Week 16: Very Lively 'Dead' Week

One of the perks of working so hard the past couple of weeks is one week off from academic work (before finals, that is). Finals, unfortunately, were Friday of this week for me; not one, not two, but THREE back-to-back finals that I would have to conquer. But enough of schoolwork for now.

Monday (4/30) was a very busy day for us. Becca, Rasa, and I first witnessed (finally!) the Change of the Guards. The gates of Buckingham Palace were absolutely packed before we even got there. We thought we were going to beat most of the pack by getting there 30 minutes prior, but no – there were tourists EVERYwhere.
We did, however, get right up to the gates to watch the guards for a bit before the actual parade. After two hours of being surrounded by so many people, it was a relief to get away and walk through Green Park for a while. We even got a closer glimpse of the guards walking through the park!

Then, as Rasa got a head start on shopping, Becca and I meandered around Trafalgar Square, the heart of London. The obvious first photo opportunity is Nelson’s column, where we even took pictures with the four lions that guard it and fountains that surround it. The southern end of the Square is the true heart of the city – Charing Cross, from where all distances in London are measured. In the background is the National Gallery, where there are two statues. One is of James II and George Washington. The second statue was a gift from the state of Virginia. To honor our country’s first president’s declaration of never stepping on British soil ever again, U.S. soil was sent for the statue to be set. The four corners of the Square are four plinths, a base on which a statue rests. In one of my photos, I caught the Clock Tower (colloquially known as Big Ben), a double-decker bus, and the equestrian statue of George IV, viewed from the North.

Finally, we joined Rasa on King St. and in Piccadilly Circus to do some London souvenir shopping! Of course, we made our way through Hamley’s again, where we shared HUGE bear hugs with Hamley the bear. Rasa and I also scored last-minute seats to that night’s live showing of The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre. I am totally going to miss seeing live musicals!

After such a busy Monday, I thought that Tuesday (5/1) would be a quieter day. Rasa and I received disconcerting news from her mother that U.S Customs was particularly interested in the boxes she and I were trying to ship home. Renie said that more paperwork was needed before they can allow the boxes into the border.

To get away from the stress that I may have spent nearly $200 shipping priceless items home just so it can sit in limbo, I joined Cloud and Becca in Kensington Park. We spent a leisure afternoon doodling on a sketchpad and even on ourselves. This definitely served well as a distraction for a while J … Later that evening, Becca and Rasa recorded some interesting videos on my camera while I took a shower. Their videos included You-Tube-like renditions of Pop music; some videos even included… Nutella. Yes, Nutella. Only the videos can explain.

The fun continued on Wednesday (5/2) as Christel, Julie, and I took a trip to Abbey Road. Known for EMI’s Abbey Road Studios, a recording studio that has served many performers such as The Beatles, of course. Abbey Road is also iconic because The Beatles named their final 1969 studio LP Abbey Road, for which they also captured their album cover as they used the zebra crossing. Countless tourists, including Christel, Julie, and I, re-enacted this legendary moment before we wrote classic Beatles lyrics on the gate just outside of Abbey Road Studios.

On Thursday (5/3), I finally had to suck it up and face the fact that I had THREE finals the next day. Rasa, Chris A., and I spent some time in Starbucks, which helped me stay up the entire night in the Student Lounge. With Phizz playing World of Warcraft next to me, I studied using the notes that I typed up from my classes.

My first final on Friday (5/4) was for Marketing from 9:00 AM – 12:00 noon, then I had my Management information Systems final from 12:30 – 3:30 PM, and my last final was on Theories & Systems of Psychology from 4:00 – 7:00 PM. My…brain…was…fried. Despite the utter loss of all brain function, I decided to join the rest of the gang for a movie night at the Odeon for the Spider-Man 3 world premiere.

For our last Saturday (5/5), us girls decided to hit up Portabello Market one last time to wrap up our souvenir shopping, which included some knock-off designer gear (shh!). Then, we ended our evening with a lovely Italian dinner, enjoying each other’s company and reflecting on how blessed we are to have spent the past four months in Europe. Unfortunately, I was not feeling my best later that evening. Maybe it had to do with the sad fact that I have one week left in London.

Almost home!
Danielle