westminster and more...

Westminster Abbey was our first stop of the day. All I could think of as I wandered through the Abbey in utter amazement were the words my Dad has said to me many times before .."If only walls could talk." (right again dad.. you instill more in me than you think :) ) The Abbey was by far the most incredible building I have ever seen. I couldn't even fathom something so beautiful that has existed since 1045; back in the states, anything over 100 years old is fascinating to me! I literally had goosebumps the entire time.. We then went to the Victoria and Albert Museum which is filled with decorative arts from all over the world ranging in time periods from some 3,500 years ago to art from today. It was a really great place, we walked around and sketched some of the pieces in our sketchbooks. Our last stop was the National Portrait Gallery where we saw famous paintings from Van Gogh, Monet, Michelangelo, and my personal favorite, Perter Paul Rubens. It was amazing seeing the real portraits that we've been studying from our text books back home. Afterwards, we all split up and went off on our own. We wandered the streets, checked out the shops, and ate at a sushi restaurant which was a first for me. It was delicious! I got a hold of my friend Gabby, who lives here in London and I'll be spending the weekend with her. It will be nice to hang out with some of the locals and get a glimpse of what life in London is really like. Well that sums up the day...off to bed I go.

First Day in London!

Well after a long ..long flight, we made it to London! It was the longest flight I've been on and despite the few glitches we ran into, it was not bad at all. We arrived in JFK an hour late and all 20+ of us had to run through the airport to make our connecting flight! Luckily we all made it on the plane and laughed about the whole ordeal afterwards. We landed in London at 7:00 a.m (which is around midnight in Utah), dropped our bags off at the hotel and off we went for the day. We are all suffering from some serious jet lag but hey we aren't about to waste any time! The commuting system here is so efficient! We have both the rail and the train pass which allows us to go just about anywhere. I figure it's a good thing seeing as how we are all a little intimidated by the cars with the steering wheels on the right side and having to drive in the opposite direction as the USA haha. Darrin gave us a tour around our hotel and the surrounding area to get familiar with things. We walked over to the Westminster Abbey, The National Portrait Gallery and Buckingham Palace. The best part of the day was right as we walked up to the front entrance to snap a few close up shots, the security guards opened up the gates and cleared the streets just as the Queen drove out! She waved to us as we tried to snap a few pictures of her. It was so exciting, talk about perfect timing! (There is a picture above that shows her) Now all I hope for is a glimpse of Prince William and Harry..oh and David Beckham of course haha :) It was a great first day in London! I'll be posting a blog every night so feel free to read and comment on them!

Assignment #2: Hardwick Hall

Set high on a hill in north-east Derbyshire, Hardwick is known as one of the greatest Elizabethan houses, which survives almost unchanged today. Completed over 400 years ago and known to have 'more glass than wall', the Hall contains one of Europe's best collections of embroideries and tapestries. The two massive country mansions stand as memorials to the notorious 'Bess of Hardwick'. The Hardwick family had owned and farmed the land since the 13th century, and Elizabeth was born in 1527 in the medieval manor house that once occupied the site. Bess went about restoring the Old Hall at Hardwick, but in 1590 after her husband died, she decided to build a much grander mansion to represent her worldly status. Bess flooded the new Hardwick Hall with her initials 'ES,' and adorned the walls with old tapestries and fine embroidery. In the 1800s, majority of the furniture that was brought in came from Chatsworth House. Hardwick is now open to the public. It has a fine garden, and the grounds still contain Hardwick Old Hall, the slightly earlier house which was used as guest and service accommodation after the new hall was built.

Assignment #1: Montmartre

Montmartre is a 130 m. high hill located north of Paris. The name Montmartre or 'mountain of the martyr' came from Saint Denis who was who was decapitated on the hill around 250 AD. Saint Denis was the Bishop of Paris and is the patron saint of France. Montmartre is known for the Basilica of Sacre Coeur and Saint Pierre de Montmartre, which claims to be the location at which the Jesuit order of priests was founded. Montmartre is also know for its nightlife. Montmartre's drinking scene greatly increased due to the fact that it lied outside the city limits and was free of Paris taxes. Montmartre was home to many famous artists including Dali, Monet, and Picasso. The area, as you can imagine, was a great inspiration for their work. Montmartre is the last village in the big city of Paris and is still very subtle and unique despite the millions of tourists that come to visit from all over the globe.