Good Ol' Queeny

May 25, 2010

 WHAT a day. Woke up to seeing the Queen! She opened Parliament today so there is a huge procession through the streets that pedestrians can see. We stood in line on the street and watched the entirety of Royal Guard and the cavalry pass by in all of their grandeur. Just amazing. Then she was there in her royal carriage, followed by her crown that has its own separate carriage! Saw her up close! After we all regained from such a sight, we headed to lunch and ate in the middle of Trafalgar Square. Such powerful monuments-- enormous in size and just stunning. Afterwards we headed to the London Eye and experienced London from all angles-- breathtaking in the least. We laid in the surrounding park for a bit after Cadburys and ice cream then headed to...Abbey Road! Took the infamous Beatles pic in one shot, so we counted ourselves pretty lucky. Then we headed to the Beefeaters and made one almost crack a smile with our commentary during photo taking. Should have left our number, now that I think about it, as he was very cute. Headed to our favorite burger joint afterwards (they know us at this point) and discussed how we've covered nearly every inch of London!

CNN and Bicycles

May 24, 2010

Today was yet another sunny day in London, We've been too lucky here with the sun and heat. We took advantage of the heat in Kensington Park, looking at the Princess Diana memorials and the gorgeous fountains. Then we had an interview with Richard Quest, the Wallstreet correspondent for CNN International. Fascinating man, spoke very candidly on journalism and the type of field we are getting ourselves into. He spoke on ethical issues, needing to eat, sleep and breathe news and how journalists are merely gossipers. CNN International was a very cool institution, got to see some filming and walk around the newsroom. Then we headed to Portabello Road which was full of all kinds of sights. Antique jewelry and furniture, gorgeous fruit stands and super cute boutiques line the famous street. Such a sight, you find things you've never even entertained in thought! We headed back home for some amazing Indian Cuisine at Bombay Bicycle, something we've been committed to since we arrived. I couldn't recommend this cuisine more, such interesting tastes and combinations. Really amazing.

    Hit the town after some lovely white wine with dessert and hung out with the entirety of the study abroad group. Everyone danced and sang and reveled in our last week here. I don't think I could find one person prepared to leave.

Family Time

May 23, 2010

   I spent today with my family! My cousins live just down the street from my homestay, so it was too easy to get in touch. I spent the morning with my cousin, Cara, and her husband and children. We had a breakfast with a traditional Israeli spread and amazing lox and bagels. Then, her little girls and I perfected the art of card-making and present-wrapping to prepare for our cousin's birthday. After all of this, we headed down the street to my baby cousin's 2nd birthday party. The party was lovely, we sat in the sunshine in the garden and chatted all day long. The scene was perfect: the kids running in the sprinklers and the adults sipping drinks in the chairs alongside them. They compared the weather to South Africa, perfectly sunny and dry, and we had a gorgeous time comparing travel stories over pastries. Afterwards, my cousins and I headed to a nearby park for iced coffee (coffee with a dollop of vanilla ice cream) and more Israeli dishes. Such amazing food! We met up with some more South Africans who live in their community and had a great time chatting over hummus and pitas. Big day with CNN tomorrow!

Ek lief vou (Afrikaans for "I love you"!) xx

Football, Pubs and the Prime Meridian

May 22, 2010

    The weather has been stunning. Just gorgeous. We decided to take the tube as far as we could today. That is, to Greenwich. If I can recommend anywhere, it would be here. There is an amazing market with foods from literally every country. Congolese, Portuguese, you name it, they had it. After we wandered through the amazing vintage stores and jewerly kiosks, we found the park where nearly every Londoner was laying out. People were all around us, napping, sunning, playing football and genuinely enjoying the perfect sunshine. We hiked up the massive hill to see the Prime Meridian and took photos at "the center of the world". The view from the top of the hill nearly stopped your heart-- you could see everything. The sky was so clear that every monument was nearly shimmering in the sunlight. After we pulled ourselves away, we found a pub to watch the Champion's League Final. What an experience! A pub full of football fans is phenomenal: people of all shapes and sizes, all walks of life, unified in the love of football. And they really do love it! It is a football-obsessed culture here, nearly every person in the park totes a soccer ball around. The locals loved our American accents and even more, our understanding of their favorite game. We watched it with heaps of Englishmen and our Dutch friends who loved the game just as much. Another amazing day in England...

Love you, miss you all xx

Break Dancing in London

Friday, May 21st

Today, Steph and I strolled around Hyde Park, taking in all of the sights and even more so, soaking up the stunning weather. Nearly 80 degrees here-- can you imagine? After an amazing lunch at the Serpentine, which is built right on the river with the most gorgeous view, we laid in the park watching the culture around us. This really cool group of break dancers were in the center of the park, dancing and goofing around to awesome music. We enjoyed the free show as we relaxed and took in how gorgeous the flowers, trees and fountains were. Then we met up with Isa and wandered for hours, taking turns at whims and browsing shops all along the way. We danced around in Marc Jacobs, strutted around Oxford Street and finally found a Manchester United jersey after much searching. We were decidedly starving after this and returned to a favorite, "YoSushi"-- the sushi restaurant with the conveyor belt. It just gets better every time!

     Since it is Isa's birthday, we decided it would be a big night out. A huge group of us wandered into the city and ran into a group of guys dismayed at the club situation. We befriended them and ended up spending the night at this gorgeous club called Cafe de Paris. Looked straight out of a movie, lit up with fairy lights and just the most romantic setting. Such a great night of dancing and chatting with the boys from Holland! It is so fascinating to meet people here and hear of all of their travels and experiences. What an amazing thing to make connections around the world!

Thursday, May 20th

Woke up in disbelief that the night before had occurred. The girls and I went for breakfast at this amazing Dutch Pancake House where the pancakes were the size of pizzas and filled with fruit and ice cream. Then we met with reporters from the BBC! How unreal is that? The facility is overwhelming, full of marble floors and winding staircases. So beautiful and ornate, unlike any newsroom I've ever seen. The reporters were phenomenal, they are spearheading BBC Persia. They cover all of the goings on in war-torn areas in the Middle East, specifically Iran. They showed us footage from over there that has not been seen by anyone: police running over protesting civilians, raids of colleges, brutal beatings. We have no idea about how much suffering is going on in that country. Even more striking was the fact that these reporters are unable to return to Iran because of their involvement with the news. Such a commitment.

We found a great pub and watched a cricket match while eating bangers and mash. How English is that? We stayed at the pub for hours, soaking in the culture, and even met a fellow Gator who graduated in 2002! The Gator Nation is everywhere! We then had amazing Tiramisu to celebrate Isabel's birthday at Stockpot, this amazing fusion restaurant with great food and even better prices. We're nearly locals!

Love you all! xx

I Think This Bus is Going North...

Wednesday, May 19th

      Today, after class of course, we had "group games". Basically, the entirety of those studying abroad from Florida were required to meet in the middle of Hyde Park to engage on European-themed group games. Everyone was dreading said activities but they ended up being hysterical. Water balloon tosses became fights, the field became a soccer match and the limbo became more of a dance contest than anything. The teams were broken up into 4 and named after the Houses in Harry Potter. As authentically English as we could get! After this, the girls left to shop on Oxford Street. We only made it through Primark, where things are incredibly cheap and the lines terribly long. Such amazing finds! I'll look very out of place in Gainesville with my Euro look but happy to be so fashionable!

    Tonight was Avenue Q. Prior to, however, we revisited our favorite burger joint, Byrons, where we have become regulars. Avenue Q was absolutely hysterical. I met heaps of Americans who were also studying abroad, which was exciting. Glad that my people are finally travelling! After we waited for the cast, we headed out on the town. After a few failed bars, we were sought out by one of the street vendors. He promised to get us in a local club for cheap then told us his life story of how he journeyed from California to find peace. Robby, Leah and I followed him to the club, full of apprehension after his suggestion that London was a place of peace. After a sketchy pound exchange, we walked into this super Euro bar, full of blinding lights and searing techno. The characters in there were a point of much laughter: an old woman in the corner, the Turkish man nearly frozen in a gargoyle crouch on the stairs, the group of "gangsters" trying to communicate with us through the plexi-glass. We were surrounded by some of the gems of London! After the club closed, we ate what is sure to be the worst pizza I've ever encountered and pretended to be as British as we could. I remember thinking that mine was the finest British accent on this side of the pond. We got on the wrong bus and drove for nearly an hour until we realized just how unfamiliar the stops were. Thus, began my first experience in London's elite cab service. It takes 3 years to become a certified driver and extensive training-- so they really are amazing. Plus, they look straight out of a war movie from the 1930's. Figured we'd seal the night with the classiest mode of transport one can find.