Since I have only a few days left in city I decided that it would be nice to see the city from somewhere high. I decided that today I would go to the Tower Bridge and climb up the many stairs to the top. Then once there I walked across the top to the other side. The long walkway has glass on both sides so the city is beautiful and can be seen for miles. Today luckily it was sunny so I could see as far out as I could see.

Along the sides of the glass they had rectangular display tables that had time lines of the bridge, fish you might find in the river, birds often seen in the area, famous people who have visited there, the history of the bridge and finally crazy things that have happened on the bridge. For example two planes have flown through the Tower Bridge over the cars driving below. Another was a double decker bus was on the edge of the bridge as it began to raise to let a ship through, but the bus could not stop so the bus had to jump over the open water and barely landed on the ledge across from them.

After I had been through both towers and I was ready to go I walked towards London Bridge to go to Borough Market. This market is only open on Fridays and Saturdays. There are a variety of things that you can buy, but all of them are edible things. They had stands set up with sighs of what they were selling like olives, cheese, meat, smoothies, sweets, and breads. I walked around this little market of about twenty stands and the crowd was packed through the open spaces between the stands. Free samples are given to people passing by and I tried many of them. They were all very good and the prices are really cheap in this market too. I bought 200 grams of different kinds of Turkish delight for only 2.80 GBPs. I am going to save those for my ride back to the states.

I really enjoyed my day and I look forward to tomorrow. Check in to see what I do and write me a post.

I spent most of my day on the tube today. My dad and his wife had their flight home today. Before we headed to the airport we visited Baker Street which displays an Elvis, Beatles, Sherlock Holmes, and The History of Rock Museums. We only went into the Beatles Museum which was a very small one roomed shop where you could buy shirts, pins, original albums, and other little trinkets.


Then we headed back to the flat to grab their language and we headed to the airport. After they went towards security I went to my brother’s girlfriend’s work. I was meeting both my brother and his girlfriend there so we could all leave for the musical Chicago.


The theater was painted blue with box seats on either side. Our seats were in the upper balcony and we could see the stage perfectly. The musical was amazing and had great singers and dancers. I would not suggest this musical for younger audiences because of the sensuality of the musical.


Today was great and I enjoyed my night at the theater. Check in tomorrow and send me a post.

Leeds Castle and Dover

I had another adventure today. My dad his wife and I ventured to Leeds Castle and Dover. The castle was amazing. I have never seen a castle before and the mote around it was impressive. Many ducks and swans were around, even a couple black swans. The entrance to the castle had an iron gate that could be lowered or raised. The stones were ancient looking with rugged and discolored edges. As you enter you walk across a bridge over the mote and enter into a circle that goes all the way around the castle. We entered through the wine cellar and continued up the stairs into a hall way that displayed pictures of the royalty that have owned the castles since 1119. There were ropes that had certain rooms closed off. The ropes led to one of the towers which had windows that you could look out to see the mote and the hills surrounding the castle. The last owner of the house was Lady Olivia Baillie in 1926. She refurbished most of the rooms to her fondness but even though the interior was a little more modern it was still a great experience. One of my favorite rooms was the dining room with a large table that expanded through the entire room and it was filled with crystal table settings.

After we had seen everything that we wanted to we drove to Dover. We headed towards the White Cliffs of Dover which looks out over the English Channel. On a good day you can see all the way across to France. Today was very sunny and warm but there was a bit of fog over the water so we could only see a rough outline of France. It was beautiful and the water was gorgeous with the white caps crashing against one another. We took pictures of the Dover Castle but we did not go and see it, instead we walked down to the beach. The beach is different than from where I am from. Instead of sand they have what looks like a bunch of river rock. It is not very comfortable to walk on barefoot but it is very pretty to take a chair out there and look out onto the water. This was probably one of my favorite places I have been so far and I suggest that if you want to take a day trip somewhere you should definitely go to Dover.

This day was completely packed with things to see and experience but it was amazing and I am glad to be able to do it. Check out my blog tomorrow and send me a post.

Today I got to leave the city. I ventured out to Bath and Stonehenge. Bath was my first destination and the car ride was about an hour or so. My dad, his wife and I rented a car and made sure we received one with a GPS system because without it we would have never found our way out of London. A little tip is to definitely get a GPS system I think it would be impossible to find your way around without one.

Bath was beautiful and the buildings were very old and made of aged stones. We stopped and visited the Roman Baths and I found that fascinating. The architecture is older than anything I have seen before. The springs from down below heats up the water and flows between six pools. There is a museum that you can walk through that goes through all the rooms and shows stones that have been found with carvings of gods and tombstones.

We then traveled to Stonehenge which is about an hour from Bath. We paid to go and see the magnificent structures, but it was not too much money. They had it roped off so this way the stones would not be touched or defaced. It was incredible to see and it is something that everyone knows of but not everyone gets a chance to actually see it.

My day was filled with amazing things to see and I am glad I had the opportunity to see them. Check in tomorrow and send me a message.

Today I went to the London War Museum (a.k.a Britain At War Experience) and the Imperial War Museum. Both of these museums were very emotional and an experience for everyone to see.

The London War Museum shows what it was like to live in London during WWII. The entrance takes you into what a tube station would look like with bunk beds and book cases with books against the walls. A video was on the far wall explaining the war and what was happening above ground. When you leave there are hallways that show rooms where people were interpreting codes over phones. Women were wearing uniforms if they were helping with the war; with the men off fighting the women would put out fires and help with the bombing shrapnel. There was a section that showed children and how unhappy they looked. My favorite part of the museum was the very end. A door led into the streets during an air raid. They had bodies displayed as if they had been hit by a bomb and showed people stealing the artifacts on the ground. The air was foggy and it smelled like stagnant water; it was well done and you really felt like you were there.

The Imperial War Museum was an eye opening experience. I only had time to visit two of the exhibits there but they were very sad. First I went to the Holocaust exhibit and that was very sad. I will not explain the things that were there because some of it would be too graphic for children. I will say though that it brought tears to my eyes and people were crying as you exited the exhibit. I then proceeded to The Children of The War exhibit and this was also very sad. Many children were shipped off to the country during the war so they would be out of danger. The parents had to stay behind though and this was very traumatizing. There were letters from children begging their parents to come get them and how they were living terribly. One girl reported to her parents that where she was they had a cage for animals and in the mornings they would take the animals out and place them in it with a bottle of water and a loaf of bread. The exhibit also showed how they lived before and how a typical house looked. You got to walk through the rooms and go up the stairs to other floors.

My experiences today will stay with me for the rest of my life and I suggest that if visiting that you take some time to go and see these two places. They change you forever. Check in tomorrow and send me a post.

Cabinet War Rooms and Number Ten Downing Street

Today I visited the Cabinet War Rooms today near Big Ben and West Minster Abby. There is a cost to get in and then you walk down a staircase to the rooms below. Free audioguides are given to visitors and then you proceed to the right. There are rooms were meetings were held with Winston Churchill and the mapping room that had walls filled with maps and the paths that bombings were taking place. Many hallways lead to bedrooms, a museum of Winston Churchill, and meeting room that contain where he did his broadcasts on the radio and a telephone room for important messages.


Afterwards I went by Number Ten Downing Street. This is equivalent to the White House in Washington D.C. There was a line to get into the street but we decided that we would just walk by and take a picture of it instead. My day was really fun and the weather was a little cloudy but bearable. Check in tomorrow to hear about my day and send me a post. Sorry that there is not a picture my chip for my camera was left at home today.

Visiting Oxford today was magnificent. I have visited Oxford once before with my mom but going back to see the town again made me realize things I had missed the first time. The architecture is so old and historic that it is hard not to be amazed at the town. I spent most of my day at Brasenose College in Oxford for my brother’s graduation.

The train ride to Oxford was an hour because we bought the fast pass if you buy the regular pass it takes about two and a half hours to reach Oxford. The country side is beautiful and has large fields and flowers that you can see from the train about ten minutes out of the city. We then walked around town and went site seeing and made our way to the college.

My brother had us enter into a room where people were drinking tea and coffee and we spent twenty minutes just talking with other graduates families. When the graduation started it was two hours of Latin and people repeating things in Latin. After the ceremony we had lunch in the dining hall for two hours and then we were free to leave.

Afterwards we walked around town till we had made a circle and were back at the train station. We then went home for the night. Today was really fun and I am so proud of my brother. Check in tomorrow and send me a post.

I traveled the city on foot today and visited places I have already seen like Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, British Museum, Big Ben and Parliament. Even though I revisited these places I still enjoyed my time.

We started our day at Buckingham Palace and walked around the large statue of the Queen in front of the palace. Then we headed towards Trafalgar Square. The walk was about fifteen minutes and we walked down the Mall past the Princess Diana Memorial Walk. One thing that I noticed at Trafalgar square that I had missed before was that there is a large pillar that is flat on top and has a net around it. People can enter something like a lotto to win a half an hour on top of the pillar and can do whatever they would like once up there. While I was there a man was writing on a white board and showing it to the cars below as they would drive by. People can protest, act, sing, or anything else they want to do.

Then after Trafalgar Square we walked for about thirty minutes to the British Museum. My dad, his wife, my brother and I spent three hours walking around looking at the artifacts and even though I have already seen them I feel that I absorbed more information the second time around. My dad and his wife really enjoyed seeing the artifacts especially the mummies which were my favorite thing that I saw the first time I went.

After we had finished visiting and had seen everything we walked for forty five minutes past Trafalgar Square to Big Ben and Parliament. This is the most famous place in London and is gorgeous to see. If taking pictures and want a really good shot if you walk over the bridge to the other side of the river the view of Big Ben and Parliament is perfect. We then had finished seeing Big Ben and Parliament we decided that that was enough for one day.

I truly enjoyed my day and it was nice to show my dad around places where I had been and explain my favorite parts. Check in tomorrow and send me a post.

Harrods

Today I spent my time wondering around Harrod’s. This is the largest department store in London. There are five floors full of all sorts of things from jewelry and clothes to a candy shop and a store full of pet clothes, beds, and supplies. The clothes are from famous designers like Gucci, Louis Vitton, and Armani. The clothes and accessories were very expensive. Unless you have a lot of money it is almost impossible to buy anything unless there is a sale. For example I bought some tea for 3 for 2 and it is delicious. This store is more for looking and admiring the items but if you want to shop and have only so much money this is not the best place to go.

After I went to Harrods I went to Heathrow Airport to pick up my dad and his wife. They are coming for the next week to spend time with my brother. Since I have become very good at navigating my way through the tube system and getting to my destinations, I escorted them to the place they are staying and then just caught up a bit about what they have been up to lately.

Today was a nice simple day with not a lot of action but still quite a day. Check out my blog tomorrow and send me a post.

The Kew Gardens is such an experience. This is a huge garden filled with flowers and greenery. There are two large green houses one that holds palm tree from around the world and the other has many flowers. A giant pond is in the center of the garden with lily pads, tall grasses and flower bushes around the outskirts. The pond has many geese and ducks. There is a family of Peacocks that walk around and the mom walks around with the baby that was the size of a small duck. The baby was very cute and drew a crowd.

When I walked in I first went to the right to the large green house with the palm trees. It was very humid but the trees were so cool. The trees reached the ceiling. The balcony up above was draped with the large leaves that you had to go through. Downstairs there was a marine exhibit with tanks with fish and sea creatures in them. My favorite tank had a Tiger fish that had teeth and when you watched him he would come up to the front of the tank and rub up against it. I have never seen a fish do that before and he was colored like one of my favorite animals so I really liked that fish the best.

I left and went straight through the trees and past many benches that were placed everywhere. The paths lead to flowers that covered the ground with all colors and to the river’s edge where a castle was visible on the other side. My absolute favorite area was the Tree top. After climbing five flights of stairs you reach a circular pathway that gazes over the trees below. It was beautiful and so different than anything else I have ever seen in a Garden before.

I would rate the Kew Gardens high on my list of places to see in London. It is amazing and I suggest going to visit. Check in tomorrow to see where I go and don’t forget to post a comment.

University College London

Today I went to the University College London (a.k.a. UCL) and there was nothing insipid about it. The large campus has many hallways and rooms. There are maps posted all around so you don’t get lost. Stores surround the college and the streets are jammed with cars busy to get somewhere. The building itself was beautiful. The entrance has what looks like a coliseum and a large grass area with benches which people were sitting on and chatting with friends. Construction workers were working on the hackneyed entrance so my view was not the best, but it was still breathtaking.

Inside there are long corridors that lead to a circular room with four pillars from the ground to the ceiling. This room led either to the library, stairs, restaurant, or classroom halls. I chose to go to the classroom halls and then exited out the doors on my right to a garden area. Students were here with their friends also and a few people were reading or writing. I ventured outside for a while and enjoyed the sunlight.

The day was beautiful and the University College London was historic and quite an experience. Since I am currently looking at colleges to go to it was beneficial how big this one was compared to the others I have seen in my home state. Check in tomorrow and post an update.

Royal Academy of Music/Arts

I went to the Royal Academy of Arts today and it was filled with modern art. This building is also referred to as the Royal Academy of Music. I did not see any music, but free concerts occur there often. The exhibits were my favorite part and the people in charge of them must have expurgated the artwork because it all seemed appropriate for children. Most of the museums I have been to only display historic or famous artwork. I love those paintings, but it was nice to see modern art with all the neon colors, different sculptures and connected items which represent one idea.

The building is three floors tall. The first is only a restaurant, toilets and an information desk. The second floor has all the modern art with many rooms filled to capacity, with so many fascinating different colors and unique ideas. For example, a large paper towel was squeezed so that its shadow created a bird. An eminent, green, stone sculpture of a horse stood proudly in the center of one room. One of the painters used oil on canvas with a bright blue swirls and yellow spots on a black background. Another room had large faces with expressions of altruism on a wall. The pictures looked like blown up photographs, but close-up, cut-up strips of paper formed faces, including two of women and one of a lion.

My favorite painting there is “Misty Landscape.” This painting looked like eleven photographs had been placed over a red background with flowers on it. The closer you get to the picture, the more it begins to turn into a painting. The landscapes were of mountain peaks going through the clouds. Another one of the photos showed a small pond at the bottom of a mountain with a cabin on the water.

Today was great and if you are visiting and want to see something different than the historic art that you’ve seen so much, check out the Royal Academy of Arts. Check in tomorrow and write me a post.

Wimbledom Common and Putney Heath

Saturday was a lazy day I watched both Pride and Prejudice and Sence and Sensibility after the books by Jane Austen. The movies were very good and I enjoyed them very much. Definitely great books and the movies were very good about trying to stay true to Jane Austen's writings.

Today I walked through Wimbledon Common and Putney Heath. This was a beautiful park that was different than any other park I have seen. The park is almost like a forest with paths and trees everywhere. There was a tree that was great for climbing and my brother, his girlfriend and I spent about twenty minutes sitting in the tree and staring off into the distance. There was a small museum of the history of windmills in the center of the park. There were animals and a restuarant next to the windmill that was great for children.

Later I played tennis with my brother at King Georges Park. We played for an hour and it cost 6 GBPs. I really enjoyed my weekend and check in tomorrow to see where I go.

The British Library

The British Library is aesthetically pleasing and such an experience. The building is absolutely enormous and the library seems larger after walking through the front doors. There is a bag check before you can enter. The library is three stories tall. I have never seen a library so big in my entire life. In fact, escalators ran to the other floors! The ceiling was amazing with glass windows all the way around which let in the sunlight. In the center of the library was a big hollow rectangular box filled with books. The books were all archaic and the glass box went from the floor to the ceiling. This library even had a restaurant in the back and a small café. Some of the rooms are study rooms and can only be entered if you have a member’s pass. There was plenty to see without being a member though.

Four exhibits were multifarious on the ground floor and they were really impressive. They included some of the oldest books of history and original music from famous writers and composers. None of the music or books were extraneous, which made these exhibits an attention grabber. They had Shakespeare’s books where a few were actually his original handwriting. Beethoven had many of his score sheets there and also his toning fork. They even recognized the Beetles and had a few of their albums along with the original writings of songs. Next to the display of the Beetles there were headsets that had some of the Beetle’s hits for example Michelle, Help, and I Want to Hold Your Hand. There was another headset next to the display of all the score sheets of famous composers. I spent most of my time listening to the music. They had books on the other wall from famous writers and another headset next to these that had little parts from some of the books. They had Hamlet, Jane Eyre, and Alice in Wonderland.

Another exhibit was eclectic and had old manuscripts that had been restored. Some were of the Bible and others were of the Witched Bible. The Witched Bible is a Bible that was written normally but in the fourteenth commandment the word “not” was taken out so it read though shall commit adultery. After this book was written it was then given the name Witched Bible or Sinners Bible. Also, tools which people used to restore the manuscripts, sat in display cases next to the documents.

In the back of the library next to the restaurant, two entire walls full of tablets came out of the wall with large prints of old books, poems and articles. They were really cool and much easier to read than the originals that were written so small that you have to squint to read them.

Today was a great day and I am glad I went to the British Library. I definitely recommend going to see this large, magnificent building. Check in tomorrow and write me a post of what you think.

The tube was out of service today so I was unable to go out and explore a sight. My original plan was to go to the British Library but I will just have to go to that tomorrow. There was a mechanical problem with the tube and they did not know how long the tube would be out of order so I decided to walk around the streets of where I am staying.

I went south along all the stores until I got to a park at the end of the Street. I laid down and enjoyed my time even though it was overcast with a slight breeze. After I walked back up the street and turned left towards Wimbledon Lawn and Tennis Club. I was vicariously living through the people I encountered while I was walking around, watching the school kids do relays and people playing with their dogs. There is a pond where boats or canoes can be rented. My favorite part was just sitting down in the grass and watching the people around me, for example people playing with their dogs and friends.

This day was not as eventful as the days before but I still enjoyed my time. The Wimbledon Lawn and Tennis Club is an amalgam and it makes it easy to enjoy your time with friends or loved ones. Check in tomorrow to see how my day goes at the British Library.

Westminster Abbey was absolutely stunning. It took me about two hours to see the whole thing. This was one of the most expensive things I have gone to see but, it was worth it. I was a student so I paid 12.50 GBP’s but the adult tickets are not much more. Try to avoid visiting during the afternoon because it becomes very tumultuous. Photography is not permitted inside, but it is allowed in the gardens and any place outside. Before entering make sure to take pictures of the beautiful Big Ben and the London Eye. They are all in close range of each other.

I suggest getting an audioguide to the abbey. Unless you understand Latin, the inscriptions on the tombs could be ambiguous and misleading. The audioguide explained things well and detailed history about the artifacts and graves at the abbey. The building is confusing too because of all of the hallways, but picking up a map helps a lot. After grabbing these two things, then exploring this expansive building is a great idea. The building is absolutely breathtaking. Many tombs are decorated with gems and gold paint. Their tombs are made out of gorgeous stones which shine.

The coronation chair is placed high above so no one can touch it. It is very old and dates back to the first coronation of a king of England. It was first meant to be a relic, but now it has turned into a tradition that is passed down generation by generation. The Lady Chapel holds Henry VII’s tomb along with his wife. This is a very bright room with stained glass that lets a lot of light in. There are wooden chairs along both walls which used to belong to the monks of the old monastery but now they are seats for the nights of the highest degree.

One of my favorite areas was The College Garden which is only open on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. This was an open area with paths that go to a small garden or a fountain. Chairs are set up in the grass and benches are along the stone wall. There are large trees along the outskirts and a garden in the corner with a little path and one statue. It was really beautiful with all the flowers and I enjoyed my time in there.

This was a great day and Westminster Abbey was one of the best things I have visited while I have been here. This is one of the places London is famous for and I definitely suggest stopping here if visiting. Keep checking in and post a comment.

The National Gallery of British Art (a.k.a. the Tate Britain) is a wonderful museum that incorporates both historical pieces of art with modern pieces as well. This is a large museum with many rooms so it is best to get a map of the gallery before exploring. Unfortunately I do not have any pictures of this gallery because photography was not allowed. There is a café and shop that are nice to go to after seeing the art. The Tate Britain took me about two and a half hours to see everything.


The main floor has the shop and café. The stairs to the left lead to exhibits in chronological order from about the 1500’s to present. This makes it really easy to see how art has progressed. At the beginning of the 1500’s some of the paintings can be vapid but, as it progresses technique is improved and the paintings become more expressive. The first painting that caught my eye was The Cholmondeley Ladies. This was a painting of two women who look almost identical and both have a child which also looks identical to the other. There is an inscription on the bottom of the painting that states, “Born on the same day, Married on the same, and brought to bed the same day.” This painting is not austere, being painted with the women wearing lovely gowns with many decorations and the children tightly bound with bright red cloth.


Two other paintings stood out to me. One was by John Singer Sargent called Carnation. This had two little girls lighting Chinese lanterns. The painting was filled with all the colors of the rainbow. It had purples, blues, greens, pinks, and yellows streaks that reflected off the children’s faces. This was one of my favorites. The other was by John Brett called The British Channel Seen from the Dorsetshire Cliffs. This showed only water with spots of light blue and teal streaks that swirled through the water. The sun from above was shining down and made the water glisten; it was a beautiful painting.


There are many other beautiful paintings and the modern art was very cool to see. There was a long hallway of four rooms filled with one piece of art work that was black plastic in the shapes of triangles that went from the floor to the ceiling going up and down. A man had painted right on the wall with his hands to make a large design of swirls and splatters. There was a movie that was ephemeral but it made a point.


I really enjoyed my time in Tate Britain and suggest that if visiting try to make time for this exhibit of art. Keep checking and send me a post of what you think.

The Courtauld Gallery

The Courtauld Gallery is a small part of The Courtauld Institute of Art. It lies in Somerset House which has a café, a gift shop and water that shoots out of the ground into the air. This can be really fun for kids and it becomes an ice-skating rink during the winter. If you go on a Monday before two you can get in free, otherwise it costs 5 GBPs. The gallery has a small assortment of art from many different artists. One of the paintings was by Picasso. It was a self portrait with a bandage around his ears. This gallery took me about an hour to see everything. It is only three floors but I still really liked The Courtauld Gallery.

The first floor has a small one roomed exhibit that has paintings on the walls and two glass cases in the center of the room for artifacts. There is a copious amount of religious art. Against one wall there was a conspicuous sculpture of The Virgin and Child. That is all that is on the first floor, but then scale the spiral stair case to the second floor to see more paintings.

At the top of the second floor, there are two entrances that will lead to all the same rooms no matter which one you take. I went to the left and entered into a room with all kinds of scintillating silver china; it was beautiful. Another room had a piano in it that was painted and it was amazing; I wanted it. There are a lot of paintings with The Virgin and Child, also one of my favorites was a painting of Adam and Eve.

The final floor has rooms dedicated to famous artists and their paintings that are all more recent than the others on the previous floor. This floor has both paintings and artifacts that people have created. One room has a large, handmade rug. A wooden mask hung on the wall and looked as if an Indian tribe had made it. One of the rooms is dedicated to all different types of dance. People from different cultures dancing with props such as ribbons, sheets or big wooden shoes, feature prominently in the paintings. This floor was my favorite one because there were so many different things to see.

If coming to London I suggest going to see The Courtauld Gallery and the area around it. Keep checking in.

Afternoon tea is an English tradition that is a great thing to experience while visiting. On Saturday I went to the Charlotte Street Hotel for afternoon tea. When I arrived I noticed they had a special going on for lobster that could be split for two at only 50 GBPs. I decided to have the afternoon tea while my brother and his girlfriend had the lobster. They had a selection of tea to choose from and I went with the jasmine tea and it was delicious. Along with the tea I got two scones, four finger sandwiches, a slice of banana bread, a fruit tart, a pastry, a cupcake, and a fruit cup a assorted berries. It was an amazing meal and I definitely suggest going if taking a trip here.


It just so happened that Saturday was gay pride day. As we spent our time walking around Covent Garden after tea we saw many people out for the event. People were walking around with bright colors on and their hair dyed with all sorts of colors. They had a festival going on in Soho Square with loud music and dancing. A parade took place later on that night and there was a party that night. It was quite an experience to see because my small town does not have festivals or parades unless they are the traditional ones that we have had for many years.


My weekend was great and I got to experience a little more of the culture. If coming to visit make sure not only to go to amazing sights but also include time for cultural activities also. I accidently left my camera at my house when I ventured out, so I do not have any pictures for this weekend but I will make sure I have a picture for you tomorrow. Keep checking and don't forget to post a comment.

London Museum

The Museum of London was fantastic and it lets you really see and experience London before it was the city we know it today. Some of the things they have found in excavations include pottery from the earlier civilizations, bones from burial sites and tools they used for living. The history of the great fire in London is explained through the experiences of three people who witnessed this tragedy. The end of the museum is of some of the remains from the original London and also things from the old that were buried in the ashes and houses.

In one room they have posters, a video and a documentary on the fight for African American rights. When you hear actual stories of people who lived through this it is sad to think how much they struggled. The posters show faces of protesters who most likely were in jail for their opinions. Some were put in prison for life.

There is a kid section next to the history of the London Fire. The kids can try on hats, see coins and pull out maps of what the city used to look like before the fire. Across is a video of three witnesses of the Fire and how they were awaken to find half the city in flames. The fire took four days until it burned itself out. By then most of the city had been destroyed and most of its population homeless.

The third area of the museum is home life. Models have been constructed of the town and how the houses looked. They incorporate a little of the Romans and their way of life. They have two model rooms that have been set up to replicate their houses. There were tiled floors and a bed with cloth to cover it. Also they showed the inside of what a work shop would look like.

The last area was full of pieces of buildings that were destroyed in the fire or have been dug up. There was a wooden door that I found very pretty and a reconstruction of what St. Paul’s Cathedral looked like before the fire. Stones from building with carvings and paintings on them were on display also.

This was a very nice museum to go to especially if you don’t have much time to spend. I spent about two hours there which compared to the other museums is a very short amount of time. I definitely recommend seeing this museum and learn more about the city of London. Check in to see what my weekend holds for me to do.

The National Portrait Gallery is a great place to spend an afternoon. It is just before Trafalgar Square and it is near Covent Garden, with many shops and restaurants around it. This is a museum of only British artwork. The main entrance leads to a small flight of stairs. Then go up the escalator to the second floor. From there the portraits go in order from oldest to the most modern art works.


The first portraits were very well done and very realistic. Sometimes it was hard to tell if it was in fact a painting or a photograph. My favorite portrait was of Queen Victoria after her coronation. She was presented with her crown, scepter and a long flowing cape.


The first floor has the same kind of portraits, only more recent than the ones upstairs. This floor has many more busts which are set next to their portraits as well. These rooms are separated by the accomplishments of the person whether they were a scientist or royal. On this floor I liked the wall of busts that were all dukes, princes or famous generals. The busts were done so well that they resembled the person perfectly without a flaw.


Finally was the ground floor which was modern portraits done by students or people of today. These were remarkable paintings. They all looked so realistic that everyone had their noses pressed up the paintings to see if it was actually a painting or not. The portraits were of stars, professors from different colleges, and then a room full of normal people who all had been painted by students. The portraits of the average people were put into an art competition and there were little plaques next to the portraits that won.


I really enjoyed my time here. I definitely suggest spending an afternoon going and looking at the art that is so magnificently done. Check in and find out what I will do tomorrow.

St. Paul's Cathedral

St. Paul’s Cathedral is a breathtaking sight to see. It is the second largest cathedral in the world. The west entrance takes you to where you can purchase a ticket to enter for 10 GBP. The first thing you see is the baptism bowl with a large candle next to it. Then you turn right and head towards the center of the large church. Chairs are everywhere so people can sit and listen to the priest give a prayer every so often. There was a choir of students around my age of seventeen singing beautiful hymns. If you gaze up to the gold-crested ceiling, you’ll see several different amazing pieces of art painted on it. The center dome in the ceiling is small and windows surround the circle making it a perfect sky light. The next dome is painted in tan and grey paint showing different biblical scenes going on in each section. Then the dome connects to the ground level roof that is crested with the gold and gems.

Downstairs is a large crypt with the bodies of great war heroes of the past however, I am not familiar with any of the names. Some were placed in the floor, others were on the wall and some were even placed above ground on large stands for all to see. Three were very high in the air for those were the most important ones.

Then if you go up the stairs from the main floor you will end up climbing many flights of stairs. They run up a large spiral stair case which leads to the large balcony above. When you reach the balcony you can take a seat and have your friend or someone sit on the whole other side of it, and if you whispered they can hear you very clearly. This was very fun to do. Then after climbing more stairs you end up outside on a balcony where you can see the entire city from every angle. Even though taking pictures was not permitted inside, pictures are allowed outside. Then slowly you can make your way back to the main floor. If you are unable to climb the stairs there is an elevator that can be used to help you reach the top.

This place was an amazing sight to see and I am glad I went. Check in tomorrow to see where I will go next.