Sunday, February 21, 2010

Crazy...

I took the picture of Piccadilly Circus just a few days ago, and...
My dad took this picture of the same place back in 1969!

London

I just got back from London this morning, and decided to blog about it right away :) I LOVED London...it was such a fun trip! While I'm a bit tired, it was well worth it and I'm so thankful to be able to make trips like this. Here are pictures and comments from the last few days...

WEDNESDAY: Erin and I got up at 3:30 AM to catch our bus to the airport. Despite my lack of sleep, Wednesday was probably my favorite day in London. We didn't have anything planned for that day, because we figured we'd be so exhausted that we couldn't enjoy a full day of sightseeing. Erin really wanted to see a musical while we were there, and I agreed to go even though I've never been much of a theatre person. We went in to town to try to buy some cheap, standing room tickets, but it was so beautiful outside that we just decided to walk around. It was so fun because we had absolutely no idea where we were going, but we would turn a corner and be like, "Oh hey! There's Big Ben!" It was really enjoyable to just wander the city and see some incredible sights. At the end of the day, we were able to catch the musical, "Wicked"--one that Erin and I both had most wanted to see. The best part was we only paid 25 pounds for the tickets...and they were front and center! I loved it! :)

Waiting for the bus to the airport at 4 AM


Trafalgar Square was my favorite!


We went over to Covent Garden (below) for some window shopping...the shops were so cute! We also caught a little show by some street performers outside (above).

One of the shops at Covent Garden
Just a little afternoon tea :)
Seeing Big Ben down the street at night, and then walking a little ways and running in to Westminster Abbey

Hoping we can get tickets...
Got 'em!

THURSDAY: While Wednesday was fabulous, Thursday wasn't so great. Erin and I had bought 2 day "Big Bus" tour tickets to see around the city, but unfortunately it was freezing cold and rainy out, my lack of sleep finally hit me, and many of the sights we had already seen the day before in the sunshine. The highlight for me, however, was our free boat cruise that came with the bus tickets...

View of Big Ben and Parliament from on top of our double decker tour bus

Tower of London and Tower Bridge

The London Bridge from our river cruise...not so exciting if ya ask me

When we left the dock, the captain was scared we weren't going to make it under the bridges because the tide was so high...we literally just missed hitting this bridge by about 6 inches. It added some excitement to the day...haha :)


FRIDAY: This was my 2nd favorite day...we watched the changing of the guards in the morning and then went over to Kensington and Notting Hill in the afternoon. At night we met up with one of Erin's friends from Cedarville who is studying in London, and took a look at the city at night.
The Victoria Memorial--where we stood to watch the changing of the guards at Buckingham Palace
Erin and Siobhan (my sister's friend who was generous enough to house us!)
I'm not really sure why they're wearing grey instead of red coats...although it does seem that God has assigned the color grey to London...

We stopped in Harvey Nichols in Kensington, where Armani make-up artists offered us free makeovers and champagne. Free? We'll take it! :)

Lovely, darling (or so we were told ;)
Then we shopped at Harrods, where:
you can buy a bed for your dog for only 399 pounds...
and the inside looks like a palace!
Haha...I love these pictures. Taking the Big Bus over to Notting Hill (which, ironically enough the movie "Notting Hill" was on TV last week and Erin and I both watched it for the first time)

Walking to the Portobello Market in Notting Hill...so cute :)
Piccadilly Circus
My sister, Audra, studied abroad in London for a semester, so I asked her for suggestions on where to go...Haagen Dazs ice cream was on her list and totally worth the visit. Yumm :)
We walked along the Thames, and seeing everything lit up was incredible!



SATURDAY: This was our museum/attraction day...not too thrilling, but interesting nonetheless.
Getting a tour of the Tower of London by a Beefeater...one of his lines: "Do we have any Americans with us here today?" Erin and I raise our hands. "Welcome. This history could have been your's."
Within the tower walls...people still live in those houses. Crazy, huh?
Our cute little beefeater tour guide :) He's one of the residents within the walls...and that's not a costume.
Story: I hated to read books when I was younger, but my mom made me read the book, "Coronation of Glory: The Story of Lady Jane Grey." This monument is the spot where she was beheaded...I was surprised at how much I remembered from the book when her story was told on the tour. It was actually cool to make all the connections...so, thanks for making me read the book, Mom :)
Waiting in line to see the crown jewels
In the evening, we went to an evensong service at St. Paul's Cathedral. It was incredible inside...

Our flight left at 6:30 AM on Sunday morning, and because our most convenient and cheapest transportation couldn't get us there that early, we headed for the airport Saturday evening and spent the night...fabulous. The airport was pretty packed with others doing the same thing...it was a little strange to see people camped out in sleeping bags all over the ground, and complete strangers snoring next to me.
The place where we caught our bus to the airport was pretty shady. Not only that, but hardly anyone spoke any English. Erin and I stuck out like crazy...and got asked numerous times where we were from. Since we were there early, we did a little midnight snack shopping at the grocery store. I couldn't stop laughing at what we looked like...2 white, blonde, American girls trudging around in sweatpants and dragging our suitcases around. No wonder people stared at us.

Wow. That was a long post. Not sure if you made it to the end of all that, but know that I had a fabulous time in London, and I'm back safe in Dublin :) Thanks for all your prayers and emails!