There were big plans for Monday...the first thing was my do-over for Hampton Courts. If you don't remember, or maybe I didn't mention, I lost a couple hundred photos from my SD card and one of the things that I had done was go to Hampton Court Palace with Lindsay. So for Monday Emily and I were skipping class and Sara didn't have class, and therefore it worked out that we could all go. Emily and I were skipping class because we had already done the National Gallery...twice, and that was supposed to be our field trip that day. We had seen all of the paintings and were content with not seeing them a third time. We met at Waterloo station again and hopped on the early DLR to go to Hampton Courts. On the way there we were delayed because of a passenger incident...probably someone under the tube. And then we had to wait on the other line because there was a train stuck on the tracks or something. But we made it with a little bit of time to spare. I grabbed a baguette from Upper Crust and we got on our train. It was about a 40 minute ride there and we were there right before it opened which worked out perfectly. We were able to breeze through it all because there was no one there so early. We still spent several hours there but this time we were also able to do the maze and it was sunny (no rain). This time we were able to get some great (and silly) photos too. It hasn't rained since last Friday, so we were feeling the sun in the gardens. It made me think about how I had been spoiled with cool breezy weather and I was suffering haha. That really made me not want to go hoome because I know it is way worse in Michigan right now. uuuugh...
We traveled back to Waterloo station and from there Emily separated ways from Sara and I. We decided to go to St. Paul's Cathedral (or "St. P's" as I've grown to call it) since we hadn't been able to fit that in yet. Once again we were in a building that was just gorgeous. There was so much to take in at St. P's. When you look up, it's like having vertigo...you just get dizzy and overwhelmed, and it is like an optical illusion with the dome and paintings. The biggest highlight for me though is walking up the stairs. The easiest way to describe St. P's is in layers. Below ground there is the crypt, ground levelish is the cathedral floor, then you can walk 257 steps up (30 meters or 90 feet) to the Whispering Gallery, 376 steps up (53 meters or 159 feet) is the Stone Gallery, and 528 steps up (85 meters or 255 feet) is the Golden Gallery. Sara and I went straight to the top! The Whispering Gallery is instead the cathedral and there is a thin wooden plank around and marble inside that...not much space. You can whisper on one side and hear it on the other =) The Stone Gallery is outside and you could take pictures there. A little more walking space and felt much cooler out there. Every stair up to that point was stone, some steep and others not. There were some tight spaces in many sections and you had to mind your head or you would knock yourself out. Going to the Golden Gallery is another story though. That was all steel spiral stair cases. At this point children were crying and terrified but their parents were making them do it because they wanted to. They were currently working on developing their child's fear of heights, so horrible. Because once you start going up, you have to keep going. There is no stopping because you have to get to the top to get over to the staircase that goes down. The kids fear and sadness was getting me upset! All of the sudden I was getting afraid haha. Sara kept saying that she thinks I'm afraid of heights but I'm definitely not; going down was fun! I liked seeing everything and I'm pretty sure people that are afraid of height get more upset when they look down. It was the children getting upset that was making me feel sad and I just wanted to get to the top for them. Anyway it was great at the Golden Gallery. We were so high up! You definitely had to shuffle to get around the top but it was an amazing view! I told Sara there was no way my mom would ever make it to the Whispering Gallery. She hates heights and ledges lol.
From St. P's we went to Wimbledon to see the torch relay. It was quite exciting! I felt all Olympic-y. First we had to go to Starbucks because it was so incredibly hot and we had been running around all day. I enjoyed a venti espresso frappicino and finished it in a matter of minutes. It was what we needed. At the torch relay people were dressed up and I got a promotional Coca Cola Olympic hat. It was a spiral that is flat until you put it on. Awesome. When 5:15 rolled around it was like a parade. People were waving from various sponsered vehicles, other athletes were in there, torch runners resting etc. There was some music and finally the dude with the torch. I honestly have no idea who was holding it or who he was passing it off to. There is no way you could unless it was someone famous (the only famous person I recognize anyway is Rupert Grint) because there are like 8000 people that are torchbearers. But we got to see the torch in person and as it was being passed. It was pretty exciting!
After the excitement we went back to the tube and I had to depart from Sara to go to a show with Lindsay. We were going to see "One Man, Two Guvnors". Let me tell you right now...this is the best show I have ever seen in my entire life. Hands-down greatest comedy. I was laughing the enitre time to the point of tears. I started writing down some of the funny things to remember for my paper that I had to do for class, but I was writing basically everything down. It was hysterical. There was audience interaction, and some tricks in there to fool you but you would never know. I am so glad Tom recommended that one to me because it was the best thing that ever hit the stage. I would see it a million times over. I haven't laughed out loud like that in such a long time. The story is about this man that is employed under two governors and he can't keep his jobs straight. There are other side stories that are about love and whatnot. The whole cast was amazing but expecially the guy that played Francis. I have so much love for that show!!! It can definitely have some inappropriate humor mixed in there so it's probably not the best for the youngsters. Anyway, I love that show with all my heart. If you ever get a chance to see it, it is completely worth it!
Since I forget to eat often, I realized that I should grab something to eat. Lindsay was hungry as well and wanted to go to the sushi place. I LOVE sushi. This was a restaurant that had the revolving plates. We happened to go on a good night because everything was one low price (usually the colored plates vary in price). I tried many different rolls and they were all amazing. It was a good choice! After that it was too late to go to do anything else without risking the tube closing on me, so I went home.
I know how to make the most out of a day, don't I?!
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