Hello everyone,

It’s been 2 weeks so I thought it was time to update again. I’ve had a few more travels since we last talked, and we’re just getting into our 2^nd  ‘module’, this one being more the practical running of a museum. I’ll try to give a brief rundown.

While I may not have had much class in the last few weeks, reading has been my main activity, exciting titles like ‘The Return of Cultural Treasures’, and ‘Museums and Source Communities’. We had the Director of Research at the British Museum come talk to us, and he was actually very charismatic and entertaining! We’ve also been given some teaser information on our internship placements next summer… who knows, I could be working at the Roman Baths Museum in the city of Bath!

That just happens to be where I visited last weekend! We went to Bath for the day, and the Roman baths were top on my list. The water is still steaming 2000 years later, but they wouldn’t let us jump in. The most intriguing part of the museum was the Roman metal prayer cards on display; they asked Minerva to severely punish whoever had stolen their bathing suit! Some of the other girls (also Museum Studies) were interested in the city for Jane Austen history as well, although truthfully Jane never liked Bath.

I also took a daytrip (again with Museum Studies girls) to Birmingham. We visited the art gallery, the Christmas markets, and the Cadbury World factory and museum. Cadbury World was the worst excuse for a Disney-fied museum, but made up for it by handing out chocolate samples at various points on the tour. I am now addicted to Cadbury chocolate. In an attempt to not eat it all myself, I shared it when I hosted a small Thanksgiving dinner in my flat! It was also nice to skype with family and our couchsurfing friends on Thanksgiving, in Chicago, and my cousin in Korea.

Lastly, I just got back from a weekend trip to Edinburgh, Scotland. The weather was relatively mild but windy, and I spent a whirlwind 24 hours enjoying the accent, seeing the Royal Mile, Edinburgh Castle, a “ghost tour” in underground vaults, and trying haggis and Scottish whisky. Haggis is a mix of mutton (lamb) and oatmeal, and generally has a bad reputation, but I actually enjoyed it. I also tried Macallan whisky based off a recommendation, and tried my best to enjoy that. While we spent a third of the weekend just driving, it was still fun…