That's right. As of this week I am half way complete with this journey. February flew, as it is a very short month. I have two weeks worth of catching up to do so we'll just cut to the chase.
Two weeks ago a group of us decided to go to Portobello Road. For all of you who have seen Bed Knobs and Broomsticks, yes this is the same place. We went on a Wednesday afternoon so it was pretty dead, but this week I went back on a Saturday and the place was bustling with people and stalls of all kinds of goodies. It is known best for selling antiques. Portobello Road is in Nottinghill. Nottinghill is full of beautiful, quaint, brightly colored houses. I learned that there is a movie called Nottinghill starring Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts, so we watched it. I would highly recommend it. The thing about London is that wherever you go there was probably some movie filmed there.
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| Roomies at Portobello Raod |
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| Colored houses |
Later that night I went with Briona and Saren down the street to see Cirque de Soleil. It was their final week and I had never seen a show before. As we were going up to find our cheap, highest balcony seats like always an usher stopped us and gave us free upgraded tickets that were lower because the show had not sold out. Turns out we ended up getting BOX SEATS. Like so legit they had to come unlock the door for us to get in. The seats were amazing but man that show was incredible. Overall a very awesome experience.
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| Our box |
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| So close to the stage |
Our free day was Wednesday that week so a couple of us got up to go to the National Portrait Gallery. Basically it is rooms and rooms full of official and original portraits of famous British people. My literature nerd came flying out as I found dozens of writers and poets I have been learning about for years and years. There was also a special, temporary exhibit about Vivien Leigh. I was in heaven. She played Scarlet O'Hara in Gone with the Wind and that is one of my favorite stories/movies of all time. After that we went to a pub for lunch. Pubs are the best because they give you a lot of food for a good price and the environment is very relaxed and just plain awesome. We all got bangers and mash; a classic English dish.
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| Old, gray double decker bus |
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| William Shakespeare |
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| Mary Shelley |
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| William Wordsworth |
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| The Bronte Sisters |
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| Jane Austen |
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| Vivien Leigh Exhibit |
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| Pub lunch |
Later that week we finally made it to Abbey Road! I like The Beatles but have never been the biggest fan in the world. I mostly love it because, well, its my road. ABBEY road. We really had a fun trying to time the perfect second to walk across the street like they do on the album cover without getting run over by the every day cars. People had written all over the walls so we added our marks as well.
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| Pretty impressive likeness right??? |
For our London day trip this week we got to go to Westminster Abbey. This was one of the places I was looking forward to go the most. Unfortunately you can't take pictures inside but I did get to see the coronation chair, the tomb of the unknown solider and many graves of famous monarchs such as Mary I, Elizabeth I and William and Mary. Again, my literature nerd came out strong. Anyone heard of poet's corner? Ya, I have now been there and I was freaking out as I walked over the graves of Charles Dickens, Robert Browning, Tennyson and many others. Of interesting note, Handel and Newton are both buried there as well. After that we headed to the Tate Britain museum full of beautiful art. It was actually Valentine's Day, so in the evening we ordered in and had a pizza party.
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| Tate Britain |
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| Valentine's Day Pizza Party |
For our outside London Trip that week we went to Blenheim Palace. The Duke of Marlborough lived there and is most famously known for the Battle of Blenheim and being the birth place of Winston Churchill. We walked around the expansive grounds for a while and almost got knocked over by the wind then headed in for a tour of the castle and came out to clear blue skies so we could walk around the gardens.
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| My family hunts pheasants sometime. I thought this was funny |
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| Sheep always remind me of my Grandpa Anderson |
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| Riddle me this. Why does a gate with no fence need to remain closed? |
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| The Beauty and the Beast library |
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| The room where Winston Churchill was born |
After Blenheim we headed to Oxford. This is another favorite place of mine. The college and town are intertwined with each other and there is just a really happy feel about it. Our tour guide, Deb was a hoot and really loved her job so that made the trip even better. Also the fact that many Harry Potter scenes were filmed here which was a bonus.
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| Monument to the three martyrs |
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| The spot where the three martyrs were burned at the stake |
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| Deb. Our spirited tour guide. |
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| The Bodelain Library, also known as the infirmary in Harry Potter |
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| The kissing gate |
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| The stairs that lead to the great hall in Harry Potter |
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| Exploring Oxford with hot chocolate and these girls |
Last week was different from most in that we had our first over night trip. We didn't have any day trips, but we did manage to squeeze in a trip to King's Cross Station to take a trolley through Platform 9 3/4 to the Hogwarts Express.
On Wednesday we started our long exodus to Land's End. Our first stop was in Glastonbury. We visited the Abbey where legend has it King Arthur was buried. We had a straight up crazy tour guide which only enhanced the fantasy of the place.
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| This tree supposedly sprouted up when Joseph of Arimathea came and put his staff in the ground |
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| Crazy tour guide |
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| Site where the monks dug for Arthur and Guinevere's tombs |
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| Grave of King Arthur |
Next we went to Tintagel Castle. It was thought to be a castle of King Arthur. There are ruins of the castle but I don't think people really looked a them too much because of the view that was presented before us. It is the first time we have seen the ocean since being here. There were huge cliffs we got to climb and look out over the ocean. It was seriously breathtaking and I loved taking a minute to myself to just enjoy the beauty and think about my journey here so far.
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| These are my main girls. In case you couldn't tell of all the pictures of them. I love them dearly. |
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| On top of the world |
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| All the wind makes my hair frizz uncontrollably |
We then went to our hotel for the night; Hotel Victoria. We were all happily surprised with how nice it was and the fact it was located right on the beach. We spent the night going to dinner, enjoying the hot tub, pool and sauna then going down to the ocean and jumping in the ice cold Atlantic. It was definitely a day to remember.
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| Inside the hotel |
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| Outside the hotel |
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| My room for the night |
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| Walking to the beach with our stolen hotel towels to jump in the ocean |
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| Right before the plunge |
The next morning we got up and on the bus. Our first stop was Land's End. It is the western most part of England. Again we were greeted with beautiful coastline and tons of wind. I loved being around the ocean for a couple days.
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| It was Jenna's birthday! This girl is seriously the sweetest |
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| Cute bunny rabbit at Land's End |
The next stop on our epic journey was St. Michael's Mount. A little island with a castle on top of it. We got to roam around on the beach then take a car/boat to the island to explore and see the castle.
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| The castle on the hill |
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| We are strange and try to fit as many people as we can on elevated platform. We fit one more after this too. |
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| Illyria. Used in the filming of Twelfth Night |
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| The path to the castle |
Our last stop was Exeter. We got to go to the library and see the oldest Old English book and then through the cathedral. We walked to the restaurant Nandos for dinner. Everyone raves about it. I really liked it, but it wasn't enough food for the price. Unfortunately we had a long bus ride home after that with a midterm to study for and take the next day.
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| The Exeter Clock |
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| Nandos |
Basically my life is awesome and I need to keep reminding myself of that. It's hard to be here away from so much that I love in Utah, but there is now so much that I love here as well. I can't believe it is half way over and I know the second half will fly faster than the first. I have already learned so much here and I can't even imagine how I am going to be changed by the time I make it home in April.
