Fit for a King

This week was another busy week full of interning, picnics, shopping trips to Harrods, The London Eye and our day trip to Hampton Court. My favorite part of the week was our day trip to Hampton Court. Although we took an unnecessarily long boat ride in the rain to Hampton Court it was still so awesome to see! We had lunch and then took a tour around the castle that once was home to King Henry the VIII. The castle was literally massive and I loved hearing about all the history. I easily could have gotten lost there. Which we actually did when going through the maze behind the gardens at the castle. After exploring the gardens and the maze we took a quick look around the gift shop and headed back to London on a train.

The Front of Hampton Court

Courtyard in the palace

King's Throne

The gardens

The castle view from the gardens

Getting ready to explore the maze

Tried to take a shortcut

We got lost a couple times

The Center of the maze!

A Weekend Getaway to The Cotswolds...

Sometimes a girl just needs to get out to the country for a couple days... And The Cotswolds was just what I needed! After a long first week of my internship, I was ready for a relaxing two day vacation!


We left Friday afternoon after our class and headed to the train station for our 17:58 train to Stow on the Wold. It was only a couple hour train and bus ride to get to Stow where I stayed for the first time in a Hostel. Which actually turned out to be a great little hotel with surprisingly comfortable beds. Stow on the Wold was a beautiful little picturesque town with shops, restaurant, and Bed and Breakfasts.

First time in a Hostel

Stow on the Wold

After one night there we took a four mile hike through the English countryside (which was absolutely AMAZING) to Bourton on the Water. They call it the Venice of the Cotswolds because of the small little water canals running through the town. We only had about an hour there before we had to catch our bus to our Bed and Breakfast at Stratford Upon Avon.

View from  our hike

Hiking to Bourton on the Water

Bourton on the Water

We passed by so many pretty horse!

Although Stratford Upon Avon was more of a tourist attraction than the other two towns, it was still SO beautiful. All the people there were so friendly and hospitable which reminded me of that southern hospitality that I miss from home. At Stratford Upon Avon we went on a boat tour, saw the home and burial place of William Shakespeare, and ate fish and chips for the first time! Our dinner at The Old Thatch Tavern was my favorite restaurant by far! I ordered fish and chips and our table split apple pies with custard. YUM.

The Group on the boat tour

Boat tour!

We ended up having to wait an hour and a half in the cold and rain for a train at the Stratford station. Then after a two hour train ride we were back at home sweet home, London. Next thing I knew it was Monday morning. Time to get back to work... At least until Wednesday that is.

"The Americans"

I'm happy to say that I successfully made it through my first week of interning at Felicities. The first day was quite hectic and we were thrown into the mix as soon as we got there. Some of my interning tasks ranged from making tea and coffee to researching the latest news on our clients and becoming familiar with the designers. The reason for the craziness in the showroom was because two of the designers were being interviewed by BBC (London's local news channel). Mallory and I acquired the nickname of "The Americans" on the first day. Because the showroom is so small and the camera pick up on every sounds, Mallory, myself and one other intern stood in the storage closet while they did the filming. After about fifteen minutes they realized they had forget to tell us when then filming was over exclaiming how they "forgot about 'The Americans' in the closet on the first day!"

By the second day I was running errands all over London. My first errant consisted of a trip across town to pick up copies of Beige magazine. I'm proud to say I didn't even get lost on my first errand traveling to a new part of London. The next errand Mallory and I had to take a package to Chic Freak, a cool little boutique on Portobello Road. Overall I would say my first week of interning was definitely a learning experience with much more to come!

I'm Cutting this post a little short because I'm in a rush to pack for our weekend trip to The Cotswolds! More to come on my next posts about the British Museum and our getaway to The Cotswolds when I get back!

Happy Birthday to the Queen!

Where to begin... This week has been full of SO many fun adventures. The first adventure of the week starts off with our broken shower. After many calls and emails we finally had a repair man come and check out our broken shower in our flat. Apparently we have the wrong shower head and now have to wait until the new one comes in. Going on seven days of having to use showers in other flats or having to take a splash bath from a small trickle of water is getting old real quick. I'm hoping that Monday we will finally have that little adventure taken care of!

Other then our little shower fiasco, I have had so many great experiences this week. In the past week I went to the Man of Steel movie premiere, saw Wicked at the theatre, took a trip to Stonehenge, saw the Roman Baths, and saw the entire royal family at the Queen's birthday parade. I don't think i've ever seen so many celebrities in one week!

Wicked at the Apollo Theatre

Stonehenge

The Roman Baths

The Roman Baths

The Queen at her birthday parade

Prince Charles and Prince William

Prince Harry and Duchess Kate

And lets not forget another big part of my week... My interview for my internship! The interview actually turned out to be more of a "meet and greet" and couldn't have gone better. After getting to see where I will be working for the next five weeks, I'm ready to get started. I will be interning for Felicities, which is a fashion PR agency in London. From the interview it sounds like I will be doing a lot to get ready for the upcoming London Fashion Week. I can't wait to see what's in store for me as I start my internship on Tuesday!

Headed to my Interview

Starting to Feel Like Home

Although its taken a few days to adjust, London is already starting to feel like home. I had the amazing opportunity to go to Hillsong Church this morning and see God's glory reaching across the world. It was such a great reminder that no matter where we are, or where we are going in life that Christ is always right there with us. Such a cool reminder of his love!

After a couple trips to the grocery store, multiple ventures on the tube, and an afternoon Starbucks run after church, my Baker Street flat is feelings much more like home today. And with the purchase of my very own London cell phone and phone number I feel a little more acclimated to this vast city. Yes, it may be a Nokia brick, but watch out London I'll be a true Londoner in no time! 

London Calling

After months of anticipations the time was finally here. My bag were packed and I was ready to go. London here I finally come! Although I was quite ready to be in London already, it seemed our plane was not. After a three hour delay at the Atlanta Airport, our 9:25 PM flight turn into a 1:00 AM departure time. Although it took a little longer the expected, the long hours and exhaustion from traveling were all worth it when we finally arrived in London. Contrary to the London stereotype of always being rainy and cloudy, when we arrived the sun was out and shining!

Ater a three hour bus ride through the London's rush hour traffic and a hike up several flights of steps with all my luggage, I had made it to my home for the  next 6 week. Our comfortable little London flat. And just in case you are wondering what it looks like I have a short video tour of our living room, kitchen, bedroom and the view from the window.

As I start this great experience, I hope to learn about London from many different aspects. I want to learn about the culture, the history, the ins and outs of the city and of course the fashion. I hope to learn valuable knowledge from working at my internship that I will be able to apply once I get back to the States. Overall im hoping to have an unforgettable experience of a lifetime!

& As someone might say in London...

Cheers!