"You know, i was really let down by the guards at Buckingham palace--they wear blue instead of red and they're behind these big gates so you can't even harass them!"--Bre

Yes, indeed it was quite the let down. And so I'm going to say that London was cool...but as I was there for not even a whole day i don't really know. Our flight was thurs nite and so we got in at 8 or so, got to the hostel by 9 and then all the pubs close at 11 and the tube stops running at 12. But, that was fine--we got some fine food at the chicken cottage(think Browns' chicken but SO SO SO much more sketchy) and then My friend Pat from Tufts met up with me and the rest of my interstudy pals and that was great. He's studying in LOndon and i just loved seeing someone i knew and who knew me and my friends at home*some anyways* . Apparently we were staying in the ghetto section of London but so it goes.

Random Note: I swear to god--my apartment-mate here, Chris, is the most annoying, aggrivating, ahhhhh girl i have ever met. seriously, you ask her whether she has wash in the dryer and she will just keep talking without stop for like a good half hour. OR, you try to talk to her about the democratic primaries and you end up hearing about how she refused to sign a petition for her school radio station because it would cost her more money or--who knows? She has a 29 yr old bf and so help me if i couldn't pick him out of 8882482489237 million people just by what she's already told me about him. She talks so loud too that i can be listenign to headphones on a bus three seats ahead of her and still hear how she bought a gym pass and its already paid for itself etc. Everyone in the group pretty much feels the same way--even the people we met for this 2 day tour. The best part was how she took a bump on the fligt and just assumed we'd lug her luggage all around london for her without even asking us. I cannot WAIT to live with friends next yr YAY! YAY YAY!

Back to er reality:) So then on Friday morning a bunch of us went to Buckingham palace as you may have already guessed and eh it was cool but not as impressive as I thought it would be. Then we met up with the other interstudy kids like 35 from various cities around europe and saw Stonehendge(play mysterious music now) They were some big honkin rocks, believe you me.

And the people there give u(er u pay them to give u) walkie talkies that just talk to u and basically they're like
"We don't know for sure...BUT WE THINK STONEHENGE IS"
"There are alot of uncertainties..BUT THIS MIGHT BE TRUE"
adn they have lots of chimes playing and people with silly voices.

IT's amazing what humans can do though, makes you wonder how the world ever became what it is today--like how this dimension worked out vs another? If the Romans conquored Ireland instead of England...woudl Ireland be the power England was?

Then we got to bath that night, had a wine and cheese party and then most of the kids went out but i just wasn't feelin it. I don't know when i learned this but it's so true--never do something you don't want to do because you probably won't have a good time and will just be mad at yourself later. So, i went to the chill out room of the hostel(yes its really called that and there are signs) and met these australians and germans who at one point opend the window adn pulled out a big black trashbag. In it were various kinds of beer they's left 'chilllin'(oh its a pun!) outside so they;d be cold. I had some newcastle with them, took a shower, and end of the day.

Sat--went to Tinturn abbey(yeah gen. survey of mod. brit lit w/julia genster) and it was just gorgous..tucked away snugly in a valley surronded by mountains adn trees. Apparently monks lived there from the 7th century on. We had a tourguide dreessed like a monk who did not understand the meaning of the world cold which was a shame because it was FREEZING. Then, we went to the Chepstowe castle which was built in 1086 and there's a gate there on display from that time and yeah more english history which i dont know caus i'm a dumb american...but i took lotsa perty pictures which i'm gonna try to put up sometime soon...

Okay this is a long one, you're prob bored...but one more thing--the roman baths in bath are ever so cool...adn still hot! I kinda wonder what it would be like if you were a security guard there at night--if maybe u ever go a skinny dippin haha. Oh those romans.

Um, yes so i'm off to a foam party at 3 in the afternoon because it's RAG WEEK here and as my prof said last week, 2 YOu guys have been working hard so it's okay if u don't want to come to class next. Go have some fun, we won't be doing much."

Can this place really be for real?

There's a pajama party at 2 pm on Thurs:)