it's been awhile...

hello loves!

So sorry it's taken me so long to get back to writing... things have been pretty crazy this week what with midterms and all. But luckily I'm all finished with that, and things went well (I got an A on my history paper!) and now it's time to get back to leading my five-day weekend, charming little London life.

I couldn't cram too much into this weekend so that I could have a good amount of time to do schoolwork, but I did manage to accomplish visits to a select number of places. Thursday, Elsa and I went to Kensington Palace, where Princess Diana used to live. With the 10-year anniversary of her death, the Palace is doing a tribute to her, so all of the walls on the bottom floor were being used as movie screens, and each wall had a different movie or photo show on it. I realized how much they love her here even when I was back in the States (and really, who doesn't), but you don't quite recognize the scale of it until you're actually here to witness it first-hand. It's a national obsession, and with good reason, don't get me wrong, but it's hard to relate when I come from a country that for the most part despises it's leader. To see a nation so united around one specific person is quite astonishing and rather inspiring as well. Think of the things the U.S. could accomplish if we could just elect someone that everyone found so agreeably! But that's another discussion for another day... On top of the movies, they also had an exhibit of a selection of Diana's dresses, which really brought things to life. I was thinking about it, and for example, I find Audrey Hepburn to be absolutely timeless and elegant and just one of the most admirable individuals to live, and I think that that's what Princess Diana will be for my children's generation. Someone with a legacy of accomplishing so much during her lifetime and maintained so classy and humble that you still hear about her and admire her, even though you never witnessed her when she was alive. And the whole tragedy aspect of her story adds to the obsession factor. Anyway, the rest of the palace was nice though I often find myself getting sort of antsy by the end of the palace tours I've been on, I feel like I thrive more off of interaction and hands-on exploring, rather than walking through a building and observing an object or room while I listen to a headset about it. But I digress. I also enjoyed Kensington Gardens... I liked that the lawns weren't overly-maintained, they were a bit overgrown and the way the leaves had fallen all across the ground was so real to look at, if that makes any sense. So often these palace gardens are kept up so meticulously that they don't look real. There was a nice little patch of wildflowers in the garden as well and there was a whole group of little school children running around and picking flowers and I stopped to watch them for a little while. I love the innocence and life that little kids have, it's invigorating.

Friday I went on a day trip to Cambridge, about 2 hours outside of London. Cambridge is home to 31 universities, none of which are actually called Cambridge University. Contrary to popular belief, that is not an actual school. It's kind of interesting how it works, really. You apply to one of the 31 schools in the town, and when you're accepted your loyalties are to that college, but when you graduate your degree says Cambridge University on it. Also, if you leave your name "on the books" for something like four years after you graduate, you get a Master's Degree, without even doing anything! These crazy Brits, I know. It was quite refreshing to see so many people my age walking about the town. I also saw the labs where the electron was discovered and where DNA was discovered, and I saw an apple tree that was grown from the seeds of Newton's apple tree, and I took a tour of the amazing Kings College chapel, which was stunning. We had a cheap lunch at a nice little pub and stopped for a quick drink at a WWII pub that still had names on the ceiling that soldiers burned into it so many years ago. Sometimes I'm really taken aback by the amount of history that I am literally just sitting in by being here.

Saturday Alli and I ventured down to Regents Park, and I fell in love. Definitely my most favorite part of London, hands down. We hiked up to the top of Primrose Hill and the view was breathtaking! Pictures will be up soon (by the way, check out my photo album- I updated!). There were all sorts of sports fields around and it was fun to watch people playing rugby and football. Almost made me want to be athletic myself... almost. Speaking of which, later that night I met up with Amy on her side of the river and watched the England-France rugby match at this pub called Roebuck's. Above the bar was just a huge empty room with some chairs and tables and a big screen TV. It was jam-packed, so we snuck up to the front and sat on the floor (something Brits don't do, I guess)... The atmosphere was intense, with people singing and dancing and drinking and cheering, it was almost like being at the actual game! England won and people just went crazy. I didn't even understand what was going on in the game and I was getting excited.

So Friday morning I'm off to Italy for 10 days. I'll be touring Rome, Florence and Venice, which I suppose is the "standard" fall break trip. Regardless, I'm excited. Some people are trying to cram so much in to 10 days, travelling to like 5+ cities and really, I think they're just doing it to say they've been there. But what are you really going to get out of the trip if you're only there for a day? It's not going to be something you can vividly remember in two years. I think we're definitely going to have ample time to do the touristy sightseeing and also soak up some real culture, going for walks and visiting markets and people watching at a cafe... those are the things I like to do more than just visiting the attractions. After all, it's a break, so it should be relaxing, right? I'm getting antsy to go as I'm running out of things to entertain myself with here and I'm running out of food. It's pointless to go grocery shopping when I'm only here for two more days, so basically I'm down to meals consisting of rice and/or soup, apples, and some orange juice. Ah, the life of a poor college student.

Will try to write at least once while I'm gone, providing I can find a computer/internet somewhere. Keep in touch, and don't miss me too much!

Cheers!