Days 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, and 115. The time I was too busy to blog.

Days 108, 109, 110, 111, 112, 113, 114, 115. The time I was too busy to blog. Day 108. Sunday. Church in Aberystwyth began with a climb up a "hill" which started out freezing, but the higher up we got, the sweatier we became...it was a branch, that meets in a rented space in a business park. I thought it was a pretty decent size crowd. After church it was a beautiful day, no rain, no wind, and sunshine. The plumber came to the flat and fixed the toilet issues while we were gone. We went home, ate lunch and then took a beautiful walk along the seashore & enjoyed capturing a most beautiful sunset. Back to the house for more card games, eating, and packing. It was a lovely stay in Aberystwyth Wales. Day 109. Monday. Got up really early to catch the bus back to London. It was a 6:30am bus, that got to London at 3:00pm. I fell asleep as quickly as I could on the bus. It was going to be dark for another 2 hours, so I really couldn't see the scenery anyways. I did take a peak around sunrise, the whole valley next to us was covered in frost, trees were etched out in shadows by the sun creeping in behind them. It was a scene I hope not to forget, not captured on a camera. Closed my eyes and went back to sleep. We were stuck in London traffic the last hour, and I was getting a bit stir crazy to get off that bus. Once off, I was too tired to carry my things to the tube station, so I opted for the bus. Came home, did laundry and while loads were going went out and got groceries. And prepped for the arrival of my sister. Day 110. Tuesday. Mel comes to London!! It is her first time here! Being in the city, and seeing so many of the sights I never know what people who come do/do not want to see. I had a rough plan for the first day depending on her jet lag, but she didn't really have any. I had package notices left on my door the day before & had to wait / or find where the postman had placed them for package retrieval. I got some great things in the mail. It truly was a late but thankful Christmas. We headed out to see some sights. First up: a walk through Green Park to see Buckingham Palace. It really is an amazing site. To think that an actual queen lives there. We peeked in the Queen's Gallery gift shop to look at the goods. We then met up with Singapore who very graciously agreed to let us use her Student ID for discount theatre tickets. Only as this is a holiday week, they were not offering any discounted tickets. We got tickets for Friday night. After that we headed to lunch at Jamie's (Oliver) Diner in Piccadilly Square. We both got veggie burgers. Next up we headed to the National Gallery to see some works of art (Van Gogh, Monet, Renoir to name a few) and walked through Trafalgar Square, passing the Horse Guards, Downing Street, and down to Big Ben, Parliament, and the river. I forgot that Westminster was only a block away. We walked over the river to the Christmas market where I got some of the paper stars I have been eyeing at 50% off. My kind of deal. We also got hot chocolate. The chocolate came on a lollypop stick and they poured the hot milk over it, an interesting concept for any entrepreneurs out there. Next up was the London Eye. We couldnt decide if it was better to see at night, or day and since we were there, we decided to go then. It was advertised as a 50 minute ride, but it was only 25. I need to write a letter to those people asking for half off my ticket, but its the holiday season I guess I need to be kind. We walked along the water too while we waited for our Eye time to happen. Day 111. Wednesday. Harry Potter Studios. I got in. Dierdre couldnt go to Harry Potter Studios, and had asked me in Wales if I wanted her ticket. I told her no, as my sister would be in town. But while in Wales I FaceTimed Mel to see if she wanted to go, and she of course said yes. Host1 and Sister were also going, and we got to the studios before them. They were running a bit late. The plan was for me to sit in the lobby and wait for them to have the Harry Potter experience for a few hours. I got in the ticket collection line, and asked if they had any extra tickets. [Note: if you ever come to HP Studios, you MUST get your tickets in advance online. There are no at the door opportunities (like Disneyland) to buy tickets.] They asked if I was part of a party that already had entrance, I said yes. How many in the party, four plus me if possible. Before I knew it I had four tickets in my hand, and I was going to experience the Harry Potter world with the rest of them. Me personally, have only made it through 3 1/2 books and 2 1/2 movies. Mel is an avid fan, along with her family. I liked it, Mel loved it. You walk into the Great Hall, see Hagrid's house, and the sets for a lot of the rooms. You see how they made snow & fire, costumes, how the paintings on the walls are actually some of the crew's faces, the cars/motorcycles/buses used in the films, bridges, how they made the animatronics, makeup, wigs, costumes, etc. They also have the full to scale model used for overhead/around shots of Hogwarts. This model is massive. Probably 50x50 feet. It was incredible to see all the details that go into planning and making a movie. I also had Butterbeer. I could drink that by the pint if they sold it that way. Lots of pictures. Good times. After that we headed back to London. There are tons of things to do, but just didn't have a plan of what to do after Harry. We got off the train and got off at South Kensington, where I introduced Mel to the best hot chocolate I've had in London so far at Paul's. We shared a almond filled croissant, and headed over to the V&A for a visit. We saw things there I did not even know were there....aka the David (ok a replica), Egyptian Towers, so many cool things. Seriously I don't think I will see everything in all the museums here. There is too much to see. After that we walked to Harrods. It was madness in the food courts. People everywhere. I did not know but end of day have sales of 1/2 off certain food products. We got croissants and a brownie. After that we walked and walked and walked. We got dinner at Wahaca. I love that place. Untraditional Mexican food. Then we tried to go to the cinema to watch a movie to kill time before News Year Night. We walked to four cinemas and they were all closed for the night. We walked more along the river, and opened up a new year watching the fireworks off the London Eye from the bridge with drunk people over the river Thames. Headed back home on the crowded subway. Called family to wish them Happy New Year before crashing to bed for a few hours. Day 112. Thursday. Adventures in far away lands. We got up early for the second day in a row. This time, for a bus tour of three places. First up: Windsor Castle. This is the Queen's preferred home when near London (about 45 minutes from city center, no idea it was that close). Our tour guide said that the Queen calls Buckingham Palace the office. It was quite a lovely place. I could see shy she liked it. All the state rooms were open (only happens during the winter months) and were each detailed exquisitely. After that we headed for Stonehenge. It was freezing, windy, and drizzling rain. For some reason, I never imagined going to Stonehenge in my life, but now I can say that I am glad I went to see a wonder of the world. I had always imagined it to be fifty feet high for some reason, but it was around the 15-20 feet height. Not too grandiose, but still amazing to think why did people build this 2500 BC? It is still a mystery. Next up we headed to Bath. I was surprised to hear that we only had 2 hours to see the town, and see the ancient Roman Baths. The Bath was cool to see, we charged through the museum surrounding it, drinking the spring water from a water fountain, (as it is not recommended to drink from the pools themselves anymore) that has over 40 minerals in it. I was fighting a cold, so I couldn't taste the flavor of the water, but from some looks on peoples faces it wasn't worth the three glasses I did drink. I figured the minerals were good for fighting colds. Mel had read about having tea time in the pump room at the Roman Baths. I had never heard of it. We didn't have time for a full tea, but we did have delicious herbal teas (Mediterranean for me, Floral Blossom for her) along with a macaroon, fruit tart, and chocolate mousse cake. All was delicious. Back on the bus and back to London. I tried to catch up on missing sleep. I must say that traffic getting in/out of London for this was amazing!! There was none! The city was definitely on snooze mode for the first day of the year as crowds weren't too big anywhere. Once back in London, we made a stop at the church for the loo. After that we walked through Winter Wonderland at Hyde Park. Mel got a nativity, a bratwurst with delicious mustard (about a foot long) and I got fantastic french fries. We headed home after that. Exhausted. Day 113. We slept past 8am, a first in three days. And headed to the Tower of London. I told Mel that anytime I had ever gone before, it was always when it first opened, Rick Steve's mentioned long lines for the day otherwise. We headed straight for the crown jewels. Mel asked me a few questions that I did not know the answers too. Luckily, they have amazing workers who know and explain things so well. The jewels always amaze me. Once we were done with the Jewels, we walked back out into the daylight to see a long queue for the Jewels, the white tower, and all towers pretty much. Long ques would be the theme for the day. We took a Beefeater tour of the Tower of London, most enjoyed the stories of gore, murder, and grit of the Tower of London. Borough Market. I wanted Mel to experience a market of uncountable food stalls and grocery markets. It was the busiest I have ever seen in. Long queues for lunch lines. So we decided against eating there. I showed Mel around my school area and headed to the British Museum. Mel has seen the Acropolis in Athens, and now she got to see the parts that were taken away many years ago to London. We were hungry, I knew a pub in the area that had really good fries, we got a table and found out the kitchen was closed for the next hour to prep for dinner service. It was 4pm and I was starving. Up next. Primark. It is a store similar to Forever21 or H&M. AKA, cheap clothes. Mel picked up somethings there as the prices are too good to beat. We headed back to the pub for dinner. Mel got Fish & Chips, and I got a falafel & haloumi cheese burger. I asked Mel if the fish was good enough to be pescitarian for the day. She said it was so good, it was worth me eating fish. So I ate a bite. For the first time in over 3 years, I ate a bite of fish. It was sooo good. I think I was too hungry to really savor the flavor, but it was amazing fish, and now I know a place to go to when I need a hankrin for fish. We headed for Kings Cross Station to grab a picture at Platform 9 3/4. But there was a very long queue and we had tickets to go see.... Wicked. Mel had never seen it before. It was my third time. It is an amazing show no matter how many times it is seen. Afterwards, we stood by the stage door, and got some pictures with Elphaba and Fiyero and told others great job (Galinda exited the other way down the signatures so we missed her). We headed back to Kings Cross Station after the musical, this time a small line, and took pictures of Mel going off into the magical world of Harry Potter. Day 114. Portabello Road. Got up, Mel packed, as I lazily laid in bed. I put on some clothes, and we headed out with all of her things. We made a detour to Portobello Road for the Saturday morning festivities of streets where the riches of aged are told. One could spend all day there, and we had an hour. After that it was off to the airport. We hugged goodbye, and she was off as fast as she came. Thanks for coming Mel! It was a blast! Once I got back to London, I got a notebook (for classes that are resuming on Monday), medicine to get rid of this darn cold, and and ATM for money for rent. After that I headed home to tidy up my room, do laundry, and sleep. I took three naps. I slept for an hour, then got up for an hour, repeated two more times, before finally showering and surrendering to my bed for the evening. Day 115. I went to Church this morning. Talked to Tamara for a bit after church. And am now back home and resting and writing really long boring blog posts. Tomorrow, the final block of pastry school begins. I have two months and seven days left in this lovely London town. I hope to make the most of them. Cheers to a new year!