This morning, I woke up and walked to Buckingham Palace for the 10AM guard change.  I arrived in Downtown London so spent a couple of hours walking around the parliament building and Big Ben.

The guard change was not as big of a deal as I was expecting, but I met a solo-traveler from New Zealand named Charlie (girl) and we ended up walking together to Harrod’s Department Store.  Harrod’s Department Store is truly a department store of the 1920s, and includes over 1,000,000 SF and 330 departments.  The department store also includes restaurants, a supermarket, and a frozen yogurt shop.  I ordered a broccoli quiche and a chicken sandwich from the food court in the mall.

Next, I headed over to One Hyde Park, one of the most expensive residential properties in the world.  The security guard didn’t let me into One Hyde Park, but I visited the McClaren Showroom on the first floor.

Next, I walked over to the National Gallery, a free museum located st Trafalgar Square. Everything about the museum was stunning, from the paintings to the architecture of the building.  I spent a few hours wandering around the gallery and appreciating the artwork.  My only complaint was that most of the museum was Christian art which tends to be mom-metaphorical and a repetition of the same images/scenes again and again and again.

Below are some mindsets I came up with that someone can use in order to fully appreciate paintings in a museum.

Mindsets to have at a museum…Keep in mind the reasons artists paint:

• education/teach/metaphor/lessons
• beauty/decoration (imagine where the picture has been hung for the last few hundred years)
• expressing sentimentality/emotions/feelings
• capturing an image/scene/person ((no photos back then)
• exploring creativity (keep in mind that this detailed painting began with a blank canvas and an imagination)

After visiting the museum, I sat down for about 30 minutes in a park near Trafalgar Square.  Had a nice 30 minute conversation with Michelle and  she recommended trying out a cafe called Ottolenghi.  I started walking toward the general area where ottolenghi was located and ended up walking a couple hours before arriving there.  Detours along the way included a visit to the V&A museum and a more thorough visit to Harrods department store.

When I finally arrived at the cafe, I thought I’d arrived at the wrong place. I was expecting to see outdoor seating, umbrellas, etc.  The cafe was a small dessert shop with premade gourmet foods.  I was extremely hungry and ordered a bunch of food with my eyes: carrot walnut cake, chocolate chip cookie, sweet potato salad, and corn-based flatbread.  It was delicious and I’m getting hungry just writing about it a day later.

After dinner, I walked back to the hostel to get ready for the 4th of July party.  The 4th of July Party was a lot of fun… a whole bunch of us played beer pong, flip cup, and drank a bunch of beers.  I enjoyed hanging out again with Annie (Lexi’s friend), Jordan and Tim (both New Zealand hostel workers), and many more.  One New Zealander actually dressed up in a full Uncle Sam costume for the event.  It was a really fun time and a great way to end the stay in London.