Entry 3: July 19, 2010

I can’t believe that I am heading into my final full week in London it truly does seem like yesterday that we were all groggily coming into this beautiful city with jetlag. I had a lot of fun this weekend as I got to see Westminster Abbey and visited the John Keats House. However, Saturday I was able to tour Windsor Castle, Stonehenge, and see the Roman Baths through Golden Tours. Even though we were on a tight schedule, we were able to get just enough to appreciate each place we went to. Also, throughout the ride up, James our tour guide talked about the legends and facts about each city we passed through. I definitely enjoyed the Roman Baths the most because they were so stunning, unique, and antiquated. I still couldn’t believe that we hit all of these things and still came back when the sun was up! Yesterday gave me some much needed rest and I am ready to enjoy my last 10 days here.

Entry 2: July 12, 2010

Wow I can’t believe that we have been here for two weeks now. Unfortunately, the homesickness is starting to come, but I am trying to tough it out. We have done many things in this span including a service at Saint Paul’s, the pride parade, speaker’s corner, the Tate Modern (art) Museum, and the Tower of London.

I really enjoyed the Tower because we got to hear so many stories revolving around Henry VIII and his two wives Anne Boleyn and Kitty Howard, who were imprisoned and eventually executed there. I also liked hearing the history of Lady Jane Grey and how she tried to usurp the crown, but Mary came in and took it back for the Tudors. This weekend was one of reflection and growth and I hope to see as many things in these last two weeks as I did in the first two.

Entry 1: July 1, 2010

Even though it is only my fourth day here in London, I am absolutely in love with this city. One of the things that I was extremely nervous about before arriving was being in a big city for a whole month since I could only handle New York and D.C. for a few days before being completely overwhelmed. However, I am learning to take every bit of this culture home with me and grow as a person. Even as exhausted as I was on the first day dragging my luggage, I couldn’t help but be taken away by the cute little houses and grin from ear to ear. I loved the bus tour we were able to go on because it gave me a chance to see London above ground and I loved getting excited for all of the museums and architecture that I was going to get to experience. The first night I was here, we ate at an authentic Italian restaurant and I got to experience a culture that doesn’t normally split a bill, but I was glad that we had friendly waiters. Of course, after we got back I completely zonked out but I was proud of myself for making it until 8:30 to help get my body and time clock adjusted.

So far, I have experienced two museums, two parks, and various grocery stores to learn about historical events in London as well as learn about the people and cultural norms. I have been to the Winston Churchill Museum and War Rooms and the Victoria and Albert Museum. I loved the preservation in both museums and learning about British history. I have to confess I fit the more stereotypical American profile and am lacking in knowledge in that particular subject. I have also enjoyed visiting the parks and just generally observing people. Even though certain people I have travelled with have commented on how people don’t smile back as much, I have noticed in the two parks [St. James and Kensington] that the Brits are much more openly affectionate, which probably comes from their focus on family and love versus the American focus of things. I am hoping that throughout this trip I will continue to become less ethnocentric and broaden my horizon.