Regent's Park

I spent Sunday at the London Zoo and walking around Regent's Park. It was a nice, relaxing day.

In Regent's Park, I took pictures of the many flower gardens and tress. This picture, of a pretty purple flower, is why I love my camera.

Oxford and Wicked

Oxford UK

This latte was one of the best I've had. Only in Italy, have I had a better latte. The little cafe, where I drank this yummy coffee, was very close to Christ Church. For all you Harry Potter fans, Ante Hall (at Christ Church) becomes Hogwarts Hall via movie magic.

Harry Potter isn't the only famous child connected to Oxford. Alice from "Alice in Wonderland" has real roots in Oxford. And there is a very cute little shop near Christ Church devoted to all things "Alice." A short walk from Alice's Shoppe is Carfax Tower.

Carfax tower is a remnant of a 14th century church. There are about 100 very narrow steps to the top of the tower. The view at the top, is incredible. Well worth the walk up the steps. Then comes the decent back down the same steps....I was very thankful when I was back on solid ground. Narrow, twisty steps don't really agree with me, especially when the steps were built for someone about 5 inches shorter then me.

After a day full of walking, shopping and seeing Oxford, I took the train back to London. And saw Wicked. Wicked is the best musical I've even seen! The US tour will be in The Cities later this year, and I will be buying a ticket to see it again. Wicked is awesome!!

I made it to Stonehenge!!!!

I took the train from Wimbledon to Salisbury. In Salisbury, I took the "Stonehenge Tour" which is really just a tour bus that takes you to different sites in the area. Once on the bus, an audio track tells about the history of the area.

For example, during WWII, the Germans used Salisbury Cathedral as a navigation "marker" for their planes. This is why no German bombs were dropped near the Cathedral.

Stonehenge was awesome! It's amazing to me that people have been coming to this area for over 5000 years. The ditch, which is hard to see, was started in the Neolithic period. The Blue Stones were brought 240 miles from the Preseli Mountains in Wales. And the Sarsen Stones are massive! It was just amazing to see this magical, prehistoric engineering feat.

After Stonehenge, I went to Old Sarum. Old Sarum is huge earthwork settlement. Occupied by iron age settlers, Romans, Saxons, and Normans. The site is in ruins now. But it was fun to explore! The views were incredible!! As I was walking around the main earthwork, I realized I was by myself. I was walking toward this tree and suddenly felt like I was in a Jane Austin novel. Totally cheesy, I know. But the thought made me stop walking and just enjoy the moment.

Salisbury Cathedral is impressive. And the town of Salisbury is just lovely. The streets are narrow, and the canals are beautiful. Walking toward the Cathedral, I was a found a "Poundland" the British version of the Dollar Store. There was also a bookstore with a large Twilight display in the window. And a Starbucks! Of course, I had to stop for a latte.

Saturday, May 1, 2010.

Today was a full day of sightseeing in London.

I started the day at Westminster Abbey. I decided to use an audio tour guide inside the Abbey. I am really glad that I used it. There is so much history in the Abbey and so much to see, I know I would have missed a lot with out the audio guide. I was sad that pictures are not allowed inside the Abbey; Only in the Cloisters. So I don't have my photos from the Abbey.

After the Abbey, I walked along Parliament Street to Trafalgar Square. There was a protest rally at Trafalgar today. It was an interesting place to people watch.

Next up was the National Gallery. I was able to see works by Monet, Manet, Seurat, Renoir, Degas, Cezanne, and Van Gogh. Sunflowers is one of the most beautiful paintings I've ever seen. I loved it! And there were several Monet's on display, so I was in art heaven. The National Gallery is a favorite!

After I left the Gallery, I wasn't for sure where I wanted to go. I decided to walk be down Parliament St again. I stopped at the Horse Guard and watched the changing of the Guard. Then I walked to St James' Park.

St James' Park was so beautiful. The flower gardens were alive with color. There were swans in the lake. It was so peaceful in the park. I explored the park for a long time, ending up at Buckingham Palace. As I was walking to the St James Park Tube station, the sky opened up and it started to rain.

All in all, a fun day.

The plan for today was Stonehenge.

The plan was to get up early, take the train to Salisbury, and spend day seeing Stonehenge, Old Sarum, and Salisbury Cathedral. That was the plan.

Then, on Friday, I was invited to a barbecue. I had such a good time. At one point, I was laughing so hard, I was in tears. All the people I met at this party were awesome. But by the time I got back to my flat it was very late.

Today, I went back to the British Museum and spent most of the day there. I was able to see a Clovis point, Mayan lintels, mummies, a statue from Easter Island, and a fragment of the beard of the Sphinx.

So, no Stonehenge today, but tomorrow it will happen!

Last weekend was a relaxing weekend for me. I spend last Saturday, April 17th, walking around London. Started the day at Leicester Square.

Walked to Seven Dials and did some window shopping. Seven Dials is a road circle with 7 roads coming from the circle. Each of the 7 roads is lined with small shops and boutiques. Lots of vintage shops, with really cool clothing.

Onward to Covent Garden. More shops, but also street performers, and a open air food market. The food was awesome!

That night, I saw Love Never Dies, at the Adelphi Theatre. Love Never Dies takes place 10 years after the events in Phantom of the Opera. I have not seen Phantom yet, but I loved Love Never Dies. And I now HAVE to see Phantom while I am here.

The Washer Dryer

Time to be an adult and do my laundry. Since I wasn't for sure how the washer dryer would work, I just washed a small load of socks. Washing the socks only took about 30 minutes. Then 30 minutes to dry. Problem being that when the machine was all done, everything was still wet.

10 minutes later, I finally figured out how to run just the dryer. That was a couple of hours ago. When the dryer stops, the socks still look damp. I say look, because the dryer door will not open. It's locked. And there is no unlock button.

After spending time on google, i discovered how to open the machine door....Solution: you have to wait. The machine will unlock on it's own. Wonderful.

So I waited... and waited some more. When the door finally opened and I could take my nice warm and dry socks out of the dryer, I had a "nice" surprise. All the socks STILL wet. 2.5 hours in the dryer and still wet.

boo

At this point, I think it would be much easier to just buy new socks. But no, I will not be defeated by the scary machine in the hall closet.

So the dryer is back on and I'm determined I will have dry socks before the night is over. Wish me luck, as I will need it :)