Day 4: Free day=museum and more amazing food!

Whoa sleep! Today was our completely free day, so sleep commenced until noon. We (my fiancé and I) went out around one and found our way to a little place called Muchkin’s for lunch. We both had chicken tikka masala, that famous dish of Britain’s, before making our way to the British Museum. First of all, the building itself is amazing. The pediment (the triangle part held up by the front columns) had such striking details in it’s statues! And then you get in, and wow. The nice thing is that all national museums are free in the UK, so this gem of a place cost us nothing to experience. I was primarily interested in seeing the Egyptian collection, but the Iron and Bronze age items found in Britain really held me as well. Again, looking at pieces of timber would normally bore me, but when its 10,000 years old, that’s cool. Also, the Museum lays out their sections chronologically, so you literally see the country and the world grow up. The intricacy and perfection of the European icons and Syrian reliefs took my breath away. A really neat item was the Holy Throne Reliquary. It was made around 1400 by John, Duke of Berry (he loved religious artsy stuff) to hold a single thorn of Christ’s Crown of Thrones. It was beautiful in and of itself, but for why it was made really took my breath away. The idea of relics and the like really fascinates me. I got a German lady laughing at me because throughout the Egyptian and Syrian sections I kept saying, “Oh my gosh, that is so cool!” because I was just that dumbstruck for any fantastic words to match the fantastic sights I was seeing.

Speaking of being dumbstruck, I’ve heard of people becoming rather deadened by such sights if they do a lot of travel, but I feel I’m just more awestruck with each thing I see. It’s realizing how big the world is, and how different everyone’s experiences are. Not in a scary way, of “oh man, I can’t possibly navigate this huge world with all these different people” it’s totally a “wow, this is so neat! Tell me about this thing I could never experience back in the Midwest!” Traveling through trips like BV offers is definitely the way to do it—with a group of people you’ve come to know a bit for a whole semester. Plus our group is amazing anyway—we’re a group, not just a collection of mini-pods. We all came in knowing some better than others, but everyone has been really willing to mingle and enjoy everyone’s company. These trips are definitely the way to both realize there’s a bigger world out there, but also appreciate one’s own world better.

Anyway, back in the British Museum, the coolest thing was that we got to see the Rosetta Stone. The key that opened all the world to Egyptian writings, right in front of my eyes. Just like Stonehenge, having such an iconic thing in front of me… not quite like a punch in the face, more like a really warm pillow in the face—surprising and powerful, but still pleasant.

After the Museum, we went to Westminster Abbey, but with it being Sunday they were only open for service. While a little bummed, I still appreciated it—I wouldn’t want people snapping pictures while I was praying. The view outside, as it had just become dark, was another pillow in the face—it was so huge and beautiful! As I write these I really feel like I am NOT doing these places justice; you’ll just have to come and visit yourself!

In no real hurry, we walked around a lot through the downtown area, the buildings are gorgeous and all the old shops, though closed, were super cute. We eventually found ourselves to Trafalgar Square, which is dedicated to Admiral Nelson, the Brit who beat Napoleon on the sea (Wellington beat him on land) thus ending the Napoleonic Wars—he’s kind of a big deal in the UK. The lions were huge, the column was tall, the fountains were beautiful. Sounds lame, but it wasn’t, I just don’t know much about the gravity of this event so it means less to me than others.

Dinner at a super charming pub called the Garrick Arms. It was right next to a theater so it was elegant and homey all at the same time. I got my last taste of fish and chips there with an amazing hard cider. Then we simply walked back to the hotel to meet some others and ended the night at the Crown, a similar place to Garrick Arms, and then a lovely Italian restaurant. Great food, great company, great sites… great day! Now, with fond memories, we part for Romania at oh-god-o’clock!Above is Shane's steak and ale pie, with potatoes and various sauces. Heard it was amazing as well!