Hugging Trees and Muddy knees

Regents Park

A few of us walked around Regents Park the other day and were floored by the beauty of the rose gardens. They had roses of every color and scent. There was one rose that smelled like candy licorice. The Park must be made for lovers because there were couples everywhere. It is pretty romantic with the beautiful gardens and the boating lake. The parks have been one of my favorite things about London.

Hampton Court

I found myself a sleeping Tudor man

This palace was built for Henry VIII's advisor Cardinal Wosley. However, Henry liked it so much that he took it for himself. It was amazing walking through the palace kitchens and realizing the huge production that happened to put together a Tudor Banquet. It was interesting to realize new things about Henry VIII and his 6 wives. Long after Henry, King William and Queen Mary also took residence in Hampton Court. As I walked through their apartments, I was supposed to pretend I was a visitor coming to pay respects to the King and Queen. I gave myself the name of Lady Genevieve of Cordoba. (I know- french name and Spanish city, but I liked it). The Gardens at Hampton Court were also beautiful with their roses and perfectly trimmed shrubs.

So my friend Megan and I have a tradition of doing "Tree hugging" pictures wherever we go. The sign on this tree is supposed to say "Low trees," but someone has changed it so it reads "Love trees." It seemed like the perfect tree for the picture.

St. Paul's

St. Paul's Cathedrals is 300 years old this year. For the anniversary, the church just finished a 13 year deep clean, so I got to see it in all its perfect glory. This building is even more beautiful than I remember it being 6 years ago. Christopher Wren designed this church in a Baroque style that would fit with the Anglican teachings. The United States Capitol Building as well as Salt Lake's Capitol building are based on the design of St. Paul's. It is full of space and light.

It was a symbol of Hope during the Blitz in World War II. There is a famous photograph of London consumed in smoke and ash with the dome of St. Paul's gleaming white and safe. Churchill made it quite clear that St. Paul's had to be saved. Because of great men, the building suffered only minor damages and thus became a symbol of hope in the midst of destruction.

We were not allowed to take pictures inside the cathedral, but you can look them up online if you want. I climbed the nearly 400 steps to the top of St. Paul's. It goes through 3 galleries. The first gallery is the whisper gallery. You can whisper into the walls to people on the other side of the dome -Kind of creepy, but really fun. This picture is of me at the second gallery overlooking the city, and the third is just about 126 steps higher. (You might notice that I am wearing stickers on my shirt and sweater. This was for the tour guide to know who was in what group)

That evening I took myself on a date to see "Wicked." The show was amazing. I loved it even more than the first time I saw it. I must admit that I prefer dates with men, but being with myself for a while was also refreshing. It made me appreciate coming home to a bunch of amazing girls even more. Next time, I think I need to get myself some flowers or something.

This was a failed attempt at a jumping picture.

After the cathedral, we stopped by Guildhall. We just so happened to get there right as the Lord Mayor of London was leaving a meeting. The thing about Brits is they are all about tradition. They still wear all the traditional hats and have swords etc. The Lord Mayor tipped his hat to us and wished us a good afternoon. What luck to have been there right then right?

Rainy Country Walk

A really sweet Man from one of our wards offered to take any of us who wanted to join him on a walk through the countryside near Kent. Looking at the forecast, we saw that it was supposed to be rainy most of the day, but being the Englishmen that we are, we decided to go anyway. We walked by beautiful fields of lavender and wheat. It rained pretty much the entire way, but at least we had expected it to. I had an umbrella and rain coat. I should have invested in some rain boots though.The walk was about 9 miles.

The rain let up a bit after we ate lunch in the barn full of lavender creations. There was one bit of path near a stream that had a very large puddle. I carelessly tried to go around the puddle on the slanted hill above it. I started slipping on the muddy surface, so in a split second I decided to move quickly and leap over the puddle. In this quick movement, I slipped even harder an fell straight into the mud. I'm sure this was pretty comical for the fellow students behind me. I tried to stand up, but my feet kept slipping on the inclined muddy surface. Thanks to a friend, I finally gained my footing again on the path. My hands, my right forearm and elbow, my whole right side of my jeans, my backside, and the bottom of my backpack were covered in dark brown mud. (At least I missed the puddle)

The Wheat fields



These pictures were at the end of the walk, hence the beautiful sunshine. Note the lavender over my shoulder. (Sadly, you cannt see my muddy jeans)



We ended the walk at a little old church where we sang some hymns together. It was a special moment even though I was looking like the swamp monster.

After a shower and a load of laundry, a group of us went to see Harry Potter. I must admit that I did in fact cry during this movie. It made me want to read all the books again.

British Phrase of the day - "Gormless" = clueless