Cryptography class: They took an exam on Tuesday (and did really well!) and then we took a field trip to Bletchley Park on Friday. I'd already been so that I knew what was there, so I didn't take any more pics this time, but I hope the students had fun. I didn't see many of them once we got there. I was all annoyed at first because I had to argue w/ the people about the cost of our tickets because of a miscommunication via email, so I pretty much just went straight to the cafeteria and had a bowl of soup and a yummy chocolate covered doughnut to calm myself down. Then, I did most of the guided tour (which I didn't do last time) and spent some time in the gift shop. I look forward to hearing how the students liked it when I see them next week. Ed did take a pic of some of the students and they look happy. so that's good. :)
Stats class: They turned in their first projects and we discussed their second ones this week. Pigeons, drinking at pubs, tube riding, Tinder users, black clothing and bag searches at the British Library will be the focus for the rest of the semester for these students. I think it's a good mix of things. Now, let's just hope everything goes well and we get some solid results. I don't see them for 3 weeks due to Fall Break and Scotland, so I'm a bit nervous about that, but hopefully they'll be busy thinking about their final projects and reading their next chapter in the book.
The only other outing I have for the week (other than cocktail week outings) was a trip to Royal Albert Hall on Friday night to see the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra perform works of John Williams. I paid crazy amounts of money to get my ticket and it was certainly worth it to be in that beautiful space. Now I wish I had done a Proms night (the BBC's version of ACL Live, but with classical music). Oh well. Next time. They did all the classics, plus some I hadn't really heard in concert (War Horse, Home Alone, Munich, JFK, Witches of Eastwick). Very nice Friday night.
I've enjoyed a quiet weekend by myself. Ed left for his vacation on Saturday, so I was all alone over the weekend. I've been busy catching up on my DVR back home each morning. I also did a nice 4.5 mile run on Saturday morning (my first since the half....I needed a break). Caught up on some grading (still have some to do) and got ready for my Fall Break trip to the beaches of Turkey.
Yesterday, I headed out to East London to do the Sunday markets. I've seen the Columbia Flower Market and was unimpressed, so this time it was Brick Lane and Old Spitalfields Market. I went there around 9 and got a bagel at this famous shop and then started strolling the streets. Nothing was open yet! Ridiculous. Don't go to these markets until at least 10AM. So I just walked all around and watched people set up their booths.
Went to have a drink to kill time and then walked all around again. It was better when the booths were open. Some of it is really junky (around Brick Lane), but the Spitalfields Market is nice. I bought some good gifts there. Then, I had Poppies Fish and Chips which is supposed to be the best in London and it didn't disappoint. Very tasty and not very greasy.
Did a bit of strolling around looking at street art while I waited for a cocktail place to open and then headed home. The street art in this part of town is amazing. There is a free tour of the area and I need to do it to find out about some of this stuff. Fascinating. Watched Downton last night and am doing a bit more work today before I head to a movie premiere as part of the London Film Festival. I'm seeing x+y which is a movie about a boy math genius. I'll let you know how it is.
On another note, I did walk by this weird art installation while I was having drinks near London Bridge both on Tuesday and again on Saturday. It's a house made of wax bricks and apparently it's going to melt over the next 30 days. I already noticed some changes from the few days that had passed in between my visits.
 |
| Saturday's view |
Yay! Fall break -- about time you slowed down. So when do we slow down??
ReplyDeleteWish you could have recorded the John Williams music. He's a great composer/conductor. The foods you've eaten since arriving in London sound yummy.
The wax house sounds interesting! What a mess that will be when it actually melts all the way! I liked the "pig" graffiti! Concert sounds like it was amazing-venue and music! We should have tried Poppies!
ReplyDelete