We traveled several places outside of London; Windsor castle, Stonehenge, and Oxford university.
In all reality, our group lived like princesses and princes thanks to a combination of Dr. J hooking us up with fast passes- pre ordered tickets to most major sites that we examined and excellent timing skills during our time here. 
Visiting London has been a dream come true. It’s my last night here- literally our plane leaves tomorrow morning back to Los Angeles. With an extra early wake up call at 6:30am, I’m finally sitting myself down to complete these three required in London blog posts. Although required, I’m happy to share my experience and reflect. I am really kicking myself in the butt for not keeping up with a post daily but it is what it is.
To begin, our group was able to do the impossible in a short amount of time. A typical one month of travel and sight seeing was squeezed into a week. As a whole, our first night we went to the oldest bar in London called The Archor- this wasn’t on Dr. Jenkins agenda but nevertheless it had history. The next day the real education began. We viewed Big Big, then my personal favorite the Westminster Abbey which we had a guided tour of and it’s absolutely mind blowing, in addition to the space area it.
As I lay in my bed at the Novetel hotel, dreading the task of packing my two suit cases with endless suverniors and pondering about what I should eat my last night here in London. I’m looking back at all the wonderful memories I have created during this trip. Finally seeing things I have only heard about or seen pictures of and really experiencing it for myself. From the “London eye, to seeing the borough market not just with my eyes but with my nose, taking in the smells/scents that make the market what it is and to going to Stonehenge. My days here in London were always filled with thousands of years of history, even though I may have been crying half the time about my feet being sore. The people here in London added even more to my experience, learning that most people my age or older live an hour from London and commute to work every day, to learning how to socialize like a Londoner. As much as we loved their British accents, they loved our American accents twice as much, even more when they found out we were “California girls”.Well all good things must come to an end and this amazing adventure has ran its course.
Finally on the way to the airport, tired from lugging suit cases up the stairs and down stairs and trying to catch the tub. I finish my second blog on the tube, and I say many thanks to Dr. J for giving me an unforgettable experience.
So as I check my luggage in and try to change my seat, I do not say goodbye to London but see you soon.
Amber
It’s a sad thought knowing this will be the last night I will sleep in this bed, in this amazing city. This entire trip had been more than I could possibly imagine. I have seen such breath taking places and made everlasting friendships. 
Much like I predicted, I bonded with the gothic styled cathedrals on this trip the most. The Westminster abby was by far the most remarkable building I was lucky enough to step inside of. This place gave me a strange feeling when I saw it though. So many people were buried there, which was a sad thought to me but these people were buried there out of the utmost respect which was a intimidating thing as well. Even being able to just walk through this building was an honor in itself, the people buried there were rare breads that have set the bar high for us folks here in the present.
The amount of things that we did in only a weeks time blows my mind; there was the Westminster abby, buckingham palace, the London eye, oxford and many, many more tours. The exhaustion I felt on this trip was like nothing I’ve ever experienced before, but that goes for my excitement as well. I can’t express how thankful I am to Dr. J for setting up this unforgettable trip. He has opened my eyes to the world of travel and the beauty of architecture.
I will never forget you London, see you soon.
What a beautiful start to our “rest day.” After a little bit of sleeping in on my part while a handful of others went to church service, we got up and got ready for our hike on the Maunga Pu Summit trail. It was a steep hike up, but the views were spectacular! We were […]
After traveling for what seemed like days. We all finally safely made it to London. We went through some crazy turbulence, and some crowded underground rides but yes, we are here.
For our first day Dr. J set up a tour of Westminster Abbey, Buckingham Palace, London Eye, and also the changing of the guard. We all got downstairs ready to go (on time, might I add) with excited expressions on all of our faces. Eager to see the sights we made our way to the underground and got off at Westminster. Right when we came above ground right in front of us was the breath taking Elizabeth Tower (AKA Big Ben). I was so eager to see this amazing iconic tower because I had previously presented to the class about Big Ben and became personally invested.
After we all took pictures we made our way to Westminster Abbey. We met with our Tour guide Sean (who was absolutely phenomenal) and began our tour. What an incredibly space Westminster Abbey is. The church was absolutely overflowing with history. From poets corner, to all the kings and queens tombs, to the legendary services held there the place was remarkable. One of my favorite things I learned about Westminster was about the coronation chair. Behind a panel of glass was the chair every king and queen has sat in for their coronation. However if you looked at the back panel of the chair there are initials of school boys. This is because the chair used to be placed in a detention room at the boys secondary school across the way. During their detention they would etch their initials into the back! Crazy!
Another thing I loved about Westminster was that Charles Darwin and Sir Isaac Newton are said to be buried there. I was amazed that men of that scientific stature were buried in a church. I thought that was so intriguing. We also went by the poet’s corner that carried the bodies of Charles Darwin, and Sir Lawerence Olivier.
The building overall was stunning. The architecture inside and out was rich in English Tudor Style
After Westminster was Buckingham palace, which was cool. It reminded me a lot of Hurst castle. It was very interesting to walk through and listen to the audio tours. My favorite sections of the house were probably the art collections kings and queens have collected over time.
Finally we made it to the London Eye. It was a great sight all the way at the top of the observation wheel.
After a long, but incredible day of sight seeing a group of us went to a small interactive play/theme park called The London Dungeoun. It was scary but actually really fun! We learned a lot about some of the infamous dark times London has had. Such as The plague and Jack the Ripper. I don’t do well with scary at all, but when you’re with an awesome group of friends you can’t help but have fun in laugh!
Well, after a 12 hour first day we made our way back to the hotel. Such an amazing first day, I absolutely could not be more excited to see what this city has to show!
It is hard to believe that this trip is coming to an end. My time here in London has been nothing short of wonderful, life-changing, and inspiring.
While it still hasn’t fully hit me that it’s over and by this time tomorrow, we will be back in the states, I’m so happy that I got to experience this trip with lifelong friends- friends from CI and London.
Saying goodbye to all of these guys will be difficult but I know that when we run into each other on campus or see each other again, it will be such a memorable experience as we reminisce on our time together.
Being chosen to be a part of this amazing group has been so great for me. Being in a class with 14 other students from CI traveling through London has been extremely inspiring. I want to see more places, do more things, and the experience more of the world. Thank you again to everyone who has made this trip possible!
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