So, even though I am in America once again,
there are still fantastic photos to post!
Our study abroad group got the opportunity to tour St. Paul's Cathedral which I was very much looking forward to because St. Paul's is the most beautiful building in London. We got to climb the hundreds of stairs to the highest dome and see these views:
(I would tell you what all the buildings are and stuff, but honestly, I don't really know. Don't they still look cool though?! But I will label the things that I do know.)
there are still fantastic photos to post!
Our study abroad group got the opportunity to tour St. Paul's Cathedral which I was very much looking forward to because St. Paul's is the most beautiful building in London. We got to climb the hundreds of stairs to the highest dome and see these views:
(I would tell you what all the buildings are and stuff, but honestly, I don't really know. Don't they still look cool though?! But I will label the things that I do know.)
Okay, so really, I only know what the
London Eye and what the Thames are.
London Eye and what the Thames are.
And everyone thought I came to London to actually learn things.
Here is a monument of some sort. Very important, I'm sure.
Here is a monument of some sort. Very important, I'm sure.
These two towers are the front of St. Paul's and there is the Thames in the upper left corner and there are some nice buildings and a nice street and a nice double-decker bus.
The Harry Potter bridge! Over the Thames! This bridge brings me such joy :)
Speaking of Harry Potter, guess who went to Platform 9 and 3/4? Yours truly. It was such an unexpected surprise! Just another awesome thing I did on the ever-growing list of things I wasn't expecting to do while in the UK.
And when a huge group of us saw Harry Potter at the cinema, I wore my Gryffindor robe like the faithful Harry Potter fan that I am. And I cried through half the movie.
We visited Warwick Castle, home of the world's largest trebuchet, and it smelled like greasy, fatty food. In other words, it smelled like America. We all enjoyed it. It was very Disneylandish and touristy, which was a welcome change from the other old places we visited. There were wax figures of Queen Elizabeth II and Henry VIII with his 6 wives, an exhibit about the scandalous Daisy Greville, and an anticlimactic, but humorous, show where they launched a rock from the world's largest trebuchet. What more could you want?
At Anne Hathaway (wife of Shakespeare)'s birthplace, my favorite part was the garden. So here are some flowers with the house in the background.
And here is Shakespeare's birthplace. I stood in the room where he was born. Actually born! Isn't that crazy? The moment he was born, the world changed forever. It makes you think about the vast amount of potential each of us has . . .
Blenheim Palace. Birthplace of Winston Churchill. The world changed at his birth too. My favorite moment at this palace was when a group of us girls sang some hymns in the chapel. When we stopped for a minute, an old man was like, "No, don't stop!"
I also loved the grounds at Blenheim Palace.
There were these monstrous Totoro-like trees that we climbed.
(Do you know who Totoro is? If you do, 10 points to Gryffindor!)
There were these monstrous Totoro-like trees that we climbed.
(Do you know who Totoro is? If you do, 10 points to Gryffindor!)
Later that same day we went to Oxford, which has kind of been a dream of mine since 9th grade.
The best part of Oxford? The Great Hall from all the Harry Potter movies is based off of their Great Hall. Another dream come true? Yes. Unexpected? Yes. Did I freak out a little bit? Yes. Did I actually freak out a lot? Yes.
