I am in the process of researching and writing a paper/walking tour on the history of St. Paul's Cathedral for my London: Biography class, so the other day (Tuesday) I got up early and went into the city to wander around and decide all the places where I would have my hypothetical tour stop so I could wow them with my intense knowledge of St. Paul's. For example, did you know that the current building, by Sr. Christopher Wren, genius that he is/was, is actually the fourth to stand on this sight?

If you haven't been to or at least seen pictures of the cathedral, you are missing out. St. Paul's is massively impressive. Not only is it HUGE, its also amazingly beautiful. So proud are the Londoners of it, that for a long time there was a height restriction rule for other buildings so they wouldn't block the dome of the cathedral. It is no longer in effect, but luckily there are still some really impressive sight lines. It helps that it is so massive. They also have really pretty gardens that are fun to wander around.


It was a sunny morning-unusual for London at this time of the year-but [unsurprisingly] bitterly cold. I did my work bit, taking lots of pictures and figuring out my stops, and then got a nice cup of hot coffee (gingerbread latte- one more reason to love the holidays!) and headed out to the Wibbly-wobbly (otherwise known by the less amusing title, Millennium Bridge). There were two reasons for this- one work related (one of the best view of St. Paul's is from the bridge-see above) and the second purely self-indulgent. On a nice (ie not rainy) day, the middle of that bridge is probably one of my favourite places in London. It has amazing views and is pedestrians only, so there are no cars to mar your way as you take in the sights.
I still had about an hour before I needed to be at school, and while I could have (and maybe should have) done something productive with my time, I chose to stand on the bridge, sun on my face, coffee in hand, music in my ears and just take it all in. I only have two weeks left here, when would I get another chance? It was one of the best mornings I've had in weeks.

So I am going the way of the megan...

And moving to blogger from STA. I am blaming my lack of updates on the fact that it just kinda sucks. So hopefully this will be better...hopefully.

So, for a quick recap (with pictures!):




London is an amazingly beautiful city- especially when its sunny. But even when the rain comes, there is still plenty to be in awe of.



We get to go on all sorts of amazing excursions with our programme. First day? the awesomeness that is the British Museum.

Riding the tubes can be fun-but I will not miss getting up an extra hour to get into the city for school. God, I miss living right next to Jones! But for all of their quirks/annoyances, having a good transport system (and an unlimited oyster card) makes the city seem so much smaller than it is. It simply means nothing is really that far away.


London means theatre! which is beyond exciting, let me tell you. We see a show or two a week for classes and we go to as much as we can afford on our own. The best part is that you get a chance to see not just big names, but amazing actors. We got to meet Michael Gambon! And saw Hamlet with Patrick Stewart! And will be seeing Oedipus with Ralph Finnes! It doesn't get much better than this. Now if only I could get backstage....

Besides day trips, we also get to travel with the progamme. We spent three days in Wales- so beautiful! It was really nice to get out of the city for a bit and see more of the UK.


Besides getting to travel within the UK, we got a week off for midterm and Megan and I headed to Prague. I love how much closer GB is to everywhere else. There is no excuse not to go out and see more of the world, so we did! Prague is a beautiful city and we had a great five days there. We were also blessed with amazing weather, so that made it even better! I won't lie though, it was really nice to get back in London and be able to read the street signs again!

One of the best things about being in London is living with Megan again. We always have so much fun. She is also the best person in the world to have around when you get hurt, as she will (willingly!) spend 5 hours in the ER with you.




we spent Hallowe'en visiting Stonehenge and Bath. It was cold, but beautiful.


I spent a weekend in Dublin visiting Claire and Bryan. It was so great being with them again. I didn't think I would ever not want to go back to London, but it was hard to leave. Made me realise how much I miss my life at UPS.


But as ready as I am to return to Tacoma, I will hate to leave. I love this city.