This week has been crazy!! I feel like I have done so much! I'll do my best to hit all the highlights...here we go!

Last Friday night we took an "ethnic tour" of London. Basically this means we restaurant hopped, filling up on sushi and india food. I had my first nan (indian bread), very yummy.

Saturday was a day of work work work work. I won't tell you about my papers and projects.... that probably wouldn't be exciting to read.

Sunday was church and Brick Lane Market! It's not quite as nice as some of the main stream, touristy markets, but they had a lot of selection, especially concerning food. Some of the food stall workers dressed up in like, 1700 clothes, and I have yet to come up with a reason as to why...

Monday after class, a friend and I decided to go explore Harrod's Department Store. It was ridiculous! They sold the most obscure things for insane prices. Everything was brand names, things I had only ever heard of on Devil Wears Prada. My favorite thing that I saw was a hovercraft, which sold for thirty thousand pounds. They also had a life sized stuffed giraffe, squid ink spaghetti, and spy gear. Every floor was a new adventure! I did buy something small (it was like eight pounds...), and as soon as I had a Harrod's bag in my hand, everyone started treating me differently. It was all "hello ma'am" and "can I be of any assistance?" They started seeing me as a potential customer, not just a tourist that was there to explore, which is what I was. haha. I went and saw the play "Port" at the national theatre. It was incredible. They had a scenery pieces that would just pop out of the floor and a remote control car that would drive on stage. Crazy! Also, it was very cold that day.

Tuesday, we went on an "adventure class" and walked to St. Paul's Cathedral, The Shard (tallest building in London) and the Tate Modern Museum, filled with British Art. We couldn't go in the Cathedral without paying, so I'm going to try to catch a service soon. Those are free :) We got lots of great pictures, and some roasted almonds. Tuesday was also mine and Olivia's day to cook so we practically ran to the grocery, were in and out in a matter of minutes, and got home in time to fix taco salad. We had to eat really fast though, as half of our group had tickets to see "The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime." This play was based off a book that some of you may have read. The adaptation was incredible! It's my favorite show that I've seen since I've been here, by far. The set was this black box, chalkboard, math quadrant and the actors used in such a cool way. Plus, there was a puppy at the end, which basically made it a winner in my book. After the show, we stopped at McDonalds for Cadbury McFlurries to celebrate Olivia, and our friend Monica, finding out they were selected as RAs for Centre next year.

Wednesday was a day out to the country for our whole group. We rented a charter bus and all slept the hour or so out to our first stop: Salisbury Cathedral. I had no idea what to expect but it was lovely! I really enjoyed being out in the country, for one. I had forgotten what quiet was like. London never sleep or slows down, so being able to sit in the grass and hear nothing was a treat. After the Cathedral, we headed off to the infamous Stonehenge! It was a bizarre thing to just drive up to. You don't exactly expect to see one the world's greatest wonders out your car window, but there it was. I never thought about the fact that Stonehenge was an "exhibit" though. You have to pay to see it, and then it closes after a certain time. I don't really see how a field can close....but I guess so!. After that, we headed over to Avebury, where there are actually stone monuments older than Stonehenge, just not as famous. Because there were less people, however, we kind of had free range and had an absolute blast! The sun was setting over the hill, making for some great fun and spectacular photos.

Today, Olivia and Mary and I gave a presentation on the evacuation of British children during WW2, then we headed to the grocery to get what we didn't have time to get on Tuesday. After cooking the left over meat from the taco salad into delicious hamburgers, we cleaned. Like hard core cleaned. Then Mary and I finished another project, and emailed it into our professor (see, I told you work was building! haha). Pretty soon things calmed down though and I hit the town to see "Spamalot." This is basically the musical version of Monty Python and The Holy Grail. We had a nice surprise when we arrived, finding out that our tickets had been upgraded! The show was simple, but it was very cute/cheesy and had a lot of really funny bits. It seems that here, the thing to do during intermission (or interval as they call it), is to eat ice cream. I have not been to a show yet that didn't have ushers selling ice cream in the aisles between acts. Well, Olivia and I thought it was an experience to be had, so we finally got some tonight.

Now, I just watched the season finale of The Bachelor (late but worth it), and I'm heading off to bed. I'm so excited though, because day after tomorrow Kyle gets here!!!! WOOO!!! If you want the exact count its 31 hours. Not that I'm counting...

Also, sorry that this is rushed and brief. I know each post seems to be more hurried then the last, but I promise I'm doing my best! :)

Love from London,

Deanna

P.S., I wrote this very quickly, so I apologize in advance for any and all typos.