Friday 1/27
I don't have class on Friday which is really great, so I met a friend of one of my friends from Clemson who is studying abroad this semester in London also. We went to a place in Charing Cross called Byron Hamburgers where I had literally the best burger I have ever had in my life. You may or may not know this, but I take burgers very seriously and rank the best ones I've had. This one was 100% the best and I can't even explain why, but the old English cheddar may have had something to do with it. So after that, I met up with some friends with East London. We went to the markets, ate at the Jack the Ripper pub and hung about. It was a fun day.
All 5 of Jack the Ripper's victims were seen coming out of this pub before they were murdered.
Saturday 1/28
This was a wonderful full day of sightseeing! We went and saw Abbey Road which was really entertaining because we watched these teenage girls almost get hit by cars. I not a huge Beatles fan, but I like some of the songs, so it was neat to see it.
Abbey Road!
The Studio
After that however, I was pumped because we were going to see King's Cross station!! I jumped around and finally we saw Platform 9 3/4! I was a little let down, because they moved it to nowhere near where it should be, but I took many pictures nonetheless.
Beautiful.
After King's Cross, we went into the British Library. I was not prepared for what I was about to see. In the "Treasures" section were the following:
-Jane Austen's desk, glassed, personal copies with handwriting of Pride and Prejudice
-Original manuscripts of Shakespearean plays
-Speeches written and signed by Queen Elizabeth I
-handwritten notes from Mary, Queen of Scots
-The Luttrel Psalter
-original copy of the Bible
-Handel's Messiah handwritten and sheet music
-many other freak out worthy pieces
I literally just stared at Elizabeth's signature for a good 5 minutes. I was just so pleased to know that all these things had been preserved for so long.
Sunday 1/29
This was a quieter day of doing a bit of reading, homework, and going to church at night!
Monday 1/30
Literally class all day. Mondays are not too fun.
Tuesday 1/31
I did absolutely nothing but read and it was wonderful.
Wednesday 2/1
Much busier. I went to the Museum of London which was great! It tells the history of the city from prehistory to the future. I particularly enjoyed the exhibits on London during the Civil War and fire, Georgian London, and Victorian London. They had a lot of different types of exhibits like traditional ones with artifacts and text panels, interactive things, touch-screens, and videos. The coolest things were the Georgian Pleasure Garden which showed different outfits people wore all in an actual garden with benches, trees, flowers, a starry sky, and a full size video of people moving about and talking in the 1700s style. It was great. The Victorian London shop set up was similar with storefronts to peruse. I did particularly enjoy this museum.
After this, I had to get ready for a play I was seeing that evening called Lovesong. I absolutely hated the show. It was about a couple when they were young and old going back and forth. They could not have children, cheated on each other, and in the end the wife took too many pills on purpose. I don't know if I missed something, but I did not like it at all.
Thursday 2/2
A good day indeed! We went on a tour of the Globe Theatre with my theatre class. The Globe was really cool, but what was better was the museum of Shakespearean artifacts, and the Rose Theatre which was the actual foundation of the theatre from the 1500s. I did really like the Globe because I've always loved Shakespeare.
We also saw the Millennium Bridge! This is the one that the death eaters destroyed in the beginning of HP6. We also walked around St. Paul's Cathedral which was neat. Definitely not as exciting as Westminster Abbey in my opinion. It was built by Sir Christopher Wren as the original burned down in the fire of London in 1666. Diana and Charles got married here in 1981.
Me in front of St. Paul's Cathedral
Shakespeare's Globe
Millennium Bridge with Tower Bridge in the background
Friday 2/3
We went to Trafalgar Square and toured the National Portrait Gallery. I do love the Potrait Gallery because I just like to look at all the people who I do enjoy learning about. Especially the monarchs.
Trafalgar Square with the National Gallery, fountains, and Olympic Countdown all in the background
Saturday 2/4
We hadn't done any real shopping, so we ventured to the Burberry outlet store! We took our first bus ride out into East London and were excited to go in. However, the prices were not what we thought they would be. Needless to say, we left empty handed. We then went to the Camden Market in Camden and looked at things that were more in our price range. It was a lot like Chinatown actually. Then we decided to blend in with the locals and go to the trendy bar called World's End. It was something all right, lots of punky looking people. Rugby was on England vs. Scotland so that had people riled up. It was fun though and a good atmosphere. When we came out of the pub it had started snowing (yuck) and we got the tube home!
Sunday 2/5
As usual Sundays are for schoolwork! So I've been reading King Lear and watching a movie about Paris because I'll be there in 2 weeks! :)
Until Next time!
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