Saturday, March 26, 2011

Top 3 London Walks

I enjoyed all of the London walks. I loved most of them. But I was completely in love with the following three walks because they were exciting, beautiful, charming, memorable, and unique.

The Westbourne Park and Notting Hill walk was easily my favorite, because it was our neighborhood. I loved discovering Portobello Market. We may have gotten entirely lost when we got out of the station, but we almost always get lost so it's fine! I loved the Portobello Market, my cheap "British Flag" sunglasses I bought there, and cannot wait to go back and buy a cheap painting of London when my parents come to London. The market environment was so fun, and we had a blast. But beyond the market, it was fun to walk around our neighborhood. I never would have known that just beyond the horizon, the neighborhoods started going down hills. I also discovered an uphill stretch of neighborhoods on this walk that looked perfect for running, which I never would have discovered on my own. And the cute little gated community parks in all of the neighborhoods were so charming.

I really loved the Lambeth and South Bank walk, probably because the weather was stunning that day. It was sunny! We got our very first glimpse of blossoms starting to peak through their little green cacoons. But the best part was being warm enough that we were able to take our jackets off and walk along the river in the raw sunlight. My now-ghostly skin gulped in those rays. But parliament was shining all glittery in the sunlight as well. And to be honest, it was also great because Kaylee was leading it, so we didn't get lost and we were able to get through it quickly, so it didn't feel long.

I loved the Westminster & St. James walk, as well. This walk stands out to me, because we walked it at night, when it was dark outside. We had the streets all to ourselves, without having to dodge around the throngs of people on the sidewalks. And the streets were all lit up, giving the city a magical touch. The best part, though, was the memorable way the lights lit up some of my favorite buildings. The carvings on Westminster Abbey absolutely popped. I swear I could make out the carvings ten times better that night than when I had visited before in the daytime. And visiting Buckingham Palace, when it was all lit up and completely deserted was amazing; we had the place all to ourselves.

1 comment:

  1. Carly, thanks for completing your walks and the final report on them. Your enthusiasm comes through in every report, and I appreciate the great attitude you've brought to our program.

    If you've not already completed the online survey of the walks, please do so---the results will help me plan the walks for spring term.

    Thanks again.

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