Today was our full day of class. We started off the day at Westminster Abbey. It was as grand as it looked when I watched Prince William and Kate Middleton get married. I was overwhelmed by just how much history was packed into that space, from Queen Anne to Charles Dickens to Stephen Hawking. I paid special attention to Darwin and Newton’s burial sites, but I was most moved by the tomb of the unknown warrior. In middle school, I was given the opportunity to lay the wreath on the tomb of the unknown soldier at a service in Washington D.C., so it was neat that England had something somewhat equivalent to that in Westminster Abbey. After Westminster we went up in the London Eye. I have an affinity for getting to the highest place in a city, so even though the weather was pretty crumby I appreciated the elevated views. We headed to a different part of London and got lunch at another pub before going to the Royal Society. At the Royal Society, I saw the original manuscripts of Isaac Newton and Robert Hooke, among other artifacts like the telescope. Hooke had incredibly detailed drawings of what he saw under the microscope. There was a banner with the name of every president of the Royal Society since it was founded in 1660, and I was grateful that our tour guide made special note that there has never been a woman president. I am hopeful that will change soon. Then we stopped by Buckingham Palace. I finished the night at a group Italian dinner. I was bummed that the Book of Mormon play was sold out, but I was so exhausted by the end of the day that I’m not sure I could have stayed awake for it. Instead, I went with a few classmates to buy chocolate before going to bed.
