Please accept my sincerest apologies! It has taken me much to long to tell you all about my amazing Easter Break. Essays and exams have been all consuming since my return but now I’m fortunate to have a bit of a break between exams so it only now that I find the time to begin writing about my monuments trip.
Let’s see where should I begin?!
London!:
London has always been number one on my list of places to travel. The first few days of my break I finally got to check London off my list (and I’m still trying to decide on a new number one!). At the time of my visit, my cousin was in London for an alternative placement for school. This meant that I got to stay in a posh London flat (thanks Mike!).
My first night in London meant it was time to check out some of the tourist attractions! First stop, Oxford Street! After wandering through some department stores which are way out of the budget of an exchange student, we ventured to Piccadilly Circus to meet some of my Swansea friends who also happened to be in London. After posing for our classic tourist pics in the circus, it was time to see Buckingham Palace!
Now as you may or may not know, I’m quite a fan of the royal family. No need to discuss the reasons, but as I’m sure you’ve concluded I couldn’t wait to see Buckingham Palace! Accompanied by my cousin and a friend from Swansea we set off to the palace despite the pouring rain. I will always cherish my first glimpses of the palace, a dream come true you could call it. The tears of joy in my eyes certainly surprised those who had accompanied me to the castle. The Palace was beautifully illuminated against the night sky and rain. I couldn’t help but just stand in awe.
The next morning I ventured back to the palace, this time to see the Changing of the Guards. I was shocked at the number of people there on a random off-peak weekday. It was difficult to see through the crowd, but eventually I made my way far enough forward to see the ceremony. The band played a great medley which included an array of Beatles songs (I’m sure there were more notable tunes, but they escape me right now).
Last semester I had made two friends at the hostel I stayed at while in Helsinki. I was lucky enough to see both during my time in London. I met up with the first to take a walking tour though the city. It was unfortunately raining, but it added to the London atmosphere. It was great to see parliament, the Eye, the clock tower that houses Big Ben (the Bell), St. James’ Palace and Trafalgar Square to name but a few of the sights. The tour was great (and free) and taught me some really cool stuff. Did you know that the lions in Trafalgar Square were made out of melted French cannons?!
The next morning I met up with my second friend who I had met in Helsinki. We had a “day of museums”. We visited the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. I will just write a few lines about each one.
The Natural History Museum was housed in gorgeous building. I had an excellent tour guide too (thanks again Mike!). It is definitely a site to visit if you’re into the sciences. I particularly enjoyed the rocks and mineral section of the museum. This is not because I’m a fan of rocks and minerals but simply because when looking at one rock, I thought to myself “That’s just a normal rock!” Turns out it was just a normal rock, when I read the little sign I was informed that the rock was from Bancroft!
The Science Museum, hmm, what to say about this. This was probably the most poorly arranged museum I have ever been to. There were a lot of dead ends throughout the exhibits which made it very frustrating to navigate through the museum. Some of the contents were interesting, but I wouldn’t really suggest stopping here.
The Victoria and Albert Museum had such a wide variety of exhibits. My favourite by far was the exhibit of casts. There were two rooms filled with cast replicas of statues and monuments from around the world. I loved how overwhelming the one room was, there was so much to look at. All of the replicas were gorgeous. There was also a fashion section which housed the famous pearl dress worn by Princess Diana.
Following the museums we ventured to Hyde Park and the Diana Memorial Fountain. The fountain was simply that, a fountain. Although I feel it is nearly impossible to link a fountain to the memory of someone’s life, it did posses a calming and almost mesmerizing effect. I suppose this is not far from the traits Diana is said to have possessed.
Saturday meant an early morning and a trip to Portobello Road (the street where the riches of ages are sold!) in Notting Hill. It was such a beautiful area of the city. The market was extremely crowed and definitely targeted tourists... which was perfect since I was of course a tourist. The market was much larger than I expected and we sadly had to leave before finishing the entire stretch. Luckily we were off to see another set of relics only seen in London! London Bridge, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London!
To me, London Bridge is nothing special, except for that famous little ditty (which I hummed to myself while looking at the bridge). Not far down the River Thames, is Tower Bridge. This is the bridge everyone thinks of as they hum that previously mentioned tune. This bridge is pretty cool... buuuut, I was not pleased with the paint colours on the bridge. I’m sure they were chosen for some specific and significant meaning but I’m sorry, the baby blue railings just didn’t work.
After crossing the river, we went to the Tower of London. This site is not simply a tower, but a walled city once home to royalty, and also a home for prisoners. There were numerous displays, one of which had a large display of armour worn by royalty centuries ago. There was something magical about standing in front of a suit of armour worn by Henry XIII. This man may be infamous now, but years ago he was a real person. Seeing the suit helped to reiterate that fact. By far my favourite exhibit was the Crown Jewels. There was a row of display cases housing the royal jewels. Moving sidewalks ran along two sides of the display cases. I wish I had been able to take pictures but sadly it not allowed. I can’t even begin to explain how incredible the jewellery was. It is hard to believe that jewels that large actually exist. The Coronation Crown was breathtakingly beautiful and surrounded by others which were nearly as radiant.
I absolutely loved London. I could walk 2 blocks and see another sight which I had grown up admiring pictures of. I fell in love with the city and returned later in my break, but that’s a story for another time. Next up, Austria!!
Let’s see where should I begin?!
London!:
London has always been number one on my list of places to travel. The first few days of my break I finally got to check London off my list (and I’m still trying to decide on a new number one!). At the time of my visit, my cousin was in London for an alternative placement for school. This meant that I got to stay in a posh London flat (thanks Mike!).
My first night in London meant it was time to check out some of the tourist attractions! First stop, Oxford Street! After wandering through some department stores which are way out of the budget of an exchange student, we ventured to Piccadilly Circus to meet some of my Swansea friends who also happened to be in London. After posing for our classic tourist pics in the circus, it was time to see Buckingham Palace!
Now as you may or may not know, I’m quite a fan of the royal family. No need to discuss the reasons, but as I’m sure you’ve concluded I couldn’t wait to see Buckingham Palace! Accompanied by my cousin and a friend from Swansea we set off to the palace despite the pouring rain. I will always cherish my first glimpses of the palace, a dream come true you could call it. The tears of joy in my eyes certainly surprised those who had accompanied me to the castle. The Palace was beautifully illuminated against the night sky and rain. I couldn’t help but just stand in awe.
The next morning I ventured back to the palace, this time to see the Changing of the Guards. I was shocked at the number of people there on a random off-peak weekday. It was difficult to see through the crowd, but eventually I made my way far enough forward to see the ceremony. The band played a great medley which included an array of Beatles songs (I’m sure there were more notable tunes, but they escape me right now).
Last semester I had made two friends at the hostel I stayed at while in Helsinki. I was lucky enough to see both during my time in London. I met up with the first to take a walking tour though the city. It was unfortunately raining, but it added to the London atmosphere. It was great to see parliament, the Eye, the clock tower that houses Big Ben (the Bell), St. James’ Palace and Trafalgar Square to name but a few of the sights. The tour was great (and free) and taught me some really cool stuff. Did you know that the lions in Trafalgar Square were made out of melted French cannons?!
The next morning I met up with my second friend who I had met in Helsinki. We had a “day of museums”. We visited the Natural History Museum, the Science Museum and the Victoria and Albert Museum. I will just write a few lines about each one.
The Natural History Museum was housed in gorgeous building. I had an excellent tour guide too (thanks again Mike!). It is definitely a site to visit if you’re into the sciences. I particularly enjoyed the rocks and mineral section of the museum. This is not because I’m a fan of rocks and minerals but simply because when looking at one rock, I thought to myself “That’s just a normal rock!” Turns out it was just a normal rock, when I read the little sign I was informed that the rock was from Bancroft!
The Science Museum, hmm, what to say about this. This was probably the most poorly arranged museum I have ever been to. There were a lot of dead ends throughout the exhibits which made it very frustrating to navigate through the museum. Some of the contents were interesting, but I wouldn’t really suggest stopping here.
The Victoria and Albert Museum had such a wide variety of exhibits. My favourite by far was the exhibit of casts. There were two rooms filled with cast replicas of statues and monuments from around the world. I loved how overwhelming the one room was, there was so much to look at. All of the replicas were gorgeous. There was also a fashion section which housed the famous pearl dress worn by Princess Diana.
Following the museums we ventured to Hyde Park and the Diana Memorial Fountain. The fountain was simply that, a fountain. Although I feel it is nearly impossible to link a fountain to the memory of someone’s life, it did posses a calming and almost mesmerizing effect. I suppose this is not far from the traits Diana is said to have possessed.
Saturday meant an early morning and a trip to Portobello Road (the street where the riches of ages are sold!) in Notting Hill. It was such a beautiful area of the city. The market was extremely crowed and definitely targeted tourists... which was perfect since I was of course a tourist. The market was much larger than I expected and we sadly had to leave before finishing the entire stretch. Luckily we were off to see another set of relics only seen in London! London Bridge, Tower Bridge and the Tower of London!
To me, London Bridge is nothing special, except for that famous little ditty (which I hummed to myself while looking at the bridge). Not far down the River Thames, is Tower Bridge. This is the bridge everyone thinks of as they hum that previously mentioned tune. This bridge is pretty cool... buuuut, I was not pleased with the paint colours on the bridge. I’m sure they were chosen for some specific and significant meaning but I’m sorry, the baby blue railings just didn’t work.
After crossing the river, we went to the Tower of London. This site is not simply a tower, but a walled city once home to royalty, and also a home for prisoners. There were numerous displays, one of which had a large display of armour worn by royalty centuries ago. There was something magical about standing in front of a suit of armour worn by Henry XIII. This man may be infamous now, but years ago he was a real person. Seeing the suit helped to reiterate that fact. By far my favourite exhibit was the Crown Jewels. There was a row of display cases housing the royal jewels. Moving sidewalks ran along two sides of the display cases. I wish I had been able to take pictures but sadly it not allowed. I can’t even begin to explain how incredible the jewellery was. It is hard to believe that jewels that large actually exist. The Coronation Crown was breathtakingly beautiful and surrounded by others which were nearly as radiant.
I absolutely loved London. I could walk 2 blocks and see another sight which I had grown up admiring pictures of. I fell in love with the city and returned later in my break, but that’s a story for another time. Next up, Austria!!
My first trip to Buckingham Palace!!
Inside the Natural History Museum
Underground and Clock Tower (home of the bell Big Ben!)
Me with HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge
Sorry! This is as close as my camera could get to the Crown Jewels!
The London Eye! 
