Parliament, Church, Les Miserables!

Sorry it's been a few days since I've posted! I'm going to give a short overview of the weekend because it's past my bedtime!

Saturday I woke up and worked out with Kaylee - she's hard core and that's just what I need! We then had breakfast and I went upstairs and forgot that I told Carly I would run with her...Oops! I felt bad when she was all ready to go so I decided to just go with her anyways. It's not very fun running on a full stomach AND when you just did hundreds of squats too. It was fun nonetheless because we ran through Hyde Park! We're going to try and keep doing it. I think we can do it! I need it. We then went to Parliament and saw where the Queen walks in and does her stuff once a year. It was really interesting learning about all of it and I recommend going on the tour next time you come to London. ;) I really liked it a lot. As we were coming out, a huge student protest was just starting. We decided to get out of there as fast as we could, so we got on the Tube and went to Oxford Street to get some lunch. We went to a little cafe called Bella Italia and it was amazing! Sharon and I shared some lasagna and it definitely touched the spot! I have a weakness when it comes to Italian food. Then we came home and I took an hour nap because I had a headache and then we went out for Annie's 20th birthday! Her birthday was actually yesterday (January 30th), but we wanted it to be fun and Sundays are hard to go out and do a lot of things..Especially in London. So we went to a really cool mall and shopped around for a while and then went to GBK (Gourmet Burger Kitchen) for dinner. It was amazing!! Oh and no, I didn't get a hamburger...I got a chicken burger. Oh man, it was good. I kinda want one right now.

Yesterday was a fun Sunday. Sundays are usually REALLY long here because we have to travel far and yeah, but it was a good one yesterday! Mine and Lyse's singing time went well and I am getting a lot better at pronouncing the kids' names! I love them. They're so cute with their little accents and especially their attitudes. They are hilarious. I did get asked to speak in Church on the 13th, so that'll be fun! ;)

Today Ashley, Paige, and I went to the National Gallery for our class and it was pretty good! The art in this museum was a lot more interesting to me than in the British Museum. It's fun for me to see the different museums. I really like my Fine Arts class. It's a good one. After the museum, I went to class and then did homework before dinner...We had hot dogs! I can't believe I'm admitting to this, but I ate 3 hot dogs. For some reason they just tasted so good to me I couldn't stop!

After dinner we went to see Les Miserables!! It was AMAZING!!! I hadn't seen it before so I didn't really know what to expect, but it was absolutely breathtaking and it moved me more than any other musical. I want to see it again, it was so good. Everyone should see it!! We did take a picture outside the building with the sign, but it's on Carly's camera so I'll get it from her tomorrow..or you can just go to her blog that's linked to mine. It's called 'Carly's Grand Adventures'.

Tomorrow I've got to do a lot of homework because we're going to Paris on Friday! I'm so excited! After class, we're going to Afternoon Tea at Kensington Palace! I am way excited for that. It will be neat. I'll let you know how it goes!!

Have a great day!

- Liz

P.S. My favorite big brother, Spencer, got engaged on Saturday night!!! He proposed on the gondola up Mt. Baldy in Sun Valley. There was a nice dinner with roses overlooking the valley waiting for them at the top. How cute!! You are made for each other. :)I love you, Spence, and I love you too, Mary!! Welcome to the family!! I'm so excited to have another amazing big sister!!

What the Punt?

We went to Cambridge today! It was probably one of my favorite days so far. First off, the bus just lulls us to sleep...So when we take books and homework to do, it's pointless because right as the bus gets going we ALL just fall asleep. It really is so weird. So we all fell asleep and woke up right when the bus stopped in front of the American Military cemetery and monument. It was a humbling experience to see the names and the graves of all those who died here. I really was so happy when I saw the American flag! I haven't appreciated it as much as I should have.

When we got to Cambridge we were let free to do whatever we wanted. We decided that we wanted to get some food so we went to this little yummy diner! I got chicken and celery soup and it was dang good! After that we went to the King's College and went into the chapel there. It was beautiful and the ceiling was amazing and carved out of stone. The King's College is the second oldest college at Cambridge University. Cambridge itself was established by King Henry VI. Pretty cool, eh?

After that we shopped around for a bit and then decided to go punting. It's a huge thing in Cambridge and like the "must do" there. It's a mix between a canoe and a gondola in Venice. It looks like a gondola, except square. It was basically the best 8 pounds I've spent on this trip yet. It was FREEZING, but totally worth it. Our "punter's" name was Chris and he was a pretty scruffy bloke (see pic below). He was really nice though and gave us some good history and tips on Cambridge. The punting is done on the Cam River which weaves in and out of the campus. It was really cool and we had a lot of fun doing it - even though we couldn't feel our toes by the end of it! :)

On the ride home, Annie and I didn't fall asleep at all!! I was so proud of us! We have this thing going about how much we have in common...It's pretty crazy. We find out something new every day that we have in common. Here are a few:

1. We both have brown eyes and brown hair

2. We both have one brother and one sister

3. CBT

4. African Ice (aka I served Anne and her friends multiple times)

5. Our mom's were both Chi-O's in college

6. We both go by different names than what our birth names are: Annie = Anne, Liz = Elizabeth)

7. We're both loved by our moms and received packages from them on the same day.

And so much more....

Today was one of my favorite days because I felt like I really fit in. We loved spending the day on the campus and seeing the students and people our age doing what we're used to doing. It was a little breath of fresh air. I LOVE Cambridge! Can't wait to go to Oxford in a couple weeks! We also had a really good bonding day...Those are the best days!

Tomorrow we're off to Parliament...We'll see how that goes. ;)

Love,

Liz

Me and Annie with our packages!

We are loved by our mummies.

The American Military cemetery and

memorial - the only one in Britain.

Hundreds of American men and women are buried here.

King's College

Classic Cambridge day

Soakin' up some warm

sun in the freezing cold!

Our punting crew!

Sir Isaac Newton's bridge - built it

without nails or screws.

Cambridge Library

Just lovin' the punting!

Beautiful sunset on the Cam River

Kaylee and I with our "punter" Chris.

"Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh, you guys!..."

Last night Paige, Carly, Annie, and I went to "Legally Blonde: The Musical" and it was awesome!! It was ten times better than I thought it would be and I even want to buy the soundtrack! The music and acting was so American and totally like the movie, and it was hilarious. We had fun even though our seats were almost all the way in the back and we had to crook our necks to see the stage. It was a blast!

Dover Disappoints

Today we attempted to go to Dover castle, but something went wrong with scheduling and stuff so we ended up driving two hours for nothing. Well not nothing. It was still fun because we drove down to the English Channel and got some pictures on the beach. The water was way cold so I didn't get in, but I would love to go back and do it! After the Channel we drove to Canterbury. And since we got there way earlier than planned, we got out and shopped and ate lunch. We went to H&M, next, and Top Shop. We went to eat at a place called EAT and it was good! Carly and I split a ham and cheese panini. It was dang good. Next we went to the Canterbury Cathedral where the Archbishop of Canterbury coronated and also where the famous Thomas Becket was murdered by the Henry II's men. After the cathedral, got back on the bus and drove home! It was a good day!!!

I love you all,

Liz

Dover Castle. From the gate...

Dover White cliffs

We like jumping photos...

Me and Sharon..polka dot umbrellies!

Benji's chocolates...I'm not obsessed, I swear.

There's just Ben stuff EVERYWHERE!!!

Canterbury Cathedral

Rainy Days..

Today, I woke up feeling pretty gross. A few people have been sick and around here it's kind of hard to stay away from people. I feel like I have a mix between Strep Throat and the Flu. No worries though, I live in London and am not going to let a silly cold, or whatever it is, get in the way.

After class this morning a few of us went on one of our "London Walks". I think I've said this before but we have to complete 12 walks around London before the semester is over. This one was my 5th walk and was around Central London. I really enjoyed it and loved walking through old and new London. In getting ready for the day, my friend Elise said, "Guess what? It's not supposed to rain today!" Sorry Little E...You were wrong. It started raining right as we got off the Tube. The rain here in London is unpredictable but nice because it's not usually super heavy, just misty. It's kind of like when you go to Disneyland and want to cool off so you walk through those misters. After the walk I came home, took a nap, and did homework. Fun, huh? I got a lot of it done, so now I don't have to worry about it for this weekend! That's always a nice feeling.

Tomorrow we're off on another day trip. This time we are going to Dover and Canterbury. I'm excited!

Have a great day,

Liz

This one's for you, Dad.

This one's for you, Mary.

Oldest shop in London & where

Dickens was inspired to write.

Pictures...

Nothing really exciting happened today so I decided to just post some pics from the past so you can all see what's been happening...Enjoy!

Preston Temple

The beautiful River Ribbel

Monument for all the missionaries

of the British Isles.

Bridge at Fountains Abbey

Tryin' to get off this column...Ramzi caught me.

Fountains Abbey - Kinsey creepin' in the background.

My tiara. It suits me. ;)

Me and Anne-babe.

Imperial Arch

Westminster Abbey

Walk to Soho

E, Me, & Kaylee - Serpentine River

Elise & I

Buckingham Palace

"Let it Be"

Okay well I have sooo much to tell, but I don't want to make it boring so I'm just going give you points on what we did and what I liked and didn't like about each place we went to.

Thursday:

- Got on the bus, drove to the Fountains Abbey...ruins of an ancient Abbey, built in 1132. AMAZING!!! Everyone should go there. I absolutely loved it.

- Drove to York..Founded by the Romans in 71 AD. Carly, Ashley, and I went to a pub for dinner that night and got so much food for only 5 pounds! It was so nice staying in a hotel! We stayed in an Ibis hotel and there were two people to a room. We did it by bunkmates so Annie and I were roomies for two nights. It was really nice to be in a room with just one girl instead of 12. We had fun.

Friday:

- Walked along the Roman wall to Yorkminster cathedral which was way cool because the basement had a bunch of Roman ruins and the actual cathedral is the biggest in England.

- It was so cold outside a few of us decided to go to the Starbucks across the street and get some hot chocolate. I got the caramel hot chocolate. It was yummy and definitely quenched my coldness.

- Drove to Preston and had a Church history tour. We saw the square where Heber C. Kimball preached in 1837 and also where President Hinckley preached on his mission too. It was a very neat experience. We saw where Joseph Smith's dentist once lived...Just for you dad. :) Then we walked to the River Ribbel where the first 9 people of Britain were baptized. It was beautiful because the sun was out and was reflecting off the river. I loved it.

- Next we drove to the Preston MTC and Temple. I was a overwhelmed with peace when I saw the temple. We didn't get to go inside, but just seeing it made me feel so happy. I LOVE temples and I hadn't seen one in almost a month so the sight of a House of the Lord made me extremely happy.

- It was INSANELY cold during our tour. My feet were numb. So when we got to Liverpool that night we decided to stay inside, eat in the hotel restaurant, and play games in our room. We played Rook and Egyptian Rat Screw and I DOMINATED (aka I didn't win at all). It was me, Carly, Ashley, Emily, Sharon, Annie, and Ramzi. We had a blast. Ashley has been really good about not eating sweets since November and she decided to let it go for just a night. So basically she went crazy on sweets. It was hilarious. We were dying.

Saturday:

- Went to the Beatles museum...It was awesome! I'm not even that big of a Beatles fan, but I seriously enjoyed this museum so much. I loved reading the history about them coming together, and writing their music, and then breaking apart. It was very interesting to me.

- Kaylee, Carly, and I then went on a search for the statue that pays tribute to the Mormon families who migrated to America...MY ancestors came from that spot. It was inspiring to be there.

- Got back on the bus and drove the 5 hours back to London. It's good to be home....Yes, London is my home. THAT IS SO COOL.

It was a fun first travel weekend and I am excited for the many more to come! I feel like I became a lot closer to everyone here on that trip so I'm looking forward to that again. It was fun.

Today was a fabulous Sunday! We made it to church about 7 minutes early, which is better than our 1 minute, and we were talking to the senior couple missionaries who got here about a week after us. Their names are Elder and Sister Dempey and they're from Ogden. We were just talking and found out that Sister Dempey grew up in Holladay and went to Olympus! Go Titans! It really is such a small world we live in. Well about 1 minute before Sacrament meeting started, the first counselor in the Bishopric came up and asked if any of us play the piano. Of course Lyse, my Primary partner, says, "Oh yeah, Liz does!" So he very kindly asked me if I wouldn't mind playing for the meeting. SCARY!!! For those of you who didn't know I play the piano...There's a reason behind that. I hate playing the piano in front of people. I really love playing to piano, but I freak out if there's anyone listening or singing to me playing. I did an okay job and was more than relieved when the real pianist walked in after the opening prayer. It was a humbling and funny experience. Ramzi said to me, "I was getting ready to set off the fire alarm for you, but then you turned out pretty good!" Haha he's such a swell guy. Church was awesome and I really love my ward. It's been fun getting used to being one of about 20 white people in the ward. I know I'm going to have some amazing experiences here in the White Chapel ward.

Tonight Carly, Ramzi, and I mapped out where we want to go backpacking! We're going for about 11 days and I think we can do it! We haven't figured out the logistics of it yet, but we pinpointed places we want to go and here's what we have so far:

- Amsterdam

- Frankfurt

- Luxembourg

- Salzburg

- Zurich

- Venice

- Rome

- Pompeii

- Athens / Santorini

EXCITING!!! Like I said this is just the start of our planning, but still, it is a start!

My camera died half way through the Beatles museum so a lot of my pictures are on my friends' cameras, but I promise I will get copies of them and hopefully post them soon!

Me in front of the

Mormon Memorial Monument!!

Just groovin' in the Cavern

the Beatles first played in!

Beatles museum!

River in Preston where first

English baptisms were...

Starbucks...It was SO COLD outside.

Jumping!

We're floating!!

Me & the tower of Fountains Abbey

Annie & I...We both fell and got muddy.

Cool window

Me in the Fountains Abbey

Carly, Liz, Ramzi, and I

Carly, Me, & Liz in front of Fountains Abbey