India India India

If I had a favorite day since I've been here, today would be it. But since I can't choose, I'll just say it's in the top 3. Our whole group went to Southall today, the Indian district of London. But before leaving, our director Dave Shuler, gave us a lesson about their beliefs and customs so we wouldn't be so in the dark when we got there!

We went to the Sikh temple first, and removed our shoes and covered our heads with scarves since that's what you do! You wash your hands before going in, and then we went up to the prayer room. The Granth is the scripture they pay respects to, so we were able to go up to the platform where those were and bow and show respect...it was kind of intimidating being a room full of Sikhs who were worshipping as we were the tourists. Still there was a good calm feeling in the room! It was really cool. There's always someone reading the scriptures over the microphone, of course we couldn't understand it but it was really beautiful and melodic.

After that, our guide talked to us more about the Sikh religion. They believe in truthful living, respecting everyone as equals, and strive for peace and harmony. He said the five evils are lust, anger, greed, worldly attachment and arrogance. Agreed! We went down to the community kitchen and had langar, the meal they provide for anyone who goes into the temple. I love Indian food!

Next we had some time to walk around the city, and ended up getting henna and finding some sequin Indian shoes! I don't know if I'll do much walking in them around here...better save those for home. We visited another temple, a Hindu one this time. The platform...altar...I don't know which term to use, was really bright and colorful and had lights! It was really interesting watching people go in and show their respect for the gods.

Professor Macfarlane (okay from now on I'm going to refer to him as Roger because that's less to type) shared some of this fried dough dipped in syrup that we found from a vendor, and it was so good! Pure sugar. Pure goodness. One of my favorite things has become trying the little things vendors on the street sell. Usually they tend to be really good. We didn't try the cup of magic corn this time, but maybe that will be next.

Dinner was at Gifto's, some more amazing Indian food! I don't even know what we ate...but it was so good! I DO know what our appetizer was actually...kind of. It was homemade cheese with all these good vegetables on top! Mmmmph! It was all really spicy, hopefully that doesn't come back to haunt me.

Today was just so cool getting to be surrounded by this different culture and experiencing something new! I wish we would've had more time to be there today, but the train was calling our names!

Day in the Park and Night at the Museum

Sun today! It finally decided to come out of hiding. Earlier I got a letter sent off to my favorite boy in Argentina, then bought some pears at the grocery store! There's a little gym a couple blocks down from our house so me and a couple roommates got passes! My leg muscles like to be tight and my feet like being flat so running hasn't been very good on them, so the spin bikes at the gym will be much nicer! I'm REALLY excited about that! Me and Sarah went to the science museum but didn't last very long. But as we were walking home that's when it happened...those glorious rays of sunshine burst through the clouds and *hallelujah* there was light!

After dinner tonight I went to the V&A museum with a few girls, and when we got off the tube we saw all these people dressed up all fancy and some had masquerade masks on...and we were like what the heck is going on? We got to the museum and it turns out that on the last Friday of every month there's a...party I guess, in one of the exhibits and tonight it was a masquerade in the main hall! I wished I would've known so we could've dressed up!

I had my first (hopefully last?) experience with a crazy on the tube tonight, a guy was on SOMETHING and got a little too close so I did a spin move and kept walking. I felt like Derek Zoolander who couldn't turn left.

Top of the morning!

It's not morning...I just wanted to title this blog with that.

We had an exciting night on Monday. The fire alarm went off at 2am, I guess Ms. Shepherd (she's an "elderly" woman who lives up in one of the flats...she owned it before BYU bought the property. There's a little background for you!) left her oven on to heat up her kitchen and then fell asleep. So the fire alarm works and nothing burnt down. But it was all the students and teachers downstairs in their pajamas...kind of weird if you think about it.

I went to Kensington Palace with Sarah and we got to see Queen Victoria's bedroom and some of Princess Diana's dresses. And we saw how lace was made by hand...INSANE! There were about a million pins and 3 million wooden needles used to make one ribbon of lace. Yikes.

We went to Sir John Soane's house Tuesday...it's a museum! He was a professor and collected all these artifacts and an Egyptian crypt and roman statues and Napoleon's ring (with a lock of his hair! Weird) This guy was crazy-his house was filled with thousands of this kind of things and who knows how he got them.

Then we went to Brighton to see the Royal Pavillion-it's this crazy palace that looks like the Taj Mahal but is decorated like China on the inside...it's really extravagant and awesome! There was a pier too...but the rides were closed! Oh January...you're so cold.

Hastings was the second stop, where the Normans and Anglo-Saxons battled it out and alas, the English lost! We took the walk around the battlefield and chased some sheep! The Battle Abbey was half gone, but we walked through where the monks used to live.

We stopped by a little town, Rye, on the way home. It had cobble stone streets and cute little shops and cottages but the people weren't very happy to have Americans around because they overcharged Margaret on her hot cocoa! We saw the Mermaid Inn, it was built in the 14th century!

Today...was boring! Not really. I went to the Tate Britain and got through 4 out of the 50 rooms. Curry was for dinner and I'm in love. But I love Frog's frozen yogurt more...especially when blackberries are involved. And especially when there's a hazelnut kit-kat waiting for me in the grocery store...and then when a piece of toast with nutella wants me to eat it when I get home. This is my day without homework. I should do something about that.

Mmm mmm weekend

Weekends are never long enough! I slept in til 8:30 and went running around the park. After getting ready for the day me and Alyssa decided to meet up with the rest of our roommates who had already left for the day. We found our way to St. Paul's station, and from there walked to the Tate Modern Art Museum. To get there we walked across the Millenium Bridge-the same one that the dementors sabotage in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince! (We watched that last night and it was cool seeing it because we were just there!) I found out that...I don't really appreciate modern art haha. Some of it was cool but for the most part I didn't understand why it was in a museum.

We didn't spend too much time there, and walked to Borough Market to find some lunch. I want to eat everything in sight when we're there, it all looks so good! We walked down the sweets market first...oh boy! All the pastries and cupcakes and turkish delight and baclava were calling my name! I didn't end up getting anything there...well I DID try a cheese sample and jam and chorizo...but I didn't BUY anything! Me, Sarah, Alyssa and Kalyn ended up going to Wagamama's...they have yakisoba and ramen and that sort of thing! I'm so happy we went there! I got the yakisoba and had enough for leftovers too!

Since we didn't feel like going back to the centre quite yet, we walked down Portobello Road and just looked around at all the shops and stands and of course we ended up getting more food! Sarah bought a huge crepe with nutella and we all shared it...I could live off of those! After walking around for a long time we turned back and headed home, and spent the rest of the night not doing homework! haha We watched Harry Potter 6 and let our feet recover from all the walking!

Wow I write so much on here! I can't help it though! Okay really quick for today! I went to our Portuguese ward today, we introduced ourselves in sacrament meeting and I taught the little kids during second hour (in English thank goodness!) Their little accents are so adorable, and a little girl Maria really liked answering all the questions :) We walked home from church and I was happy to be indoors where it was warmer! I got to skype with my parents today so that was fun talking to them and hearing about them furniture shopping haha. Dinner was so good tonight! We had turkey and garlic mashed potatoes and squash and the best salad with strawberries and kiwis and candied cashews! And a HUGE chocolate cake! It was like the one Bruce eats on Matilda...Bruce! Bruce! Bruce!

Me and my roommates haven't been productive tonight...but we DID eat more cake and fruitella and watched engagement videos and followed wedding blogs and talked about bad dates. It's been an entertaining night haha

Huge Update

Blog keeping is more complicated than I thought. And I write too much...not a good combination! This is a giant update for the past few days, it pretty much talks about every minute of my day.

Tuesday, January 12th

Classes started, and since all of mine are on the "A Schedule" I sat in the classroom from 8:45 am to 1:30 pm. We just have one classroom here in the centre with chairs and a whiteboard and projector. I'm taking Classical Tradition: Civilization, British Literature, International Relations, Culture & Community, and Religious Studies in a World Setting. All of my classes have a ton of reading, so that's been overwhelming trying to balance going out into the city and doing schoolwork. It pays off to do the reading though because we take day trips and field trips to the places in the books which makes you appreciate them a lot more.

After dinner we got a group together and went to the Apollo Victoria theater to see WICKED! It was kind of spur of the moment, we were hoping to get standby tickets and luckily there were a ton of seats left. We ended up in the stalls, not too far from the stage. Most of the group had already seen the show at one time or another, but it was my first and I'm so happy I got to see it finally! Of course I'd heard the music before but getting to see it live was amazing! I know my mom and Madison want to see the show, so I'm definitely up for going again with them when they come over at the end of the program!

Wednesday, January 13th

Went to the V&A (Victoria and Albert) Museum and just barely dented it. There is so much to see! At the tube station we ran into our director, Professor Macfarlane, so he came with us and explained some of the mythological sculptures. It's always nice getting to hear about the history and story behind the art you're looking at. After a while we moved on to the fashion exhibit, and spent some time there looking at styles and trends throughout the centuries. There were some crazy shoes! We had to get home for dinner, so we left after looking at that. Dinner here is wonderful by the way! The resident director's wife cooks, along with the weekly "kitchen crew" (haven't had my turn yet) and it's always so good! It's like having Sunday dinner every night and there is always bread. Mmm! I heard she doesn't repeat a meal, but so far we've had things like cordon bleu, pasta, fajitas, vegetable soup, hamburgers, fish & chips and chicken. Nothing out of the ordinary. She likes to put cheese on about everything...I don't know how I feel about that. If I'm going to have vegetables I'd rather they weren't cooked in oil and covered in cheese haha But I'm not complaining! (Okay maybe a little. Just about that.)

Thursday, January 14th

Nothing too much today, busy with classes and getting reading done. I went to Ben's cookies with a few of the girls. Best decision of my life. haha I wish I could have one of these cookies everyday but considering they're almost 2 pounds each (money, not weight ) I think I'd end up spending all my money on that. I chose oatmeal raisin and it was so satisfying! Worth the tube trip.

Friday, January 15th

We took a group trip to the Tower of London today. It was built by William the Conqueror in 1078, I still can't believe that I was somewhere that's been around for so long! The Tower of London isn't actually a tower, but a complex of lots of buildings ... but there ARE towers. Some of them were used for torture and executions, like Lady Jane Grey who only reigned as queen for 9 days before being beheaded. We saw the crowned jewels which were unbelievable, and in one of the towers we saw carvings etched into the walls from prisoners kept there. That was probably one of my favorite parts. King Henry VIII's armor was on display, as well as some of his weapons and jousting lances.

Alyssa and I tried on the metal helmets they would have worn back then...they were pretty heavy! I have to mention this too: we went into a tower where the torture devices were kept. Eerie but actually very cool! It reminded me of a video I made with Rachelle and Hayley sophomore year about the guillotine. In the tower they had a "rack" where prisoners were stretched until their joints...well you know. And I can't remember what the other one was called but it did just the opposite of the rack! It compressed your body into a teensy little ball. Not too comfortable... hence it was a form of torture.

Next stop ... Borough Market! Along the way we stopped by an old inn where in Chaucer's Canterbury Tales the pilgrims all meet. The market is my new favorite place! If I had more money and a bigger stomach I would've gotten everything there. I ended up getting an Italian sandwich...but the ostrich burger looked good! Mmm..bird.

Saturday, January 16th

National Gallery today. I love that virtually all the museums are free here! I've become obsessed with Van Gogh's "Sunflowers". Happy colors and pretty flowers are a very good combination. My favorite! I shouldn't have stopped by the gift shop on the way out...I'm a sucker for postcards. And there's a whole table of overpriced Sunflowery things.

Sunday, January 17th

So I went to a Portuguese speaking ward today. Do I speak Portuguese? Nope! But every semester students get assigned to various wards around the area to help with teaching classes or playing the piano and I landed in a Portuguese ward! I go with two other girls and another guy who speaks the language because he served his mission in Brazil. Me and the other girls can't understand a word! We walked into the chapel and everyone was really nice, the bishop introduced himself to us and spoke english. Two of the talks were given in Portuguese and one in English. I realized it wasn't any use trying to understand anything because I've never taken a Portuguese class, so I ended up reading. Starting next week I'm going to teach the little kids' class (everyone 8 and under, there's about ten of them) and luckily they all speak and understand English. I'm not sure what I think about not being able to understand what everyone's saying all the time, but it'll be an experience! I guess I get a little taste of what is was like for Josiah getting to Argentina and being surrounded by a foreign language. Good thing I don't have to try and speak it... Although I do have to introduce myself next week.

I forgot to mention, our church building is the closest out of anyone's in our group. We walk across Hyde Park and down a few blocks and voila! It takes about 25 minutes, but...we walk through the park so I don't mind. It was really sunny on Sunday so I went for a walk around the pond and tried to catch some swans.

Monday, January 18th

We found Big Ben today! (And of course there was scaffolding on one side of it; story of this trip. Everything's under construction since it's off season and the Olympics are coming up in a couple years.) We stepped out of the tube station and the clock tower was right there in front of us. We had some fun taking pictures by it along with some Asian tourists.

We walked down to the London Eye...I think I'll go on that in the spring. That way London will be bright and happy when I look at it from up high. It was pretty chilly (surprise!) so me and Sarah went digging around some thrift stores in our neighborhood. We found some cool things but didn't fall in love...but she might go back and get a sweater that is remarkably similar to a blanket my grandma knitted me.

Tuesday, January 19th

We got lost on our way to the British Museum to meet up with our civilizations class today. The good thing is, I rode the big red double decker bus for the first time! We saw the frieze that was taken from the Parthenon, and the remains of the pediments. Macfarlane showed us two of his favorite pieces, the Portland Vase and...oh no I forgot the name! A dish that was found in a farmer's field when he lowered his plough ten centimeters more than usual! I know the story behind it but not the name...Oops. *The Mildenhall Great Dish...that's it.*

Wednesday, January 20th

Day Trip #1

Stonehenge...I was happy to see it in real life! "It was built by aliens...not really"...that's what the person introducing the site to us said. Oh man. In case you were wondering...it's a lot smaller in person than it looks like on the background of your desktop.

And to the southwest you can see the Salisbury Cathedral, there's me and Alyssa with our white lunch bags. That cathedral has the tallest spire in England it was built in the 1200's! In fact...it's so tall that's why it's cut off in the picture. I cannot get over how incredible this cathedral is. You can spend hours on end just staring at the pillars or ceiling or windows.

Our last stop was Bath (our as the British say, Bawwwwth) and the drive into the city was one of the prettiest things I've ever seen! The English countryside is so beautiful, I would love to have a little cottage out there Maybe I'll be a sheep farmer and do that when I'm older. We've been talking about Jane Austen in our literature class so everyone was really excited to visit this little town. She had lived here, and based her novel Northanger Abbey here too.

Site uno: The Roman baths. We got to take the audio tour so a nice British lady told us all about what we were looking at. These springs were used by the people to...you guessed it...bathe in! We saw remains of the courtyard and took some pictures by the main bath. I almost fell in. One of the side baths was exactly like the cave Harry Potter and Dumbledore found the [imposter] horcrux in. A very interesting place to visit.

Site dos: The assembly rooms. Jane Austen writes about these in Northanger Abbey...how exciting! They were grand ballrooms and are today used for weddings and concerts, receptions and the like. The crystal chandeliers were huge and everything just so elegant. We danced around in the assembly rooms.

Thursday, January 21st

Me and Sarah were good students and got some reading for Political Science done today! I got a package sent off and went for a walk around Kensington Gardens and went to religion and culture class. Professor Schuler talked about culture shock today and the different stages, and it was actually really useful. After class I went for another walk with Margaret before dinner. We had vegetable soup and salad. It was muy delicioso!

And...I ended up going to see Les Miserables with a few people and it was amazing!! I'd heard so much about it but had never really listened to the music or found out much about it but holy moly! The entire cast was just amazing, their voices were incredible. I spent my week's budget on it...but it was so worth it.

Friday January 22nd

All caught up! So on to today finally. We went as a group to Westminster Abbey, where all the coronations for the royalty take place. We saw the tombs of Isaac Newton, Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, and a ton of kings and queens! So many poets, artists, musicians and royalty are buried there it's mind boggling (boggle!) I stood where all the kings and queens from William the Conqueror until today. We saw the coronation chair, it's been used for every coronation since 1308.

Henry the VIII built a chapel onto the abbey, and the ceiling is so incredibly amazing. I really mean it this time. It looks like lace, but is made up of tons of stone. It's looks so delicate, how is that possible?! That was my favorite part. We walked to the National Gallery afterwards and had a list of eleven paintings to see that the professors thought noteworthy. We spent a couple hours there; seeing one Leonardo Da Vinci's sketches was definitely a highlight. I still love Van Gogh's 'Sunflowers' the most. Me and Sarah went to the National Portrait Gallery afterwards and spent a while looking around and then headed home. My feet were so tired! It was really nice to sit down on the tube. Dinner was pasta and green beans and zucchini, so good. And I've spent a lot of time updating this blog while I should've been reading and finishing my assignment for British Literature.

Oh but wait, one more thing! Sarah found her soulmate today. His name's Elliot and he has a British accent and he helped us find the right line on the tube after we left our group behind at the station. Oh happy day.

A Museum, Cathedral and Garden.

Today has been wonderful and busy! I woke up at 7 (I don't know how I did that...me and Alyssa stayed up til 1am writing letters!) and after breakfast took the tube to St. Paul's station. From there our group met up and went to the London Museum together. Half of the exhibits are closed for renovation...but what we DID see was pretty interesting!

My favorite part was at the end, there was a book dedicated for all those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of 2005 of the London transportation system. There was a book dedicated to the people whose lives were cut short, each with a memoir written by family and friends. Sometimes with tragedies like that you forget that these people had rich lives with people they love and potentials to be filled-this book made their losses real and personal and was really touching to read. It's kind of eerie thinking I'm where that happened. Today has been wonderful and busy! I woke up at 7 (I don't know how I did that...me and Alyssa stayed up til 1am writing letters!) and after breakfast took the tube to St. Paul's station. From there our group met up and went to the London Museum together. Half of the exhibits are closed for renovation...but what we DID see was pretty interesting! My favorite part was at the end, there was a book dedicated for all those who lost their lives in the terrorist attacks of 2005 of the London transportation system. There was a book dedicated to the people whose lives were cut short, each with a memoir written by family and friends. Sometimes with tragedies like that you forget that these people had rich lives with people they love and potentials to be filled-this book made their losses real and personal and was really touching to read. It's kind of eerie thinking I'm where that happened.

After the Museum we got lunch at Pret A Manger, a sandwich place just down the street. Then we walked towards St Paul's Cathedral and spent some time looking in the shops nearby while we waited for our group.

The Cathedral was absolutely amazing! It's hard to believe that anything that magnificent can be constructed by humans. But really. The details on the massive ceiling-and everywhere else-were unreal. It took 35 years to rebuild after the Great Fire, but even that seems like a short time for something so amazing to be built. The dome was closed so we couldn't go up to the very top, but we did get to go to the whispering gallery, where if you whisper against the wall it's magnified and people can hear you from far away! (Kind of a bad explanation...) After the Cathedral I went to Covent Gardens with a few girls and just looked around at the shops and stands. We did a ton of walking today and was so excited to head back to the Centre for dinner and a chair to sit in.

Mary and Sarah had a little...dispute...over who would get the fort they built under one of the bunk beds, so we held a court in the sitting room. The fort has been demolished...Dinner was wonderful and now I'm getting hungry sitting here in my room but I already brushed my teeth so I don't want to eat again! Plus, we can't have food in our rooms because of the rat problem...I'd rather not invite them to our room with crumbs I'd be sure to leave.

Getting to London

After a ten hour flight, a layover in Amsterdam, another flight to Heathrow, a train and taxi, I made it to the London Centre. Pulling up (on the left side of the street...still getting used to that!) was such a relief. Jet lag is real. I feel so disoriented after such a long day of traveling and now being in another part of the world. It's strange being here where everything is unfamiliar and foreign. Driving down the street in the cab didn't feel real. None of this does, actually. I can't believe I've actually arrived in London!

We checked in with our Professors and found our rooms in our new home for the next four months. I'm staying with 7 girls in a room on the first floor and I love it! It's like camping...only we're staying for a long time and we're in Europe. I was the first one to the centre from my room. I chose a top bunk bed for some reason. Here it is! The best part about getting here was the package from Josiah that was waiting for me in the library, that was a good welcome.

After getting settled in we went exploring around town a bit and just kept moving so we could stay awake until it was nighttime here. I found a red telephone booth (not too hard to find though). We made it through dinner and a short meeting and then could finally sleep. So...that was yesterday. Today me and 3 other girls went running across the street, right by Kensington Palace and around the frozen pond-it was sunny and there was snow on the ground. There were a lot of people in the park walking their dogs...but none of them were on leashes (the dogs, not the people...) which kind of made me nervous...wouldn't want to get attacked by a little scotty.

After our run, we went to Portobello Road. There are so many cute little shops and we saw a stand with crepes that looked soooo good.

I'm definitely going back for one of those.

Alyssa, Sarah and Margaret got waffles with Nutella ... mmm! In the kitchen here we'll always have Nutella in the cupboard...that won't take too much getting used to. There are a ton of restaurants here I want try. We saw about 3 Persian cuisine restaurants...what IS Persian cuisine anyway? I guess I'll have to find out.

We decided to go on one of the assigned "London walks" today so we took the tube to the financial district. We saw St. Paul's cathedral, St. Michael's, the monument for the Great Fire of London, and walked across the London Bridge. And I saw a lady with one of the plastic bonnets that covers your hair from the rain and I thought of how much more fashionable they'd be if Jenisa could doodle on them. It was absolutely freezing and I didn't have gloves...Not a good combination. I finally finished unpacking everything today and had some leftover soup from dinner last night.

This is more from my first two days in my home for this semester.

Standing outside of 27 Palace Court

Most of dorm one; our first family picture.

A mini cooper with the Union Jack on the roof...nothing could be more British than this.

During our walk we found a little church, and a man passing by told about how Charles Dickens would come here and go to the pub down the street to write his stories.

I just thought this was funny...it was the first time I'd seen a glass of wine sitting on top of a cross walk.

I don't know why I took a picture with this...I guess I was just excited that it was the site of a "first".

It was really tricky trying to get the Monument in the background..I managed to get most of it I guess. There's the Monument to the Great Fire of 1666 behind me, designed by Christopher Wren.