Days 38-51: Naked Man Running?

Excuse the belated nature of this, and it's lack of exciting language. I realize it's more of a "what I did" kind of post. I'll make next week's far more interesting. 

Monday: woke up early after a good sleep, went to class, major technical difficulties so we got out early, hit the gym, came back, did sit ups and had a V-day “high tea’ with scones, went to my last class, then Indian food for dinner on brick lane

Tuesday: woke up early, went to gym, convo, had lunch and did situps, had class, went to dinner at Da Marios and got a delicious pasta and garlic bread, wrote in the evening for a bit

Wednesday: gym, museum visit, wagamamas, chill evening

Thursday: typical day of gym, situps, catching up on some shows, figured out dinner at the house, and then decided to go out with the girls to Rocket, where we had a fun evening, all dressed up.

Friday-Sunday: I woke up early, hit the gym, and then grabbed the tube to Heathrow to meet up with my mom and sister, beginning a very, very epic week of awesomeness.

So, upon arriving at Heathrow, I found my mom and sister and we grabbed a cab (which I bargained the price down 75 pounds) to Woodstock, which is about 20 minutes outside of Oxford. It’s a quaint little town that literally took about fifteen minutes to walk, and also the home of Blenheim Palace (birthplace of Churchill). 

The first day/evening there, we explored, got settled in our hotel (which turned out to be unbelievably amazing and beautiful), and then hit up one of the local pubs for a quick drink. That evening we dined at a great restaurant, although we were seated at a four-person table. Being that there were three of us, our waitress settled a stuffed bear in the seat next to me. It was kind of cute. And then hilarious when she mentioned that he got drunk fast. But, such was noted. His eyes were definitely glassy by the main course. Obviously a diet of honey doesn’t do well for one’s alcohol tolerance.

After a fairly early evening, we got a great sleep in our hotel, and then woke up early for a legitimate English breakfast and then a trip into Oxford. We met up with James, a student at one of the Oxford colleges, and he dedicated his day to showing us around the area. We got into multiple colleges for free and saw amazing places, including a few areas where the Harry Potter films were shot (totally necessary places to visit, right? Right.). After walking around Oxford for a bit, we ducked into The Eagle and Child pub (a place where legendary writers CS Lewis and Tolkien often hit up), then continued our touring around until we decided to head back to Woodstock. It was an amazing day – we saw colleges, walked around the area, got into an exclusive debate club, saw the oldest tavern in the area (Turf Tavern) among so many other things. That evening we dined at the pub again and tried our a variety of pub foods, including a steak and ale pie, venison chili, and macaroni duck. All were delicious and consumed with a lovely amount of delicious champagne. All in all? A great night.

The next day was followed by a good four or five hours at Blenheim Palace (after eating another delicious breakfast at the hotel, of course). The place was beautiful- we got inside tours of the place, some history, walked through the gardens, took pictures with naked running men statues (I mean, why not? We're mature), did a labyrinth maze, and were able to avoid the London rain. It was a great finale to our time in Woodstock, and after our touring we grabbed a train headed back to London. I met a guy studying in another part of London and hit if off with him and chatted all the way back, so that made for good conversation and a quick travel time. Once arriving in London, I got my mom and sister Tube cards and we headed to High Kensington stop and I introduced them to the most amazing city in the world!

Seriously, though, London is fantastic, and although Oxford was unbelievably great, there’s something awesome about coming home. And London has definitely become my second home. So, we walked down High Street, grabbed a bus and took it to Queen’s Gate and then walked our way to my mom and sister’s hotel (The Gore) on Queen’s Gate, right by Hyde Park and a five minute walk from my own house on Prince’s Gate. It was absolutely perfect placement and a great hotel. They got situated, we checked out the bar, and then I headed back home in preparation for early class on Monday.

Monday: I had classes all day, as per usual, and then ended the day by meeting up with my mom and sister for dinner at an Italian restaurant that ended up being rather delicious, and then Billy Elliot. It was an absolutely AMAZING show. Seriously. Anyone who comes to London needs to see it. Wicked, too, obviously, but Billy Elliot is now my other favorite show. The talent in it was beyond great. We finished the night by heading back to South Kensington, where I went home and my mom and sister returned to their hotel.

Tuesday-Friday: My mom and sister got to enjoy touring around the city while I was in class, however when we met up the fun continued. We managed to get in lots of touring time, visiting places like Liberty, Savile Row, Camden Town, many, many pubs, doing walking tours from Covent Garden to Oxford Street (quite a decent walk, but great for site-seeing, as it passes through Leicester, Trafalgar Square, China Town, a bit of Soho, and Piccadilly Circus). We got in three shows: the aforementioned Billy Elliot, Dirty Dancing, and finished with Chicago when one of my best friends, Jillian, visited from the Germany program. Each night was filled with merry making and lots of socializing. I got to introduce my mom and sister to a few of my friends in the house on Wednesday night at our favorite bar- Trafalgar, where I was also asked out by a bartender. Funny how these things happen. Anyhow, all in all? A fantastic trip. Friday ended with drinks at the hotel for my mom’s birthday with Jillian and Andrew, and then we joined up with our friends back at Trafalgar.

Saturday: I woke up early and ran back to the Gore to say goodbye to my mom and sister. It was so weird watching them leave. Seriously, I’d kind of gotten used to them being around in London. I enjoyed having my family here, but I’ll see them again in five weeks. Crazy how quickly this semester went by! After saying goodbye, I headed back to the house, made it to the gym, and then went to Portobello Road with Jillian, Diana, and Andrew, where we looked a lots of fun stuff, ate paella, and then found our way back to the London house for a little resting before going out with some of the other Germany kids. We hit our favorite pub, had dinner, and stayed there for a couple hours for some fun socializing and cider consumption. After making it back to the house, a few of us hung out in the park and called it a night way too early in the morning. Oh well. Totally worth it, especially since a bag of goldfish was consumed.

Sunday: I had to say goodbye to my Germany friends. Not fun saying goodbye to two sets of people in one weekend. The only consolation? I get to go to Germany in less than two weeks, so that will be lots and lots of fun. I spent most of the day being lazy, finally made it to the gym for a bit, and then went out with Seth (the bartender from Australia) for a few drinks. All in all? A good way to end the weekend.


Woohoo London!