Last Walk- Central Parks

This was by far the most incredible walk I have done this semester. It was surprisingly easy to navigate, and we managed to follow the entire route by following Trooping the Colour. Which means, of course, that we got to see the entire royal family!!! :) Seeing the Queen, the Duke of Edinburgh, Will and Kate, and the rest of the royals....it was absolutely surreal. I cannot believe how amazing this day has been, and I would not have wanted to end the walks class any other way.

There are plenty more where this came from, btw. :) But this was the best one. 

We did this walk starting at Westminster and worked our way backwards. I loved seeing all of this familiar area, especially since we had just finished a spectacular tour of Parliament. We wandered St. James square, and that is where we noticed the large parade was just starting to leave from the celebration for the Queen's birthday. We decided to follow it, as it conveniently followed the route of our walk. We also saw the Royal Bird Park, and it had some really crazy birds. There is also a small chalet for the Royal Bird Keeper to live in, if they choose to do so. We then got to see the royal guards on horse and with arms as they followed behind the Queen. After watching them for a short while, we noticed that everyone was beginning to make their way towards Buckingham. I overheard a lady say, "We need to get to the balcony," and then I realized that the Queen would come out onto the balcony. We took off, weaving through the crowd as quickly as possible. We managed to make it to about the fifth row in front of Buckingham, and we chose to stay clear of the front gate so that it would not block our view. It turned out to be the best spot to see everything. We saw all of the Royal Family, and then the fly-by occurred. The final planes shot out red, blue, and white smoke. It was so awesome. The Queen waved to me, and I waved back. It was a moment I will never forget.

We then made our way through the masses, past the reporters, and then into Green Park. It was beautiful, but I was most excited to see the Wellington Arch. It was rather magnificent, even though it pales in comparison to other European arches in size. We saw the Hard Rock Cafe of London, the one that started it all. We also saw a rather large protest against the rape of prostitutes. Then we crossed into Hyde Park, and it was wonderful and familiar. I have wandered it on my own several times, and so I really enjoyed knowing my way around. We ended, of course, in good ole' Kensington. It really feels like home to me.

What an incredible walk! This one was, hands down, my favorite. Because what else can compete with the Queen?

Bloomsbury Walk

Wow, time flies. I feel like I just barely stepped off the airplane, and now I have to get back on. It is rather heartbreaking because I feel like I have found myself in London. I believe I have found my home. I love it here, and I know that this will not be my last encounter with The Big Smoke. :) But I digress... here is my information about the Bloomsbury walk.

After an already amazing day filled with classes, a Cricket Match, and Abbey Road, we did the Bloomsbury walk. I thought it would be fun to lead it, even though I have already led one, because of the Brunswick group. While I am not Virginia Woolfe's greatest fan, I appreciate her work and wanted to see the literary hub where she and other contemporaries wrote some of the greatest modern art of England. Her tragic life was filled with insight on human life, written in a revolutionary style. Unfortunately, the area that spawned such great writing has been turned into a commercial district. There is a large Brunswick shopping centre that is massive and enticing. I was impressed by it, but disappointed that the area that was once known as the publishing centre of London has almost altogether disappeared. This walk was more difficult to navigate than I had imagined because there was a large construction project near Brunswick square. However, we persevered and managed to do the entire walk. I particularly enjoyed finding one of Dicken's homes. This one was where he wrote The Pickwick Papers, Oliver Twist, and Nicholas Nickleby. It amazes me that every turn in London brings the discovery of another famous Londoner's home. I love reading the small blue circles that seem to be on every street. The walk ends with the British Museum, and that is the perfect place to pose (see the picture above). I am excited to visit the Museum in the next couple of days. I really cannot get enough of London. 

The City Walk

This was a rather interesting walk because it deals mostly with the financial district. We explored this on Tuesday, May 31, and it was in the evening. It was apparent that the work day had ended because the area was rather deserted and closed. It turned out to be a fabulous time to explore the city because we had it all to ourselves. We even got to spin around and dance like annoying Americans in a Guildhall Yard within the walk. It was completely empty and entirely spacious. It was really interesting to see the last of the business employees leaving the buildings and going straight to the pubs. Drinking is a very social and exciting aspect of London culture, and it is amazing to see such a thriving social life. We took some fun pictures in front of the Royal Stock Exchange, as shown above. I was also amazed by Lloyds, as it was composed of several buildings. My favorite was the one that had architecture that reminded me of the Industrial Revolution, but modern. It was very steampunk. I really loved it. This walk was enlightening and rather fun, especially since it felt like we had London all to ourselves.

Inns of Court

I did the Inns of Court walk on Saturday, May 28th with Alison and Hayley. It seemed to be a rather uneventful walk, except for the Staple Inn Buildings. They were one of the few buildings in London that survived the Great London Fire. They did not fit in with the surroundings, so it made complete sense. They were beautiful. We walked past the Royal Courts of Justice, and they were quite stunning. They appeared to be a cathedral, rather than a government building. We also stumbled through the Financial District of England. I have never seen so many CCTV cameras, threatening posters, and patrols in my life. It was really beautiful, but very deserted. I have noticed that downtown London is rather empty on the weekends in local shop areas because the shops are only open for short hours. It was wgnderful to walk through the city without large crowds. I enjoyed this walk, even though we got a little turned around and it took us a little longer than predicted. This area is close to the St. Pauls walk, which includes Samuel Johnson's home and Hodge, a very fine cat indeed. I really get excited when I start to understand the areas of London in relation to other districts. So, if you are doing the Inns of Court walk, just remember that street maps will help you from going astray. Oh, and don't do anything too crazy in front of a CCTV at the London Silver Vaults.

Soho to Trafalgar Square Walk

 

          Today after church, I went on the Soho to Trafalgar walk with Kelsey, Amanda, Emily K. and and Corey. It was really fun. It was also smart because we were able to walk through Soho without everything being open. Starting at the National Gallery, this walk is full of beauty. I was also impressed with the Olympic Countdown calender in front of the building. Oh, and don't forget the living statues. It is a fun, artsy part of town. We continued on through the Theatre district. It was brightly lit, and it was fun to see in the daylight. It was difficult to see the entire theatre when we went to Les Miserables, so it was really cool to be able to see the entire thing today. I was also tempted with many more musicals that look incredible. There is just not enough time to do everything. The other part of this walk that I loved was Chinatown. I did not know it was so close. I am going to try to get a group together to  go and get some really good Oriental food. Sharing platters are always the best. It was a very relaxing walk, and it helped me to see the sides of buildings I had already visited. Every time I do one of these walks, I feel it better orients me to the massive and beautiful city that is London. My love of the city is deepened with the walks, and I develop a more personal connection to my surroundings.

Shakespeare's Globe

            I had the most amazing day so far of my trip on Friday. We toured the Globe, and it was incredible. The tour guide first took us to the sites of the Hope and Rose theatres, competitors of the Globe. The Rose was discovered when new construction was about to take place in the 90s. After a serious effort to save it by celebrities, historians, and archaeologists, the city made a compromise. They allowed the building to be built several stories higher so that the Rose could continue to be studied in the basement. It is underwater, and it is the best preserved Elizabethan theatre that has ever been found.  Another interesting tidbit: there are no recorded instances of Queen Elizabeth I ever going to a Shakespeare play, but she attended a lot of bear baiting, another popular recreation in Bankside. A bear would be placed in a cage with a lot of dogs, and bets would be placed on how many dogs would die, would the bear survive, etc. The Rose may have garnered its name as an ironic statement because it was the worst-smelling place in London. It is also thought by some scholars that Shakespeare's line from Romeo and Juliet, "that which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet" may be a gibe at the Rose theatre. When the modern Globe theatre (pictured above) was being built, it was unknown where the original had stood. They did discover the original site, and the guide took us there as well. It was incredible because he said, "This is the place where the English language was shaped and changed forever."

       We then took our tour of the Globe, which I had visited twice previous to see All's Well that Ends Well and As You Like It. They were both fantastic comedies, but I still wanted to see my favorite Shakespeare play, Much Ado About Nothing. The guide told us that it was a blessing and a curse that we were touring during a tech rehearsal for my favorite play! We were not allowed to take pictures, but we were allowed to watch the play in working progress. Leonato was played by the man who plays Geoffrey in Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. How amazing is that? Beatrice was played by Eve West, and she was phenomenal. She performed one of my favorite scenes while we were there. It was a speech about how she never wished to marry a man unless God made men of something other than human. She directed her acting to us, and even pointed at some of the students. It was just like Shakespeare would have wanted it. I loved every minute of it. It was absolutely magical. We are going to go see Much Ado About Nothing at the end of this month, and we have gallery tickets. I am so excited. It is the event I am looking forward to the most.






P.S. I included Platform 9 and 3/4 for anyone who interested. :)

Lambeth Walk

This looks like Big Ben in Peter Pan! :)

           This was a very relaxing walk, and it was breathtaking at times. Emily led the walk, and a large group of us navigated our way along this scenic route. It was really incredible to see a different view of the Thames. The backside of Parliament and Big Ben is a stunning view, and it is the picturesque and iconic shot that everyone should recognize. It is also the view that I had when I was here when I was twelve, so I really love it with all of my heart. When we first started the walk, it felt like a more suburbian area of London. We walked past the massive St. James Hospital, and we found a park decorated with local children's drawings of British history. It was also themed with adventure park toys, and it was really fun. Then we found the iconic setting I referred to in the beginning. As we walked along, we found the artsy party scene of London. Everything was lit in bright colors, and it felt like a beach-y area with painted beach houses right next to the water. We then crossed the Waterloo bridge, and it was beautiful. I loved seeing this different view of London, and it was very enjoyable after a long day.