First of all, congratulations to Gail and Joe and Rich and Cass!! New babies for everyone!! Both James and Tristan are beautiful, beautiful babies =)
Faithful readers, I apologize for falling so behind. Not only have I not yet chronicled my day in Bath or put up those pictures (London and Oxford are there), but I have yet to document the week following Easter, which I spent traveling up and down Ireland with Mary and Tine (my aunt and cousin)! On Monday I am flying to the Netherlands to visit my uncle Gerry and his family for a week, so I really may never catch up. I'll try though, really.
On Thursday I had my one final, so I am now done with classes!! I would just like to recount to you the saga of NUIG finals, because it's really something a sane school would never think of. I think I mentioned in an earlier post how silly the class schedules are, never in the same room or at the same time during the week (are they trying to hide our movements from enemy intelligence?). Now, when they have to arrange finals, we see again some stellar ingenuity. Lots of the classrooms are theatre-style, with rising levels of long tables with chairs attached to the floor. They are apparently very worried about cheating, because for the exams they put everyone in rooms big enough to hold rows of separate desks so everyone has so many feet of free space around them. This fear is ironic, I feel, because of the preparation given for these exams: many classes have tests from previous years on the library's website for you to peruse at your leisure; teachers often give out the exact questions they plan on asking or use the same test that's posted online; and one of my professors (and from what I hear this happened in other classes too) talked us through one of the questions, telling us exactly what we needed to write to fully answer it.
So, the only problem is, where to fit everyone? There are only so many large rooms on campus, so where can we find additional space? The answer: the racecourse. Yes, the racecourse. There are large rooms there (with their own taps... apparently they're party rooms on raceday) in which rows of desks have been set up and numbered, corresponding to an alphabetical list of your particular class (I was 139). Of course, the racetrack is a bit of a distance to walk for a 9:30 exam, although only about 10 minutes driving, so they provide buses leaving from the Quad on campus. BUT they charge 3 Euro! Not an astronomical sum, but they make us pay for a bus that we need to take only because they lack sufficient space! Gah. The buses for the 9:30 exams left at 8am (ugh), leaving us an hour to sit around in the general lobby of the racetrack and stew. Luckily I have a bunch of friends in that class, so we were able to pass the time well enough.
Then of course it was the easiest exam ever (did I mention I was walked through the answer?). I just thought I'd share. You may now be wondering why I didn't just take this time to finish off my England trip. To you I say -- I've been at NUIG for a long time now. The logic switch is not always turned on. Goodnight!
Friday, April 24, 2009
Sunday, April 19, 2009
England, Day 3: Oxford
Next morning we went to Victoria Station to catch the bus to Oxford. We were waiting at the stop the website had told us to wait at, and a bus to Oxford was there, but it wasn’t the company we had booked with, so we figured ours was coming soon, because we saw a number of their buses driving around the coach station. Still, we were getting a little worried, so I asked a policeman nearby, who got a bit shirty with me, really (if I can quote Harry Potter… a theme for the trip) -- “Didn’t you read the internet when you bought your tickets?” “Well, yeah…” “No you didn’t, what time is your bus supposed to be? If you read your internet you would have seen that for that time (the other company) is covering that route. You would have missed your bus.” Yeah, thanks. You really needed to hear the tone to appreciate this. Bah. Anyway, we got onto our bus, which was double-decker! So we rode up top and all got our own seats, so we could stretch out. The ride was lovely, and we passed some other fun things that we hadn’t had a chance to see earlier in London, like Grosvenor Square, the excessively attractive part of Hyde Park, and the royal fishmongers. That one was a surprise. There was a man being interviewed outside of it for the news, and I thought it was funny that this little shop was the royal fishmongers. Anyway, we journeyed through the countryside into Oxfordshire. Oxford town is GORGEOUS, especially if you have any appreciation for architecture at all. Oxford University takes up most of the city, with each of the colleges occupying its own space throughout.
We got off the bus and immediately found a Pizza Hut with a buffet… bonus! We walked to our hostel – too early to check in, but we wanted to stow our bags. We buzzed at the front door, where we were told: “You have to really kick the door….” We tried. “No, really, just kick it…” We tried again, harder, combining our efforts. “Are you in yet?.... really, really kick it!” Finally I did give it a good solid kick, and we were in. After stowing our bags, we headed out to explore (in the wrong direction at first… oops!), found Oxford Castle and mound thing, which we, being castle snobs, decided not to go into, and made our way through the shopping district into town. We went first to Christ Church college, where they filmed parts of the first two Harry Potter movies. It’s very pretty, but you could only see a very small portion of the school itself, because there are actual students there. Angela got REALLY excited when she found out about the HP connection. After going through the hall and chapel, we all had to use the toilet, so we were directed to a bathroom that, as it turned out, was broken. This is where the spy movie comes in. The man working on the toilets told us to “go into the Quad there… look for the man with the bowler hat, and ask him…” We did as he instructed, and lo! A bowler hatted man!
Now, in the Quad you can only walk along one side as tourists, and the rest is for real college people. We told him about our dilemma, and he thought we could use a bathroom a little ways into the forbidden zone, but he would have to take us there one at a time while the rest waited behind the invisible barrier. Suddenly, another be-bowlered man arrived! The two held council: “well, it’s a bit embarrassing really, not having working toilets… I was just going to take them in here” – “Oh, well we could use the one in the JCR.” – “Yes, then they could go en masse...” – “Yeah, I think it’ll be ok, if I go with them.” You can’t make this up, people. So, the second one took us THROUGH THE QUAD!! We got to be special, leaving all the other tourists behind us as we walked through the forbidden zone! We entered a room, and hat man, unsure where the ladies’ toilets were, left us to go find out, and someone yelled “quick, take pictures!”, and we all whipped out our cameras and complied - because, of course, we were in uncharted tourist territory. We all quickly put them away however, and when he came in we were all the “picture” (ugh) of innocence. He led us up the stairs to the, pretty ordinary, bathroom of the JCR (which he told us means the Junior Common Room, where the students hang out). Still, it was fun. He then gave us a mini-personal tour on our way out, which was lovely.
We next wandered through town. I wanted to go to Magdalen college (pronounced “maudlin”), where Tolkien and Lewis had both taught, but the others didn’t want to spend the money, so I went in and they went to the Botanical Gardens. Magdalen was quiet and picturesque, and I honestly enjoyed exploring it alone. They have lovely grounds, including the river and a deer park. After going through the buildings that are open to tourists, I walked along the river for a bit (and over a bridge to nowhere!) and admired the general splendor. The windows in the chapel there were odd… black-and-white and sepia toned. They also have an impressive copy of “The Last Supper.” After Magdalen, I spent some time walking through town and checking out bits of the other colleges and a church. I eventually met up with the others who had been relaxing in the large lawn at Christ Church. We went back to our hostel to check in, passing the ice rink on the way, which was exciting for Jaye, who plays hockey at home and hasn't seen an ice rink in months. The hostel was very nice (we now had the knack of flinging ourselves against the front door to open it), and Jess, Julie, Jaye and I had a room to ourselves. We met Angela on the hostel's top deck and enjoyed some tea in the late afternoon. Eventually we went to the grocery store for dinner, which we ate on the floor of our room, followed by a small singalong. Later, we went out to see the Eagle and Child pub, where Tolkien and Lewis used to gather with other literary friends and discuss their works, and then went to Rosie O’Grady’s Irish pub down the street from our hostel for a drink. The bartender was from Dublin, and we were the only ones there for a while, so we were telling him all about how we were in Galway studying and such. We said how nice it was to hear Irish accents again after being in England. He asked how long we’d been away… “three days!!” we wailed. He rolled his eyes. It was a lovely day.
We got off the bus and immediately found a Pizza Hut with a buffet… bonus! We walked to our hostel – too early to check in, but we wanted to stow our bags. We buzzed at the front door, where we were told: “You have to really kick the door….” We tried. “No, really, just kick it…” We tried again, harder, combining our efforts. “Are you in yet?.... really, really kick it!” Finally I did give it a good solid kick, and we were in. After stowing our bags, we headed out to explore (in the wrong direction at first… oops!), found Oxford Castle and mound thing, which we, being castle snobs, decided not to go into, and made our way through the shopping district into town. We went first to Christ Church college, where they filmed parts of the first two Harry Potter movies. It’s very pretty, but you could only see a very small portion of the school itself, because there are actual students there. Angela got REALLY excited when she found out about the HP connection. After going through the hall and chapel, we all had to use the toilet, so we were directed to a bathroom that, as it turned out, was broken. This is where the spy movie comes in. The man working on the toilets told us to “go into the Quad there… look for the man with the bowler hat, and ask him…” We did as he instructed, and lo! A bowler hatted man!
Now, in the Quad you can only walk along one side as tourists, and the rest is for real college people. We told him about our dilemma, and he thought we could use a bathroom a little ways into the forbidden zone, but he would have to take us there one at a time while the rest waited behind the invisible barrier. Suddenly, another be-bowlered man arrived! The two held council: “well, it’s a bit embarrassing really, not having working toilets… I was just going to take them in here” – “Oh, well we could use the one in the JCR.” – “Yes, then they could go en masse...” – “Yeah, I think it’ll be ok, if I go with them.” You can’t make this up, people. So, the second one took us THROUGH THE QUAD!! We got to be special, leaving all the other tourists behind us as we walked through the forbidden zone! We entered a room, and hat man, unsure where the ladies’ toilets were, left us to go find out, and someone yelled “quick, take pictures!”, and we all whipped out our cameras and complied - because, of course, we were in uncharted tourist territory. We all quickly put them away however, and when he came in we were all the “picture” (ugh) of innocence. He led us up the stairs to the, pretty ordinary, bathroom of the JCR (which he told us means the Junior Common Room, where the students hang out). Still, it was fun. He then gave us a mini-personal tour on our way out, which was lovely.
We next wandered through town. I wanted to go to Magdalen college (pronounced “maudlin”), where Tolkien and Lewis had both taught, but the others didn’t want to spend the money, so I went in and they went to the Botanical Gardens. Magdalen was quiet and picturesque, and I honestly enjoyed exploring it alone. They have lovely grounds, including the river and a deer park. After going through the buildings that are open to tourists, I walked along the river for a bit (and over a bridge to nowhere!) and admired the general splendor. The windows in the chapel there were odd… black-and-white and sepia toned. They also have an impressive copy of “The Last Supper.” After Magdalen, I spent some time walking through town and checking out bits of the other colleges and a church. I eventually met up with the others who had been relaxing in the large lawn at Christ Church. We went back to our hostel to check in, passing the ice rink on the way, which was exciting for Jaye, who plays hockey at home and hasn't seen an ice rink in months. The hostel was very nice (we now had the knack of flinging ourselves against the front door to open it), and Jess, Julie, Jaye and I had a room to ourselves. We met Angela on the hostel's top deck and enjoyed some tea in the late afternoon. Eventually we went to the grocery store for dinner, which we ate on the floor of our room, followed by a small singalong. Later, we went out to see the Eagle and Child pub, where Tolkien and Lewis used to gather with other literary friends and discuss their works, and then went to Rosie O’Grady’s Irish pub down the street from our hostel for a drink. The bartender was from Dublin, and we were the only ones there for a while, so we were telling him all about how we were in Galway studying and such. We said how nice it was to hear Irish accents again after being in England. He asked how long we’d been away… “three days!!” we wailed. He rolled his eyes. It was a lovely day.
England: London, Day 2
After another night at the Hootananny, I got up on Sunday for mass, where, I discovered, it was actually Palm Sunday! Oh how the time flies when you’re jet-setting (wistful look…). Anyway, I got some palms, which I fashioned into a little cross for traveling ease (it was my first one ever, and it wasn’t too bad… you could at least see that it was supposed to be a cross, which is something, I suppose). We planned to go to the British Museum next, but we were meeting Angela there after she went to do some personal exploring, so we wandered from Tottenham Court Road to Oxford Circus, a big shopping district (where, apparently, stores don’t open until the afternoon on Sundays, so we didn’t actually go in any), before meeting up with her. The British Museum is so cool! One part of your mind is thinking that it was, of course, wrong for the British Empire to steal all these things from their native places, but another part is so excited to be able to see artifacts from everywhere concentrated in one place! The first thing we saw was the Rosetta Stone – sweet! – and then lots of Egyptian artifacts. I was particularly interested in the pieces from the Ancient Near East (because I took a Myth in the Ancient Near East class last semester and had seen pictures of some of the pieces in my books) and in the Asian Art (because I also took an Asian Art course and got to see live and in person art I had studied, like the Shiva Nataraja!). I’m ALWAYS interested in Egyptian and Greek artifacts, and there were plenty to be seen. All in all, an excellent excursion, and free as well!!
Jess and I wanted to see the British Library, home to the Magna Carta and manuscripts of Jane Austen’s novels, among other things, so we went that way while the others set off to relax in Hyde Park. The library was indeed open, but, after running excitedly up the stairs to the manuscript room, we discovered that THIS particular room was open every day EXCEPT Sunday. A similar discovery met us downstairs in the Rare Books room, so we wandered a bit through the library, which is cool looking, and into the “Restoration” exhibit type thing, which was pretty lame. We finished off our trip by reading some children’s poetry (part of another exhibit) before heading off to meet the others at Hyde Park. On Sundays, Hyde Park is the home to Speaker’s Corner, where people get up on stepladders and tell everyone their opinions and feelings on subjects of their choice – when we got there, one man was discussing Islam, and when we left he was talking about how “there’s a difference between employment and work.” There were also some ladders with placards on them, for the usuals, I gathered, like the “Socialism” stepladder. We walked around the park, in what we realized later was the unattractive bit (we drove by the pretty part on our way to Oxford… curses!!), and got some ice cream (tiramisu for me, delicious!!!). The others let us know that they had gone elsewhere, so we decided to go to St. Paul’s, since everyone else didn’t particularly care about seeing it.
It’s so pretty! Even with scaffolding… the large white dome with the birds flying around it (feed the birds… tuppence a bag…), the impressive stairway in front, the lovely inside... We went in (for free, because it was Sunday and there was a service) and saw Wellington’s grave, which was cool. There were no pictures allowed, but I took a few stealthy hip shots of the gorgeous ceilings and arches (yes, yes I am a rebel, thanks for asking). We chilled on the steps for a minute, then saw a cup of fruit sitting on a pillar by some pigeons, so we took some “feed the birds” shots with that. Next we found a great statue of a man with goats! Finally we met up with the others, around dinner time, and spent the rest of the evening eating our traditional baguettes and brie. I had a nice heart-to-heart with the Denmark boys in my room, as well as with an American boy who had gone to Carnegie Mellon and had spent time in Galway. The next morning... Oxford!!
Jess and I wanted to see the British Library, home to the Magna Carta and manuscripts of Jane Austen’s novels, among other things, so we went that way while the others set off to relax in Hyde Park. The library was indeed open, but, after running excitedly up the stairs to the manuscript room, we discovered that THIS particular room was open every day EXCEPT Sunday. A similar discovery met us downstairs in the Rare Books room, so we wandered a bit through the library, which is cool looking, and into the “Restoration” exhibit type thing, which was pretty lame. We finished off our trip by reading some children’s poetry (part of another exhibit) before heading off to meet the others at Hyde Park. On Sundays, Hyde Park is the home to Speaker’s Corner, where people get up on stepladders and tell everyone their opinions and feelings on subjects of their choice – when we got there, one man was discussing Islam, and when we left he was talking about how “there’s a difference between employment and work.” There were also some ladders with placards on them, for the usuals, I gathered, like the “Socialism” stepladder. We walked around the park, in what we realized later was the unattractive bit (we drove by the pretty part on our way to Oxford… curses!!), and got some ice cream (tiramisu for me, delicious!!!). The others let us know that they had gone elsewhere, so we decided to go to St. Paul’s, since everyone else didn’t particularly care about seeing it.
It’s so pretty! Even with scaffolding… the large white dome with the birds flying around it (feed the birds… tuppence a bag…), the impressive stairway in front, the lovely inside... We went in (for free, because it was Sunday and there was a service) and saw Wellington’s grave, which was cool. There were no pictures allowed, but I took a few stealthy hip shots of the gorgeous ceilings and arches (yes, yes I am a rebel, thanks for asking). We chilled on the steps for a minute, then saw a cup of fruit sitting on a pillar by some pigeons, so we took some “feed the birds” shots with that. Next we found a great statue of a man with goats! Finally we met up with the others, around dinner time, and spent the rest of the evening eating our traditional baguettes and brie. I had a nice heart-to-heart with the Denmark boys in my room, as well as with an American boy who had gone to Carnegie Mellon and had spent time in Galway. The next morning... Oxford!!
Saturday, April 11, 2009
England: London, Day 1
Cheerio, pip-pip, and all that! I think if I ever actually heard a British person say one of those phrases for real, I might just combust. Some emotion would cause it. I don't know which one. So, Friday night, having handed in all five of my final essays, I set off with Jess, Jaye, and Julie to Shannon Airport, where we met Julie's friend Angela, who was joining us on our sojourn to Merry Old England. The flight was generally uneventful, although we all got a row to ourselves, which was quite exciting, meaning we could all stretch out and take our leisure. After what seemed like the never-ending taxi, our plane finally got us to our gate, and a series of soothing British voices led us to where we could take the Heathrow Express train into Paddington Station. Angela had decided to come in the eleventh hour, so she had booked a different hostel, so we split up at Paddington and took separate Tubes to our respective hostels. As we got used to it over the weekend, I grew to like the Tube more and more - very convenient, generally clean enough, and excessively easy to use. We bought day passes Saturday and Sunday at 5 pounds 60 each, which is actually an excellent price, since a single ticket runs about 4 pounds.
Anyway, we Tubed to Brixton and walked from the station to our hostel (get ready for it...) the Hootananny. Have you finished laughing? Good. So yes, the description on the website said it was a family-run hostel, and we were a little worried because we were getting there a bit later than planned, so would they be asleep? Would they be annoyed? We could see lights in the distance... a thumping bass beat hit our ears (and feet)... and there it was! The hostel sits atop a connected and very lively bar, which was that night, I believe, holding some sort of ska event. The lead singer of the band had a mohawk at least a foot and a half high. We approached the hostel, where two legit bouncers confronted us, but they sent us in to the bar when I showed them our reservations. We were checked in by the friendly, young, be-dreadlocked staff at the bar, then led up a door behind the bar into the hostel proper, where the noise was considerably less. Jaye and I were in a room together with 6 other people, and Jess and Julie were in another with two others. We eventually got to know a few of them - the two boys in the bunkbeds opposite ours were from Denmark and had come to London to stay for two months, get jobs, and improve their English. Another boy was American and had attended Carnegie Mellon University (in Pittsburgh) for awhile. He had also recently been in Galway, so we gushed (that is, I gushed... he talked normally) about the Cliffs of Moher and the Aran Islands for a bit one night.
The next morning after breakfast we headed to Notting Hill for the famous Portobello Market (secretly hoping to see Hugh Grant...), which was full of people! The area is really pretty, and I'd like to live there except I think I would hate having the market there every weekend just because there would be so many tourists and things. Still, it was really cool, with an antque section, a food section, lots of vintage clothes, and plenty of odd little things. It was sunny and beautiful out, so after the market we decided to go to Buckingham Palace. Between the Tube stop and the palace is Green Park, which is all in flower, so we came back to it later, but first we went to see Buckingham. Now, I'll be honest, it was really cool to see Buckingham, and it's impressive, but it was, visually, something of a letdown after seeing Versailles. Buckingham is definitely very British, while Versailles is DEFINITELY a product of opulent France. We didn't go in... actually, I never even though about it... I don't know if you can. The flag was up, so I think that means the queen was home, but I might be making that connection up. Julie really likes to climb on statues, so we hung out at the Victoria memorial in front of the palace for a bit before heading back into the park, where we took of our shoes and sprawled on the grass under the trees in and amongst the flowers. Bliss!
After that respite, we moved on up the street to where we could see some red-coated beaver-hatted guards (who looked about 13) carrying their rifles with Rambo knives attached as bayonets. We walked through St. James's Park, where ice cream was acquired, and through to Westminster and Big Ben. We took the opportunity to take photos inside the red phone boxes before walking to Trafalgar Square, on the way meeting another pubescent guard of the realm, this time astride a large horse outside of a museum, I think it was. Trafalgar was fun! We tried to climb the lions, but they were REALLY slippery, so we didn't quite make it... then we headed back to Westminster to go to Evensong, which was STUNNING. Usually you have to pay to get into Westminster, but not if you're going for a service (thank you, Brittany, for this fun fact!), so we thought this would be an excellent way to go. Unfortunately we were only just in time (we were let through like rockstars!) for the service, so we didn't get to linger through the church. We were chivvied along to seats farther in, sitting looking at a gorgeous stained glass window (which I photographed before seeing the "No Photography" sign). The singing was incredible... I love choir music, and they were, of course, excessively talented. The bass soloist gave me chills.
Afterwards we sat in the grass of the roundabout/minipark thing outside of Westminster to relax and decide our next move. We ended up strolling along the Thames for a bit past Westminster vaguely toward the London Eye (which we did NOT go on... 15 pounds to sit in a glass bubble for half an hour! Sure you get a view, but really...). We were hungry, and Indian food was required, but, sadly, "Delicious Indian Food" was not starred on my map (a failing, I feel). We decided to take the tube to King's Cross, take pictures at Platform 9 3/4 (Harry Potter geekiness for everyone!), and go from there. We found the platform, although they had actually moved it (the attraction, that is) because of some construction they were doing, and took the requisite photos, having a marvelous time and not caring a whit what others thought of a group of college girls pushing part of a trolley into a solid barrier. We left the station in search of food and immediately found an Indian restaurant, which had delicious food (and dessert!) and fun Bollywood playing on the television. We stopped off at a little store to get towels for me and Jaye, who hadn't packed any, and they were super tiny dishtowels, ultimately useless, but they did their best, I'm sure. We spent the night in the lounge of our hostel, chatting with a Canadian girl named Kate who was very fun and had spent a few months as an au pair in Italy. Sorry, more later.
Anyway, we Tubed to Brixton and walked from the station to our hostel (get ready for it...) the Hootananny. Have you finished laughing? Good. So yes, the description on the website said it was a family-run hostel, and we were a little worried because we were getting there a bit later than planned, so would they be asleep? Would they be annoyed? We could see lights in the distance... a thumping bass beat hit our ears (and feet)... and there it was! The hostel sits atop a connected and very lively bar, which was that night, I believe, holding some sort of ska event. The lead singer of the band had a mohawk at least a foot and a half high. We approached the hostel, where two legit bouncers confronted us, but they sent us in to the bar when I showed them our reservations. We were checked in by the friendly, young, be-dreadlocked staff at the bar, then led up a door behind the bar into the hostel proper, where the noise was considerably less. Jaye and I were in a room together with 6 other people, and Jess and Julie were in another with two others. We eventually got to know a few of them - the two boys in the bunkbeds opposite ours were from Denmark and had come to London to stay for two months, get jobs, and improve their English. Another boy was American and had attended Carnegie Mellon University (in Pittsburgh) for awhile. He had also recently been in Galway, so we gushed (that is, I gushed... he talked normally) about the Cliffs of Moher and the Aran Islands for a bit one night.
The next morning after breakfast we headed to Notting Hill for the famous Portobello Market (secretly hoping to see Hugh Grant...), which was full of people! The area is really pretty, and I'd like to live there except I think I would hate having the market there every weekend just because there would be so many tourists and things. Still, it was really cool, with an antque section, a food section, lots of vintage clothes, and plenty of odd little things. It was sunny and beautiful out, so after the market we decided to go to Buckingham Palace. Between the Tube stop and the palace is Green Park, which is all in flower, so we came back to it later, but first we went to see Buckingham. Now, I'll be honest, it was really cool to see Buckingham, and it's impressive, but it was, visually, something of a letdown after seeing Versailles. Buckingham is definitely very British, while Versailles is DEFINITELY a product of opulent France. We didn't go in... actually, I never even though about it... I don't know if you can. The flag was up, so I think that means the queen was home, but I might be making that connection up. Julie really likes to climb on statues, so we hung out at the Victoria memorial in front of the palace for a bit before heading back into the park, where we took of our shoes and sprawled on the grass under the trees in and amongst the flowers. Bliss!
After that respite, we moved on up the street to where we could see some red-coated beaver-hatted guards (who looked about 13) carrying their rifles with Rambo knives attached as bayonets. We walked through St. James's Park, where ice cream was acquired, and through to Westminster and Big Ben. We took the opportunity to take photos inside the red phone boxes before walking to Trafalgar Square, on the way meeting another pubescent guard of the realm, this time astride a large horse outside of a museum, I think it was. Trafalgar was fun! We tried to climb the lions, but they were REALLY slippery, so we didn't quite make it... then we headed back to Westminster to go to Evensong, which was STUNNING. Usually you have to pay to get into Westminster, but not if you're going for a service (thank you, Brittany, for this fun fact!), so we thought this would be an excellent way to go. Unfortunately we were only just in time (we were let through like rockstars!) for the service, so we didn't get to linger through the church. We were chivvied along to seats farther in, sitting looking at a gorgeous stained glass window (which I photographed before seeing the "No Photography" sign). The singing was incredible... I love choir music, and they were, of course, excessively talented. The bass soloist gave me chills.
Afterwards we sat in the grass of the roundabout/minipark thing outside of Westminster to relax and decide our next move. We ended up strolling along the Thames for a bit past Westminster vaguely toward the London Eye (which we did NOT go on... 15 pounds to sit in a glass bubble for half an hour! Sure you get a view, but really...). We were hungry, and Indian food was required, but, sadly, "Delicious Indian Food" was not starred on my map (a failing, I feel). We decided to take the tube to King's Cross, take pictures at Platform 9 3/4 (Harry Potter geekiness for everyone!), and go from there. We found the platform, although they had actually moved it (the attraction, that is) because of some construction they were doing, and took the requisite photos, having a marvelous time and not caring a whit what others thought of a group of college girls pushing part of a trolley into a solid barrier. We left the station in search of food and immediately found an Indian restaurant, which had delicious food (and dessert!) and fun Bollywood playing on the television. We stopped off at a little store to get towels for me and Jaye, who hadn't packed any, and they were super tiny dishtowels, ultimately useless, but they did their best, I'm sure. We spent the night in the lounge of our hostel, chatting with a Canadian girl named Kate who was very fun and had spent a few months as an au pair in Italy. Sorry, more later.
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