Oberlin

One of the benefits of being a student in a city like London is that there are all sorts of opportunities to see various museums, performances and things like that either free or at steeply reduced prices that are especially for students--and this is not counting all of the plays we get to see as part of the London program itself. For example, the National Theatre and the Royal Opera House both have programs where students can get tickets (either rush or specially allocated) for 5 or 10 pounds--especially for the opera, this is absurdly cheap. Even if you are not an opera fan the Royal Opera House's scheme is an incredible deal.

This past Thursday, I was able to see a performance of Mozart's "Don Giovanni," and I think I can safely say it was the best performance of any kind that I have ever seen. It was only the second opera I'd seen--the first being "A Wedding" in Oberlin last semester--but it was surprisingly accessible and entertaining through the entire three and a half hour performance. The production was spectacular. At one point, a giant flaming metal hand, maybe 15 feet long, swung down from the ceiling to drag the Don into Hell. As in, a hand that was actually on fire. It was unreal. Almost as unreal was the experience of walking around the opera house during the intermission, when my friend and I realized just how much money everyone else had spent to get the same kinds of seats we'd gotten through the student scheme--many had ordered expensive meals at the opera house restaurant or reserved tables in the bar area, and in general the whole atmosphere made us feel as though we had accidentally snuck in somewhere. Which was sort of awesome.

For those who don't care for theatre or opera, London's museums are also an incredible opportunity. Our classroom building is only a couple blocks from the British Museum, and there are five or six other enormous museums that are accessible free of charge. So far I've been to the National Gallery, the Tate Modern, and the Imperial War Museum as well as the British Museum, all of which have incredible collections and all of which are free. They are excellent places to spend an afternoon, or even to study--taking a stroll through the exhibits is a great study break. After all, how many places can you look up from your reading and see the Rosetta Stone or walk past a bunch of Egyptian mummies?