Buses and Galleries: I'm in Love

Caitlyn: "There are seriously so.many.HOT.MEN! And my favorite one was the one I pointed at, and he SAW, and I could not even function!"

Me: "Can I please quote you on that. . . on the Internet?"

Caitlyn: "Please do."

The above quote is referring to the men we saw walking down the streets in the City of London. Caitlyn appeared to be more interested in the men than the architecture, but I suppose they're part of London, too.

Today's been busy (again) and amazing (again). We had class for a couple of hours this morning and then we were out in the city by eleven in the morning.

We took Bus 11 for an assignment and went through the City of London, Westminster, and Chelsea. We got off the bus at Trafalger Square and went through the National Gallery. Oh my goodness I love that place. London is incredible in that most museums are free! I could have spent so much longer there than we did, but I know how to get there so I can always go back.

The National Gallery

From left to right: Lizzie, Kenna, Caitlyn, Sarah

From the steps

And another. . . I could get used to this

And another

I felt nauseated for most of today (I'm fine now, thank goodness), so, when we all went to M&S (which is the best--and fanciest--grocery store that exists) to get lunch items I picked up the only drink I could find that had ginger in it. It wasn't what I was expecting--it tasted kind of like a garden--and it was actually a little salty. It wasn't my favorite thing in the world, but it wasn't terrible. I took a picture for my brother, Riley, because rhubarb is his favorite thing and I'm sure he would love this stuff:

The group at lunch

Seriously though! This view was incredible!

They had a Monet exhibit in the Gallery. Monet is one of my favorite painters ever so this was my favorite part of what we saw. That, and Van Gogh's "Sunflowers."

This is Westminster Abbey from the bus ride. I'll be going there tomorrow.

In Westminster Square:

They have a pub named after the Bard!

Chelsea. Seriously the prettiest neighborhood I have ever seen in my life.

Pictures don't do it any sort of justice.

This was a school track and there were adorable little kids jogging around it. Also it was a beautiful view. Chelsea is magical.

We then returned to the Centre for kitchen duty. James, the only guy in the group, was cracking jokes the entire time and then rest of use were dancing to the eclectic mix that was coming on the Pandora station. We laughed and had a good time. Kitchen duty is wonderful for bonding.

After dinner was cleaned up we decided that it would be a good idea to actually do homework (because our group managed to get assigned the first assignments in all areas: living and class alike. It's good, though, because that'll make the rest of the semester easier). We put together a few multiple choice questions from the Gallery, and read the first act of King Lear aloud (each of us got a few parts). I've read the play several times and we'll be seeing it at The Globe Theater (eee!) in a few weeks. I adore that play and it's cool to see how my understanding has created permeable levels of meaning for me. The levels were already there, but I'm able to work through a few of them and it's exciting. Literature is cool.

OBSERVATIONS:

Americans are LOUD! Oh my goodness you can hear an American from a mile away! There was one lady on the tube today who sounded like she was yelling in comparison to all the other people there. I'm sure our group sticks out, too, but we've tried to be quieter. . . Especially after we realized that we could only overhear our own conversations and none of the conversations between Brits.

Curls prefer London air to Utah air.

I sometimes forget to convert prices in my head and so fifteen pounds doesn't sound very expensive for an umbrella. But then I stop and think about it and put the umbrella back.

Everything is harder and more hilarious when one is suffering from jet lag. I'm hoping this goes away soon.

That's all for now!