On Capitol Hill, the UK ambassador's residence and cultural news
“Abroad, freed of the clutter and distractions of home, we see many things—especially our own people—more clearly and more tellingly than we would at home.”
- W. Somerset Maugham
Life Recently
Last week, Andrew and I attended the opening of his alma mater Georgetown University’s new McCourt School campus on Capitol Hill. The building is beautiful, but I can’t help but feel like public policy students are missing out on a more collegial experience, being so far away from the charm of the main campus.
Andrew had classes on the main campus in 2016 and we now visit the gym there twice weekly. Its allure and community atmosphere, I fear, aren’t replicable across the city in yet another downtown office building. Place matters, and you have your whole life to work in office buildings if you want. I say, savor the university and student experience as long as you can!
“Around the World: Embassy Open House” was also over the weekend. We toured the British Embassy and the British ambassador’s residence. It was fun to get an inside look behind those tall gates protecting their massive compound. It was also interesting to interact with our British counterparts—UK foreign service families serving a tour here in Washington.
Yesterday was also the one year anniversary of King Charles III’s coronation. Here’s a photo of me and Andrew waiting in the rain for the newly-crowned king’s Gold State Coach to roll by. I have a highlight on my Instagram devoted to the coronation for anyone interested.
In the News
A mysterious Roman artifact found in Lincolnshire, UK is puzzling archeologists. Is it a tool for making pasta? A dog toy? Or perhaps a scent diffuser? Take a look and make your guess.
Vegan croissants are slowly catching on in France. How? By sheer ignorance. Meet the pastry chefs and restauranteurs who are baking up vegan bliss for customers who don’t know they’re not eating dairy.
The Financial Times has an interesting feature on the so-called “Hackney Mole Man” who dug a 66-foot deep hole under his London home. The derelict remains of the structure were renovated following the former owner’s death, and the new owner made sure to include nods to the home’s infamous past.
What I’m Watching
The massively popular European song competition Eurovision is this week. The semi-finals are May 7 and May 9, and the grand finale is Saturday, May 11 at 9 p.m. CEST (or 3 p.m. EST).
You can read about each country’s song entry ahead of the finals. If you’re in the U.S., Eurovision will be streamed live on YouTube and on Peacock. I always enjoy watching.
On the Blog
I wrote two new SEO-informed blog posts last week. The first is about Italy’s obsession with Pocket Coffee—the sweetened, espresso filled candies with a shot of caffeine. The second is about useful phrases to know if you’re visiting Italy.
I’m trying to ramp up content production so be on the lookout for two more blogs to hit my site by the end of the week.
I also created a new logo! It’s not perfect but it’s an improvement, I think.
That’s all for now. Thanks for reading <3
Cheers,
Michelle
