely want to go back!

April 29 – a bus picked some of us students up from BYU-Idaho at 2 am and drove us to the SLC airport. From there we flew to JFK, had about a seven hour layover, and then made an overnight flight to Dublin.

April 30 – We got to Dublin at around 10 am and hit the ground running! Our first stop was Trinity College where we got to see the Book of Kells! So the Book of Kells contains the four gospels and other writings and was put together by monks around 800 AD. In the exhibit there were videos that showed how the monks made the paper, ink, and writing tools they used and how the bound books together. Seeing the process made me appreciate all of the Medieval books we have today. The craftsmanship is absolutely beautiful – and to think they did everything by hand!
Our next stop was St. Patrick’s Cathedral. We went to quite a few cathedrals on the tour. The architecture astounded me. One of the professors was talking to us about how detailed everything was, and how a lot of the figures carved out of stones in the cathedrals are different from all the others. Looking at the beautiful craftsmanship reminded me of our temples. The people who built those cathedrals put their whole hearts and souls into their work because they were trying to honor and glory God. One of my favorite features about the cathedrals were their stained glass windows. The colors and detail are so beautiful! The stained glass windows told stories from the Bible or even the history of the cathedral, since peasants couldn’t read.

May 1 – We boarded a ferry and landed in Wales! While there we got to visit Conwy [CON-we] Castle. That was pretty cool, getting to explore the ruins. I didn’t realize castles were that cramped! I’m very thankful I didn’t like back in the time of castles, because I would’ve felt like I was suffocating all the time. Stairs in castles and old buildings are super steep, too, and not very large. There were so many times I was afraid I was going to fall forwards because my whole foot was bigger than one step. After Conwy we went to the Preston England temple grounds! That was super relaxing. I was sad we didn’t have time to do a session, but just being on the temple grounds was so calming.

May 2 – This was one of my personal highlights of the trip! We went to Rydal Mount, which is the last home of the poet William Wordsworth. His garden his huge and gorgeous! His was the first of many gardens we went do. After exploring the gardens and house we walked about a mile to Grasmere, where Dove Cottage is. Dove Cottage is significant because Wordsworth lived there at the height of his poetry writing.

Dove Cottage had a huge impact on me. It was so awe inspiring to be standing in a home where a literary master lived while producing some of his best poetry. I think a lot of the time with the greats we think their lives were elevated and lavishly different from us mere folk. Sometimes that’s the case, especially after they become famous, but Wordsworth lived a very simple life, and his cottage showed it. It was just so amazing being there in his home.

May 3 – Instead of going to one of our congregations, special arrangements were made for us to attend an Anglican church in Scotland. The reason being is because the church we went to houses the Ruthwell cross. This cross has portions of the poem “The Dream of the Rood” written on it in ancient runes. “The Dream of the Rood” was one of the earliest Christian poems ever written. While it was cool to see the cross, it was the interfaith respect that touched me the most. On this particular day the congregation was taking Holy Communion. They made special arrangements to have grape juice for us BYU-Idaho students. Then, during one of the prayers, the pastor prayed for our study abroad group and church as whole. It touched me so much that he was thoughtful about us, even though our beliefs are slightly different. We had such a warm welcome from them all and they were just tickled to have us there. That day I witnessed true Christian charity that I will never forget.

After church we changed and headed to Hadrian’s Wall! This wall and fort marks the northernmost territory of the Roman empire. That was awesome, walking around ruins that were so old! I almost felt like a Roman soldier. I think that was the first time I realized that I was walking among history!

May 4 – We spent this day in the Lake District, taking it fairly easy. The countryside of England is so beautiful! I know understand the terms “rolling hills” more completely, and sheep dot the hills all over the place. Actually, when I was traveling back up to Idaho I kept mistaking the rocks in the fields as sheep. Later on that day our bus driver, Bart, surprised us. He arranged for us to visit a castle in Shipton. This castle was very much intact and well preserved. My favorite room in all the castles we visited was the kitchen. The fireplaces were big enough to roast a whole animal. Yes, please.

May 5 – This day had another one of the highlights of the trip for me! In the morning we got to visit the Brontë Parsonage! I first read Jane Eyre, written by Charlotte Brontë, when I was a senior in high school. It was the very first classic book I read all on my own because I wanted to, so the Brontës have a special place in my heart. I got to see the room where the Brontë sisters wrote their novels and then we went to the moors! I didn’t go very far into the moors because it was windy and pouring buckets and muddy. After visiting the parsonage, though, and seeing the surrounding countryside, I can understand the dark undertones to their novels. Northern England is very wet, cold, and windy. Visiting the Brontë home really drove home how environment has an impact on your writing.
Then we traveled to York Minster. It’s the biggest minster in all of England, and boy is it huge! It was almost overwhelming being in York Minster! But the coolest thing was that we were able to attend Evensong, which is a worship service in the evening [obviously]. I got a seat behind the choir. It was so awesome to be able to listen to a church choir sing in an actual minster! The acoustics are phenomenal, and the harmonizing of the men in the choir sent goosebumps up my arms!

May 6 – We started off the day in Sherwood Forrest! We got to see the Major Oak, where Robin Hood supposedly lived. I wish we could have wandered around some more, but we only had an hour there. Time constrained was a bit frustrating on the tour, but I’m still thankful we got to go to so many amazing places. The last stop of the day was Chatsworth! Chatsworth was the location of Pemberly in the 2005 movie “Pride & Prejudice.” A lot of the girls were fangirling there, and I’ll admit, I had my fair share of imagining Mr. Darcy and Elizabeth walking the grounds. The gardens there are beautiful! There was this gorgeous rock garden and a hedge maze I really wanted to go into, but didn’t have time to. Chatsworth also houses some really interesting, old artifacts and paintings, so it was super cool to see those.

May 7-12 – These were the days we were in London. To be honest, this was my least favorite time of the tour. London is the biggest city I’ve ever been in, and I realized all over again while in London that I am not a city girl. The cigarette smoke and exhaust fumes kept making me sneeze, and I’m not a fan of crowds. However, I did thoroughly enjoy the London Underground!
We did a lot of things while in London. We saw “Romeo & Juliet” performed in The Globe Theatre; we went to the Tower of London, the Tower of London Bridge, the British Museum [where we saw THE Rosetta Stone!], the National Gallery [where I saw some Monet paintings!], Hyde Park, Westminster Abbey [it’s a lot smaller than I thought], Buckingham Palace, the Chelsea Football Club stadium [my club!], and I heard Big Ben toll! That was super awesome!
There were two musicals I saw in London – “Wicked” and “The Lion King.” The costumes for “The Lion King” blew me away! They were awesome! But hands down my favorite musical was “Wicked.” I’ve wanted to see it ever since I first heard about it when I was a freshman in high school in 2005. The ten year wait was SO worth it! The cast was perfect, the set was marvelous, it was just wonderful! I had goosebumps all over my arms for the first five minutes of the opening scene, it was that good! It changed my life!

May 13 – This day was the most perfect day of the tour! The temperature was just right, it was sunny all day, and we got to visit Jane Austen’s home! I always had a feeling that Jane was a pretty cheerful person, and visiting her home confirmed that for me. It’s just a cheery little place. The garden was pretty, too, and so was the church she attended while living here. This was really the only place I splurged on the entire tour. I have no regrets.
We left London this day, and the start contrast from the city to the country was amazing. It was really this day that proved to me that I could never live in a city and be truly happy. The air was so much more crisp and lovely. I felt a flood of energy come rushing into my veins.
After the amazing time we had at Jane Austen’s home, we went to Salisbury Cathedral, which has the largest cathedral spire in England – 400 feet tall! Interesting fact – all cathedrals are shaped like crosses.

May 14 – This day was wet and rainy, but we got to visit some awesome sights! First up was Stonehenge! You can’t tell from the picture, but it was pouring rain and was pretty windy. It was super awesome being able to see such an amazing structure that has so much lore and legend behind it! For Stonehenge we all got audio guides, and listening to the history of Stonehenge was fascinating.
After getting thoroughly soaked at Stonehenge, we made our way to Stourhead Gardens! This was my favorite garden on the tour. It’s absolutely huge! Actually, the garden there was partly based off a poem – I forgot what the title is. Basically, the poem is about this guy and his journey to the Underworld so he can talk to his dead father. So as you walk along the garden, it’s supposed to represent his journey. That was pretty cool, especially when we got to the part of entering the Underworld. That portion of the garden was pretty obvious.
Another scene – one of my favorites, actually – from the 2005 “Pride & Prejudice” was filmed at Stourhead. Again, a lot of the girl fangirled, and I did get a picture at the place where Mr. Darcy proposes for the first time. Stephanie and I stayed together for the vast majority of the trip. We actually had a conversation of how hard it can be to be a Jane Austen fan, when the reason you’re a fan isn’t because of the romance. I’ll write a blog post on that later. I had to get a picture here, though, because the cinematography of the 2005 “Pride & Prejudice” is breathtaking.

May 15 – This is the day I got super sick. Being out in the rain and cold the previous day took its toll on me. We first went to Blenheim Palace, which is actually just a mansion. It’s the biggest mansion a duke in England lives in. Winston Churchill was born here, too! He’s related to the family and spent a significant portion of his life at Blenheim. The history behind this mansion and the family is so intriguing! It’s beautiful, too. Then it was off to Stratford-upon-Avon, the birthplace of Shakespeare! We got to his where he was born, then saw a rather disappointing version of “The Merchant of Venice.” After the play my fever skyrocketed, so the following day I had to remain at the bed and breakfast we were staying at in order to recover. According to Stephanie I didn’t miss much.

May 17 – We got special permission to hold our own sacrament meeting in a park, and then we went to two gardens – Kiftsgate and Hidcote. They were gorgeous! A little overwhelming doing two gardens in one day, but I loved all the wild forget-me-nots. I do miss the greenery and plant life of England.

May 18 – We ferried back to Dublin.

May 19 – This was pretty much a free day in Dublin. We went to the Chester Beatty Library, which was AMAZING! He was a collector and had so many old books and manuscripts from all over the world! It was wonderful! And I got to see cuneiform tablets! They were tiny, but still! That was amazing! Then the rest of the day we went souvenir shopping.

May 20 – We flew back to the states, and then on the 21st I headed back to Rexburg.

I am so thankful I went on this trip! I got to see some wonderful sites, tried so many new foods [London is real melting pot when it comes to cultures], ate so many desserts, and just had a wonderful time! I’m looking forward to finishing the course works for my classes, which are all interesting.

I love being an English major, I love traveling, and I love experiencing new cultures!