Touristy Things

This weekend was pretty slow.  After the walking tour in Cambridge I know I was exhausted, as were a lot of other people.  I had a hard time staying awake on Friday night, so its no surprise that I didn't get up early on Saturday morning.  But once I did get up and going, some of my friends and I made our way to find a tourist attraction to spend the day at.

I don't know if you know this, but that was a terrible idea.  Tourist attractions on the weekend are PACKED!!!  And to add to that many of the tube lines are down which is our main way of traveling around.  However, on Saturday it actually wasn't terrible getting around.  We managed to find a tube line that was open and could take us to where we needed to go, which we had decided was going to be the British Natural History Museum.

When we arrived at the museum, there was actually a very long line outside but it managed to pass quickly and the best part was that it was free (which actually, a lot of British museums are)!!! When you first go in there is a giant skeleton of a dinosaur in the lobby and tons of hallways to lead to other exhibits.

Giant Lobby Dinosaur

Floor Plan of the Museum (so many exhibits!!!)

We made our way into a couple of the exhibits (red and green, I think) and looked at what they had to offer.  I had thought that the museum would be mainly focused on smaller children, with games and activities around the galleries.  They did have some activities, but there was so much information in the two exhibits that we did see!!!!  Along with a lot of information, there were also tons of families and other tourists there, so it was cramped.  By the time we finished with the green exhibit we were tired of fighting the crowds and decided that maybe it would be best to come back and finish the rest on a weekday...

After fighting the crowds on Saturday, I was again exhausted (unusual, right?) So we left Vandon House around 1:00 pm on Sunday to go to Trafalgar Square.  We were heading this way because it was the celebration of the Chinese New Year, which actually took place last Thursday.  Obviously when you go to something like this it is going to be crowded because it is a tourist attraction but I guess its not real until you get there.  But once we arrived it was like being in a sea of people!

There was a giant stage set up with Jumbotrons (like the big TVs at sporting events) in the middle of Trafalgar Square.  For a while we watched traditional Chinese singers and dancers perform on stage.  It was pretty interesting, definitely much different that our singers and dancers in America.  After this we went in search of more entertainment, only to be back in the sea of people again!  We ended up not really being able to see anything else, and it was kind of a let down.  I would have thought there would be more parades or other forms of entertainment but we didn't come across any.  Oh well, I guess that was a sign that I should go home and take a nap...

Things I did see during the Chinese New Year Celebration...

 The beginning of the week is relatively boring because my internship hasn't started yet.  I do have my Intro to British Theater class on Monday but unlike last week we didn't also have a production on Monday as well.  On Tuesday, our entire Central Program went to an Indian meal.  It was very different from anything I have ever eaten.  This was the first time I had ever eaten Indian cuisine, and also the first time that I had ever had lamb.  I thought that everything was going to be really spicy but that wasn't the case.  That's not to say nothing was spicy, because there were definitely some dishes that were HOT!  I didn't think it was too bad.  It was nice to try something different but I don't think I would ever choose on my own to eat it though...

Then today my roommate, Anna, and I went on a walk, which was also an assignment for our British Experience Seminar class.  It required us to walk past several art galleries, a church and brewery among other things.  The walk wasn't super interesting so we got distracted by an Urban Outfitters that was along our walking path.  There are so many cute stores and boutiques, that it is hard to avoid them all...but I'm trying!

Sights on our walk...

Tonight, for my theater class we are going to see the "Invisible Man" a production based on the novel by the same name written by H.G. Wells.  I am actually really excited to see this because the play includes 'tricks', which I am assuming has to do with making a man invisible.  I'll see how it goes.

Em