Doing the Wave at Wimbledon

Last night was a good night's sleep, just not long enough. I went to sleep with my ipod in so the music drowned out the train a little. Yesterday, a group of girls and I decided that we would go to Wimbledon after our classes today; and that is just what we did!

After a quick lunch, we hopped on the tube headed for South Fields (the stop for Wimbledon on the tube). From the station, we took a red double decker bus to the courts because we weren't exactly sure how far from the stop they were. Turns out, they weren't far at all, we walked on the way back. 

When we arrived at the front gates, we walked up to the ticket counters and were able to get tickets for £16.  We ended up really lucky.  We found wonderful seats at the No. 3 courts and it turned out to be a great match! The players were surprisingly laid back.  It was a doubles match and all four of the players were having a lot of fun. They were joking around with each other a lot.  At one point, one of the players, Goran Ivanisevic hopped over the little barrier between the seats and the court and sat in an empty seat next to a woman and took a picture with her! He was a lot of fun! 

The funniest part of the whole day happened about 15 minutes before we left.  We were all just sitting in our seats while the players were taking a little break to get water when all of a sudden, on the other side of the court, fans started doing...THE WAVE.  I don't know why we were so shocked by this. I guess we thought that tennis matches, especially Wimbledon matches would be much more serious than this.  

Here are pictures from today! 

Today was so much fun, but very exhausting. It is now time for bed! 

We didn't do as much today, that is why the post is so short.  BUT, I do have some exciting news. Maegan, Sarah, and I have pre-ordered tickets to Harry Potter for the day that it comes out in London! I am so excited! I can't wait to see it, but I'm sad that it is the last one. 

a bus, a boat, and Ben

Today was day 4 of my trip but only day 2 in London. Before I tell you about my day, let me tell you about my VERY LONG night.  Where we stay at Heythrop College is absolutely beautiful except for one small detail, it is right beside the High Street Kensington tube stop. The tracks are literally run outside my window.  After last night, I have learned that trains leave that station every 3 to 5 minutes, 3 TO 5 MINUTES! Ah, here comes one now.

I woke up this morning around 6:30 to shower, get ready for breakfast and head to my first day of classes.  I really enjoy my British Parliament class so far. I think John Rose is a very interesting man. He held a seat in Parliament for 31 years. I'm sure I will learn a lot from him.

After classes were over, we went to lunch at the college dining hall. We were given some tea sandwiches, which I didn't eat because they had mayonnaise on them, and we were given this delicious vegetable puree soup. It was so good!

Next we took the tube to the Enbankment stop where the National Gallery, the London Eye, and the Thames River are located.  Cathy Rogers, the program director, gave each of us a ticket to The Original Tour, a popular bus tour here in London.  On this classic double decker bus, I saw St. Paul's Cathedral, Big Ben, The London Eye, the Tower of London, and the Tower Bridge.  This tour also showed us historical places such as the famous Fleet Street popularized by the movie Sweeney Todd, the beginning site of the devastating Great Fire of London. With the Original Tour ticket, we received a free river cruise that provided us with some really breathtaking views of The London Eye, Tower Bridge, the HMS Belfast Naval ship, and many other sights.

(the sculptor of this lion and the 3 just like him, did not actually have a real lion pose for him. Because of this, he did not know what the paws of a lion look like so instead, he just used his dog's feet!) 

Oh Heyyy, William and Kate! 

Beautiful Big Ben

The London Eye

The next few pictures are of St. Paul's Cathedral.  It was designed and built by Sir Christopher Wren.  He is the architect that was given the responsibility to rebuild London after the Great Fire in 1666. St. Paul's is 365 feet tall, a foot for every day of the year.  This is considered one of Wren's masterpiece's. 

This statue is known as the monument.  At the top, golden flames are burning. If the Monument were to be laid down towards the east, the flames would mark the spot where the Great Fire of London began. 

The Tower Bridge

The Tower of London

again...

again...

The Tower Bridge again..

This is the HSM Belfast Naval Ship.  Named after the capital city of Northern Ireland, this ship played a very important role in World War II.  It was used in the destruction of the German warship Scharnhorst. It is now located in the Thames River and is part of the Imperial War Museum. 

again...

This is the Shard Glass company building. It is currently being built.  When completed, it will be the tallest building in the European Union.  The tour guide said that this building would have roughly 100 floors, mostly offices.  He also said that they are currently on a floor in the 80's, which is a public viewing platform.  After the platform, the rest of the floors will be private residences, starting at £25 million! 

This is a replica of the ship that was captained by Sir Francis Drake.  He was a privateer (pirate).  He was sponsored and supported by Queen Elizabeth I. He was second in command of the English fleet when they defeated the Spanish Armada in 1588. (Wow, the things I learned in Emergence of Western Civilizations with James Boyles!) 

This is a replica of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre. It is the first building to have a thatched roof since the Great Fire of London. I'm hoping to get a/several groundling ticket(s) to a few shows. 

After the tour and boat ride, we returned to Heythrop College.  Maegan, Sarah, Carrie, and I had a little picnic in the beautiful park at our school.  When we finished with our food, we went for a walk in Kensington and Hyde Park. It was so beautiful.  So many people were outside enjoying the lovely weather. We then took the cliche picture with the red phone booths! 

When I came back to my room, I did some homework, skyped with Jeff and my family. Now that I have finished my entry for today, I am ready for bed! 

Today was such an amazing day! I had so much fun and saw some really beautiful things.  Tomorrow after class we many go to Wimbledon!

Day 2 & 3

Day 2


Monday started wonderfully. I woke up in my wonderful hotel room that was paid for by American Airlines.  Maegan, Sarah, and I just hung around in our hotel room until it was time to head to the airport once again.  Luckily, our plane actually took off. We arrived in Chicago at about 7 pm; our next flight was set to take off at 9:45 pm.  Until it was time to board our connecting flight, Maegan, Sarah, and I roamed around O'Hare Airport to find "authentic" deep dish pizza.

On the way back from getting pizza, we ran into a familiar face in the airport. NICK JONAS, seriously. It was crazy. We went back and told all of the girls but I don't think anyone really believed us.  I boarded the plane,watched the beautiful lights of Chicago twinkle in the night, ate dinner, and watched No Strings Attached.   

After that, I fell asleep.  

Day 3

When I woke up the next morning, I was in London, and surprise, it was raining.  We were picked up my two vans that took us to Heythrop College. It was so strange to see someone not only drive on the left side of the road, but to drive from the right side of the car. I thought I was going to have a heart attack! 

When we arrived at Heythrop College, we were immediately fed, thank goodness.  We were all so hungry! I had my first real English meal, steak and kidney pie.  It was actually pretty good.  Here is the room that I will be staying in at Heythrop College: 

After dropping off our luggage in our rooms, we went to Boots, which is the UK equivalent to CVS.  Our stop on the Tube is right beside Boots. 

We went to Tesco and bought groceries.  Then, we went on a little tour of what is near where we are staying.  Heythrop College is located in Kensington Square, which is really close to Kensington Palace.  Kensington Palace is where Princess Diana lived and is where her son and his new wife have chosen to call home.  

Here are some more pictures that I took while on this little tour. 

(this is a really cool skate park that is located near the National Theatre along the South Bank. It was so colorful!) 

All of the flight problems, time zone changes, and London streets have made me very tired. I must now go unpack and go to bed. I start classes tomorrow!