Weekend Trips & Fun

On Friday, Natalie and I went to the Orange store to fix my phone and shopped down High Kensington Street. We finally ate at Wagamamas where I've been wanting to go. It was pretty good, although it has a weird atmosphere i.e. no music, long tables that you share with other people. Overall, it was a lot of fun and afterward we split up for a few hours. Later, Natalie and Desphina came over to relax and watch movies. We watched Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels which was really good and similar to Boondock Saints. It was a good way to end the busy week, and begin the busy weekend.

On Saturday, I went to Windsor Castle and Eton College. It was great to meet some new people, and re-meet old acquaintances. This is the castle where the Queen spends her weekends (and supposedly she was there this weekend), and it is absolutely amazing. Everything is perfectly ornate, even after a horrible fire in 1992 that destroyed a significant part of the building. It was really cool to know that this castle is still in use by the Queen for events. Down the main street and across the bridge is Eton College. This is the high school where the Princes went, and it costs 22,000 pounds per year (over $40,000). The coolest part is that they were penguin-looking suits with coattails and top hats (I actually saw some of them in the street and in a local sport shop!) After the day trip, I went to O'Neill's pub nearby with my flatmates. It was a relatively older crowd, but we had a good time. Unfortunately, my cell phone wasn't getting good reception and some of my friends tried to come but couldn't find the building.

On Sunday, I took the bus tour of London and toured the Tower of London. The Tower is in the square-mile City of London that was founded by the Romans 1,000 years ago. Most parts of the buildings still appear as they did when they were originally built; however, the moat has since been drained. The main highlights were the White Tower and Bloody Tower. The White Tower sits in the middle of the complex and stands tallest; it is where a King lived, arms were stored, etc. The Bloody Tower got its name after two young princes "disappeared" after being held in the tower. Many years later their bones were discovered hidden in the tower. There is uncertainty as to who did this, or who ordered others to commit these murders. I also walked along the Tower Bridge, and it was a beautiful bridge and a great view.