I had always assumed that the Globe Theater was the original building from the 1600s. In my mind there was no way that such a monumentally important building would have been destroyed and remained that way. When I learned that the Globe that currently stands was built in the 90s I worried I wouldn’t feel as in awe of it. I was very wrong. The Globe stands out among the buildings that surround it. Even though the building is about 30-40 years old, it looks and feels like a relic from the 1600s. The thatched roof, the distressed wood, the exposed beams all come together to feel like a time capsule.

Much like the Roman Baths, stepping inside the theater feels like going back in time. The worn wooden stage, with the massive columns, the raked wooden benches as seating and the massive open space for the groundlings take you back in time. It’s so easy to imagine what it was like to experience theatre in the 1600s while in this space.

The play itself was beautiful. I was a little worried about the concept they had applied to Romeo and Juliet. From the posters it looked to be American West or American Country themed. The girls in gingham dresses, the men in three piece suits and cowboy hats and boots. As someone who grew up in the south, I was interested to see the British interpretation of a culture I was very familiar with. At first I struggled a bit with the costuming. It felt like the costuming references were a mix of Wild West, Frontier, and Southern. Benvolio looked like a banker from the Frontier in his pin stripe suit and bowler hat. Paris was wearing a blue suit, cowboy hat, and boots that I had all seen on a man in Texas right before we got on our flight to London. Romeo was wearing corduroy pants, with a faded denim vest, and a leather jacket. The music they danced to was square dance music, but they line danced instead of square dancing. I was confused as to what the exact reference they were going for. Then in the first scene of Act 2 I saw Lady Capulet’s dress and remembered seeing the exact same dress, color and cut, as a costume in a production of Oklahoma!. I started reevaluating everyone’s costume under this lens and realized it somehow all fit into the world Rogers and Hammerstein built in the 1940s.

I really enjoyed this production. I felt like it was the first time I saw a Shakespeare tragedy that didn’t feel like the director’s goal was to rip my heart out and stomp on it until I was sitting in a puddle of my tears. For the most part this production was very light hearted. Juliet was played as a 13 year old girl. Romeo felt specifically like a 17 year old boy. The nurse was funny and sassy in all the right ways and her comedic timing was excellent. Benvolio lived as a young boy who was just trying to keep up with his friends, and Mercutio was lively and zany. The only changes I would have made was regarding the death sequences. The stage combat was very well directed, the sequences were incredibly fluid and every punch was closed even from our strange angle where we were seated. But the death’s themselves seemed to be drawn out and very gory. It took a very long time for Mercutio to die. Romeo shoots Tybalt and Paris 3 times each, which felt superfluous when the shots were so loud, so commanding, and the smell of the blanks hung in the air for a long time after they were fired. To me, it was a very stark difference between the light-heartedness that was the rest of the show. And maybe that’s what the director was going for!

All in all I thought it was an incredible production, and seeing it in the Globe made it all the more special and impressive.

The Globe was an amazing experience! Walking up to it feels truly like going back in time. I’ve been noticing that a lot about London as a whole. While it is absolutely a city that is in the 21st century complete with glass skyscrapers galore, there are pockets of old buildings peppering the streets to remind you that this city has existed for millenia.

The Globe theatre that we get to go to today is not the original Globe; that one burned down in the early 1600s. It was rebuilt shortly thereafter, but got torn down in the 1640s when the Puritans decided that fun was no longer allowed in England. However, this 1997 building (only one year older than me!) is about as close to an exact replica as one can find. It was constructed with the same sorts of materials, wood and plaster, and even has a thatched roof. They had to have special permission to use this roofing material due to its highly flammable nature (hence the burning down thing), and it is the only building in London to have a thatched roof. 

I’ve had the good fortune of going to The Globe once before, about nine years ago. I remember, even then as a baby theatre nerd, the feeling of being somewhere so much greater than myself or any of the artists who have passed through those hallowed stalls. We saw The Taming of the Shrew on that trip, and, though I had trouble with the language, I sat in awe of the space I got to inhabit for those short few hours. I felt the same way, though I had much less trouble with the language, while watching the production of Romeo and Juliet that we got to attend.

The space itself is exactly as pictures make it look. It is a deep thrust stage (so deep that the farthest seats to either side get a view of backstage) with raked wooden benches around the outer perimeter, about five rows deep. There’s a first and second mezzanine with a similar bench setup. None of the benches have backs, but thankfully we were sat in the last row and so had a wall to lean up against behind us. I also spent the £3 to rent a cushion and was very thankful to have made that choice. Most of the ground floor audience space is left for the groundlings, standing room only. There were several folks from our group who decided to watch the three hour show from the ground; they’re much braver than I!

The show itself was incredibly enjoyable. It was Romeo and Juliet set in the Wild West! I actually think that the concept worked. The team was able to incorporate the imagery and attitude of the Wild West in a way that a) didn’t just feel slapped on top of the text and b) didn’t feel like it was forcing the text to tell a different story. As an American, it was a little funny to see folks in Wild West getup speak with all varieties of UK accents, but I’m glad they didn’t try to do American accents.

Overall, I thought the actors were incredibly strong. At times I had trouble hearing certain actors, especially the Capulet parents who I thought were two of the weaker performances in the production. Mercutio, the Nurse, and Peter all did a great job as comic relief. Overall, that was something that I really enjoyed about this production. I think that it is incredibly easy to take a Shakespearean tragedy too seriously, but this crew did a wonderful job of lifting the humor along with the tragedy. Romeo used the language well and felt locked into the given circumstances, especially in scenes with Juliet. In my opinion, Juliet was absolutely the standout of this production. She did a great job at staying true to the fact that Juliet is only 13 in this story, and the way she used the language taught me so many new things about this play that I have been familiar with for over a decade. Overall, definitely recommend this production to Shakespeare lovers and non lovers alike!

Anyone who knows me knows I’m a HUGEEE history nerd. Some of my favorite time periods to learn about are the ancient Romans, and Jane Austen’s Regency era. Bath is basically both! Spoiler alert, I LOVED it there. Everything from the museum, the town, and the train ride from Paddington Station (even if I didn’t realize it was an hour and a half train ride and I didn’t bring my airpods).

Once we arrived in Bath, we went straight to the ancient Roman baths. These were SO cool. A lot of the architecture was Victorian, as a lot of it was rebuilt during that era, but the original Roman architecture was my favorite. I liked getting to walk around and learn about the people who lived in Bath before the Roman’s took over Britannia. Can you imagine living back then, and all you know is your town, and then all of a sudden these guys pull up and say they’re taking over and they just combine their god with the god you believe to live in the holy hot springs your town is based around? That must have been SO scary.

Once we got down to the actual baths portion of the museum, Sophie and I dipped a finger in the water and rubbed it on our jewlrey. Both British and Roman women would toss jewlrey into the baths and springs as offering to the goddess Sulis Minerva, so it felt like some form of good luck. I did convice myself my finger felt weird afterwards though. Still waiting on the brain eating amoeba to get me.

Once we left the baths, we were all HUNGRY! So we strolled around the town, looking for somewhere to eat lunch so we didn’t have to wait till we got to the Pump Room. We found a place where I could get gluten free pizza, so we stopped in there. It was SO good, though I did overstuff myself.

We walked down to the Jane Austen Centre, but didn’t have time to do a tour. As much as I love Jane Austen, I was okay with that because I worried about it being a little touristy. So, we just decided to be Jane Austen herself and stroll around Bath. As we walked and I took in the architecture, to more I realized how much I genuinely liked Bath. It’s really a beautiful town, and it felt like a quaint town in the country side (while also having an Anthropolgie and Lulu Lemon). Maybe it was because you could see the hills and tree through the buildings.

After our stroll, we made our way to the Pump Room. I got a whole gluten free tea tray to myself and it was honestly really good. Did I eat a lot of it? No. I was still stuffed from lunch, but I ate more of my tray than I should’ve. I got a yummy-licious berry tea that I would honestly drink every day.

After the Pump Room, we made our way back to the train station where, once on the train back to London, I took a semi-decent nap. Overall, I really liked Bath. It had a certain charm that reminded me of a costal town in the states, or maybe even a ski town. Anyways, I wonder if anyone has ever jumped in the Roman baths.

took a big bubble bath on Thursday!! actually, we couldn’t touch the water because it was untreated and would probably infect us – but just seeing and learning about the Roman Baths was enough for me! Wowowow. I had no idea what these were before getting to them in real life, and I had no idea how extensive and well designed and beautiful they are. It was shocking and stunning and all of the above.

Something that really enthralls me when I see historical sights, especially something so old, is thinking about the people who really lived and walked in this place. They were people just like me, and they all came to the Baths for a different reason. I thought it was so interesting how the museum showed projections of what would go on in the different rooms, with real actors and placed at the level of the floor where it would have take place. In one part of the Baths, there was a projection for the women’s steam room, where they would get warm before getting into the cold baths, and they would use oils to open up their pores. They mentioned how some of the ladies would take this chance to pluck out all of the hair on their body. This brought me into thinking about beauty standards for women in this era – clearly body hair was not considered attractive, but I know in other cultures at this time, it was considered incredibly feminine and attractive. It was so interesting to think about how these women (and men) conformed to different standards and ideas just like we still do, and in some ways, the baths were part of that. I also found it so interesting how the baths were mostly a health/self care ritual for those who used them. Ive heard a lot recently about cold plunges, and everyone knows the hot sauna/cold shower routine, but I guess I didn’t realize how far these trends, and this knowledge of the body, went back. The audio guide was incredibly informative and provided so much background into everything we saw, and overall te experience at the Baths was incredible.

Tea at the Pump Room could not be forgotten!! How cool to sit in the same room where many famous people once sat, but especially Jane Austen and Charles Dickens, that was amazing to hear! For this experience, besides a couple pictures of the room and the treats, I put my phone away and tried to be as present as possible. Honestly, I spent the first 20 minutes just sitting listening to the music and looking around the room, imaginging what it must of looked like 200 years ago, with the dresses and the chatter and the status of it all. It must have been quite a scene! I love daydreaming like that. The coffee (not a hugeeee cream tea girl, so coffee it was for me) was amazing, and so were the little treats! The scones and raspberry shortbread were my personal favorites. I was so glad we got to experience this room in all its glory!

I could have spent at least 3 days in Bath. I thought the town was so charming and quaint, but still packed with great shopping and restaurants and of course amazing sites to see. I wish we had more time there, but it was so great to go for the day that we did! It was the perfect break from London. Still a little busy later in the day, but was so much quieter and smaller than the big city, and definitely felt so relaxing. I would 100% return to Bath, and I cant wait to see what I find next time Im there!!

xo, jo

As the sworn president of the Insane People Jane Austen Stan Club, I will admit that my opinion of Bath might be a little biased. However, Bath was one of the most incredible places I have ever been to, and that is a hill I will die on. Between the Jane Austen Museum, the Roman bathing pools, posh tea, and gorgeous view from the bridge, I found myself wishing I could have stayed there for days. 

The baths of Bath were created during the reign of the Roman Empire in England and were crucial aspects of daily life: worship, exercise, hygiene, and medical treatment. While it was all interesting, the part that intrigued me the most was the creation of Bath’s patron goddess, Solis Minerva. It is the culmination of cultures between the Saxon and Roman people that bonded the people of the region. Solis was a goddess of the Saxon people. She was the goodness associated with the protection, water, and healing. The Minerva in her name stems from Roman mythology: the goddess of wisdom, crafting, and strategy. Seeing the similarities in the two traditions, the different cultures combined their goddesses into one person they worshiped together.

My other two favorite activities from Bath were The Pump Room and the Jane Austen museum. The experience of afternoon tea was everything I hoped it would be. I felt very posh by the end, and I am slightly surprised I am not still walking around with my pinkies up. It was crazy to think about the fact that I was standing in the place Jane Austen took her tea. Speaking of Jane Austen… I am really upset that I did not get a full tour of the house because it was extremely cool. However, even what I did see made me feel giddy by the end. The fangirl in me was dying to say the least. 

Oh, and everyone say hello to my bff 😛

The Roman baths were a beautiful architectural site, and while the history was not an area of particular interest to me I was still able to appreciate the work put into the construction of the site. By far my favorite part of the baths were the carvings and statues scattered throughout the building. The one that struck me the most was that of the gorgon, which is etched in great scale in the baths. Upon further research I have learned that its history and the cause of carving it are still somewhat debated today. Even calling it a gorgon is a somewhat controversial statement, as some historians reject this claim on the basis of the gorgon being a female character, and the carving not being feminine in appearance. The primary reason that people do believe that it is meant to be a gorgon is the ties of the creature to the goddess of Athena, who was worshiped at the roman baths under the name Minerva (source: https://www.romanbaths.co.uk/temple-pediment-and-gorgons-head). While its exact origin may still be unknown it is a truly striking image, and left the biggest impression out of the items in the baths. The second largest impression would definitely be the water from the baths springs, which was offered at the end of the tour. It was quite the unpleasant, although not unexpected, mixture of warmth and metallic flavouring that did not live up to the tales of health and rejuvenation it was said to bring

After touring the baths I took the opportunity to explore the city. While still very tourist centered, it was a lot less busy and crowded than London, especially when it came to the roads. The people also seemed slightly more polite, probably because they were in less of a hurry than the majority of London seems to be in. I had a lot of fun looking around at the local charity shops to see what sort of things were donated in that area, and it gave me an opportunity to talk with some of the people from the city. I was quite surprised to learn from one store owner that Arkansas has a somewhat dangerous reputation. After telling him I was from Arkansas he said “oh it’s pretty rough over there isn’t it”. Assuming he was referring to an aspect of its population size or politics I gave a fairly neutral “it’s alright”, only for him to talk about how dangerous he had heard the state was. I was very surprised by this as while I have heard many not so great things about the state of Arkansas, dangerous has never been one of them.

The highlight of the day though by far was tea time. Never in my life have I felt so fancy and elegant. I was very glad I decided to buy a slightly nice shirt from a charity shop before going in, because the environment felt so posh and otherwise I felt like I would look out of place. While not having paid it myself I can not say for sure if the cost was worth the experience, it definitely felt very extravagant. The portions, while small, were very filling and each item brought a unique flavor or texture. The most surprising thing was the cucumber sandwich. As a staunch cucumber hater I was hesitant to even try it, but I was extremely glad I did. It had a very smooth and refreshing taste and flavor that I would not have expected from such a hard vegetable base. My favorite though would have to be the scone, which while relatively simple was made extremely well and was paired with a very good pair of clotted cream and preserves.

While I did enjoy the roman baths tour, getting to have a proper, extremely posh, British teatime has been one of the highlights of this study abroad

On Thursday, May 28th, we took a day trip to see the Roman Baths in Bath, England. We rode a tube, then a train, and then we walked through the crooked streets of Bath to our final destination. Just outside the entrance, we paused for a moment to appreciate a man playing the saxophone. 

Once we got settled inside, fitted with an old phone-looking device on our wrists, we scattered to explore the old grounds. Every once in a while, there would be a sign with a number that, if you plugged it into your phone device, would allow you to listen to a brief historical synopsis related to whatever area or artifact was nearby. It was very much a choose-your-own-adventure museum experience. You did not have to hear about anything that did not interest you. On the other hand, if anything caught your eye, you were welcome to explore and sometimes hear more if your interest persisted after the first recording. 

As I traipsed along the same paths the romans took hundreds of years ago, I was delighted that I could still hear the jazzy saxophone-playing man. I wonder if they ever had musicians come around the baths all those years ago to enhance the experience. I know I had a better time with the addition of music. 

Despite how incredibly old this place and its people are, they were very advanced for their time. I found myself struck by how modern it felt. The style is outdated, but the methods they used to create the beautiful and strong infrastructure were similar to today (or as close as they could get with less-developed tools). Additionally, the activities they engaged in were very contemporary. Getting a massage, women plucking their body hair, men working out in the gym, and more were very common at the Baths! These are also things that most people do almost every day now.

The section of the historic baths that interested me the most (perhaps due to my major) was the engineering section. They invented the “Lewis” bolt (pictured below) to help them lift heavy materials when constructing buildings and other large structures. I probably stared at this for way too long, but I was fascinated that somebody thought up the design for this bolt out of thin air. It brought up a couple of questions, though. How would they cut into the stone in order to apply the bolt? Also, once the stone was in place, would they fill the hole and how? This bolt was just one of many engineering feats the Romans accomplished when constructing the Baths.

– Hadley ❤