Tales #10,11

Monday
Today we had to wake up really early to take the tube over to a tour of Parliament. Parliament was incredible, though. The Gothic architecture was unbelievably intricate, detailed, and ornate. It was actually pretty over the top how expensive and beautiful everything was (see picture).

There was also a lot of history, like the medieval great hall where kings and queens of old would hold banquets, and the people would come to see their rulers. We also went to the Banqueting House (the building on which King Charles I was executed), with its beautiful classical architecture.
Later, I went to Camden market again to have dinner at a Lebanese restaurant. Then I went to a choir rehearsal at the City of London Choir. It was really fun; the conductor was very eccentric, and the music was interesting and very challenging. The choir sounded really good, and I have an audition next week. After the rehearsal, I went out for bo-ri-toes (burritos) with some of the people who were around my age in the choir. Although they were about 6 pounds (10 dollars), they were actually surprisingly good for being Mexican food in London!
Tuesday
For theater class today, we went over to the City of London (which is a small district in the middle of greater London), to walk through some of the places that would have been familiar to Shakespeare when he was in London. We also did readings from old plays that put the areas, such as the Smithfield meat market, into historical perspective (it has been a meat market for over 800 years!). After the class, we went over to a clock museum, with a bunch of ridiculously ornate pocket and other watches and clocks.
In the evening, we went to a pub across the river called the White Bear to see an old play called "A Yorkshire Tragedy". There was a small set, and fewer actors than parts, but the actors and actresses did a great job of telling the story in a way that made sense (despite being in Elizabethan English). As for the story, it was extremely sad, and compressed into about an hour. Definitely thought provoking, but a little difficult to believe.
I hope all is well,
Ethan

Tale #9

Today was another great day. In the morning, Will, Jon, Courtney, Jackie, and I went to Camden market, a much, much bigger, and even a little better version of Portland's Saturday market. It was pretty much endless (we went around for 3 hours, getting lost several times and also not making it to even half of the shops around!) There were also a ton of cheap food stands, and unfortunately I had already eaten lunch. Oh well, there's always tomorrow!
After that, I went down to the Royal Academy of Music for a performance of 3 baroque concertos, 7 baroque dances, and Purcell's Dido and Aeneas. It was incredible! The chamber orchestra used performance period instruments, including an awesome wooden oboe for Vivaldi's Oboe Concerto. Dido and Aeneas was unstaged, but it was still really, really good. The soloists, while a little distracting in terms of facial expression, were very good, and the chorus and orchestra were expressive, and pretty much perfect in every way. It was an amazing concert.
Tomorrow, we will visit Parliament, and I have my choir audition!
Cheers,
Ethan