This is my travel journal from my study abroad trip to the UK and France. The names of my teachers and classmates have been changed for privacy reasons.
DAY 21 - June 9, 1:30 pm
               Got up, did laundry, and went to Covent Garden Market to watch the street performers. They had some pretty good ones there. This one guy, Spiky Will, was awesome. He cut his act short because there wasn't as big a crowd, but when he skipped to the finale, which involved a bed of nails, the crowd doubled. He ended up in nothing but his boxers and two heat-shaped nipple tassels.

               "Hey, I'm trying to worry my mother. Can you help?"
               "Sure! Let's take a picture and show her you met a nice English boy!"

               I like the street performers. They're always so friendly and sometimes I get to talk with them about stuff. Makes me wish we had improv classes at school, but that's probably something I'll have to do on my own. Or with friends. Always better with friends.

               So I went around the little shops and stalls, kicking pigeons out of pure spite. I bought a new jacket. It is patchwork and it is the best thing ever! It even has pockets! And then I just walked around to look at everything before hopping back on the tube and going to the London Bridge station. I took three steps out, went "Oh, that smells nice.", and went next door to this little tiny cafe. It was seriously tiny. There was no larger back area. The guy behind the counter could literally ring me up with one hand and flip burgers with the other at the same time. All four tables were full, so I sat outside. So here I am at a table on a busy sidewalk. There's lots to see. It's chilly out, but I've got a nice hot plate of chips and a nice cold Coke.

               Why did I get a Coke when I could've had hot tea? Because my native Texan heritage keeps insisting that I drink cold things 'cause it's summer.

               What I really want to know is what's up with the pigeons around here? They don't fly away. I nearly stepped on one because it wouldn't move, and when I nudged it over with my foot, it turned around and looked offended. Brazen little things...

2:21 pm - pub
               Sittin' in a pub, having a drink. I went back to this one place under the bridge that I'd been through before. The last time I was here, it looked all ominous and spooky, but today this place is freakin' bursting with life! I found the Burough Market! It's like Walmart, only open-air and fun and it's not like Walmart at all. Actually, it's more like a really cool grocery store. There were stalls for breads, cheeses, wines, meats, preserves, teas, ethnic foods, and God knows what else. One stall had these big wooden buckets full of olives and sauces and other things, and you just dipped in with a wooden ladle. And the bakery stall had baked goods just sitting out, unwrapped.

               It looked very fresh, very natural, and each stall offered free samples. Tiny samples, but they were still good. I didn't want to take too many samples. Mostly because I thought it'd be rude to sample everything and buy nothing. But I couldn't, could I? We're leaving tomorrow, and I'd have to eat anything I bought before then because there's no way it would survive the trip home.

               I went and got some goat's milk ice cream, then wandered into this pub for a Smirnoff, and now I'm sitting at a table in the corner writing in this journal.

               Oh thank God, I can see the ladies' room from here.

               Anyhoo, the food here's not that bad. Little bland, though, but I think that depends on what you're eating and where you got it. The candy's so much sweeter that I'm used to. I tried jelly babies. I popped one in my mouth and in that same instant I felt my blood get thicker.

               Funny story about those jelly babies: Earlier this week, I went to the Tesco on the corner with a friend because we both needed some toiletries. They didn't have any travel-sized items, so we agreed to split some men's shave gel, and then buy some candy. I saw they had jelly babies, and my inner fangirl said "DO IT", so I bought a package. As we stood outside, I opened it up and saw that they were all covered in white, chalky powder.

               Now, this was the first time I'd seen a jelly baby close up. And where I'm from, if your candy is white and chalky, that means it's gone stale. Or you've intercepted a shipment of cocaine. After a quick debate, we decided that I should do the American thing and go back in the store to complain. There didn't seem to be any employees wandering around, or a customer service desk, so I had to stand in the big line again with my open bag and receipt, and wait until a cashier could take me.

               And it turned out that the cashier I got didn't speak English very well and had no idea what I was asking her, so we had to wait for another employee to come over.

               It's powdered sugar. They're supposed to look like that.

               I knew I was going to feel like a dumbass today.

10:13 pm
               Once I was finished at the pub, I wandered in the direction of the Globe. I actually found the original site. There's a housing place over it and you can't go look around, but they've set up a few signs commemorating the area. Then I went over to the new Globe. I've been there before, but we didn't get to see much of the museum. Instead, we spend most of the time touring the actual theatre. There was a play going on so I couldn't get into the theatre, but I was able to spend more time in the museum and check out everything I'd missed the last time.

               There was a dressing demonstration a few minutes after I entered. I went over to watch and ended up being the one getting dressed. No, really, I was sitting there waiting for the audience to show up and the two guys asked if I wouldn't mind being the model for the demonstration. I don't know if they do this all the time or if somebody didn't show up, but I happily volunteered to be the model.

               They seemed a little hesitant because they were essentially asking a complete stranger to strip to her undies and put on a linen shift, which is probably rude in most circumstances. But when I told them that it's okay, I'm a theatre student and used to dressing others and being dressed, they relaxed. They also seemed pleased that I was able to change clothes so quickly.

               They dressed me as Ophelia in full Elizabethan garb as they explained each bit of clothing. It was historically accurate and very heavy. But I was a very good model, I thought, and did the little turn-arounds and such on cue. I walked around and sat down, and learned that it takes a lot of planning for each step. It also prevented me from slouching or leaning back in the chair. The group that came to watch was mostly little old ladies, and now I wonder how many times I'm going to appear in their vacation photos.

               Afterward, a German guy gave me a flier for a theatre school in Germany. I need to find somebody who reads German to translate it for me. Then I went through the rest of the museum and soaked in the history. There were detailed explanations about historical costume-making, Elizabethan theatre in general, and the construction of the new Globe. At the end, they had a series of booths with panels of buttons that played recordings of famous actors doing Shakespeare. I went in and pressed every name I recognized. (Peter O'Toole, Laurence Olivier, Judy Dench, Derek Jacobi...)

               The museum was closing soon, so I had to cut the recordings a little short. I went back to the dorm to met up with my pen pal one last time to say goodbye. Guess what? I almost got hit by a car again. This time, it was so close that somebody had to yank me back at the last second and help me sit down for a few minutes.

               After doing a little packing, I decided to take one last walk around the neighborhood. Drink one last WKD...according to my friends, they don't sell that outside the UK. Shame. And now I'm finished, surprisingly. I'm going to bed before midnight this time, so I'm not too tired for the test tomorrow. Yeah, remember that? The test we probably should have taken before the knowledge leaked out of our ears? That's tomorrow! On the train! :D