Captain's Log, Star Date: 28.43.5. As you know, I spent this past week in London! I was there Tuesday-Thursday. Boy was it amazing and exhausting. So much happened over the 3 days, that I couldn't possibly fit it all into one blog so I'm going to split it into two. So you'll have to stick around!
The train ride to London was nice. I've never been on a high speed train before and this one zoomed through the English countryside. Most of what I saw was farmland with fields of sheep and cows. However, the houses were typically English: small, made out of brick, and needs a bit of fixing up. In fact, I would say that the majority of the houses in England need a little fix me up on the outside.
I got into London around 2, and made my way to my hostel. I took the tube, which was an experience in itself. I've never seen so many people cram onto a train car before. We were practically on top of each other, and it was so hot. I accidentally, got off at the wrong stop and spent over an hour walking around London trying to find my way to my hostel. My hostel was located on the other side of the bridge where Big Ben is so I would use the chimes of Big Ben's bells every 15 minutes as my point of navigation. The hostel was nicer than I expected. It was housed above a bar and they provided quite a bit for those who stayed. The rooms were small and they crammed so many beds into them that the door wouldn't even open fully.
I decided to walk around London and make my way to the theatre to purchase a ticket for the musical Wicked. At this point, typical British weather rolled in and it was downpour rain. This wasn't going to stop me. Big Ben was absolutely stunning in real life. The architecture of the House of Parliament, and the big clock face were beautiful. Nearby, I saw Westminster Abbey which was pretty and filled with red carnations for Armistice Day. I got to the theatre and purchased a student ticket for the evening show. A student ticket is basically the best seat available at a reduced price. So I got a seat 5 rows from the stage (valued at 105 dollars) for only 47 dollars. Sweet Deal!
The train ride to London was nice. I've never been on a high speed train before and this one zoomed through the English countryside. Most of what I saw was farmland with fields of sheep and cows. However, the houses were typically English: small, made out of brick, and needs a bit of fixing up. In fact, I would say that the majority of the houses in England need a little fix me up on the outside.
I got into London around 2, and made my way to my hostel. I took the tube, which was an experience in itself. I've never seen so many people cram onto a train car before. We were practically on top of each other, and it was so hot. I accidentally, got off at the wrong stop and spent over an hour walking around London trying to find my way to my hostel. My hostel was located on the other side of the bridge where Big Ben is so I would use the chimes of Big Ben's bells every 15 minutes as my point of navigation. The hostel was nicer than I expected. It was housed above a bar and they provided quite a bit for those who stayed. The rooms were small and they crammed so many beds into them that the door wouldn't even open fully.
I decided to walk around London and make my way to the theatre to purchase a ticket for the musical Wicked. At this point, typical British weather rolled in and it was downpour rain. This wasn't going to stop me. Big Ben was absolutely stunning in real life. The architecture of the House of Parliament, and the big clock face were beautiful. Nearby, I saw Westminster Abbey which was pretty and filled with red carnations for Armistice Day. I got to the theatre and purchased a student ticket for the evening show. A student ticket is basically the best seat available at a reduced price. So I got a seat 5 rows from the stage (valued at 105 dollars) for only 47 dollars. Sweet Deal!
I had some time before the show started, so I made my way to Buckingham Palace to get some pictures. Let me just say that London drivers are even crazier than Liverpool drivers. London drivers not only don't care about pedestrians crossing, they run through red lights. On the way, I stopped at a couple of gardens and got some pictures of the various statues. Buckingham Palace is huge. With it already being dark, it was cool to see the square as well as the palace all light up. There were loads of tourists there taking pictures. It was here that something unexpected occurred. As I was standing by the gate, I noticed a silhouette of an elderly woman approach a window on the top floor. The figure opened the blinds a little and pushed the window out. Everyone around me screamed and began shouting " God save the Queen!" and " We love you!" The woman stayed at the window for a moment or two before leaving out of sight. Yep, I saw the Queen! I couldn't believe it. Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures because she didn't stay at the window long and it was raining. You just have to believe me!
Showtime. Everyone around me in the fifth row were quite jealous that I got such a good ticket for a reduced price. Also, they couldn't comprehend that I came to see a show by myself. One older lady even said, "you mean to tell me you don't have any friends free tonight?" I do lady, they just live on another continent. I have never seen Wicked before so I was quite excited. For those of you who haven't seen Wicked... GO SEE IT! It was spectacular. The visuals were stunning, the story was great, and the lady who played the Wicked Witch was beyond amazing. I got chills every time she sang. I think everyone did, they gave a standing ovation after each one of her songs. I liked the twist they did on the Wizard of Oz story too. If you ever find yourself in London looking for a musical, see this one!
Wednesday Morning: I made my way to Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. Of course, this wasn't the original Globe nor was it even on the proper site. In 1989, they built the current theatre with authentic materials and tools that would have been used in the 1600's. I walked through the Shakespeare exhibit and went on the theatre tour. The theatre was really interesting and I learned quite a bit about Shakespeare and the Globe that I didn't know before. Maybe that's because I zoned out when we read Shakespeare in High School but we got to go up on stage, visit the trap door areas and sit in the "royal" seats. The globe still functions as a theatre and performances are put on using sunlight during the summer months. The performances are all authentically performed, including no microphones, improvisations of the actors, and being interactive with the audience.
Near the Globe was the Millennium Bridge, a foot bridge built to celebrate the new millennium. I walked over that and made my way to the Museum of London. The Museum of London had an exhibit on Sherlock Holmes, which I heard was a better exhibit than the official Sherlock Holmes museum at 221B Baker Street. I heard correctly because the Sherlock exhibit was really cool. Titled "The man who never lived, and will never die", the exhibit focused on the impact of Sherlock Holmes, the creation of the stories as well as London at the turn of the century. They had a 1927 interview with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle where he discussed his psychic experiences and his college professor who was the influence for the character of Sherlock. Included in the exhibit were original illustrations from Sidney Paget that became the staple portrayal of Holmes and the only surviving copy of the 1888 first publication of "A Study in Scarlet." They had artifacts from different TV/film series of Holmes including the newly engaged Benedict Cumberbatch's coat and Basil Rathbone's hat.
There was a big wall picture of Sherlock and Watson potrayed by Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in the exhibit with artifacts and text next to it. I was standing by the picture and reading the information when I heard, "Blimey! He looks just like Watson!" I didn't think anything of it until someone tapped my shoulder. I turned and it was two women who said to me, " you look just like Jude Law! A Spittin' image!" Now this isn't the first time I've been told I've looked like Jude Law, both at home and abroad. In England, several people have stopped me to tell me I look like Jude Law. It must be the blue eyes...
Unfortunately, they didn't allow any pictures in the exhibit. One lady chose to ignore this rule and continued to take pictures until the guards in the exhibit escorted her out. I was able to sneak one picture. Within half a second a guard came up to me and gave my first and only warning not to take pictures. So without further ado here is the only picture I got of the exhibit. Enjoy!
There was a big wall picture of Sherlock and Watson potrayed by Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in the exhibit with artifacts and text next to it. I was standing by the picture and reading the information when I heard, "Blimey! He looks just like Watson!" I didn't think anything of it until someone tapped my shoulder. I turned and it was two women who said to me, " you look just like Jude Law! A Spittin' image!" Now this isn't the first time I've been told I've looked like Jude Law, both at home and abroad. In England, several people have stopped me to tell me I look like Jude Law. It must be the blue eyes...
Unfortunately, they didn't allow any pictures in the exhibit. One lady chose to ignore this rule and continued to take pictures until the guards in the exhibit escorted her out. I was able to sneak one picture. Within half a second a guard came up to me and gave my first and only warning not to take pictures. So without further ado here is the only picture I got of the exhibit. Enjoy!
I went through the rest of the Museum of London. They showed the history of London/Britain from Prehistoric times to modern day. There were loads of artifacts including prehistoric animal skulls, Roman spears, Medieval armor, Victorian Clothing, and records from the 50's-60's. It was all very fascinating and one could spend a whole day in there reading every snippet of information. I was allowed to take pictures through these exhibits so here is a select few!
That's all I'm going to say about London for this post. Be sure to stop by next week where I'll be talking about my trip to the National Gallery, the Cat Stevens concert, the James Bond Exhibit and my run in with the Guy Fawkes protestors (very scary!!!!!).
Before I send this post off to the presses, I would like to introduce: "Mark's Musings," where I'll be giving you bits about English culture and daily life.
PDA: The Brits are very public in displaying their affection. It is definitely something to get used to because it's not like that in the States. During one trip on the London Tube, I was stuck between two couples "expressing" their love to each other. It happened again while waiting for my at the London Train station to go back to Liverpool. They love to snog and don't give two hoots who sees it.
Breakfast: Sorry Brinner fans, they don't like breakfast food for dinner. They believe eggs, toast, bacon are morning food and should only be eaten in the morning. And they don't believe in eating pancakes/waffles for breakfast either. Sweets are for dessert only. I get weird looks when I made pancakes for breakfast the other day. They were quite good despite someone saying they gag at the thought of pancakes in the morning.
Trivia!!!!!! 6 people answered, and 5 take the trivia trophy. The answer was...Jaws! Jaws is considered to be the first blockbuster movie. That one was too easy I guess. I'll have to ramp up the difficulty this week:
Before I send this post off to the presses, I would like to introduce: "Mark's Musings," where I'll be giving you bits about English culture and daily life.
PDA: The Brits are very public in displaying their affection. It is definitely something to get used to because it's not like that in the States. During one trip on the London Tube, I was stuck between two couples "expressing" their love to each other. It happened again while waiting for my at the London Train station to go back to Liverpool. They love to snog and don't give two hoots who sees it.
Breakfast: Sorry Brinner fans, they don't like breakfast food for dinner. They believe eggs, toast, bacon are morning food and should only be eaten in the morning. And they don't believe in eating pancakes/waffles for breakfast either. Sweets are for dessert only. I get weird looks when I made pancakes for breakfast the other day. They were quite good despite someone saying they gag at the thought of pancakes in the morning.
Trivia!!!!!! 6 people answered, and 5 take the trivia trophy. The answer was...Jaws! Jaws is considered to be the first blockbuster movie. That one was too easy I guess. I'll have to ramp up the difficulty this week:
I'll see you next week with the exciting conclusion to my London Trip.
Peace & Love,
Mark
Peace & Love,
Mark