Loving London

I absolutely love London! It's amazing here. So far we've had mainly good weather (knock on wood) and we've been to really great places! We've been really cold here in our flat...turns out our heat wasn't working for a few days...oops!

The campus pub had an inauguration party and there were so many more Brits there than I had expected. When people find out we're from the U.S. they quickly turn the conversation to Obama and politics it seems. They're much more informed here about what's going on in the world and I wish our country could talk politics as easily as people do here. They're more interested in learning individuals' views rather than judging and defending their views which I think is important, especially when it comes to the world's current issues.

This week our field trip was to Bath and Stonehenge. I wasn't too keen on waking up early to look at some rocks. When you think about how long ago Stonehenge was constructed, it has much more appeal. The Roman Baths have been around for a very long time too and even though they're not in use today, it's neat to think how people in the past used these places. People still argue about the purpose of Stonehenge, and we'll never know for sure, but there are many things we'll never know. Some artifacts and other items have been found at the Roman Baths and there's a better picture of how people used the baths and why. Overall, the trip was much more interesting that I had expected, but it was a long day!

Today I toured St. Paul's Cathedral and it was the most gorgeous church I've ever been to. I was disappointed that I couldn't take pictures even though they wouldn't have done it justice. The inside is mainly mosaics and they sparkle in the sunlight. This is the church where Charles and Diana were married. We got to climb up to the Whispering Gallery and then further up to the Stone Gallery. The Whispering Gallery is inside near the dome. The Stone Gallery is outside the dome 53 meters up from the cathedral floor (173 feet) and it has some of the most gorgeous views of London. I did get to take many pictures up there.

In other news...I ran into some trouble with a travel company and my trip to Wales. They had charged me for the weekend and then Lynnsey and I got emails saying there wasn't enough room for us on the trip, but the rest of our friends were going. Fortunately, we were able to figure it all out and the company was really helpful! So I will be going to Wales for an "adventure" weekend where I'll be sea kayaking, coasteering, and hiking. It doesn't really sound like something I'd usually do, but most of my friends are going and how could you pass up an all inclusive trip to the coast in Wales?! We've also booked a flight to Ireland for the last weekend in March. We're looking at Italy for spring break, Scotland, Paris (probably with Mom), maybe Spain (I know someone in Seville that we could stay with) or Germany. It's more expensive than I thought to book trips. We've run into a few problems with the train and coach companies and availability, but for the most part it's working out.

We've met some interesting characters in our adventures around London. Some of my roommates have become good friends with some of the players on the campus football/soccer team. It's nice to be able to ask local people questions, especially when it comes to customs and stuff. One day we went out to lunch and ordered and the waitress brought our bill before we'd been served. They also don't enjoy doing separate checks here which is not fun to figure out when there's 10 people at a meal. Since the pound and 2 pound are coins, we find ourselves paying in change much more than we're used to. I hate carrying around change. Other than that, most things are similar, but there are certain times where we feel dumb for asking questions; we're just Americans though ;)

Get skype so we can chat! Find me under my name! It's free to download and free to chat.

Love from London,
Ellie