Tonight in London

Tonight my friends Sarah and Sam took me to Tower 42 for my birthday. Tower 42 is the tallest building in the City (we were at 509 feet up), debatable about all of London since there are a couple big ones in Canary Wharf. Anyhow, there are amazing views all over the city, so I've attached some pictures. We had a tremendous view of the west/southwest of London and Sam managed to get the best picture EVER (you'll be able to tell which one!).

When I was headed home, there was some sort of military parade! There was a band marching along the street and they were dressed in military dress like you'd see at Buckingham Palace - long grey coats, tall black hats. I was struggling to keep up/catch up with them and I was having severe camera difficulties (Sam having changed all of my settings), so I got really poor pictures, but I've attached one anyway.

Our view before the sun went down

Looking down towards Canary Wharf (with the Gherkin poking in on the side)

Our view after the sun went down!!!

Me and Sarah

Really bad picture of random military parade

Happy Easter!

Easter is a big holiday in the UK. Good Friday and Easter Monday are public holidays and most people take off on a long weekend or head home to visit their family. Because of my work deadlines, I am not able to leave London this year since I still had to work Friday and Monday. I tentatively planned a quick trip to to Windsor Castle for today, but the weather is nasty and I'm not really inclined to trudge around Windsor and Eton in the rain and snow. So I am staying close to home and enjoying lunch with friends and then hopefully a trip to one of the museums where I can sightsee in a heated building!

I hope everyone has a blessed Easter with family and friends, celebrating our risen Lord!

London Weather

When I first moved here in January, the weather was absolutely gorgeous. It was much warmer than it was back home in January and often sunny - not quite what I expected! It was like that for a few weeks and since then has slowly been getting colder! This last week or two has been how I imagined London to be - bleak and windy with occasional rain.

This weekend is supposed to be the worst Easter weekend on record with snow and sleet predicted in London. It's also very windy and generally dreary today. The wind and rain woke me up early this morning! So I just wanted to share with those of you who heard my initial weather here was amazing...not so much any more. :)

Lazy Weekend

Well, this is the third time I've typed this entry as my computer seems to have an issue with posting. I've had a very quiet weekend, mostly because I've been nursing a cold and "chesty cough" (cough syrups here are classified by the type of cough you have, i.e. chesty, tickly, rattly, etc.). Plus, it's been cold, windy and rainy, which isn't a huge inducement to go outside!

My new experiences this weekend were all culinary. Last night I had the opportunity to go to Nobu, which is a famous Japanese restaurant. It was very good, but I think overrated, as I was expecting to be wowed with the food (but wasn't). However, I'm glad that I can say I went there and I also enjoy the area of town where it is. However, no celebrity sightings. :(

Tonight I went to a place called S & M Cafe (stands for sausage and mash, in this case). Sausage and mash is a very traditional English meal and has fairly obvious ingredients - sausage and mash (potatoes). At this place, you can choose between 10 or 12 kinds of sausage and a few types of mash to make your meal. Yummy and fun!

My Flat

Here are some pictures of my flat. My room came with a bed and bookshelf and I bought the other pieces of furniture - some from the girl who lived there before me and some on my own. Even with everything in, it is till very spacious! I have my own bathroom. And the living room and kitchen were furnished by my flatmate.

My bedroom

My closets - biggest in London!

I do my hair and makeup in that corner since there are no outlets in the bathroom

My bathroom

Living room - the blinds are closed because it's dark, but there is a huge balcony out there!

Kitchen - it's pretty short on cupboard space since the fridge, freezer, washing machine and dishwasher are all under the counters where cupboards would normally be

London Symphony Orchestra

Last night I went with a friend from work to hear the London Symphony Orchestra perform Mahler's Symphony No. 7. For those of you who have known for me awhile, you will know about what I sometimes think of as my "former life" where I was a frequent visitor to the symphony and had some training in classical music. Since my "new" life as an accountant, I haven't had the pleasure of enjoying classical music as much and last night was a welcome return to that. I had forgotten how much I love listening and watching as the music is performed - seeing how much the conductor is immersed in what he loves, musing on how music is the same no matter what language you speak, letting the music tell me its story.

Randomly, we ran into another work colleague and her roommate so we went out for dessert after the concert and had a great time talking. I am starting to make some friends here and am settling into life in London more and more each day. Today I am working, but plan to explore some in my neighborhood this afternoon. I haven't decided what my new London experience will be tomorrow, but I'm sure it will be exciting!

Cambridge

Saturday I decided to take a day trip to Cambridge. There is a fast (45 minutes) train from London, so it was an easy trip for me. I enjoyed a beautiful, although very windy, day exploring the various colleges of Cambridge University and wandering around the little city. This is the chapel at King's College. It is famous for its boys' choir, which you can hear every night at Evensong (I didn't stay long enough to hear this). This organ was put in by Henry VIII and his second wife Anne Boleyn.

Punting on the River Cam is a favorite activity. You can hire a boat with a punter or you can punt yourself. It wasn't something I was going to attempt on my own, but watching was fun!

Cycling is the primary mode of transportation in Cambridge. I saw literally thousands of bikes parked all over the city and by the train station. It is an easy and quick way for students and residents to get around the small crowded streets. And it adds a lot of charm as well.

On the left is the outside of the chapel at King's College. Like I said before, Henry VIII had a lot to do with the completion of this chapel, which I find very interesting since I am currently reading a fictionalized account of his 1st and 2nd marriages. It is so neat to see the history on the page come to life right in front of you - that's been my favorite part of my travels so far!

On the right is Trinity College, which is the largest and wealthiest college. Behind that building is another smaller square with Wren Library on the other side. The architecture of each building of each college is so phenomonal and astounding to think how long these buildings have been around!