Never ending tours

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Need to keep this updated more! So many things have happened since this last Tuesday...

Wednesday was my first full day of classes and they are interesting to say the least. My anthropology class is all about music and how it's changed over time in London from jazz to punk to popular music and all that falls in between so perfect class for me. Thanks goodness though he gave us tons of venues to go to that are cheap to just sit and listen to music. Jazz is at the root of a lot of music around here so there are plenty of jazz clubs to go to and listen to music. Which will definitely be on my list of things to do. Then my history class on the other hand is a bit tedious it seems. Tons of reading, a presentation, and two reports, plus little assignments and tours in between. But it should be great fun while in class because the professor seems exactly like a documentary movie. Tons of information that's super interesting, lets just hope just as much learning takes place too.

Also in the process of planning a trip to go somewhere else besides London and a couple of ideas are Paris, Dublin, or Rome. Of course Paris is at the top of the list and the other two are possibilities if there's room in the budget. The real sightseeing and tours this week started on Thursday with my first trip to the Museum of Natural History! There were tons of things in there from rocks and crystals, to dinosaurs and mammals. There was a huge blue whale skeleton hanging from the ceiling. That seems to be a constant theme around here in the museums is to hang really large items from the ceiling. The dinosaur exhibit is obviously a favorite and the crystals was surprisingly interesting as well. I think the fact that they were stunning was what caught my eye. The museum is so large we couldn't see all of it in one day and I plan on visiting it again. Thank goodness it's free so I have the choice to do so!

Friday was a guided tour at the British Museum. The study center that our school is going through planned guided tours for us throughout our stay so everything we sign up for is only one pound which is fantastic. All the plays, lunches, tours, concerts, or whatever we sign up for is the same price. Anyways the British Museum is my favorite of them all! They have a collection of artifacts that represent how London was formed and the people that inhabited it, the Egyptian mummies, the Roman sculptures, and the Rosetta Stone! Plus many other fascinating sights to behold. Our guide told us that there is this thing where children can sleep over in the British Museum and roam around at night and have a slumber party. If I was younger that would be great fun! So she just suggested that we can do it with our children instead.

After the two hour guided tour I had McDonalds here for the first time! Now you wouldn't think it so amazing because it's eaten all the time in the states and it's so convenient to have. It really is a different experience here though. I guess I notice a lot of differences more than the norm because I worked there for three years. Pop and ketchup have real sugar instead of corn syrup in it. Which makes it taste different but gives it that little extra kick. They also give you the option to order potato wedges instead of fries with the meal. Also, all of the food actually tastes like it's supposed to instead of dripping with grease. I have no idea how they make it but I know they make the sandwiches ahead of time and let them sit there...for how long though I have no idea. But because there isn't much grease in the food the sandwiches aren't as wilted or soggy as if they would be if the food was to sit in the States. I don't believe that a lot of people ask for ketchup though because the employee gave me and my friends a certain indescribable look when all three of us asked for it. It was quite funny though when my third friend asked for more and she told her that they didn't have that much left.

Saturday started out with beautiful sunshine! The sun doesn't come out very often here which is very different from home. It's either always cloudy and windy or raining. So I always carry an umbrella around with me. This sunshine was quite the surprise though. I got a ticket to the Buckingham Palace for Sunday and had lunch in Saint James park by the river and it was really nice. There were a lot of tourists there because it's near the Palace and a lot of people go to the parks around here, but they had their picnic tables secluded and away from the people and walking paths which was very nice. Eating lunch next to the river felt like being home. There's so much openness at home and you think you wouldn't miss the open corn fields that you drive past everyday, but you definitely do. So the parks here really are a treasure. And there are so many of them that it's great! After lunch we were off on the tube to Little Venice and Camden to go on a boat tour!

This boat was different from any that I have seen before and it was very different to see such a narrow, man made river right in the middle of a city. These rivers are man made and were used to make really long trips from one place to the next shorter. They are shallow and because boats weren't motorized horses would pull them along the river. Whenever there was a tunnel they had to go through and the horses wouldn't fit, a man would have to go behind the boat and push it through with his legs! Because it's so shallow and there are sidewalks right next to the river that aren't much higher than it a boat can only travel 4mph along the river. Which isn't very fast at all! It does make a trip along the river really relaxing though. You can even get a little nosy and see through some peoples gardens (back yards) which you don't see at all from the street. People also live in these long narrow boats right along the river. Which I don't believe I could do.

Once arriving in Camden it seemed like madness. There are a tons of people there and it's a huge shopping area. Tons of little shops line the streets and masses of people are in the area going in and out of these shops. If you don't see souvenir shop then its a jewelry, clothes, shoe, tattoo, music, or new designer shop. I have never seen so many tattoo places in one area and there are tons of people standing in the street holding a large sign that literally advertises the tattoo shop with an arrow pointing which way to go to get one. This area is very different from Chelsea in a lot of good ways. There are more people that aren't stuck up and have different styles of dress all across the board! A lot of goth, punk, and hipster styles going on. First time I've heard rock music played here and I feel as if you could freely express yourself in this area. This is very different from Chelsea where it seems like a runway every time you walk down the street. There is also tons of different food places in this area. A lot of Chinese, Indian, Asian, Hindu, Italian, and Mexican food. I had a huge slice of pizza. It was really good but different because it didn't have any sauce. I noticed that instead of sauce they just squeeze ketchup on top of it which was an interesting substitute. After getting a bite to eat and browsing the shops it was time to take our chances with finding our way home on the tube and a relaxing night spent it watching movies in order to prepare myself for a fun filled Sunday at Buckingham Palace and the Thames River Festival!

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