Two weeks already?

Harvey - our dog

It seems crazy to think that I have been here for over two weeks already.  I am pretty impressed with my transition so far! I woke up early on Sunday to catch the guard change at Buckingham palace that I have been wanting to go to since I got here. The guard change happens every even day and it was really fascinating.  I went with a friend and we didn't know what was going to happen at all, luckily there were people that could tell us where was best to stand.  There were a lot of people there, so next time I go, I will make sure to do it on a weekday.  The preciseness of the guards is really cool.  I wasn't able to get close to the gate to see the actual changing of the guards, so I will make sure to get a spot there next time.  After the guard change, we were on our way back home when we ran into a small market.  There were really pretty original oil paintings. I could have spent an hour looking through them all. I really hope to be able to get one while I am here, if I can figure out how to get it home! Later, I went to Camden Market with Ashley.  London has a lot of markets to go to on Sundays, which is really fun especially while the weather is nice. Camden Market is known for selling clothes but has turned into more of a tourist area, so there were a lot of souvenirs.

So far, this week has been really busy. Monday was packed with classes because those that are normally scheduled for Thursday were moved to Monday due to our trip to France.  One of the major perks to this program is that our teachers are only teaching us, and are able to move around our classes very easily.  I signed up to go on a Jack the Ripper tour, which happened last night. I read about Jack the Ripper before I went, which helped me understand the tour a bit more.  Even though the city has changed a lot since 1888, we were still able to see some of the places of the original crime scenes.  It was a walking tour that took place at night, making it even more real. Today, along with classes, I had a tour of Parliament. The group that I am with gives us a lot of opportunities to see the city and go on tours; I am really glad I decided to do this program! I was able to walk through most of Parliament, some of the building is over 600 years old, surviving a fire and the bombings of WWII.  The building was really incredible, really intricate with gold everywhere.  Along with the tour, I also learned a lot about the history of the government. I find it really interesting to know I was in the same rooms that past kings and queens have been in.

Tomorrow, I leave for France for four days! The whole weekend is planned out and I cannot wait. I will start in Paris tomorrow and end the weekend in Normandy.  It is really awesome that we are able to go for four days and they were able to move our class schedule around for it.  I have met a lot of friends on the trip so far and am excited to spend the weekend with them as well. Every day, we are moving locations to someplace else, enabling us to see a lot of different sites.

The time here is going so fast already, and I have started coming up with ideas for my 9 day fall break! This is happening in about a month, so I am trying to figure out where I want to go during this time.  It is hard to plan a trip to a country that you have never been to, but I know this will make it an adventure! As of right now, I am planning to go a few places in Italy and end the week in Germany at the Werner's for Milena's birthday.