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A TALE OF TWO CITIES
The Libraries of Edinburgh & London
About
My name is Taryn Wiseman
I am an online student with LSU's Master of Library & Information Science program based in New Orleans and this summer I will be joining LSU's study abroad program entitled "Libraries of the UK." Join me as I document my visits to libraries, archives, museums, and special collections around Edinburgh and London. Beyond the cities, the itinerary features memorable day trips to historic gems such as Bath and Oxford. In my free time at home I love spending time with my teen daughters, our dog and four cats, and the ladies from my amazing book club. I also enjoy walking around my neighborhood when the weather is nice and admiring the beautiful New Orleans architecture. As someone who loves both history and travel, this promises to be the perfect adventure.
The Beauty of Cambridge
The River Cam For our final site visit, we boarded a train to Cambridge from nearby Liverpool Street Station and took a bus into the city center. We met our guide, Lauren, who led us on a walking tour of the city. Lauren attended the University of Cambridge and has a background in architecture. The University was founded in 1209 after some Oxford scholars who were fed up with the strife with the townspeople, the so-called "Town & Gown" issues I discussed in my Oxford post, de
Taryn
Jul 292 min read
Stonehenge, Glastonbury, & Avebury
Stonehenge About two weeks ago on a 'Free Day' I went on a day trip with stops in Stonehenge, Glastonbury, and Avebury with my classmate, Christine. We woke up at the crack of dawn and took the tube to our meeting site, where we met our guide for the day, Andrew. Fortunately, there were only eight people on the tour that day. Our first stop was Stonehenge and we were early, so hardly any buses were there yet. We took the shuttle up to the site and walked toward the rock circl
Taryn
Jul 263 min read
The National Archives - Kew
The National Archives - Kew Our group ventured out to the National Archives in Kew and met Head of Library, Cliff Van Dort. We split up into two groups and I was in the first group to get a tour of the reference stacks upstairs. This building opened in 1977, but a full consolidation of public records did not occur at this location until 1996. Interestingly, the old Public Records Office was in the Maughan Library, which we toured and is now part of the Strand Campus of King's
Taryn
Jul 262 min read
National Maritime Museum & Royal Observatory Greenwich
National Maritime Museum When we arrived at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich we had to say our 'goodbyes' to our amazing guide, Kavin, who led us through London the last few weeks. We could not have had a better guide while in the city, and she had to deal with me and my wonky Tube Oyster card on several occasions as well as the time I got left behind at Liverpool Street station on the way to the Houses of Parliament. Our time at the National Maritime Museum was self
Taryn
Jul 262 min read
The Sutton Hoo Collection at the British Museum
The iconic Sutton Hoo Helmet I chose the Sutton Hoo collection at the British Museum for my research topic because I lived just three miles away from the ship-burial's excavation site back in the 1990s. The discovery of the Anglo-Saxon ship-burial dates back to 1939 when archaeologist, Basil Brown, famously excavated Mound 1 on Mrs. Edith Pretty's property in Suffolk. It turned out to be the richest archaeological find ever on British soil with priceless items of gold, silver
Taryn
Jul 242 min read
Oxford: Bodleian Library & Harry Potter
We arrived by train a bit late for our walking tour of Oxford. So, our guide, Sergiy, who is from Ukraine, but has spent the last several decades in Oxford, quickly walked us to the city center to get us started. Once we arrived in the heart of Oxford, he gave us some background on the history of the town. Interestingly, the site began around 900 AD as an Anglo-Saxon river crossing for oxen, which led to a flourishing marketplace that became known as Oxenford (meaning "ford o
Taryn
Jul 233 min read
Parliament in Technicolor: Red, Green & Blue Explained
Elizabethan Tower with "Big Ben" and Parliament (photo by blogger) I was super excited for our visit to the Houses of Parliament. I've seen heated television footage of the chambers before so it is very intriguing to me. However, my visit to Parliament did not start off well. I got separated from my group in the Underground. My oyster card would not work at any of the turnstiles and neither would my credit card. It turned out that the turnstiles weren't working for anyone els
Taryn
Jul 213 min read
The British Museum Archive
The British Museum Reading Room We arrived at the British Museum to tour the museum's archive and waited for our guide in the glass-topped Great Court. The awe-inspiring domed Reading Room is located at the center of the Great Court, but was currently closed for renovations. I had no idea where the archive was located in the museum and to my surprise we were led to the gift shop that surrounds the structure of the Reading Room, and were ushered through the doors in the photo
Taryn
Jul 213 min read
Inside the Maughan: From Medieval Chapel to King's Most Stunning Study Space
Gate that leads to Maughan Library at King's College London I keep getting further behind on blogging! As soon as I catch up, we have visited more sites that I need to write about. Plus, I had to take some time to actually work on my research paper. So, here we are at Maughan Library at King's College London, pronounced like "lawn" as noted on an entrance sign. We met our guide, Pablo. Oh, poor Pablo! The person scheduled to give us our tour cancelled at the last minute and P
Taryn
Jul 212 min read
The London Library: Lost in the Stacks
Issue Hall of the London Library After my classmate, Cari, and I toured the Queen Elizabeth II: Her Life in Style exhibit at Buckingham Palace, we met the rest of the group at the London Library, located at 14 St. James's Square in Westminster for our private tour. We were greeted by Amanda Stebbings, head of member services, who proceeded to take us on a magical tour of the London Library. This by far has been my favorite library in London up to this point. Tiered stacks of
Taryn
Jul 183 min read
The Roman Baths: A Gorgon, Coins, & Curses
The Great Bath On Tuesday this week we took a 2-hour train ride from Paddington Station to Bath! We headed to the Roman Baths for our required site visit. I did not realize the complex was so large as I have seen the famous photos of the Great Bath that appears to be bright green and thought that was the main event, but there is so much more. Founded after the Roman invasion of Britannia in 43 AD, the complex also included the Sacred Spring (see below) for offerings, the Suli
Taryn
Jul 173 min read
The Royal Geographical Society: Maps, Mountains & Explorers
Stunning fireplace in the hall of the RGS with a framed arctic landscape over the mantel. I thought the blue & white tile & marble were gorgeous! I’ve gotten so behind on blogging this week! Between our day trip to Bath, daily site visits, and exploring London's exhibitions & attractions—often in the sweltering heat—I've been completely wiped out by the end of the day. I nicknamed one tube line, Piccadilly, the Lucifer line! You take these crazy steep escalators down almost r
Taryn
Jul 172 min read
The Globe Theatre: London's Ultimate Time Machine
To get the Globe Theatre, we hopped on a bus near Liverpool Street Station and jumped off right across from St. Paul’s Cathedral. Here we made our way across the Millennium bridge over the Thames, which links St. Paul’s and the Tate Modern. The Globe Theatre is nestled along the riverfront near the Tate Modern. The Globe Theatre building that stands there today is actually a reconstruction that was built in 1997. We met our guide, Michael, who presented us with an informative
Taryn
Jul 122 min read
How to Stay Cool in a London Heatwave: Without Air Conditioning
Apparently the 33-story student housing building we are staying in was built to hold in the heat as London is usually a chilly place and the rooms don't have A/C, some communal areas do though (we spend lots of time in those during the day). Well, these rooms get HOT when London experiences a heatwave, which seems to be happening all over Europe more often with climate change. It has taken a team of classmates to share tips for staying cool and I'll share some strategies here
Taryn
Jul 104 min read
Middle Temple Library & Hall
Today we visited the Middle Temple Library for a tour and met Dr. Renae Satterly, Keeper of the Middle Temple Library. Dr. Satterley explained that the Temple Library is a law reference library that is not open to the public. Access is permitted only to members of all four Inns of Court, which are professional associations based in London. The four Inns of Court consist of the following societies: Gray’s Inn, Lincoln’s Inn, Inner Temple, and Middle Temple. The Middle Temple L
Taryn
Jul 102 min read
The Barbican Library: Books, Library of Things, & The Spice Girls?
At the Barbican Library, Development Manager Natalie gave us a brief introduction to both the library and the Barbican Centre, a multi-use arts, learning, and conference venue. One of the first things she clarified for us was that there is a difference between the City of London, in which the Barbican Library is located and funded, and Greater London, which was a bit confusing at first. So, the City of London is the historical center and the financial heart of the city and Gr
Taryn
Jul 102 min read
The British Library: Conservation Centre & Treasures Exhibit
The British Library was opened in 1973 following an Act of Parliament to establish a national library for the UK. It has a collection of over 170 million items and an expansive digital archive. On our arrival at the library we met our main guide, Claire, a conservator, who took us through a behind the scenes tour of the Conservation Centre. There were several rules for us to tour the center. We could only bring a notebook, pencil, and phone, but all other items had to be stor
Taryn
Jul 93 min read
London City Walking Tour & Arrival
Buckingham Palace Introduction I have to admit that arrival in London was a challenge after the highs were 60 in Edinburgh and we had air conditioned hotel rooms. London is experiencing another heatwave--not as bad as the one in June, but at 90 with no A/C in our student housing, it's definitely uncomfortable. After an early morning departure, 4-hour train ride, a transfer on a shuttle, and a long wait for check-in, we met the amazing Kavin, our London guide for the next thre
Taryn
Jul 84 min read
The Palace of Holyroodhouse: Edinburgh
Introduction We spent our last day in Edinburgh touring the Palace of Holyroodhouse, the official Edinburgh residence of the Sovereign, King Charles III, which is located on the east end of the Royal Mile. Before Holyroodhouse became a royal residence, the land was first the site of Holyrood Abbey beginning in the 12th century. The atmospheric ruins of the abbey are still standing today adjacent to the palace (see photo below). The name Holyrood comes from the Old English wor
Taryn
Jul 72 min read
The National Museum of Scotland: A Visual Feast
The Grand Gallery of the National Museum of Scotland Introduction We entered the National Museum of Scotland at opening time and were rewarded with the experience of standing in the soaring and luminous Grand Gallery before the crowds arrived. I was in awe! The museum comprises two distinct architectural styles, the Victorian Grand Gallery previously known as the Royal Scottish Museum and the new Museum of Scotland that evokes the stone walls of Edinburgh Castle but with mode
Taryn
Jul 53 min read
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