Week 12 (March 23rd-March 29th)

MONDAY:

My friend Abby and I went into central for a fun day on Oxford Street. We treated ourselves to a nice lunch and some shopping, although it was window shopping for me lol. Of course my favorite part was seeing the Disney shop which was all decorated for the new Cinderella movie :)

I liked curry before coming to London, but now I can't get enough of it haha
My delicious red curry from a little place called East Street

WEDNESDAY:

For my last audiovisual criticism class I was able to work more on my experimental film project, which I am glad to say is almost complete! I decided to call it "Siren Song" since I layered Marlene Dietrich's singing from the film Morocco (1930) into a repetitive, entrancing song. As a predominant femme fatale figure, she acts as a seductive and 'threatening' woman. One of my favorite sequences I have put together is the allusion to the femme fatale's connection with witchcraft. I used Georges Melies' The Cake-Walk Infernal (1903) in which woman are associated with evil when dancing with demons and the Devil himself.

SATURDAY:

Sarah, Abby, Becky, and I treated ourselves to a little 'Princess' Day by going out for afternoon tea and then seeing the new Cinderella film. It was absolutely stunning! Kenneth Branagh perfectly adapted the story to live-action without losing any of its Disney magic. We saw it at the Odeon theater in Leicester Square which is where the film's London premiere was held only a week ago! I have never been in such a large and beautiful cinema theater. It was an experience that I was glad to spend a few extra pounds on.
The Frozen Fever short premiered before the screening of Cinderella and I must say it was very disappointing. It reused several shots and jokes from the original film; made me cringe! If this is what the sequel will be, I am dreading its release. The only redeemable portion of the animated short was the "Snowgies", the miniature snowman created whenever Elsa sneezed.

Sarah, Abby, Becky, and I before going out for tea

Camellia's Tea House

I got the tea house's specialty Extravagant Earl Grey tea leaf blend.
It was delicious and aromatic! I may have to go back and purchase the blend
before I return back to Wilmington.

Had some time to kill before the movie so we stopped at the M&M store.
Abbey Road M&Ms haha

The new 4th plinth in Trafalgar Square.
Love that it is a skeleton horse!

Odeon theater in Leicester Square

Cinderella's glass slipper used in the film
It was on display in an exhibition outside of the theater

Next week I will be finishing all of my final essays that are due by the end of April. I want to finish them early so I won't have to worry about them while on my trip to Ireland and Barcelona. Not looking forward to this school work, but at least there is fun just around the corner!!

Week 11 (March 16th-March 22nd)

WEDNESDAY:

I had a one of the best days on my trip so far, mainly because there were so many unexpected surprises. On the way to the Tower of London, my friends Abby, Meghan, Sarah, and I came across a crew preparing the set up for the GAME OF THRONES Season 5 Premiere! Not as exciting as seeing any of the actual actors, but still pretty cool haha.

 Tower of London

St. Thomas's Tower (1257)

The White Tower

Me, Abby, Meghan, and Sarah

Tower Bridge from the Tower of London

The Ravens on the Tower Green
They are fed blood soaked biscuits and believed to
protect the Crown and the Tower as long as they remain on the grounds.

Raven bath :)

Engravings in the Salt Tower 

Fighting platform used to protect the Tower from invaders

The Royal Menagerie Exhibit

The Tower was home to several animals including lions, baboons, ostriches,
elephants, kangaroos, and even a polar bear

I've never seen something as mesmerizing as the Crown Jewels.
The sparkles of the jewels and luminescent gold is indescribable.

The Royal Armory exhibit in the White Tower

King Henry VIII's armor

Henry Stuart's armor

King Charles I's armor

An Ancient German Saddle

Board of Ordnance records

Mace, weapon from China

Replica of the Coronation Spoon

Replica of the Ampulla

Beheading accessories

Executioner mask

The Bloody Tower

Outside of St. Thomas's Tower

Entrance to the Tower. It would have been filled with water
from the River Thames as prisoners were transported by boat. 

Tower Bridge

I was completely terrified walking on the Tower Bridge on the glass floor. Can honestly say I still have a fear of heights…  :S It was still interesting to do.

I was absolutely terrified to walk on the glass floor… didn't trust it and I hate heights lol

The Steam Engine that powered the draw bridge

Steam pumping engine

On our way to Hyde Park and Shepard's Market, Sarah and I finally had our first ride in the front seat at the tope of a double-decker bus in London. Can't believe it took this long to do it.

Before we left for Hyde Park, we were originally going to the Film Museum of London to see if they still offered their exhibit that include props from the Star Wars films, Alien, Batman, and much more…. but they unfortunately did not. They did however had a Bond in Motion Tour that includes the vehicles and gadgets used in all of the James Bond films! I will have to go back to see it. 

Although we were disappointed about the Film Museum of London, we passed by the Lyceum Theater which is currently presenting The Lion King musical. The cheapest tickets we have found before hand were around 70 pounds and were terrible seats. We went in to see if they had any cheaper tickets or if they had deals for students. To our surprise, they offered us a student deal to see The Lion King that night with excellent seats for only 30 pounds! I jumped with excitement out of the box office and had a smile on my face for the rest of the day :)

Hyde Park

Cimicifuga simplex

 L'Autre: Polish-Mexican Bistro

My delicious Wild Boar shoulder with cabbage stew, mash,
and a wild mushroom sauce

The Lion King Musical at Lyceum Theater

The view from my seat

The Circle of Life

I cannot express how happy I was to have the chance to see this wonderful musical yet again! It still amazes me how creatively they tell the story on the stage. The wildebeest sequence is by far the most impressive scene during the whole show. It was almost identical to the animation film.
They also added some modern jokes to the show. The scene where Scar asks Zazu to sing something for him (in the film Zazu sings "It's a Small World" and he retorts, "No, NO! Anything but that!"), the show had Zazu start singing "Let It Go" haha.

SATURDAY:

While waiting outside the tube station for our tour bus at 7 am…. my friends and I went to this great bakery/pastry shop for a tasty treat.

Leed's Castle

Meghan, Sarah, Becky, Abby, and I by Leed's Castle

Grounds on the way to Leed's Castle

Leed's Castle's famous black swans

Entrance to Culpeper Gardens

The Maze at Leed's Castle

The Underground Grotto

Mermaid sculptures in the Grotto

Entrance to Leed's Castle

The Queen's Room

Busts of the Tudor Royal Family in the Queen's Gallery

Henry VIII's Banqueting Hall

Wedding Reception set up for the day

King Richard II and Lord Lumley (who he beheaded in 1400)

The Chapel

The Seminar Room

Lady Baillie's Dressing Room and Bathroom

This part of the castle was used by Queen Catherine of Aragon

The Yellow Drawing Room 

The Thorpe Hall Drawing Room

Largest carving of a horse from a single piece of wood ever made

Original Entrance to Leed's Castle 

Barbican and Fortified Mill

The White Cliffs of Dover

Sarah, Becky, Me, Meghan, and Abby by the shore of the English Channel

The White Cliffs of Dover

It was great to feel the ocean again, although it was FREEZING.
Miss my beach at Wilmington <3

Canterbury

Church on my way towards the center of town 

Canterbury Cathedral Entrance

Canterbury Cathedral
It was found in 597 and completely rebuilt from 1070 to 1077

Orchestra practicing for the night's Mozart Mass in C Minor

My camera barely captured the vibrancy of these stain glass windows

This candle burns where the Shrine of St. Thomas of Canterbury
stood from 1220 to 1538 when it was destroyed by
order of King Henry VIII

St. Thomas Becket Shrine

Tomb of King Henry IV (1367-1413)
and his wife,  Joan of Navaree

Stopped by this delicious place for some Mexican food.
Still didn't satisfy my carving for Tex Mex back home. 

This guava Mexican soda was one of the best drinks I've
ever had. Hope I can get it back in the States.

Elizabeth I on occasion stayed at this Inn

Most of the buildings down this street where constructed in the 1500s

Canterbury Castle
A Norman Castle built in 1066

Sarah, Me, and Becky in the Canterbury Castle

The enormity of this castle was unreal

The Simmons Memorial

View of Canterbury from the Simmons Memorial

Part of the Canterbury City Wall

Sarah, Me, Meghan, Becky, and Abby

SUNDAY:

I saw The Who at the O2 in London! It was amazing to see them for their The Who Hits 50 British Tour. Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend still know how to put on a great show.
The setlist included:

I Can't Explain
Substitute
The Seeker
Who Are You
The Kids Are Alright
I Can See For Miles
Pictures of Lily
So Sad About Us
My Generation
Behind Blue Eyes
Join Together
I'm One
Love, Reign O'er Me
Slip Kid
A Quick One (While He's Away)
Amazing Journey
Sparks
Pinball Wizard
See Me, Feel me
Listening to You
Baba O'Riley
Won't Get Fooled Again
Magic Bus

Pre-Who Concert Selfie XD

The O2

Me, Abby, and Becky

Behind Blue Eyes

 "Who Are You"

"My Generation"

"Behind Blue Eyes"

"Pinball Wizard"

"Baba O'Riley"

"Won't Get Fooled Again"

Cannot believe how busy this week was for me. SOOO much fun! Also in disbelief that my trip is half way done already. 11 more weeks and I'll be back in the States. Lots of traveling to look forward to though!