Pictures from this past week

Again, I'm going to post some photos (in no particular order) of the things that I've done this past week. Lots of museums. Lots of sunshine. Lots of grad school orientation events.

The British Library puts Strozier Library (aka my second home) to shame. Pure utter shame. By the way, it is completely awkward taking photos of people studying. It's like they are completely vulnerable. 

On Tuesday, I went to the National Portrait Gallery to see the temporary exhibition of Audrey Hepburn: Portraits of an Icon. There were many never-before-seen photos on display, including personal photos from family and friends, which I thought was great. However, if I'm going to be critical (and, I always am when it comes to museum exhibitions), I think the exhibition should have included more photos and information about Hepburn's role as a UNICEF ambassador. Truly, I think that was one of her most amazing accomplishments in life. Anyway, I snuck a few photos when the guards weren't watching. 

Trafalgar Square. Amazing, as always. 

Last but not least, is the central courtyard of the Somerset House. Blue skies and sunshine during orientation should be a good omen, right?

Borough Market

One more market for now....

I went to Borough Market early last Saturday morning. Like Camden Market, I found that going early is the best way to experience the market without the crowds. Borough Market, which is located by London Bridge, is one of London's oldest markets (dating back to the 11th century) that is home to all kinds of produce, fresh food, and flower stalls.


I'll let the pictures do the talking.

Thankfully this market is only one bus ride away (easier commute than Camden Market). There are plenty of coffee shops, pubs, and restaurants surrounding the market, so there is no chance that you will leave hungry. 

Plus, the sun was shining! I feel like that is a win-win in my book. 

Camden Market

One thing that I really wished I had done when I first lived in London was to go to more markets. There are so many markets throughout the Greater London, and no two are alike. Since I still have some time before the start of term, I've decided to stop by a few of the markets this week.

On Friday, I visited Camden Town in the morning to go the markets before it got too crowded, and I'm glad I did! There was so much to see, and by the time that I left, it was almost too hard to navigate through all of the stalls. The market, which is comprised of smaller markets, is placed in an eccentric district north of the city center. Plenty of vintage clothing, second-hand books, homemade goods, and yummy food.

By late morning, the food stalls had opened up and the air was filled with wonderful aromas from all the different types of food. Truly, you could fill up by eating all of the free samples. Something to note if you are cheap. As easy as it is to get food that I'm accustomed to, I've decided to try something new: Indian food - another thing that I've always been hesitant to try, even when I first lived in London. In case you were wondering, I LOVED it. But don't ask me to name what I ate. Baby steps. 

I'm so upset that this is the first time visiting Camden Market, especially since it wasn't too far  away from where I lived before. The markets here go on and on forever, and it is full of tourists (wait, am I still considered a tourist?) and locals alike. It was definitely worth the three trains that it took for me to get there. 

New life update!

Hello everyone. Time to break my internet silence and give an update on my current situation! Last weekend I moved back to London for grad school. So I've decided to start up my blog again to keep family, friends, and other readers up to date on everything.

And here we go!

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This past week has been a whirlwind of packing, unpacking, purchasing things for my new flat (sorry, dad), exploring places near me, and getting ready for grad school. At this point, I only have a random selection of pictures of places that I've been to these past few days.

On Tuesday, I went to Covent Garden for some shopping. It was the only day last week that actually rained, so I was was glad to seek shelter in the covered area of the Market Building. You can see Charles Pétillon's installation of balloons, which I believe are up until today. Bummer, they are such an interesting way to fill the open space of the building. 

And finally, since the weather here in London has been very beautiful, I've been going down to Clapham Common everyday to run. Unfortunately, the pictures don't really show how large and beautiful this place is. Plus, I swear there were a million little kids running around the park when I was taking these pictures. 

A year ago from today...

...I boarded a plane for London to start an internship at the British Museum. I worked in an awesome and creative environment, met some amazing people, experienced historical events, and traveled to the the places I've always dreamed about. 

It was 4 months

with 6 flatmates 

 to 7 countries

taking 7,476 photos

while completing 456 hours of internship.

I know I'm a slow blogger, but just bear with me. Take it from me, editing 7,476 photos is very time consuming. I've got about two months left of my travels to document, and I am determined to finish blogging about it… even if it is means blogging at a snail's pace. 

Italy - Day I Vol. II (Venice)

I'm back again! Hopefully I will find more time to post all of my remaining adventures from Europe. Anyway, I will resume where I left off. Here are some more photos from our first day in Venice, Italy. Click here for my previous post from Venice.

On the first day, we walked from our hotel near the train station to San Marco's square. It took us about an hour and a half to make our way through the tiny streets, walk across all of the hidden piazzas, and cross countless bridges to get to the other side of the island. Along the way, we stopped to look at some of the shops and markets. While walking around, I couldn't believe how colorful but yet faded these buildings were. We toured the Basilica di San Marco, which was beyond amazing and incredibly beautiful. Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed to take any photos inside church. Afterwards, we took a gondola ride through a few of the canals. I wasn't too thrilled about spending a lot of money on a gondola ride, but my flatmates did not want to miss out on it. In the end it wasn't too bad, but I didn't think it was worth the money.

All in all, it was a great first day in Venice!