Taylor Swift & Hogwarts.

I have a lot of catching up to do I know, but if you could not already tell by the title, I feel like the past week has been focused around Taylor Swift, Harry Potter and Hogwarts, which just so happen to be some of my favorite things.

Touring Parliament!

I'll rewind a bit to last weekend which I have not blogged about yet. Last Friday, we took another trip for our British Life & Culture class. We started the day by touring Parliament (the big government building attached to Big Ben)! It was incredible how old the building was and how they still make it all work in todays times. Every single room was absolutely beautiful! It was interesting to see the throne that the Queen sits in during the opening of Parliament. While we were touring we caught glimpses of some of the workers and even saw one of the queens 'door openers' who are always there and ready if the Queen should ever decide to visit. The system of government was also very interesting to learn about and I was surprised at some of the differences and similarities there were with our American government. For example, much like the President of the U.S, the Queen must sign and approve every Act of Parliament before it becomes a Law. But, no monarch has refused an Act for the past 300 years

After that we were given our own time for lunch. A group of us headed for an area called Borough Market and it was not what I expected, but I mean that in the best way possible. You could tell you were getting close by all the wonderful smells that filled the streets as we made our way to the Market. I was expecting a large building with maybe a couple different food stands and although my idea was on the right track, it was no where near what the Market really is. Borough Market is one of the largest and oldest food markets in London and offers food from just about every part of the world. There were countless stands with so many different types of breads, and chocolates, and just about any food you can think of! People were queuing (a queue is what they call a line) at every stand and it was quite busy, but It was by far the best food I have had so far in England.

The Globe Theatre!

After that we met up again with our class and toured Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. The theatre still puts on performances today and hopefully I will be able to make it to one. Our tour guide was excellent and was full of many fun facts and even told us the story of the cliche "you stole my thunder" which happens to be a pretty funny story. The museum was filled with many interesting things as well from costumes to pages of Shakespeare's will! It was an awesome experience and the place was full of history, trap doors, and props.

After the globe we made our way across the famous Millennium Bridge shown in Harry Potter and ended up on the top floor of a shopping mall a few streets over and watched the sunset in London. It was an absolutely gorgeous view and a perfect way to end another awesome day.

Picasso's Painting

On Saturday, some friends and I went back into London to visit the Tate Museum. It is one of the more popular (and free) museums in London and is filled with mostly modern and contemporary art. It is by far the coolest museum I have been too. My personal favorite was a room filled with Picasso paintings! After that we headed to an area of London called Camden Market. Again it was not what I expected. It was not just a Market, it was basically an entire town with many markets and little tourist shops and countless booths. It was quite fun and we ended up finding some really good deals on souvenirs. It was easy to lose track of time there as we weaved in and out of shop after shop. After we had had enough, we headed back to the train station and headed home.

Shops in Camden Market

On Sunday I woke up to a beautiful sunny day and I thought to myself 'what a perfect day for a walk!' Over 10 miles later, I was not exactly thinking the same thing... I started out knowing exactly where I was going and it was truly beautiful. I walked all around the river and past some beautiful houses and then before I knew it I was entering Hampton Court Park. At first I thought It was somewhere maybe I wasn't supposed to be because there were open fields and woods as far as I could see! It was an escape from city life and it was not that far away! I wandered through and found park maps, so I knew I was in the right place.

Sail boat racing!

 I stumbled across a pond and noticed many small sailboats sailing across it. As I got closer I noticed that there was a group of old men with remote controls racing these sailboats across the pond! It was hysterical. As I got even closer I noticed all there wives sitting in lawn chairs watching. I started taking some pictures and a man who was racing ran by me and said the good action pictures could be taken at the finish line just at the end of the pond. I couldn't help but laugh as I watched him pass the sailboat in front of him to take the lead. After watching for a few more minutes I wandered off again, walking through fields and by some horses. The only time I felt uneasy was when I started to noticed that there were golf balls on the path and realized that I was walking into a driving range, and I quickly changed direction. I kept walking again along the river and shortly found myself in front of Hampton Palace! Out of the castles and palaces I have seen so far, this is the one that felt like one from a movie.

Fairy tale trees?

The trees and shrubs were oddly shaped and there were countless gardens, fountains, and statues. I wandered through a bit and heard people talk about how beautiful the place would be in a few weeks when the flowers were blooming. Since it was so close, I decided to just wander through parts of it and come back in a few weeks to see it all. I even walked by a giant maze you can walk through which I definitely plan on going back and doing. After I made my way out and headed back in what I thought the direction of my house was, I realized my phone was dead, I had no idea where I was, and I had no bus pass or had any source of help to me back home. I kept walking and asked a few people where 'Ditton Road' was along the way. Now, that would have been easier if my road was called anything else, but the thing about Ditton Road is that it is not the only Ditton Road! There is Ditton Thames Road, Ditton Hill Road, and many others. So many people were confused when I just wanted plain old Ditton Road, and every time someone knew where it was all they could tell me is that it was far... which after hours of walking wasn't the most comforting words to hear. Eventually, I made it back, still not sure how, but I did, and I was never more thankful to see the sign for Ditton Road.

Now we are at this past week.

On Monday, I booked my tickets to Poland! We plan on visiting Auschwitz and staying with a friends family that she has there at the beginning of Spring Break (which is 3 weeks long).

On Tuesday, I booked my tickets and hostel for Barcelona! I am extremely excited for this trip! I will also be traveling there over Spring Break.

Taylor Swift!!!!

On my way to Hogwarts!

On Wednesday, a couple friends and I decided to travel into London because we knew the BRIT Awards (music awards) were going on at the famous O2 arena and we thought we might be able to catch a glimpse of someone famous. Long story short, suddenly found ourselves standing by the red carpet and seeing countless famous people! We saw Ed Sheeran, FUN, Mumford & Sons, Muse, The Script, and many more including many British pop stars who we weren't familiar to us, but the teenage group of girls in front of us always would scream their names very loudly and we would just follow suit. And of course there was Taylor Swift. We saw her get out of a car across the carpet like every other person did but we were sad to not get a very good glimpse of her. A few minutes later we noticed everyone screaming at one end of the red carpet, and sure enough, Taylor Swift was making her way down autographing and taking pictures with whoever had their arm outstretched with a camera. While I was there, she was the only celebrity to walk down the red carpet and acknowledge everyone. It felt like a dream as she walked right by us smiling and autographing. She gave the girl in front of me a compliment and I swear the girl almost cried of happiness. As soon as she walked by us I looked at my phone and realized I had to leave to make it to the other side of London for a Harry Potter walk I had signed up for! I made it just in time and we were told to follow a lady who was frantically waving a wand above her head. She was quite funny and told us countless stories. We went to platform 9 3/4 and walked around places in London where the movie was filmed. I am very excited to watch the movies again and be able to pick out the places in the film that I have been! It was quite an exciting day and I fell into bed as soon as I got home, and questioned if it had all been a dream.

On Thursday I got my first grade back from a paper I had turned in. At first my heart completely stopped when I saw a 65 at the top of the paper. After having a minor heart attack I thankfully realized that a 65 is an A- here. And I quickly became much more fond of my grade.

Diagon Alley!

Brit Awards!

On Friday I was able to Skype with some of my best friends from school. Thank goodness for Skype and Facetime. It truly makes everything so much easier when with a click of your mouse, you can actually talk to someone and see them. It truly is a piece of technology I do not know what I would do without.

And now we are to this weekend.

The Great Hall

On Saturday we had yet another British Life & Culture field trip. This time the destination was Oxford! I can not imagine going to such a glorious school. There are 23 colleges within Oxford University alone! It was massive and absolutely gorgeous! The whole time I felt as if I was touring Hogwarts! We saw the library where the movie was filmed and Harry wore the invisible cloak, and the Great Hall which the one in Harry Potter was copied from. We saw students in suits and black cloaks and briefcases. We toured the cathedral which was breathtaking. As we walked in, there was a student orchestra rehearsing and they were of course, incredible. As we listened to the sound of violins we walked past the beautiful stained glass windows and monuments. It had us all dreaming of attending Oxford or Hogwarts on the whole trip back home.

Mummies at the British Museum

Today, a group of us went into London and visited two other museums. One was the Museum of London where we were hoping to attend an exhibit but once we got there, the line was 6-7 hours long so they were cutting off the line once we were there. We are hoping to go back on Tuesday to walk through what is known as the 'rain room', where apparently it rains, but when you walk through it, you do not get wet! After that plan failed, we headed to a gigantic conservatory held in the musem. It was gorgeous and it was nice to see a lot of trees, plants and flowers, especially when it was lightly snowing outside. After that we made our way to the British Museum where we toured the Egypt floor and saw countless mummies and even mummified cats!

All in all, it has been quite a busy, and surreal 5 weeks (wait, its already been 5 weeks?!)

Why Not?

I do not think there are enough positive words in the English vocabulary to describe the kind of day I had yesterday. It started out like any other morning with a cup of tea and Tigger sitting by me at the kitchen table. I then made my way to my Human Rights Movement class that started at 11:00. After I had decided that I wanted to go into Central London. My main reasoning to go was to go to a museum that a module leader had recommended for class (no one calls them professors here... they are called module leaders, or called by their first name). So far I am sure that this whole day doesn't seem like a big deal... but heres the catch; it was the first time I was traveling into London by myself. Also I knew I would have to figure out the tube (underground subway) to get to the museum and I had only been on it once before, with someone who knew exactly where they were going. So to say the least I was a little bit nervous.

The London Tube Map!

I made it on the train successfully and then got off a few stops after at Wimbledon station because by the looks of the Tube map, it looked like a straight shot to South Kensington, where the museum, (called the V & A museum) I wanted to go to was located. Turns out I was right! & before I knew it I was walking up the stairs from the Tube and right in front of my was the museum! Easy enough right? But that wasn't the exciting part. 

The costume of Scar in the Lion King

The museum was so much more than I had expected. It wasn't just filled with portraits and old paintings. It was filled with every kind of art work you could imagine! From costumes from major broadway films like The Lion King and outfits worn by older rockstars, ironwork and old electronics, to crazily designed furniture, to beautiful jewelry displayed in glass cases. Another thing that was different about this museum was the overall atmosphere of the place. It wasn't a quiet, strict, no photography kind of museum that I was expecting. People were chatting away, and taking pictures of the different pieces of artwork. Many people were scattered around either sketching or writing about what they were looking at. It was very interesting and even relaxing which made it much more fun. I wandered through out the place for a little over 2 hours and I know there was still much more to see. 

Yikes!

When I left the museum I realized that there was still plenty of day left, and I had not really planned anything but the museum... I could have either took the same tube to the same train station and  go back home, or just wander around London and figure out along the way a different way to get home, I asked myself why not? And picked a direction and started walking. I walked through an area with a ton of little shops and markets, I stopped at one of the coffee shops and decided to sit at a cute little table outside. I was wondering to myself why no one else had chose to sit outside especially since it was such a beautiful day, but I shortly found out why people had chosen to be safe and sit indoors... At first only one pigeon showed up, as he hopped around my feet my initial thought was 'oh he's kind of cute'... That soon changed when he hopped up onto the chair next to me, normally that would not have bothered me too much, but at that same time, 2 more pigeons came out of no where and flew to the other seat next to me and one decided to hop up onto the table right in front of me! I tried tapping the table, even moved the chair around, and they acted as if they were glued to the furniture which made me a little nervous and I decided to just walk and drink my coffee. They wanted food, and they were not happy that I didn't have any. 

Buckingham Palace!

As I kept walking, I found myself wandering down another street full of shops, but these shops were all name brand and most of them I did not even recognize. I also started to notice that the people window shopping were dressed incredibly nicely and even saw a couple people be dropped of in limos... I quickly realized that that was probably not the area I would be doing my shopping in, but I was tempted to go into one of them and just pretend and look... So I told myself why not? I headed into a little boutique and instantly found a super cute shirt. It was purple and pretty plain so I figured maybe it would be a reasonable price. After I flipped over that tag and saw the 3 digit price I decided I couldn't even pretend to look anymore. I headed out and kept walking by the beautiful shops. The last one I passed had a couple in front of it arguing, as I got closer I could tell they were arguing over a color. The man wanted black, but the women thought red would be best, as I got closer I realized that they were arguing over what color of Ferrari to purchase... sure enough they were just window shopping for a Ferrari in London. No big deal.

Feeding the squirrels in the Royal Park

I kept on walking and instantly wished I had a car, and any car for that matter, because out of all the days I could have worn cute heeled boots, I had decided to wear them that day and I swear my legs still have not forgiven me for that. I saw a park sign and decided to head that way and maybe find a bench. But before I knew it, I found myself in front of Buckingham Palace! (another home of the Royal Family) It was absolutely gorgeous! I couldn't imagine living in such a place. After walking around the fountains and weaving through tourists, I decided to keep walking, right beyond the palace was another park and I decided to venture through that as well. Again, it was absolutely gorgeous and filled with birds... many birds, which included pigeons. While walking through the park I had two different people stop and ask me directions for Big Ben and I felt like such a local when I was able to give them accurate directions and point them in the right way! Feeling so accomplished I decided to sit on a bench and take in the scenery which would have been really nice if the pigeons wouldn't have started to stalk me again. I am now positive that pigeons especially can sense when you are freaked out by them. Because as soon as I sat down, they were right under me and weaving in between my feet and squawking at me, probably yelling at me to give them food, but again I had none, and again I decided it was best to keep walking. I then walked by a group of people that were feeding the squirrels! The squirrels almost hopped in the tourists hands as they fed them from a bag of peanuts! It was quite funny, until pigeons starting swarming and wanted some too, I decided to keep walking again after that. 

Piccaddily Circus 

I made my way out of the park and by a few other monuments and then again I was found myself on another busy street of London. For the rest of the time I just found myself picking a direction and going with it, I stopped in a few little shops, and then realized it was starting to get dark. I walked down a few more streets and then found myself in front of the giant screen at Piccadilly Circus (much like New York's Times Square) and decided that was a perfect place to end my day. I found the nearest underground and headed for the tube. It took me a few minutes to scan the entire Tube map and figure out which one would lead me to where but I finally figured it out! As I arrived on the Train station and made it just in time to catch my train to Kingston I was so happy, and I had never felt more accomplished. To me, the best days you have are ones that are unplanned and spontaneous. The best walks you take are those where you have no planned routes. I had so much fun wandering through London and finding my way. It was an absolutely wonderful day and it truly made my love for London grow even more. 

Time Flies!

I find it so hard to believe that I have already been living in London for 3 weeks! Although my parents seem to think It feels like I have been gone much longer, I feel as if I have been here for barely a week! But I do suppose that in some ways it does seem like I have been here for awhile... for example I am finally beginning to walk on the correct side of the side walk (left side, just like driving) and not run into so many people, 3rd week's the charm I guess. Also, I think I am finally getting used to the time change and I have even caught myself using some British lingo! As I have started to fall into a routine, all of these things that I was so nervous about just a couple weeks ago have started to become normal to me.

However I did wake up this morning to look outside my window and see something very unfamiliar to London, but very familiar to me at home; snow. It made me laugh when I overheard a group of people talk about how they would not be able to drive if we were going to get the 1 inch of snow that is expected. It was hard for me to contain my laughter as I thought of the many many inches of snow currently in Michigan.

Fun Times at the London Aquarium! 

I feel like this past week of school many things were accomplished. I successfully learned how to locate books in the library, print, and even finished one of my two papers for one of my modules (classes). In my British Life and Culture class we started to learn about the Monarchy and its role in society here. It was very interesting to get different perspectives from different students from all around the world in the class. Our professor was explaining that this period is a high point for the monarchy, because everyone seems to be a pleased with the Queen (which explains why they sell so many things with the Queens face on it here). In 3 more years, the Queen will be tied with Queen Victoria for the longest serving monarch (63 years). This week we will learn more about the subject and on Friday we take a field trip to Parliament!

This weekend was quite exciting and went by incredibly fast, like every weekend does. On Saturday, a group of us made our way into London to the London Aquarium to escape the rainy day. It was absolutely amazing! There were many giant sharks and we were able to walk through a tunnel which went through their tank! Seeing all the colorful fish and different aquatic animals was a wonderful way to escape from the rainy weather outside. After we made our way to the National Gallery, on the way we passed an area being blocked off for filming! The rumor is, Tom Cruise is in it! After taking in all of  the beautiful painted portraits at the gallery we started to find our way out, but as we headed towards the exit we found ourselves in a room with Van Gogh paintings, including his famous Sunflower painting. It was crazy to think we were standing in front of the works of one of the most famous artists in the world!

Happy Chinese New Year!

On Sunday a friend and I made our way into London again to take part in the Chinese New Year festivities! Since the Chinese New Year is based on the lunar and solar calendars, the actual date always varies but it usually falls between late January and mid February. Each year in the Chinese calendar is represented by one of the 12 animals of the Chinese zodiac, and 2013 is known as the year of the snake.


The celebration was held in Trafalgar Square which looked like a sea of umbrellas with everyone trying to stay dry from the London rain. We were there early enough to be about 3 rows back from the stage and performance area. London holds the biggest Chinese New Year celebration outside of Asia so as you can imagine there were thousands of people present. We heard speech's from many important people including the Mayor of London. After we were able to see the dance of the Lion/Dragon. It was very cool especially because we were able to be so close!!! After, we made our way to the nearest pub to warm up with some tea, and then continued our adventure through London. We made our way to Convent Gardens, which is known for its little shops and plaza area, after that we continued to China Town for the rest of the New Year festivities. We ate some delicious chinese food and watched martial arts being performed in the streets and more dancing dragons. Beautiful lanterns and decorations lined all the streets and music filled the air. It was an amazing experience and It was definitely worth being under an umbrella all day. As it began to get dark we made our way back to Trafalgar Square for the ending ceremony which included singing, dancing, and of course fireworks. Everything was absolutely beautiful and it was definitely an experience I will never forget.

Living In A Dream...

I officially made it through my first week of school, and even made some British friends! My schedule is very different here compared to one you would find in the U.S. Instead of having the same class 2-3 times a week, I only have each of my classes once a week! They are just called lectures and they usually last 2 hours. Then for 2 of my 4 classes, I have a session once every other week called seminar. Seminar lasts for about an hour and basically its just a meeting with a group of kids in your class to talk about the lecture! Not only are schedules different, but also classwork as a whole... the difference being, there really is none! You are given the responsibility to do your reading that is scheduled on your module guide (syllabus) and to keep yourself on track. There are not any assessments (tests) to review what you have learned and no homework. In my British Life & Culture class, a class that most study abroad students take, there are a few writing assignments but that is because they try to incorporate some American schooling into the course for all of the study abroad students.

Tea time in London!

There is a very wide range of reactions I have gotten whenever I speak in a class. Luckily most have been..."Are you American?! Brilliant! Where from? Whats it like?" and on and on. But sometimes you get the eye roll or occasional head shake. I will say I feel pretty confident after someone told me that I didn't yell all the time like most Americans, and I had a good taste in clothes compared to most Americans, even though in my head I was thinking I really wish I brought more sweatpants.

Also, College here is known as a different thing than in the U.S. College here is what is known as High School at home, and University (or Uni as most people call it) is what they call what we know as College. So when I asked which way to Kingston college one day, I ended up in front of the local high school.

So far I am very satisfied with the classes I am taking (British Life & Culture, Earth Environments, Human Rights, and an art class) and I am excited to meet more people in them!

The London Bridge at night

To celebrate surviving the first week of 'Uni', a group of study abroad students met at a local hotspot for  students on Friday night, after we headed to a club near by and we were blown away as soon as we entered. It was so nice, and so much fun! They played all old 90's music and even played the theme song to Fresh Prince of Belair. It was an absolute blast! There was a wide range of students there and you could tell people were there from all over! There were even a group of scottish guys in kilts who got really excited when they got to dance to Cotton Eyed Joe.

The London Bridge

The next day a couple of us headed into central London. We had planned on going to the Tower of London but decided to save it for another day and ended up doing some exploring on our own! It was great! We even got lost at some points but it we were so full of pride when we were able to spot something familiar and find our way again. It is crazy to think after only being here for 2 weeks, we were starting to feel a little less like tourists, even though at one point we were stopped in the middle of a sidewalk staring at a map and all pointing in different directions.

We made our way to and across the London Bridge and stopped somewhere for tea to warm up soon after. By the time we left it was dark, and the sight of the London Bridge at night was absolutely breathtaking and easily one of the most beautiful things I have ever seen. After we tried to take pictures that would do it justice, but we decided nothing ever would, and continued our journey.

Piccadilly Circus

We took the tube to Piccadilly Circus which is known as the Times Square of London! It was very crowded but still absolutely amazing.  We then made our way back to the Waterloo Station which meant we were able to walk by Big Ben again and see the London Eye all lit up at night. That whole walk back I couldn't help but think I was simply dreaming and it all felt so surreal, that was until we got into the train station and heard that our train was leaving in minutes and started running towards our platform. We were all so exhausted and tried our hardest not to fall asleep on the train ride home.

Overall it was another wonderful week in London and I can't imagine anything better.