LONDON

I went to visit Hillary this weekend in London. She is studying at Ithaca College in London and also has an internship in the city. I flew RyanAir and between the flight, waiting time and buses to and from the airports, my journey was about 8 hours, beginning at 3 am. I flew to London with a few friends who are studying in Mannheim and then we split up once we got to the airport. I finally got another stamp in my passport! It was strange to go through customs because usually I travel by bus or train around Europe and they might check my passport, but I haven’t really been questioned or gotten a stamp.
I was exhausted once I got to London, but it was great to finally be there. This trip actually really felt like a vacation. I got away from everything that I’ve been used to and there was really no stress. Hillary and I were in no rush the whole weekend because we had plenty of time to go trough the city. On Friday (after I took a nap) we went out to explore the city and do the tourist thing. First we went to the National History museum and saw part of the Rosetta Stone and the Greek Parthenon, in addition to a bunch of paintings that Hillary knew a lot about. Then we went to see the Somerset House, which is where Hillary has her internship. We had a really nice view of the city from there, including Big Ben, Westminister Abbey, Parliament, the Millennium Bridge and the London Eye. We walked to the British museum and saw the new Amsterdam Red Light exhibit. It was pretty interesting because we have both just been to Amsterdam. The exhibit was made a few decades ago, but because of it’s content no other museum would put it on display until now. After the museum we went to see Big Ben and Westminister Abbey. On the way I took a picture in a British Telephone booth (of course, I love being a tourist) and they are all over the city.
Big Ben was pretty cool, and Westminister Abbey was nice, but we didn’t go in because it was really expensive. It was very interesting to see the British Parliament. We went to the Tower of London next and I thought it was pretty cool. The Tower of London is also called Her Majesty’s Royal Palace and Fortress and also holds many of the crown jewels. It was really nice and the view of the Tower Bridge is cool. We were there a little while before the sun was starting to set, so the view was beautiful. Our next stop of the day was St. Paul’s Cathedral. I think that this is my favorite part of the day, if not the trip. This was the Cathedral where Prince Charles and Diana were married. The outside of the Cathedral is beautiful, but the inside was even more breathtaking. The Cathedral has been rebuilt 5 times and the Cathedral now is from it’s reconstruction during the 17th Century. There was a service that was about to start when we got there so I was not able to go up to the alter, but it was one of the largest alter’s I have ever seen. The Cathedral is also known for the Whispering Gallery which runs round the 99 feet of the dome interior and anything said, even in a low murmur can be heard by a listener whose ear is against the wall throughout the whole gallery.
That night we had sushi, went to a party with some kids from Ithaca and then I was able to experience clubbing in London. It was really fun and interesting. The next day we went to Buckingham Palace. I got to see the guards marching back and fourth and it was cool to actually be there. It was pretty much how I had imagined it would be. For lunch we went for Fish ‘N Chips. It was pretty good, but I found it very strange that they served it with peas. Maybe since they’re green people pretend that all the other fired food isn’t as bad for you. After lunch I went on a double decker bus and had the front seat on the top, which was pretty awesome. We headed down to Harrods and it really is Massive! It was all decorated for Christmas and reminded me a lot of Macy’s in New York City at Christmas time, except bigger. We did a lot of walking around popping in and out of stores. It was fun, but started to rain. We went to go see New Moon, which was sold out and we had front row seats. I loved it and I’m really glad I didn’t have to wait to see it.
On Sunday we got up early to see the changing of the guards, but it was still raining so they didn’t do it. We went to see Hyde Park and it was really cute. They had a German Christmas Market set up and I got really excited. I love when I’m traveling and hear German or see German things. After we walked through the park we went to Covert Gardens where there was a really nice market set up and a few entertainers. Next to the Gardens, there is Leister Square and we went to see a play. We saw Shawshank Redemption and it was a very good performance. I love going to Broadway shows at home, so it was very nice to see a play in London. After the show, we walked around Oxford Street. It was really nice with all of the Christmas decorations up.
I had a really good time in London. It kind of reminded me of New York City in many aspects. There were tons of people there and it had a similar feeling. Even by the end of the weekend tough, I was still not adjusted to cars driving on the Left side of the street or how they say Happy Christmas, instead of Merry Christmas. On the roads it is painted to Look Right -> or <- Look Left, there are crazy cars there and it was funny to feel so many similarities to home but so many differences at the same time.
I'm so glad I was able to make the trip to London and to visit Hillary. It was a really good vacation. It wasn't stressful and in a way it was nice to get away from everything for a few days. Now I have finals and the semester will be over before I know it!

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