I feel like

London is the perfect place to become a bit classier

People are constantly saying words like "lovely," "mind your step," "rubbish," and other adorable words that sound beautiful coming out of their mouths.

And what am I doing?

Yelling, "What do I look like, a whore?" while I chat on skype.

Way to keep it classy, Devon.

Sorry, I'm Behind...

                                                          Highlights

Paul Rhodes: best bread place ever


Harrods: One of the most elite department stores in the whole of London. It really was. I went to the Women’s department and fell in love. Dior, Chanel, Jimmy Chou, Gucci, Juicy, and every possible classy and top designer product had its own section and had very ready attendants waiting to help. It was so nice there. Everything cost a fortune and there was an overpriced, super fancy food area downstairs with sushi bars and gourmet foods and then in the candy store, which was also huge, there were so many good chocolates there that I wanted to eat. There were the most beautifully crafted chocolates ever, including high heel shoes with chocolate and white chocolate and other things to make jewels on them. So elaborate, but you aren’t allowed to take pictures. Lame. I decided that one day, I HAVE to become filthy rich and buy things there. Oh man. I want to live in England one day. I just have to. Or somewhere else foreign. I love the U.S. but I want to live abroad for a few years. At least in some cool country.

Chinese Food Place: Lessons learned--always order TAP water (not still or sparkling), and avoid expensive Chinese restaurants in general.

Sprinting to the theater: Getting separated on the tube from the group and watching the tube doors almost crush one of the girls, then beating them to the tube stop and get direction from a guy on his iPhone. Then afterward sprinting a quarter of a mile. Man. The show was “The Woman in Black” and was one of those plays where you jump in your seat. It’s basically a two man act with limited props, and they do an excellent job with it. I think my favorite part of the play was sitting next to Liz and having her jump, while Ramzi laughed next to her. I also enjoyed hearing afterward that Dursteler jumped in his seat at one of the parts

Woman in Black Jokes: A woman died in one of the flats this summer and the jokes for that in relation to the play are endless and some people really freaked at that play. I didn't think it was really that scary. It was just entertaining.

Ben's Cookies: SOOO delicious. But apparently they have them in Utah. Now we feel less special...

Kensington Creperie: Right off South Kensington tube station--had crepes there two nights in a row. Both bananas and chocolate. First night milk chocolate, second night dark chocolate. I'm in love with Belgian chocolate.

A Knight's Fee: Our room has endless jokes about its sleep enhancing abilities. I think I've fallen asleep reading it for our Teen Lit class at least eight times. Worst book ever.

The British Museum: Can you say... Rosetta Stone? Also, a statue that looks like Dum Dum from Night at the Museum. Awesome. I want to buy everything Rosetta Stone related in the gift shop.

Nando's: The chicken sandwich is even better the second time

Finally... drumroll please: KHAN'S--best Indian place I've been to so far. Haha. Never actually been to an Indian food place before, but the company, plus the food and environment = such a fun night. One for the books.

P.S. Most of my favorite things listed are food. Please don't judge me. I'm not that fat.

Just another spectatcular day

Today was another awesome day. Long, but good. I want to just lay down and go to sleep, but I can’t leave out my adventures. This morning, I wanted to kill people. No lies. It was too early to be up and I didn’t really want to get up. It looks like breakfast will be cereal, yogurt, and toast every morning. I don’t even like breakfast that much, and these cereals are very… healthy.  The only one I’m all that interested is Rice Krispies, but I can’t eat Rice Krispies for the next four months. I'll have to figure something out, without spending too much money, because I've found I hate spending so much money. It’s pretty awful. But today was amazing. We went to the Tower of London as a group, and I love Eric (Dursteler), because he has absolutely no clue where he is going. We went up past a Jack the Ripper sign and up toward the tower, but then realized he was going the wrong way. He said, “Don’t follow me.” Oh, and right before that, we had gotten on the tube, but took the wrong line.When I say we, I mean most of the students; somehow he got on the right one and we didn't notice. Haha. We're a little challenged as a huge group.

We got there eventually, and the tower of London was amazing. Our tour guide Clint in one of the buildings was pretty cool (actually he wasn’t our tour guide, but he just decided to follow a group of us girls around… random). And I wanted there to be more gruesome stuff there to look at, but it was pretty cool anyway. We took lots of pictures, I hopped from group to group and Eric kept changing times that we were meeting. Then I went to a sketch Fish and Chips place and got a UFO (Un-Identified Food Object) –it said it was a nugget, but not what kind of meat it was. It was awful and I didn't eat them after the first one, but a coke, fries, and the nuggets were all for 2 pounds. Cheapest thing I’ve bought in London so far. But NEVER again. Haha. Then after that, Jaynann and another girl and I found our way to Westminster and found the group again. That was a rewarding feeling. There was a boys school near Westminster Abby and we found ourselves getting all excited, when in reality they all had probably just hit puberty. Oh… the appeal of pre-pubescent London boys. Haha jk. But anyway, we went into two groups into the Abby (Westminster Crabby! Haha. Carlee, you should get that reference—Winning London) and it was an awe inspiring experience. I got to light a candle and say a silent prayer and put it there. I felt really peaceful the rest of the time and had a good feeling the whole time I was in the Abby. It was huge and so many famous monarchs and writers (Austen and Bronte, etc.) are buried there. The only thing that was lame is that it was way colder in there than outside. After that, we took a group and went to go get broadway tickets, but then didn’t and I’m glad. Chicago is not on the top of my list, and the shows are still expensive even though they are cheaper in London. So we headed back for dinner, ate a very unpleasant dinner ever (the people that cook it are so nice, but it tasted legitimately like vomit to me). I knew that after that dinner I would be getting some kind of snack. Oh btw, LION bars by Nestle… best things ever. I got that when we looked around the mall near us. But I bought dessert beyond that. We went to Picadilly Circus and stumbled upon Patisserie Valerie, one of the things in my London for Dummy’s book that was supposed to be super popular. It was one of the most amazing things ever. I got an apple tart and every one of the other girls’ desserts was incredible. I want all of them and every day. I wish American bakeries were that good. After that, I was ready to go home.

For the record... my legs have never been so sore in my whole life. If I don't have toned legs and a nice butt when I come back, I'm going to be very surprised and slightly disappointed. I think we walk an average of 8-10 miles a day. At least. Actually, I have no clue about distances, but it feels like we walk an awful lot, even when we do take the tube because we are exploring. It's like being at Disneyland every day.

I'm HERE!

So I'm finally here in London. There's a mix of feelings about everything really. I was writing in my journal yesterday and all I could think about is how unreal it is. I feel like I'm still in the United States, but a very classy version, with the cutest accents ever. But after today, I know for sure that I'm looked at as an outsider. As Americans, our group blends in very well (as long as we wear lots of black, which I have a problem with--lighten up London, colors are good!), until we open our mouths. Then people stare. For instance, today we were laughing so hard as our friend Ashley was talking to a guy about buying a phone. She kept making him repeat things. The seller's face was priceless as he rolled his eyes at her and thought she was crazy when she said she "didn't understand", or that she "talked to her mom on the phone every day." We couldn't help but laugh. But anyway, the plane ride was great, minus the fact that I felt that I got very little sleep. I sat next to a girl Jen who was great. She was heading to London to work and straight out told me that she wouldn't be one of those people that would drool or fall asleep on me. She laughed harder and louder than anyone I've ever seen when watching a movie and it was pretty funny to watch. I enjoyed her company. Our car driver was also hilarious. Elise, a girl in our group, reserved a car for us, so we had a cute little sign for us. Elise asked which way to go, and he pointed the wrong way and laughed when she took off, telling us that he was parked in the opposite direction. I recorded some of the conversations that we had with him in the car, so I'll possibly post that. He was a funny old British guy. It made me comfortable already. I'm just getting used to everything at the moment. The center is nice... sometimes a little too warm honestly and the girls are so fun. We went to Nando's today for lunch and it was amazing. They specialize in chicken dishes and I got a chicken sandwich with lemon and herb sauce, as well as cheese and pineapple on top. Sooo good! We also finally found the McDonald's where we can skype with family on Sundays so that will be good. It's not too far.

I love the rain and love wearing my raincoat and boots and my new umbrella I just bought. I'm constantly looking the wrong way when I cross the street and know if I weren't in a group I would probably get lost, as many girls in our group have already, but it's a fun learning experience. I feel so grown up being so far away from home with little contact. I know this experience is going to be the best thing possible for me and I'm ready for more of it to come my way :)

But jet lag... man, it's a real jerk. Staying awake for two days and then waking up at 4:30 in the morning is not my idea of fun. Especially since breakfast is every morning at 8. I have to learn how to wake up early this semester. Blech. Miss you all in the states.