Mind The Gap: Our Adventures in London

Hello friends, 

I am going to try to keep this as brief as I can since it is past midnight here in Maastricht. London was amazing. I loved navigating the tube, talking to Londoners, and exploring the beautiful architecture in the city.

Some highlights of our trip were:

1) Seeing Wicked! I have seen many musicals in my life, and this one was by far the best. The singing was phenomenal, and I absolutely loved the story. Plus, we had amazing seats that were originally 90 pounds. I could go on and on about how great this experience was.

2) Bath. I loved everything about the city. The Roman baths were so fascinating, the Bath Abbey was gorgeous, and we found a great patisserie for lunch! I could definitely live in Bath.

Chris at the Roman Baths

Me at the Roman Baths

3) Going to an organ concert at the Westminster Abbey. To be honest, we were all a little tired when we went to the concert and had to leave early so we wouldn't fall asleep, but it was still a lot of fun to attend a cultural event.

4) The jewelry at the Victoria and Albert Museum. It was magnificent. I wouldn't mind having that collection! Haha.

5) The Twinings Store! I had so much fun looking at all of the tea and bought a ton to bring home with me.

6) The English countryside. I was never bored on the bus ride from London to Stonehenge and Bath because the English countryside is so beautiful. Here is a photo so you can get an idea:

Things that surprised me while in England:

1) I don't know if this is just a matter of timing, but we seemed to hear just as many people speaking French as English. I guess maybe a lot of people from France visit since it is so close?

2) How quick the tube is, especially compared to New York City. I love the London tube. It is so efficient.

3) Our amazing breakfast. Our hotel had a huge breakfast buffet, definitely the best I have ever had for free. It was glorious.

4) I LOVED fish and chips. This surprised me because I don't really like fish, French fries, or anything fried.

5) We actually had two beautiful days with no rain and blue skies while in London. The sun even came out while we were at Stonehenge, though it was raining by the time we got to Bath.

6) I learned that the city of London is only one square mile. Most of the famous sites are actually in Westminster.

Things I wasn't crazy about:

1) The London Eye. I guess maybe because everyone talked it out to be amazing. I just didn't think it was worth the money. The free 4D experience show that came with it was almost cooler than the actual ride.

2) Our hotel location. It wasn't anywhere near the big sites. Hence, I grew to love the tube.

3) Billy Elliot. This was the musical we all saw as a group. The little boy's dancing was amazing. That is just about the only good thing I can say. To give you an idea, the plot is that a little boy decides he prefers ballet to boxing.

Some quintessential London tourist pictures for our families to see:

At the Tower Bridge

Chris with the Tower Bridge

Us at Stonehenge. It was really neat to see it!

In front of Big Ben

Chris and Big Ben

Westminster Abbey

Me in front of Westminster Abbey

We got back yesterday and had orientation most of the day today. I will try to write about it tomorrow when the rest of orientation is over. Other than that, we are planning our first weekend trip for next weekend. As of now, we are planning on going to Berlin with a stop in Cologne. 

Love, 

Olga