January 15, 2012

Crossing the London Bridge

We have Saturdays free, and this Saturday we didn't have any class trips, so we were free to go where we pleased. The first thing I wanted to do was SLEEP IN. Finally! I've been waiting to sleep in since I started this study abroad. So that was awesome. After the amazing sleeping in, I went with a group of girls to go on a London Walk for my "London Walks" class (a 1 credit class where we basically just go on field trips). We walked around the south of the Thames, and ended up at Borough Market. First off, it was FREEZING. So be ready for no pictures of me, because I looked nasty with a red nose and watery eyes from the frigid temperatures. Gross. Now I understand what people meant when they told me it would be cold because of the humidity. This was the first really cold day so far, and it was no fun. I'm hoping global warming really kicks in soon so it will be warmer for the rest of the trip.

We crossed over the Tower Bridge, which reminded me a lot of the Golden Gate Bridge. Apparently the bridge can act as a draw bridge, which is amazing because it was huge and probably (undoubtedly) super heavy. The Thames is pretty nasty dirty and there are stairs at different places along it that lead you down to the rocky beaches and tides of the Thames. I wanted to go down, just for the joy of being by the beach in London, but it was freezing and windy, and I chose not to.

I think they hang the birds there to visually tell people not to eat there...

We stopped off at Borough Market for about a half hour. It was so overwhelming with all the different types of foods. One area was dedicated to disgusting meats, where they would set out cut meat in the open or hang dead animals in front of your face. I’m really not a fan of meat, so I didn’t enjoy this area at all. Nasty reeky mess.

Romanesque?  Whatever that is....

Check this crazy vegetable out. I've never seen anything like it before, and I feel like if you tried to eat it it would end up staying the exact same shape in your stomach.

Oh, they also had an area dedicated to smelly cheese that smelled like dying socks. They were making it from scratch, and surprisingly, people were eating it. I didn't buy anything from the market, because I know I'm waaaay too picky and everything was pretty expensive. Almost all the food to buy was meat too, so I got lunch from a cute little shop around the corner from the market.

I stopped off in the Southwark Cathedral for a bit, which is one of the best examples of gothic architecture in London. It had several statues dedicated to various people, including Shakespeare who is pictured sprawled out on his side, composing something. He was writing with a sprig of a real tree branch. I think they probably replace the branch every day, because the sprig was fresh. It would be fantastic to have that be your job- to replace Shakespeare's sprig pen every morning.

Primadona Cat

A cat just chilling in an ancient cathedral cleaning itself. Brattly little cat wouldn't turn and look at me for a picture.

The Millennial Bridge, which you may recognize from Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (the scene where some jerk-face Death Eaters fly over it and snap its supports)...freaking awesome. I feel like I'm living in a Harry Potter museum where we see different scenes of Harry Potter almost daily.

Fanciest Box People I've ever seen

We saw this sweet Evian advertisement. It was a huge with one clear side (about the size of a boxcar) with a little scene set up inside. There were people inside sitting on a couch, eating, drinking, and chatting as gentle snow fell on them. So relaxing and posh. There was also a small fire in one corner, and let me tell you, I wanted in that box. It was still freezing and that little box looked pretty inviting. A sponsor came over and told us that it was sponsored by Evian and these people had won a facebook contest and they got to spend ½ hour in the box being fed, getting free drinks, enjoying the warmth and the snow falling from the ceiling, and ‘contemplating life.’ He told us if we came back in an hour or so we might be able to spend some time in the box. I would have loved to, but we were exhausted and way too cold to hang around for an hour. Maybe another time.