June 26th, Tuesday:
Today I flew to London from home. It was a LONG flight. But even before the plane flight...let's rewind. I woke up at around 3:30AM, and went to the airport. My plane ticket said I was Economy, yet my internet confirmation said I was in Upper Class. I asked the gate workers about this, and they had no idea, so they went to get their supervisor, and then the supervisors boss, and it only took about forever! Everyone (EVERYONE) had boarded the plane before me, and finally they answered my question and told me that I'm staying in Economy (which is fine, because by this time I wanted to get on the plane before it left me)!
It was 8:10AM when I boarded, and the plane was supposed to leave at 8:20AM. SUPPOSED TO! But alas, with my luck we got delayed a good 2 hours. In any case, the flight was really nice. Virgin Atlantic (I recommend it). I had my own television in front screen in front of me with choices of over 50 different movies, 20 different TV shows, 15 games to play, etc. etc. I watched the movie "Smokin' Aces", but honestly...don't see it. I wish I would have watched "Happy Feet" instead. Skipping ahead about 4 hours, our plane landed at Heathrow Airport (London). FINALLY!
So I got off the plane, and of course the first thing I want to do when I land is wait in line for an hour at customs/immigration or whatever you call it. Good times (not really). Once I found my way through baggage claim, I started looking for Laura (the girl I was supposed to meet up with, because we were both landing around the same time). But, she left, and I had no clue how to get to where I am staying in Kensington. I finally decided to brave (more like I didn't want to pay 60 pounds/120 dollars for a cab ride) the train from Heathrow to Paddington, and then take a cab from Paddington to Kensington. I met two very nice ladies from D.C. on the train. We talked about travel plans and what not. When I got to Kensington the cab driver was rushing me to hurry up and pay him, because there were cars behind him waiting. Well, I don't know England currency. So I probably overpaid him, but what can you do?
Everyone was sleeping when I arrived, and I was the LAST to arrive. Great. But, I got everything situated and went to bed.
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June 27th, Wednesday:
I didn't have an alarm clock, and so my roommate woke me up. Breakfast was cereal and yogurt for me (just like it should be assumed everyday...because that's what i've been eating for breakfast everyday). It was nice to get reaquainted with some of the students. The first class we had was English 300 with Professor Mason. Then, we had an orientation where Tina and Tony told us about the Center, the rules, regulations, etc. Then, the group went out to get our Oyster Cards (Monthy Tube Cards), and some of us went to get REAL ENGLISH FISH 'N' CHIPS for lunch! It was AMAZING! We went to this hole-in-the-wall place, but it was incredible! When we got back to the Center, it was time for Professor Elliott's International Studies (History) Class. Then, we all set out for one of the "walks" (basically these walks around set into sections and there for one of our classes). This "Walk on the Wild Side" was mainly on the south side of the Thames River aka Southwark. This long walk was actually very enjoyable, because I was able to see Big Ben, Parliament, London Eye, The Tower Bridge, etc. It's like you see all these amazing things on TV and then you see them in real life and it really takes your breath away.
After dinner, a lot of us went out to see Les Miserables. We were able to go an hour before the show started, so that we could get discounted tickets. Yeah...amazing! Whitney and I were in Row K (Row 11) for only 22.50 pounds! It's kind of unfortunate though, because I slept the first 15 minutes of the play, because once the lights went out...BAM! I was catching 'ZZZ's all over the place. Other than that, the play was INCREDIBLE! Such an awesome cast, it was believeable, and the music was great! I really liked the black lady in the play (character name?), because she was funny, and I liked the little boy...too bad he got shot.
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June 28th, Thursday:
Still no alarm clock...but I did wake up! Good thing my roommates are loud enough in the morning to wake me, because usually I'm like that guy Rip Van Wrinkle or Winkle that sleeps forever. Anyway, we went on another walk around the Financial District part of London. I'm not too sure how I felt about this walk. Of course it was fun and amazing, because HI it's London! However, the other walk was more impressive. OH MY GOSH Moment: So of course here Sean is with the group, but Sean sees a nice little shop/market set up outside. Sean can NOT resist, so he forces the rest of the group to go with him. Sean and Laura get left behind (big surprise)...They are now LOST. Well, we knew where our final destination was going to be, but we were so fed up with walking by then sooooooo we flagged down a cab and took that to the Museum of London. We got there before everyone else (Duh, because while everyone elses' feet hated them, my feet loved me)! The museum was actually very interesting. I really enjoyed "The Great Fire" exhibit about the horrid fire that burned down most of London a long time ago. We had a worksheet with questions we had to answer for class to do at the museum. Well, I saw a little elementary school field trip, and they had the SAME questions on their worksheets! Incredible! I just wanted to lean over and be like "What did you get for this answer oh little one?"
So, I starved, and when I got back to the Center, I ate...a lot. And since everything out here costs double, I end up eating a lot of leftovers from dinner the night before. I don't really like leftovers, but it's all good.
I also went into Hyde Park, never made it to the gallery, but I did play with ducks. Well...I played with ducks, they didn't play with me. Whatever.
Kylie, Anna, Ashley, and Me decided to go out to a pub (drank cola of course) to be like real Londoners. We went to Soho, and found a pub called "Three Greyhounds" or something like that. It was PACKED, and there was nowhere to sit...sounds like not too much fun, but you're wrong. It was amazing. We met these English guys who were really cool. We hung out with them all night. They told us about their country and we told them about ours, it was so fun. It was one of their birthdays, so Anna yelled overtop of everyone and said "Everyone, I need your attention! It's his birthday today...so we're ALL going to sing 'Happy Birthday'!" Of course, everyone did sing, because who doesn't love the Americans! And one of the guys, Jamie was talking about baseball is and how cricket is just like and English version of baseball...BORING! It was hilarious...totally agree though. We decided to go to a different pub (because Londoners and Americans must all have ADD or something), so we walked down the street to 'O Bar' (Diet Coke Duh). We went downstairs where all the good music was playing and just chatted there more. Did a little dancing...not going to lie. Then, it was time for us to go back to our Kensington home, so we said our good-byes and caught the LAST tube back. OH MY GOSH Moment: But let's rewind shall we...On the way down the tube station to catch the last one running, a girl fell in front of me (on purpose...but at the time I didn't know), so my kindly natured self naturally helped her up. She was so cute, and she asked me "What's your name?" "Where are you from?" "How old are you?" you know...normal questions. ALL to find out she wanted to set me up with her friend that was with her (the rest of the story you'll have to ask me about)
Great night...Cheers!
....................June 29th, Friday:
Still no alarm clock...surprising? Not really. In any case, we went to the Tower of London (essentially museums). I'm not a big museum person, but I spent over 3 hours at this one because it was so interesting! We had to answer questions for class (again), but this time we were smart and we went up to one of the workers and got all the answers from here. He was so funny, but went into gruesome details about how they torture people (ie: putting rats on a person's stomach and then putting a hot pan on top of the rats so the only way for the rats to escape would be to eat through the victim's stomach...gross). I also hate tours, some friends and I decided to take a mini-one. This tour was so fun, because the tour guide was hilarious! At one point he said "The room in this castle is down below the ground. There are no windows, it's cold, damp, and dreary. What was this room used for?!" Everyone yelled "TORTURING PEOPLE!" The guide exclaimed, "WINE!!!" It was the funniest thing EVER! But yes...It was used for torture later on. Okay enough about torture. Point is, the Tower Museum was very interesting.
Afterwards, it was lunch time so Kylie, Anna, Ashley, and I decided to go to a pub and get Fish 'N' Chips. I don't want to talk about this adventure very long (because it's depressing). Basically...Ashley's and my order of Fish 'N' Chips never came.
For the evening a lot of us went to see a platform discussion with the actors in the play "Landscape With Weapon" (Saw the play on Saturday). It was pretty interesting to hear what the actors had to say. The play is about a man who invents a new type of drones to use in war. He struggles with his morals in trying to decide whether or not to give the drones to the military or not. It's an internal battle and external battle he faces between him and his job and him and his brother. When the questionier lady (like...Alex Tribeck but lady-form), asked the cast what they would do if they were in his situation the lady said that if she had a son serving in the Iraq War, she would be all for sending the drones out to make it safe and protect her son. However, if her son wasn't involved, she would probably be against it because "nothing good can result from distributing more weapons." It's very intriguing how our thoughts change when loved ones all the sudden enter the picture.
After the platform discussion, Kylie, Anna, Ashley, and Me went out to walk around more. We wanted to do the London Eye (Biggest ferris wheel in the world), but um...33 pounds/66 dollars is not quite up my cheap-o alley. We walked across some bridge (it has a name, but who in the world can remember all the names of the bridges) and it dropped us right off at Big Ben and Parliament. We saw Westminster Abby (lovely). Then, we went to one of the most gorgeous parks, St. John's park (and there is a bridge in this park and on one side is Buckingham Palace and the other is some castle and it looks like a Disneyland and i want to life in this park for the rest of my life). It's like the Queen's garden basically. Then we happily skipped to Buckingham Palace where I pretended like it was my home. I was shouting "Welcome to my home, I'm so glad you could come." Then, Anna chimed in and said, "Yes...my Grandma will be out shortly, but in the meantime let me introduce you to my brother's William and Harry." It was HILARIOUS! I was dying with laughter the rest of the night, just as I am now typing this rediculous blog. Buckingham Palace was gorgeous, and I walked around the building waving, so if the Queen, William, or Harry saw me...maybe they waved back. Who really knows!?
....................June 30th, Saturday:
Waking up early on a Saturday morning to drench yourself in rain is always a joyous occasion (no alarm clock by the way). A lot of us went down to Portabello Markey (Largest Antique Market in the world). My main story here is that I cheated some guy in his sales (But...that's what your supposed to do at these markets, so I don't feel too bad...morals? What morals?). Just kidding. No, but seriously. I found a Diesel belt which would normally be about 125 American Dollars. The guy offered it to me for 4 pounds (he said his grandson told him it was worth money and HECK YEAH IT WAS!) He should have listened to his grandson. Oh well...lucky me. BUT WAIT...THE'RES MORE! He said 4 pounds, and I said "How about 3 pounds?" So, I got a Diesel belt for 3 pounds. I'm a bargainer...what can I say?
We did another walk (in the TORRENTIAL DOWNPOUR rain). It was the Theater Walk. It was a lot of fun actually. Whitney and I ate Cornish Pasties, which were delicious and apparently the people in Harry Potter eat them so that made it all the more enjoyable.
Okay, for real...skip the rest of the day until I get to the play. I've been wanted to blog about this play forever. Landscape With Weapon was one of the BEST plays I've ever seen. The stage is in the center of the room with people encircling it. I had great seats (I didn't even care that my feet were soaking wet). There were only 4 cast members (actors), they ate on stage as part of the play, they fought and wrestled, British humor is hard to get...but once you get it...HILARIOUS! It was just the best play. A lot of play on words like when the guys were wrestling on stage, it fit into the story, but it had 2 different meanings. Also, it taught a lot of lessons too. Like, at the end of the day, family will always be there for you. Also, sometimes in life it's a lose-lose situation, and there is nothing one can do about it...but guess what! Life keeps moving on, and one can only move along with it. Learn from the past, and get back on track. We met the blonde-haired actor guy after the play...very nice.
OH MY GOSH Moment: So finally I decided "IT'S TIME TO GET AN ALARM CLOCK!" I went out to look for one. I went to the pharmacy store "Boots" and all they had was their 15 pound alarm clock. I DONT THINK SO...30 American dollars for an alarm clock. N-O! I tried the grocery store...NOTHING (Rediculous yes?...yes). They told me to try Sony and some other store down the street. Both were closed. Finally, I was walking back home, and I decided to try Whiteley's Mall. I FOUND ONE (10 pounds), but I was desperate. However, I lost my UMBRELLA ELLA ELLA EH EH EH before I could even break it (I always seem to somehow break all my umbrellas). Sad...very sad.
Rest of the day included: going back to Kensington, eating (because that's what I do best), talking, socializing, back massages, etc. and eventually bed. I think.
....................July 1st, Sunday:
So I got up all nice and early for a lovely Fast Sunday. I starved and ate nothing all day until 6 o'clock. But, no complaints here...I'm just used to Fast Sundays being more like right when I get home from church dinner is ready to be served. Well we were meeting at 8:45AM to leave for church that started at 10 because it's kind of far away. Well, one of our group members woke up late, so we were 40 minutes late to our first day to church. It's okay though, because obviously it wasn't on purpose, and usually it would be ME to be the one to wake up late, so I totally know how that is! I was smart enough to bring my "Merchant of Venice" book, and by the time I got back to the Center, I was FINISHED WITH THE BOOK! So happy!
But, back to church. Church was a lot of fun. Elders Quorum was interesting. Other than the 4 Missionaries, there are only 2 other Elders. But all the Elders are very cool. I'm excited to get to know everyone. Very very small ward. They call it a ward, but it's most like half a branch in America. But, everyone is very nice and very happy. I'm very happy to be the ward that I've been assigned to. I even learned some England Sign Language. It's very interesting. Like vowels are the fingers on your hands. I love it!
When I got back, I took the most AMAZING 2 HOUR NAP EVER (And I NEVER take naps). It was...GREAT. I don't even know how to express my self contentness.
The fireside was good, I got the E! True Hollywood Story of one of the Stake Counsilmen. From DC, to Alabama, to Massachusetts, to Iowa, to Cancun, to Mexico City, to Florida, to London to hiking mountains and...it just went on Forever. Good fireside...but lasted FOREVER! And where were the refreshments?! I still want to know...
Later, I went out with some friends for a walk around Big Ben at night. Good fun I said I said.
PS: PURPLE PENGUIN means someone that is worthy of getting their picture taking because they are so outragously dressed or outlandishly just rediculous.
Cheers Mate.
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