All You Need is Love

We went to Abbey Road!! And took some awesome Beatles pictures!! It took us a little while to find it and I'm embarrassed to say that I had to be a typical tourist and ask for directions...But after walking around for about twenty minutes we found it!! And yes, I couldn't leave without signing the wall...that just wouldn't be right!

Greenwich

My favorite part of our excursion to Greenwich was seeing everyone playing in the park!! I had never seen anything like it ever before in America (except maybe on the Fourth of July)...But everyone, and I mean everyone who was anyone, was enjoying their Saturday afternoon at the park, lying in the grass, playing ball, or eating and just enjoying the beautiful weather.

(You can see the Royal Observatory on the top of the hill)

(Two cute little British girls playing in the fountain...I couldn't resist being a creeper stalker and taking a picture of them)

I also enjoyed seeing some more historical sites! We were expecting to see the Cutty Sark, but found out it was under construction, so we took a picture in front of the beautiful sign!


We made our way to the Old Royal Naval College!


Within the college, we were able to go inside the Painted Hall (used for dining and other functions/meetings) and the Chapel!


(the ceiling of the painted hall...keep in mind the painted hall took 19 years to complete...I can see why)

(The Chapel- There was even a choir practicing while we were there for added dramatic effect)

We went inside the Queen's House, which was the first building in England to be built in the Palladian style.


Finally, we checked out the Royal Observatory, and yes, I got to stand on the Prime Meridian!! Sooooo cool!!!

(Everyone pointing to the most accurate clock in the world)

It was a pretty neat experience!! And after the day was through, there was only one thing left for me to say. "I am Lovin' London!"

Catchin' Up

So here are some highlights of the past week and a half....
1. I spent a couple of days keeping my friend company in St. Mary's hospital...poor girl had an allergic reaction...hey but I got an experience that might actually apply to my major and a free taxi ride, which was pretty awesome!
2. I stood on the Prime Meridian!!

3. I took a boat ride on the Thames!

4. I decided I'm going to live in Windsor Palace someday...It's about 484,000 sq. ft...no big deal...I suppose that's big enough!
5. I went to Stratford upon Avon and saw the home of William Shakespeare. The whole city, especially the gift shops, just milk it! Shakespeare is basically their only claim to fame, so they do as much as they can with the name! You can see what I mean by this picture of a cafe I was considering eating at.

6. I had afternoon tea in Oxford's Great Hall (a.k.a Hogwarts)...It was basically Harry Potter Status!

7. Went to Scotland, more specifically Edinburgh, and had my fill of Haggis and bagpipes.

While I was there, I saw a street artist use spray paint as his medium...

I hiked to the top of King Arthur's seat...

and went to the Botanic Gardens where I saw a Christmas tree that was literally straight out of a Dr. Seuss book!!

8. Last but not least, I found out I'm actually a walking tourist site for all the Asians...about fifty of them in a huge group wanted a picture with me in front of a random wall...who would have thought I was so popular!!
Anyways, I'm having so much fun traveling to all these different places. There is so much to see, and so little time! I hope I can get it all done!! I don't ever want to leave! I am lovin' London soooo much!!

A Walk Through Londinium

Brianna, Jillian, and I took a walk around the city, in the heart of Britain's commerce and financial businesses. It was definitely a change of scenery. Everyone walking around us was in a hurry, dressed in their fancy business suits and carrying their brief cases. And then there's the three of us, in our jeans and T-shirts, slowly wandering around, looking like typical tourists. It was pretty funny! I loved seeing all the sights, but one of my favorite things was seeing all the places where there was a random ancient wall or building, right in the middle of all the modern day skyscrapers. I had to take a picture (see above) of this guy waiting at a bus stop with an ancient Roman wall behind him! I love it! Anyways, here are some of the things I encountered while taking my walk...


Statue of Emperor Trajan and the remains of a Roman wall just outside the Tower Hill station.


A monument dedicated to the merchant seamen killed in WWI


The former Port of London Authority building, where the world sea trade was controlled!


St. Olave's Church, which survived the Great Fire of 1666 and is the site of Mother Goose's burial


"The Great Gherkin" (named because it looks like a giant pickle)


Statue of the Crutched Friars


Tower 42, named for its 42 floors, was the first skyscraper in London.


Amourer's and Brasier's Hall


The remains of a church tower that survived the Blitz of WWII


The Museum of London (which is super interesting...I went there a couple of weeks ago!)

Escaping to the Seaside

The past three days were sooo much fun! We took an extended trip outside of London and went to visit a bunch of different places.
Day 1: We were up and at it by 6! Coach rolling by 7:30 and on our way to Chawton, where Jane Austen lived.


We then went to Winchester and saw the Cathedral and the Great Hall with King Arthur's Round Table.

above: picture of flower stand in Winchester

After that it was off to Bath!
Oh Bath!! It was beyond gorgeous! I loved everything about it, the architecture, the landscape, the Roman Baths, the shopping...all of it was wonderful!
After touring the baths, I got to drink some actual water from them! It was...well...exactly what its called: bath water! Warm, salty, bath water! There's not much to it! I don't think I'll be having another glass of it any time soon!

After that, Rachel and I went to explore the city! We fell in love with the Cath Kidston store! It is the cutest ever!
One of the cute ladies working at there recognized us as Americans (it's pretty sad how terribly we stand out here) and told us she was from California. She had met a hot Englishman in L.A. a few years ago, married him and moved to Bath, where she now works at an adorable store! Ummm, if that doesn't sound like a fairytale, I don't know what does!!

That night we stayed in a hostel in Bath! I was expecting it to be kind of grimy, but surprisingly it was pretty decent. We were all pretty tired, so most of us stayed in, and one thing led to the next. Before we knew it, we were in a back massage train, giving each other back rubs and head massages, and telling stories about our first kisses, and...well...you get the picture! At one point, we got all 6 of the guys to join us! It was pretty funny!

above: Our hostel in Bath

Day 2: I was sad to leave Bath, but excited to get to the sea shore. First thing in the morning, we made our way to Glastonbury to see the Abbey and Tor! hah if you were wondering what the Tor is, its a tower on top of this hill! And although all of us were complaining on the steep hike up to it, we were so happy when we got to the top! The view was beautiful!

After that, we saw the cathedral at Wells. Wells, not to be confused with Wales, is a quaint little town. It had a bunch of street vendors and I couldn't resist the cupcake booth, so I splurged and bought a strawberries and cream cupcake. It had a jelly center with cream cheese frosting and sparkles and a strawberry on top. It sounds gross, but it was really really good!


Finally, we made the long drive to the coast! I could barely contain myself! As soon as I saw the Atlantic Ocean, I wanted to jump in right then and there! We totally lucked out with wonderful weather and a beautiful sunset. It was absolutely breathtaking!! I love love love the ocean!


Now as for the hostel in Ilfracombe (the seaside city we were in)...well...words cannot describe it! The owner had greasy dread locks...well correction...he had a single dread lock about an inch thick and a foot wide and so long, it went past his butt...need I say more! I had never seen anything like it before! His hair was like a piece of artwork! The people of Ilfracombe call him "Rug Man." At first I was kind of hesitant about the hostel, after seeing the owner and everything, but on top of that, there were 8 girls to one shower and mirror...ummm...ya, I felt like saying, "I don't think this is going to work!" Hey but we did it! We ended up surviving the night! With little complaining, I might add! haha

Day 3: Everyone went to a local diner for a full english breakfast in the morning. Ummm...I found out I'm not a fan of English breakfasts...and ya...okay moving on!


We went to Tintagel, a city on the cliffs near the sea, where we saw the ruins of King Arthur's Castle. The views from on top of the cliffs were sooo beautiful! It was surreal! I felt so lucky to be able to see all the beauty of England!

above: Carly and I in front of arch at Tintagel Castle!

Last, but not least, we saw one more cathedral in Exeter! By then, I was kind of "cathedraled" out! Every cathedral I had seen so far was so magnificent and, don't get me wrong, I appreciate all of them, but by the time we had gotten to Exeter, I was a little burned out. Even our instructors later confessed they had had there fill!

above: sculpture of the Last Supper in the cathedral

Anyways, that about wraps up our first of 3 extended trips we will be taking! It was long, but soooooooooooo fun! My favorite part: just driving through the countryside, looking at the all the beautiful green pastures and landscape! I am lovin' London, but even more than that, I am lovin' England!