The final week.

This past week has been amazing. I have experienced the Trooping of the Colours, Buckingham Palace, Changing of the Guards, Paris, Wicked, the Supreme Court, the London Legal Walk, a lecture at King's College,  New Scotland Yard, and being able to stand and take pictures in front of #10 Downing Street. To begin with, I had a wonderful experience today of being able to go through the gates of Buckingham Palace and witness the Changing of the Guards right up next to Buckingham Palace. This experience was such a special experience and I am sure that if you search Youtube for Changing of the Guards on May 22,2014 you will see pictures of us behind the gates because many of the tourists thought we were quite important to pass through the gates and witness the Changing of the Guards while they stood outside the gates. After that we were able to pass through very guarded gates and stand at #10 Downing Street, if some of you don't know that would be where the Prime Minister resides. Following that we went to New Scotland Yard which is the Headquarters of Metropolitan Police. Constable Watson and a few other Constables gave a lecture on what their duties are. This was a special day as we said our farewells to Constable Watson. If it were not for him, we would not have experienced all the wonderful things that we did. But now back to the rest of the week. Yesterday was Paris and it was an ok trip. The morning was pouring rain but once it subsided, it was nice. We went to the love lock bridge where people put locks on the bridge and then throw keys into the river to prove their love. We also went to Notre Dame which was beautiful! We also walked by the Louvre but the line was massive to even and get in and I've heard it would take months to see all that it has to offer. After that we saw the Eiffel Tower which was breathtaking. We then headed back to the train station and came back to London. Another great thing we got to experience this week was the Trooping of the Colours. This is a ceremony that takes place for the Queen's Jubilee parade. Her real birthday is not on this day but it is tradition to celebrate it then. It was so amazing to see all the soldiers to respect the Queen even though they were just rehearsing. It was a warm day and it is not uncommon for a solider to faint and we did witness this happen. That night the girls and I went to Wicked the play and it was absolutely unbelievable! If you ever come to London you must go see it. Anyway has the week comes close to it's end, it is bittersweet!

Americans are jokes

After being in London for a week I have realized that London has some thoughts about Americans. The first thing I have noticed is that they like to make fun of the fact that we drive on the "wrong" side of the road but really we drive on the right. I rode in the front seat of a taxi and it was a cool experience. There was an instance on the tube where the locals were talking about the "crazy Americans." They also think that we have a huge violence problem because we can't control our gun problem. I can understand these things because when tourists come to visit America I say things about them that aren't always nice. It has really opened my eyes and I hope to be more accepting of tourists to American. Overall the folks here have been very nice.

Some Pics

St. James Park

Buckingham Palace

Westminster Abbey

The Last Few Days

So the last few days have been amazing. Yesterday we went to Houses of Parliament and Westminster Abbey! Westminster Abbey was absolutely amazing, there are no words to describe how beautiful it was and unfortunately we were not allowed to take pictures inside but WOW it has been by far my favorite part of the trip. We got to see the tombs of Charles Darwin, Isaac Newton, the Tomb of the Unknown Warrior, Elizabeth the 1st etc.. Not only that amazing history but all of the coronations of King's and Queens have taken place, the Royal Wedding, and the funeral of Princess Diana,  I can't believe that I have stood on places that are older than the history of the U.S.A. After Westminster, my roommates and I decided to head towards Buckingham Palace. Along the way we walked through St. James' Park. It was so beautiful and lush, there were lawn chairs you could sit on but of course you had to pay for them. Buckingham Palace was pretty neat, I guess I was expecting more and I am not sure why.  Needless to say after walking which felt like 5,000 miles, the girls and I called it a night. Today we visited Stonehenge was amazing, I believe that it is some type of calendar or place of worship, but it is so incredible to me that people were able to move those massive rocks which the big rocks called Sesen (not sure if that is correct) came from over 150 miles away. After Stonehenge we traveled to Bath, England where the Roman Baths are located. This was another favorite place of mine. The environment and atmosphere is great and many people came there for healing which I find very fitting for me at the moment. Anyway tomorrow is our visit to Trooping of the Colors.

Eat up!

Fish and Chips with mushy peas

 

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Cider at the Friend at Hand Pub

English Breakfast

 

Differences between the U.S.A and London

There are many differences between London and the U.S.A. One of the most interesting differences I find is how multi-cultural London is. I understand that the U.S.A is very multi-cultural as well but I think London appreciates and respects all of the different cultures in a more positive way than the U.S.A. There are over 300 languages spoken in London which I think it can make it difficult for the Metropolitan Police to deal with at times. I live near a Native American reservation and feel that I have been exposed to different cultures but being in London has expanded my worldview of cultures.
Another difference is the cuisine. I have tried different cuisines while living in the states but coming to London I told myself that I would try some different foods. The first morning I ate a traditional English Breakfast at the hotel which consisted of beans, toast, sausage, and hard boiled eggs. It was not very satisfying and I purchased other things to eat for the rest of the mornings. Another meal I tried was the traditional fish and chips but with a side of mushy peas. The fish and chips part was amazing but the mushy peas not so much, one bite of those was enough for me. I have enjoyed experiencing several different pubs at different locations in London and have tried to expand my worldview of what I normally drink and try to venture off and try other things. Coming to London has expanded my worldview.

:) The First Few Days

Well I have been in London for a few days and love, love, love it! We started out our trip by stopping by and walking through Windsor Castle! So beautiful and such an opportunity to see such old architecture.  Yesterday we went to the Police Station and met up with Constable Richard Watson. The police station is the largest employer for London folks. They have to deal with over 300 languages which is quite impressive to me since I know only one. We have an introduction to what all goes on in the police station and then got to experience a live booking in the custody area. It so different here, the inmates are not handcuffed most of the time and when they are the officer must explain his reasoning. I was a volunteer for Constable Watson and I must say being handcuffed is very painful. We were allowed to see the holding cells for the people being booked and it seems that the officers  working with the inmates have a deeper respect for them compared to the officers in the U.S.A. There was an extremely intoxicated gentlemen and one of the officers sat outside his doors to make sure he was ok. I think that is so great, if you respect the inmates, they will respect you. Today we got to visit the Magistrates Court. We were able to sit in on 2 court hearings, the first was made up of 3 volunteers who are the "judges" and they are not legally qualified but there is a legal clerk helping them with the case. This case was pretty boring to me and seems like it takes awhile in the courtroom when there are 3 "judges". The next hearing was made up of one judge who is qualified but there is still a legal clerk helping out. The defendant has a very long criminal record consisting of over 18 priors but he was on trial for smuggling drugs into prison. Very interesting. Along with being in a new place, I have met my great roommates, Jamie and Cierra, they are awesome! Love  it so far and am looking forward to posting more.