Well hello! I’m Rayne Rivas, a born and raised girl from Albuquerque, New Mexico who by a twist of fate ended up going to college at St. Scholastica in Duluth, Minnesota. While I have explored many majors, I have decided to pursue the Organizational Behavior major. I was exposed to this trip because I work under Merry at the theater, and I’m very glad that I was able to do this trip with the support of my family and friends.
Today, May 20, 2017, was the first day that we had free, and we were allowed to go in small groups and do what we wanted. After a week of little sleep, and much sightseeing, I decided that I wanted to sleep in, and that’s just what I did! I woke up and went to breakfast around 9 and left the hotel for my adventures quarter to 11. My travels were with the lovely DyAnna and Meagan. Our first stop was the St. James park, where we sat, read, listened to music, or wrote. It was quite picturesque as we sat under a tree, where we could see Buckingham Palace in the distance.
Once we had our fill of the park, and a quick snack break, we set out in pursuit of Twinings tea shop, where I splurged and got lots and lots of tea-I am currently drinking a cup while writing this!
After the indulgence in tea, we set out to find the Churchill war rooms. However, on our way we found the National Portrait Gallery where we spent hours at! I found this museum more interesting that the Tate Modern (which is also amazing), because of the historical aspect of the work. As I was walking the halls, I didn’t know what I wanted to look at more, the interior designs and architecture, or the paintings! We saw everything from van Gogh's “Sunflowers,” to Davinci's works. We were near desperate to find van Gogh’s work, but despite looking at a map, we couldn’t find it. We had to ask 3 different curators in order to locate the work, but it was worth it!
We headed back where I took a short nap before Rachel, Liesa, Cassandra and I left to see a show separate from the group called Whisper House. It was a musical that I knew very little about, but wanted to see for the fun of it. While we were all a little skeptical to see the show at first, it was a worthwhile visit as the issues brought up in the show resound in our current political discourse involving travel bans and racist policies. It was a wonderful show with wonderful company, and an excellent way to draw an end to our first week in London.
Your day sounds amazing! I am super jealous of your time writing in the park. I bought a journal specifically for this trip and have been too busy to write in it as of yet! I may have to go hunt down your spot in St James park and catch up on the last week. As for your time spent in the National Gallery, it sounds amazing! I have walked past the outside many times but haven't gone in yet. I think I will enjoy that gallery more than the Tate Modern as well, for I too love the historical aspect of the art!
ReplyDeleteI think a lot of the time when people travel they forget they are on vacation. For me it's been non-stop "go, go, go!" only sitting down to eat. I'll have to take a lesson from you and find some time to relax and do something I love like make plans for my next theme party or write some poetry. I am glad London has so many lovely parks to relax in.
ReplyDeleteI was really debating going to see the National Portrait Gallery and I think I will now. I had a hard time at the Tate Modern, but the way you describe this one I think I'd like it a lot better. I'm also so glad you convinced us to go to Whisper House, it was so amazing and definitely a highlight of my trip so far!
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