I've just finished my third day of classes here at Harlaxton. It's finally starting to sink in that this is school, not just a vacation. However, it's fun because our classes are held in Harlaxton's state rooms. These are the big fancy rooms that were used to entertain guests back when the manor was someone's country house instead of a college for over 180 students. The ornate decorations can sometimes be distracting when I'm trying to focus on a British Studies, music, or sociology lecture. If you look at the pictures, you'll see why!
This is the Great Hall. The president officially welcomed us in this room when we arrived at Harlaxton. Last night we had a Ceildh (pronounced Kay-lee) here, which was a celebration where a live band came and taught us Celtic dances. We made complete fools of ourselves, but it was fun!
Here's the Long Gallery. I have my British Studies and Sociology lectures in this room. On our second day in the manor, we had a traditional High Table Dinner here. We got all dressed up and ate a fancy dinner with the president and faculty. They also seem to enjoy having a bagpipe player at formal events, so there was plenty of bagpipes too! In this room, a wall opens to a secret passage that used to be used by the servants. There are several secret passages in the manor. The staff won't tell us where they are, so students frequently walk around trying to find them.
This is my favorite ceiling, so I knew that I had to put it on the blog. This is the ceiling of the Gold Room. It is used as a classroom also. It's probably good that I don't have a class in here, because I think I'd just stare at the ceiling the whole time.
Here's a picture of the State Dining Room. This is where I have my British Studies seminar class. You can't see it in the picture, but to the left are some massive windows that look out over the front driveway of the manor.
This is a wall decoration from the Morning Room. As you guessed, this is also used as a classroom. Every day I find something beautiful in the manor that I didn't notice yesterday.
And here's one last picture to prove that I'm actually here. Everyone sees me wearing my red coat a lot because most of the rooms in the manor are FREEZING cold! I guess I should expect that from a house that's about 175 years old.
I hope you enjoyed seeing some of the manor. I'm sure you'll be seeing more of it over the next four months. I'm really excited to go on my first trip this weekend. I'm going to London, so expect pictures and stories from that soon!
-- Amy
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