I went to London to visit the one and only Liz Hizmi from March 29-31 and got to see Maddie and a lots of other friends who are studying there, as well as Kristie and Emily from home!! They were going to visit London for their spring break so I was able to see them on the 31st before I had to catch my flight! It was such a blessing to see everyone and all the sites in the beautiful, city-bustling London!
I flew with Lauren and Kristen on the way there but they were going to visit some of Kristen’s friends so at the airport we split and I had to find the bus to get to Liz. After freaking out a little bit because this was the first time I was traveling by myself, I got on the right bus just five minutes before it left! Liz met me at the bus station and we got some food because I was starving. There were strikes going on in Spain all day so I wasn’t able to get food in the airport because everything was closed! After I got some food, I was ready to start sightseeing! We went and saw the Houses of Parliament, Big Ben, the London Eye and Harod’s!
The next day was a full day of sightseeing the city! We met Maddie in the morning and went to Buckingham Palace right away and saw some of the guards! Then we rented bikes and rode through gorgeous green parks with ponds, and saw Kensington Palace and the Orangery (where you get tea at the palace). We then got the 4 pound “meal deal” where you get a drink, chips and a sandwich for that low price…London was SO expensive! And the Liz took us on our very own bus tour where we got to see the Olympic Countdown, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Piccadilly Circus and so much more of the city! Maddie and I then went to Hampton Court Palace because Liz had to go to a study session. It was a little bit out of the city so it was really cool to see the more residential area of London. It was just as gorgeous as the city! We got to see Henry VIII’s palace and gardens. Even though he wasn’t the nicest guy as he killed a lot of his wives, he had an absolutely stunning palace and property. It was great to wander around the palace and catch up with Maddie! After Hampton Court Palace, we met back up with Liz and went to a pub for dinner and got cider beer…it was delicious and very "London". And then Liz and I were heading back to take some pictures by the Olympic countdown and we saw a giant mass of people. We asked one of the guys and he said it was called the “masses in London” and they get together the last Friday of every month and bike, scooter, skate all around the city in one big clump. It was amazing to see…there is always something crazy fun going on in London! We went out to a bar/club that night with Maddie, Megan and a bunch of our friends (pictured on the right)…it had the most gorgeous view of the city! The tubes (subways) close at midnight and don’t open back up until 5ish so Liz and I had to take the bus back to her apartment. It got a little bit interesting when we got off the bus at the stop and it was a very sketchy area! We ended up calling a cab and got home safely but we were both a little freaked out at first!
My final day in London, Liz and I went to the Tower of London. I loved seeing the Tower Bridge and the famous Crown Jewels. Liz had already been in the Tower of London quite a few times and it was expensive to go in so I took it on by myself while she waited at a local coffee shop for me. There was so much to see in the Tower of London and I loved all of it! The Crown Jewels were probably my favorite, along with seeing the carvings in the walls that the prisoners did while they were being held there. There was so much history there and it was absolutely incredible to be there and experience a little part of it. Then we went to get Kristie and Emily at the airport and I was able to spend a little bit of time with them before I had to head back to my airport and catch my flight. 
London was a blast and I can’t wait until I’m reunited with my roomies next semester in Madtown!
Xoxo, Rebekah
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