This week was completely exciting. We started class on Tuesday, as I mentioned in my last post. My professor ended up being this super nice, scarily smart Spanish dude, who we call Dr. Lucas. He has a PhD in medieval history and he seems to know absolutely everything everything about London. The class itself, Historical London, is a great one to be taking this first session, because not only is it interesting, it is also helping me get my bearings at places around the city. The first day of class we had lecture for a bit and then we were already off on a field trip to the British Museum.
The British Museum is the most visited museum in Europe for a couple of reasons. 1) because it is absolutely enormous and 2) because, like many other museums around the city, it is free. It is also strictly for archaeological artifacts, so no art there. Dr. Lucas told us a bit about the things we were seeing and then we were free to stay as long as we wanted. (Pictured here is the exterior of the museum and a beautiful hotel in the square near the museum.)
After class on Tuesday, me and some girls went over to Covent Garden for late lunch. We ate burgers and listened to the live classical music that is always going on in this covered shopping area. We looked through the trinkets for sale and kind of gazed longingly in the window of the high end stores there before stopping into Ladurée for some of their famous macarons, which are a must any time you find yourself near one of their shops.
The rest of Tuesday was more calm, as we made our way back into our neighborhood and stayed nearby on account of us all being still a little tired from jetlag and general excitement. Also, because we knew that Wednesday was going to be a very exciting day for all of us. On Wednesday, there was a huge to-do here in the city because it was the opening of Parliament. This basically means there's tons of pomp and people in fancy suits parading around the city. Including the royal family. Dr. Lucas let us off lecture early so we could all take the tube over to St. James' park where, on the road going right through the park, a parade was going to take place. There were hundreds of guards in their bearskin hats, guarding the road and playing in a little marching band, riding horses and generally looking more important than the rest of us. We waited for a while when, finally, in these amazing gilded, Cinderella style carriages came Prince Charles, Camilla, Prince Phillip and the Queen herself. There was even a whole separate carriage for the queen's bling (namely a super amazing crown). I didn't get a good picture of the queen, though there is a video on my phone, but maybe this picture of the carriage will give you an idea of the ceremony of it all. (also that carriage was the one just for her crown! the most plain of them all!)
It was crazy, seeing those people in real life after seeing them on tv and in magazines for as long as I can remember, and I'm really glad I got to be a part of it. After the parade, I hung out in St. James' Park for awhile, because it is one of the smaller but more beautiful parks in London, especially because it has some pretty amazing views, like this one of the London eye and ministry buildings.
Later that night, I went to meet up with Katie and Taylor, two of my best friends from high school who go to Wake and are here for ten days with their own study abroad. We met in Piccadilly circus, which is halfway between where they are staying and where I am, and I showed them the five story Waterstones and some of the other stores and restaurants around there. We went up to this really cool bar/restaurant which is known for amazing views of the city and just got to catch up, which was so nice!
Yesterday, we had a shortened lecture and then we were off to the Tower of London. If you haven't been and are unfamiliar with the history of the Tower, let me give you the three minute rundown. William the Conqueror started construction on the Tower when he took over the country in 1066. It has subsequently been through many incarnations, as a palace and headquarters for the monarchy, a prison, a seat of justice and now, today, a museum and shrine to its own history. Many famous people were imprisoned there, including Elizabeth I, Anne Boleyn and Sir Walter Raleigh, to name a few familiar names. There is a museum in one of the stone towers and the Crown Jewels are also housed there. I find it so interesting to tour, and of course, seeing the crown jewels will make any girl's heart flutter. The grounds of the Tower also offer superb views of one of London's most famous landmarks, the Tower Bridge.
Afterwards, lunch was at a restaurant called The Swan, which is riverside with an amazing view of St. Paul's Cathedral, as well as right next door to the Globe Theater, which is a recreation of the theater of Shakespeare, where they still give Shakespeare plays every day. We had tickets to the Merchant of Venice, which is one of Shakespeare's comedies. The theater is exactly as it would've been in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, which means that, for £5, you can see the play from the comfort of the pit, on your own two feet. As much as I love English, I have never seen a Shakespeare play actually performed, so I loved getting that opportunity. (pictured below is the view from near the Tower, the Tate Modern museum and the riverside view of St. Paul's)
Today, we had some scheduled visits across town, so we skipped lecture all together and made our way into the neighborhood. First, Dr. Lucas showed us the famous Kensington mews, which are some of London's best real estate. The location is prime and they are some of the most adorable houses that I've ever seen.
Then, we got to go walk over the famous London Bridge (is falling down...) not to be confused with the Tower Bridge, London Bridge is very nondescript, but was made famous by being very old and very useful throughout history. On our way from the bridge to our final destination, which was the museum of London, we passed by the old guildhall, which is a magnificent medieval building. It was built on top of the old Roman Amphitheater that used to stand in the city, and the place where the theater used to stand is still marked in black stone in the square outside the guildhall. Then we finally got to the museum, where they have everything form prehistoric tools to Victorian carriages to 60s style mod clothing on display, telling the entire story of this city. We had coffee in the café there and then had a quick lunch before heading back to Kensington, where I've just had dinner and am now waiting for my mother to make herself available to FaceTime with me. (haha) I've had the most amazing week, and although I have some homework (boo) hanging over my head for the weekend, I'm sure it will be filled with surprises as well. (pictured here are me and my roommate Hannah at a Paddington bear exhibit at the museum, the sign for London bridge and the guildhall and square)
I hope your Friday night is going as well as mine is!
Caroline
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