Category: London

I’ve finally seen Monet’s “Water Lilies.” Done.

In addition to Monet, I saw tons of other insane[ly interesting] work by famous artists while visiting the Tate Modern yesterday. Lots of the exhibitions featured wacky modern art pieces that symbolize the deeper meaning of the world….but quite a few were exceptionally beautiful and though-provoking. Plus, I finally saw Andy Warhol’s rendition of Marilyn Monroe. Nice.

We also visited Lloyd’s yesterday, where I learned about the world’s leading (and virtually only) insurance company. Sure, I don’t really understand the high-powered chaos of insurance. And sure it has no relevance to my profession. But let me say now: it was actually kind-of interesting. Doesn’t make me want to run out and become an underwriting suit in power heels, but I enjoyed the tour.

And finally, I was taken on a tour of local Montessori schools today. I learned about their educational values, marketing plans, community outreach projects, etc. Plus, I spent the entire day playing with adorably British children who, undoubtedy, have the world’s cutest little accents. Reflecting back on the day, I suppose it was like a very long episode of Charlie and Lola. But with marketing plans.

PS: If you don’t understand the title of this post, then you obviously don’t know my love (and my roommates love) for the insanely adorable show “Charlie and Lola.” Seriously, check it out.

Photos to come. I promise. (And more frequent posting, too.)

But the past few days have been jam-packed. Or chock-a-block, as they say here in London. Another small taste of what we’ve done:

• Buckingham Palace
• Paddington Station (w/Paddington the Bear!)
• Westminster Academy
• All Stars Boxing Club
• Hindu Temple
• Royal Air Force Museum

And I have just a few small obervations about London that I’d like to share:

• The traffic is outrageous. Absolutely insane. It can take over an hour to go 3 or 4 miles.
• Although we’ve read about the diversity of London, it’s quite striking (read: refreshing) that the city actually is diverse.
• Sure, we’ve heard that London is large. But it’s more than large – its massive. (Although maybe it just feels big because it takes 16 hours to go 45 feet. Oh, excuse me. Meters.)
• There is green space everywhere. No matter where you are in the city, there is undoubtedly a beautiful park nearby to take a stroll.
• London English dialect is lovely. (See how I worked that in? I’m learning.) I promise to inject as many British words into my conversations as possible.

See ya’ll on the flip side.

I’m here safe!

But I’ve been busy and still haven’t had time to upload photos. Instead here’s a few quick notes about the trip:

A few notes about what we’ve done:

• BBC – I heart the BBC. But not the BBC public tour. That was less impressive.
• London Tour Bus – Except a cycling event was happening, so all the major roads were closed. Of course.
• Portobello Business Centre – The US is in a recession. The UK is in a recession. Done.
• Lunch at a Tapas Bar – Where the special was lasagna. Go figure.

We’re headed for Buckingham Palace this morning (it’s 7:15AM as I write this, ugh) and then to a few schools and youth centres. I’ve met a ton of people and it’s been an interesting experience so far. More details and embarassing stories to come, trust me.

No more time to chat, I need to go drink my breakfast tea. Seriously.