Spring Break 2013 Part 1- London

Alright, so I think I am going to have to write this blog in two because it's just going to be too long. For those of you that don't know, I spent my spring break week in London and Dublin. I spent the first 4 days in London and then flew to Dublin.

London was quite the experience. This was the first time that I had traveled alone in a foreign country, so that  in itself was new. They definitely weren't kidding about the rain. It rained pretty much all the time every day but it was a rather nice rain. It wasn't freezing cold and the rain fell very nicely. It just fell, it wasn't like most rain I'm used to that blows and comes from every direction. Like Forrest says "little bitty stingin' raing... and big ol' fat rain. Rain that flew in sideways. And sometimes rain even seemed to come straight up from underneath." That's the kind of rain that I am used to so this wasn't really too bad. You just have to make sure you have an umbrella at all times because it just sort of starts raining and doesn't stop. I was really fortunate to be able to duck into some museums when it started raining and just sort of stay there wandering around for hours.

When I landed, it took some time to find my hostel and get settled, but once I dropped my stuff off, I set off on a walking adventure to find Big Ben. I just sort of started walking from my hostel and every time I saw something interesting, I turned. Didn't really matter what direction it was in, i figured I would get to the river and find Big Ben eventually. On this journey, I passed through Russell Square, walked to the Brisith Museum and stopped in to see some exhibits. After that, I ventured through Leicester Square (the London version of NYC Time Square and 42nd street) and then on to Piccadilly Circus. I then found myself in St. James Park and walked to Trafalgar Square and to the river. I saw the Eye and then continued along the river until I found Big Ben. It was quite a walk, but nice because it didn't start raining until the very end which is when I got on the Tube (London Metro) and went back to my hostel.

Part of Leicester Square. This is the Palace Theater where
they are currently playing Singing in the Rain. 

A statue in Russell Square  right across the
street from my hostel.

The cupid statue in the middle of Piccadilly Circus. 

Look at all the red buses. Granted it's been a long time since I
was in London and I don't remember much, but I definitely
don't remember there being so many red buses. 

A view of the London Eye from across the river. 

And then the there was Big Ben. A great end to the first day.

So the second day, I also went on an adventure back in the Big Ben direction. Mind you, this was St. Patrick's day so it was a little crazy downtown. I walked from my hostel, took the Tube to Trafalgar Square where I was surprised by a very large St. Patrick's Day festival. I watched for a little while, but once I started to get a little claustrophobic from all the people, I decided to step inside the National Gallery. It was truly incredible! I saw so many famous paintings; Monet, Renoir, Cezanne, Seurat, Bellini, Rubens, Rembrandt, van Gogh, van Eyck, Michelangelo, Turner, Constable, Raphael, Caravaggio, da Vinci, and the list goes on and on. It is truly amazing how much more you can appreciate a place like that when you have been educated in art history and really understand the significance of what you are seeing. I would encourage anyone who is studying abroad, especially in Europe, to take an art history class or two. You will appreciate the museums and exhibits so much more! Anyway, so after the National Gallery, I walked through St, James Park and to Buckingham Palace. Then walked back towards the river and found Big Ben again. It was at this point that I realized that there are signs written on the road to show which was you should look before crossing the street, which was good for me because I was very confused.

The National Gallery in Trafalgar Square

Buckingham Palace! I was so sad that the little guards were not
there. I didn't realized they are only out in the summer. :(

The whole thing just screams London.
The red telephone box and Big Ben.

I just loved the rain washed streets. You
don't need a lake to see the reflection!

And the oh so helpful signs on the cement all over London telling you which way to look before crossing the street so you don't get run over. 

So the third day was also rainy and gloomy, but I didn't let it get me down. I went to see the London Bridge and St. Paul's Cathedral. They wanted to charge be 15 pounds to go inside. Needless to say, I didn't go inside so then walked over to the Tate Modern. While I walking over the Millennium Bridge to get to the Tate, I came across a man selling roasted peanuts but I didn't have enough change to buy one. He asked me how much I had and basically gave it to me for free. Some people are just nice! As I was entering the Tate it started raining so I spent a good few hours walking around looking at all the art. Sometimes modern art really confuses me... Anyway, after that, I walked over and saw the Globe Theater and then took the Metro to the Victoria and Albert Museum. For dinner, I met up with a good friend that lives in London!

St. Paul's Cathedral with an old fashion red
bus. I like these old ones way better than
the modern looking ones.

The London Bridge. It is quite picturesque, especially when
you have a little sun light peaking through the clouds.

The Millennium Bridge leading to the Tate Modern. It is a
beautifully constructed bridge!

A view of the city from the Tate! It really is a beautiful city!

Picasso in the Tate

The Victoria and Albert Museum, also called the VA. 

On the last day in London, I took a bus out to see Stonehenge. Now I can check that off my bucket list. It was quite incredible! I would suggest to anyone traveling to London to take half a day and go out and see this! It was like London knew that I was leaving and wanted to give me a good last day. There were blue skies and the sun came out! I took the Tube to Kings Cross and St. Pancras Station. I secretly hoped to hear the word Muggle while walking through Kings Cross station. I then went to the British Library. Why can't we have libraries like this. I would live in the library if libraries looked like this in the US. And then to finish off the day, I went to the Sherlock Holmes Museum.

Stonehenge in all it's glory!

I also feel like I have to take some pictures
of myself for proof but it is so hard to find
people that can take a decent picture. I think
I asked about 5 people before I got a good one!

St. Pancras with blue skies!

Platform 9 in Kings Cross Station!

The British Library! A glass case of books
filled the entire center corridor of the library
all the way from the bottom floor to the top!

The Sherlock Holmes Museum!

After London, I went to Dublin for 3 days. 3 days filled with rain and windy and cold weather. Check back a little later for my blog about Dublin. I know that if I tried to combine the two, I would just kill you all with its length!