Harrods/ Notting Hill

Harrods with the Underground sign (the tube)

Harrods

The engagement ring

The memorial

Pet Kingdom- and this is just for the animals!

Example of some of the decor in Harrods

The Monday following Easter was a bank holiday, meaning we all had the day off! We decided to head down to Knightsbridge by bus. There is one road connecting Sloane Square to Knightsbridge which is very similar to Rodeo Drive! It had stores like Tiffany, Gucci, Prada, Jimmy Choo, and many, many others! A little bit of this road and on the main drag that follows Hyde Park is the world famous Harrods!! It is a luxury department store that occupies a 4.5 acre site and has over one million square feet! It is really a site to see! The interior is really cool and each room is a different theme. My favorite was the main escalator which was full of egyptian sculptures. At the bottom of the escalator room was a memorial to Princess Diana and Dodi Fayed(the owner of Harrods son). The memorial contains the 'supposed' engagement ring that Dodi was going to give to Diana! Elise and I ventured through all of the rooms that included, the Pet Kingdom, jewelry, champagne bar, clothes, and everything else you could think of! It took a good 3 hours to get through and we eventually came to the end in the souvenir shop! After picking out a few things, we left to go meet up with Jordan, Rory, and a new friend Dave. Dave is friends of Elise, who lives in Notting Hill and agreed to take us on a night tour of Notting Hill! During the day it is crowded with tourists for the market (Portobello) and to see sights from the movie. He took us to a well known pub, a famous cocktail bar (I had a drink called the 3-toed sloth with apple, vanilla, mint, and ice- very good!), and an authentic Thai place! The food was really good and after we ate, we decided to venture home.

Jordan, Elise, and I on the tube

Waiting for the tube

One of the modes of transport

Big Ben!!

Easter with Flat 16 and guests!!

The Easter Bunny found me in London!!

Our Easter Dinner

Suite 16 and Guests

Hole in the Wall Fish and Chips with Ginger Beer!

The night before Easter, we decided to all stay in and watch some good British movies!! We went to a hole in the wall fish and chip place right by our flat and got take out! It was the best/worst for you fish and chips! He loaded on the vinegar and we brought it back to our place, soggy bag and all!

The next day, Steph, Lucy, and I went to church in Sloane Square, called the Holy Trinity. It was a beautiful church and towards the end of the service they had an Easter egg hunt (cadbury egg style) for all of the little kids! It was really cute to see them run all around the church. We then left and received a Cadbury egg on our way out!

We went back home and I started the cooking extravaganza. I made Broccoli Casserole, Potato Salad, a raspberry/walnut salad, and ham sandwiches! (It is very hard to find a ham to cook here, everyone mainly eats pork loin here on Easter) It was fun to have every one helping out and we got to enjoy the day! For lunch while we cooked, we had baguettes with cheese and then Rory and Jordan made delicious nachos with homemade salsa and guacamole!! We then all sat down to eat for dinner and our 'family' ate delicious food together!

Night out on the town at Les Miserables

So full!!!

Our three desserts!

On Friday night, Elise and I decided to take in some more art and see the musical Les Miserables! Before the show, we decided to go get dinner at an Italian restaurant. As soon as we walked in, we were greeted by 5 waiters and rushed to a nice table! As soon as these guys saw us, they fell in love! One of them was always at our table chatting us up or offering good things on the menu! We managed to get a fantastic strawberry dessert from the one for free (which totaled our dessert number to 3!!) It was a fun dinner, but they were a little creepy, so we probably won't go back!

After being insanely full from dinner, we made our way across the street to our seats in the Queen's Theater. We were able to get really good seats with our theater coupon our school gave us (for having trouble with our showers and hot water)! It was a really good show and the cast was phenomenal!! For those of you who do not know what Les Mis is about, here is a quick synopsis: Les Miserables is the story of four people. Bishop Myriel, Jean Valjean, Famine, and Marius Pontmercy, who meet, part, then meet again during the most agitated decades of nineteenth-century France. It also tells the story of the 1832 revolution and describes the unpleasant side of Paris. The musical is in essence a plea for humane treatment of the poor and for equality among all citizens

After the show ended, we made our way down the street to the Soho area to hit up some bars! After finding no good locations, we met up with our friend Matt in the Fulham Broadway area. We went to a cool dance club with our British, American friends and had a blast! They played great music and good specials! It was a fun night to bring in the relaxing Easter Weekend!

Shakespeare's Globe and a Concert!!

Shakespeare's Globe

Jordan, Elise, and I in front of the Globe!

Inside the Globe!

The stage and part of the stands- grass thatch roof and all

The stage!

For our Shakespeare class, we went on a field trip to the one and only Shakespeare's Globe Theater to have a tour and a workshop on King Lear!! It was really cool to get a in depth look and knowledge about one of the places that made history! (although this is a replica- original was burnt in the Great Fire). Our tour guide was a female actress and she told us about the past, present, and future of the Globe.

After our tour, our class had a private session with one of the actors. She made us feel the play and act out on our emotions! I was paired with Leandra and we were able to shout, push each other away, and forgive one other! It was a lot of fun and made me appreciate Shakespeare's plays even more!

The next night, my roomates (Elise and Jordan) took on even more art and went to support one of Rory's recording mates, Alex Wolfe! We went to a swanky lounge in Camden and got to listen in! Rory is Jordan's boyfriend who is currently residing and working in London. He works for a recording company and has a lot of cool perks. Alex was really good and we had a lot of fun listening and sipping on some good drinks!

Jordan and Rory

Millenium Bridge in front of St. Paul's Cathedral

Me in front of Millenium Bridge (in the last Harry Potter movie)

Elise and I at the lounge

Jordan, Elise, and I at the lounge!!

Spitalfield Markets and Brick Lane

Steph, Gwen, and I at Brick Lane!!

On Sunday of that weekend, I decided to venture out to Spitalfield markets with Gwen and Steph! Old Spitalfields Market, or simply 'Spitalfields' as it is fondly known, is the world-famous East London destination. Home to a flourishing creative community, Spitalfields has over the last 14 years secured a place at the forefront of interiors, fashion, the arts, and food. It has been the site of a busy market since 1638, when King Charles gave a licence for flesh, fowl and roots to be sold in what was then known as Spittle Fields. Three hundred and sixty odd years later and now located within the historical Horner Buildings, the market continues to be the setting for a thriving narrative. In one day a visitor to the market's stalls and independent shops can pick up anything from fair trade cushions and rare vinyl to lovingly crafted notebooks and hand carved toy trains. There are jewel encrusted vintage boots for individualist tastes, reconditioned are deco sofas for elegant sensibilities and an excellent array of food for all hungry bellies! It currently attracts 25,000 visitors per week.

While at Spitalfields, I managed to pick up a hand made skirt and a really cute dress! We also got delicious gelato too!! After our shopping adventure, we decided to venture to Brick Lane and get some curry for dinner!! Brick lane is literally a brick road that is lined with about 50 places to have curry. The goal is to haggle with the salesman who are stationed outside and get a good deal for dinner. We managed to get a free appetizer, a free bottle of wine, and 30% of our bill!! Our meal was sooo good and we managed to split Chicken tikka masala, buttery chicken curry (sounds weird but it was amazing!!) and lamb with a pepper sauce!

Day Along the River/ Greenwich

Standing on both sides of the hemisphere!!

Leandra and I at Greenwich!

View of Greenwich from the Observatory

Looking into the stars!

On Friday, March 26th, I took a trip with a few CAPA students to Greenwich!! Greenwich is located about 20 minutes outside of London and is very easy to get to by any mode of transportation. CAPA decided to pay for tour boat tickets for us, which takes about an hours, but was really beautiful!

The Royal Observatory in Greenwich is known as the home of Mean Time and the Prime Meridian line and is one of the most important historic scientific sites in the world. It was founded by Charles II in 1675 and is, by international decree, the official starting point for each new day, year, and millennium. Visitors to the Observatory can stand in both the eastern and western hemispheres simultaneously by placing feet either side of the Prime Meridian- the centre of world time and space!! My friend Leandra and I trekked it up the hill and got to see the Prime Meridian for ourselves!! It was a beautiful day, and the view from the Observatory was breathtaking!! You could see the city very clearly along the Thames and the park below sprawled out for a good while!

After seeing the Meridian, we made our way into the center of Greenwich and did a little market shopping! We had amazing food and found unbelievable prices on some good stuff! It started to rain a little, so we made our way over to one of England's oldest pubs- The Trafalgar Tavern. They made an amazing cup of tea and after we got dry, we made our way back to the river boat to go back home! It was a nice day trip and I am glad I decided to venture out to Greenwich! I have seen so many amazing things already, that I figured I needed to add the Prime Meridian to the list!

After we got back, my roomate Gwen and I decided on a quick whim to go catch the show Billy Elliot! Based on the smash hit film, Billy Elliot the Musical is an inspirational story of one boy's dream to realize his ambitions against the odds. Set in the North East of England against the background of the historic 1984/85 miner's strike, Billy pursues his passion for dance in secret to avoid disapproval from his struggling family. It was an amazing show and it was an extra fun night because it was the first show of the newly casted Billy Elliot (also the youngest ever!) He was amazing to watch and after his first big scene and big applause, he started to laugh and got really excited! His family was also in attendance and they made their presence well known!

Barcelona!!

Parc Guell

example of the tile pieces

Casa Calvet

Casa Batllo

Parc Guell

Parc Guell

tunnel from America's Next Top Model at Parc Guell

At Parc Guell!

America's Next top model?!?

After my sisters left, I quickly began to get ready for my next adventure to Barcelona! I was leaving Friday to have a weekend of fun with my sorority sister, Allie. She has been studying in Barcelona and I was hoping I would be able to visit her!! I am so glad I did, because it was one of the most fun, relaxing weekends!!

After touching down, via Ryanair, I made my way to Allie's flat. I unloaded my stuff and we set out for La Ramblas- the main action packed street in Barcelona. We found a nice place to have tapas and Sangria and we were able to catch up with each other on the past semester. It was so nice to see a familiar face over here and we had a lot to tell each other! After finishing our meal, we went and got some gelato and we made our way back to the flat for the night.

The next day Allie decided to take me up to Park Guell, a park designed by Eusebi Guell who wanted to create a stylish park for the Spanish/ Barcelona aristocracy. The park contains amazing stone, stunning tiling and fascinating buildings. It is famous for the dragon fountain and the tunnel which was featured in America's next top model!! It was a really hot and sunny day, so we thought the next logical location to go was the beach! We decided to stop at the grocery store beforehand and pick up a picnic lunch. We spent the next two hours on the beach eating cheese, bread, strawberries, and champagne!

After our picnic, we made our way to the Passeig de Gracia and took in a few sights and shops. Allie showed me la Casa Batllo and la Casa Calvet, both designed by Guell for the feuding families on the street. They were very unique and I wouldn't mind living in one of them!! They were huge and full of the different, beautiful mosaic pieces. We then made our way to the fresh market, La Boqueria. If you could name any type of fresh food, this place would have it! They had everything from fish to candy to odd looking fruit. It was a neat place and it was cool to see the different things.

After our nice day, we began to get ready for a night out on the town! We hung out with her roommates in the flat for awhile and then made our way to Chupitos (shot in Spanish)!! This was the coolest bar ever and they had over 500 shots to chose from. The first one we took was a boy scout and they set a bonfire around the glasses and gave you a marshmallow to roast! The second one was a Harry Potter, which had flames and sparks flying out of the top, like a wand! It was a cool place, but very crowded, so we made our way over to another bar. Here we met up with more of her friends and stayed til we closed the place down!! It was a fun and exhausting night and definitely an experience to have while in Barcelona!

The next day, we made our way to a small cafe and had hot chocolate (where you actually had to keep stirring the chocolate) and a hot croissant. After this deliciousness, we headed over to the Picasso museum, which was free on Sundays!! The paintings were amazing to see in person and I definitely developed a greater appreciation for his work. We had a nice day out, so we headed back to the flat to catch up on work and sleep.

On Monday Allie had class, so I was on my own for the first half of the day!! I made my way over to Sagrada Familia, meaning Sacred Family and it will not be finished until another decade or more! It is a unique building and it represents Cataluna from the XX and XXI centuries. After that, I made my way over to the bull fighting arena and then to the Parc de la Ciutadella to meet Allie. After meeting up with her, we headed down the beach front to the statue of Christopher Columbus. This then led to Las Ramblas, were we met my other sorority sister. Becca, for lunch!! It was fun to eat with them, but before I knew it I had to leave to go to the airport. I managed to get back safe and sound and I am so grateful I had the opportunity to travel to Spain. It was interesting to see how fast my Spanish came flooding back to me and I was impressed with the conversations I was able to have! Overall, Spain was beautiful and I can not wait to visit again someday!

Sagrada Familia

Hot Chocolate and croissant!

Steph, Allie, and I

Different shots offered at Chupitos

Mercat Boqueria

Allie, Becca, and I!

Christopher Columbus statue

Beautiful fountain at the Parc de la Ciutadella

Bull Fighting Arena

Our picnic on the beach!