Author: evans.2244

Sadly this is our last day abroad and then we have to head back to school. I slept in a little bit and then headed to Versailles for the morning. I was worried when I got there with how many tourists were already in line but thankfully it all moved quickly and I was able to get in and out of Versailles within an hour after listing to the entire tour and with a bag of macaroons in tow. Then I made my way to the Picasso Museum and enjoyed a cup of coffee with some people for lunch. After this we made a trip to the street that was filled with umbrellas and it was extremely bright and beautiful. Then I made a pit stop at the arch but there was some protesting going on that seemed to be blocking off a lot around the area ( sirens were the background noise for the day). I spent some time after this by the river and then went boutique hopping and looked and all the cool shopping in the area. To end the day I had by last three course French meal and a trip to the pub. I was excited to get the chance this night to catch up with a friend of mine that lives and Paris and she showed me some of the snack foods that they like to eat and we stayed up for hours talking about life. This trip was an absolute blast but now it is time to head home.

Today was a full day of museums and by full I mean FULL! To start we went to the Eiffel Tower which was funny because just last night we had spent hours trying to get there to see it lit up. But thankfully this time we made it there in a very timely manner and I has my hat on so I felt fit for the occasion. Unfortunately it was way to windy to go all the way up which I was a little disappointed by because that would have been so cool but its okay cause once we were on the second level and getting blown away I realized that my bad would have not taken much more. After this we walked over to the museum of the people which was my favorite museum because of how interactive it was seemed to be very different then what I had thought it would be after the guest speaker had presented it to us. We then had a small break for lunch and we were off to the Pasteur museum and although I was really interested in this museum I had a very hard time following he information as the woman guiding our tour was a bit soft spoken and had a very heavy accent, but none the less it was still cool to see. Making our way to the last museum which was a science museum focusing on the development of technology I really enjoyed our tour guide here because he was so personable and made everything he was talking about super interesting even if we were getting kicked out at closing time. Following this I headed back to the hotel and settled in for a small dinner and a big night of sleep

Today we started with a half day as a group at the Jardin des Plantis which was my favorite museum place so this was a lot of fun. There is so many different museums in such a condensed beautiful area of Paris it was such a good chance to pack so much in. My two favorites were probably the comparative anatomy museum just because of the variety within this museum and the layout of the exhibits. The second most exciting was the mineral museum which I had done my presentation on at the beginning of the semester and found to be super interesting with some of the largest and most unique minerals in Paris which were super beautiful! The we headed to the Louvre and I saw some iconic art like the Mona Lisa and it was packed so I did not get to see as much as I had hoped but what I did see was awesome. he we went to the rain station museum that is known for its photos with the clock overlooking Paris and got to see some work from famous artists like Van Gough. I finished out the day with a stop at the cafe and some tourist shop hopping were I successfully purchased a buret and I could not feel more like a tourist if I tried. The we walked to see a beautiful church at the top of a very large hill that was amazing to see but sad to realize how out of shape I was when attempting to take on all those stairs. I finished the day with a three course meal at a tiny French restaurant and an hour and a half journey to the Eiffel tower that ended in lots of confusion and train stops. But the Eiffel Tower is still beautiful all lit up at night even after the longest train ride to it possible.

Today is our full day in London and staying up has me a little exhausted but we have some of the coolest things to see today so I am so ready! We start the day off at Westminster Abbey and I am thriving to say the least. I am a big fan of following the royal lifestyle and especially their weddings so this is a dream come true. The wait to get inside is long and cold but it is so worth it when we get inside because it is the most beautiful church that I had ever seen in my life. I was amazed and a bit lost listening to the tour guide and just hearing about the tons and tons of the most well known people from all aspects of life that have been buried here. Everything that was done here had a purpose behind it and had been done so for so long it was unreal to see. Then we headed to the London Eye which I had been waiting for since we got here because of how iconic and beautiful the sight is. It was just as cool as I thought and I got some great photo opportunities here. Next we headed to the royal society where I completely needed out because of how cool these first editions and original manuscripts were.I have never seen something so valuable in my entire life I was honored to have the ability and opportunity to look at these books and appreciate some of the best work that science has ever seen. I finished out the night at out group Italian dinner which was absolutely delicious and then watched my first ever play which was Wicked and it was done so well. I headed home and went straight to bed after this packed day.

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Today was our free day of London and that meant some sleep in time was called for. I am probably the worlds most indecisive person so I had no idea what I wanted do this day until I was actually doing it but it made for an adventurous day. I started off by going to Stonehenge and this was so much fun as I got sometime to get in some writing while on the train and then met the worlds nicest taxi driver and most important got to see one of the seven wonders of the world. I got to read some explanation about Stonehenge in the museum that they had there but it was still astonishing that there people had the strength and the persistence to move this heavy stone so far and lift it up on one another. After this I made another trip all the way to Oxford and explored the prettiest college campus that I had ever seen. The area was absolutely beautiful and was the best taken care of campus that I had ever seen ( OSU at a close second). When I got back I headed out for my favorite night that we had in London because we all stayed up so late and traveled around  and got to know one another so much better and just have a great time.

We started off the day with a walk to the British Museum and I wish I would have checked the weather better because I decided to wear the worlds floppiest hat and needed to duct tape it to my head. Going to the museum I was amazed how big it was I had never seen anything quite like it. They had exhibits from all over the world and it was designed so beautifully. I was a little concerned however that so many of the people we had talked to had made joking comments that other countries have requested some of these pieces back to keep in their own museums but they were refusing to do so as they had rightfully taken it. I am not sure what the whole truth is in this situation but I would be interested into looking further into this. My favorite display was the one that had all of the medication that two individuals had taken within their lifetimes as it seemed unbelievable and unhealthy to have this much medication ever but the more I read into it the more realistic it seemed to be anyones life. After this I went with a group to the Camden Markets which were so cool because of all the unique little shops that they had and how diverse the selection of food and shopping was. This to me really shows the individuality of these people rather then grouping them together and defining them and their country as a whole. I really like to get to know the day to day life of the people in areas that I am visiting to see the uniqueness of them and their lives. After this we headed to Kensington which was honestly a little less elaborate then what I had expected but still gawk worthy as they had a ton of tributes to Princess Diana and a set of beautiful crowns. I ended the night with one of the best meals I have ever had at the Gordon Ramsey restaurant that we went to and finally got to sit down with my peers and talk about our day over a drink at the pub.

It was a long day of traveling and I was surviving on a very few hours of sleep. I had hardly gotten any sleep the on Thursday night and managed a measly two hours on the plane to London. I was dead exhausted but as soon as we touched down I was filled with adrenaline and was ready to explore! I can’t even begin to describe the excitement that continued to build as soon as I stepped outside and saw green grass and felt the warm air ( well compared to Ohio weather) on my face. We loaded the bus and headed to down which honestly was one of my favorite parts of the whole trip because of how beautiful the country side of England was, I would love to go back one day and explore this more. It was interesting to learn of the history of the area and some current news from the tour guide as there is so much going on in England right now. When we got to Down I was excited to get my first British batch of fish and chips and it was a perfect welcome in a quaint pub. Then we were able to explore the church near by that Darwin and his family attended it was very modest and a bit surprising to me that his family had been buried here completely separate from him. Finally we were able to tour through Darwins house which was so big and beautiful, I really couldn’t believe that I was within the same house that one of the most famous scientists had lived and worked. I loved that we had the ability to go at our own pace and dig deeper into learning what we were interested in hearing about. I closed the night out by settling into the hotel and then enjoying some pub time with my classmates these were always my favorite moments as I got to get to know them much better as individuals.