A New Set of Eyes

This blog has been taken over by an intruder. Ok, maybe I'm not really an intruder, but it sounded cooler than "guest." Since I think that this blog needs to be updated, I've decided that while Davey is at class I will do my part to update on what has happened during at least the past few days, or since I came to London. Let me start by stating that it's a great thing that Davey and I have cars in the states because the combination of us and public transportation does not seem to be a good thing.

Day 1 - Saturday 10 March - Davey met me at Heathrow airport when my flight got in on Saturday morning. (The flight was wonderful, there were no mishaps with customs, and as soon as I walked up to the baggage conveyor my bags went by). We took the underground to Green Park where we were supposed to change lines to get to the flat. However, as we were walking through the station and announcement came on over the loudspeaker informing us that there was an emergency in the station and we had to evacuate as quickly as possible (somehow it sounded a lot less threatening in a British accent). This meant that Davey and I were left to carry my luggage (all 100lbs total) up more than 15 flights of stairs to get to the street level. Fun. When we finally saw the sunshine (yes, the sun was actually shining) we took a taxi to the dorms and unpacked. Needing to get some groceries, we went out to explore and go to Morrison's, the local grocery store. Davey and I got on a bus that was supposed to drop us off directly at the store and got off when it shut down at one of the next stops, only to get on another bus that took us a little closer to the store before reaching the end of the line. We were now in Camden, which is one of the most popular markets in London and is home to many small stores, street vendors, and the like. Davey and I walked through, stopping at a few places just to browse and finally made it to the grocery store where we wandered up and down the aisles in search of dinner and lunch for the week. After purchasing what will doubtfully last a week, we boarded yet another bus which thankfully took us all the way back to the dorms. Not having the energy to even think about cooking, we left yet again and walked to James street where we found an amazing Spanish Tapas restaurant where we had some delicious food and even more delicious sangria. We then came home and promptly crashed, having spent most of the day walking around.

Day 2 - Sunday 11 March - Daylight savings time did not effect the time in London (creating a 4 hour difference between here and the states). Today was sightseeing day! We started off by taking the tube to Green Park (uneventful ride...sorry) and walking through a very lovely park towards the palace. We arrived just in time to hear the band march in. After about half an hour the some of the guards marched out. After another half an hour and the band playing some of John Williams' greatest hits (Theme for Indiana Jones, Theme for Star Wars, Olympic Fanfare and Theme) as well as the Theme for Mission Impossible as well as some more traditional marching music, more guards walked out. We were then treated to seeing the band march out of the gates in their lovely grey coats and bearskin hats (sorry folks, no red coats today). When the ceremony was finished, Davey and I walked through St. James park towards the London eye and the Westminster Abbey where we were meeting Sonya for lunch. We went to a small pub near the Westminster tube station and drank some beer and had a fanstastic lunch while we caught up and tried to figure out where the best places to visit would be. After lunch we walked to Trafalgar square and around Westminster, Piccadilly Circus, and Covent Garden, checking out LSE where Sonya is going to school. After she left to finish writing essays, Davey and I continued on towards the London eye, soon getting on a tube because we couldn't walk any further. We finally made it to the eye where we bought tickets and took a ride, launching us high above London where we could see the vast landscape of the city. When we were finished we walked by the street performers to the underground station where we went home. Below are some views from the eye.

Day 3 - Monday 12 March - Another day to sightsee, this time in the more populated and commercial portions of London. We started the day off in Portabello Market where we walked by all of the produce vendors debating whether or not we should get anything to snack on. Needless to say, we ended up getting nothing. We soon found our way to Notting Hill which was somewhat uneventful because trying to explain to Davey the relevance on the location to the movie was far too draining. We then decided to make our way to Knightsbridge to see the commercial and expensive designer side of London. We boarded a bus and got the coveted seats on the upper level in the front and off we went. After about 15 minutes we began to question whether or not we were going on the right direction. After 30 we were pretty sure that we weren't where we wanted to be and after 45 the bus pulled into a garage and we tried to get off slyly so the driver wouldn't know how stupid we were. Despite going completely in the wrong direction, the ride was amazing and we got to see some very cute residential homes and little towns. After finally getting on the correct bus we went to Knightsbridge (which was about 15 minutes away from where we actually got on the bus) and toured around. We took the customary trip through Harrods to see everything we will never be able to afford and had lunch at a sushi restaurant. We then walked through the city streets until it was dark and came back to the flat for dinner.

Overall, it was a nice few days despite the snafus that we hit along the way. Hopefully the rest of the week will be just as fun.