Big Ben and Westminster Abbey

      On one of the days I went with some of my friends to see Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. We had such a great time! Westminster Abbey was so amazing! We spent so much time there. It seemed like all of Britain's history was there. There were so many people buried there or had a memorial dedicated to them. It was so fascinating. I love learning about things from the past.

Stonehenge, Bath, and Stourhead!

Today was a really long day. We did so much in one afternoon. The first place that we went to was Stonehenge. It was interesting...but kinda boring just looking at rocks and not being able to go up to them. 

Our next stop was Bath. It has always been a dream of mine to go to Bath. We went to the Roman Baths and learned about them. It was really neat to learn about the importance of these baths and how they were used not only for physical needs but more so for spiritual. 

My favorite part of the day was going to the Jane Austen Centre in Bath. I have been dying to go there ever since I first became an Austen fanatic! I was so giddy in the shop. I was so happy to be there and wanted to buy everything.

This is a picture of Jane Austen's house in Bath where she lived out her days. I was so glad that I got a photo because we drove by it so quickly.

After Bath we went to Stourhead. It was this amazing place with the beautiful gardens. It was actually where the most recent Pride and Prejudice was filmed. The bridge in the picture is the one that Elizabeth Bennet (Keira Knightley) runs across in the rain. 

The gardens were so gorgeous! 

This is the platform where Elizabeth Bennet and Mr. Darcy meet up in the rain and he proposes the first time. This is me and my friend Kylee Knoles looking afar off for our Mr. Darcy to come.

The Peckham Ward

I completely forgot to tell about my ward here. I along with six other girls were assigned to serve and be apart of the Peckham ward. We take the metro, or underground each Sunday morning to the ward building. Right when we arrived we were greeted by some of the members. The ward was so welcoming that I felt right at home. I was given a calling for these seven weeks as a primary teacher to six 10 to 11 year olds. I love them already and am grateful for the opportunity to teach them. 

The Globe Theatre

For our first family home evening we went to Shakespeare's Globe to see the play A Midsummer Night's Dream. It was one of Shakespeare's romantic comedies. It was hilarious! I absolutely loved seeing one of his plays in his theatre. 

After we went to the play we got gelatto at a nearby ice cream shop. Mmmmm...!

To be or not to be...

One Saturday night we decided to go to Shakespeare's play, Hamlet. We woke up early that morning to go wait in line. We were the very first ones! The play was absolutely amazing! Hamlet was played by Jude Law...which made it even better. I am a huge fan of Shakespeare and was so glad that I was able to see the play in London.

The Tower of London

        On Friday our entire group went to the Tower of London. We easily spent hours there. We began the tour in Henry VIII's area. His armor was neat and I never realized before all the things that he contributed to his country. My favorite part of the tour was the area that taught about the Tower through the years. I was amazed at what a power it was in aiding in many wars and the symbol it was to the English people. We also saw the crowned jewels which were really neat. I couldn't believe how many diamonds there were!

      I found this coat of arms and helmet at the end of one of the tours. I just had to take a picture!

      There were some people dressed up in the fashion of Henry's time that put on a little skit outside for us. I then talked everyone into getting some ice cream with a chocolate flake in it. It is seriously the best ice cream ever!

The V&A

A couple of us from the group went to the V&A museum the next day. There were so many wonderful things to see. There were some of Raphael's paintings on display that were huge and so exquisite. We found this ballroom that reminded me of the one in the Sound of Music, so we began dancing. We then went to the gift shop where we found these fun hats. I loved the one with the cherries.