Wednesday, June 4, 2008

England Trip Part 3 - West Dean

Ok, so here's the last bit! West Dean College!

Wow, is all I can say. This place is Beautiful! I mean check out the front door!


So I got here on Monday night and didn't see anyone really at that point, but the next morning when I went in to breakfast I met Lili, who is my email friend at the school. It's kind of funny actually, her brother is in my ward in Boston and we've been emailing each other for the last year and half because she was applying for a job at Harvard, plus she went to BYU, knows everyone I know, and so it's just funny that this was the first time we'd actually met in person! She is really lovely, I wish I'd gotten a picture with her, oh well!

After breakfast (which was delicious by the way, all the food there was, they have meals "cafeteria style") I met up with the instructor of the book course for my Practical Test and Interview. He gave me a tour of the facility and set me to work on making some things. It went well, in fact I wasn't nervous at all, until they started asking me questions in the interview and portfolio part... But overall I think it went well.

This took pretty much all day, but I was done at 4 and after having a tour of the accommodations and talk about financing options, I went to bother Lili a bit in her room. She was trying to finish a huge research paper, so I tried not to distract her for too long. Luckily though, she had an adaptor that I could use to recharge my camera battery, so yay! Pictures! After dinner she took me on a lovely walk through the Arboretum where most of the pictures were taken...


A view of the school from the top of a nearby hill.


The beautiful green fields next to the school (these don't really do it justice... it was raining most of Monday and Tuesday)


Lambies!! All the lambs here have twins because they are artificially inseminated. Baby lambs are the cutest!


These are fields of white daisies. Pretty!


Coming back to the school (we did a big loop), isn't it just so picturesque?


This is the hallway on the way to my room in the main house! Crazy! There are like hundred-year-old tapestries hanging on the walls, antique marble pillars, urns, armor and dead animal heads all over the school!


The view from my window in my room, showing the back-side garden. You can see a quaint little cottage behind the shrub wall there...


A better view of the cottage.


Another view of the front of the school.


So anyway! That is pretty much the end of my trip! I went to bed on Tuesday, got up early Wednesday morning for breakfast and then drove back up to the airport. My plane left in the afternoon, so I had plenty of time to return the car and do a bit of airport shopping before it was back to Boston, this time through Toronto!

All in all, it was an amazing trip! I'm so glad I was able to go! I'm still not sure what to do about school, in fact I'm almost more confused than I was before, but I'm glad I got a feel for both of them, and that I was able to meet up with some friends! It was so great to be back in England after 7 years. It's still the same as I remembered, which I'm glad of, and I really hope that I'll be back again very soon!

Next up are some pictures of what I've been up to since getting back. Yes, my life never stops.... Seriously though, it's usually really boring, but maybe since it's summer it's getting a little more exciting. Anyway, I'll be sure to be better about posting what I'm up to this summer, so keep checking back!

3 comments:

Carissa Poyfair said...

I am so stinking jealous of you! What an amazing trip you had. I would love to go back to England some day on my own time with my own itinerary to see all the cool things I missed back in 1997 (wow I'm old). I love the Jane Austen stuff. So you want to go to school in England? How long would you be there for? Hope it all works out!

Kaydi Paxman said...

Sounds like you had an amazing time!!! I don't think anyone belongs in London more than you! I want updates when you decide what to do about school.

Mrs. B said...

Carly, I am in love with your vacation! Sounds like a great time and I really hope the school works out for you...these pictures are incredible.