On Monday, I ran some errands and got to know my neighborhood a bit more in the morning and then visited the Victoria and Albert Museum in the afternoon. I was surprised at how much I liked the V&A, because I hadn't really even planned on going until my friend suggested it that afternoon. Turns out, the V&A has a big fashion gallery, a really beautiful modern glass gallery, and a weird collection of plaster copies of famous churches and statues from around the world. It was definitely worth seeing.
A 1932 Chanel evening gown
The courtyard of the V&A
A plaster of an Italian church face
A piece in the modern glass gallery called 'Colorbox'
That night, I ate at the tastiest fish 'n' chips joint of my life. It was greasy, salty, vinegar-y, and wrapped in paper... just as it should be. I finally feel justified in giving this blog its title.
On Tuesday, I explored Oxford Street in the morning. There, I confirmed that H&M is the best store of all time. It is cheap and offers a huge variety of options. Also, there are four H&M stores on Oxford, as well as at least one on Regent Street and one on Long Acre, so it's easy to find and access. I bought a couple skirts and tops.
Oxford Street has a plethora of shops, from the very cheap to the very expensive. Selfridge's, for example, is a lot like Saks Fifth Avenue. It is also an extremely busy area, and it makes me wonder how anyone raises a family in a city like London. I can barely manage to get myself down the street without running into a thousand people or getting pick-pocketed... how does anyone handle themselves AND a child on a street like this? The craziness of Oxford Street reminds me how much I love my small Northwest towns.
Try navigating this with a stroller
Selfridge's
In the afternoon I went to the Jewish Museum in Camden. The Museum had a floor about general Jewishness, one about Jewish history in England, including a Holocaust memorial section, and one floor with a special exhibit displaying old Jewish texts.
Old spice boxes for Shabbat
A Synagogue Ark from 1600's Italy
An old London street sign from a previously Jewish district of town... coincidentally, my new dorm is in that area
After looking at the Jewish Museum, I walked around Camden. I discovered that I need to go back to Camden ASAP because Camden has a glorious, wonderful, girl's dream of an outdoor market with really cute dresses for negotiable prices (aka under five pounds). The market also has food stalls with any kind of food one could possibly desire... Chinese, Indian, pizza, fish 'n' chips, and the list goes on. I will be back this weekend without a doubt.
On Wednesday, I was a busy girl. First, I went to the National Gallery. I had already been to the National Portrait Gallery, and even though the two are right next door to one another (and adjacent to Trafalgar Square), I did not have time to see both. I spent an hour and a half looking at mostly van Gogh, Manet, Monet, Seurat, and Degas paintings. I really like the Impressionists and the post-Impressionists, and I'm really excited to learn more about them in my Art History class this upcoming semester. Overall though, I think I preferred the National Portrait Gallery to the National Gallery. And, unfortunately, neither allow pictures, so I can't post what I saw here.
After the National Gallery and lunch with friends from LSE, I walked down Fleet Street, past St. Paul's Cathedral, and across the Millennium Bridge to Tate Modern. The view from the bridge is incredible, and you might recognize it from the most recent 'Harry Potter' movie... it's in a scene with Deatheaters, I think.
From the St. Paul's side, looking at Tate Modern
From the Tate Modern side, looking at St. Paul's
Inside the Tate Modern, I explored the coolest art I've seen in London.
Me with a lithograph print by Victor Pasmore
The Snail, by Matisse
Andy Warhol... I learned here that I love pop art, and I will definitely be using the genre as inspiration in my art classes this year while I finish up my studio art minor
Found object book art
After I finished looking at the Tate Modern (there's a Tate Britain too that I'm going to go to soon), I headed back to my new dorm. On the way, I stumbled upon the Museum of London. When looking at maps earlier, I had seen that the Museum was quite close to my new dorm, and had planned on going at some point. Finding it now though seemed like a perfect opportunity to take a look at it. The Museum detailed a lot of really early history, back to when England was part of Rome. Perhaps this is something I should be interested in as part of my London adventure, but I'm just not. So, I spent most of my time in the small modern London area. One thing I learned from this, beyond what I've picked up from merely being here, is that Londoners are real excited about the upcoming Olympics.
So true, Nelson Mandela, so true.
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