As the week progressed I grew happier and happier that I was not traveling. I knew it was going to be so nice staying in London and mark a few things off my “to-do” list. Thursday came and work passed quickly (thankfully), and eight girls from our group met at Alexis’ internship office. She works for Jamie Oliver and his Food Revolution (aka the Naked Chef). I was in amazement. We walked up the stairs into the most amazing, rustic kitchen and were greeted by three young women (who worked for and are personal friends of Jamie’s); it was surreal. We talked for a while and then started cooking. That night we made fajitas with peppers, guacamole, salad, and salsa (which Maggie and I made). Eating dinner was the best part. The conversation was awesome as well. This night is by far my most memorable with the girls in the Auburn group so far. We returned home and waited for the arrival of Ben and his group. Their plane was delayed so it was a late arrival. Once they finally got here my group was leaving to go to Croatia for the weekend. It was a convenient swap for me considering I never had to be alone ;).
Friday Ben, Matt J., Scott, and I woke up and went to the local coffee shop for breakfast. As we were still waking up we made a plan and easily conquered each part of the day to come. First, we went to see the Changing of the Guards at Buckingham Palace. Even though I was too short to see any significant activity take place I am still happy I went because I got to see the guards parade into the Palace gate. Then, we walked through the Horse Guards (where beach volleyball will be held at the Olympics next summer), passed Downing Street to see the police carrying huge machine guns (this is where the Prime Minister lives), all the way to Big Ben, Parliament, and Westminster Abbey. After a few photographs we ran into 3 more people from Dublin (Ben’s group) and decided to head to a pub for lunch. The pub we chose had delicious food, but very interesting beer. They brewed their own beer and it was to be served at room temperature with no carbonation; hence, the reason I was not a fan. After lunch we journeyed to the British Museum where the Rosetta Stone and Cleopatra are stowed. We spent almost 2 & ½ hours in this Museum before we decided to head home to freshen up. After a nice break for our feet and freshening up for dinner we headed to a nearby Mexican restaurant which was very fun and went out on the town to Brick Lane.
Saturday morning came too early. Ben and I met Matt, Scott, and Dennis at Tower of London to enjoy the complimentary tour (given by the cutest tour guide dressed up as if he was from the 1800s).
We then explored and saw the crown jewels. There is nothing I can say to describe the crown jewels except that I walked by each one three different times to get as great of a look possible; I knew I would NEVER see any stones or jewelry as big, beautiful, or expensive in my lifetime. Ben and I broke away from the group after the Tower and went to an inexpensive Italian place for lunch (we were great bargain huntersthis weekend J), which was delicious. Right next to the restaurant was the Natural History Museum but the line was too long so we decided to come back on Sunday. That meant we made our way to the London Dungeon (basically a haunted house about Jack the Ripper). It was entertaining and amusing when I saw Ben get scared at a few parts (such as the one where the crypt is filled with mirrors so everything becomes a delusion and I had no idea where I was going…Ben was in a state of panic…HILARIOUS). The rest of the tour was a little educational but mostly an attraction and tourist trap. We are both glad we did it solely because of the souvenir we acquired:
After the London Dungeon, Ben and I did the London Eye. It was amazing seeing London from the highest point-you truly can see everything. By the end of the wheel it was already 9 p.m. and we were tired and hungry. Therefore, that is exactly what we did: ate dinner and went to sleep.
Sunday morning we woke up to finally go to the Natural Hisotry Museum. The dinosaurs were on “holiday” so that was disappointing, but the other things were amazing. I am a bit of a science nerd so I especially enjoyed this museum all about life, environment, and animals! We went to lunch at Hamilton Hall (a pub right near our home-tube station) to meet my group returning from Croatia. Ben loved everyone and everyone loved Ben. Saying goodbye came next. It was bittersweet because we would see each other soon, but goodbye is always a stinker! It was an amazing weekend in London and I could not have asked for any better!
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