It is currently warm enough for chacos.

I expected to arrive in London and basically stay cold until next May. That is not the case. The weather here has been beautiful these past few days and I have wandered around the city in jeans and short sleeves a lot recently. The breezes add a little chill and the occasional rain is rather unpleasant but overall I could totally be comfortable in chacos.

 

My love for ironwork has returned. I don't know what it is but I find old iron fences and lights really beautiful. I have taken lots of pictures trying to get interesting compositions and background behind iron structures. This is in front of St. Paul's Cathedral. Most of the major churches and cathedrals do Evensong, which is a time during the late afternoon when they have music and a small service. These times are free to the public and are really fun to attend. A group of us went to the one at St. Paul's on Thursday before heading to the Globe theater. I still haven't been up in the dome of the cathedral but it is on my list of things to do. The music of the choir sounded amazing in such a big room and it was neat to see the cathedral in use, opposed to simply crowded with a massive number of tourists.

After the Evensong we went to the Globe Theater where we watched Much Ado About Nothing. We had groundling tickets, which meant we had to stand the whole time in front of the stage. I was worried about not being able to see, so a group of us got there incredibly early to make sure we were in the front. I ended up being fifth in line. I got to literally lean on the stage the entire performance, and the actors engaged people from our group multiple times. It was a great performance and I was really pleased to be so close to the stage. And if you are a Fresh Prince of Bel Air fan, the actor who played Geoffrey on the television series played Leonato in the play. We were all incredibly excited; one of the guys with us even squealed.

On Saturday we had a massive tour of Westminster. It was fascinating to learn about the history of the Abbey, but a three and a half hour tour is difficult to manage. By the end we were all ready for lunch and an opportunity to sit down. I'm hoping to attend and Evensong at the Abbey so that I can take in the overall grandeur of the building. I saw a lot of memorial plaques and stained glass, but I didn't get to take it all in as a collective whole.

After the tour a few of us walked back to our flat together and decided to stop and take typical touristy pictures at Trafalgar Square. Apparently the woman on the left of the picture really wanted to join in with us.

Saturday night there was a public festival along the Thames River. There were street vendors and music and a few of us walked around just enjoying the relaxing evening. Some of us got cupcakes with London icons on them, and they were quite yummy. It was fun doing something local, instead of just touring another major spot. I am enjoying all of the sight seeing, but it was nice to get a little break.

My schedule this week will be a little bit lighter and hopefully I will really get into the swing of things. The library here is still on it's summer schedule with limited hours, so I haven't quite figured out the best place to study. If only Davis Library were a five minute walk away...