word of the day

Project, n.: 2. a. A planned or proposed undertaking; a scheme, a proposal; a purpose, an objective.

I couldn't help but smile when I learned from my Google reader that "project" was the OED word of the day. I have been working on one particular project for the past few weeks: my scrapbook of my BYU Great Britain Study Abroad. Yesterday I picked up 97 pictures from Costco, and just today I created the covers for my book. I am excited about and proud of my work. I have about a week's worth left of pictures to "scrap" but I'm hoping I can finish this project by Sunday, if not before. Wish me luck!

Great Tour of Great Britain

I'm finally back in Provo after our long week touring Great Britain. We saw some amazing sites, and had a fabulous time taking pictures and enjoying our last week together. Here are some highlights:


Our first stop of the tour was the little town of Bath. It was here that Jane Austen based many of her novels and even lived. It is also the site of the ancient Roman Baths, which I loved. After the audio tour I decided to take a swig of the water from the fountain! It was pretty funny tasting. But Bath was definitely one of the best stops on the tour.


On Wednesday we ended in the Lakes District. We stopped in Hawkshead which is the home to a bunch of Beatrix Potter sites, and then stayed in Ambleside. The next morning a bunch of us went on a boat cruise of Lake Windermere. If we hadn't had umbrellas we would have been soaked! But the lake was soo beautiful! It reminded me a lot of Waterton.


One of the best stops of the whole tour was Hadrian's Wall. It's a great site to see to better understand the divisions that exist in England and also the power of the Roman Empire. It was mostly fun because it wasn't raining and we got to take jumping shots and some funny group pictures.


I was so excited to get to Edinburgh!! The night we were there, a few of us got last minute tickets to the Military Tatoo!! Bagpipes and bands and marchers and wow. It was a great performance!!


We spent the next morning at Edinburgh Castle. Very cool.


Fountains Abbey was another one of them ruins! This, I am sure, is the most beautiful. Surrounding the Abbey is a long lake and trees all over, green as can be. It was great to walk around in the sun and just enjoy nature.


One of our last stops was Warwick Castle. Here they had a lot of performers and entertainment. We watched some jousting and were entertained by a "fool". I was disappointed that I didn't get to climb up the tower, because I love doing that.

And there we are. And those were just my favorite places!!

It is great to be back in Provo. I love the heat and the dollar and a shower with consistent water pressure and drinking fountains and everything else American. But I already miss the international London, the history, the tube, the new friends, and the travel experience! It really was amazing!!

Sad Sunday

Today was our last day in London. We went to church once more in the London North ward. We left the flat at 8:30 am and got back at 3:30 pm. Church starts at 10:00. Besides the awful commute, I was glad that I was assigned to that ward. The bishop was nice and there were some funny characters, just like every ward I guess. It was kind of sad to leave, even though I only went to church there 3 times.

Tomorrow we're leaving London to do a week-long bus tour of Great Britain. The places we are going are Bath, Cardiff, Liverpool, Lakes District, Edinburgh, Durham, York, and Stratford. Every night a different hostel. Should be fun? Anyway, I'm sad to leave this flat that I've grown accustomed to. Well, off to packing!

Hyde Park Gate 37

Our flat was the fifth floor, not in the picture, but just above it

What is it about Trafalgar Square?

After getting some work done this morning, I went to the National Portrait Gallery. It was actually really cool! I wish I could've spent more time there.

Then Kelsey and I waited in Trafalgar Square for about an hour and a half before we met up with Amy, Kirsten, and Cadence to do a "last dinner" type thing since we're leaving London on Monday. I don't know what it is, but being in Trafalgar Square makes me kind of goofy. I took too many pictures . . . here are a few.

Mamma Mia!

(you have to say this post title like Mario in MarioKart getting hit by a shell, please)

Today was Friday the first. But it just so happens that the first, was actually our last Friday in London. So we decided to make the best of it.

To start the day off Kelsey and I woke up early and went to the Prince of Wales theater to get tickets to Mamma Mia. We had tried a few other times to get tickets without success, so we wanted to make sure that we were there in plenty of time.

Me and Kels waiting in the tube.

Afterwards, we met up with Amy and went to Buckingham Palace. I have been looking forward to this all month! Probably because there are a few movies that mention Buckingham Palace, and I've always wanted to see what it looks like. We toured the state rooms and got to see the ballroom "dressed up" for a state banquet. Each setting was measured precisely and the glasses and silver sparkled. It was too bad that we couldn't take any pictures because I really thought that it was more beautiful than even Versailles. Oh, and yeah, the actual queen still lives there!! We walked through the gardens a bit too and they were very green.

Gardens at Buckingham Palace

After a trip to a sit-down-and-be-served Pizza Hut we wandered over to Borough Market. Literally every breath I got a different smell: berries, chocolate, fresh fish, warm bread, smoke and alcohol, pineapple, produce. I guess markets are pretty cool. I wanted to buy some fresh pea pods and peel them on the tube, but I couldn't find any good ones.

"I love . . . I absolutely love . . . celery root"

We ran into the Golden Hinde (a ship) and I took pictures. We were also right by Southwark Cathedral and I wanted to go in, but we opted to going on Sunday for evensong. Then we came home to chill before the show. We transfered at Westminster station which is my favorite one!

Trying to capture the essence of Westminster station.

Going to Mamma Mia turned out to be quite an adventure. So, I've been using a blue bag this whole trip. I actually stole it from Annie a while ago because I like it so much. Tonight though I didn't feel like carrying it with me, so Kelsey let me borrow one of her purses. We headed out. It was just after 7:30. After traveling by bus to Gloucester Station, getting on the Piccadilly line, and pulling up to South Kensington station I suddenly realized that my ticket was in that blue bag, and the blue bag, which I never leave without, was in my flat, about 20 minutes away. "KELSEY! I forgot my ticket!" Haha, she didn't believe me, until I hopped off the tube and started making my way back home. I ran from Gloucester Station back to the flat and arrived at the top of our 5 flights huffing and puffing. After grabbing my ticket, I got to the bus stop right in time, eventually hopped on the Piccadilly again and rode the 6 stops to Piccadilly Circus. I ran to the theater and the kind usher escorted me to my seat. I sat down literally as the curtain was drawing up at 8:30. Whew. *sigh*. The show was fun. I enjoyed the beginning and the end the most, because they danced a lot. It was kind of silly and wild, and now I want to go see the movie.

Sorry this post is so dang long. I guess I just felt like telling my stories of the day. Tomorrow is really the last day that we have in London to do any more touring. I love London.

Canterbury and Battle

Since today was Thursday the group once again embarked on a day trip. As expected we spent more time on the coach than at the actually sites . . .
The first stop was Canterbury. I liked the cathedral and the story of the martyrdom of Thomas a Becket. The stained glass depicts some pilgrims coming to worship his shrine. We didn't have much time to explore the town, but it seemed cute and quaint. I wish we had learned a little more about Chaucer's Canterbury Tales, just because that's where all of his characters were traveling to.
The next stop was Battle, where we took an audio tour about the Battle of Hastings and wandered the battle grounds. We also looked at the ruins of the Abbey Church. I've learned a lot about English history on this trip and am actually fascinated by it. The other picture is the stone slab that marks the place where King Harold died in the battle, allowing William the Conqueror the opportunity to take his place as ruler of England. After that we had a 3 hour drive home. My i-pod died walking into the flat.

Victoria and Albert Museum

On Wednesday, Cadence, Kirsten, and I went to the Victoria and Albert Museum, located right near Hyde Park Chapel and our flat. We first wandered the fashion and jewelry exhibits, which were really fun, and sparkly (is that not a word)? I also liked the musical instruments exhibit. There were some crazy flutes and stringed instruments, but of course I liked the pianos/harpsichords/organ boxes the best. It was pretty cool stuff.

After the museum we took another shopping trip up High Street Kensington. I bought some shoes!

Winding Down

On Monday I had a book presentation on "Defining the World: the extraordinary story of Dr. Johnson's dictionary." Later that day we had the opportunity to go to the house that he lived in while he was writing the dictionary. I find the man and his work pretty fascinating, but the place was so dang hot!

Today Kelsey and I made a trip out to the Churchill Museum and the Cabinet War Rooms. I like World War II history and spent a couple of hours there. Later we went to the Hard Rock Cafe, but opted out of eating there because of the hour and a half wait and instead I just bought a t-shirt. Then we wandered Piccadilly Circus/Leicester Square and did some people watching.

Les Miserables

Today after class Lillie, Leigh, Kelsey, M'kynzi, and I went to the matinée showing of Les Miserables, at the Palace Theatre. As much as I enjoyed Wicked, this show tremendously outdid it. It was amazing! The set, the songs, the story . . . it nearly made me cry. And we had 9th row seats! I must say it was a very good day.

The past few hours, us girls have been planning our 3-day trip to Paris. Our train leaves tomorrow at 5:30 am, and then the adventure begins. I won't take my computer with me, so until Sunday probably!!

Clocks

Here are some sweet clocks that I've found in and around London.
The oldest clock that is still working. Dating to the 13th c. Located at Salisbury Cathedral.
The Clock Court at Hampton Court Palace.

Big Ben! Okay, I seriously love the houses of parliament here. They are so pretty and the spires are way cool.

Hampton Court Palace

Today we all went to Hampton Court Palace. This was the living space of Henry VIII, who I've discovered to be amazingly intriguing, along with his 6 wives. We toured all of the King's rooms, and the Queen's rooms and also the gardens.
The pictures I wanted to put up from Hampton Court don't want to go up . . .

Westminster Abbey

On Monday I went to Westminster Abbey for the first time. I was really excited to see all the famous dead people! However, my favorite thing ended up being Henry VII's Lady Chapel because the ceiling was so beautiful. I also liked the old wooden chair. It took me about an hour and a half to get around the whole building listening to the audio tour. I took a break to write down this poem that I found on one of the tombs:

What so thou hast of nature, or of arts,

youth, beauty, strength, or what excelling parts
of mind and body, letter, arms, and worth,
his eighteen years, beyond his years, brought forth,
then stand and read thyself within this glass,
how soon these perish, and thyself may pass.
man's life is measured by the work, not days,
no aged sloth, but active youth has praise.

Westminster has made the top 3 now on my favorites list. Definitely a must-see!!

Weekend Shots

Jumping shots at the Bury St. Edmunds ruins. We got some air. (oh, and this was taken with Amy's camera, she's so good to let me steal the good ones).
Cadence, Kelsey, Me, and Kirsten chillin at King's College.

My two favorite parts of most buildings: the organ and the ceiling.

Cambridge

This weekend Amy, Kirsten, Kelsey, Cadence, and I went to Suffolk to visit Cadence's family on the air force base. On our way down we stopped at Bury St. Edmunds, walked around the Cathedral, and had some McD's. On Saturday we toured Cambridge University a bit and wandered through King's College, which is now at the top of my list. We wandered down to the River Cam and grabbed the handsomest young man to take us punting on the river! The rest of the weekend was filled with free food and dessert, squeaky air mattresses, jumping on the trampoline, dying hair, and watching Persuasion and Jane Eyre. It was a really great time.

Adventures

Here are a few more pictures from my adventures.Here's Lily, Kelsey, and I in front of the British Museum. We liked the Lion, but the "museum shuffle" gets old after you've been to so many.
There goes Todd, Rachel, Kelsey, Lily, Cathy, Leigh, and M'kynzi through Hyde Park. It's right across the street from our building! So pretty. We were on our way to Nando's for dinner. mmm, so good.
That's me straddling the prime meridian in Greenwich. It took us two hours to get there when it shouldn't have taken one. Had we had a better traveling experience, I'm sure it would have been more enjoyable. But hey, when do you get to be in both hemispheres at the same time?
That's me at the Tower of London in front of the "traitors gate". I'm trying to look like a traitor . . . the tower was great fun because we got to see where people were executed, got to see the crowned jewels, and here stories of the kings and queens of England. yay.
And finally Kelsey and I are in front of Tower Bridge. Fun fun fun.

Trafalgar Square

Something I've realized while I've been here in London is how much an experience can be affected based on your relationships with the people you experience it with. For example, if you go at something with your brother, you're going to have a different experience then if you did it with your sister. Anyways, I've made great friends here, and just last night we turned a would-be-slow walk through Trafalgar Square into an ab-workout night of laughter. Here are some pictures of me and Amy, curtsying and taking more glamor shots.

Day Trip

Today I woke up at 7:30 and was on the bus at 7:45. The whole group was going on a day trip today. We rented another coach (although I don't think the coach is ever going to be the same without Rob) and drove for about 4-5 hours and went site-seeing for about 4-5 hours.

First stop Jane Austen's house in Chawton.
Some of the flowers in her beautiful garden! The countryside was also really pretty and we walked down to the church where her sister and mother are buried.One of Jane's writing tables.

Then we went on to Salisbury Cathedral and then Stonehenge. The cathedral was built in the 13th century and Stonehenge of course is, well, really old. Big rocks arranged mysteriously . . . oooooo awwww

Now the day is over and I'm doing my laundry a few blocks from my flat. I actually walked all the way down here with my laundry and laptop and then realized I had forgot my detergent and then walked all the way back to my flat and all the way back here again. It was quite an adventure today.

I'm Blogging!

Yes I do realize that I am already more than 2 weeks into the study abroad in London, but everyone else is blogging, so why can't I?



On Monday night most of our group made it out to the Apollo Victoria to see Wicked! I was so excited and our seats were great! The show was awesome and the songs are still in my head. I sang "For Good" in my head for Riena and gave a well-deserved standing ovation. Fabulous and funny, it was an unforgettable performance.


On Tuesday, Kelsey, my flatmate, and I decided to hit up St. Paul's Cathedral. The ceilings were amazingly detailed and the paintings were beautiful; we sat and stared up for a long time. Then I found out you could go to the top, so I dragged Kelsey up the 500 plus stairs. When we got there we found this fantastic view of the city of London! It was so gorgeous and windy! Highly recommend it, unless you get dizzy on spiral staircases!