May 15th we had lecture at 8am...that was a little rough but the material was interesting so that helped a lot. Professor Edward Bujak (of Harlaxton) talked to us about the history of Lincoln and how it came to be. He also explained the characteristics of the architecture as they had both Roman and Gothic features. To be quite honest it felt like I was in a Humanities lecture all over again haha but this time I knew the material ahead of time.
We then travelled to Lincoln and oh my goodness, it was absolutely gorgeous! We were able to see the last functioning Roman gate (it's the only Roman gate that is still in good condition from 313AD and is being used for its original purpose...to let traffic through). We walked up and down High Street...which is basically the name of our "Main Street" in the US...meaning every town has a High Street. The boutiques and food shops were so beautiful and quaint.
At 11:30am, we had a guided tour of the Lincoln Cathedral. Wow! It was definitely a sight to see! I have many pictures I will be posting when I can but the pictures do not do it justice. After the Cathedral we had free time so a bunch of us went and ate at the Magna Carta pub...even though Harlaxton had provided us with packed lunches. It was an interesting place. Once 2pm rolled around we went to the Lincoln Castle. Unfortunately, while most of the architecture was very beautiful, our experience was not the greatest. A few areas were under construction, there were no signs posted to help direct you, and we unknowningly walked into a working Magistrate while a hearing was taking place...of course we were, not necessarily yelled at but it was suggested that we should leave. Haha but yeah it was fun to walk on top of the Castle pathways (around the perimeter). Another thing that was down played was the Magna Carta. There are only 4 "original" copies of this document and Lincoln houses two of them...one would think with a document as important as this, the display would be phenomenal. Rather, it was simply a maze that had various descriptions of the document and ended with a viewing of both copies. It was really neat to see it, but a lot of us felt that they were not effectively sharing it. (This may have to do with the fact that England does not necessarily teach the Magna Carta in their school systems, which was later made known to us by a local).
After the Castle, Emma Tatlow spoke to us. She was a partner manager from "Visit Lincoln." She talked with us about her work and how she and her colleagues are trying to raise awareness of Lincoln to gain more tourists. Emma also told us a lot about the town and how they have been called the "Christmas Capital" due to their large annual Christmas festival.
We then headed back to Harlaxton after she talked with us. We had dinner and then it was time to get into our "Smart Dress" otherwise known to us as Business professional attire. We had a Cheese and Wine Reception with various seasoned business professionals from England. They were all extremely helpful and eager to get to know us. I was able to network with a big time "headhunter" and we exchanged information...hmmm maybe creating a job opportunity in England sometime in the future ;) haha not too sure how the parents would feel about that one though... haha but yes, we had a lovely time.
A few of us went out to a pub then and were able to converse with a bunch of locals that were more our age. They were quite interesting! A few of us girls met two girls, originally from London and Wales, who worked with us on our accents. haha it was absolutely hilarious to listen to them try to speak with an American accent; one of them was actually pretty good at it...but both depicted American girls as valley girls. When we tried our British accents for them I was told that I have a very good accent and it sounded as if I had been here for a few months :) of course that made me happy. haha but anyways, I must go as it is lunch time here (11:45am)...I will most likely blog this evening in hopes to share today's events with you!
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