I think I'm totally museum saturated, guys.

Day 12

Today is full of sketch. We got a little flier from the AIFS office a few days ago with a list of all the cool markets in London. We decode to explore one of them today and pick the Queensway market. It was described as having “antiques, retro clothing, punk gear, jewelry, and a little bit of everything” so it sounds promising. We ride the tube to the Queensway station, get a little bit lost in a questionable part of town, and finally ask someone for directions. He exasperatedly points to the door next to his shop…you know, the door with the huge sign that says QUEENSWAY MARKET. Oops.

So we walk in and find that this place doesn’t quite live up to our expectations. Had we been looking for hookahs and drug paraphernalia then perhaps this would have been the place for us. We bolt and decide we are hungry, so we stop into a Chinese place down the street. Apparently they think we are ugly Americans because they remove the chopsticks from the table and replace them with silverware! What if I had wanted to use chopsticks? My inability to maneuver those wooden sticks aside, they don’t know. The food was…decent. After the Chinese man in the restaurant chases us because we counted our pounds wrong, we stop in at a souvenir shop. I get some postcards, and Ashley gets a flask. Classy. We split from that part of town, never to return.

Nicole, Ashley, and I part ways with Erin and head to the Victoria and Albert Museum. I’ve only heard good things about this museum and I’m really excited. It is much more art and design oriented than the other museums. We did not anticipate, however, getting tired after only one floor and decide to come back later. We did get to see a fascinating exhibit on the development of Fashion over the years and there was even a piece there designed by Emilio Pucci, a UGA grad and a Demosthenian Alum. After the sculpture exhibit and some historical exhibits, we go out to a very peaceful area with a wading pool and grassy areas and just sit for awhile. It is very nice and we just watch people and take some pictures.

London, WHAT? Dear London. The last thing I want is to see someone snog as I eat my frozen yogurt. WHAT?

Elephants on Parade

Day 11

Today George hosts class in his lovely and adorable flat near Highbury and Islington. Apparently it is a 2 million pound flat. Geez minetti. He has tea and biscuits ready for us…could we be more British? During the class, we present our reports on the background info of the shows we are going to see while we are here. I guess I didn’t realize how wide of a range of shows we had tickets for. I’m really excited now.

After class, Nick, Katie, Erin, and I head to Covent Garden with the intent of procuring tickets to Avenue Q. Since Erin is with us, we stop at every elephant in covent garden, and let me tell you, there are quite a few. Oh, London is currently doing a city wide exhibit to promote awareness and to raise money for the endangered Asian elephant. Various artists were asked to paint an elephant, and 250 distinctly different ones were placed all over the city. Many of us have made it a goal to see how many we can photograph while exploring London. They’ll have their own album on facebook. No worries!

Covent Garden is bustling and busy with street performers and markets and an arcade full of cute boutiques. After much wandering, we finaly stumble upon the Wyndham Theatre where Avenue Q is playing. This is the first show we’ve seen on our own and we are excited to find that as students, we can get 20 pound tickets in the orchestra. I love this city.

We go our own separate ways and decide to meet back for the show. It is hilariously funny (and I’m glad I saw it before Gary Coleman died. They cut 21 lines out of the show, and I would feel bad…)

After the show, we stage door it up like we always do, meet some of the actors, and head back to Bloomsbury. And what do we do once back in Bloomsbury? The Rocket of course! Today there is a replacement DJ, and he is no good. Dancing opportunities are minimal.