WHAT. A. DAY. well first. last night. Our fire alarm went off twice. We thought the building was burning down. It wasn't. It was just our shower steam. We went through a moment of craze but thankfully there was no fire.
So today was our free day. Last night we made a list of everything we wanted to do and it was long. We were worried we wouldn't be able to check everything off our list. We did have to sacrifice a couple things, but not really anything major! We were very proud of ourselves. So we started the day at 9. Went to get breakfast at Pret A Manger again. Today I got a fruit cup of mango, kiwi, blueberries, and pomegranate. It was delicious. Also an americano again. Then, we began the never ending trek. We went to King's Cross Station to go to platform 9 3/4. I was immensely excited for this visit. I've dreamed about that platform all my Harry Potter loving life. There was just a short line for taking pictures it was hardly a wait. They put the scarf on me and I could hold a wand as "I walked through." Then they asked me to jump for the second picture. I could care less about their pictures but Hannah and Annah took great pictures of it for me. I was so happy how they turned out! Then they had a store of course. I got a few more items to add to my collection. Finally we left and headed for the British Library. They have an area where they display original writings, art, music, etc. I saw original music pieces of Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, and Handel. I saw original lyrics written by members of The Beatles. I saw Jane Austen's notebook written in her own hand. Her handwriting is beautiful and perfect. I saw notes written by Leonardo da Vinci. I saw pieces of a manuscript of John. The passages were John 1:33-40, 20:11-17, and 16:14-22. I think I just looked at those pieces for like 4 minutes straight. They were just powerful. The ink on those brown, worn, tattered pieces are words that guide our lives to this day. I also saw one of the first English King James versions of the Bible. It dated back to the 1600's. It was beautiful. A lot of the pieces in that exhibit also had a lot of artwork on them. I was completely amazed by the colors, level of detail, and dedication of the artists. Some of the books had every page illustrated with heavy detail. The colors seemed to cover the whole spectrum. I didn't even know some of the colors on those pages existed. I don't know how they were able to create them, but I was impressed. To think someone had to draw every line and color in every design on some of those works that were well over 1,000 pages seemed impossible to me. The original Alice in Wonderland was supposed to be there but it was not currently in rotation so I didn't get to see it. That was sad. But I got to see such amazing pieces despite that. The Magna Carta was also supposed to be in its exhibit but was not in the case. We went to their bookstore too and bought copies of some classics. Our next stop was Baker Street. We first went to Pizza Hut to share a pizza real quick. We bought our Sherlock Holmes museum tickets and then waited in line for a bit. The 221B apartment is very small so they can only let a few people in at a time. You enter a hallway and go up the stairs to the study. The classic room he interviews people in. The room with the bullet holes and his violin and chemistry set. There was so much to look at and it was all original items from the Victorian era. There was also his bedroom on that floor too. The next floor was Watson's bedroom and Mrs. Hudson's bedroom. The third floor had wax figures from some of the stories. Then a couple more steps up was the bathroom. It was fun to see so many things I've read about in the short stories. We then went to their shop and I bought a few more items. Our next stop was Abbey Road. Unfortunately, there was construction on the road so it wasn't as authentic as I was hoping. It took us a few tries to get the right pictures but we finally got it accomplished after dodging all the cars and people. They had a store next to the studio and so we explored that a bit too. Then we went to Paddington station to find Paddington bear. He was such a cutie. We went to Harrods, which is like a Saks kind of. So much designer, so much expensive. We just walked in and out because I didn't even feel worthy to be in there. Our next stop was the house off of the movie, Parent Trap. We were walking into the neighborhood it is in and instantly you could tell you were out of place. It was definitely where all the rich people live. It was pretty funny to see all these apartments and then on the streets were all these crazy expensive cars. BMW, Mercedes, Porsche, Maserati, you name it. Housing must cost a lot here if people with those kinds of cars still have to live in apartments and park their cars on the streets. If I had a car that nice, I would definitely not be leaving it on the street. crazies. Finally we walked up to the house and there were some guys doing yard work in front of it and without us even asking he just yells, "Parent Trap house is right here!" lol. Everyone can tell we are tourists from America. It is great. Got those pictures and moved on to our next stop, Westminster Abbey and Big Ben. We came out of the underground and saw Westminster in our faces, I was shocked because I didn't think we would be that close. Then I looked up and my mouth dropped. Big Ben was literally standing in front of me. It was amazing. I squealed and jumped and laughed and smiled huge. Literally did all that. And it did not go unnoticed. A couple came up to me and asked where we were from (in a southern accent that I somehow missed) and I said stupidly, "America!!" lol I'm embarrassing. He was like uh yeah I know. Where from? We told him and they told us they were from Texas, how neat! So after I calmed down a little....jk I didn't. I was hype about Big Ben and Westminster Abbey. We crossed the street to some phone booths and took lots of pictures with the phone booths and by Big Ben and I just kept being in awe. It also helps it has Ben in the name. It is a great reminder of my all time favorite Ben back home. Our next stop was the London eye. We walked across the river and to the big ol' ferris wheel. We bought our tickets and got in line and honestly, it wasn't that long of a wait. It was fab. The bag checker dude asked me if I had every type of knife known to man in my bag, so that took forever. I'm still not sure if he was just making fun of me or what. He literally went through a list of 10 different types of knives. I am glad they have some kind of security for that though. Creeps me out a bit. So we get on to this moving bubble thing, that was scary. And then we are moving! And just like that, you can see all of London and its beauty. It was amazing. I loved it. An experience I won't forget. London is my faveeeeee. We then got on the tube and hurried back to Farringdon (our underground stop where our flats are) to get some food. We were getting hangry. We went to this burrito place and these burritos are ginormous and I ate it all. SO hungry. It was also probably one of the best burritos I have ever eaten. (sorry mom. I like yours too. But London) Finally back to the flat and started this super duper long journal. Today was a great day for pictures so hopefully I can upload some soon for your viewing.

Fun facts: Annah almost got ran over by a car again and I almost lost half my body again. Yay for confusing cars and no crosswalks. Also crazy drivers who turn blind corners going 40. Today was my fave day ever. Annah is a pro at navigating the underground. I bought entirely too much stuff today. Did I tell you I love London?

Shoutout: My sis Ansley for debuting on a new afternoon show today!!! I love you and all your fun adventures! You are so talented and a blessing to every viewer.

Requests: Please pray for Steve Johnson, one of our group leaders. He has a partially collapsed lung and will be staying in London for the next week to heal. He is okay but will need a procedure. Thank you!