Master of the House

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Everything is expensive here, even internet access, so time is short.

Yesterday I saw the Changing of the Guard, and although it was heavily raining (English rain is no joke), it cut off just before the beginning of the ceremony. Later on I went to see the Tower of London, which is very expensive (£12 for a student, about $24, the adult was £15). In the tower one can see the crown jewels as well as old graffiti from inmates, which is in both Latin and English. It also offers great views of Tower Bridge (often mistaken by Americans as London Bridge).

Today I went to St. Paul's Cathedral, which is down the block from my hostel so it was convenient, but also expensive (£8,50 for a student). Signs say the cathedral should be respected as a place of worship, yet they have turned it into a shameless tourist attraction (the crypt has a cafe and a gift shop for Christ's sake). I climbed the dome to see the outside, but again it was raining, and the heavy wind snapped one of the poles of my umbrella (opening it up out there was a huge mistake). Here's the odd thing though: waiting to get into the cathedral, I met two guys who turned out to be from New York. One of them, a guy named Isaac, is actually a student at Hunter College! I couldn't believe the odds.

I then went to the British Museum and the Natural History Museum, which fortunately after the other expensive admissions are free as they are government buildings. The British Museum was more interesting than the Louvre in my opinion: the museum's crowning piece is the Rosetta Stone. The Natural History Museum wasn't as interesting (and not much different from ours at home) but still worth a visit.

I topped off the night with a dinner at Pizza Hut (which is entirely a sit-down restaurant chain over here), and then, on a whim since I was by all the theatres, I went to see something I've wanted to see for a while: Les Miserables. As a student, I got a huge discount (£20 for a seat I believe was normally £50 if I understood the cashier correctly). It was great, but during the intermission I ran to a corner store since the concessions were ridiculous: £3, almost $6 for a tiny cup of Haagen-Dasz! The performance was just smashing and I'm glad I decided to go. I might see something else in the time I'm here, possibly Stomp.

As I get north, it keeps getting colder, and in London it's rained every day I've been here. However, it's still not New York cold: hovering around 40 degrees. My main complaint is London is even more expensive than continental Europe. It is, however, extremely enjoyable, and even feels like home after 2 weeks outside of the English speaking world.

I want to do some day trips out of the city (Bath, Dover, Stratford, there are so many options), hopefully at least one before I leave. I'll have to come back here in the future to get it all done.

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Photos

Tower Bridge, not London Bridge!
This is Tower Bridge, but everyone including Fergie thinks it's London Bridge.

Changing of the Guard
The band playing at the Changing of the Guard.

Tower of London
The Tower of London from outside.

Rosetta Stone
The Rosetta Stone in the British Museum.