“A Must-See in London? Honestly? Everything!”This is what SBCC English professor, Honors Program director and academic senate president Melanie Eckford-Prossor answered when we asked her for more information about her favorite destination.
London is the largest city and at the same time the capital of England and the United Kingdom. On Eckford-Prossor's way home from directing a program in Madrid, Spain, she spent her birthday in her birth city, London.
"Leaning over a railing above the Thames, the December sky reflected on its surface, the skyscrapers and iconic buildings to her left, I thought how much I want to bring students here: to have them experience a city still vibrant after more than 2000 years, a city whose ideas, knowledge, and culture have--for bad and good--shaped our world."
According to Eckford-Prossor the city is best experienced by foot: walk the neighborhoods, stumble onto tiny parks and into all kinds of shops. Warm yourself with coffee or drop into a local pub for a pint. Then hop on a double-decker bus, climb to the top, and watch the city strut by.
"So much history. So much life and excitement. It makes the world we live in" Eckford-Prossor exclaimed when asked what she liked most about you London.
Outside of the tourist spots, Eckford-Prossor recommends a local experience while visiting London. In Chelsea, behind a very, very long wall, there's an old 18th century Physic Garden - a garden growing medical herbs - fun to wander around. Another fun experience she suggests is asking the locals in the Physic Garden why the "windows" in nearby houses are filled with stone, not glass. Lastly, she mentions there’s good food in the little café attached to the garden. Besides that, go and cross the river and go to Battersea Park, and wander around.
Did you know that all our time zones are based on Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)? When asked to share something unexpected you would learn in London, that was one of the things she pointed out.
"All of our time zones are based on Greenwich Mean Time -the starting point for measuring time on the globe - also known as the prime meridian!" More surprising things to learn in London according to Eckford-Prossor? "You can take a "tube or a boat down the Thames and walk up to the old Greenwich Observatory and stand on the zero point on the globe - as well as the starting point for all of our time zones. Down in Greenwich, more yummy cakes to be had: not that a theme is emerging at all. Odd fact: in 1894, seeing the importance of the prime meridian, anarchists tried--and failed--to blow up the Observatory!"
We think all these facts and things Eckford-Prossor mentioned are definitely a reason to visit London! Maybe that could be the perfect destination to study abroad for you in the future?
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