First day in London

Wow!! I can't believe I'm in Europe...mostly because London seems so much like the U.S., specifically New York City. So far, though, the city has been a great introduction to the European lifestyle. People are very friendly and helpful so far!

My plane from Dublin arrived this morning and after an hour long bus ride and some metro-ing (accompanied by my hostess) I arrived at the dorm. My friend, Amy, is staying at the University College of London. It's within walking distance to a bunch of museums and attractions. I thought I would be exhausted today but due to some nice napping on the plane and a big coffee at the airport I was good to go for the day. I trekked around downtown with one of Amy's friends, Jenny, for the majority of the afternoon and early evening. We got to go to the National Gallery for a little over an hour, but we will be returning tomorrow to do some more perusing. To sum up this portion of the touring, IT WAS AWESOME!!!!!! It was so fantastic being able to see the paintings and artists that I have studied in my classes. My favorites, to name a few, were Claude Laurin, Peter Paul Rubens (!!), Anthony van Dyck (a student of Rubens), Da Vinci, Rembrant and Joseph Turner (17th century). Tomorrow we will hopefully see Van Gogh, Degas and Cezanne - some of my favorites!! I cannot understate how truly amazing some of these paintings are. The colors are so brilliant and vibrant, and portray so many qualities about the subjects . The detailing and techniques blew my mind. Ahh! I still can't believe I got to see some of those paintings in person. I am really looking forward to going back tomorrow.

After the museum we just walked around for some sightseeing, ending up at Trafalgar Square and Big Ben. The sights are interesting and the architecture is incredible. It's hard to take nice pictures, though, because there is so much traffic (both pedestrian and vehicular) around! I am amazed by all the people that are constantly around - walking, hanging out, eating, whatever! Maybe I'm not a city girl but I was a bit overwhelmed to say the least. I took some cool pictures which I will hopefully be able to post.

More to come!

link for facebook pictures: http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2373852&id=6234577&saved#/album.php?aid=2373852&id=6234577