After a very light night of sleep, we got up around 8 for our 9am bus tour. Last night, I was dead-tired, so I showered and planned on going to bed by 10, but then I wasn’t tired anymore! I finally got to sleep around 1:30, but then one of my roommates came home at 2am…then didn’t actually get to bed till 3! I managed to fall asleep around 4, but was awake again by 7, so I got very little actual sleep, and was quite tired. I had a breakfast of cereal and milk and a banana, then on the bus at 9. The tour was incredible, taking us to glimpse all the touristy sites, but of course we barely scratched the surface. We went down back streets so the guide could explain about such things as the best shopping districts and points of historical or literary interest. She showed us so much, I can only remember a tiny fraction. We went by Herrod’s, of course, and other high-end stores, as well as Pudding Lane, where the Great Fire of 1066 began, Barkley Square (where the nightingale sang), and the alley way that was the inspiration for Diagon Alley of the Harry Potter series. Our first stop was near Westminster Abbey, to “visit the loo” in the Methodist Church there. We were lucky, and the dark, drizzly weather stopped long enough that I was able to get some nice pictures of the Abbey, Parliament, and Big Ben with sun in the background.
Next, we went through “The City” to visit Buckingham Palace. The guide explained that any time you enter or exit The City, you will see a dragon statue. Most of these are silver and/or red and white, and all are rearing atop a shield, with a long tail behind. Most look have lion-like facial features. If you see the shield, you’re entering The City, and if you see the tail of the dragon, you are exiting it. We made our way to Buckingham Palace for the Changing of the Guard ceremony. Today, the First Regiment was in residence. The guards wore their long gray winter coats rather than their red dress coats, which are reserved for summer. Our guide positioned us opposite the road from the gates, near the foot of the fountain with a golden Victoria on top a tall spire. She explained that this was the best place to get the most action, and she was right. The different groups of guards walked by us several times, including the Old Guard, who came from Clarence House, mounted horse guards, and even a group of guards playing instruments and patriotic songs. Thankfully the rain held off (though just barely) till we were walking back to the bus. Lots of tourists were pressed against the gates around the Palace hoping for a good show, but apparently the guards just stand around and don’t do much of anything for the rest of the ceremony. 
After the Changing of the Guard, we headed back to our flat in Kensington, passing on our way lots of memorials and statues that I hope to return to eventually. I particularly liked the memorial to the women of WWII, the statue of Winston Churchill, and the memorial for all fallen war animals. We got back to the flat around 12:30, and I made myself some peanut butter (brought from the US, because Brits haven’t really embraced peanut butter like we have) and jam (black currant and blueberry, yum!) sandwiches. I skyped my parents, made grocery and necessary lists, roamed around the neighborhood and got some chicken breasts and spaghetti noodles and tomato sauce for dinner. I came back, poached the chicken with onions, garlic powder and rosemary (which I cooked in the water and scooped out for the sauce before I added the chicken, which worked very well), cooked my noodles and sauce, and had a wonderful dinner that will carry me over at least through tomorrow with leftovers. Everyone said they were jealous and it smelled great, so I guess my first real London cooking experience was a success.
Later, we went to the Builder’s Arms, on Kensington Court, off of High Street, which is apparently a pub that Prince William and Prince Harry sometimes frequent. It’s a nice, stereotypical English pub, with decent prices (a very big deal in the Kensington area, where everything is insanely posh and carries price tags to match). I didn’t need to order anything for myself, since one of my friends ordered “the lightest English beer you carry,” and wasn’t so keen on it. I thought it was fine, much lighter than, say, Guinness, but definitely NOT American-style. We decided we like this pub, since it’s low-key and laid back. The other patrons didn’t seem to mind us all being there (there were 7 of us girls), though the waitress did send us some dirty looks as she prepared to close (the pubs all close at 11, which seems odd to all of us), but she seemed to be giving everyone dirty looks. Anyway, it was fun, and now I need some serious sleep!!!
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