British Studies: Day 2

Today had much to do and, now, not enough time to write about it.  So here are the highlights.

St. Paul's is just as gorgeous as I remember.  The gold guilded insides are just as impressive as the massive dome- not to mention the hight of it from inside.  At 11am, I attended their mass and was able to enjoy the boys choir accompanied by the church's orchestra and men's choir.  I have never seen so many deacons in one room.  The procession was formal, and familiar, and really worth seeing.  As far as the route to St. Paul's, we sat on the top decker of the double decker bus and J & C, new mates, and myself decided we HAD to return to make purchases at the sweet shop.  

I'm headed to mass, but not before a photo opp!

At 2pm, I attended a tour of "Mayhem" and War by a professor of the history department.  And know his history he does.  Our route was to cross by the river, come up by the London Eye(where we sat in the sun and received stories of the plague), past Parliament(where we sat in the shade and talked about Richard and the Evil Prince John, as well as William the Conquerer) then by Westminster, saw a few guards(not the guards, they weren't there.  So look forward to a picture of me in their place..)  We went down a street that had been set up for the royal baby- which isn't here yet, but soon- and eventually ended up in Trafalgar Square.  The tour was great- Prof. Wiest really knew his history- wars, political figures, monuments, and buildings.  It was a nice four hour stroll amongst my new home.

By the end of the night, myself, GOP, and JG went to Liverpool Street.  Don't go alone, try to bring a strong man/woman if you can.   The men try to push you into their Indian restaurants(verbally) and, for me at least, it was really nerve wracking and uncomfortable.  One of the guys followed us on four crosswalks(a square) until we threw ourselves in the one adjacent to(but not) his.  The food was fine, I liked the spiced(mild) chicken.  From there we proceeded to The White Hart, a pub known for Jack the Ripper's planning.  The alleyway next to it even looks as though it were a potential murder lane.  The pub was friendly and told us what they knew.  They too had good cider.  Here I learned that J2 has worked with Amanda Palmer and Neil Gaiman.  I almost died.  Not only did this girl become my hero earlier when she shouted "No!"(flailing her arms) when men tried to push food on us after having just had food, but then she told me about her work as their Dramatoligist- a person who does research into dramatic time periods within the archives of the library.  I am loving learning about the people I am with.

And once more, I shall love my bed.  Hello midnight, we meet again.