Portobello Road and The Tempest

So today was great. I have a feeling I will start a lot of my posts with that sentence! :) so we went to Portobello Road this morning and it was so fun. I had no idea what it was before we went and for anyone who doesn't know it's like a huge outdoor market or swap meet. It really reminded me of the one we go to in Hawaii. So I walked all the way up the street to get a feel of what was there and see what I would want and then I walked back down and got a pocket watch but its a necklace which I really and then I also got a apple and cream turnover thing that really reminded me of NZ. One of the girls in my group named Amberly was the perfect shopping partner for me because we liked the same types of things and went the same speed it was great. It was really crazy busy but so much fun and it was fun to barter with the vendors so I really enjoyed myself.



So after getting back from shopping we went to the park and had lunch and read our next play. It was such a nice sunny day so it was great to be out in the park except for some of the sunbathers, (I think they thought they were in France) :)


After that we went to the play The Tempest. It was done in a children's theater so all the creatures were puppets. It was really cool to see the play that we just read for class and see how the play rendition was different from how I imagined it when I was reading it. To be honest I like my imagination's version better but I really liked the puppet they used for Caliban. Overall it was a great day especially because on the way home from the play we stopped and I got some ice cream and chocolate. So this one is for you Saffron! :)

The Royal Wedding

So today was the Royal Wedding. About half our group went at about 1am to claim a spot to see the parade go by. The less crazy of us went to Hyde Park to watch it with all the other people on the huge screens they had there. It was really fun to be at the park, like one big party. It was neat to watch it on the screen too because they announced who every one was and for us who have not idea who anyone is it was really helpful. There was a huge crowd at the park and it felt kind of like the fourth of July to me. There were tons of people dressed us and everyone was drinking, big surprise there! It was really fun, except the drunk people and I'm glad we decided to go to the park. It was also really neat to see all the people waving their flags when the queen was shown.
the couple getting married. the queen and then Cami and I celebrating after they are married.

So this is a video of all the people celebrating at the park.






So after the wedding we went back to our flat to take a nap because we were all very tired. I thought I'd show you the inside of my flat because it is amazingly nice. although the way the beds are in my room kind of reminds me of a hospital. They just renovated our flat and we are the first to live in it after being finished so its great and really clean.

this is the kitchen, living room, and bedroom

After our nap Lauren and I went to Primark which is this great store with really cheap clothes and accessories and stuff. It was really fun to go shopping and I got a really cute skirt and jacket for really cheap but it wasn't super cheap quality so that was nice. After that we came home, made dinner and then went out for gelato. :) over all it was a great day!

this is my jacket, this is a dollar-store or pound-land as they call them and this last picture is of Impulse which is a body spray that I remember from NZ and I thought Erin would appreciate it too! :)

England day one and two

So this blog is mostly for me to keep a record of all my travels but I thought I'd share my escapades. So my first big experience was getting here to London. So my flight from Saltlake was delayed so I ended up running to catch my fight in Dallas. I was the very last one to board but it was nice because then I didn't have to wait at all and I got to run which was nice to stretch my legs. the flight wasn't bad at all, I didn't sleep much but I was pretty comfortable. After I got off my flight I got on the underground to the stop that I needed. I was all alone but I wasn't scared at all. Once I got to my station I realized that I didn't know how to get to my flat but I asked some people and started walking. Walking to the flat was the only part of my travel that made me nervous but I talked with some missionaries so that made me feel better and I finally got to
my flat.
After a shower, a nap and some housekeeping stuff with the group some of us decided to go out. We went and saw the London Eye and Big Ben and Westminster Abby. I was really beautiful to see them all lit up at night. It really made it set in that we were actually in London. It was a great first night.


So today was the first day of class. We went to class at the church building and it was nice. After class we went to the grocery store and bought food which was good to have real food. I was really worried that it was going to be expensive but it was actually reasonable. After grocery shopping we went to Hyde Park. The park is so beautiful. We spent about three hours there just walking around. One thing I have noticed about London is that it is really quiet. The park was really peaceful, we passed some people playing soccer and it was like watching a soccer game on mute! I took lots of pictures in the park, I felt very touristy. After we went to the park we went for a walk around our area. It was really nice and we went to dinner at a little Italian place where our waiter spoke very little English, it was great! :) that was basically day two. Very chill but a lot of walking so my feet are pretty tired but I'm thinking that is going to be a common theme here in London.



This is where I live! :)