Life is super busy now since I have two weeks and three days left! So many projects due and Julie and I are cracking down on our London Bucket list. That means new adventures EVERY day and miles upon miles of walking. But every millisecond is more worth it than most anything I have ever done.
This weekend we visited Hampton Court Palace in Surrey, home to royals such as Henry VIII; fell under the spell of Westminster Abbey on Saturday, then returned on Sunday for the Evensong service (I nearly cried listening to the choir. There is nothing I know of that I can compare to basking in choir music whilst sitting awestruck in one of man's most majestic creations); I rambled through Southwark (if you want to sound official, it's pronounced "Suth-uck"), Buckingham area including St. James' Park; and today visited The Queen's Gallery to see the Victoria and Albert exhibition. That was one of the best art exhibitions I have seen thus far! Probably because I am so enthralled by V&A's love and life story. They are a couple to behold!
Here is my weekend in pictures:
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| Hello Hampton Court Palace! |
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| I might be walking right where Henry VIII or Anne Boelyn or Jane Seymour once strolled. |
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| There was a maze! |
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| James was tired and took a nap |
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| Standing in the first courtyard. That's right, there are FOUR. |
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| Looks real doesn't it? |
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| The kitchens were bigger than any house I have ever seen |
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| One of three large fireplaces, but there were many others. They had it set up like it would have been in the ole days. Totally rad. |
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| One of the many gardens. I felt like I was on the set of Marie Antionette |
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| Eddie wanted food. |
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| Staircase to William's apartments (that means at least 10 rooms the size of a restaurant). |
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| Notice the "M" design on the walls? That's rifles. TONS of them. |
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| A large dining hall |
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| Hellooooo Parliament. |
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| Why are coffee beans more important than my lungs? |
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| That's right people, I am cool. It's a fact of life. Get over it. *giggles* |
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| People watching! |
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| I'm in love with Anthropologie!!!! |
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| I thought of Cassie Booth while in this store : ) |
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| Thrills! |
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| Christmas lights on every corner! |
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| I'm going to move in to Anthropologie! |
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| What's with all the Starbucks bathrooms hosting the "World's Smallest Sinks"? |
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| Buckingham again |
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| Starbucks window people watching. AIU was brilliant to put the school right beside this. Smart people. |
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| St. Jame's Park, beside Buckingham |
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| View from the Blue Bridge. I like to think that's a castle there. |
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| Churchill's War Rooms |
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| To my left is Westminster, Trafalgar, Piccidilly, and Leicester. To my right is The Eye, Southwark, Millennium Bridge, and other magnificent sights. Can this get any better?? |
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| That's right, I AM. |
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| This too |
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| I love the Thames |
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| Cute shopping/market area in Southwark. |
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| View from my helicopter |
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| I love exploring, I love London. |
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St. Paul's Cathedral. We're going to the Thanksgiving service on Thursday night that the Brits are graciously hosting for those of us Yankees that are living here during the holidays
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| Dear Robin performing a dramatic reading of our class poem. I have the original (it's promising. well, creative at least) and will perform a rendition of Robin's act when I arrive home. Should anyone be interested. |
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| Look who we met! He was quite the comic too |
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| Christmas, Christmas, Christmas. |
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| Carnaby! |
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| Herrods at Christmastime. |
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| It's quite the experience |
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| I forgot to mention that I ran into Henry (the VIII of course) while at Hampton. Gracious host. Figuring that he didn't wed and behead me. |
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| The Queen's card playing room |
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| The craftsmen of the day put so much work into every detail |
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| Is this tree not magical? I found it bewitching and mysterious. |
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| Once again, England is home to the coziest cafes. This picture doesn't show it well though. Psh. |
The end!
I love you all very much.
Cheers,
Mollie
