British Museum, Westminster Abbey, and Windsor Castle

Okay, it's been quite awhile since I've updated this thing. And a lot has happened, so playing a bit of catch up will be in order. The "problem" is that I've been making a good amount of good friends, so free time to sit down and type out the day's happenings is somewhat of a rarity. As a matter of fact, this may be a bit short because I just got back from Windsor Castle and will soon be heading out for the evening.

I'm really enjoying meeting new people out here. My new roommate Tim and I get along very well. We actually met a group of girls from Boston University last night, and they seem nice. I'm even planning on going to Italy for a week and a half with a few girls from Washington. I don't know, it just feels like now I'm actually beginning to have a social life out here, and I really like it.

On Wednesday I went to the British Museum, which was actually on the top of my list of places to see here, but one of the last places I've seen. The exhibits were absolutely amazing. Just getting the chance to see, in real life, those artifacts that I've read about and seen in history books felt like a privilege (and again, it was free). I saw Keats' Grecian Urn, the Elgin Marbles, the Rosetta Stone, and a vast array of awe-inspiring artifacts from the Ancient Near East and the Persian Empire (not to mention the large Egypt exhibit). It was a shame that I wasn't in much of a museum mood and ran out of steam only after two hours, but needless to say I will be returning soon.

Yesterday was absolutely fantastic. My roommates and I headed to Trafalgar Square, we then walked to Parliament - a building with such spectacular architecture, I am sure I will never get used to seeing it (even though I will be taking a class there every week). Then the three of us attended an Evensong service at Westminster Abbey. It was a relatively small choir, but it was one of the best I think I will ever here. The combination of the moving hymns, hundreds of years of tradition, the acoustics, and standing in one of the most beautiful and venerated buildings in the world brought me to tears. I usually hate employing the superlative, but it was truly one of the most moving experiences of my life. If you were to attend that service and feel nothing, then I would doubt your humanity.

Today I awoke to a phone call from my friend Jenny asking me if I wanted to go to Windsor Castle in fifteen minutes. I couldn't resist the opportunity. So we (Lisa, Stephanie, Jenny, Chris, and Me) took the Tube to Paddington, and then took the train to Slough (where the British/original version of The Office takes place) and onto Windsor. Getting into the castle cost a somewhat hefty 14 pounds. Come to think of it, today was the first day I've paid for entrance into anything, I'd say that's pretty good. At half a million square feet, Windsor Castle is the largest inhabited castle in the world. It's actually quite ridiculous in its enormity considering the fact that it is listed as a Royal residence, it's more like a city unto itself. It was interesting touring the State Apartments, but waiting in line for 45 minutes to see Queen Mary's Doll House was a bit laughable - being that it's just a big doll house. Just so I didn't feel like I just wasted an hour of my life, I had to lie to myself and tell myself I was interested in the exhibit, but I suppose I had to do whatever the girls wanted to do.

Well, this is where I cut it short. It's off to the Imperial Student Union yet again.